Apologies for the Filler

With this blog still in its early infancy its appeal must come through regular, well informed updates rather than a catalogue that stretches back years. So far I feel this has been acheived, with updates coming on a daily basis. Anyway who wants to read about the latest band from a couple of years ago? If they've made it - you'll know about it. So why devote all your attention the firm favorites. Give the new - the Pop Register - a chance.

So there has been a complete lack of any live reviews or interviews lately. Apologies for this - it is as unfortunate for me as it is for the reader - that I live in an area of the UK (Essex) that is completely deprived of a decent music scene. Fortunately come September I'll be moving to Oregon USA, for a year - an area with the most creative persons per capita than anywhere else in the States. So with a bit of luck some things will be going down there. In the mean time look forward to a live review of Shiny Toy Guns and hopefully a cheeky interview with their support, Does it Offend You, Yeah? Both are quality electro pop outfits and I think they'll fit in pretty well at the register.

Blessed with a much more happening music is scene is the Fucking Dance blog, delivered from Manchester. They have a few indie chunes knocking about by Good Shoes and Bombay Bicycle Club.

Guilty Electro Pleasures - Trademark

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Electro is the definitely the coolest scene right now. With its dirty beats, snyth mania and stylish clothing (just check out Justice's D.A.N.C.E. video, or the other side to Kitsune), its the hottest circle around today.

But Trademark seem blissfully unaware of this. Stuck with their highly uncool - yet pretty fun - sound of 90s pop mixed with 80s electro. Using some genuinely old school, New Order inspired samples and snyth and throwing in some boy band inspired 1990s pop choruses, Trademark produce a sound that's categorically pretty different today.

Come to Love is a perfect example with its cheesy chorus of [we can fall in love together and see the end of time together, baby] and use of a sample fresh from a schoolroom keyboard. You wouldn't dare play it at you're own house party but it'll be on repeat on your car stereo (so long as the windows are up).

With its penetrating, reverberating bass line and handfuls of effects all weaved in, Toe the Line reflects Trademark's most complete sound. A genuine disco floor thumper, its satisfyingly danceable and you won't feel guilty listening to it, either.

Mp3s

Trademark - Come to Love (.m4a)

Trademark - Toe the Line (.m4a)

In other news, our friends over at Turn the Page have an interesting piece on Art Brut and their unusual international appeal.

Pop Science - Vatican DC

Vatican DC

Vatican DC's debut rock/pop album make it Make it Ride is a sound so down to formula that they've probably been in trouble for plagiarism. They're a five man gang of London scenesters and they've done their homework.

From the hints of new wave with the backing [oooh] and [aaah] vocals of Make it Ride, to the electronic vocal and guitar effects of Not Your Fault, and the powerful, anthemic pop choruses of Side to Side and Sparks, every song on Make it Ride is memorable in some way -a feat few artists are capable of achieving.

Fountainhead is a song so tightly knit there's not a second wasted. Weaving synth, punchy vocals and some lightning guitar picks, its a well oiled pop vessel. She Takes Me Out is a cathartic affair, powering along at a pace rivalled only by its own fury. Bugs could easily have been created for a movie break up scene. You can just imagine the montage of weeping, glossing over old photos and the contemplation of a phone call.

Its a perfected calculated pop project. A conglomeration of different pop styles it nethertheless boasts a familiar core. You can buy Vatican DC's album, Make it Ride now.

Mp3s

Vatican DC - Fountainhead (.m4a)

Vatican DC - Bugs (.m4a)

THE SCARE!

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To prove not everything small and furry is cute - here's The Scare with Bats, Bats Bats.

The Scare are a band that very much agree with my theory on good pop. They have a laugh, get drunk, beat each other up and just make some records. Its all about having fun - and if you can produce something as good as their debut UK single while doing that - we welcome The Scare.

Having found little demand for their brand of destructive punk back in their homeland, Queensland, the dirty rockers decided to pack it in and go reek some havoc in Birmingham UK. Here they've made a name from themselves thanks to their rampant touring and on stage theatrics.

Like a song fresh from The Horrors' album, Bats begins with a touch of gothic and a teasing bass line that only hints at the mayhem that lies ahead of you. Lead singer Kiss Reid then launches you into the thick of things with his screaming, head banging vocals. Its heavy, its hard and its dangerous, but never verges over the doomed line of heavy metal. This is pop in all its fury.

You can pick up some of their earlier AUS based material over at Off the Record

Mp3s

The Scare - Bats, Bats, Bats

Alien Ryhmes - Marvin the Martian

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While his name is out of this world, Marvin the Martian is a man very much in touch with everyday life. Born and raised in Brixton, London, Marvin endured a troubled youthhood and found himself homeless with a child on the way aged just 18. Now in his twenties, Marvin is very much on an upward trajectory, owing much to the success of his first hit Stay off the Kane, produced using a sample taken from Art Brut's single, Emily Kane.

But while he chronicles harrowing tales of lost love and everyday struggles in London, he doesn't get bogged down in the grime. Instead his work boasts a refreshing and light core thanks to his use of upbeat indie tunes originally by artists like The Maccabees and GoodBooks. Check out his myspace to download his latest mixtape for free.

Mp3s

Marvin the Martian - I don't go (alone) (feat GoodBooks) (.m4a)
Marvin the Martian - Reymell

Psych Mixers - Malakai

Malakai are a little know band from Bristol who's talents come from their ability to glide through musical genres, use a wide range of instruments and through their intensive use of mixing and editing techniques.


Fading world is what happens when you lay down a track then rip it apart. One moment you think you know where the tune is heading, then suddenly some other melody kicks in and you're taken down a whole new path. Yet the final product is a song that flows beautifully. Think 60's with a dashing of folk, lashing of pyschedelia and some haunting ambience and you're almost there.

The Battle kicks into gear on a sample fresh from an 50s horror flick before bursting into a funky Arctic Monkey's-esque bassline coupled with some suitably booming vocals, with special attention given to its climax [stand up! stand up!]. Its not a song you'd sing into a real battle but it'd no doubt spark a mosh pit of fury at any of their gigs.


Mp3s

Malakai - Fading World

Malakai - The Battle (myspace rip)

London's Alright - The Tacticians

Ok so you might already have realised I have a soft spot for cheery, uplifting tunes. So you can imagine my delight when I stumbled across THE feel-good summer anthem of 2007, over at Good Weather for Air Strikes. I simply had to share it.


Take a few simple yet soulful guitar rifts, throw over some sun kissed lyrics [the music's ringing in my ear, and the sun is shining everywhere], add a few twinkling sounds here and there, and your left with one of the most infectious and addictive tunes of the year. Their other stuff isn't bad either.

Mp3s

The Tacticians - London's Alright