IT'S THE FUTURE, IT'S THE FUTURE: BBC Sound of 2009 'Longlist' Poll

eh ive heard like 3 of these and i guess i like passion pit most

MASTER SHORTIE - "spans the roles of grime MC, cool club kid and teen-friendly pop singer"

this one sounds like the worst by far

Go to the full article and you'll see that I missed a bit off the end of that sentence. A fairly big bit.

Went Temper Trap, reminded me of Paris Angels a bit. Thumbs also up-ish for Big Pink, Frankmusik and Little Boots. I really like the Kid Cudi track apart from his actual rapping. Not many of these seem to be brilliant in the way of songwriting, though - all of them have bits where they start flagging, usually after about 90 seconds.

F&TM sounds almost exactly like some other song I know, but I can't remember what...

The London-born, Paris-based singer caused a buzz with his radical reworking of US rapper Notorious BIG's song Hypnotize, featuring snippets of Rihanna's Umbrella.

this sounds groundbreaking

MASTER SHORTIE sounds like the brit version of the crop of next big thing rappers in terms of faux-genre spanning

crop of next big thing rappers IN THE US**

Either the BBC isn't looking as hard anymore, or I was more proactive this year. I've heard all of these minus two (Temper Trap, Big Pink). Usually these lists are all brand new to me.

I'm listening to it on his myspace...I'm not sure whether i like it or not. It's not a mashup, he's singing the lyrics. it's a good use of the sample though.

also, someone please define "credible pop"

the big pink are cool - sound kinda like kasabian but not shitty

sound kinda like kasabian but not shitty

These words could destroy the universe.

http://www.kkbox.com.tw/funky/album/71714.jpg

The Temper Trap....a few years ago they had the raw materials but put on a show like a poor Killers soundalike. The quality of the album surprised the hell out of me.

The London-born, Paris-based singer caused a buzz with his radical reworking of US rapper Notorious BIG's song Hypnotize, featuring snippets of Rihanna's Umbrella.

i heard this a while ago and it is maybe the worst piece of shit i've ever heard in my life. i mean that was obvious but it's even worse than you think.

hahaha

Little Boots is Kate Bush playing PacMan but nowhere near as brilliant as that sounds.

VV Brown - what Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings have been doing for the last decade except with a funny haircut.

Florence & the Machine - keel them.

"blissed-out space beats" DIE NOW

"Accompanied by a harp and scary clowns on stage"

Saints preserve us *crosses, clutches rosary and mutters distractedly*

I don't think I've heard anyone on this list. Like, at all.

Considering usually these lists are full of Winehouse clones/identikit haircut indie this qualifies as progress of sorts I suppose, and I quite like the idea of most of them. I'm sure when it comes down to the execution most of them will sound like MGMT or Ladyhawke though.

VV brown is the only one I've heard and she's awful.

Reading the bio I see that Empire of the Sun is a Sleepy Jackson spin off. They look terrible in the pic but if they can produce anything as good as 'Good Dancers' then it may be worth investigating.

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45216000/jpg/_45216895_empire_poster.jpg

Clearly being a "maverick" is the in thing these days.

Empire of the Sun look dreadful but if they sound like Vangelis or Jan Hammer I will forgive them. I suspect they sound like the Flaming Lips though.

DAN BLACK - "uses samples and beats as his backdrop instead of guitars"

^^^this is the lead singer of The Servant who were a kind of "NEW ROCK REVOLUTION"/indie Goth crossover act who went multiple wood in the UK but were bizarrely popular in central Europe, who seemed to treat them as the Libertines/Rasmus hybrid act the world was waiting for.

Oh hang on they've been Photoshopped into those costumes right? That's alright then.

"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"

And Marcello is dead on here: VV Brown has the worst fucking haircut music has seen since the heyday of Maximo Park.

empire of the sun are literally mgmt

"Tipped as the next star of British hip-hop, the fluorescent Master Shortie spans the roles of grime MC, cool club kid and teen-friendly pop singer, with a dash of indie influence thrown in."

"We guarantee there'll be something you like, honest!"

Only one I've heard is VV Brown, definitely not my sort of thing at all. Northampton lass though - Dom I bet you're so proud. Avoid her barber though mate.

passantino - if you were locked in a room w/ the music of one of these, which are you choosing?

little boots right?

Which is the wussiest?

She's not from "proper" Northampton, she's from out in the posher village areas who ensure we always return a Tory MP at elections: Great Billing, Ecton Brooke, Sywell, Earls Barton. Somewhere around there.

xxp

passantino - if you were locked in a room w/ the music of one of these, which are you choosing?

little boots right?

― Bomb Sackantino (J0rdan S.), Friday, 5 December 2008 12:11 (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Choosing for listening or for blapping?

ya i thought you'd get confused -- listening

"Like a British Kylie or a harder, shinier St Etienne"

Does this phrase actually mean anything to anyone under 40?

I previously called Florence and the Machine "the worst band currently going".

Mumford and Sons at the moment, but that kind faux-bluegrass folk indie shit is growing really old at the moment. Really surprised that Kitty, Daisy and Whoeverthefuck made it to an album.

xp

w/regard to Kid Cudi though, really stoked for the "HIPSTER-HOP: Alexis Petridis has an interesting take on it" article in the Guardian/GQ/Saga Magazine.

why of all the hipster rap dudes is kid cudi getting the attention? kanye?

why of all the hipster rap dudes is kid cudi getting the attention? kanye?

― Bomb Sackantino (J0rdan S.), Friday, 5 December 2008 12:19 (3 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

More like "first one to hire a UK PR agency"

What is Frankmusik like? Could be awesome, could be Mika covering Rick Astley.

Jacques Lu Cont should be a good sign but then I remembered he hasn't produced anything good in about two years.

Frankmusic is like Alphabeat for hipsters

He's rubbish

i knew Little Boots would be on dis ting

Haha it looks like Little Boots and my sister have a load of mutual friends which is not even remotely surprising.

DAN BLACK - "uses samples and beats as his backdrop instead of guitars"

Just imagine!

Out of all of these, White Lies are the ones who are having proper money thrown at them right? They are a bit like Editors.

A friend of mine turned up to a DJ gig armed with only a copy of the Big Pink record. I ddon't think they let him play.

I am going to waste my Friday night by listening to all of these.

The Big Pink record is sounding okay, good droney noises and the beat is great, but the singer just wanders aimlessly over the top, Richard Ashcroft style. They will do precisely naff-all commercially.

We need a "LIVEBLOG INDIE-HYPE ALBUMS" thread.

Dan Black - this is not very good. Whichever single appears in an iPod ad will be massive. I will studiously ignore him for the whole of next year.

VV Brown - 21st Century sheen MY ARSE. This is Big Beat revivalism by way of another post-Winehouse singer. I will either love this by next summer or it will irritate the hell out of me. Will be played on every radio station in the country and will get to #1.

Empire of the Sun - oh, it's THIS song. This is okay, awful tinny drums though, needs more Phil Collins echo. Just ambles along really doesn't it? This will soundtrack a pivotal emotional scene in Skins and then won't go away for the whole year.

Florence and the Machine - heard this one before as well. I like her voice, mostly because she is trying to be Cat Power. Or Karen O. Or Enya, depending which bit of the song you're listening to. This is a qualified yes so far, there will be a Glastonbury appearance where they do something mental on stage and the album will win the Mercury.

FrankMusik - I was right about Mika covering Rick Astley. Fuck the internet for making this sort of shit cool again. Also JLC has completely lost the plot.

my reaction to this: I HATE MUSIC I HATE WORDS

Kid Cudi - This is great apart from the vocals, like the Count and Sinden or something. Needs a bassline remix at twice the speed. Nah its rubbish.

The La Roux song is actually good! Also tremendous Sebastien Tellier type video. Dude doing somersault on giant naked woman = win.

Lady Gaga - oh just fuck off.

Little Boots is Kate Bush playing PacMan but nowhere near as brilliant as that sounds.

Haha OTM. This is nice enough though. Qualified yes. Also, would smash.

Not as good as Dead Disco though.

Master Shortie - lol grime MC following the money and going from nought to Dance Wiv Me in one step. This is better than Dance Wiv Me though, but not anywhere near as good as Chipmunk, although he will actually sell records while Chipmunk won't. He's ripped a bit of his flow off from Durrty Goodz as well. This is indeed trying to be all things to all people and that's annoying in itself.

Mumford & Sons are a terrible man for the earnest Radio Two bleating.

name?

Passion Pit - this is a fucking mess. Good use of samples but the vocal just tramples over them and it's got those shit Flaming Lips/MGMT style big machine drums over the top. I have no idea whether I'll end up liking this or not.

Temper Trap - well, Nick Southall will like them at any rate.

Actually this isn't bad, standard chiming stadium falsetto stuff with some weird effect on the vocals. I take this as a sign the singer cannot actually sing. They will be massive.

Passion Pit - this is a fucking mess. Good use of samples but the vocal just tramples over them and it's got those shit Flaming Lips/MGMT style big machine drums over the top. I have no idea whether I'll end up liking this or not.

― Matt DC, Friday, December 5, 2008 3:40 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark

i really like passion pit

Florence's DOG DAYS (produced by Simian's James Ford) is *AN AMAZING* bit of work. I can vouch for it's immense popularity with lots of people who hadn't the faintest who she was, on hearing the song for the first time, they just knew they loved the record. That's what it's all about if i'm not mistaken. Gonna be huge. I hope.

I bet 5 of those bands are hoaxes.

White Lies - 50% Killers, 50% Editors. It sounds EXACTLY like you think it does. They will probably be the biggest band in Britain in three years time.

One hit, five misses, jury's out on the rest. Voting La Roux due to it being the only one that immediately made me want to play it again.

i really like passion pit

― Bomb Sackantino (J0rdan S.), Friday, 5 December 2008 21:46 (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Pit Passiantino

stage name "tino passion"

haha nice xp

The White Lies song sounds almost identical to "Painted By Numbers" by The Sounds (which gets used on Five Live's football coverage a lot, particularly when Alan Green's advertising 606), and it's almost alright, until they wheel their utterly pathetic chorus round the corner and then there's just no hope for the wazzocks.

"Crying Blood" was on the R1 playlist a month or so ago, did nothing chart-wise. So far as I'm aware, none of this bunch have had a hit yet, which is slightly rare for this poll.

Frankmusik was dead good on the bottom of the bill when I saw that there PopJustice tour in Leeds. His EP thing from (I think) 2007 was decent, but this version of "3 Little Words" appears to have had a really shoddy bit stuck in the middle for no reason.

PopJustice as a whole looms fairly heavily over this list - at least five of these bands (La Roux, Little Boots, Frankmusik, VV Brown, Lady Gaga) have received pretty voluble love from them in the past six months or so. Based on this list, the future apparently smells a reasonable amount like MGMT.

Yeah the Popjustic Music Prize shortlist next year will be this lot, the fourth single off the Girls Aloud album and whatever Rachel Stevens releases to capitalise on being in Strictly.

So presumably 2009 is going to be a fallow year for the standard guitar-bass-drums NME indie band then? Only White Lies and Temper Trap even come close. Where's the obligatory shit lad rock band?

At a guess, in the NME's list that happens in January. NME, from what I can remember, went for a decent amount of stuff that sounded a bit like this in their last list - well, stuff that was more artsy and so forth - then stuck in The Courteeners just in case the public didn't take to Yo Majesty for some reason.

Little Boots was in the £20 Music Prize list this year, I'm fairly sure.

It really does look like Hot Chip and MGMT are going for a Strokes/Stripes complete domination over all indie music for the next couple of years.

I mean in terms of influence.

I can't quite see this working out commercially, though - the top 40 is a very difficult nut to crack these days. I'm not sure if any of these acts have the big breakthrough single to put them over the top a la "Mercy", "Chasing Pavements", "That's Not My Name" etc. Little Boots seems the most likely.

Dude the VV Brown record will be huge - 60s soul revivalism plus annoying Ting Tings peppiness. I can see Florence and the Machine, Empire of the Sun and the rappers having decent selling albums as well.

Sorry, I just intimated that a British MC might actually sell some albums. I don't know what came over me.

Well, he might sell if he gets Calvin Harris, Mark Ronson and I dunno Paul Epworth or someone to produce the whole thing, which he probably will. He went to the Brits school so we might get a good diss track out of it I suppose.

La Roux are the best on this list by a very long way.

Although the video reminds me of "jeez not everything is balearic, guys"

Sorry, I just intimated that a British MC might actually sell some albums. I don't know what came over me.

Well, he might sell if he gets Calvin Harris, Mark Ronson and I dunno Paul Epworth or someone to produce the whole thing, which he probably will. He went to the Brits school so we might get a good diss track out of it I suppose.

― Matt DC, Friday, 5 December 2008 22:32 (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

I have a weird feeling Chipmunk is going to have a #1 album next year. I'm not quite sure what I'm basing that on.

Is this list made up?

"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"
"cutting-edge dance acts Klaxons and Crystal Castles"

― Matt DC, Friday, December 5, 2008 12:08 PM (Yesterday)

Have just listened the La Roux again and... yeah, it's really good, isn't it?

La Roux's Quicksand = Hazel O'Connor doing karaoke "When Doves Cry" :/

is florence and the machine the new cocorosie

most of these are like a band in an episode of the Mighty Boosh.

is florence and the machine the new cocorosie

― warmsherry, Sunday, 7 December 2008 19:20 (3 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Don't think they're racist, just shit.

brace yourself, for florence is the new queen of quirk

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk73/betweenwantsandneeds/2dlw19e.jpg

because we really fucking needed kate nash+ida maria argh

collect them all

http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w200/youlovesally/QHardGirlFeat58.jpg

Empire Of The Sun's rather weak 'Walking On A Dream' could use a Braxe & Falke retouch, altho that's probably too obvious a remix choice.

I rather like it. I think the 'weakness' of it is part of its appeal. It reminds me a little bit in its mood of China Crisis. I'm afraid I don't know Braxe & Falke (sorry, out of touch) but if that would entail some sort of pumping dance remix I think it would destroy it.

I also liked the following:

Florence and the Machine - Dog Days Are Over (this won me over totally as the song progressed)

La Roux - Quicksand

(those two, along with Empire of the Sun, impressed me a lot because it felt like there was a depth to both the writing and production, unlike a lot of recent late '70s to '80s influenced stuff I've heard that sounds like a toytown copy with insufficient quality control on the songwriting; but now it feels to me that at last things could be changing for the better)

Lady GaGa - Just Dance (not particularly original, but good - I liked how the beat trod a fine line between the current 4-on-the-floor r&b beat and a kind of paired-down rock)

--

I really disliked:

Little Boots - Meddle (excruciating, contrived rubbish - at least on the strength of the Jools Holland clip)

The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition (sounded a bit like a feeble U2)

FrankMusik - 3 Little Words (a poor, forgettable take on a kind of '80s music I never liked in the first place; also he has a really annoying face)

Dan Black - Yours (rubbish; is this the 'sampling revival' ?)

I mildly disliked:

White Lies - To Lose My Life (well produced, with a touch of Echo & the Bunnymen about it, but ultimately it's just FIFA 08 background music, like a lot of bands from the last few years)

--

The others were in between and had their good and bad points, but were nothing to write home about.

everything sucks

Meddle (excruciating, contrived rubbish - at least on the strength of the Jools Holland clip)

wow couldn't agree less. actual recording sounds better tho - co-produced by greg kurstin (one of my faves when he's on it), 'kish kash' vibe about it, love her voice esp. pronunciation of 'don't' (not particularly unusual but there's just something about it i like) and song seems well written.

I find the song catchy in a way but it's not the kind of song that appeals to me in the slightest. It sounds to me like a retake on Joe Meek era pop (ie very early '60s, pre Beatles), but meshed, in a very contrived way, with the electro and dance sounds/beats. I don't like that Joe Meek kind of pop so that's probably what annoys me the most. But, on top of that, I don't find the beats or her voice interesting, and featuring the Tenori-on is just such a gimmick ('trademark instrument' my arse). Still, good marketing, I suppose (along with the 'Bedroom Version' on youtube).

I find myself oddly impressed by Passion Pit. I fear the schtick might start to grate quickly, though.

Not massively taken with anything else I've heard so far, but I'm only up to Dan Black ... I really liked HYPNTZ (yes, really) when there was that little flurry of excitement earlier in the year, but Yours is utter jism.

Florence and the Machine: fuck me, it's Toyah! Which means this is FUCKING GREAT and A WINNER. Fantastic: genuinely delighted by that.

Having checked out some of her other stuff: not Toyah, necessarily! BUT STILL. I don't care. I like.

Ah. The Temper Trap. OK, that's some old-skool GrimlyMusic right there. Sorry, Florence, you've got competition.

Mumford & Sons are Great Mates of ILM favourites Noah & The Whale, FYI. I saw them live about six weeks ago and they sucked. The singer actually said at one point "This song is dedicated to Annabel and her friends who are going travelling in India"

White Lies are horrendous, quite like what I've heard of The Big Pink, not heard any of the others

Oh hang on they've been Photoshopped into those costumes right? That's alright then.

not only are they not shopped, they've gone to Japan and Brazil and whatnot to shoot videos in 'em

Finally heard Florence and the Machine last night, and it was so bloody boring I made Emsk turn it off before the song was even over.

and WHEN, WHEN, WHEN are magazines going to STOP doing shitty articles of "oh, let's get a bunch of female artists with nothing in common except their gender and throw them all together in a WOMEN IN MUSIC ISSUE (never mind the other 11 months of the year when its the same old same old blokes with guitars - or synths, as fashion dictates) to have an excuse to have BIG PRETTY PICTURES of them dressed up like FASHION MODELS which take up twice as much space as any actual writing about the music"

This shit fucks me off so much I can't even read the rest of the thread.

When PR agencies can come up with a new angle beyond "ethnic tits", "middle class tits", "indie tits", "tits remixed by diplo", etc.

or when the female artists themselves stand up and say NO MORE

I have a weird feeling Chipmunk is going to have a #1 album next year. I'm not quite sure what I'm basing that on.

I doubt it, although he is more or less unique among grime MCs in actually having some charisma.

also he's really fit. though this never helped kano

of the longlist i have heard:

dan black - completely reprehensible, embarrassing bullshit
florence and the machine - assumed this was a comedy act the first 5 times i heard it
lady gaga - "wacky" omgzzz!!!!111 die die die
little boots - i don't mind them at all, based on that one track with some 'i feel love' bassline action which was worth maybe 6/10

kid cudi is "hipster rap" right? only act of any worth in that scene is kid sister. have avoided hearing vv brown and frankmusik out of trepidation - the latter is producing for tinchy stryder at the moment though :/

Tinchy's new single is total Miami-friendly trance-pop. I don't think Frankmuzik was anywhere near it.

Never has a man looked less in control of his career than Tinchy Stryder. I think that the Fast Food Rockers had more creative input into their releases than he does.

the Empire of the Sun track is the only one i'd listen to again. has the same happy/sad feel like 'too young/feel better' era Phoenix.

or when the female artists themselves stand up and say NO MORE

Yeah, blame the victim, yet again - when the choice is gynogunnysacking or NO PRESS AT ALL, whatchagonnado?

I'd like to think most people would chose dignity over cooning themselves for cash, but apparently not.

whatchagonnado?

if i was competent/dull musician but deemed hot by the press, i'm not sure i could really consider myself a "victim" (as opposed to women who, regardless of ability, can't get an article because they're deemed not hot enough or marketable in that way). if you don't want to be judged more by image then refuse to play along with that - simple. if you're worried about no press/no sales as a result of that then consider an alternative career.

the Empire of the Sun track is the only one i'd listen to again

Yes, I've fallen in love with the Empire of the Sun track. There's another of their songs which is great, too - 'We Are The People' (can be heard on their Myspace page, or youtube - WAIT FOR THE CHORUS before you turn it off).

I'd never heard of MGMT before so I was intrigued by people earier on this thread saying Empire of the Sun sounded like a copy of them. I listened to about four or five MGMT songs on youtube and found them all dreary, plodding and weak. No comparison. Empire of the Sun is proper, unashamed pop music, as of old, not hipster posturing.

Little Boots is a tricky one because I loved the track (Stuck On Repeat) first, didn't know about Dead Disco, eventually went to her MySpace and saw that she was HOT but didn't expect her to start getting attention anyway (i couldn't imagine the music she's done so far charting - poppy as it is it feels increasingly niche). but since she turned up unexpectedly on Later (having gone blonde, hmmm) and now on this list it's more 'maybe...', altho can't help thinking that's more down to image direction/management (plus ca change i guess).

Were those Female Artists on that double page spread even in the same room together? I kinda suspect they didn't have the full lowdown on the nature of the piece

Were those Female Artists on that double page spread even in the same room together? I kinda suspect they didn't have the full lowdown on the nature of the piece

On the fucking money. This is absolutely the kind of thing that happens again and again.

Can you imagine the same thing happening with a bunch of "look, the hot new MALE ARTISTS" shaping the sound of now? It just wouldn't happen. It's sexism, plain and simple.

That double page spread really looks like it's in Grazia or something but I'm assuming Q?

It's sexism, plain and simple.

the industry, charts etc. both reflect and project this. big photo-heavy 'look it's an army of (vetted for photogenic-ness) girls with guitars' type pieces are obviously stupid but the artists in them should know what's going on there - no excuses on either side, 50% blame each way

the bigger, more disturbing issue is that of the 16 or so women in the top 40 this week only Pink and J Hudson kinda run against what appear to be conventional notions beauty or image-wise, while there are still a few ugly geezers selling well (altho maybe this number is dropping too). 16 is a pretty healthy number but none of them DON'T sing and none of them play instruments on the songs (or appear doing so in the vids) afaik...

that's another good thing about Little Boots just by the by - classically trained pianist

the artists in them should know what's going on there

See (a) I don't think this is necessarily true as I wouldn't specifically expect them to be told anything more by their 'people' than "<magazine> wants to interview you, be <place> at <date/time>" and (b) maybe they're not actually that bothered about these dick moves, at least not compared to how much they're bothered about getting a bunch of national press

I think it's more likely that they were all told "hey we're doing a piece on female artists/women in music who in our lousy opinion made waves in 2008, interested?" and they all said "sure!", the end. i'd love to be proved wrong (altho the situation would still be depressing either way).

little boots - i don't mind them at all, based on that one track with some 'i feel love' bassline action which was worth maybe 6/10

I hate to knock a couple of points off that total but the hook is I Feel Love doing the opening riff to Franz Ferdinand's Matinee.

lady gaga - "wacky" omgzzz!!!!111 die die die

i don't think that's what she's going for...perhaps sartorially she's been going for the cracked out vogue spread look, but only with the noblest of intentions. musically she's pretty straightforward dance pop.

Voted La Roux. Quicksand is really growing on me. I'm even starting to get used to that odd chord in the chorus.

And what a video!!!

OMG, one of Kid Cudi's tracks is based on a sample from Neil Innes' 5-year old son's version of "Cum On Feel The Noize", from Morgan Fisher's 1980 Miniatures project. What's more, it kind of works...

Exciting New Acts that I would have voted for, were I a Man Of Influence: Donaeo, Fan Death, Keaver & Brause, Perempay.

I still can't get through *any* of the videos all the way. I got most of the way through that Florence and the Machine song, but, really - she just made me want to listen to the *real* Bat For Lashes.

I mean, La Roux would be OK... if it were still 1983. I have nothing against retro and all, but it doesn't excite me. I didn't think the singer's voice had enough... oomph. I wanted Alison Moyet or someone to come in and make it good. And the video is just... ugh.

I guess it's down to Little Boots or VV Brown, but neither inspires me enough to click the button.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Frankmusik also not bad. Temper Trap are going to get my vote, though, I think. I'm so bloody predictable.

White Lies, by the way: my god, derivative of a derivative of a derivative. OK, the Temper Trap aren't exactly shockingly original either, but this is just pointless. It's not even dislikably pointless, just ... pointless.

No, really. Billy Idol meets Ultravox at an Editors gig. The world does not need this.

Are they a comedy band or something?

I've been taking this task VERY SERIOUSLY, working through all the MySpaces and stuff, but I might have run out of time on Passion Pit / Temper Trap / White Lies.

Empire Of The Sun is my clear favourite, and the Florence & the Machine stuff isn't bad if you can vault the hurdle of that typical '08 vocal style. La Roux and Little Boots both promised more than they delivered. Mumford & Sons has its moments, but there's an ever-present cringe factor which puts me off. Really can't stand VV Brown and Lady GaGa. Overall, a disappointing list (and I agree with whoever said upthread that MGMT and Popjustice loom large over it).

i seriously can't vote for any of them

I might have run out of time on Passion Pit / Temper Trap / White Lies

I'd be interested to know what you make of the Temper Trap, Mike. I'm smitten, I really am.

It reminds me of some of the stuff that was beginning to happen in the early 1990s -- the sort of post-baggy pop/dance/shoegazing crossover thing that bands like Passion Fruit and Holy Bread occasionally threatened to get right -- but that was then killed stone fucking dead by bastarding Britpop before it had a chance to go anywhere.

(Actually, WBS OTM above about the Paris Angels.)

going through a couple of the ones i haven't heard - wow, la roux is REALLY FUCKING AWFUL

the hell is this "empires of the sun" bullshit? OH THAT'S WHAT THE "BALEARIC REVIVAL" NEEDED, AN INDIE BAND WITH A TERRIBLE SINGER DOING IT

next.

kid cudi - oh it's THIS! the crookers rmx is banging. the original is bollocks.

all of these people are patting themselves on the back for their "cleverness" far too fucking hard

Empire of the Sun don't have anything to do with the Balearic revival do they?

Jeez not everything is Balearic guys.

vv brown seems to think she has to pull a face into a different "wacky" contortion for every syllable she sings which is hella annoying. VV CLOWN MORE LIKE. actually the chorus isn't so bad but the production is so rudimentary that i'm never going to actively want to listen to it.

the empires of the sun blurb promised me "blissed-out space beats"

THEY DID NOT COME THRU.

Skip the rest and go straight to Master Shortie. I want to see your reaction.

gaahh frankmusik is the new calvin harris, i lasted 20 seconds into that, horrible horrible horrible, STEP AWAY TINCHY

master shortie - unable to listen beyond the line "she had skinny jeans on, her little indie pumps" (ie the opening line) as i have to go and VOMIT

the others are just indie bands right? not wasting my time on that. need to cleanse ears w/some jazmine sullivan (who, incidentally, should be fucking at the TOP of this list)

No wait you have to get as far as the 'I know you like electro' bit.

i have to say, it's 6 AM here and i've been up writing a paper that is due in three hours, and i very much appreciate lex reviewing the songs of indie bands that we all know he is going to have violent reactions against. it is comforting and entertaining, and i thank u

u_u

i only bothered with the ones i thought weren't indie bands!

when is this "quirky" phase of pop culture going to end? it really needs to be soon.

when is this "quirky" phase of pop culture going to end? it really needs to be soon.

^i think this is otm actually - to expand it outward, i think this type of thing really started to take off amongst young people around time of the US office becoming increasingly popular here. of course, we inherited the 'quirky' humor and characters from the uk. in short, it is your guys' fault

and WHEN, WHEN, WHEN are magazines going to STOP doing shitty articles of "oh, let's get a bunch of female artists with nothing in common except their gender and throw them all together in a WOMEN IN MUSIC ISSUE (never mind the other 11 months of the year when its the same old same old blokes with guitars - or synths, as fashion dictates) to have an excuse to have BIG PRETTY PICTURES of them dressed up like FASHION MODELS which take up twice as much space as any actual writing about the music"

One of them is showing her knickers too

when has pop not been "quirky"?

i think lex is talking about a transparent/contrived quirkiness. the difference b/w, say, hot chip and boy george. im sure contrived quirkiness has always existed in pop, but it does seem a little suffocating nowadays. (btw i think this applies to all culture - see the explosion of the office amongst young ppl, or ppl on ilx expressing love for anything wrapped in bacon and fried etc etc)

contrived quirkiness in pop is a huge reason why we've had many discussion on ilm about what's wrong w/ the newly anointed next stars of rap (in the US at least), guys like charles hamilton and asher roth and mickey factz etc

Lex is only talking about quirkiness in artists he doesn't like dude, contrived or otherwise doesn't come into it. Boy George's image was infinitely more contrived than Hot Chip's is from where I'm standing.

But I can totally see why indie artists are doing this after years of Strokes/Libertines knockoffs. And at least this way round when it isn't good it will be unintentionally funny.

can't say i'm a huge fan of boy george either - and yeah i'm talking about self-conscious "wackiness" which pats itself on the back for surface quirkiness (like pulling contorted faces, or dressing in clashing bright colours) - it's too arch and mannered to be fun, and it's way boring too.

it's really obvious that some of the female acts on this list idolise kate bush, and they've noted very well how mental she is, and then to make their own music this is ALL they've learnt from her.

Like Tori Amos!

this thread only 16th result for 'BBC Sound Of 2009' so far

on Google

yeah but the thing is that's not what tori amos was about at all

xps

see many ilx posts passim by tim finney and myself

No thanks!

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Man, I forgot to vote in this. Or rather, I couldn't find any artist worth shooting my wad over.

Yeah, what Lex was saying about contrived quirkiness is very OTM. That really bothers me. Actually quirky people don't need to shout about how quirky they are, they can't help be any other way. I'd say there was something very ... stage school about it. Except, well, if they had actually gone to stage school, they might be better actors and do a more convincing bonkers.

It's like the musical equivalent of Organised Fun - too regimented to actually be fun.

There is gonna be crazy-mad bitching about Flossie's Marvellous Medicine on here in the next year, isn't there? Can'thardlywait.

Have realised the song the La Roux is reminding me of most is "Stay Loose".

Well, Flossie does have the "coveted opening slot" on the next NME tour...

No way is there a band called Flossie's Marvellous Medicine. Delete music now.

Boy George is an interesting example. Does quirkiness = imprisoning rent boys? If so, very few pop stars make the grade!

"Florence and the Machine has been announced as the winner of the Critics' Choice award at the Brits 2009. The 22-year-old will be the second recipient of the award, voted for by a journalists and broadcasters from across the music industry. Florence, full name Florence Welch, is followed by electro-synth act Little Boots, real name Victoria Hesketh, and London indie-pop band White Lies in second and third place respectively."

No way is there a band called Flossie's Marvellous Medicine. Delete music now.

It is an affectionate nick-naming device due to me being twee.

Poor old Bat the Lashes, anticipating the bandwagon two years too early!

BFL sounds nothing like FATM tho right?

Flounce Against The Machine?

Little Boots won this

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/entertainment/2009/sound_of_2009/default.stm

actually quite like the new FAT M

BfL comparison making more sense to me now

sort of like this too but vocals are a bit shit - would've preferred them to be more juan macleany (m/f duet style)

Did Master Shortie just get quietly dropped when the industry realised that Tinchy Stryder had already got there with his rubbish new direction?

recent Master Shortie single 'Dead End' is crap. still not heard a note of Dan Black whew.

dan black's cover of HYPNTZ has its charms. his other stuff isnt very good though

what charms would those be wtfffff how is that song remotely acceptable in any way????

Weirdly at the time I was like "ah well, at least there's only one generic haircut indie band in there and everyone else is at least trying to be interesting".

With several months hindsight White Lies are actually one of the least objectionable things in here due to just, well... being there. Being annoyed by White Lies would be a bit like being annoyed by a brick wall.

dan black's cover of HYPNTZ has its charms

Yeah we have to kill you now sorry dude

White Lies leans towards the well acceptable for me due to the singer reminding me of Julian Cope.

heyo Florence try making something like Maximum Joy's 'Silent Street' maybe