United Fruit survey the February singles
We join post-hardcore champs United Fruit in their Glasgow rehearsal space as they take a break from demoing album number two to pan for pop hits. There will be dub...
MATTHEW E. WHITE – BIG LOVE (25 Feb, Domino)
Marco Panagopoulos: That’s some Ian Brown-style synths right there.
Stuart Galbraith: I don’t think this is building to the crescendo that it could have. It feels quite flat.
Marco: I’d give it a six. It’s a good song, but it’s not inspiring.
THAO & THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN – ‘WE THE COMMON’ (4 Feb, Ribbon)
Iskander Stewart: I do like a good voice, with an emotional quality to it.
Marco: It has a southern twang to it, which is nice.
Iskander: It’s happy, sunshine music.
Stuart: I just feel a bit indifferent about it. I’d give it a five.
Marco: I don’t know if my seven brings it up to a six? Can we give half points?
The Skinny: I'm afraid we can't allow that.
Iskander: I think a six then.
RICHARD HAWLEY – DON’T STARE AT THE SUN (25 Feb, Parlophone)
Marco: This is one of the better songs I’ve heard from this guy. I don’t mind this at all.
Ross Jenkins: It sounds like it’s from Trigger Happy TV. A guy in a dog costume has just been attacked!
Marco: It totally does.
Stuart: I’ll give it an eight, then go buy the album and turn out all the lights.
BEARD OF WOLVES – WET MOUTH (4 Feb, Too Pure)
Ross: Nine! For that name alone, they get a nine.
Marco: It’s party rock, you would be drinking as you listen to this.
Iskander: Could you compare this to DZ Deathrays?
Marco: Yeah, it’s got that same vicious sound.
Iskander: I bet they are kick-ass live.
Marco: It’s like Marc Bolan meets Death From Above 1979.
Ross: It’s my favourite so far. I’m going to step out and say nine.
Stuart: They got an extra point for being called Beard of Wolves.
DIZRAELI AND THE SMALL GODS – MILLION MILES (18 Feb, ECC)
Iskander: I’m a sucker for strings and big beats. It’s like Immortal Technique.
Ross: I like the music, I like the girl singing, but I just can’t get the guy rapping in a Scottish accent.
Marco: Is he Scottish though?
Stuart: (reading press release) It says here that he’s not.
Ross: I stand corrected.
The Skinny: He could be deliberately rapping in a Scottish accent?
Ross: [laughing] In that case it’s insulting!
Marco: I liked the music and I liked her voice. I’d give that a seven.
WOLF ALICE – FLUFFY (11 Feb, Chess Club)
Stuart: This is very 90s Britpop.
Iskander: I like 90s Britpop!
Stuart: It sounds a bit like Sleeper.
Iskander: I like Sleeper!
Marco: It's a really crap name. But then we've got a cheek to talk!
Iskander: I feel it’s a bit choppy, it starts and stops and doesn’t really get going. Five?
Stuart: It’s more a three.
Iskander: I’m like this with movies. There’s always certain scenes that I like.
Ross: I always enjoy the trailer more than the film.
Stuart: They should have condensed this song into 30 seconds.
Iskander: It’s a five.
JONNIE COMMON – FIGUREHEAD (18 Feb, Red Deer Club)
Ross: It’s a synth-pop Proclaimers!
Marco: It sounds like he’s written a song to one of the six programmed beats in his Casio keyboard.
Ross: If there’s more than one person in the band, they should have a word with him.
Iskander: People might say our band is Americanised, it’s open to debate, but I’ve heard this kind of Scottish melancholy so many times. But to be fair, this is really the kind of song where you’d have to spend time getting to know the lyrics. You can’t judge them after hearing them once. I’d say it was a six.
Marco: I definitely wouldn’t go higher than that.
Stuart: I think it’s worth a diplomatic six.
Ross: I hope none of these bands are practising next door. That could get awkward!
DEAD SONS – THE HOLLERS & THE HYMNS (18 Feb, BeReyt)
Marco: It sounds like The Coral got into a fight with The 80s Matchbox B-Line Disaster.
Stuart: And both bands lost.
Marco: I’d still definitely give it a six.
Stuart: I wouldn’t be that generous...
FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND – THE DISTANCE (25 Feb, Distiller)
Iskander: Really? I didn’t think they were still going.
Stuart: [reading press release] ‘The Distance is a song about being in a van, on tour travelling around in foreign countries during the summer and going crazy because the van only had one small window and no air-con.’
Ross: They’ve run out of things to be sad about, so they’re singing about having no air-con.
Marco: The vocals ruin this so badly. It’s stock emo melodies.
Iskander: Let's say three. It’s really, really bad.
DOBIE – SHE MOANS (18 Feb, Big Dada)
Stuart: It’s Thom Yorke solo!
Iskander: It’s a deconstruction of dubstep. I’d dance to this. I’ve done it, I’ve been to Jungle parties. This is tapping into my roots! Dancing with girls with dreadlocks.
Marco: For that, it has to get at least a six.
THE CHILD OF LOV – GIVE ME (25 Feb, Double Six)
Iskander: There’s a lot to be said about the production of this. It really brings out the dynamics – that’s such a cool guitar part. It's got a real Outkast feeling about it.
Marco: Damon Albarn’s involved in the album, apparently. I like this song. It’s proper dirty, scrappy hip-hop. It's how Odd Future would sound like if they started a band.
Iskander: Yeah! I like this. This is a nine.
SINGLE OF THE MONTH: PETITE NOIR – DISAPPEAR (18 Feb, Double Six)
Marco: [impressed] It’s the reinvention of soul!
Iskander: This is good, there’s a lot of different styles, a lot to take in.
Ross: [dismissively] This is daytime radio...
Iskander: [genuinely surprised] You think? It’s too raw. There’s no big chorus...
Marco: This is couch music. It’s four am, you’re crashed out...
Stuart: I think it’s decent...
Marco: I’d say both this and The Child of Lov are nines, but I’d give the single of the month to this.
Ross: Yeah, Damon Albarn doesn’t need the money.
Iskander: Petite Noir is a bit more edgy!