Classic_Pop_Issue_30_July_2017

88

SINGLES

MATTHEW RUDD

OUR REGULAR SINGLES REVIEWER AND HOST

OF FORGOTTEN 80S ON ABSOLUTE 80S

RADIO CHECKS OUT A VARIED GRAB BAG OF

NEW RELEASES THAT TAKES IN POP, HOUSE

MUSIC, RETRO POST-PUNK AND R&B

THE STRYPES

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

These Irish retro rockers clearly have

discovered a whole binful of post-punk,

judging by this thumpy, hard-edged,

rhythm-section dominated jam with

clever lyrics that is brilliant from

the moment it starts. The drums are

fantastic, then the slightly cockeyed

middle eight takes everyone by surprise.

MØ

NIGHTS WITH YOU

The fi rst fi ve seconds of this sound

like Natasha Bedingfi eld – one for

the teenagers, there. Danish singer-

songwriter MØ delivers an earnest

lyric, there isn’t much of a hook and

the limited underscore – reminiscent

of Sweet Like Chocolate by Shanks &

Bigfoot, seems desperate for help.

KATO & SIGALA

SHOW YOU LOVE

Two house DJs team up with vocalist

Hailee Steinfeld to deliver a fairly

standard dancefl oor tune. It’s perfectly

fi ne, and more attention may be paid

to a video in which three women steal

a guy’s car then don masks – including

one of Donald Trump – to rob a petrol

station at gunpoint.

DNCE WITH NICKI MINAJ

KISSING STRANGERS

This track is a riot. Funky, bassy and

catchy as hell, a jaunt through suspicion

and trust in the lyrics and a chorus of

hedonism and human urge via a melody

that should have been written years ago.

Nicki is gloriously clumsy as she raps

an X-rated middle eight and the whole

thing just works a treat.

DON DIABLO & MARNIK

CHILDREN OF A MIRACLE

One of his generation’s greater DJs issues

a new single refreshingly reliant on

vocals rather than beats. Collaborating

with Italian duo Marnik, the track grows

mightier with each listen and even when

moving bodies are the priority, a decent

chorus is always welcome.

RØMANS

HAPPY LOVE

A serial songwriter parading into the

limelight for once, and rightly so. Sam

Roman is wildly gifted, with a resonant

and layered voice that’s all the more

striking in a stripped-back production

that strides smartly along while also

paying a perhaps unintentional homage

to doo-wop acts of the 50s.

GEORGE MAPLE

KRYPTONITE

A female singer, despite the name, with

a semi-familiar bit of production line

dance pop. The vocal is breathy and

would probably benefi t from fewer dubs

and while it’s a big arrangement with a

quite movable beat, it doesn’t really go

anywhere and ends unexpectedly.

BETH DITTO

FIRE

One of the coolest women in the world,

Beth has delivered a ripsnorting new

single here. She growls and broods her

way through a menacing but appealing

lyric, taking the darkened production on

a dramatic journey without letting a big

guitar part outshine a marvellous vocal.

What a fi ne talent she is.

CP30.Reviews Singles.print.indd 88 08/06/2017 15:16