Happy Monday everyone! ooo i was in a rare mood earlier! I had typed out quite a lengthy (what me, not concise?) post including a jolly bit about how i suddenly liked mondays. Then I added pictures to it and blogger deleted my whole post. I was not a happy bunny. Still it's all good now - and I was having quite a good monday. Cos usually they are a bit poo aren't they? But no the sun was shining, i have a kickass wardrobe of autumnal clothes to wear and it's only four days til the final Lemony Snicket book is released. Anyway, shockingly, even though I now have to rewrite it all, I am still in a boyband state of mind. First up are the wannabes, followed by the hasbeens (oh and a new holiday diary entry is up here ~ are people reading?!)...
THE WANNABES:
First up are desperate boyband wannabes 365, who not content with whoring themselves out to harness the power of the pink pound (check out the most recent cover on gay glam mag AXM in shops now!) but they reckon they are the saviours of boyband pop in England. Cocky little chappies aren't they? Based on first single These Things - which is a cross between a Another Level track and a Blue b-side - I am not so sure. However, cockiness aside (which is unusual for me - i like a bit of cock. Iness), they have good voices and remix new single One Touch is a perky slice of r'n'b pop that could convert the masses. Time will tell...
Next are a band that need no introduction. The impossibly good looking Veto Silver have everything going for them - the best cheek bones in pop since A-ha, great electroclash pop tunes and a look so sharp that a drunk tranny may try and cut her wrists on them on a saturday night (although a new look is pending for new single Love The Way You Love). In fact these chaps are so brimming with enthusiasm and personality that they a) could be the british Dangerous Muse and b) make Lorraine (who I do like) look positively boring. If you haven't gotten on board with their music yet, nows the time to start...
The next two bands I am quite excited about. Which is slightly sad and nerdy of me, but hey if you don't love me by now you never will. First is Billiam who are leaning against a tree. They have grown up around Take That, Boyzone, Steps and erm, Fast Food Rockers (Dazpants fave karoake classic fact fans), They want to bring energy, pure pop and dance routines back to the charts and their music has a lovely vintage quality to it like slipping on your fave sweater on a cold day. Lovely. Also acknowledging boybands of the past are glasgow trio Pacific Avenue, who are embracing pure unadulterated pop with a twist. They have great vocal harmonies and terrific arrangements that set their guitar driven pop music off nicely against their sweet voices. Debut album is only a couple of months away - oh! and these guys have great webisodes of their rise to fame on a sister myspace site that are just brilliant! Someone at MTV needs to get these guys on the phone, stat...
Finally are two boybands that aren't boybands. Because they have girls in them. But we need a band like Steps or S Club back in the charts. The world is a duller place without them. At bottom is the better of the two - Beyond. They have the girls as lead vocalists while the guys stand around and look a little bit gay (whatever that means) A Little Bit of Ooh is a great slice of dancey pop that if promoted properly would debut at number 11, causing bloggy fans around the globe to bemoan their lack of success a la Jamelia/Rachel Stevens... On top of beyond is Lockdown where the boys take vocal lead. And very nicely too... their cover of Alice Cooper's poison (should have done Bardot's Poison instead) reminds me of the a*teens - which believe me, is a total compliment...THE HAS-BEENS:
Ugh. Let me preface this by saying that I actually despise Danny Wood and Dane Bowers from Upper Street. Not only have they been consistently horrible to the latch (like their pop bands were any more credible!) but they are in danger of being consumed by their own egos and a belief in their own (very shallow) talent pool! One concession - they were right to veto the record companies decision to use Gareth Gates All Cried Out as the first single and go with The One instead. its alright, but it's hardly going to set the world of pop on fire is it??MP3: Upper Street - The One
Remember Mikey from Phixx? no? That's ok - he was better known as the one that was nobbing off Sarah from Girls Aloud... now Phixx should have been a whole lot more successful than they were. I mean, c'mon! They were cutting edge! They were the male Girls Aloud! They let themselves get tied up in videos. It was edgy bondage pop! But sadly, they split and Mikey is now Michael Scott who is going down the "credible" route by using real guitars in his music. Its all very pleasant and has a nice earthy quality to it, but its kinda blown out of the water by the revelation below...
Yes! It's the one who isn't in the reformed 5ive. Or 4our. Or whatever they are called. And judging by the quality of his solo music, it appears that Sean Conlon has made the right choice. Take Me Over is a beautiful piano based ballad and Sean mixes a lovely blend of soul, jazz and pop into his music. Plus he plays a mean piano and thats good enough for me. Most pleasant surprise of the week...
(In retrospect, that's going to sound very obsessed fan-ish, isn't it?)
Really, though, that wouldn't have been a good choice of debut single at all--it's a great album track, and it might have been a good single eventually for Gareth, but it's not the song to establish yourself with.
Anyhow, amazing post! I could take or leave (really, leave) "That Thing," but "One Touch" is great, as are so many other groups you put up that I'd never heard of before--Billiam, Pacific Avenue, Beyond, Lockdown, and I'm sure I'm forgetting some. I had heard Mark's songs before and, though I think in the ex-a1 competition my vote still has to go to Ben, Mark's are pretty lovely and I'd probably buy his album if he released one. I couldn't get the link for Ste Mak's site to work, but I googled him, and I quite like his songs! And that is indeed a nice white shirt he is wearing. Oh, and "Take Me Over" by Sean is lovely as well!
This was sort of a long comment, but with such a great post, I just couldn't help myself :)
(i would have picked All Cried Out as a gareth single followed by a remix of skeletons and then maybe the title track...)
Nick - robin hood thoughts coming soon! I absolutely LOVED it...
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