We'll admit, we were underwhelmed by Phoenix's lead single, Entertainment (below). Sad to say the rest of the album follows suit - there just isn't enough to recommend here compared to the knockout Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. The funky French edge has been lost somewhere between the two albums.
Ironically enough, Trying to Be Cool is the highlight from a band who are perhaps trying to be just that on tracks like The Real Thing. While the album does gain pace in the second half, it still isn't enough to make up for what's gone before it. To borrow from the tracklist, 'Bankrupt' and 'Entertainment' are two words we'd definitely use, though sadly in none too favourable a context.
Kate Nash - Girl TalkAlright, Kate Nash. We're going to level with you. And we want you to take this very seriously. We didn't really like you much when you came along as some sort of pound-shop Lily Allen. But then we stood up and applauded when you went all Karen O on us with I Just Love You More - your finest moment to date. And then we guffawed when you unleashed Underestimate the Girl.
Now we're listening to Girl Talk, your new album. Forgetting the weirdly staged cover and evident nod to Tarantino and punk, it's as schizophrenic as your career thus far. On one hand you have the feisty Frankie Rose / Dum Dum Girls-esque Fri-End (below)... And then you go balls it up with a song as desperate as its title, OMYGOD!, which is about as edgy as jelly. Genuinely, we despair.
Matthew Houck's sonorous folky tones have always melted us, more so since he can make one stellar song sound spectacular in two completely different ways.
Muchacho is a lot less shameless than its cover and title would suggest. Lead single Song for Zula (below) is a slower affair, but still affected by Houck's breaking voice. Phosphorescent have gone for a more produced effort this time round, but it's still a wonderful listen - Terror in the Canyons and A New Anhedonia are particularly beautiful. Go for it.
We feel a bit bad for Dido. People groan at her name, and even drying paint would refuse to entertain her last album. So we popped in Girl Who Got Away (with that horrendous cover) late at night with trepidation, thankful merely for the fact that we weren't operating heavy machinery to boot.
Long story short: it's as inoffensively MOR as always, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. We want to cut old Di a bit of slack here - the title track is pleasant, and bully for her getting man-of-the-moment Kendrick Lamar on her jams (below). Funnily enough, when she picks up the pace on Blackbird and tries a song called Sex Tonight it falls embarrassingly flat, but this country thrives on mediocrity so we're sure it'll do well all the same. Sad sauce.