Karatkorn - Adored

"It's so unfair when I adore you"

Karatkorn seems to be one of those mysterious dance acts that nobody seems to know exists yet still manages to produce pop songs that are better than most of the big names out there. I posted the group's brilliant Days around this time last year and now I've found another future hit from them. Adored has got a perfect 80's dance beat and a very catchy melody. I still don't know anymore about the group than I did last year, as they seem to keep everything private (even promo pics don't feature them). I guess it's just a matter of letting the music speak for itself, which isn't really a bad plan when it's this good.

Karatkorn - Adored (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! No single/album yet to buy.)

The Micropops - Moonlight

"Sing with me darling!"

Norwegian band the Micropops are (mark my words) about to be very buzzworthy with their new single Moonlight. It practically defines the word "catchy" while still managing to sound like very little on the radio at this moment. It's definitely a throwback, but more to the 60's/70's than most of the stuff I post. However, it's still got the enormous synths I like, and then there's that monster chorus. I would not be surprised at all if this song absolutely takes off and becomes one of the biggest hits in Norway all year. And maybe, like Denmark's Alphabeat, these guys will gain traction overseas as well. Remember where you heard it first, folks!!

The Micropops - Moonlight (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the single here.)

Flashback Friday: Tsar - Silver Shifter

"I will climb and you will find the moon will shine moonlight"

I'm not going too far back in time for today's flashback. Less than a decade actually, to the year 2000 when boy bands and Britney ruled the airwaves. I think a bunch of you have already heard of Tsar. They're sort of famous for having one of the best albums that you can get for under a dollar on amazon. Their flawless power-pop debut was virtually ignored upon release, even though it's the kind of record where every song sounds like a number one hit. I'd compare their sound as a mix between McFly, the Ark and, in come cases, the soundtrack to Grease. If you have not given their album a try (listen to clips here) and you like power-pop (or music in general, really) you have got to make this purchase. I'm posting Silver Shifter today because it was my first introduction to the band back in 2000. Plus, it's a veritable melodic masterpiece with one hell of a bombastic chorus. I was obsessed with the song at the time, but didn't have the album until a couple of years ago. I would also recommend Kathy Fong Is The Bomb, though, because it is ultra ultra fun.

Tsar - Silver Shifter (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the album here.)

OMFGOMFGOMFGOMFG

I don't use "OMFG" lightly (or at all, actually) but this deserves it. It's the funniest thing I've seen in months!

For those of you interested in Swedish music (otherwise known as the best music on the planet), here's an interesting article (amazingly) featured in this month's Spin Magazine.

Okay, maybe I just like it because the Ark gets a mention!! But seriously it is interesting as well.

Lady Gaga - Beautiful Dirty Rich

"Bang, bang! We're beautiful and dirty rich"

People are flipping out over Lady Gaga's debut single Just Dance. I'm not one hundred percent obsessed myself... the verdict's still out, but I do really appreciate Gaga's obvious influences, style and ambition. Unlike pretty much every other pop star in the States right now, she's trying to bring a sense of glam style to the music. Beautiful Dirty Rich highlights this quite well. The song's pure attitude from the get go and I love how it sounds like a track that would normally be sung by a guy fronting a glam rock band. More of this on the album and less songs featuring Akon, please!

Lady Gaga - Beautiful Dirty Rich (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Preorder the album here.)

The Virgins - Teen Lovers

"Vacation is over, don't wait"

Out of the blue, New York's The Virgins have released one of the best party/indie/rock albums of the year. You may remember them from this blog (I posted the fab Rich Girls not too long ago). Now that I've heard the entire debut, I've got to post something else as well. I was torn between two great uptempo tracks: Teen Lovers and Murder. Both are equally as strong, but I'm going with Teen Lovers today because it's synthier. How they manage to pack so many hooks into just over two minutes I will never know. I could see these guys becoming potentially very big in the States, sort of like how the Killers broke through a few years back. Also be sure to check out their perfectly retro (ie: 80's) video for the single Private Affair. What are they wearing??

The Virgins - Teen Lovers (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the album here.)

Pop Levi - Dita Dimone

"Dita likes to let me drive her car"

Pop Levi's new single Never Never Love is absolutely addictive, while at the same time sounding like nothing out there. His music has been described as an amalgam of every pop style known to man, which explains the ultra-catchiness of his sound. His new album (same title as the single) is out soon and it's really quite good. A lot of the songs remind me of Prince, especially the odd, funky Dita Dimone. Mixing glam with r&b and pop, the track is instantly likeable and undeniable from the start. If there was any justice in the world this guy would be huge. He's certainly got the songs to do it... but it seems as if he'll be relegated to cult status instead.

Pop Levi - Dita Dimone (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Preorder the album here.)

The Galvatrons - She's In Love

"And I don't think she's ever gonna come back home from the UK"

Music releases seem to come in cycles, and for the past few weeks there has been (unfortunately) not a whole lot going on when it comes to the type of music I post on here. Hopefully that will turn around soon. Given that there's nothing really new to post today, I'm going to take the opportunity to remind you how amazing one of my favorite new 2008 bands is. The Galvatrons personify everything that this blog is about, and I am waiting very impatiently for their debut album that I'm assuming will be released later this year. I think I've played the When We Were Kids EP to death by now, in addition to all of their other demos that have been floating around for the past few months. They are ones to watch, for sure, and the band that I'm probably most excited about right now. She's In Love is one of many testaments to their fantasticness. Three minutes and forty nine seconds of hard rocking 80's bombast... what more could you ask for?

The Galvatrons - She's In Love (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the EP here.)

PS: Daggers (another 80's inspired band that I am freaking out over) have just posted the beyond brilliant new demo Forsaken on their myspace. Hurry up and release an album, guys!

Flashback Friday: Benjamin Orr - Too Hot To Stop



"It's about time"

When it comes to 80's group The Cars, I find that their stuff is really hit and miss for me. Most of my favorite songs from them were sung by sometimes-vocalist Benjamin Orr. He's got a great voice, as evidenced by their mega hit Drive. He also released a solo album (his only) in the mid eighties called The Lace. Too Hot To Stop is the opening track on that album and it's insanely catchy. The song and the album really didn't do anything commercially, but both are worth a listen if you like synth flavored melodic rock. Orr's hair (and video) are a bit questionable, but I'll let that slide.

Benjamin Orr - Too Hot To Stop (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the album here.)

Scarlet Soho - Analogue Dialogue (Kill The Beat)

"Conversations in the air"

I've literally been meaning to post this track for months, but for some reason keep passing it by. I don't know why, because this track by Scarlet Soho is one of the catchiest pieces of Depeche Mode-ish eighties pop that I've heard all year. The band opened for Delays during their spring tour, despite sounding much like them. They've got a much more electronic, danceable sound... much like White Rose Movement (except a little more polished sounding). I posted a song by them ages ago and I'm quite frankly surprised that this wasn't the track to totally give them the break through they needed. It's just so incredibly catchy.

Scarlet Soho - Analogue Dialogue (Kill The Beat) (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the EP here.)

And this is why I love the Disney Channel...

I am so in love with this horrible yet amazing song and video right now. Just look how incredibly bored Emily Osment looks! I swear, at one point she even mouths the words "save me" as pasty pimp boy attempts to humor her. And then she sporadically disappears... escape attempts I'm assuming. The embarassed applause at the end really says it all. The prevailing sense of "oh my god, what the hell is Disney doing to me?" is all over this thing, and that's why I love the Disney Channel.

And by the way... does he actually sing "funky optic nerve?" I swear that is too weird to be true.

Krill - Shake It Up Ma

"She goes out on her own"

My roommate just compared this to Cyndi Lauper covering Alice In Videoland so there you go. The song itself reminds me of something the Cars would have sung in the early 80's except a girl version. Krill, like many fantastic electro groups of the moment, hail from Australia. They are primarily a girl group with one unlucky male member who gets shoved in the back of all the promo pics. That's alright, though, because the ladies are very stylish. If you're not taken right away with the song, wait around for the chorus (ie: the "shake it up, ma" part) because that's really where the fun lies.

Krill - Shake It Up Ma (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the EP here.)

Rongedal - Stroke Of Luck

"A stroke of luck's just what I need"

It took me a bit to finally post a song by these guys (honestly, I've had the songs for awhile but I just keep forgetting to put one up). For those not in the know, Rongedal are a Swedish pop group fronted by two twin brothers that creates music very much in the Mika/Scissor Sisters vibe. In other words... very very catchy (I mean, insanely catchy) pop music. The debut cd is a treat for anyone looking for a good, upbeat time. It's certainly not deep or anything, but pop music doesn't really need to be. Stroke Of Luck is one of my favorite non-singles on the album, with a particularly fun chorus that I could actually see my idol Ola Salo singing.

Rongedal - Stroke Of Luck (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the album here.)

Neonbeat - Hang On Or The World Will Fall

"You're marching on, you're moving on"

It's super nice weather out here today at Alienhits HQ so I'm definitely in the mood for some upbeat synth/dance/pop. I first discovered Neonbeat because they remixed one of my favorite bands, Superfamily. Now I don't know if they're exclusively a "remix band" (if that makes any sense or not) or if they've got their own material as well. I'm assuming that this track is their own, but their myspace isn't particularly forthcoming. Anyways, it doesn't matter because this song is very very good. It is also very very retro, like totally could have been released twenty years ago. The group is from Norway and they've got some more amazing tracks streaming on their site as well as the Superfamily remix which isn't quite as amazing.

Neonbeat - Hang On Or The World Will Fall (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! No album yet, but listen to more here.)

Flashback Friday: Buggles - Plastic Age



"As they drag you through the dark they tell you that you've failed the test"

Perhaps the best pop band of the moment, Alphabeat, has on multiple occasions professed their love for the Buggles. So, I decided to take another look at their all-too-short back catalog. Of course, most of us know the band only because of Video Killed The Radio Star, but if you haven't listened to the accompanying albums I think you'd be really surprised at how many absolutely amazing pop songs they had. If you're a fan of Trevor Horn's production (and who isn't?), you will instantly love the Buggles because they are basically him (especially the second album, which he was almost completely responsible for). One of my favorite singles from the band is the first track on their first album. Plastic Age is all about the dramatic, sweeping chorus. I just love big bombastic music like this. There are, of course, so many more highlights on this album alone, including the very Scissor Sisters sounding Elstree and Clean, Clean. Basically, if you had previously written these guys off as one-hit-wonders, you've gotta give them another chance. As for the video for this song? They just don't make them like that anymore.

Buggles - Plastic Age (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the album here.)

Video Premiere: Kite - Ways To Dance

Brilliant brilliant brilliant. God I love this band. This is one of my favorite singles of the year, and the video is utterly captivating in its strange simplicity.

The Fratellis - A Heady Tale

"Gypsy blood will get you far"

What is it with these seemingly great UK bands and their crappy second albums? After delivering a near flawless debut, unfortunately the Fratellis can be added to the list that includes Kaiser Chiefs, Hard-Fi, the Kooks and probably many more that I can't think of right now. It's the second-album syndrome... bands that burst onto the scene with a string of amazing hit singles and then piss it all away with a completely unremarkable second album. It just proves how hard it is to create something like a You See Colours, Tired Of Hanging Around, or Razorlight. Hell, even a Ta-Dah is enough to keep the momentum going. The most frustrating thing about these non-albums is that they are almost always preceded by a really good single, effectively bridging the gap between the brilliant and the so-so. In the Fratellis' case, there are fortunately a few great tracks on the new album that almost make up for the huge amount of filler that exists in the record's latter half. A Heady Tale is among the best... a complete party starter with boogie piano that Elton would be proud of. It is the most instant thing on the album and may just be enough to keep the momentum going until the got-to-be-better third release.

The Fratellis - A Heady Tale (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the album here.)

** No post tomorrow, as I'll be on the road. See you on Friday!

2-4 Grooves - Writing On The Wall (St. Elmo's Fire)

"I can feel St. Elmo's fire burning in me"

I don't often post straight up dance/club tracks, and I certainly don't post many covers, but today I'm making an exception. I've been on a real 80's kick recently (I know, I was born on an 80's kick, but this is even more than usual), so despite this duo's lame-ass band name, despite the inherent cheesiness, I have been obsessed with this track for the past few days. I generally prefer my dance music to be original, but I do love it when an artist takes a semi-forgotten gem from the 80's, retains the sound and spirit, but brings it into the new millenium alive and kicking. This track is the perfect example of that. Take a campy yet ultra-catchy song from the past and amp it up for the dancefloor, at the same time revelling in its cheesiness. This song looks like it's gonna take Scandinavia by storm. My money's on the UK next.

2-4 Grooves - Writing On The Wall (St. Elmo's Fire) (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! Buy the EP here.)