THE NEW MISTRESS OF COOL

Well i already had my blog planned for today, then awoke this morning to find a new album kindly perched in my inbox. About a year ago, Rachel Stevens released the brilliant single I Said Never Again and underappreciated album Come And Get It to a shockingly largely disinterested public. What should have been a smash hit of Kylie proportions (why Crazy Boys wasn't a genius Christmas single is so far beyond me it's not even funny), merely ended up as a lost opportunity mourned by bloggers across the land...

And now the brilliant electro-pop follow up to that album will soon be available. Only Jamelia has recorded it! Now I never really paid much attention to little Jamrag - oh sure i slinked my hips at the disco to the silky smooth stylings of Superstar and the video to the Chris Martin written song was quite nice when you were tired, but other than that she was a mere blip on my radar. Which is why it's so surprising (for me) that she has reinvented herself so successfully as the new mistress of electro-pop and put together one of the most exciting releases of the fourth quarter (behind Killers, Scissters and JT of course!). Kind of like a solo Keisha-from-the-sugababes album, it ranges from catchy pop (Something About You), r'n'b inspired grooves (Do me Right), kylie style brilliance (the insanely catchy Beware Of The Dog) and kitsch gotta be a single classics (Window Shopping - complete with mrs slocombe sample!). Of course I'm not the only person to pick up on it's brilliance - XO has done his own brillow review and naturally samuel knows that this is gonna be hotstuff :)

I'm sure if you look around you will be able to find the album to listen to for evaluation purposes only, but be sure to buy it when it gets released!!

MP3: Window Shopping
MP3: Beware Of The Dog

THE KINGS OF UNCOOL

James Blunt can now step aside because Denver quartet The Fray now own the crown for being masters of all uncool. Thanks to spots on Grey's Anatomy, it's the inescapable Over My Head (Cable Car) that you've either been singing all summer or desperately trying to ignore ;) And of course they have an entire album full of similarly earnest swooning piano pop that sounds like it was written for a very special One Tree Hill. Nobody has to know how much you like them, but they definitely get bonus points for inviting the feeling on tour with them :)

MP3: Over My Head