The Recommender

I think it’s time to ask yourselves – why do you keep coming back to The Recommender? I’ll tell you why. In fact I’ve got three reasons listed directly below…

MARINA & THE DIAMONDS
Have you got an obsession for anything currently? Want one? Look no further than Marina Diamond (real name). As previously mentioned in The Recommender 18, 2009 will belong to the female solo artist. I know we had Lykke Li and Adele in 2008 and all, but they will be shown up to be as flat and lifeless as roadkill compared to the likes of V V Brown, Thecocknbullkid, Little Boots and now the wonderful Marina & The Diamonds. Like these others she has a massive talent, with a sharp ear for a penned and brilliantly constructed pop tune, but her skillful abilities are really found in her individuality and vocals. The obvious comparisons with Kate Bush will fly around with the tweaked vocal inflections and strong yet fragile voice. Stepping out from her Welsh home, this pop songstress will soon be living in your head. I’d make room for her if I were you. I list below the best track I’ve heard so far (from anybody) in 2009, Obsessions, yet I could have enjoyed any of the tunes she’s produced to date. It rolls from sweet piano-led intro to bouncing pop after approx 1 min and it’s at this moment the secret is truly revealed. Totally wonderful stuff…

Find her hear: Myspace

Hear her hear: MARINA & THE DIAMONDS - OBSESSIONS (ysi)

RED LIGHT COMPANY
This London 5-piece are a burst of melodic Indie Pop. There is plenty to like here with a real mix of influences and a range of sounds depending on which tune you catch from them. I attach below the bright and confident track, ‘With Lights Out’, sounding like it was stolen straight out of Brandon Flowers Killers handbag. Another cracking track they’ve done to date is ‘Scheme Eugene’, which has had a tasty remix done by James Yuill. It actually did the rounds a little back in Spring 2008, but I wouldn’t be surprised if you missed it. If you like a touch of The Polyphonic Spree‘s collective vocal echos, mixed with the power of Editors, then you should quickly fall for these guys. They are all lined up for a proper outing in 2009, as it sees them venture out on a UK tour through March, (except Brighton it seems!), so perhaps try to catch them then.

Find them here: Myspace

Hear them here: RED LIGHT COMPANY - WITH LIGHTS OUT (ysi)

VIVA CITY
I was sent an mp3 remix of one of their tunes, Audio Endlessly, by Don Diablo’s Manager. The Netherlands DJ, Don Diablo, had remixed the tune up somewhat, but rather than getting me to write about him, it was the song’s original authors, Viva City, that ended up pinching my attention. This Electro-Indie 4-piece from Newcastle are definitely more at the rock end of the genre, with their powerful guitars and black, spiky, glam image. It’s all pushing-your-crotch-out-whilst-you-play guitars, mixed with synths and a beat kept as much by a computer as the drummer. It’s good stuff and I list their strongest track to date, Kate Bush, below. Appearing on Kosheen’s label, VeRT, they bring us a taste of The Whip blended with power of The Futureheads. The biggest problem I have is that the vocals are too annoying, but thankfully not so much that you switch off. They seem to be trying to sing in an accent they don’t naturally have, rather than realising that part of The Futureheads magic, (just as with Maximo Park), is in their north east accents coming through. Sadly the lyrics don’t help – what does ‘Audio Endlesslessly’ actually mean!? However, there’s definitely enough promise here to take notice. Not ‘a hit’, not ‘a miss’, but definitely ‘a maybe’…

Find them here: Myspace

Hear them here:      VIVA CITY – KATE BUSH (ysi)

So that’s a wrap from another meandering lick up the cheek of new music for you. Hope you enjoyed it.

Thanks for all your support as always. Remember to subscribe, message me, comment and generally spread the love around as much as you can. Nice.
Mike