Chester French - The Jimmy Choo's

"She needs Jimmy Choo's"

Despite the somewhat misleading name, Chester French is not a solo artist. In fact, it is a band composed of two Harvard grads, neither of which is named Chester. And, regardless of the whole name thing, their music is amazing. Tipped by many to be the next big thing in American pop (and signed to Pharrell Williams' Startrack label -whether that be a good or bad thing-), I have no doubt that these guys could be huge over here. And, unlike most mainstream US bands, I actually wouldn't mind if that happened. Their music, a mixture of old-school rock, electro and hip hop is utterly charming. Jimmy Choo's isn't my absolute favorite song by them, but it's the only one I could find an mp3 of. There's plenty more at their myspace, though.

Chester French - The Jimmy Choo's (zshare)

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

Pop Noir - Don't Fool Yourself

"You know there's something coming but you still ignore the sound"

I've got an amazing song for you today from an unsigned group that's off to a real promising start. Don't Fool Yourself could have been a hit for INXS in their heyday. It's funky, simple, and very addictive. The guys are technically from Manchester, but they've lived in California long enough to qualify for my American music week. Back to the song, though. I don't use this word often (because I feel lame even typing it, let alone saying it), but if I were to describe the track in one word, it would be "groovy." Well, groovy and cool. There's just cool dripping off every beat here. And that chorus? It'll get stuck in your head immediately.

Pop Noir - Don't Fool Yourself (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists! No album yet, but be on the lookout!)

Boogaloo Stu - Enough About You... Let's Talk About Me
Release Date: January 21, 2008



One look at Boogaloo Stu’s crazy outfits (coupled with that stage name) and you know that his music is going to be amazing or totally suck. Luckily, it doesn’t totally suck… in fact, it leans much more toward the former.

He’s certainly studied his glam icons well. The tracks on Enough About You... borrow heavily from past trailblazers. He’s got the simple, hypnotic stomp of T-Rex, the decadent melodies of Roxy Music and, well, the wardrobe of the Scissor Sisters. It works beautifully most of the time, though (along with most releases) the album is not without the occasional clunker. The most brilliant songs are undoubtedly the singles, the laid-back breezy Just Want You To Know and the thumping, beautiful Magnetic Heart. Both absolute triumphs. Long Time Coming and The Jet Age also come close to perfection, each succeeding because of their instantly catchy, well-written melodies. The rest range from okay to pretty good, though I’d imagine they’d please any glam fan. The sound throughout is remarkably consistent, which makes for an album that ends up being a little more than the sum of its parts.

Whether Boogaloo Stu will remain a club performer or break out into bigger and better things all depends on the right single at the right time. Luckily, I think he’s got at least three with this release. Now it’s just up to the people to get behind him. B

Key Tracks: Magnetic Heart, Just Want You To Know, Long Time Coming

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Sample

Tigercity - Dark Water

"Heart of a fallen lover"

Remember last year's Under The Influence Of Giants? That disco and 70's pop flavored American group? Well, they're not back yet, but Tigercity seem to be intent on filling their void until they come back. I have XOLondon's fantastic blog to thank for discovering this band, who have released one EP so far. I hope an album is coming soon, because these guys show definite promise. Ultra catchy, smooth pop melodies mingle with unabashed disco beats to glorious effect. The entire EP is fantastic, but I decided to post Dark Water today, one of the rockier tracks. It's got an instantly catchy melody and some wicked funk guitar.

Tigercity - Dark Water (zshare)

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

MGMT - Kids

"Control yourself, take only what you need from it"

This week on the blog I'm going to do something that I honestly never thought possible. Each track this week comes from a new American group. That's right... American. Could 2008 be the first year in a long time where American music is actually sort of, dare I say it, good? We'll see.
Today, though, I'm starting with a duo that have released the first great album of 2008. They're called MGMT ("Management") and I posted a track by them a few months ago (their best song, Time To Pretend). The album is a kaliedoscope of different experimental pop styles, from Bowie to Arcade Fire to everything in between. Kids is the big dance track on the album and is one of the more instantly catchy ones the guys have recorded. Hopefully I'll have a real album review up soon, but for now know that it comes out tomorrow in the States and is definitely worth checking out.

MGMT - Kids (zshare)

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