The reason for this post though is to highlight the extended epic of ‘Love Like a Sunset’, a favourite track of mine now for quite a while, and now I’m falling in love with it all over again. Weighing in at 10 minutes 40 seconds, featuring a breakdown that teases every sense of your being and a bass line that flirts with indie dance floor attitude – it is the greatest advertisement for a live show since Daft Punk’s Alive 2007.

With no sense of irony, the track is too epic (large) for me to upload and preview on here but I strongly recommend you visit this blog and try it out, in it’s entirety.

As for the rest of the album, it’s equally and unquestionably as great an achievement as the previously mentioned track. Short of Love Like A Sunset, the stand-out track is Rome, beautiful from start to finish and at parts, full of the kind of energy you normally only find from a toddler on a sugar high.

Rome (Live)

Phoenix – Rome (Live)

This is a somewhat delayed discussion on this single, but I’ve just been reminded of it’s catchy pop self on finding out the news that Two Door Cinema Club’s first album is due for release on the 1st of March 2010.

This track on it’s own, shows great positivity in it’s nature and for the upcoming record by the band. It’s a joyful, uplifting pop classic which inspires a relentless battle with your brain and your auditory canal to give yourself another fix. From the first chord, leading into the keys you’re already feeling great about yourself, probably resisting those strong urges to go outside and kiss a random stranger, to pass on the uncensored pleasure you’re experiencing. The bass is simple and largely successful at holding it together, but the main focus are both the keys and vocals of the chorus.

On it’s own, the single led me to create a playlist titled ‘Happy-go-lucky’, and sure it’s amongst others in the playlist but it still stands out as something to listen too when I think life might not be as great as E4 adverts or Radio 1 makes out, and therefore worthy of everything I’ve just said about it.

Two Door Cinema Club – Something Good Can Work

The latest single from Crystal Fighters, known to those who released it as ‘I Love London’ is available now.

It’s infectious, full of energy, loaded with cowbell and a great insight into the album that they’re currently in the studio recording.

I’ll leave it at that for this one.

Crystal Fighters – I Love London

When I first heard the title of the fifth Muse album I must admit my heart sank a little. The band had threatend to over step the mark for a while, and after Black Hole and Revelations, I was worried that such a thing may just happen, especially when early snippets of ‘United States of Eurasia’ appeared on the internet.

I needn’t have worried. While the album in chocker-block with synths, heavy bass, pummeling percussion, swooping strings (along with the rest of the orchestra) and, of course, finger-licking riffs, the album doesn’t lose it’s credibility. This may have something to do with the sense of humour that runs through the record. ‘Uprising’ is often, and deservedly, compared to the Doctor Who theme and ‘United States of Eurasia’ made me laugh out loud as it reached the Bo-Rap style crescendo. It is a ridiculous album but it will make you love it before you lampoon it.

One of the most interesting things about the cd is that you can hear it the genesis of each song on a previous Muse album, and in this respect provides a nice summit for the natural progression of Muse’s sound. Honestly, I have no clue where they will go from here. The range of genres played with shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone after the confusion ‘SuperMassive Black Hole’ caused on it’s initial release, but each song definately belongs to the Devonshire three-piece.

The sheer quantity of sound poses an interesting problem for listeners. On my first hearing I realised my hi-fi was no where near powerful enough to do the songs justice. It even seems at times that Matt Bellany’s famed vocals don’t seem to live up the rest of the arragenment, although there are often moments of brilliance (MK Ultra, I Belong to You and The Resistance spring instantly to mind). The songs seemed to have been made for playing live and listening to them on a very compacted disc only makes me want to buy tickets for their Autumn tour.

The content of the lyrics will be well documented by now, and I think the subject matter has meant a shift in tone for Muse and, for me, my second quibble with this album. As is evident when you look back at ‘Black Holes and Revelations’, the records preoccupation with the politics over the human aspect left me cold. It is ironic that a band once criticised for being ‘overly hystrionic’ (thanks Kerrang!) is now being criticised for the exact opposite. It’s not that their not great songs but the lack of human emotion usually present in Muse’s tunes left me feeling dissconnected. I knew they were great songs but I didn’t feel it, at least not straight away.

If you dig you’ll find the love story that threads itself through the world of tyrrany, corruption and oppression that the band conjour up and this provides not only a lovely reward but a way into a body of work that might otherwise be too clinical. And provide a story for people who like to escape from time to time, like me

‘Hands’ by Little Boots was recently released and I decided to purchase it on the day of release after hearing incredibly positive things on the EP, Arecibo. I had been listening to the poppy sing-along ‘New in Town’ and whilst enjoying it, I couldn’t help but hope the whole album wouldn’t have taken this direction.

The album features tracks from Arecibo which is a clever move as they’re some of the best tracks on the album. ‘Stuck on Repeat’ arguably the best track from the EP and now the LP is the big stand out. The whole album feels influenced by people other than herself, based on what was popular around the time of production, but rather than producing something interesting and popular such as Ladyhawkes debut album, this album strays more towards Lady GaGa. I won’t pretend to know the reasons, but all I know is the disappointment I felt whenever one of the old tracks wasn’t on.

Focusing on the positives, which there are enough of to warrant some enjoyment. ‘New in Town’ is a big dance floor track, it’s catchy, sassy and perhaps creeping into the area of guilty pleasures with people saying ‘Actually, I quite like that’. ‘Stuck on Repeat’ has had over 3 minutes trimmed from it’s running time, to aid in it’s accessibility and I suppose for the demographic, a smart move. So for those who miss the EP version, just listen to the EP. ‘Meddle’ and ‘Mathematics’ also feature which I’d heard previously, and seem to blend nicely in as the album progresses.

It’s a grower, synth-pop tracks like ‘Remedy’, with a pleasant vocal and deep enough bass line keep you checking back on it every so often. I’ve been quite critical but I’ve not finished listening to it just yet, I’m just not sure how much longer I will be.

After hearing Dead Disco a few years ago, and seeing them live, this album probably leans more towards what I expected from them and to judge this album, as I have been, beside Arecibo is unfair, and as a single piece of work it’s a big pop record. If you’ve not already listened my recommendation is not to think about what you’ve heard already, but as if this is the first time you’ve heard Little Boots. It is full of strong pop singles, and you can’t blame anyone for wanting to reach a larger audience if it’s not overly-compromising.

New In Town

Little Boots – New In Town

Stuck on Repeat

Little Boots – Stuck On Repeat

Remedy

Little Boots – Remedy

Firstly, this is the first post on bleep bleep beat. So hello internet!

Right.. the music. ‘Where We Are’ is the debut album of ‘My Toys Like Me’ a four piece electronic act from London. I’d not heard any of their music before buying this but on my first few listens of this I’m really impressed. The smooth funky bass only takes seconds to kick in, totally putting you off guard for the sweet angelic vocals of Frances. ‘Superpowers’ the opening track oozes cool and slick from start to finish. The odd bit of a grunge riff and scratched guitar layers this nicely half way though. All the time maintaining the high levels of slick defined at the start.

The album goes a little more subdued after this, focusing more heavily on the vocals than previously until it breaks down and the experimentation starts. Clicks, beeps and plucks bridge the verses tentatively. My favourite part of the album now takes place, ‘Sweetheart’ and ‘Barnaby’ perfectly representing this band. Again, the vocals prominent and encapsulating, slick bass in the background and all overlay with a synthesiser and intermittent thrashy guitar. ‘Sweetheart’ is laced with metaphors, as Frances sings ‘I can see you getting in hot water, I know you’re not my daughter, but I do worry’, the synth takes an aquatic approach changing the direction of the music again, in total contrast to the odd riff here and there.

‘Barnaby’ is a much more dirty and dark sounding track. Starting with a lo-fi horror/synth passage, the chorus of this track is the highlight for me – scratchy guitar, with a distorted dirty loop you can’t help but move some bodypart too.

After ‘Barnaby’ the album goes a bit more subdued again, more pleasant and accessible but not as strong as the first few tracks would lead you to believe the album would be. Then again, this album isn’t a linear experience, so ‘Grin & Wriggle’ kicks in and you find everything that bowled you over is back – it’s sexy, it’s dark sounding and the vocals continue to be enchanting. My personal feelings with some of the odd tracks is that they’re drastically more unsettled than others. ‘Making fire’ is not so much difficult to follow, but more a question of if you want to try. It does reward you with some moments of tuneful melody, but as a full song it lacks what the offer.

‘Skylights’ takes more of a danceable approach, not what you would here on a night out, but maybe letting go in your bedroom kind of thing. It takes some elements of Barnaby and mixes it with some erratic loops that remind me massively of Blueberry Boat by the Fiery Furnaces. Following on from this you start to sense influence from Massive Attack, but with their own personal touch. That’s what My Toys Like Me manage to achieve on this record, subtle energy.

The album leads to the end in a very calm and soulful way. The journey is almost complete, the last track sounding beautiful and refined albeit with a quiet noise over the top. The lyrics sound more heartfelt and mixed with some woodwind, making it stand out from the others. It’s a nice way to bring you back down, although perhaps not immediately for another listen.

This album should be disconcerting, but it’s all threaded together brilliantly, always returning to the hook of the track. It’s a very good listen but as I said, another listen straight away could lead you to some mild form of madness.

Superpowers

My Toys Like Me – Superpowers

Sweetheart

My Toys Like Me – Sweetheart

Barnaby

My Toys Like Me – Barnaby