Mini Viva

 

From the same great minds that brought you Night Visions, Xenomania, comes this eccentric, pulsing girl-Pop duo.. Mini Viva look set to trailblaze their way into the hearts and minds of the Pop demographic. This is my hot tip to you music lovers – watch this space for more on Britt and Frankee aka Mini Viva, but for now check out their massive debut single, due for release on the 7th September, Left My Heart In Tokyo. 90’s Dance beats meet contemporary Pop samples and epic, chant-along choruses, and with a suitably retro, kaleidoscopic video showcasing the band’s banging shape-throwing ability, this track could just be the biggest Dance track for a while!

Andy Taylor of Nite Visions

 

Nite Visions, comprised of Andy and James Taylor, formed as a result of the collapse of 80’s enfused Electro synth-Pop band The Electric City. Having ditched the bassist and drummer, the Taylors are having a go of it as a 2-piece, with the help of a more than capable backing band, and last night at an intimate gig at the Water Rats pub, King’s Cross, Nite Visions were warming up for bigger and better things in front of a small but receptive crowd.

Throughout Andy and James’ career, while in TEC and in solo projects, it has always been evident that these boys can write a Pop song, and if these early glimpses of Nite Visions are anything to go by, the Taylors just keep getting better. This short set was brimming with 80’s synth sounds, jagged guitar work, phat with a capital ‘P-H-’ slap and slide bass lines and Indie-Disco drum beats, over which Andy’s Tom Smith meets Bernard Sumner baritone articulated sensationally catchy and anthemic Pop-hook vocal melodies. And for a relatively new and embryonic line up, these boys were tight, leading many of the industry-types present to comment that the performance was ‘…just like listening to the record…’ which is what you want, right?

Basically, I’d barely heard a note of this band before the performance, and yet on the bus home i found myself singing the songs to myself.. so with these infectious tracks, the support of top management from Supervision, and world class production from Brian Higgins’ Xenomania.. it’s only a matter of time before Nite Visions are huge. There’s not a lot online on them at the moment, so watch this space!

Toot Toot

Master Shortie

I don’t like to blow my horn.. or ring my own bell for that matter. But in this case… toot toots and ding dongs are in order. On the 22nd of April I wrote a lil’ somefing-somefing about up-and-coming Urban acts, including a short and sweet blurb about this dude Master Shortie – rapper and entrepreneur extraordinaire whose brand of cock-sure Indie-Rap is really starting to turn heads, shake hips and tap toes. So much so in fact that he has been getting a lot of heat on national radio; is currently Myspace’s featured artist; and will be playing at the Reading and Leeds Festivals. You heard it here first people… Toot!

 

Pixie Lott

 

Ok it’d be bold of me to claim that I spotted this one. On the 10th of June I talked Pixie up big style and about a week later she was the hottest thing in the charts, with Mama Do reaching the dizzy heights of number 1, and my little site was raking in around 300 people a day looking for info on all things Pixie.. presumably because there weren’t many other sites picking up on this talented and stunning Pop-Soulstress.. Cheers Pixie!

Enough of all this bragging and boasting though.. I really began this little article to point you in the direction of two more effortlessly talented songstresses who just happened to remind me of the Pixie Lott success story.

 

Felicity Kaya

 

18 year old Felicity Kaya blends Jazz, Pop, Rock and Lounge in her arrangements, over which her soulful, rich and versatile vocals reminisce of the likes of Amy Winehouse, Gabriella Cilmi and of course everyone’s favourite current Soul diva Pixie Lott. Kaya offers more to the intelligent Pop fan than most of today’s quirky-girl-Popstars though: the moody and meandering Time To Hold displays an impressive vocal prowess; diverse ‘Kurdish meets western popular culture’ influences; and complex and irregular time signatures. Apollo meanwhile is a delightful Lounge track that smacks of sipping screwdrivers at 3am in a smokey Jazz Bar. Prominent walking basslines, drum lines heavy on the crash, and subtle, delicately positioned key and brass licks make this a beautifully crafted track. Perverted Eyes, my personal favourite, is a more driven Rock-Pop track, displaying Edge from U2-Esque guitar work and production, and what sounds a bit like a bluesy Deep Purple-era Hammond Organ. Catchy, poppy and quirky-cool, this track will appeal to all the Amy fans out there, and is easily chart-worthy.

In short boys and girls, Kaya has the talent, the look and the tracks to make some serious progress, and now under management and signed to Out Of Bound Records, who knows what might happen. I just hope that whoever’s in charge gets the ball rolling on a Myspace page and starts realising the vast potential for online advertising, marketing and most importantly social networking! Until that happens though, check out some samples by clicking the image and heading over to her label homepage.

 

Daisy Dares You

 

I’m convinced that in the not too distant future I will be saying a big ‘I told you so’ about this girl. At just 15, Daisy Dares You already displays an incredible ear for a catchy Pop track, as Number One Enemy clearly demonstrates. The track opens up like a Tetris theme tune and breaks into a sparse bass ‘n’ bleep verse which really allows Daisy’s vocal talent and quintessential cockney Nash-esque charm shine through. The chorus is a straight 4/4, lightly distorted guitar driven, simple but anthemic Pop-hook, and I can already hear hordes of teeny bopper fans chanting back the words. And if it ain’t broke… the same formula is used for Talk About The Weather, an equally catchy and endearing soft-Rock track reminiscent of some kind of London-answer to Kelly Clarkson. Daisy Dares You, the self-titled track, and Next Few Minutes are slightly quirkier electronics-infused tracks which nod to Synth-Pop monsters Hello Goodbye and Shiny Toy Guns. Unashamedly Poppy; at times anthemic; always catchy; and undoubtedly endearing – Daisy Dares You definitely has all the ingredients to be a smash… Watch this space!

Orange RockCorps – Manchester Apollo

Apologies, I’ve not been a good blogger. I’ve had a change of scenery for a few months and for the most part have had limited internet access and even more limited time.

I’ve been working for Orange RockCorps for the last few months up in Manchester, as a Project Leader organising charity events, and on the night of our concert I was artist liaison to the delightful VV Brown. This has kept me extremely busy and I’ve been a bit crap at keeping the old writing going.

Incidentally, for those of you who don’t know – Orange RockCorps is a production company that put on huge concerts with only the biggest and best artists, and the only way to get in is to earn your ticket by completing 4 hours of volunteer work with us. Give Get Given!

Here are just a few pics of the event:

The Orange RockCorps DJ

 

Lady Gaga Performing an Acoustic Intro to 'Poker Face'

 

N-Dubz - Taken from the Circle Seats

 

Crowd Shot

 

OK so by now you’re probably feeling a little left out and a little silly that you didn’t get involved, especially if you are Manchester-based. Not to worry though, we’re back in London following our ridiculously successful 2008 Royal Albert Hall show featuring Busta Rhymes, Ludacris, Feeder and John Legend to name a few. So click one of the images to head on down to the website and get yourself signed up to a project and I will see you at the concert!