Milton Jones - The House of Rooms [Review]

It's not often I watch a pilot of a comedy show and immediately fall in love with it (Felix and Murdo, I'm looking at you for how it shouldn't be done) but I'm glad that my mum spotted this initial one-off offering from one-liner comedian Milton Jones and told me to watch it.

Already a fan of Jones this is very much in the style of his funny, slightly surreal humour and I absolutely loved it.

Based around a house that Jones and his mum (Coronation Street's Susie Blake) own and rent out rooms in, Jones is a mummy's boy and social awkward and pines for the girl in the flat but, in this episode, faces competition from smooth operator Paul who is everything Jones isn't. Milton also has to combat a pushy gas salesman and his flirtacious mother in a thirty-minute episode that mixes some cracking visual jokes, one-liners and even a fight scene into a very promising episode.

I cannot really recommend this one-off more highly and you can still see it on Channel 4's on-line on-demand service. Highlights include Jones' way of getting rid of cold callers; a scene in which he gets trapped under a bed and tries to eat some chocolates; and a date that goes hilariously wrong.

When a show can even make you laugh with a display of the words 'end of part one' before the adverts with a piece of schtick I don't want to spoil and is creative with captions for advancing the action, you know this is going to be a winner.

Please, Channel 4, commission this show for a series. It's the best comedy I've seen on television since the excellent festive delight of 'The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff'.

Excellent stuff. 10/10

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The Disappointment of the Bonus "Platinum" Track

The platinum album is back with avengance, or as I like to call them the "cash-in tack-on track-on".

There's been loads recently. 'Moves Like Jagger' by Maroon 5; 'Anyway' from Cee-Lo Green; 'Love How It Hurts' by Scouting For Girls and now 'Domino' by Jessie J.

They are defined as follows:
A really fresh sounding track that does really well in the charts
A great song to listen to
Tacked onto the end of an album, possibly with another couple of tracks, and re-released as a platinum album.

I can understand why record labels do it. It gives people an incentive to buy the album or, indeed, re-buy the album and in this hard economic times for record labels it's an extra boost, but as someone who values the art of music it's annoying.

Or perhaps it's an easy way of getting a no. 1 single as fewer people will have the track from an album.

One hopes that artists put together their albums so it flows and this won't happen if a track is just shoved on at the end half-heartedly. Plus, like in the case of Jessie J, I thought it was refreshing that an artist can release a fourth or fifth single from an album and still sound fresh, but that feeling disappears when you find it's a new track and not something older and undiscovered.

The only artist I can give credit to for not doing this is Lady GaGa, who released her additional tracks to 'The Fame' as a separate EP release as well as a joint one, so not to stick two fingers up to those who had invested in her album earlier to support her. The same, unfortunately, couldn't be said for Take That who bolted their otherwise excellent 'Progressed' EP only onto a second disc with the original album.

It's almost getting to the point now where I don't want to buy albums and support the artists as they come out as I've been stung by Cee-Lo Green, Take That and Scouting For Girls who have subsequently brought out beefed up versions of their albums a few months after I bought the original.

What do you think?

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Sound of 2012 Part 3 Plus My Favourite Five!

My look at the final five of the ten of the biggest upcoming artists of 2012…

Jamie N Commons – The Preacher

With a thick, almost Johnny Cash-esque voice that defies his young age it’s a straight forward song that goes from a minimal, almost-acoustic tune, to a full aural assault ninety seconds in mixing in aspects of country and gospel into an intriguing mix before becoming relaxed once more.

A pleasant mix of genres that perhaps get a little over the top during the post-chorus guitar-based assault but, in the most part, it’s an enjoyable listen and picks up where Cash left off. [6/10]



Lianne La Havas ft. Willy Mason - No Room For Doubt

With Willy Mason joining London singer Lianne on this record, the odes bode well. It’s a sentimental ballad that balances their vocals perfectly. Set against nothing more than an acoustic guitar it’s not a particularly revolutionary track but it’s a gentle, calming four minutes that ticks all the easy listening boxes. It’s only fault is that it does slip into repetition and warbling vocals as it progresses but I’ll forgive it for that. [5/10]



Ren Harvieu - Through The Night

Very retro sounding song here from Ren that takes casual verses then kicks up the pace for the choruses which are powerful and ear-catching and when mixed with the string backing and her Dusty Springfield stylings makes a very appealing track.

Will definitely look forward to hearing more like this and the first of this selection of tracks I’d want to download. [7/10]



Spector - Grey Shirt & Tie

Hailing from London Spector seem to be a mix of Morrissey and the Kaiser Chiefs, combining the Smiths’ lead’s melancholy and the sound of Ricky Wilson, though without the catchy perkiness of the Leeds band.

Throwing in some simple synth and a catchy chorus this is very much enjoyable and, at times, quite grandiose, stealing some of the art stylings from the missing-in-absence Franz Ferdinand. The chorus sticks in your head so good omens there.

Could do well filling up the gap left by the Kaisers and Franz. [7/10]



Stooshe – Love Me

If you bred Nicki Minaj with an explosion in a sweet factory and create triplets you’d get Stooshe, or at least how they’d look. Sort of like the Spice Girls but with more attitude, stupid accents and daft wigs, I can certainly see this group being a 2012 novelty act. They do have the tune here to stand up to their heavily marketed image and have attracted Gym Class Heroes’ Travie onto the track so it’ll probably do quite well, adapted from an album track that replaces the word ‘love’ with something a little more explicit.

A catchy slice of feminine attitude that is slightly tarnished by the Cockney talking bits that bring back memories of Daphne and Celeste and the fact they are jumping on the Nicki Minaj / Lady GaGa bandwagon. [6/10]



My Top Five

So, having listened to all of the fifteen recommended artists, here is my BBC-contradicting top five:

Dot Rotten
Friends
Ren Harvieu
Spector
Michael Kiwanuka

So, completely different then.

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Rudolf Rocker – The Whitby Scar review

Rudolf Rocker, named one would assume after the anarchist of the same name, deliver ‘The Whitby Scar’, a concept album about the North Yorkshire town, the surrounding area and the legends that surround the seaside destination.

Starting with the low key ‘Showerbath of the Patriarchs’, the album mixes up folk sounds with story-based lyrics all around the said theme. Second track ‘Hand of Glory’ sounds like a recipe mixed up with the closest folk will ever get to rap whilst also, randomly, channelling that old festive hymn ‘We Three Kings’ and Terry Deary’s ‘Horrible Histories’ series. It’s a strange mix but it works, and leads nicely into my favourite song on the album ‘Hole of Horcum’, the title of which allows the location to be mixed with a quality pun.

Redressing the balance of Lancashire having all the fun with tongue in cheek humour thanks to their Hotpots band, it’s great to hear Yorkshire locations being name-checked amongst the story of camping, tourism and, er, nose-picking, all layered over a catchy accordion-led tune.

‘Ugglebarnby Blues’ mixes the style mentioned in the title with some monologue verses before we swap styles on ‘Boosbeck Bossa Nova’, a three-minute instrumental that breaks up the storytelling of the album with a plethora of instruments coming together for the gentle interval.

‘Creteblock’ is a sombre turn for the album and the first one that sounds like it’s been given a bit more production-trickery time than the others with some of the vocal effects. Slower and dream-like, it’s not one of more favourite tracks but good all the same. ‘Gytrash of Goathland’ that comes next is a particular highlight of the album with a catchy hook of a chorus, combining a speech that wouldn’t be out of place in Macbeth’s opening witches scene, telling an interesting story over its considerable five-minute running time, that builds and develops to become one of the best songs on the thirteen-song LP.

‘Penny Hedge’ welcomes in a piano and is much more up-tempo to what has preceded it and slightly more poppy. Though I keep wanting to wander into the theme to Penny Crayon in my head it’s a good three minutes, and there’s still time to nod in the direction of the Beatles with some ‘Yellow Submarine’ style secondary vocals.

‘Burnt House’ is one of the weaker tracks on the album but at least doesn’t outstay its welcome as the shortest track on the piece. ‘Running Reverend’ is another highlight of the album, drawing inspiration from the old song ‘Knees Up Mother Brown’ as its starting point before mixing in some synth sounds and a general perky feeling, before dipping back into the child’s songbook by interpolating ‘Run Rabbit Run’ into it. The familiarity in the song is obvious and they’re effective building blocks to a definite listen on the album.

‘Martyr’s Jig’ returns to the sea-shanty style of several of the tracks, fitting with the theme of Whitby, with ‘Hidden Harbour’ being more reflective but still throwing in some word play into the lyrics. Though slower it’s a fitting entry as the album comes to its conclusion and would have made a great closer, but we still have ‘Maidens’ Garlands’ yet to come which starts with a lengthy introduction before continuing the sombre style that dominates the end of the album. What words are there are good but I feel it should have ended on track twelve.

Overall, ‘The Whitby Scar’ is an enjoyable concept album to listen to with clear production, interesting lyrics and a range of music wide enough to keep you interested. Though it can be argued the best track is near the start there is still enough on the other side of the album to peak your interest and it’s well worth a download if you like a mixture of storytelling, lighthearted lyrics and, well, Yorkshire themes over folk accordion tunes or even if you just want to hear something that’s calm and interesting to have playing over your speakers that you can follow as a musical journey around the North Yorkshire coast.

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10 Possible Explanations for the Sherlock Ending

* Spoilers to follow *

On Sunday the second series of Sherlock came to an end with the apparent death of Sherlock Holmes when his body and the pavement made their acquaintance. However, before the credits rolled, he was back alive. But how?
Here we take a look at ten possible theories of how Holmes survived his fall to continue onto a third season…

1. It’s all timey wimey…



Already the connections have been made on the net between this show and Steven Moffat’s other flagship BBC offering ‘Doctor Who’ Mimicking the ‘get out of death free’ card played by the Doctor last autumn, perhaps the Sherlock on the roof wasn’t in fact Sherlock but a robot Sherlock controlled by a tiny Sherlock inside it, so the mini Sherlock suffers no pain when the Teselecta replica crashes to the ground – complete with synthesised blood – allowing the miniaturised Holmes to dash off to be returned to full size.

Perhaps, in a further twist, it was Sherlock – when his amazing mind and ability to think out of the box – that created the Teselecta technology, thus not only saving himself and his three friends but the Doctor too many centuries later. Elementary.

2. Take the red bill, the blue pill, or any drugs he can get hold of



Whilst exploring the mystery of the Hounds of Baskerville, Sherlock experienced déjà vu when seeing the hound, thus experiencing a glitch in the Matrix but with a dog rather than a cat, realising with his amazing mind that he is inside a computer program.

One quick search for Agent Smith on the Matrix equivalent on Facebook and Smith was more than happy to absord Sherlock and his amazing intellect and quite enjoying punching the annoying know-it-all in the chest, becomes part of the clone army that is Agent Sherlock, allowing one nameless look-a-like drone to perish on the London streets whilst Holmes continues to live.

Expect series three to feature a dozen Sherlock Holmes all playing the violin at the same time, replacing the police forces all over the country, and generally breaking the fire rules when it comes to the capacity of 221B Baker Street. Oh, and it be called ‘Sherlock Reloaded’ featuring more mythology behind the character, a man with lots of keys and an orgy set to music featuring lots of half-naked men and women.

3. It’s a miracle!



It is an established fact that series two of Sherlock was supposed to be shown before Christmas but extra filming and contractual obligations for the lead actors meant this wasn’t possible and the episodes were delayed to the new year. Perhaps the BBC haven’t been entirely truthful and that the three TV films were supposed to come out in the summer.

When Moriarty killed himself on the roof he didn’t die and Sherlock saw this and realised that it was impossible for his enemy to survive such an injury. Using his intelligence and perhaps Twitter he realised it was some form of Miracle Day where no one was dying and it had just started.

With Moriarty unable to remember why he was on the roof – he had just gravely injured himself after all – Sherlock realised he would survive the fall to the floor with perhaps just some bruising and broken bones and jumped, only to recover later.

Expect series three to star John Barrowman, joining Cumberbatch and Freeman as a crime fighting threesome. You can imagine the innuendo already.

And it will probably also feature an orgy set to music featuring lots of half-naked men and women like explanation two if Russell T. Davies writes it.

4. It was a gas!



In the second episode of this series we saw the power of the hallucinogenic gas created as part of the H.O.U.N.D. project in Liberty, Indiana. What would be easier than for Sherlock to gas Watson so he imagined the whole suicide thing, along with Molly infecting all the doctors, nurses and bystanders that would rush to his body. Nothing is more powerful than the power of suggestion, of course.

But what about the assassins you may ask? Well if Moriarty could make contacts and influence them then sure could Sherlock, also gassing the three to imagine his death and therefore saving his friends.

Or, more scarily, perhaps in a turn of events that would get the Daily Mail fuming about the waste of tax payers money, the BBC using its incredible reach, created similar gas and pumped it out of the television of everyone who watched it so we only imagined Sherlock appearing at the end of the episode and he is actually dead.

Expect series three to therefore either feature Mycroft teaming up with Watson to solve crimes or the series to be rebranded Son of Sherlock with a protégé appearing Indiana-Jones like out of the woodwork and continuing his good work.

5. Inspiration from the moving picture



It is established in ‘The Reichenbach Fall’ that Holmes has become a minor celebrity and famous with the public and tabloids. So, it’s only natural to assume that, amongst the invitations onto ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ and ‘I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here’, there would be interest in making a biopic of the celebrated gentleman in his lifetime, much like Margaret Thatcher has been in ‘The Iron Lady’, only with fewer upset miners.

And, of course, with a mind like Sherlock’s, it would only be natural for him to want to occasionally take a break from all his thinking and what better way to relax than to grab a bucket of popcorn and a Slush Puppie and sit down for a film at his local Multiplex.

And with an ego like Sherlock there would only be one film he’d want to see, and that would be part two of his Guy Ritchie-directed biopic ‘Sherlock 2’ (naturally using artistic licence to transpose the 21st Century Sherlock into a more Victorian setting) where his arch enemy Moriarty plans an assassination using a man with a transplanted face.

Upon leaving the cinema Sherlock would know that face transplants are much more professional in 2012 and so all he needs to do is find a willing victim, transplant a replica of his face on them and, using words and commands through an earpiece to them, get him to jump off the building and convince everyone it was in fact Sherlock that jumped off the hospital roof. Whereas it’s in fact, John Smith, with Benedict Cumberbatch’s face sewn on.

6. The Power of Re-commissioning



Perhaps Sherlock did jump after all and land on the pavement. But instead of a doctor or nurse first reaching his dying body it was in fact a BBC executive who whispered into his ear: “We’ve commissioned a third series. You can’t die now.” Thinking of the wage packet and the need to keep the BBC Board of Directors in biscuits, Sherlock waited until the coast was clear and awoke, allowing a new series to be made and the viewing figures to roll in.

7. Behind the Curtain…



Series three opens with Watson going for a much needed shower, only to find Sherlock in there already, having a wash, or trying to figure out a murder, or something. After all, ‘The Reichenbach Fall’ was all a dream…

8. It’s in his Genes…



Baskerville gets up to all sorts of weird experiments, including transplanting jellyfish genes into rabbits to make them glow in the dark. But that’s nothing compared to what they did to Sherlock. Transplanting cat genes into him on his request, not only did it make him more isolated than before, sleepy and able to lick parts of his body than in previous episodes, it gave him the ability to land on all fours when jumping off buildings. All he needed to do was then play dead, get Molly to put some blood around his head and then bobs your uncle, he could scuttle off out of the morgue for a bowl of milk and a quick surf around LolCats.

9. It’s all a trick…



OK, we’ve heard the weird possibilities but how about a “realistic” escape attempt. Sherlock jumps off the building into the relatively soft landing of the garbage van parked up outside the building that Molly or his band of homeless network peeps have arranged. Meanwhile a corpse in a similar costume is dropped for John to see. Then, in the time that Watson is getting up from the floor after being knocked over be a cyclist, Sherlock jumps out of the van, hides the corpse, lies on the floor, puts fake blood on the tarmac and pretends to be dead, perhaps using some clever technique to appear dying.

In his confusion and disbelief Watson thinks he’s dead but when Sherlock goes to the morgue he escapes.

Or perhaps it’s something even more inventive. We’ll have to wait and see!

10. But, the final questions is… was that Sherlock that jumped off the building?



Nope. It’s just Chuck Testa. Possibly.

Let’s just hope he hasn’t made a lifelike taxidermised Sherlock Holmes.

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Sound of 2012 Part 2

My look at five of the remaining ten of the biggest upcoming artists of 2012…

A$AP Rocky – Wassup

When a song is only two-and-a-half minutes long and takes thirty seconds before it gets into the actual song it does come across as unusual. Channelling Snoop Dogg and ticking off every rap cliché in the book it’s not a particular exciting rap track. His flow is good but it fails to excite me and it just sounds too much like a record someone would record to spoof rappers, but the chorus is pleasant enough. [4/10]



Dot Rotten – Are You Not Entertained

The only of the BBC’s fifteen strong line-up I’d heard of before the poll was announced and the one I’ve seen live and would have plucked out for the top five. Though his artist name is possibly a fail in itself sounding too much like an old actress from Eastenders – er, you know the one – his rap is much more exciting, fast and more refreshing than A$AP Rocky’s and the chorus is more commercial and fun. I’m sure he’s going to be accused of being too poppy to be urban but it’s never done Eminem or 50 Cent any harm. The most well rounded of any songs in the top fifteen, “Are you not entertained?” he asks. I have been. [8/10]



Dry The River – Weights and Measures

Lacking a Wikipedia page is never good news for a fledgling band but their music is prevalent on YouTube. Casual, laid-back indie with well-written lyrics and a powerful chorus, even if the production is maybe a little overpowering towards the drums. If you like artists along the lines of Biffy Clyro then this is a good follow-up band. ‘Weights and Measures’ is a track that’s great to listen to but perhaps not hooky enough to stick with you, but we’ll see. [6/10]



Flux Pavillion – Bass Cannon

Not really my type of music, it mixes in the styling of club tunes with, what can be best described as, audible noise rather than music in its traditional sense. In a club environment then this is probably great to listen to but at home it’s just a catchy hook separated by lengthy sounds you’d get from doing DIY. I know that probably makes me sound old but the Skrillex track was of the same genre and I much preferred that. [5/10]



Friends – I’m His Girl

With possibly the worst name ever for searching for their music, due to the sheer volume of, you know, sitcom clips you get, maybe they’re not exactly clued up on how to market their music? Which is a shame as ‘I’m His Girl’ is a refreshing slice of retro pop-rock with a silky bassline and a cracking vocal track, on a track that throws in some clapping, cow bell and other additions. One of the best of the fifteen and should have been in the top five. [7.5/10]

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Letter Box (3DS) Review

When I upgraded from the DSi up to the 3DS there were two things I missed and couldn’t transfer over to my new console. The first was ‘Flipnote Studio’, the excellent piece of animation software, which should be getting a new version soon if rumours at to be believed, and the pre-loaded software program ‘PictoChat’.

OK. If I’m being honest ‘PictoChat’ was never that good and was too ahead of its time for the capabilities of Nintendo’s flagship touch-screen console. For those who have not experienced it ‘PictoChat’ was a tool that allowed you to enter one of four sixteen-capacity chatrooms where you could type or draw messages or illustrations and send them to other DS users. Unfortunately, to receive messages you had to have your DS on, be in the same chat room, be friends with the other DS user(s) and, of course, be within the distance of the wireless signal. Back then, I was at University, and the only use for it was to send notes to friends across the lecture theatre and even then I never did it because my friends didn’t have a DS console so it was pretty much pointless aside from messing around with friends in the pub for a laugh.

Six years on and another firmware update later and the free ‘Letter Box’ on the 3DS is everything that ‘PictoChat’ should have been if the DS had been as versatile and connectable as the new 3DS.

Available to download for free from the 3DS eShop, and presented, naturally because it’s Nintendo, by a friendly Mii avatar called Nikki who takes you simply and relatively quickly through the features of the program using a series of hand-drawn notes, it’s a cracking piece of software that makes the 3DS much more of a connected console.

Using ‘Letter Box’ what you can do is send message to other friends you have on your console list via SpotPass, or to strangers by StreetPass. Now for Nintendo, a company that always seem to fear that console owners will be corrupted by strangers sending rude messages and images to other people, this is a definite relaxing of their tight rules. I am now free to send anything out as a message to be picked up by other console users and, aside from a polite request asking me not to send anything rude or illegal out, there is no check on swearing or whatever. Phew, I’ve come out in a cold sweat.

The full features of the program only come out after you send half-a-dozen messages so you really need to find a friend that is willing to let you spam them to unlock it all.

Once you have unlocked everything you’ll end up with a powerful set of tools, if limited in certain respects in their power, to send free messages to your chums which will appear on their console on their notification menu.

Clicking ‘Write Letter’ sends you to the edit screen, which allows you to write letters of up to four pages. You have one pen which you can draw or write in either 2D or 3D, which means you can do two layered notes if you wish, with notes popping impressively out of the screen. You can also erase in 2D or 3D as well as using one of six stationery themes which vary from, erm, stationary stationery, to ones featuring your Mii on it, to some with moving parts. There is also the option to add one of your photos onto the page even if you can only include images already taking, with no connection to the camera. If you want to take a new photo it’s back out to the camera app then back in I’m afraid.

Though those tools are great there are some questionable limits such as no coloured pens or different thicknesses or stamps which, considering the variety of tools in the old ‘PictoChat’ software seems weird.

Graphically the 3D of the menus is as great as you need on a menu and the till-ready music just dances on the right side of the annoying line.

Messages are all stored in a paper chain with a creation date stamp, and can be re-sent at any time. You can also, if you wish, set up a slide show which slowly cycles through all your letters showing also how you drew them.

Once you’ve composed your letter you can do one of two things with it. You can either send it to a friend in your friend list using SpotPass or add it onto StreetPass which means anyone passing by your 3DS with their wireless option on will see your message. You can cancel this at any time but it’s a great way to interact with other 3DS users who can, using a photo, put a face to a console and shows, as mentioned, that Nintendo are less afraid now to give users more freedom to what they send out. Whether it’ll become misused is another thing but there are a series of parent-friendly privacy options available on it which come up when you first load the app and from the in-app menu. You can even select whether you want 3DS users to have the ability to save your messages or not to their console.

‘Letter Box’ is a fantastic piece of software and, coming hot on the heels of some A+ games and eShop apps, is helping the 3DS become great after its stuttered release back in March. Though the tools could have more options what is there is powerful and the way of getting messages to friends as perfect as you’d need.

There is just one major problem I have with the software. Coming on the same day as a firmware update I think Nintendo missed a trick in automatically installing it to every user’s dashboard. Though I’m sure the majority of users will trundle over to the eShop to download the free app, software like this can only work to the best it can if everyone has it. Every DS owner had ‘PictoChat’ so every 3DS owner should have ‘Letter Box’. Come on, Nintendo, get it automatically installed!

That aside it’s a must-have app that works really well. All I need now is for someone to reply back to my messages so I actually have someone to talk to, which is of course the flaw in a social app!

[4 out of 5 stars]

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My Thoughts On... Sound of 2012

Whereas for me in 2012 I’ll be looking forward to new albums from the Ting Tings, the Killers, Robbie Williams, Scissor Sisters and hopefully Franz Ferdinand and Electric Six, plus of course a re-issue by the Kaiser Chiefs, it’s not just about returning bands but also about new artists, and the BBC have conducted their latest ‘sound of...’ poll to find the fifteen hottest artists that should do big things this year.

I’ll take a look at the bottom ten next weekend but for today let’s have a gander at the top five and one of their tracks:

5) Niki and the Dove – The Drummer

Ecclectic pop that takes the synth of La Roux and mixes in the vocals of Ellie Goulding, Florence and the Machine and Kate Bush with maybe a little bit of Goldfrapp. A little eccentric perhaps for my tastes. It’s interestingly produced but the vocals and music sound like they’re from two entirely different songs and there’s nothing particularly to get hooked onto. Unconventional and not unpleasant to listen to but a little weird for my tastes.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHuci2LUHPA&

4) Skrillex – Ruffneck

A slice of “Migraine Skank”-sounding dubstep that is enjoyable or unlistenable depending on whether you like that genre of music. As an example goes it’s a great mix of beats and loops but there’s nothing about it that particularly stands out from over similar songs. Like I would say for Niki and the Dove I don’t think it will get much mainstream exposure.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_t2TzJOyops

3) Azealia Banks feat. Lazy Jay – 212

With a duet with the Scissor Sisters coming up that certainly won’t do her career any harm, here is possibly the most controversial entry in the line-up. Definitely not safe for work it’s equally a track that’s not going to get much mainstream play certainly in this form. An interesting take on rap with singing, vocal effects and dance beats thrown into the mix that makes her more intriguing to listen to than, say, Nicki Minaj. A great piece of production and a mixture of genres and talents but it’s going to be more her controversial and explicit lyrics that will hit the headlines, which is possibly quite smart on her part but equally disappointing as she’s using her talents to shock rather than necessarily entertain or put forward a message.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3Jv9fNPjgk

2) Frank Ocean – Novacane

Laid back, story-telling rap over a repetitive beat that again revels in rap, swearing and gangster culture clichés that have been covered before and in more entertaining ways than this. The music that serves as the backing never gets beyond the same few seconds over and over again and when combined with Ocean’s laid back vocals it becomes a little on the tedious side.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMfPJT4XjAI

1) Michael Kiwanuka – Home Again

I recently reviewed this as part of my single releases and enjoyed it, even if it’s not a particularly ground breaking track. Easily the most commercial friendly of all the tracks here and the most enjoyable to listen to. It’s also the most stripped back of the tracks and the only one of the top four to not shock, mention drugs, swearing or any of the other rnb and rap clichés that are becoming tired now.

It’s not the most exciting track ever but thumbs up to Kiwanuka and a deserved number one spot.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJ4s3G7hgR4&ob=av2e

If I was to say which were my favourites it would be between Skrillex, Azealia Banks and Michael Kiwanuka and though those first two are more “interesting” listens they are, in the case of Skrillex, too similar to what we’ve heard, or too intent on being shocking rather than being a good track. I have to agree with the BBC on their choice of number one out of these five but none of the tracks particularly excite me at the moment.

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City Park: Actually Quite Good

Last night I was walking through Bradford in the dark - you know, sometime after 3pm, and was impressed by what they've actually done with the City Park, the new water-feature development in Centenary Square, featuring a large oval dip in which a series of fountains have been put in, from small ones around the edge to some massive jets in the centre.

At night the ones on the edge light up and change colour every few minutes, with the jets taking turns in a circular fashion to jet higher.

Plus, it seems it's not deep enough for people to drown in, thankfully, as there's little standing water.

I couldn't get a photo unfortunately as it was dark and I only had my camera phone but it was really nice to see and the wooden walking area, seating and general atmosphere will make it nice in the summer.

It's far from complete yet with the visitor's centre still under construction (er, they said it would be finished in January, I don't think it will be) but it looks very promising.

Now all we need to really confuse everyone and make the council seem actually, you know, intelligent, is for them to sort out the Odeon and give it to BORG to transform into the new state of the art concert venue.

Hmm... we'll see!

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Single Releases (8th January 2012)

In another quiet week for single releases I can offer you...

Nicola Roberts- Yo-Yo

Former Girls Aloud singer Nicola Roberts releases this, the third single from her debut solo album. Built around the metaphor of her relationship being like a yo-yo, it’s a pleasant mix of synth backing and emotional vocals. It’s hardly the most revolutionary track you’ll hear this year but it’s actually really fun to listen to and, dare I say it, catchy as it reaches its crescendo of a conclusion. Benefiting for some interesting production at times it’s worth a download even if the obvious drum machine gets tedious at times and some of the lyrics are a little clichéd. (7/10)



Goldfrapp - Melancholy Sky

A new track from their greatest hits, released next month, its feeling certainly fits in with the word melancholy. It’s a very laid back track and, even though I was prepared to dislike it in the first thirty seconds, it’s actually a well produced, calming and atmospheric track with Alison Goldfrapp’s silky vocals floating nicely around a string backing. With echoes of Radiohead’s ‘No Surprises’, and a similar tone, plus some other influences that I can’t quite put my finger on it is a good addition to their discography. (6.5/10)

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Sher-look at her! She's nude!

"BBC's Sherlock Slammed For Raunchy Scenes Before Watershed" screams this article, echoing many on the net saying that the nudity and bondage scenes in the recent Sherlock Holmes were inappropriate for pre-watershed.

Now I do have to say I agree to a certain degree - not necessarily at the naked woman as it's not much more than what was seen in, say, ITV re-showing 'Carry On Girls' in the middle of the day which featured more flesh than an abbatoir. I wasn't so keen on the more bondage style scenes which I think just about bordered on OK for the time.

So, let's keep some perspective eh Daily Mail as, yes, she was naked but it was carefully done and the Carry on Film they showed was worse.

Plus, let's not forget that we're often treated to the following on the music channels during the day which are far more explicit...

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Rupert Murdoch starts tweeting!

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