Girls Aloud – Spirit of Dee

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #84

4 July 20184 July 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 84 equals Now! #84, which came out on 25th March 2013.

Let’s see what the hits were that spring.

Now! That's What I Call Music #84
Track 1: One Direction – One Way Or Another (Teenage Kicks)

Pointless cover mash-up of Blondie’s One Way Or Another and the Undertones’ Teenage Kicks. This was the Comic Relief single for 2013, so I guess charity fundraising is the excuse for ruining both of these classic songs.

Track 2: will.i.am and Britney Spears – Scream And Shout

I really like this danceable track, especially the well-done callback to Gimme More.

Track 3: Taylor Swift – I Knew You Were Trouble

I quite like this tune, and it’s got a good atmosphere.

Track 4: Pink and Nate Ruess – Just Give Me A Reason

Great song – love the way the duet works here.

Track 5: Rihanna – Diamonds

Another pretty tune. Very nice.

Track 6: Bastille – Pompeii

Epic and anthemic – love this one.

Track 7: James Arthur – Impossible

The annual inclusion of the most recent X Factor winner, this year doing a pointless cover of Shontelle’s Impossible, which was not a great song to begin with.

Track 8: Olly Murs and Flo Rida – Troublemaker

I quite like this jaunty track – it’s got a great singalong chorus.

Track 9: Bruno Mars – Locked Out Of Heaven

This is from my favourite Bruno Mars era, when he started doing all these pastiches of artists that were big circa 1980. This song sounds like it should have been released by the Police.

Track 10: Kesha – Die Young

Nice beat, but the tune’s pretty forgettable.

Track 11: Bridgit Mendler – Ready Or Not

Irritating vocals, boring tune, and the chorus has a poorly-done interpolation of the Delfonics ’60s song (which was already done much better by the Fugees). Nothing impressive here.

Track 12: Little Mix – DNA

Great epic atmosphere, but the tune’s a bit weak.

Track 13: The Saturdays and Sean Paul – What About Us

Another bland, forgettable song.

Track 14: Girls Aloud – Something New

Love this one! Girls Aloud sort of came to a natural finish at the end of the ’00s, and so this special tenth anniversary track is really the only thing they’ve done as a group this decade. Better one cracker than lots of poor tracks, though, and this song is great.

Track 15: Nicole Scherzinger – Boomerang

Good rhythm, but this is another uninspired tune.

Track 16: Disclosure and Sam Smith – Latch

I appreciate that it’s a bit different from most stuff that was in the charts at the time, but it’s not my kind of thing – the tune is generic and I’m not into this kind of chillout/trance stuff.

Track 17: Rita Ora – Radioactive

I usually get this one confused with the identically-titled Imagine Dragons song that came out around the same time. This one’s probably my less-preferred (though there’s not much in it – the Imagine Dragons song is pretty dull too), because the tune’s very bland, but it does have a good electro backing track.

Track 18: Alicia Keys – Girl On Fire

I quite like the instrumentals, but the tune on the vocals annoys me.

Track 19: Christina Perri – A Thousand Years

Boring ballad off the Twilight soundtrack, but at least she doesn’t sound quite as horribly off-key as she does in Jar Of Hearts.

Track 20: Emeli Sandé – Clown

I find the theme a bit awkward, and it’s too slow for me.

Track 21: Gabrielle Aplin – The Power Of Love

This was one of the first of the big ‘Christmas advert’ hits that have been a feature of Christmas music this decade. Take a classic song, record a slow, melancholy, piano-based cover with female vocals, slap it over the top of an expensive John Lewis Christmas advert, debut the advert during an X Factor ad break in early November, job done. Christmas classic guaranteed.

Of course, this was already a Christmas classic, and has been ever since Frankie Goes To Hollywood released the original in 1984. Gabrielle Aplin’s version is very pretty, but it doesn’t have the pure emotional power of the Frankie version – Holly Johnson’s performance of the second verse is capable of moving me to tears when I’m in the right place, and Aplin just can’t compare. Still, it is enjoyable, even if July is really not when I want to be hearing Christmas songs.

Track 22: Avicii and Nicky Romero – I Could Be The One

I love this dance track – obviously it’s got a great beat, but there’s also something very wistful about the vocals. I actually can’t think of anyone who was better than Avicii (RIP) at emotion-inducing EDM.

Track 23: Bingo Players and Far East Movement – Get Up (Rattle)

Daft tune, but it’s a good head-nodder.

Track 24: Pitbull and TJR – Don’t Stop The Party

Messy and irritating.

Track 25: Calvin Harris and Tinie Tempah – Drinking From The Bottle

Good beat, and I really like Tinie Tempah’s rap on this one.

Track 26: Dizzee Rascal – Bassline Junkie

Daft theme, but I find it very funny. Good stuff.

Track 27: Wiley, Chipmunk and Dayo Olatunji – Reload

Boring tune, and there’s too much going on with the track.

Track 28: Rudimental, John Newman and Alex Clare – Not Giving In

Slow and dull intro, and the tune’s very irritating.

Track 29: Conor Maynard and Wiley – Animal

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Wiley on track 27.

The rap’s very bland, as is the tune, and the whole thing’s just a bit repetitive.

Track 30: Disclosure and AlunaGeorge – White Noise

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Disclosure on track 16.

This one takes ages to get going. The electro hook’s okay, but the vocals are super bland.

Track 31: Devlin and Diane Birch – Rewind

Another very forgettable song. Also, part of the melody on the chorus rips off Heart’s Alone, which has been an irritating theme in recent Now! compilations.

Track 32: Lawson – Standing In The Dark

A little more upbeat than previous Lawson tracks, but it’s still a very bland, saccharine song.

Track 33: Biffy Clyro – Black Chandelier

I saw Biffy Clyro once. It was the worst gig I’ve ever been to. Not because of Biffy Clyro, I hasten to add – they were fine to listen to, although the heavier stuff they were playing as the second support band in 2003 wasn’t really my thing. The main act was Linkin Park, who were okay (and I am glad I got to see them given sad future events), but the SECC in Glasgow had done this thing (I don’t know if it was by band request or what) where they barriered off a huge semicircle around the stage and only let about fifteen people into it, leaving the remaining hundreds of gig-goers to squash uncomfortably round the outside of the barrier and completely ruining the atmosphere. The only person onstage who seemed to be on the audience’s side was Ian Watkins of Lostprophets, the main support band, and I don’t really want to give him credit seeing as how he turned out to be a sex offender.

Anyway, I never went back to the SECC again. Barrowlands all the way if it was a Glasgow gig, even if I did lose a lot of brain cells and earrings over the years through being booted in the head by crowdsurfers.

I think what I’m trying to say is that this song’s a lot more interesting than the stuff Biffy were doing back in 2003. I quite like the vocal hook at the start, and the chorus is great.

Track 34: Fall Out Boy – My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)

There’s a nice atmospheric chant-along bit on this one – quite like the track.

Track 35: McFly – Love Is Easy

Twee and irritating. I should note that Geth appreciated the It’s A Wonderful Life sample though.

Track 36: Ben Howard – Only Love

I find this tune pretty annoying.

Track 37: The Lumineers – Ho Hey

It’s a bit twee, but it’s quite a nice, jaunty song.

Track 38: One Direction – Little Things

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had One Direction on track 1.

This one is an irritating saccharine ballad with an irritating black and white video where One Direction sit around and play acoustic guitars in an attempt to look like serious musicians. The song was apparently written by Ed Sheeran, which will surprise no one.

It was also number one on Geth’s and my wedding day, which is far from ideal.

Track 39: Pink – Try

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Pink on track 4.

This one is a gorgeous tune though – really like it.

Track 40: Gabrielle Aplin – Please Don’t Say You Love Me

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Gabrielle Aplin on track 21.

The only thing this song achieves is proving that she should have been a one-hit wonder. Dull and uninspired.

Track 41: Fleetwood Mac – Everywhere

1987 classic, back in the charts due to a mobile phone advert. Not complaining here at all – I’m very partial to Fleetwood Mac, and this is one of my favourites.

Track 42: Ellie Goulding – Explosions

Not keen on that choral bit at the start, and on the whole it’s too slow for me and I don’t find the tune interesting enough.

Track 43: The Justice Collective – He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother

‘Not on Spotify’ Type 2: YouTube Pause (TM).

Charity cover of the ’60s classic to raise funds for Hillsborough victims’ charities, and the Christmas number one for 2012. Some good voice-spotting to be done here.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #73

23 June 201823 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 73 means Now! #73, which was released on 20th July 2009.

Time for some summer hits! With bonus electropop, because 2009.

Now! That's What I Call Music #73
Track 1: Lady Gaga – Poker Face

Great electropop tune, very danceable. It’s become a bit of a classic.

Track 2: Cascada – Evacuate The Dancefloor

Good atmosphere on this one, with some great electro hooks.

Track 3: David Guetta and Kelly Rowland – When Love Takes Over

Great beat, but I find the tune on the chorus pretty irritating.

Track 4: Calvin Harris – I’m Not Alone

Dull tune, and the acoustic-y intro is jarring with the main electro dance bit.

Track 5: La Roux – In For The Kill

Wonderful, atmospheric electro track. I’ve always really liked this one.

Track 6: Tinchy Stryder and N-Dubz – Number 1

Fittingly, this did get to number one in the charts at the time. Good beat, good tune.

Track 7: AR Rahman and The Pussycat Dolls – Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)

Love that Eastern tinge – great chant-along track.

Track 8: Chipmunk and Emeli Sandé – Diamond Rings

Good rhythm on this one – I like the jazz-tinged backing track.

Track 9: Lily Allen – Not Fair

Awesome tune, love the lyrics.

Track 10: Pixie Lott – Mama Do (Uh Oh, Uh Oh)

Great, classic big band sound – really like this tune.

Track 11: Pink – Please Don’t Leave Me

Love the guitar riff, but the vocals are a bit cheesy for my liking.

Track 12: The Veronicas – Untouched

Lovely instrumentals, great ’80s tinge. Good track, only spoilt by the irritating vocals.

Track 13: Katy Perry – Waking Up In Vegas

Good rock edge, great lyrics. Quite like this one.

Track 14: Girls Aloud – Untouchable

Lovely atmospheric ’80s-tinged guitar intro, pretty tune on the vocals. Very nice.

Track 15: Agnes – Release Me

I find the tune on this pretty irritating, and the instrumentals very generic. Not keen.

Track 16: Freemasons and Sophie Ellis-Bextor – Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)

Great atmospheric track – yet more ’80s-tinged electropop! I’d forgotten how much I liked 2009 for music.

Track 17: Alesha Dixon – Let’s Get Excited

Good beat, good solid bit of pop. Happily nodding along.

Track 18: The Saturdays – Work

Love the electro instrumentals – another awesome pop track.

Track 19: Take That – Up All Night

It’s a little too acoustic-y for my liking, but I do appreciate the ’60s tinge.

Track 20: Britney Spears – If U Seek Amy

Let’s gloss over the juvenile title. The instrumentals are great and the atmosphere is nice and epic.

Track 21: Jordin Sparks – Battlefield

Irritating vocals, but I suppose the tune is quite nice.

Track 22: Shontelle and Akon – Stuck With Each Other

Uninspired tune, boring vocals. Not a fan of this track.

Track 23: Beyoncé – Halo

Gorgeous tune, great atmosphere. This is the kind of ballad I can get behind.

Track 24: Daniel Merriweather – Red

This one, meanwhile, is a boring, slow ballad. Not for me.

Track 25: Keri Hilson, Kanye West and Ne-Yo – Knock You Down

There’s some nice electro lines here, but I find the vocals pretty dull.

Track 26: Ciara and Justin Timberlake – Love Sex Magic

Love that ’70s-style funk. Great beat, very danceable.

Track 27: The Black Eyed Peas – Boom Boom Pow

Another great chant-along track – happily chair-dancing here again!

Track 28: Soulja Boy and Sammie – Kiss Me Thru The Phone

Some very irritating and jarring electro hooks and vocals going on here, but the atmosphere’s quite good.

Track 29: Akon, Kardinal Offishall and Colby O’Donis – Beautiful

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Akon on track 22.

Very generic dance tune, boring vocals that sound like everything else released at the time.

Track 30: Flo Rida and Wynter Gordon – Sugar

Obviously I love the daft sampling of Eiffel 65’s Blue (Da Ba Dee). The rest of the track is pretty messy and uninspired though!

Track 31: Ironik, Chipmunk and Elton John – Tiny Dancer (Hold Me Closer)

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Chipmunk on track 8.

The track’s based around a sample of the 1972 original, hence the Elton John credit. It sounds fairly terrible with all that rapping over the top.

Track 32: Pitbull – I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)

Bonus points for the sample from The Bomb! (These Sounds Fall Into My Mind), and I do like the Latin tinge, even if the rap is a bit generic.

Track 33: Dizzee Rascal and Armand Van Helden – Bonkers

Great dance tune, brilliant vocal hook – big fan of this one.

Track 34: The Prodigy – Warrior’s Dance

Gorgeous, atmospheric tune on the intro – then it launches into a highly danceable bass-driven track. Great stuff.

Track 35: 3OH!3 – Don’t Trust Me

Another very danceable track, and a good tune.

Track 36: Kasabian – Fire

Iconic guitar riff, builds wonderfully. Love this tune.

Track 37: Florence & The Machine – Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)

Lovely atmosphere, gorgeous vocals. Very nice track.

Track 38: Noisettes – Never Forget You

Great mid-century retro feel, with a nice reggae beat mixed in there as well.

Track 39: Little Boots – New In Town

Not keen on the stop-start intro, and the tune’s not very interesting.

Track 40: James Morrison – Please Don’t Stop The Rain

I quite like the piano and the atmosphere, but the vocals are too saccharine for me.

Track 41: Paolo Nutini – Candy

It’s the kind of instrumentals that would normally be too acoustic-y for me, but I quite like them. The vocals, on the other hand, are just annoying.

Track 42: Empire Of The Sun – We Are The People

More acoustic guitar, but again I quite like it – it’s very atmospheric. Lovely tune.

Track 43: Deadmau5 and Kaskade – I Remember

Fairly uninspired dance tune, but it’s another track that’s got quite a nice atmosphere.

Track 44: Chicane – Poppiholla

Instrumental cover of the Sigur Rós classic Hoppípolla. It’s a lovely tune, and this reworking is very nice.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #72

22 June 201822 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 72 brings us to Now! #72, which came out on 6th April 2009.

2009 really brought the electropop, from what I remember, so let’s get cracking!

Now! That's What I Call Music #72
Track 1: Lily Allen – The Fear

Great tune, great lyrics. I’ve always really liked this one.

Track 2: Lady Gaga and Colby O’Donis – Just Dance

Awesome danceable piece of electropop.

Track 3: Flo Rida and Kesha – Right Round

It’s based around the hook from Dead Or Alive’s You Spin Me Round (Like A Record), so I was always going to like this one. Flo Rida’s rap style actually goes really nicely with it.

Track 4: Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing

Alesha Dixon’s post-Strictly solo comeback song. Love this tune, and the retro big band feel is much appreciated.

Track 5: The Saturdays – Just Can’t Get Enough

Pointless cover of the Depeche Mode classic, and one of the official Comic Relief singles for 2009 (so charity fundraising, as ever, is the ‘point’).

Track 6: Kelly Clarkson – My Life Would Suck Without You

This one’s pretty acclaimed, but I’ve always found the tune and theme really annoying.

Track 7: Tinchy Stryder and Taio Cruz – Take Me Back

Nice atmosphere – I like the electro lines.

Track 8: Kid Cudi and Crookers – Day ‘N’ Nite

Boring, repetitive tune, with some irritating vocal tics going on.

Track 9: Britney Spears – Womaniser

Great pop track – love the hooks on this one.

Track 10: TI and Rihanna – Live Your Life

It’s based around the hook from O-Zone’s Dragostea Din Tei, which gives the track quite an interesting sound.

Track 11: Akon – Right Now (Na Na Na)

Nice tune, quite like this one.

Track 12: Shontelle – T-Shirt

Interesting vocals, but I find the tune very generic.

Track 13: Ne-Yo – Mad

Boring tune, annoyingly saccharine vocals.

Track 14: The Saturdays – Issues

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had the Saturdays on track 5.

I quite like the rhyming of the lyrics on this one, but the tune’s a bit dull. The Saturdays did much better songs later on.

Track 15: Leona Lewis – Forgive Me

Great vocals, great atmosphere, but the tune’s pretty forgettable.

Track 16: Girls Aloud – The Loving Kind

Another boring tune, and the vocals make it a bit too ballad-y for me.

Track 17: September – Can’t Get Over

Good beat, good electro lines. The vocals are a little generic though.

Track 18: Steve Angello, Laidback Luke and Robin S – Show Me Love

Semi-cover of Robin S’s 1993 hit, mashed up with various other things. It’s not very inspired. See my Now! #24 review for the original song.

Track 19: N-Dubz – Strong Again

Boring tune, but I quite like some of the vocal hooks.

Track 20: Katy Perry – Thinking Of You

Dull ballad, not keen on this one.

Track 21: Alexandra Burke – Hallelujah

The annual bit of karaoke from the X Factor winner. To give credit to Alexandra Burke, this is not a pointless cover: there have been so many different and beautiful versions of the Leonard Cohen classic, and she did put her own stamp on it, but it just doesn’t have as much feeling in it as classic versions like those of Jeff Buckley or Rufus Wainwright.

Speaking of the X Factor…

Track 22: X Factor Finalists 2008 – Hero

There was an annoying trend in the late ’00s/early ’10s where the final twelve contestants in the X Factor would release a group single with everyone getting a line, which, just like the winner’s single, was inevitably a pointless cover of a classic song. This meant that everyone who was interested in pop music but didn’t care about the X Factor had to put up with not one but two irritating karaoke numbers in the charts around Christmas time. 2008’s offering was a pointless cover of the Mariah Carey song. (As often happens, the ‘point’ was charity fundraising, this time for Help For Heroes and the Royal British Legion. Charity fundraising = awesome! Releasing a soulless, uninspired remake of an existing song = not awesome.)

Track 23: Take That – Greatest Day

It should feel epic and sweeping – but I just find the tune irritating. I’m not sure why.

Track 24: Alesha Dixon – Breathe Slow

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Alesha Dixon on track 4.

This one’s got a nice backing track, but the tune is fairly generic.

Track 25: James Morrison and Nelly Furtado – Broken Strings

Irritatingly cheesy and slow ballad. Not my cup of tea.

Track 26: Taylor Swift – Love Story

Super saccharine soft pop-rock! Again, not my thing. I prefer Taylor Swift’s more pure pop stuff from the early-to-mid-’10s.

Track 27: Pink – Sober

Nice guitar, interesting theme, but the tune’s pretty dull.

Track 28: The Killers – Human

I still remember people getting irritated about the grammar of the line ‘are we human or are we dancer‘. Would it sound better and less jarring if the lyric was ‘dancers‘? Yes. Is it grammatically incorrect? Technically, no. Brandon Flowers is using ‘dancer‘ to mean a sort of faux-species here, and the use of the singular as an adjective in the same way that ‘human‘ can be used as an adjective is, I believe, meant to emphasise this.

Anyway, it’s quite a good tune.

Track 29: The Script – Breakeven

I’m generally not keen on this kind of soft rock, and this is no exception. Bland tune, very forgettable.

Track 30: Jason Mraz – I’m Yours

I find this kind of cheery, bouncy, acoustic-y track really irritating. Sorry!

Track 31: Noisettes – Don’t Upset The Rhythm (Go Baby Go)

Great bassline, lovely bit of electropop. Really like this one.

Track 32: Metro Station – Shake It

Really like the instrumentals on this track – great guitar, great synth. It all adds up to a nice retro ’80s tinge, which I’m all about!

Track 33: U2 – Get On Your Boots

Interesting vocals, good guitar line, quite like this one.

Track 34: MGMT – Kids

Oh, it’s this one! Lovely electro hook, great bassline.

Track 35: The Prodigy – Omen

I saw the Prodigy at M’era Luna 2009, and this song was the anthem of the weekend, with everyone singing it all over the place. Great dance track, builds beautifully, wonderful atmosphere.

Track 36: Kevin Rudolf and Lil’ Wayne – Let It Rock

Another great bassline and another awesome atmosphere – good track.

Track 37: Wiley and Daniel Merriweather – Cash In My Pocket

I like the ’60s retro tinge on this one.

Track 38: Kanye West – Heartless

Nice tune, quite like this track.

Track 39: TI and Justin Timberlake – Dead And Gone

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had TI on track 10.

Nice piano intro, nice epic atmosphere. Great stuff, though it would be better without the rap.

Track 40: Daniel Merriweather and Wale – Change

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Daniel Merriweather on track 37. Give someone else a chance, Now! compilers!

This is a great track, though – lovely tinkly piano, good beat.

Track 41: Pet Shop Boys – Love Etc.

Nice to see Pet Shop Boys back in the charts. I have missed that perfect synth! Wonderful tune.

Track 42: Duffy – Rain On Your Parade

More great instrumentals! Lovely atmosphere on this one.

Track 43: Vanessa Jenkins, Bryn West, Tom Jones and Robin Gibb – Islands In The Stream

Daft semi-cover (semi due to Robin Gibb’s involvement) of the Bee Gees-written song made famous by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton, featuring comedy characters Vanessa Jenkins (Ruth Jones) and Bryn West (Rob Brydon) from the sitcom Gavin & Stacey. This was another song released for Comic Relief 2009. The video‘s funny, but the song’s a bit pedestrian until Tom Jones shows up at the end.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #71

21 June 201821 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 71 equals Now! #71, which came out on 17th November 2008.

Let’s see what the Christmas party songs were that year.

Now! That's What I Call Music #71
Track 1: Girls Aloud – The Promise

Nice feelgood retro-tinged tune, quite like this one.

Track 2: Katy Perry – I Kissed A Girl

Appalling theme, but it’s a great pop tune.

Track 3: Pink – So What

Another classic from Lego Rock Band that I used to drum along to. Love this chant-along track.

Track 4: Kings Of Leon – Sex On Fire

Daft lyrics that everyone took the piss out of at the time, but it’s a great rock tune and has turned into a bit of a classic.

Track 5: Kid Rock – All Summer Long

Feelgood nostalgic song based around the riff from Sweet Home Alabama. I’ve actually always quite liked this one.

Track 6: Rihanna – Disturbia

Great atmosphere – quite like this tune.

Track 7: Ne-Yo – Miss Independent

Great electro hook, but the vocals are a bit too saccharine for me.

Track 8: The Pussycat Dolls – When I Grow Up

Another great chant-along chorus. Really like this track.

Track 9: Madcon – Beggin’

Good beat, nice retro tune – happily nodding along.

Track 10: Chris Brown – Forever

Nice feelgood atmosphere, but I find the tune pretty dull.

Track 11: Jennifer Hudson – Spotlight

I find the vocals on this ballad pretty generic, but the backing track is lovely.

Track 12: James Morrison – You Make It Real

Boring and slow, with an irritating tune. Not keen.

Track 13: Will Young – Changes

Another one that’s too slow for me, but the retro-tinged tune’s quite interesting.

Track 14: Jordin Sparks – Tattoo

Cheesy vocals, too slow, but there’s some interesting stuff going on in the background.

Track 15: Geraldine McQueen – The Winner’s Song

How many tracks have there been during this Now! project where I’ve mentioned that I’ve got a soft spot for the song because it was used to great effect in Peter Kay’s Britain’s Got The Pop Factor, his brilliant X Factor parody? Well, I’ve lost count, but it’s been a lot, and now we’ve finally got to autumn 2008, when it was first shown on TV (I can’t believe it’s nearly a decade old – Geth and I still watch the DVD every Christmas). This ballad was written specially for the show’s fictional winner, Geraldine McQueen (by Gary Barlow no less), neatly parodying the overblown ballads that were always released as X Factor winners’ singles at the time.

Incidentally, while Geraldine is supposed to be Northern Irish, you can hear Peter Kay’s Lancashire accent a mile off in his singing voice.

Track 16: Sugababes – Girls

Great pop track based around Here Come The Girls, a ’70s song that never really took off at the time but was eventually used in a series of Boots adverts in 2007. Love this tune.

Track 17: The Saturdays – Up

Nice danceable track, good solid pop.

Track 18: Boyzone – Love You Anyway

Great instrumentals – quite like this one.

Track 19: Katy Perry – Hot N Cold

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Katy Perry on track 2. It’s a particularly egregious repetition as both tracks are solo singles, though I suppose they have both become pop classics.

This one I always enjoyed dancing to on Just Dance for the Wii. Between that and Lego Rock Band, this era of the Now! project is really making me want to plug the Wii back in!

Track 20: Sash! and Stunt – Raindrops (Encore Une Fois)

Mash-up of Sash!’s Encore Une Fois and Stunt’s Raindrops. It’s not horrible – even if I still don’t think these tracks work together at all – but I’ll definitely be lining up the original Encore Une Fois to listen to after this playlist is done.

Track 21: Basshunter – Angel In The Night

Takes a while to get going. Once it does, there’s some random rock guitar that doesn’t go with the dance track, but I like rock guitar so I’m going to let it slide just this once.

Track 22: Eric Prydz – Pjanoo

Great piano hook, as you might expect from the title. Good stuff.

Track 23: Steve Mac – Paddy’s Revenge

Dance track with Irish music over the top. It sounds bizarre but it actually works okay.

Track 24: Coldplay – Viva La Vida

One of the few Coldplay tracks that I actually unashamedly like. This is a great tune with a wonderful atmosphere.

Track 25: The Script – The Man Who Can’t Be Moved

A bit cheesy and soft-rock for my liking.

Track 26: Razorlight – Wire To Wire

Nice tune, nice atmosphere. Good track.

Track 27: Noah & The Whale – 5 Years’ Time

This is from the early years when Laura Marling was still with the band, and her backing vocals are really great on this. Lovely tune.

Track 28: Iglu & Hartly – In This City

There are some interesting instrumentals going on, but the tune’s very generic and forgettable.

Track 29: The Ting Tings – Shut Up And Let Me Go

My favourite of the Ting Tings’ hits. Great beat, awesome chant-along track.

Track 30: Kaiser Chiefs – Never Miss A Beat

Nice tune – bit of a ’60s rock tinge, too.

Track 31: Snow Patrol – Take Back The City

Boring tune, not particularly keen on this one.

Track 32: The Verve – Love Is Noise

Lots of messy, irritating lines. Pretty awful.

Track 33: Guru Josh Project – Infinity 2008 [Klaas Vocal Edit]

Remix of the 1989 track. The instrumental hook’s okay, but I could do without the other stuff going on with this one.

Track 34: Christian Falk and Robyn – Dream On

Irritating vocals, but I quite like the backing track.

Track 35: Duffy – Stepping Stone

Nice atmosphere, but it’s too slow for me.

Track 36: Flobots – Handlebars

Daft theme, daft instrumentals. Quite like this one.

Track 37: Keane – Spiralling

Messy, but I appreciate the retro tinge.

Track 38: McFly – Lies

Another good retro feel to this track.

Track 39: Alphabeat – Boyfriend

Good solid piece of electropop – really like this one.

Track 40: Biffy Clyro – Mountains

Once it gets going, this is a cracking rock song.

Track 41: Ida Maria – I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked

Boring tune, nowhere near as good as the title suggests. The chorus is okay, though.

Track 42: Little Jackie – The World Should Revolve Around Me

Nice feelgood atmosphere, but again the tune’s just not interesting enough for me.

Track 43: Gym Class Heroes and The-Dream – Cookie Jar

Another nice atmosphere, but the song’s pretty forgettable.

Track 44: Taio Cruz – She’s Like A Star

Quite a nice tune, but it’s a little repetitive.

Track 45: Platnum – Love Shy (Thinking About You)

Fairly generic dance track. This Now! compilation has generally tailed off in quite a rubbish way.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #70

20 June 201820 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 70,and we’ve reached Now! #70, which came out on 21st July 2008.

Let’s see what those summer hits were that year.

Now! That's What I Call Music #70
Track 1: Estelle and Kanye West – American Boy

Great tune. There were a couple of good dances to this on Strictly at the time, so I mainly associate it with that.

Track 2: Dizzee Rascal, Calvin Harris and Chrome – Dance Wiv Me

Great track – love the rhythm, love the chorus. Highly danceable.

Track 3: Mint Royale – Singin’ In The Rain

Cover of the musical classic with weird messy remix-y bits. There’s about three good tracks here all mashed together into one bad one.

Track 4: Sam Sparro – Black And Gold

Great atmosphere, quite like this one.

Track 5: Duffy – Warwick Avenue

Nice tune, but it’s too slow for me.

Track 6: Sara Bareilles – Love Song

I like the piano, but the vocals are pretty generic.

Track 7: Gabriella Cilmi – Sweet About Me

Great tune, awesome theme. Big fan of this track.

Track 8: Ne-Yo – Closer

Lovely tune – I really like the instrumentals, and the chorus is gorgeous.

Track 9: Girls Aloud – Can’t Speak French

Good rhythm, but there’s something that’s always annoyed me about the theme of this one.

Track 10: Kylie Minogue – In My Arms

Not massively keen on this track – it’s a bit messy for me and I don’t think much of the tune.

Track 11: Sugababes – Denial

Quite like the beat on this one, and it’s not a bad tune either – good to nod along to.

Track 12: Jonas Brothers – SOS

Awful cheesy kiddie-sounding vocals, dodgy faux pop-pop-punk sound. Not a fan.

Track 13: Alphabeat – 10,000 Nights

Quite like the retro-tinged piano, but the tune annoys me.

Track 14: The Ting Tings – That’s Not My Name

Great chant-along track, but I prefer the other two big Ting Tings hits from that year – fingers crossed they’re on future Now! editions!

Track 15: The Kooks – Always Where I Need To Be

I like the guitar on the intro, but in general this one sounds a bit uninspired and forgettable to me.

Track 16: Pendulum – Propane Nightmares

Great atmosphere, love the instrumentals – and that electro hook is great.

Track 17: Black Kids – I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You

Quite like the backing track, but the tune’s pretty dull.

Track 18: Scouting For Girls – Heartbeat

Interesting instrumentals, but again I’m not keen on the main tune.

Track 19: The Feeling – Turn It Up

Nice tune, interesting piano bit. Quite like this one.

Track 20: The Hoosiers – Cops And Robbers

Great theme, awesome atmosphere to go with it. Brilliant track.

Track 21: Paul Weller – Have You Made Up Your Mind

Nice classic sound, but I find the tune a bit bland.

Track 22: Coldplay – Violet Hill

Takes ages to get going. When it does, though, it’s a nice tune with a classic rock feel and a good atmosphere.

Track 23: Rihanna – Take A Bow

Lovely tune, quite like this one.

Track 24: Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown – No Air

It’s a nice tune, but I find the vocals really overblown.

Track 25: will.i.am and Cheryl – Heartbreaker

It’s an okay tune, but 3 Words was a much better collaboration between these two.

Track 26: Usher and Young Jeezy – Love In This Club

Quite like the tune on the backing track, but the vocal’s pretty boring.

Track 27: Mariah Carey – Touch My Body

Daft, awkward theme, and the song’s just not my thing – I find it a bit irritating.

Track 28: Leona Lewis – Better In Time

Nice piano, but the tune is pretty dull, and it’s too slow for me.

Track 29: Chris Brown – With You

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Chris Brown on track 24.

Boring and cheesy song – not my thing.

Track 30: Ironik – Stay With Me

Lovely tune on the backing track, but then there’s a lot of clashing sung vocals (which are a hideous chipmunk-tuned sample of Westlife’s Written In The Stars) and rapping and it all gets far too messy.

Track 31: Taio Cruz – I Can Be

Some interesting instrumentals, but again the vocals are not doing it for me.

Track 32: The Script – We Cry

Nice atmosphere, with a slight eerie-ness about it. The vocals are really uninspired though.

Track 33: Britney Spears – Break The Ice

Another great backing track with so-so vocals over the top.

Track 34: Timbaland, Nicole Scherzinger and Keri Hilson – Scream

Good atmosphere, but there’s too much going on in this track for my liking.

Track 35: Flo Rida and T-Pain – Low

This one’s a favourite of mine, largely for the lyric ‘the baggy sweatpants and the Reeboks with the straps‘. This is referring to the Reebok Freestyle Hi, which is my favourite trainer of all time (I have them in seven different colours), though I never wear them with sweatpants unless I need a warm layer for walking to exercise classes in the winter – leggings or jeans all the way otherwise! The epic atmosphere is just a bonus.

Track 36: Wiley – Wearing My Rolex

Good dance beat, daft theme, good bit of grime. I find this one quite endearing.

Track 37: DJ Q and MC Bonez – You Wot!

It’s a bit messy, but it’s very danceable.

Track 38: Basshunter – All I Ever Wanted

Classic dance tune. I should find the vocal hook irritating, but I actually quite like it.

Track 39: Scooter – Jumping All Over The World

Daft theme as ever from Scooter. Irritatingly messy, but I LOVE that sample from Sailor’s A Glass Of Champagne, one of my favourite ’70s glam rock tracks.

Track 40: Ultrabeat and Darren Styles – Discolights

Another great atmosphere, but again the vocals are letting it down.

Track 41: Alex Gaudino and Shena – Watch Out

The Papa’s Got A Brand New Pigbag sample is obviously awesome, but it jars pretty badly with the vocals, which themselves are kind of a rip-off of Mousse T’s Horny.

Track 42: September – Cry For You

I really like the electro hooks, but yet again the vocals are bland and uninspired.

Track 43: Fragma – Toca’s Miracle 2008

‘Not on Spotify’ Type 2: YouTube Pause (TM). (Urgh, and we were doing so well today!)

We’ve already had the original on Now! #45, and as usual, the new-version-with-a-year-added-to-the-title is not different enough from the first version to justify including it again!

See the link for my review.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #69

19 June 201819 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 69 brings us to Now! #69, which came out on 17th March 2008.

On with the hits!

Now! That's What I Call Music #69
Track 1: Duffy – Mercy

I’ve always really liked this track – classic, danceable tune.

Track 2: Rihanna – Don’t Stop The Music

Great dance track! Happily nodding along here.

Track 3: Basshunter and DJ Mental Theo’s Bazzheadz – Now You’re Gone

Great tune, love the atmosphere – and that bass is awesome.

Track 4: Girls Aloud – Call The Shots

I don’t find this tune very interesting, but the atmosphere’s quite good.

Track 5: Nickelback – Rockstar

I mentioned in the Now! #56 review that there are only two Nickelback tracks worth listening to, and neither is for reasons to do with the song itself. How You Remind Me is the first (see Now! #51 review for why) and this is the second, because of the video with all the celebrities and random fans miming along.

Track 6: OneRepublic – Stop And Stare

A bit slow and depressing for my liking.

Track 7: David Jordan – Sun Goes Down

Interesting track, great harmonies, epic guitar. Quite like this one.

Track 8: Kelly Rowland – Work [Freemasons Remix]

Upbeat and danceable, but it’s a bit repetitive.

Track 9: Soulja Boy – Crank That (Soulja Boy)

Good atmosphere, but there’s not enough melody for me, and I find the rap style irritating.

Track 10: Britney Spears – Piece Of Me

Slightly awkward theme, and it could do with being a bit more uptempo.

Track 11: T2 and Jodie Aysha – Heartbroken

Too messy on the intro, and then the tune’s irritating once it gets going.

Track 12: H ‘Two’ O and Platnum – What’s It Gonna Be

Another annoying tune with headache-inducing high-pitched vocals.

Track 13: Taio Cruz – Come On Girl

Good head-nodder, but the tune’s pretty generic.

Track 14: Kylie Minogue – Wow

Another solid pop track from Kylie Minogue. Great tune.

Track 15: Robyn – Be Mine!

Irritating vocals, boring tune. Not keen on this one.

Track 16: Cascada – What Hurts The Most

Slow ballad intro before it launches into the usual Eurodance. The tune’s fairly uninspired, but it’s quite danceable.

Track 17: Booty Luv – Some Kinda Rush

More ’70s-tinged dance from Booty Luv. Good stuff.

Track 18: Samim – Heater

Repetitive, messy and irritating – not my thing at all.

Track 19: Mary J Blige – Just Fine

Jarring electro instrumentals that don’t really go with the soul-tinged vocals. Also, the tune’s pretty forgettable.

Track 20: Jay Sean – Ride It

Great tune and atmosphere – lovely track.

Track 21: Shayne Ward – Breathless

Slow ballad, too saccharine for me.

Track 22: Leon Jackson – When You Believe

‘Not on Spotify’ Type 2: YouTube Pause (TM).

Pointless cover of the Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston soundtrack song for The Prince Of Egypt. This was the X Factor winner’s single for 2007 and also the Christmas number one, as was standard for the late ’00s and early ’10s (otherwise known as the era when Simon Cowell ruined everything that was fun about the Christmas number one race). Leon Jackson was one of those X Factor winners who immediately faded into obscurity and never released anything else, hence why his stuff’s not even on Spotify.

Track 23: Adele – Chasing Pavements

It’s an okay tune, but a bit slow for me. I’ve never been that keen on the stuff off Adele’s 19 album – 21, for me, was her real masterpiece.

Track 24: Timbaland and OneRepublic – Apologise

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had OneRepublic on track 6.

This one’s nice and atmospheric – love the piano at the start. Great tune.

Track 25: Alicia Keys – No One

Nice tune, but the vocals are too saccharine and overblown for my liking.

Track 26: Mika – Happy Ending

Not keen on the tune, and it’s too slow for me.

Track 27: Kanye West and Chris Martin – Homecoming

Interesting instrumentals, great tune on the sung vocals – quite like this one.

Track 28: The Hoosiers – Goodbye Mr A

Quite like the circus-y instrumentals at the start – good upbeat track.

Track 29: The Feeling – I Thought It Was Over

Retro feel, good beat, nice tune. Really like this one!

Track 30: Alphabeat – Fascination

Another nice upbeat song with a retro tinge – happily chair-dancing again.

Track 31: Scouting For Girls – Elvis Ain’t Dead

Classic tune, but I have to be in the right mood for it, as I sometimes find the style annoying.

Track 32: One Night Only – Just For Tonight

Love the instrumentals, but I find the vocals a bit dull.

Track 33: Hot Chip – Ready For The Floor

Nice to hear some electropop, but this one’s a bit repetitive.

Track 34: Bloc Party – Flux

Good beat, good electro lines – very danceable.

Track 35: Utah Saints – Something Good ’08

Shaking my head a bit here, ’cause we already had the original on Now! #22, and this redone version is not different enough to the original, in my book, to justify its inclusion.

See the link for my review of the song.

Track 36: Mark Brown and Sarah Cracknell – The Journey Continues

Dull tune, and I don’t like the way the operatic vocals clash with the pop ones.

Track 37: Amy MacDonald – This Is The Life

Another nice folk-rock song from Amy MacDonald – great tune on the vocals.

Track 38: Kate Nash – Pumpkin Soup

There are some interesting lines here, but in general the track’s a bit messy with too much going on.

Track 39: Sugababes – Change

Slow, dull ballad. There’s always one.

Track 40: Goldfrapp – A&E

Again, this one’s too slow for my liking.

Track 41: Amy Winehouse – Love Is A Losing Game

Lovely tune, gorgeous vocals as ever from Amy Winehouse.

Track 42: Eva Cassidy and Katie Melua – What A Wonderful World

‘Not on Spotify’ Type 2: YouTube Pause (TM).

So Eva Cassidy did a slow, acoustic-y cover of the ’60s classic, and then when she became posthumously famous, Katie Melua decided to do one of those creepy duets from beyond the grave by replacing half the vocals with her own. It’s not at all inspired or fun to listen to.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #68

18 June 201829 September 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 68 takes us to Now! #68, which was released on 19th November 2007.

It’s the time of year for party tracks. Don’t disappoint me, Now! compilers!

Now! That's What I Call Music #68
Track 1: Leona Lewis – Bleeding Love

Lovely tune, quite like this one.

Track 2: Take That – Rule The World

I’ve always found this one a bit jarring, because the verse and chorus are two beautiful tunes that don’t really work with each other. Just when you’re enjoying one, it breaks the mood by switching to the other. Should have been two separate songs.

Track 3: Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts

I like the stripped-back instrumentals at the start – it gives the track lots of edge and atmosphere. The vocals are great too.

Track 4: Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse – Valerie

I mentioned this cover four days ago in my review of the Zutons original on Now! #64. It’s a great, bombastic big band version, and I really like it, but the classic-rock-tinged original still has the slight edge for me.

Track 5: Sugababes – About You Now

Quite like this tune – nice solid pop song.

Track 6: Kanye West – Stronger

Really like this atmospheric electro-infused track – it’s probably the best song Kanye West ever did.

Track 7: Craig David – Hot Stuff (Let’s Dance)

It’s based around a sample of David Bowie’s Let’s Dance, which is obviously appreciated, but the rest of the track is very generic and just makes me want to go listen to Let’s Dance instead.

Track 8: Sean Kingston – Beautiful Girls

Pretty tune, quite like this one. At the time, because I wasn’t following chart music very closely, I kept getting it mixed up with Mika’s Big Girls (You Are Beautiful). The songs are very different, but that’s the power of a title.

Track 9: Shayne Ward – No U Hang Up

I like the electro-tinged instrumentals – it’s getting into that late ’00s era when that was in vogue, yay! – but the vocals are too cheesy for me.

Track 10: Timbaland, DOE and Keri Hilson – The Way I Are

Oh, it’s this one! That electro hook is absolutely classic. Great atmospheric track.

Track 11: Britney Spears – Gimme More

‘It’s Britney, bitch‘. I remember everyone found this comeback a bit laughable at the time, but it was sampled brilliantly a few years later when she did Scream And Shout with will.i.am. I really like the electro bassline on this one, too.

Track 12: Rihanna – Shut Up And Drive

Great guitar on this one – it’s an unusual style for Rihanna, but I really like it.

Track 13: Girls Aloud – Sexy! No No No…

Awesome epic atmosphere – it builds really nicely at the start and then launches into a brilliantly frenetic rock-tinged song. Big fan of this one.

Track 14: Robyn and Kleerup – With Every Heartbeat

Quite like the chilled-out backing track, but the vocals are too high-pitched for me.

Track 15: Enrique Iglesias – Tired Of Being Sorry

Nice Latin tinge, though it jars slightly with the electro instrumentals.

Track 16: Groove Armada and Mutya Buena – Song 4 Mutya (Out Of Control)

Nice retro ’80s-sounding backing track, but I’m not hugely keen on the vocal style constantly veering between sung and spoken.

Track 17: Se:Sa and Sharon Phillips – Like This Like That

Nice upbeat track, with more retro instrumentals. Very danceable.

Track 18: Ida Corr and Fedde Le Grand – Let Me Think About It

There’s a bit too much going on in this dance track, and it doesn’t all work together.

Track 19: Axwell and Max C – I Found U

Bit of a throwback to early ’90s dance, with some added ’70s retro instrumentals for good measure. The tune’s boring though.

Track 20: Freaks – The Creeps (Get On The Dancefloor)

Another dull tune, with a very repetitive backing track.

Track 21: Peter Gelderblom – Waiting 4

House remix of Red Hot Chili Peppers’ By The Way. It’s okay, but it’s one of those ones where I just want to listen to the original instead.

Track 22: David Guetta and Chris Willis – Love Is Gone

Some very irritating siren-sounding instrumentals in the middle of this one, but otherwise it’s quite a good upbeat electro track.

Track 23: Plain White Ts – Hey There Delilah

Pretty tune, but it’s a bit too acoustic-y and twee for my liking.

Track 24: James Blunt – 1973

Always love a 20th-century-inspired title! Unfortunately the tune is not 20th-century-inspired – I was hoping it would be four-on-the-floor glam rock. Instead, it’s a fairly standard melancholy one from James Blunt – pretty tune, but not really my style.

Track 25: Newton Faulkner – Dream Catch Me

Boring tune, irritating twangy guitar. Not keen.

Track 26: The Hoosiers – Worried About Ray

Interesting instrumentals, good atmosphere, but the vocals irritate me.

Track 27: Scouting For Girls – She’s So Lovely

This one has always annoyed me – I find the tune and theme very twee.

Track 28: Feist – 1234

Too acoustic-y for me, and again I find the vocals irritating.

Track 29: Phil Collins – In The Air Tonight

We’ve already had this one on Now! #12! I don’t care how awesome that 2007 Dairy Milk ad with the gorilla was – there’s no excuse for repeating songs!

As ever, see the link for my review.

Track 30: Avril Lavigne – When You’re Gone

Lovely piano at the start, but the vocals are too high-pitched and hurt my head.

Track 31: McFly – The Heart Never Lies

Horribly saccharine and repetitive. Not my kind of thing at all.

Track 32: Amy MacDonald – Mr Rock And Roll

Nice tune – if I were in a folk-rock mood I would absolutely love it, but I’ve not been that way inclined lately.

Track 33: KT Tunstall – Hold On

Not keen on the jarring guitar lines at the start, but it’s got quite a good atmosphere.

Track 34: The Killers and Lou Reed – Tranquilise

I shouldn’t like this, as the lines are sort of messy and jarring, but it actually works really well to create an awesome epic atmosphere.

Track 35: Stereophonics – It Means Nothing

Dull and drone-y, not a fan of this one.

Track 36: Peter, Björn & John and Victoria Bergsman – Young Folks

Oh, it’s this one. I’ve always found that whistling really annoying, especially due to its use in the Homebase adverts!

Track 37: Freemasons and Bailey Tzuke – Uninvited

Great atmosphere, but the vocals are irritatingly generic.

Track 38: Mika – Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)

Daft theme, but it’s quite nice and feelgood. At the time, because I wasn’t following chart music very closely, I kept getting it mixed up with Sean Kingston’s Beautiful Girls…oh, wait, I’ve done that anecdote. Great bassline and retro feel, anyway.

Track 39: Amy Winehouse – Tears Dry On Their Own

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Amy Winehouse on track 4.

Great tune though, quite like this one.

Track 40: Jennifer Lopez – Do It Well

Some great, epic instrumentals going on here – good stuff.

Track 41: Fergie – Big Girls Don’t Cry

Slow and cheesy – not keen on this track.

Track 42: Akon – Don’t Matter

Nice tune, but the vocals are a bit too saccharine for me. Also, it kind of rips off R Kelly’s Ignition.

Track 43: Nicole Scherzinger and will.i.am – Baby Love

Super irritating tune on the vocals! Don’t like this at all.

Track 44: Westlife – Home

The usual nauseatingly saccharine guff from Westlife. Time to line up that original version of Let’s Dance.

Three days in a row without a ‘Not on Spotify’ incident! It would be nice if we’d seen the last of them, but I suspect there will still be a few lurking about.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #66

16 June 201816 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 66 brings us to Now! #66, which came out on 2nd April 2007.

I seem to remember that 2007 was not a bad year for chart music. Let’s see if my memory is correct.

Now! That's What I Call Music #66
Track 1: Mika – Grace Kelly

Great tune, very danceable, interesting vocals. I’ve always really liked this one, especially the classic-sounding epic atmosphere.

Track 2: Kaiser Chiefs – Ruby

Great rock track – another one that I loved playing on Lego Rock Band. The Wurzels’ live cover, which I saw at Beautiful Days 2010, is also something to behold.

Track 3: Sugababes and Girls Aloud – Walk This Way

Weak cover of the classic Aerosmith vs. Run DMC version. It doesn’t really work when you have two artists from the same genre, i.e. girl groups who sing pop. It was released as the official Comic Relief single for 2007, so hopefully it kept the charity money rolling in.

Track 4: Take That – Patience

This one marks the arrival of what I always considered ‘Fake That’ (the Robbie Williams-less lineup). Gorgeous song though.

Track 5: Justin Timberlake – What Goes Around…Comes Around

Great instrumentals, good atmosphere, but the vocals are a bit dull in my book.

Track 6: Nelly Furtado – Say It Right

Another great atmosphere and a nice tune. Quite like this one.

Track 7: Beyoncé – Irreplaceable

Nice, powerful song – you can really hear the disdain coming through the vocals. Good tune too.

Track 8: Kelis and Cee Lo Green – Lil’ Star

Repetitive intro, takes ages to get going. Once it does, the tune is okay but the vocals are a bit twee for my liking.

Track 9: Akon and Eminem – Smack That

Great brooding atmosphere – quite like this one.

Track 10: Just Jack – Starz In Their Eyes

Nice retro-tinged guitar and bassline, interesting vocals. Good stuff.

Track 11: Calvin Harris – Acceptable In The ’80s

One of my favourites, obviously, and something I will always dance to no matter my mood. The whole ‘I got love for you if you were born in the ’80s, the ’80s‘ section is just a classic dance hook and a great lyric. Love it to bits.

Track 12: Mason and Princess Superstar – Perfect (Exceeder)

Great beat, great rhythmic vocals, very danceable track.

Track 13: Booty Luv – Boogie 2Nite

Another good beat, and the ’70s disco tinge is also much appreciated. It’s actually a cover of a song by Tweet, but I’m not familiar with the original.

Track 14: Eric Prydz and Pink Floyd – Proper Education

Dance remix of Another Brick In The Wall. The samples from the original provide a great atmosphere, but it’s one of those examples where I just want to go and listen to the original song afterwards.

Track 15: Sharam – Party All The Time

Dance cover of Eddie Murphy’s 1985 hit. Other than the dance beat, not much is added here. They’ve just sampled the chorus over and over and made it really repetitive.

Track 16: Cascada – Truly Madly Deeply

Eurodance cover of the Savage Garden song. The original is gorgeous and didn’t deserve to be ruined like this. Awful.

Track 17: Girls Aloud – I Think We’re Alone Now

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Girls Aloud on track 3.

Interesting cover of the Tiffany classic – there’s some edgy instrumentals added and a really good beat. It’s quite refreshing to have a cover that’s not entirely pointless, but the vocals are still pretty much identical to the original version.

Track 18: Seamus Haji and KayJay – Last Night A DJ Saved My Life

Dance cover of the Indeep song from 1982. Is it karaoke night or something? That’s six covers in a row. Let’s have some original songs, please.

Track 19: Camille Jones and Fedde Le Grand – The Creeps

Great beat, nice eerie instrumentals. Really like this one.

Track 20: Jamelia – Beware Of The Dog

I love the Personal Jesus sample, and there’s a nice rhythm to the vocals. Good track.

Track 21: Gwen Stefani – Wind It Up

That yodeling at the start is just awful! Once the song gets going, though, it’s quite interesting.

Track 22: JoJo – Too Little, Too Late

Slow, bland ballad, with a depressing tune. Not my thing.

Track 23: Leona Lewis – A Moment Like This

Pointless cover of the Kelly Clarkson song. This was the X Factor winner’s single for 2006 and also the Christmas number one, so it still shows up on all the music channels every Christmas time.

Track 24: The Fray – How To Save A Life

The tune’s very depressing-sounding, but at least it builds nicely.

Track 25: The View – Same Jeans

Twee theme, but the tune’s okay, and I quite like the chorus.

Track 26: Gossip – Standing In The Way Of Control

Great bassline, great beat, great vocals. Really like this track.

Track 27: Sophie Ellis-Bextor – Catch You

Nice edgy instrumentals, more great bass, interesting vocals. Another great song.

Track 28: Klaxons – Golden Skans

Interesting track, nice vocals. Quite like this one.

Track 29: Fall Out Boy – This Ain’t A Scene, It’s An Arms Race

Great beat, good epic atmosphere, interesting vocals, brilliant rock chorus. Another awesome song.

Track 30: The Killers – Read My Mind

Like the atmosphere, and the tune is nice. Disc two of this Now! compilation is really delivering so far!

Track 31: U2 – Window In The Skies

I like the way this one builds, and the chorus is really interesting.

Track 32: Robbie Williams and Pet Shop Boys – She’s Madonna

Great synth line, great tune – really like this collaboration.

Track 33: The Fratellis – Whistle For The Choir

Too acoustic-y for me, and I find the tune pretty generic.

Track 34: The Ordinary Boys – I Luv U

This one’s a little too cheesy and slow for my liking.

Track 35: Snow Patrol – Open Your Eyes

Slow, bland vocals, and those repetitive one-note guitar chords really irritate me.

Track 36: Razorlight – Before I Fall To Pieces

Nice upbeat tempo and feelgood guitar lines. Quite like this one.

Track 37: Scissor Sisters – She’s My Man

Great guitar riff, great bassline. Highly danceable track.

Track 38: The Feeling – Love It When You Call

I like the beepy instrumental at the start, and the guitar riff’s quite nice, but the vocals are not edgy enough for my liking.

Track 39: McFly – Sorry’s Not Good Enough

The theme is a bit cheesy, but the instrumentals are interesting.

Track 40: Lily Allen – Alfie

Love the old-timey carnival/big band sound of this one. Great song, really different to everything else that was going on at the time.

Track 41: Jamie T – Calm Down Dearest

Irritating theme and faux ‘drunk’ vocals. Not a big fan of this.

Track 42: Sugababes – Easy

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had Sugababes on track 3. This and the Girls Aloud repetition would have been best avoided by leaving off Walk This Way so that we could all have happily forgotten about that one.

This track’s got some very repetitive vocals, but the retro-tinged atmosphere and bassline are great.

Track 43: Amy Winehouse – You Know I’m No Good

Lovely, melancholy track. Really nice tune.

Track 44: The Proclaimers, Brian Potter and Andy Pipkin – I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)

Daft semi-cover featuring the comedy characters Brian Potter (Peter Kay) from Phoenix Nights and Andy Pipkin (Matt Lucas) from Little Britain. We’ve already had the original on Now! #13, so see the link for my review of that utter classic.

This recording, which was another song released for Comic Relief 2007, got to number one and outsold the original. Go figure.

We’ve avoided any ‘Not on Spotify’ moments for a fourth time!

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #65

15 June 201815 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 65 equals Now! #65, which was released on 20th November 2006.

As it’s still the mid-’00s, let’s hope for more rock and less pop, as the former was definitely better at the time.

Now! That's What I Call Music #65
Track 1: Scissor Sisters – I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’

Despite the name, this is a highly danceable track. Great tune.

Track 2: Shakira and Wyclef Jean – Hips Don’t Lie

A classic – love that trumpet intro.

Track 3: Girls Aloud – Something Kinda Ooooh

The tune’s a little generic, but it’s a good solid upbeat pop song.

Track 4: The Fratellis – Chelsea Dagger

Oh, it’s this one! Classic chant-along hook, but it can get super irritating.

Track 5: Amy Winehouse – Rehab

I always found the theme of this one really annoying, but it is a good tune.

Track 6: James Morrison – Wonderful World

Nothing special about this tune – it’s very forgettable.

Track 7: Robbie Williams – Lovelight

Good beat, but I could do with a bit more melody on this one.

Track 8: Christina Aguilera – Ain’t No Other Man

Nice soul tinge, but I find the tune dull.

Track 9: Justin Timberlake – SexyBack

Great beat, great atmosphere. Really like this one.

Track 10: Nelly Furtado and Timbaland – Promiscuous

Repetitive verse, not enough melody. The chorus is nice and atmospheric though – they should have just had that bit.

Track 11: Beyoncé – Déjà Vu

Very generic-sounding – not keen on this one.

Track 12: Chamillionaire and Krayzie Bone – Ridin’

Great atmosphere, quite like this track..

Track 13: Bob Sinclar, Cutee B, Dollarman, Big Ali and Makedah – Rock This Party (Everybody Dance Now)

‘Not on Spotify’ Type 2: YouTube Pause (TM).

Basically a cover of C&C Music Factory’s Gonna Make You Sweat with added rapping over the top. It’s okay, actually.

Track 14: Fedde Le Grand – Put Your Hands Up For Detroit

I couldn’t find a radio edit of this, so I’m having to listen to the whole six minutes. Repetitive hi-hat intro, annoying repetitive videogame-music hooks, very boring. It’s probably very danceable if you’ve consumed the right substances.

Track 15: Fergie – London Bridge

Way too messy at the start, and there’s not enough melody for my liking. Also, the theme is terrible.

Track 16: The Pussycat Dolls – I Don’t Need A Man

Nice tune on the vocals, but in general the track’s not really that interesting.

Track 17: Ne-Yo – Sexy Love

Boring, saccharine, with jarring lines. Not keen on this at all.

Track 18: Cassie – Me & U

Great atmosphere on the intro, but it’s very generic once it launches into the vocals.

Track 19: Lemar – It’s Not That Easy

I like the mid-century retro tinge, but the tune’s a bit bland.

Track 20: Rihanna – Unfaithful

Love the piano at the beginning – this one’s got a great atmosphere.

Track 21: Westlife – The Rose

Cover of the Bette Midler song. It’s very typically Westlife, i.e. far too slow and saccharine for me.

Track 22: High School Musical Cast – Breaking Free

It’s a boring tune, and the female vocals are horribly grating and high-pitched! I’ve had a headache since about thirty seconds in.

Track 23: Razorlight – America

Lovely tune, great chorus – really like this one.

Track 24: Snow Patrol – Chasing Cars

Another great festival anthem from Snow Patrol, though it’s kind of slow so I have to be in the right mood for it.

Track 25: Paolo Nutini – Last Request

Boring tune, too slow, cheesy lyrics. Not my thing.

Track 26: Keane – Nothing In My Way

I quite like the atmosphere, but again it’s too slow for me.

Track 27: The Feeling – Never Be Lonely

The tune’s okay, but it’s too cheesy – there’s not enough edge for me.

Track 28: Kasabian – Empire

Finally, something a bit more upbeat! Great track, really like this one.

Track 29: The Killers – When You Were Young

Really like the riff and the atmosphere – good stuff.

Track 30: Pink – U + Ur Hand

It’s a bit repetitive, until it gets to the singalong chorus, which is great.

Track 31: Lily Allen – LDN

Great feelgood track – I’ve always really liked this one.

Track 32: All Saints – Rock Steady

All Saints making a comeback. It feels like that came around fast. This song’s actually better than most of their old stuff – I really like the beat and the atmosphere.

Track 33: Simon Webbe – Coming Around Again

Good beat, but the tune’s pretty bland.

Track 34: Jamelia – Something About You

Great atmosphere, but again the tune on the vocals is just not interesting enough for me.

Track 35: Bodyrox and Luciana – Yeah Yeah

Irritating backing track, irritating vocals, no melody. Not to my liking at all.

Track 36: David Guetta and The Egg – Love Don’t Let Me Go (Walking Away)

Mash-up of The Egg’s Walking Away and David Guetta’s Love Don’t Let Me Go. It’s pretty messy, and the original tracks aren’t exciting enough in my book to provide any interest.

Track 37: Cascada – Everytime We Touch

Another reminder from your friendly local proofreader that ‘every time’ should be two words – there’s no such word as ‘everytime’.

Cheesy vocals, generic trance backing track. The chorus is a cover of the Maggie Reilly track of the same name (which was thus responsible for the grammatical error) from 1992, but thankfully I’m not familiar enough with the original to be as offended as I usually am by trance covers.

Track 38: Michael Gray and Shelly Poole – Borderline

The sample of ’70s hit Ready For Your Love gives this track a nice retro tinge, but it’s otherwise pretty bland.

Track 39: Beatfreakz – Superfreak

Pointless cover of the Rick James classic, Super Freak (not sure why Beatfreakz made it all one word). This sounds more like a remix than a cover, but I can’t find enough information on it to be sure.

Track 40: El Chombo – Chacarrón

Daft novelty song made famous through internet memes and such. Nothing redeeming here.

Track 41: Gnarls Barkley – Smiley Faces

Great atmosphere, but the tune’s a bit dull in my book.

Track 42: McFly – Star Girl

Extremely bland tune, very forgettable.

Track 43: Matt Willis – Hey Kid

I like the instrumentals, but it’s too slow and I find the vocals boring.

Track 44: David Hasselhoff – Jump In My Car

Daft cover of the ’70s rock classic from the Hoff. I’m not familiar with the original, but I’m guessing this cover’s probably pointless. I actually quite like it, so I should definitely make sure to check out the original.

Track 45: Meat Loaf – It’s All Coming Back To Me Now

Super dramatic cover of the song made famous by Céline Dion (for all the drama about how Meat Loaf always saw it as his song, see the Wikipedia page). It’s the kind of epic, atmospheric power ballad that Meat Loaf does best, and this version is fantastic, although I do really like the Céline Dion one as well.

Music Review: Now! That’s What I Call Music #64

14 June 201814 June 2018 Dee Leave a comment

Day 64 takes us to Now! #64, which came out on 24th July 2006.

Let’s see what bands might have been playing the festival circuit that year.

Now! That's What I Call Music #64
Track 1: Gnarls Barkley – Crazy

Great vocals from Cee Lo Green, but there’s something about the tune I’ve always found a bit depressing.

Track 2: Nelly Furtado – Maneater

This one has always been said to be inspired by the Hall & Oates track of the same name. I’ve never been able to hear any similarities, but this is still a great song – it’s just not as good as Hall & Oates. But then, few things are.

Track 3: Infernal – From Paris To Berlin

Nice bassline, nice ’80s-sounding dance track. Really like this one.

Track 4: Rogue Traders – Voodoo Child

I’ve always loved this one, mainly ’cause it was used brilliantly in the Doctor Who episode ‘The Sound Of Drums’ when the Master wreaks havoc on the Earth. Great dance track.

Track 5: McFly – Don’t Stop Me Now

Terrible pointless cover of the Queen song. Actually, I shouldn’t say pointless, because the vocals are so poor compared to Freddie Mercury that it’s really obviously different. Another good ‘point’ of this song is that it illustrates that there is a very good reason why nobody ever covers Queen songs, and that is because nobody has a hope of getting close to the brilliance of the originals. I have no idea why McFly thought they could get away with this one.

Track 6: Pink – Who Knew

Dull tune that has none of the edge you usually get with Pink. It sounds more like the kind of cheesy soft-rock you’d get from Kelly Clarkson or somebody like that.

Track 7: Sandi Thom – I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker (With Flowers In My Hair)

ARGH. I almost don’t have the words to describe how awful I’ve always found this song. It was the first notable example of a teenage singer discovered on YouTube. The song, completely unironically, manages to conflate the late ’70s punk movement with the late ’60s hippy movement – hey, those alternative types are all the same, right? If she really meant what she was singing about, the whole ‘born too late into a world that doesn’t care‘, she would at least have done enough research to know the difference. ARGH. Also, when I was at T in the Park 2006, she was given a five-minute slot on the main stage, because SHE ONLY HAD ONE SONG.

Sandi Thom, you are a totally fake 20th century girl. Everything about this song is utterly cringeworthy.

ARGH.

And breathe.

Track 8: The Kooks – She Moves In Her Own Way

Too twee, acoustic-y, and cheesy for me.

Track 9: The Feeling – Fill My Little World

I’ve always found this one revoltingly twee, and worse, horrendously catchy. I’ve got a horrible feeling it’s going to be stuck in my head again now after years of blissfully forgetting about it.

Track 10: Keane – Is It Any Wonder?

Quite like the guitar riff – it’s a bit edgier than I’d usually expect from Keane. The vocals are still pretty bland though.

Track 11: Snow Patrol – You’re All I Have

Boring tune, very forgettable.

Track 12: Razorlight – In The Morning

Some nice interesting lines going on here, quite like this one.

Track 13: Orson – Bright Idea

The beat’s interesting, but the tune is a bit depressing.

Track 14: The Zutons – Valerie

Great tune, love that chord progression. I know the Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse cover became more well-known, but I’ve got a real soft spot for the original.

Track 15: Dirty Pretty Things – Bang Bang You’re Dead

Good rock track, but the lines are a bit messy, and the tune on the vocals is kind of generic.

Track 16: The Automatic – Monster

Great track – it’s featured on Lego Rock Band, so I had a lot of fun drumming along to it back in the day.

Track 17: Paul Oakenfold and Brittany Murphy – Faster Kill Pussycat

Nice bassline, nice interesting vocals – good stuff.

Track 18: Chicane and Tom Jones – Stoned In Love

Good dance beat, but the tune’s pretty bland. Not even Tom Jones’ vocals can make this one interesting.

Track 19: Primal Scream – Country Girl

Unfortunately, due to the theme, this one’s a bit country-inspired, and country music is not my thing at all.

Track 20: Bon Jovi – Who Says You Can’t Go Home

Bon Jovi starting to sound a bit dad-rock. Not hugely keen on this one.

Track 21: Matt Willis – Up All Night

Matt Willis going solo from Busted and thankfully sounding a little more grown-up. It’s not a bad rock song.

Track 22: Fall Out Boy – Dance, Dance

Great beat, interesting vocals. Really like this one.

Track 23: Lily Allen – Smile

It’s a nice tune, but Lily Allen’s best stuff would appear later on.

Track 24: Rihanna – SOS

Good atmosphere, good solid pop track.

Track 25: The Black Eyed Peas – Pump It

The Latin tinge from the Misirlou sample (better known as the Pulp Fiction music) is great. Happily nodding along here.

Track 26: The Pussycat Dolls and Snoop Dogg – Buttons

Great atmosphere, nice Eastern-tinged instrumentals.

Track 27: Ne-Yo – So Sick

Pretty tune on the instrumentals at the beginning, but the vocal line’s pretty boring.

Track 28: Busta Rhymes – Touch It

Messy rap, no melody, not my thing.

Track 29: Christina Milian and Young Jeezy – Say I

I like the retro ’70s-sounding backing track, and the vocals are quite interesting.

Track 30: Sérgio Mendes and The Black Eyed Peas – Mas Que Nada

Repeated artist alert! We’ve already had the Black Eyed Peas, just five tracks ago.

Great Latin track – still a favourite for warm-ups and cool-downs in Zumba classes everywhere.

Track 31: The Ordinary Boys and Lady Sovereign – Nine2Five

Great uptempo song with that Ordinary Boys ska tinge – and somehow Lady Sovereign’s rap style melds really well with it.

Track 32: Sugababes – Red Dress

Great bassline, good beat, good pop track.

Track 33: Beatfreakz – Somebody’s Watching Me

Pointless ‘cover’ (actually a remix that doesn’t give proper credit to the original artist) of the Rockwell classic that leaves out the verses and just samples the chorus. Definitely need to go listen to the original after this.

Track 34: Sunblock and Robin Beck – First Time

Another remix masquerading as a cover, this time of Robin Beck’s 1988 hit. Yet another ’80s classic where I will be listening to the original after this Now! compilation is done!

Track 35: Bob Sinclar and Steve Edwards – World, Hold On (Children Of The Sky)

Great atmosphere, great beat – quite like this track.

Track 36: Supermode – Tell Me Why

Cover of a nonexistent mash-up of the Bronski Beat songs Smalltown Boy and Why? When we used to run our Electrolicious Sundays night at Mr Modos, Geth would always mix the original Smalltown Boy into this, which really emphasised the shortcomings of this cover. More originals to listen to when I’m done here!

Track 37: Mousse T and The Dandy Warhols – Horny As A Dandy

Mash-up of Horny and Bohemian Like You. I’ve mentioned before how much I hate mash-ups. This just makes me want to go and listen to the two originals to scrub this mess from my brain. I think it’s going to be a long night on Spotify.

Track 38: The Shapeshifters and Chic – Sensitivity

Love that classic funk – great retro sound. Also, apparently it was only Nile Rodgers representing Chic on this track, but I suppose he basically is Chic now.

Track 39: Beverley Knight – Piece Of My Heart

Fairly pointless cover of the ’60s classic, but it’s a great song whoever does it.

Track 40: James Morrison – You Give Me Something

Oh, it’s this one. Boring tune, and it’s too slow for me.

Track 41: Will Young – Who Am I

Interesting backing track, but the vocal’s very repetitive.

Track 42: Ronan Keating and Kate Rusby – All Over Again

Bit of an odd pairing that I would never have guessed did a song together. It’s slow and sappy and not my kind of thing, but I suppose the vocals are quite nice.

Track 43: Girls Aloud – Whole Lotta History

Nice tune, nice atmosphere, but I find the vocal lines a bit messy and jarring.

We’ve avoided any ‘Not on Spotify’ moments again! Hopefully this will become more and more regular.