A kung fu fighter in a disco

Reluctant tick for Madonna/Justin - not really feeling it, mediocre and too formulaic on first listen...I guess it does just enough to qualify tho.

Sam Sparro - really unsure about this, not really keen on the vocal but am worried by my bias against male vocalists here - would be a no problem 'hey this is alright' tick if by some new rstevens-esque girl. imagining it being sung by SALLY SPARROW really clinched it tho.

And grudging nod to Gnarls too, purely for Cee-Lo really. Nothing much about the production to shout about - I wish they had gone for a more ramped up 'Bombs Over Baghdad' epic feel.

From:

ESTELLE: Number one! Are we still all racialists? As I said on Robin C's LJ (who HATES the song), Kanye's verse really reminds me of old Marvel Comics when they'd set an issue in Britain and all the dialogue was "Wotcher my old bloke". Easy, easy tick - love the combination of blitheness and tasty electro hits.

MADONNA: More problematic this - as someone (Matt?) said, would have been a great Justin Timberlake track but somehow less impressive as a Madge one. Still a tick tho and it might well grow on me.

GUILLEMOTS: I've never minded the Guillemots but never been hugely excited with them either. This is alright though - nice rubbery bassline, good use of shouting, bad use of woo-hoos, the voice really sounds like a 1987-style indie band, which obviously I don't mind. Marginal tick, because actually the woo-hoos REALLY are starting to annoy me.

SAM SPARRO: This is a bit rubbish - a strainy Paolo Nutini style vocalist spoiling some otherwise OK bleepy stuff. No tick.

NATASHA AND SEAN: Pfft, her voice is still pretty but we're in ehsville here - nothing distinctive about this. No tick.

ONE NIGHT ONLY: Surprisingly boshing!! Unsurprisingly in the 'bit like the Alarm' zone though. I found myself wanting to tick it, but I can't really justify that.

GNARLS: Gimmicky but fun Northern Soul update, reminds me a bit of that Beggin' remix from last year. Think I agree with Steve that it would work better if more beserk, but certainly a tick.

GABRIELA: This week's new Amy! Quite a nice tune this, but I don't believe her for a second and the voice is a copy of a mannerism. Too blank for a tick, in the end.

I wonder if the best/worst box will discourage commenting...

From:

katstevens.livejournal.com

I'm so glad the Tashbed/SK song has been released over here finally! It was floating about last October IIRC. TashBed looks almost normal in the video as well, she's finally sorted her hair out (though it could do with a brush). Sean isn't at all annoying and is actually quite sweet.

Tough competition this week - Estelle is amazing obv, Madge & Justin is pretty good judging from the two listens I've given it so far (I like the way it ups the mental after a fairly plodding intro from Timbaland).

Bothered about Gnarls - it's less interesting than 'Gone Daddy Gone'.

Guillemots sound like Jesus Jones or something! It's very strangely produced, all grunging bass and yelling with nothing in between. I'm intrigued but no tick.

Sparro - man it's like Ben Affleck has started a Fischerspooner tribute band. Takes too long to get going, with little payoff when it does.

Cilmi - failing to get enthusiastic about this, something about the 'lessons to be learned' chorus melody isn't sitting right. She's pretty but not as fabulous as Estelle so no tick.

One Night Only - I can't get past the opening hi-hats I'm afraid. These chaps have been plugged to death on Hits!TV :(

From:

umlauts.livejournal.com

I ticked Estelle and Guillemots.

In time, people will realise "4 Minutes" is gash. (I also have said that it would ahve been a good JT track but I may not be the "source")

From:

fair criticism of Cilmi (i first wrote Gimli there wtf).

one for the husband list (if i had one) tho

From:

If it had been Gimli then a big tick would have awaited.

From:

Haha possibly! I did look quickly but maybe I missed them. I suspect it won't affect voting too much either way though...

From:

YAY

Estelle (she is Estelle not Est'elle now! and has been since 2004, I guess they thought apostrophes would confuse the public even more than her skin tone). I am over the moon about this, Sunday was the first time in ages I actually was really hyped up and excited by the top 40 (er not to the extent of listening to Radio 1 of course: Estelle's PR texted me at like 3pm). It's really out of nowhere, I never suspected it'd be this massive - kind of assumed it'd be another No 15 hit - and I'm SO, SO pleased for her.

Song itself is awesome obv as well! I love the lyrics, she totally gets that feeling of exploring someone's territory as a key part of getting to know them, I love that she plays it cool throughout but still conveys the warmth, love the moment when she goes "tell 'em wha gwaan blud!" because you just know the first time she said that in the studio Kanye was like UH??? Am even kind of charmed by Kanye's rubbish rap now.

Madge - yes, we seem to be discussing it elsewhere (http://community.livejournal.com/poptimists/553268.html) right now. I didn't know it was already out, it was only leaked like last week right? I approve, basically. It sounds triumphalist and all concerned pull it off, though the breakdown at the end is kind of crap; just accept your song is 3.45 dudes, don't pad it out just cuz of the title!

Natasha and Sean - hmm this was borderline for me, I remember liking it when I heard it last year but really haven't gone back to it much. It's...nice, I guess? Sort of swings by pleasantly.

BOO

Gabriella Cilmi and Gnarls Barkley - I dislike these for exactly the same reason, ie they're SO BLOODY BORING. Is there ANY point to Cilmi at all? It's no use saying "there's nothing sweet about me", woman, if you sound like you have no idea what that sentence possibly means.

Sam Sparro - I was kind of like whatever about this - slightly dated electropop, Rachel Stevens if she had no hooks and even less personality, who cares - until I saw the video for his other song 'Cottonmouth' (http://youtube.com/watch?v=OxVq4y-n-0Y) which may actually be the most repulsive thing I've ever seen, and now I think he needs to die.

Didn't bother with One Night Only obv.

From:

the Cottonmouth video is naff but the production's actually good - can't make up my mind on his voice, poor white man's jamie lidell or something. he looks like a T4/E4 presenter who is trying his luck as more 'pub soul' robbilliams. as it is the productions seem too good for him.

From:

the production isn't THAT good, we're talking sub-Rachel Stevens territory four years too late!

I think Kat's 'Ben Affleck does Fischerspooner tribute' was pretty spot on. His voice is just blah.

From:

jauntyalan.livejournal.com

this is aNOTHer song by them :-(

From:

I don't get Robin C's beef with it? Also fifth anniversary of what?

I mean, the fact that Estelle was forced to go to the US to get her music a fair hearing should make the UK music industry ask itself a lot of questions, but her actual artistic output is really the kind of thing I've been waiting for UK artists to do for ages - ie learn from and use the best bits of US methods while retaining the best bits of their own.

From:

The Iraq war d00d!!!

Robin's basic political position is that Britain has become a 51st state in all but name and that pop music has played a key role in facilitating this transfer of national interests without many people protesting about it. So Estelle is basically a quisling!

From:

koganbot

Estelle f. Kanye "American Boy": Vocal character halfway between Amy and Lily, given a Sade arrangement; lyrics are disappointing in that there's nothing remotely like the romance you get from, say, the Stones' cover of "Route 66," where all the strange town names had great mystery. And the track has nothing like Sade's glide through the lushness. Estelle's singing on this is too flighty for me. Borderline NONTICK.

Madonna f. Justin "4 Minutes": Slamming track, Timbo finally having learned from the shitty rock he attempted on his own album. This'd be the monster Lex thought it was except that Mad's singing is strangely superfluous. Britney's ace this. Hell, even Stump'd be good, or Michael Jackson. Not what it could be, but a definite TICK.

Guillemots "Get Over It": This is a mess; it would like to be rollicking and swishing, would have a chance if it were less ambitious, had been content to be a Billy Joel-style straightup stodgy rock-soul. But all the weirdo sine waves and sound blips just add clutter. Guy doesn't have much of a voice, and forcing the vocals out isn't a good way to use it. NONTICK.

Sam Sparro "Black and Gold": OK dance throb, blah singing. Needs a soulboy or emoboy, instead falls into a vague middle. Not terrible. NONTICK.

Natasha Bedingfield f. Sean "Love Like This": Hasn't this been out for months? Maybe only in the U.S. Nice sun in the sound, and the voice has nice cracks in it for more light to shine through. Just wish the song were better. Sean's a bore. NONTICK.

Gnarls Barkley "Run": This is really disappointing. A bit of 1970 soul, Stax and Motown and psychedelia colliding, a style that was great in its time; this track ups the sense of collision but the result is merely hectic. NONTICK.

Gabriella Cilmi "Sweet About Me": Another retro girl pastes on the same quirky old-style Amy etc. vocals as scores of others do. (Scores? Hundreds? Thousands?) But the voice is reasonably good, and there's a song here, hurrah. Not astonishingly great, but I'd be happy to hear it again. TICK.

From:

'forced to go to the US' makes it sound like the idea of being successful in the States (which surely she won't be even with Kanye helping out) was really unattractive and some kind of last resort as opposed to being a significantly more difficult thing to achieve (despite Winehouse inroads).

From:

I probably agree with this - JT gets the best bits, the "Ma-dahhhna" line obv and also the chord change on "we only got 4 minutes to SAVE THE WORLD!" which is where the song really lifts off - but he needs someone to play off, and it may as well be Madge.

I have a feeling this will stand or fall on its video: if they get that right I'll probably be totally down with the song, if they don't...I'll still like it, but I can imagine it wearing off.

From:

koganbot

No, you're right about the Sam Sparro. Dude's vocals are blah.

From:

I...did not know that. Huh. He must not get out much, right? I can see why one might think that if one's impression of Britain was gleaned entirely from government press releases but I've never felt more kneejerk anti-Americanism in this country than in the past five years precisely BECAUSE of the Iraq war.

From:

no she was forced to literally move to the US and get a job in the US because no one offered her one at home! basically she was forced to emigrate to earn a living, which isn't a diss on the idea of emigration at all.

From:

awesomewells.livejournal.com

"the "Ma-dahhhna" line"

THIS IS RUBBISH.

From:

yeah but the war is the ONLY reason for that criticism and makes the UK just like a 'blue state' on that basis. actual "oh and they're all fat and arrogant" zings have pretty much died out because, well according to the news at least, the UK is also now as fat and as arrogant as 'them'.

From:

koganbot

Britney's ace this

Birtney'd ace this, that is.

From:

so she had to leave the country in order to have a #1 single here? amazing!

my cynical reaction is that 'American Boy' has only done so well because of the Kanye credit and it's hard to think of it as not being an 'Americanised' piece of music.

From:

koganbot

But interestingly, no American sings like this (and I'd MUCH rather this'd had a Norah Jones or Alicia Keys vocal).

From: