HITSVILLE U.K'S ALTERNATIVE MERCURY
>>>Everybody's doing them...>>>

Since the real Mercury nominees were announced, pretty much every music site has been giving their verdicts on the choices and thusly compiling their own lists. May as well join in with the fun. Sticking with the planetary theme of the Mercury, I think I'll call it the "Pluto Award" for now, unless I think of a better, cooler name...

FRANZ FERDINAND - Tonight: Franz Ferdinand [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
GRAMMATICS - Grammatics [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
IT HUGS BACK - Inside Your Guitar [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
JACK PENATE - Everything Is New [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
LATE OF THE PIER - Fantasy Black Channel [>>>EXAMPLE]
LOS CAMPESINOS! - We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
THE MACCABEES - Wall Of Arms [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
MANIC STREET PREACHERS - Journal For Plague Lovers [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
METRONOMY - Nights Out [>>>REVIEW] [>>>EXAMPLE]
SKY LARKIN - The Golden Spike [>>>EXAMPLE]
VV BROWN - Travelling Like The Light [>>>EXAMPLE]
WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS - These Four Walls [>>>EXAMPLE]

The poll is right there in the side bar, vote for however many you want. Have a listen to the examples first before voting, always helps. Also, apologies for the 18 days without posting, it's been a little hectic in 'personal life' world.

GRAMMATICS - GRAMMATICS

Apologies for the lack of blogging over the last two weeks. The internet has been decidedly unkind to me.

Grammatics may not be a big name on anyone's lips in terms of tips for 2009, apart from a handful of those in the know. The Leeds quartet mix Foals-esque guitars that border on prog with heavy chunks of distortion, choirboy vocals, cello and a distinctly emo-sounding production. Not that any of that should put you off their eponymous debut.

The album kicks off with their more accessible material, such as the shouty yet swirling pop-rock of "Shadow Commitee" and "D.I.L.E.M.M.A" which could come straight from the soundtrack of an eerie horror/thriller with it's chiming guitars, funky ominous bass and stabs of cello. "Murderer" sounds more classic Bloc Party than the actual Bloc Party have done for quite some time due to the strong drumming that powers the track and yearning lyrics and vocals of singer Owen Brinely.

Despite being their more accessible songs, upto now the album isn't exactly full of singalong pop nuggets made for the festivals. But really, this is to be expected from a band who wants to reinject some drama and grandeur back into English music in this post-Libertines/Arctics era, and describe themselves as "maximalist" pop. This approach is exemplified perfectly on "The Vague Archive", which is more angular than Franz Ferdinand and Foals in a protractor shop before morphing into an anthemic driving rock chorus and finally to a sombre Arcade Fire-aping lullaby.

But it's the next group of songs that show the ambition and talent of Grammatics in the greatest light. "Broken Wing" begins as a simple, uplifting acoustic ballad, which isn't really spectacular but is a highlight amongst already high standards. Suddenly, it explodes into some headphone bursting riffing, giving the song another dimension and the listener a bit of a welcome shock. "Relentless Fours" returns to the chiming math-rock guitars of the earlier tracks, coming worryingly close to "in one ear, right out the other territory", but as with "Broken Wing", the salvo of Led Zep riffing and wall of noise is enough to almost destroy my speakers and totally unexpected from four twee looking kids (unless you knew they were influenced by QOTSA and My Bloody Valentine).

From here, the album does tend to tail off a little, getting bogged down by repetitive instrumentation and a lack of lyrical hooks. But there are a few moments worthy of repeated listens on the remaining tracks, mainly "Cruel Tricks Of The Light". You can't fault Grammatics ambition at all, seeing as they've released an epic debut, with no songs under three and a half minutes (not counting the 'secret track'). While it may need repeated listens to uncover some hidden moments of genius, they've produced a solid starting point for what will hopefully be a long and interesting career.
ESSENTIAL TRACKS: "Murderer", "The Vague Archive", "Broken Wings", "Relentless Fours".
FOR FANS OF: Foals, Biffy Clyro, Arcade Fire

7.5

MMVIII: next big things

White Lies
Just think what a wonderful concoction this would be; Joy Divison, The Smiths, The Cure, U2. Now imagine if such a band was a reality. You'd have White Lies then. Their songs are epic, yet dark and disturbing. Name another band who would write a song about a ghost coming back to visit his lover/murderer? Exactly, none. They just sound like they're built for the arenas and stadiums of the world, and their guitar parts don't sound like they're written using fucking algebra.

Cheeky Cheeky & The Nosebleeds
English music has long been devoid of a band with a proper sense of humour. I guess you could class Hadouken! as a sick hipster joke, but I'm talking about a band who's songs are as funny as they are great. I think The Nosebleeds are just that band, ready to take the long-dusty crown of odd-pop once held by the likes of XTC, Talking Heads, Wire and Elvis Costello. Musically they may sound a bit identikit, but they'll be big

Ladyhawke
Okay, she's pretty big already in indie circles, but 2009 is the year where she'll explode into the mainstream. Her eponymous debut is stuffed to the brim with solid gold, 80's-indebted pop hits, all deserving of as much praise as possible. Latest single My Delirium is just one example of the girl's talent for melody and pure tuneage.

Grammatics
Part emo, part indie, part epic pop, Grammatics aren't your usual blogosphere darlings. They won't exactly be soundtracking any Skins episodes or England sporting failure. But they'll gain a massive following if their album lives up to internet hype. The bass is scuzzy, the drums are complex, the guitars have the tone of typical emo band, the vocals are strained, the keys and strings are mournful. It sounds like it shouldn't work, but it does

The Chapman Family
To some they're "The worst band I have ever seen...an abomination". To others, they're the new Manics; snarling, sloganeering, superb. Back in reality, The Chapman Family aren't either, if I'm being honest. Although they have elements of the Manics (loud, angry, amazing, dumb punk fun), they are their own beast. One with the chance to become a highly important band during these "crunching" times.

Twisted Wheel
Successors to Oasis' lad-rock crown? Well according to a lot of critics, they probably are (after The Enemy, Kasabian, The View etc etc). In my opinion, they only have one good song at the moment; "Lucy The Castle" (although it sounds suspiciously like "Suffragette City" by Bowie) The rest sound like The Clash if they were utter garbage really. But they must have some appeal with the masses. If they pick up a bit of studio sheen and songwriting nous from supporting Oasis, their debut album could be pretty good.

Alexis Blue
Right, if they don't get big in the next 396 days, then I'll eat my hat! I don't even have a hat to eat, I'm going to have go out and buy one, just to eat it! AB have all the right ingredients for success but for some reason, not many people seem to have picked up on it, or at least noone with a whole lot of power within the music industry. I urge anyone reading this to check them out, as your musical taste will improve vastly.