So tonight marks my hilarious return to community radio. From 8pm till 10pm this and every Friday evening, I'll be hosting the Inside Splinters Radio Show, the audio equivalent to my new column found fortnightly in Forte Magazine of the same name.
I'm a bit excited but incredibly nervous seeing as I haven't been anywhere near a studio since January this year.
If you get the chance, and are in Geelong or Melbourne (some areas of Melbourne are more likely to receive reception than others,) tune into 94.7 FM from 8pm till 10pm. Also, if you feel like giving me a bell on air, you can do that by dialing 5222 5947.
Tuning in tonight provides a sure-fire guarantee you will hear new pop, electro and indie songs by;
M.I.A! KYLIE MINOGUE! JUSTICE! THE ROYAL WE! MUSCLES! YELLE! BABYSHAMBLES! GIRLS ALOUD! SUGABABES! SEAL! ROISIN MURPHY! CHUNGKING! DURAN DURAN FT. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE! ARCTIC MONKEYS! KLAXONS! GAMEBOY/GAMEGIRL! TEENAGE BAD GIRL! AND MAYBE SOME MORE!
There is also a very strong chance you will hear me fuck up at least three times, and use the phrase "Oh my god that's so random" in my best Jam'ie voice at least once.
For those of you not in the general vicinity of Geelong, the show will be made available for download here in about 80-92 kbps after the weekend.
Here is the video clip for the upcoming McFly single, "The Heart Never Lies," released in the UK on the 22nd of October 2007. As previously mentioned this song is very, very good and is by far their best song to date.
The video? Well, let's have a look...
It's all a bit doom and gloom really but, all in all, very good. I'm not sure if I should crack any jokes about anyone getting wet during the video, but I'm sure you can pretty much guess watching Danny & Dougie get soaked in the rain was almost too much to handle for a Monday. In fact, it's fairly common knowledge that I wouldn't actually say no to any of them really.
Got the Parklife review coming up this week. The story-making event of the festival came from M.I.A. who, quite controversially, set fire to her Australian Visa Agreement on stage during a very political chat with the audience. More on that - with photos of the burning - in a couple of days.
Friday, September 21, 2007 Oops... I Did It Again.
So I forgot to include some very important tracks in yesterdays post about my top 21 songs thus far of 2007. The songs, which I'll just casually list for you now (in order of preference,) are:
Roisin Murphy - Let Me Know Roisin Murphy - Off & On Rogue Traders - What You're On Roisin Murphy - Overpowered Operator Please - Get What You Want Muscles - Sweaty Nelson Clemente - You Me Us We Obviously that would make it a Top 28 instead of a Top 21, and I've not told you WHERE in the chart these songs would go, but whatevs yo. FYI: the first two are definitely Top 15 material though, I am loving the Roisin something fierce. The video for "Let Me Know" is easily the best oh-seven has given us so far too.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007 Three Quarter Post :07
I'm sure you have all been wondering what my favourite songs of the year have been now that we are nearly 3/4's through 2007.
Well wonder no more.
Here's the list, the top 21 in fact.
PLEASE NOTE: Semi-detailed blurby bits below are only for songs I have not discussed on here before.
01.McFLY - THE HEART NEVER LIES The reason I haven't spoken about this song yet is simply because I wanted to see how it sat with me after listening to it for a couple of weeks straight. From the first listen I just had a feeling about this track; I wanted to talk on here about how I thought it was probably the Fly's finest single, but also wanted to be sure I'd feel the same way after weeks of repeated listens. Anyway, a few weeks have passed and I can honestly say that The Heart Never Lies is, without a doubt, not only their best single, but easily their best song to date. Right ahead of Not Alone, Transylvania and Too Close For Comfort." Brilliant stuff, I couldn't have asked for anything more, and that's why this song is thus far the best 2007 has given.
02.ANGIE HART - ASLEEP She off-of the Frente! and Splendid has just released a completely stunning, raw and spectacular debut solo album called Grounded Bird. Asleep, the records opening track, is its finest moment, and that's saying something. This bares a very minimal resemblance to Imogen Heap's Hide & Seek, and a slightly larger one to Bjork's Hyperballad. Both very, very beautiful songs which I hold in as much high regard as this one. Truly magical stuff, I haven't heard a song this luscious in a very long time. If you're an Aussie with an iTunes account, you'll be pleased to know this song is this weeks free audio file. Download it from here.
04.M.I.A. - JIMMY (ALTERNATE VIDEO VERSION) Have you heard this slightly different, brand new re-tweak of "Jimmy?" Fucking sensational. Takes the bollywood disco charm of the original album version to new, dizzying heights. Cannot wait to see her live this Saturday at Parklife.
11.THE ROYAL WE - ALL THE RAGE This song has been around for ages, but it's only being released next week in the UK and shortly after here in Oz. Very cute indie-pop from (I think?) Scotland, which takes a full minute to get right into itself, but once that's happened, it spends its final two minutes absolutely working a killer chorus, throwing together a toe-tapping bassline and even gives us DOUBLE HAND CLAPS. Gorgeous, love it.
12.FIELDS - SONG FOR THE FIELDS This one is thanks to xo. Not sure where this will sit by the end of the year (I suspect it will either stick around the top 20, or end up in the lower 30's, pending on what the remains of 2007 has in store for us,) but for the last couple of weeks I've been playing this LOTS. In fact, I'm fairly sure my neighbours now know of the song and are more than likely sick to death of it. That video clip (which is GREAT,) sadly incorporates the radio edit, and not the epic 5:47 version found on their ace album Everything Last Winter.
13.REBA FT. KELLY CLARKSON - BECAUSE OF YOU Well, Kelly Clarkson has put her name to something listenable this year, I'll give her that. Have you seen the clip for this shiz? It's major. Clarkson sports a black eye and Reba sports the worlds greatest wig. The songs great too, and a hundred times better than Kelly's original solo which I never really liked. That Reba!
15.YELLE - A CAUSE DES GARCONS Totally bonkers electropop this is. I have no idea what the fuck this French lady is on about, but boy is her album FUN. She could be planning the destruction of the universe through song, all in French, and I'd sit there completely oblivious to it all picturing the sunshine season and party drugs. There is a bonza instrumental moment from about the 2:34 mark which set my ears and feet alight. Another one I'll be catching on Saturday at Parklife.
18.ARCTIC MONKEYS - BABY I'M YOURS Technically, this song is from last year, but I first heard it THIS year which - in my head - makes this completely eligible. A cover of the Barbara Lewis track from 1965, this was a B-Side to the Arctic's "Leave Before The Lights Come On" single, and is just very, very special. It gives me goosebumps, and is probably one of my absolute favourite cover versions of recent years.
20.MUSCLES - ICE CREAM Chris Copulos, aka Muscles, has had a whirlwind 2007. He's toured with Midnight Juggernauts, Robyn, and Soulwax, plus found his productions the toast of Australia's club scene. This single is a clever slice of electronic delights and a little bit Rosdale in vocal arrangement... More importantly, it's really very cute. Quite awesome that this guy comes from country Victoria, too. Please note that I couldn't find the actual video clip for this on YouTube so the link on offer is just some shoddy fan-made job.
It's a little bit indie in places, innit? But that list up there is a very strong indication of how my ears have been shaped musically this far into 2007.
On another note, looks like I'm heading back to radio as of next Friday night. This time, I'll be on air from 8PM till 10PM, which you'll agree is a much more flattering timeslot than the old Midnight till 2AM gig I had before. As I said, kicks off next Friday night and every Friday night on 94.7 The Pulse here in Geelong, and I may decide to upload shows here and there in the future. It's called "Inside Splinters" by the way, which is the same name of the column I just took over in Forte Magazine. End plug.
And in even more unrelated, personal news, today I got a bloody filling put in my tooth. When I got home, the numbing of one side of my whole face pissed me off so much I couldn't even watch Doctor WHO. I contemplated taking a sleeping tablet (at 4pm in the afternoon) just to rid myself of that awkward and uncomfortable feeling of having one side of your face paralyzed. If I ever have a stroke, I'm going to make it known that the attack is to be followed by a bullet to the head. Anyway, I also found out I need a root canal done on one of my teeth immediately (AT LEAST IT WONT HURT ANYMORE,) have the remaining three wisdom teeth taken out AND have a very small section of one of the front teeth capped. Fucking hell, this bitch better be sporting some rockin' grillz with all the money I'm about to spend on this dentistry crap.
Monday, September 17, 2007 Konichiwa bitches from Sydney to Melbourne.
Last night I finally got to see Robyn do her thing in the flesh. And boy was she electrifying.
Down she came with her band, consisting of a keyboard player, the super-good-looking drummer, and the seriously cool Kleerup.
Playing at the luscious and not-overly-hip-that-it's-pretentious Miss Libertines in Melbourne's CBD, the Swedester played a set comprising of 12 songs (even if my stolen copy of the on-stage set list claims there were 13,) kicking it off with Cobrastyle.
Punching her fists in the air and to her sides, tossing her silky white hair up and down, left to right, Robyn took control of the audiences attention the second she bat her eyelashes at them.
Incredible jolts of energy and ferocious stage presence shone through performances of Crash & Burn Girl, and the stomping electric-drum moment during Who's That Girl.
Here come the drums.
One of my absolute knock-out Robyn favourites has always been Bum Like You, so I was pleasantly surprised and quite excited to hear and see it performed live. Stunning - and fiery - performances of Handle Me and Konichiwa Bitches ("Australia has been playing this song for ages, something I couldn't even get them to do in the UK, so thank you!") followed, with me hitting an absolute musical peak of epic proportions once Keep This Fire Burning began. I even got to share a moment of singing the chorus along with her as she sang it to me up the front. Lufffley!
Be Mine rocked, which was an obvious crowd favourite, but my highlight was most definitely hearing a ravishing live take on the Christian Falk track Robyn sung on, Dream On (musically, a really lush homage to Cosmic Baby/mid-90's rave) which is so lovely in its original form that you probably wont believe me when I say the live version was even better. But it was, honest. I was particularly impressed to see more than a couple of people actually knew the song in the audience too, which was a moment of self-assurance the gig hadn't just been filled with people whose history of her begins and ends with Konichiwa Bitches being played on the radio. Finally, time made way for a powerfully intense performance of With Every Heartbeat, which was entrancing to be apart of, especially seeing how the whole band got into the groove of it WITH Robyn.
After some claps and cheers, Robyn and her gang returned with a stunning, slow and melodic rendition of Show Me Love, which turned into quite the venue sing-a-long.
It all ended with Robyn's cover of the Prince classic Jack U Off, which was superb, funky, and a little bit punky; the perfect way to sign off.
The night delivered a lot of surprises. I had always expected Robyn to be incredible, but I wasn't prepared to be THAT blown away. Somehow, she managed to surpass the rather high expectations I'd placed on the gig before going. Now THAT'S a pop star!
Crowd was divine, and a complete polar opposite to the crowd the delightful Pop Trash Addicts experienced at Robyn's Sydney show on Friday (Roxane LeBrasse, the Thirsty Jerc and that gay guy from Scandal'us? WTF?) There was virtually none of that pretentious bullshit I had expected there to be, with a lot of beautiful faces around, but none of the sorts that think their shit don't stink BECAUSE they're beautiful. The small venue was mainly made up of genuine Robyn & pop music fans, Electro lovers and the casual Triple J listener. I think the under promotion of the Melbourne gig helped filter out the wanks too; probably a good thing the event was held on a Sunday night, too.
Also, I met some New Zealand fans who had flown down JUST to see Robyn play in Melbourne. Dedication. Turns out they were all hardcore pop fans too, as was another girl whom I had a serious conversation with right before the gig started discussing the merits Nicola Roberts brings to the world of music, and why Girls Aloud are monumental. Then I found out one of the Kiwi guys works for Universal NZ and spent two days in a van with the girls last year during their Aus/NZ promo tour. Bastard.
Had the pleasure (isn't it always my dear?) of bumping into the brilliance that is Jess Culture, and meeting Mr. eMackinations & Cade, along with other splendid pop fans who were not afraid to chat with strangers. Had a small chinwag with Kleerup at the bar. He loves Popjustice very, very much. Almost as much as he loves doing shots of whiskey apparently!
Just before Robyn made a swift exit, I caught her at the staircase near the loo and got a Modular person to take a photo of us together. A total set of four (!) European kisses and hugs were exchanged before she scurried down the side of the venue. She said she loved Oz and couldn't wait to come back again soon. Hopefully it won't be so long next time!
Oh and no, I'm not sure why Modular gave her the Kangaroos Football Club scarf to be honest. I mean, surely there was a Collingwood one in the same airport gift shop, but whatever.
Click on the photos to view bigger versions, and feel free to use the pics on your site if you wish to (all have been taken by me.) BUT please do credit me, my poor feet put up with a lot of standing around to secure that prime spot!
I have been putting together the following post for months. Some of it in my head, some of it on scrap pieces of paper. Music has played an exceptionally important part of my life, and the music I grew up listening to as a child varied from current pop, to popular Yugoslav numbers, to the classic musical footnotes of the 50's, 60's and 70's. A couple of months ago I was listening to A LOT of the old 50's-70's stuff, which inspired me to put together this post.
I've left out the obvious selections from Elvis Presley because there were just too many, and purposely left off Ammii Stewart's cheesy cover of "Light My Fire" and Patrick Hernandez's "Born To Be Alive," even though they are treasured moments of disco in my eyes. These aren't all of the songs I wanted to include; there were so many but I had to whittle it down 18. But they are a very good reflection of the songs I consider to be all-time classics. I've also uploaded MP3's of each track, for the purpose of putting them all together (IN ORDER!) on a blank CDR of your choice. Hopefully you'll dig the finished product as much as I do.
THE SUPREMES - YOU KEEP ME HANGING ON (1966) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] My favourite Supremes song of all time and, funnily enough, my favourite Kim Wilde song of all time too. I remember hearing this track (released in 1966) for the first time in my Aunty's bedroom, a place/person who played a big part in shaping my musical tastes into what they are today. This song is as relevant - and fresh - today as it was in the 60's, and the fact that it is one of the most covered Supremes songs ever should be a testament to that. On another note, my best friend Ben & I like to sing The Automatic's "Monster" whenever discussing Diana Ross.
IKE & TINA TURNER - RIVER DEEP, MOUNTAIN HIGH (1966) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] I wasn't sure whether to include this or "Proud Mary," both equally brilliant moments of Rock & Roll. Ben is the sole reason I have an interest in Tina Turner, he was/is bonkers about her. This sends shivers up my spine, Turner's voice is electric, and the orchestra were in absolute fine form for this recording. Have you seen the Tina Turner bio-pic with Angela Bassett (remember her?!!?!) playing Tina? You should, it's very emotional. (Hey Ben... go straight to hell Ike!)
ARETHA FRANKLIN - RESPECT (1967) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] I was not a normal child. My movie-of-choice whilst in primary school was, oddly enough, St. Elmo's Fire which - to this day - remains one of my favourite movies of all time. The movie is responsible for the deep-seeded love I have for Demi Moore, who plays lunacy to a tee in this film. There is a scene with Andrew McCarthy, sitting in his lounge playing Aretha Franklin's "Respect" that still sits with me to this day. It is the moment I fell in love with Aretha and, more importantly, learnt how to spell. The song was originally performed by Otis Redding in 1965, FYI.
CHUCK BERRY - YOU NEVER CAN TELL (1964) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] I have uploaded the version of this which has been taken from the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. The song is superb on its own, but the Uma Thurman banter at the beginning takes this jukebox anthem to new heights. Hilariously, this song was a hit for Berry after a sentence served in prison for fiddling with a minor. A young Gary Glitter takes note.
MICKEY & SYLVIA - LOVE IS STRANGE (1957) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] Purely for its use in the movie Dirty Dancing. LOVE. THIS. FYI: This song was also used in the 1972 pornographic movie Deep Throat.
JOHNNY PRESTON - RUNNING BEAR (1959) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] This song was on a CD a relative had lent to my Mother & Father. Somehow, in the process of borrowing and playing, the CD broke (I have no recollection of how this happened, but it was the 1990's and my parents had only just bought their first compact disc a good 3 days earlier.) Nonetheless, I remember taping this song off the CD when we bought a replacement and loving it stupid.
DION & THE BELMONTS - RUNAROUND SUE (1961) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] A favourite of both my Mother & Aunty, who I can vaguely remember dancing around the house with to this song. In short, Sue was a giant fucking whore that couldn't keep her vagina closed, which posed somewhat of a problem for her boyfriend. Ho hum.
PAUL ANKA - LONELY BOY (1959) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] Paul Anka is not just Lorelai and Rory Gilmore's dog, he is also a former pop star. My mum had a record called "K-Tel's Jukebox Tear-jerkers," and this was one of the songs I would play to death off it as a child.
THE SHIRELLES - BABY, IT'S YOU (1961) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] Why hasn't anyone thought of covering this yet? I'd really like to see Amelle & her Sugafriends do this as a b-side to a future single, not adjusting too much of the originals sound, but still making it sound like a Sugababes song. Wouldn't that be lovely
THE SHIRELLES - WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME TOMORROW (1960) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] The strings, the chorus, the voices... All so, so very good. From one of the greatest girl groups of all time too!
DUSTY SPRINGFIELD - I CLOSE MY EYES & COUNT TO TEN (1968) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [DAILYMOTION (sadly out of sync)] Isn't this special? My bestie Ben LOVES Dusty and, my recollection of listening to Dusty was something I always associated with him, much like the Tina Turner thing. Turns out Ben actually discovered Dusty thanks to me... I had bought the previously mentioned Pulp Fiction soundtrack on cassette (!) which featured the Springfield song "Son Of A Preacher Man." Anyway, we played that cassette in his bedroom for hours and, as it turns out, was the night he fell in love with Dusty. That was Ben's introduction to Springfield, something he only told me about earlier this year. Anyway, through Ben's obsession I was introduced to this amazing song, one which still gives me an intense rush of goosebumps every time I hear it. There aint a voice in the world as legendary as Dusty's, and I doubt there ever will be.
THE DOORS - WAITING FOR THE SUN (1970) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] Jim Morrison. One of two of the greatest Rock & Roll vocalists and poets of all time. There is a certain sex appeal in Alex Turner that I find very similar to the sex appeal Jim Morrison would exude on stage. They are both very different when behind that microphone, but something about Turner reminds me of Jim, which (sort of) makes sense because I love them both equally. This song is not my all-time favourite Doors track, but it IS from my favourite Doors album, Morrison Hotel. My passion for The Doors comes purely from an intense introduction to their music via my Aunty, who I've previously mentioned in this post. She was Jim Morrison crazy for several years and, because I hung around her as often as possible, I was lucky enough to be exposed to all the psychotic and wonderful music The Doors had produced over the years. My dream since I was a young child has always been to fly to Paris and visit Morrison's grave. One day...
THE DOORS - SPANISH CARAVAN (1968) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] Gorgeous, gorgeous song. Wasn't sure whether to include this or "Five To One," but am now happy with my choice.
CHER - DARK LADY (1974) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] I saw her perform this live in 2005 and I swear to god, I nearly shat myself with excitement. I urge you to watch the clip, it's animagical!
DONNA SUMMER - I FEEL LOVE (LIVE) (1978) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] There are three definitive versions of this song; the original studio version, the 1995 Rollo & Sister Bliss remix, and this, the 1978 live version from Donna's CD Live & More. It's slightly faster-paced than the original, and the talky/yelly bit towards the end is euphoric. A must for any disco fan.
DONNA SUMMER - SUNSET PEOPLE (1979) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] Oddly enough, I first heard this song on a man-on-woman porno I'd found at my cousins house when I was about 13. Hilariously, only a year ago I heard the song on ANOTHER porno, this time an early 80's gay one, which is quite ironic seeing as a lot of rumours suggest Donna is not as appreciative these days of the gays as she was when they were making her rich. That other porno, by the way, was not found at my cousins house though, and we'll leave it at that.
THE DOORS - THE SOFT PARADE (1969) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] This is 8 minutes and 34 seconds of bonza ridiculousness, from my 2nd favourite Doors album of the same name. It's about 10 different songs all in the one. "You cannot petition the lord with prayer!" There was some serious drug taking during the production of this song.
THE SWEET - BALLROOM BLITZ (1973) [MP3 DOWNLOAD] : [YOUTUBE] My mum loved TheSweet, and used to play this song when doing housework. I still love this song, and developed an obsession over it by the time I'd reached 13. Hello Rogue Traders; please cover this song post haste, kthxbye.
Monday, September 10, 2007 Whilst everyone else is watching Britney at THIS years VMA's...
...why not have a look at this instead?
It was a time before K-Fed. A time before "The Beat Goes On" and "Candy Shop." A time before double-disc albums filled with pretentious wank and a tour with a boring, burning wheel of fire.
Things were a lot simpler in 2003, weren't they folks.
Pay particular attention to the 1:15 and 3:58 (look BEHIND Justin) mark - Mary J Blige's reaction is priceless and speaks absolute volumes.
EDIT! PHEW, Crisis OVER. Thank Marcia-god that Dale still has the best hair in football, as displayed in the photograph below.
According to the Herald Sun Newspaper, Collingwood Footballer/God Dale Thomas has CUT THE TRADEMARK LONG CURLS RIGHT OFF HIS HEAD. I would like to say that there is no need to panic, but I've not actually seen the new do, so I'm worried. Thomas has the best hair (and arms) in the AFL... I have not been this shocked since that fugly slag Felicity chopped off all of her hair back in the 1800's.
I - stupidly - missed catching this weekends match when we defeated the Swans, which would have been an obvious way for me to conclude to a final verdict on whether this unexpected visit to the hair salon was in fact a good decision or not. Had I known prior to the match of his hair alterations, I would have made more of an effort to get out of bed and watch the bloody game.
Anyone with relevant information should email me immediately.
Apologies to those of you who are more than likely incredibly offended that I've blogged about sport.
The new Rogue Traders single is, as previously reported, total brilliance. "Don't You Wanna Feel" is released in Oz on the 29th of September, with the album "Better In The Dark" (which is an EXCELLENT progression in sound for the guys) following shortly after on October 13th.
The song is now all over Australian radio and has probably no doubt already leaked somewhere on the internet, so it shouldn't be too hard for you to check it out.
Guess next month is all about releases from the Rogue's and Sugababes then.
...to let you all know I'll be back, guns a-blazing, next week. There is actually no reasonable excuse for my absence this week; I have done a total of no study, have written about 9 words all week (and that was just on an envelope for work...) In fact, I have spent my entire week watching Doctor Who, replaying the ace first episode of Summer Heights High, and reading the first installment of my actual printed pop column over and over again simply because I'm still not sure it's real. Yep, been pretty fucking lazy this week, but I've totally needed the me-time.
Somewhat random; I have been having really strange dreams about zombies for the last three months. I have no idea why but at least 4 times a week, I'm dreaming about bloody zombies. And with all this Doctor Who fresh in my memory, last night I dreamt about time traveling zombies. For Christ's sake.
Hopefully tomorrow night there wont be too many zombies in sight as I plan on letting my proverbial hair down on the town, where I will no doubt hassle all the local DJs to play me some Dannii Minogue and Sugababes.
So yes, regular programming next week. Speaking of Amelle & co, here is the new Sugababes video clip. Good golly that lady is fierce. LOVE. HER.
Sunday, September 02, 2007 A very fine example as to why I'm more excited about the upcoming Sugababes album than I am the new Madonna one.
This is a live performance of an upcoming track from the new Sugababes album, "Change."
I'm very excited about this album. "About U Now" is by far my most played song on iTunes and in the car of late. I have listened to it probably two thousand times, am completely obsessed with it still. And now this. I am so in love with it. I have a really strong feeling about this record. All of this is subject to change of course on the chance that the album turns out to be full of filler and my "instincts" are worth shit all, but whatever. I am really excited though because "Change" will be the first proper full-length album my homegirl Amelle gets to do her thing on. I am totally taken by her; the look, the voice, everything about her - gorgeous. She is fast shaping up to be one of my favourite girl band members of all time.
I've not thought the Sugababes have been able to top the "Angels With Dirty Faces" record album wise. They have consistently released quality songs and more than a few solid album tracks, but Angels was the last of their albums I didn't have to skip songs on. I'm one of the very few people who thought "Easy" was a stroke of genius (still adore that seedy clip too,) and when Amelle replaced Mutya I had complete confidence in her being able to take the group to a new level of brilliance. Maybe it has something to do with her birthday being the 22nd of April, and mine being the 23rd? It is like we are kindred spirits or summat.
Hopefully I'm on the money. Won't have to wait too long either; the album is released on the 8th of October. There's been a strong feeling within about Berrabah from day one, and so far she has done a more than satisfactory job at proving me right. I loved Mutya, don't get me wrong, but I'm more than happy with the line-up arrangement of Sugababes v3.0. There's also the whole Amelle-in-public-punch-up saga (where the "victim" was too scared to press charges in fear of "reprisals." There's also the long list of crazy ex-boyfriends that get charged with raping members of her family, which instantly makes Amelle more interesting than any Sugabababe incarnation to date,) which, in my opinion, made Cheryl Tweedy's nightclub toilet brawl over a lollipop sound like something from Playschool.
If there is ANY justice in the world, in a few hours time Sam & Amanda (aka: Samanda) will be crowned the winners of UK Big Brother 2007. For this spectacular moment alone.
Twins for the win. "Defo."
I shall be trying to steer clear of the internet until I download the finale... I'd like to be surprised as to what the results are. I'll most likely steer clear of emails and most websites until I've seen the very last second.
