Weird drugs and Christmas covers in Singled Out!

Nottingham’s finest, Six by Seven, are undeniably at their best when they weave an enthralling tapestry of jagged, scrawling and progressive noise. Unfortunately, ‘Catch the Rain’ is totally devoid of such an edgy sound. What we get is their most ‘unapologetically accessible single to date’ – a beguiling pop tune that is very pleasant on the old lug holes and sees front man Chris Olley displaying his tamer side. True, it’s sure to pick up a lot more air play than their earlier releases and may even appeal to the mainstream indie market, but for those with a much darker and perverse appetite, this is sure to leave you very unsatisfied.

Like their fellow countrymen The Hives, Sweden’s latest export Mando Diao wear their influences on their sleeves. With their debut single ‘proper’, ‘Paralyzed’, shock horror they have an aura of The Rolling Stones and the jangly guitars sound particularly like The Strokes. Whilst they can hardly be called original, they certainly know how to write a damn fine tune. This is a truly infectious number that wedges its way into your head – and the weird screeching noises at the end are particularly entertaining. Apparently they’re already quite big in Japan; don’t be surprised if they repeat this success in the UK when they release their debut album next year. 

Ah… Radio 4. Bands that meld guitar based indie-rock with electronica undoubtedly tread a very fine line and play the risk of sounding absolutely turd. Fortunately, with one of the highlights from their album ‘Stealing of a Nation’, their latest offering ‘State of Alert’ is actually very good. Anthony Roman’s jittery vocals perfectly compliment the energetic dance grooves and twitchy guitars - it’s enough to get your dormant leg twitching and head bobbing. This is thoroughly enjoyable stuff that forces you to move like an idiot.

‘Not For All the Love in the World’ is a string laden and extremely melancholy effort from The Thrills. Plastered all over Radio 1 and commercial stations, you’re sure to have endured this tune many, many times before. It’s all a very emotional outing - Conor Deasy’s voice sounds more fragile than usual and the strings and placid melody add to the whole emotive refrain… yet as always they still sound very Californian. However, this single is just very dull and ultimately forgettable. A lot of inspiration and a change of direction is desperately needed, if that’s possible.  

Straight out of New York, The Bravery’s self-titled EP is a stomping and aching ditty that owes a hell of a lot to The Cure – in fact you’d be mistaken for thinking that Robert Smith had started up a new side project. The vocals are delivered in a suitably petulant manner, and fortunately the band have a knack for writing a decent tune. Opener ‘Unconditional’ is an unashamedly catchy pop song centring on the buoyant vocals and sets the tone for the rest of the EP. Highly infectious stuff.  

Whatever weird drugs the countless members of The Polyphonic Spree are taking I definitely want to get in on the action. On Two Thousand Places they are just impossibly happy – armed with soaring Wayne Coyne-esque vocals and flourishing harps the single takes you on a wonderfully cheery and whimsical journey. It’s all peaks and definitely no troughs. Clearly everything is well in the land of The Spree. B-side ‘The Best Part’ is equally joyful and exultant. Better still, there’s also a great cover of John Lennon’s yuletide classic ‘Happy Xmas (War is Over)’. Buy this record and your life will be happier.

‘Miss U Less, See U More’, Faithless’ third release from ‘No Roots’ is a much more restrained and chilled offering than we’re used to. It’s more like a background tune that floats by as you’re watching a blissed out Ibizan sunset, rather than a banging club tune that urges you to neck pills with casual abandon. Still it’s pretty nice and worth a buy if funky house floats your boat - even Maxi’s vocals sound very lush and endearing. For hardened techno heads though, it’ll probably make you feel a bit nauseous.    

Did I miss something? The much lauded The A.M. have been compared to some eminent artists since they formed – T.Rex, David Bowie, Roxy Music to name but a few. In reality, their new single ‘If I was the Sheriff’ drifts by almost unnoticed and leaves you wondering why their name has bee affiliated with such greats. The vocals are meandering and the tune just goes nowhere. You may remember front man Michael Tighe from his appearance on Jeff Buckley’s seminal album ‘Grace’, and Parker Kindred from the brilliant New York scuz-rock band Grand Mal – compared to their previous guises this single is exceedingly average.

Tortured and pained vocals melded with towering guitars are the order of the day on Fans of Kate’s eponymous debut EP. The recipe sounds familiar – indeed they have an obvious affinity with the likes of Muse, Keane and other tormented post-OK Computer warblers. However, it does remain quite fresh sounding and is sure to be rotated heavily by the likes of Steve Lamacq. Opener ‘Tape 23’ is particularly stirring, whilst ‘A Pattern’ shows a more plaintive side of the band. Strictly limited edition, you’ll have to act fast to get your hands on this.

Despite Karl Sunderland’s haunting vocals, Elviss’ (yes that’s a double ‘s’) ‘Not Enough EP’ is a bit of a damp squib in parts. The opening title track is yearning and evocative, with the front man’s vocals in the quiet parts being remnant of Ian Curtis (and compliments don’t come much better than that). But… when the pace picks up, Sunderland’s voice loses the eerie quality and sounds a bit derivative and just like any other bog standard rocker. On the flip side a live recording of ‘Sober’ is an invigorating adrenaline rush of a tune centring round a demented, thrashy guitar riff.

Winners of the Mercury Music Prize, two million album sales under their belt, massive tours… Franz Ferdinand are so popular at the moment that even amoeba from Saturn have probably heard of them. This new version of ‘This Fire’ has been tweaked and honed in the studio, but really doesn’t sound too different from the original. A quality tune though! Available as a down-load-only release – this is one for die hards only.

Based in New York, thanks to front man Anthony Ellis hailing from Britain Five O’Clock Heroes have a sound more akin to these shores. ‘Time on my Hands’ is a lively slightly mod-ish gem that’s nothing like the waves of trendy exports currently flooding in from NYC. Anthony Ellis’ lively and frankly soulful vocals are reminiscent of early Elvis Costello with added funk. A short, simple and snappy tune that is definitely worthy of your attention.