Correlated Noise

Soundgirl

2011-04-21T16:28:00.030-04:00

In my book, there's almost nothing that can compete with the girlband summer jam with melancholic tinges. Bananarama's "Cruel Summer" comes to mind as a prime example. "All That She Wants" (okay, not a girlband) was almost, but not quite, there. But now Soundgirl hit it out of the ballpark with their upcoming (technically, first) single "Don't Know Why". Featuring a subdued but effective electro bassline under a lo-fi reggae sample, this little gem penned by ex-Xenomaniac Miranda Cooper (is she back or what?) really, REALLY hits the spot. Just in time for the eagerly awaited summer that always seems to promise more than it delivers.

Update: It seems like they're going with a slightly tweaked new version featuring rapper Mann. It still sounds great, maybe even better. Now fingers crossed this isn't a massive flop.

It only takes a moment...

2009-02-09T01:32:00.013-05:00

to fall in love with Saint Etienne. Don't believe me? Scroll down and press "play", listen to 15 seconds of glorious shiny synths and bells, press "pause". Not convinced? Please click "back" on your browser NOW, thank you for visiting. Want more? Of course you do! Go and press play again!

So "Method of Modern Love," Saint Etienne's new single, is out today. And it's the first one in a long time to sound like it should be on top of the charts until at least the end of the year. It's what Saint Etienne, IMHO, do best: catchy, lovely, straightforward dance-pop. No obscure movie samples, no Beach Boys electro-folk, no "avant-garde fist in velvet glove", as Simon Reynolds would describe them on his liner notes for "Sound Of Water." Of course, these are all things we expect and love from The Et; and they're good (usually, really good) at them. But when it comes to just pop, they put the competition to shame.

So why then? Why don't they give us more songs like this one? And more frustratingly, why, when they do, it almost seems like they try to hide them from the world? Case in point, today's release: no video, no promos, no interviews, no airplay (OK, that one isn't just their fault). How do they ever expect to have a hit? Are we, fans with blogs, supposed to do all the work? I guess we do.

Reader(s): If you live in the UK and read this post before Friday, would you please go to wherever you normally go (store or interwebs) and order, buy, or LEGALLY download this song. Pretty please?

Cry For You

2008-10-23T04:26:00.003-04:00

I'd probably have a hard time defending last year's club hit Cry For You by September. It is completely derivative Euro-dance. It blatantly steals the synth riff from Bronski Beat's "Smalltown Boy" and it's certainly not the first song to recycle the "Can't Get You Out Of My Head" bassline/beat. The thing is, it also happens to be my kind of derivative Euro-dance. So there you go.

"Allô, allô"

2008-10-23T01:59:00.013-04:00

I've realized the reason I've been away for so long is that I was starting to feel pressure to compete with other music blogs. I felt I had to be relevant, to find new, exciting acts -and interesting things to say about them- before others did. Now I realize it's pointless really; partly because I don't get to listen to a lot of new music these days, but mainly because I'm no music critic, nor should I try to be. So screw it, we're back to "This is the place where I tell you about the stuff I love, old and new, regardless of what's already been said elsewhere." Let's get to it.

Spain's Souvenir, have been around for a while (since 1999) but I didn't discover them until fairly recently in one of my myspacing (checking out 'friends' of artists I like) sessions. I listened to a couple of tracks from their early years and, to be honest, I wasn't exactly blown away. But the lead single (and video, see below) of their last album '64', I instantly loved. It just ticks all the right boxes: Cute ye-ye girl in a dress? Yes. French sung with a slight Spanish accent? Yes. The occasional twangy guitar? Yes. Electro-pop with twist of '60s retro a la Saint Etienne? Very yes, thank you!

This IS Italo!

2007-01-20T18:06:00.000-05:00

Hi there, it's me again. I hope no one is expecting me to explain why I was away for so long, because I can't really think of anything. I didn't stop liking music or getting excited about it. In fact, I didn't even stop writing; it's just that, for some reason, I didn't bother pressing the "Publish Post" button. So the only thing I can do now is apologize to whoever still visits this blog.

The one thing I know though, is what brought me back: I just couldn't' resist telling you about Sally Shapiro! She's from, erm, Sweden. I know, I know, it's getting a bit samey, but I promise I'll stop writing about Scandinavians as soon as they stop making ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL POP MUSIC. But for the time being that ain't happening so let's get back to Sally: She's a bit of a recluse; she uses a pseudonym (you probably already guessed that), won't do any interviews or play live. Well that's all a shame, but fortunately she doesn't seem to have a problem with putting out great records. Her first album, Disco Romance was released a month or two ago. It was produced by this guy called Johan Agebjörn (who I knew nothing about before) and it is amazing! ...or so they say; I haven't listened to it myself. But I have listened to (and many times) a couple of the songs that are available as free downloads at her website. So please do yourself a favor and go check them out now. I said go, stop reading! OK maybe you're back already. Anyway, these songs sound almost like lost Valerie Dore (here) classics from '83-'85. But that surely ain't a bad thing, cause it's all sweet, sad, catchy and wonderful music anyway!

Better late...

2006-07-24T20:36:00.000-04:00

Today's post title applies for both, my prolonged absence from this blog (to which I have no excuse) and being about the penultimate person on the planet to join the Lily Allen hype. A lot has already been said about this 21 year old girl from London so I won't add much more, except maybe that the mellow, laidback ska-pop of her current single "Smile" is refusing to leave my head (in a good way) and that maybe you should check it out. You can do that for free at her (my)space, and maybe you'll even be interested in buying her new album Alright, Still which has recieved more or less the same amounts of praise and criticism from the music press.

Promiscuous

2006-05-29T02:44:00.000-04:00

Mainstream pop (I mean really mainstream, chart-topping popular music) has the frustrating quality of being mostly terrible. I'm not denying I'm basically being a snobbish prick here, but I just can't help thinking most of the top selling acts (especially here in North America) are really boring. However, by using the word frustrating I'm actually trying to emphasize the mostly part; which is to say that I also think some mainstream pop is in fact very good, even excellent. I guess it's appropriate then, to name an example of what I consider exceptionally good commercial pop. "Promiscuous," Nelly Furtado's latest single is simply fantastic. In what's got to be one of the smartest career moves ever, Nelly has teamed up with hip-hop/r&b superproducer Timbaland and released this track which, along with "Maneater" (also excellent), will be included on her forthcoming album Loose. The verse (rapped) is peppered with a vibey loop that just won't leave your head. The chorus (sung) features a cheap, '80s-sounding synth and it's also catchy as hell. If something doesn't go horribly wrong (i.e. something probably will) this should be huge. No mp3 this time but here's a link to Nelly's page where you can watch the video, which isn't really that special, but at least it features -you guessed it- Nelly Furtado, and that can't be a bad thing.

Fugitive

2006-05-19T00:38:00.000-04:00

Energetic, catchy, melodic, danceable, subtle, brave, mournful, sad, affecting. All these I find to be suitable words to describe my definite favorite song from the Pet Shop Boys' new release(s), Fundamental (the Boys' ninth proper album) /Fundamentalism (an accompanying record containing mostly dance mixes).

Although the lyrics are slightly vague, there is enough information within the song and the context it was placed in to make it clear that "Fugitive" is about terrorism. More precisely, it is a speculative view of the motivations, thoughts and feelings of a suicide terrorist. But what makes it really special is what the Pet Shop Boys make of it: a moving tale of determination, power, sorrow, and ultimately, hope set to a relentless electro beat (courtesy of 'it' producer Richard X) and a catchy melody. This is the reason why I (like many others) consider the Pet Shop Boys to be unique, because no other act has been able to consistently make dance-pop this catchy and affecting at the same time. And "Fugitive" also serves as a good example of why the lazy categorization of the Pet Shop Boys as ironists is mostly wrong; because there really is nothing ironic or cynical about this fantastic track. Buy Fundamental/Fundamentalism here. Read an excellent, extensive review here.

All The Way

2006-04-25T02:36:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure why this happens but there seem be some experiences that, although common to a vast number of people, are often thought to be unique -by the people who've had them- to themselves. I imagine one of example of this could be, in my case, the frustrating experience of never getting to listen to my favorite song of an artist on a live show. "Maybe it will be the next one. Maybe the encore...the second encore then...oh, they have to come back and do it, keep cheering people!" were the things going through my mind (yet again) during Ladytron's show last Wednesday.
The song I'm referring to is the last track of their latest album Witching Hour (I've already written a bit about it here). It is one of the tracks in which the recent 'shoegaze' influence is the most evident. It could almost be a Slowdive song in fact. But in Ladytron's hands it is not so straightforward; what's different here is the tone set by the vocals. While Halstead/Goswell would sound hazy, dreamy, ethereal, Helen Marnie barely lets any emotion out of her robotic, glacial voice. And it is precisely this what makes All The Way so special: the struggle, the unwillingness to succumb to the intensity of the dense and beautiful sonic backdrop in the song's climatic final verses. The effect is spooky, almost frightening: "...Somehow I see something I fear."

Tiger Baby

2006-04-03T22:40:00.000-04:00

"please stop pretending that you care/and get the hell away from me/'cause you've been wasting all my time/just get the hell away from me"

About a year ago I told my friend Manuel I had a new favorite band (although I'd prefer to call it a group because I have a thing against bands lately, but whatever). He's reaction was: "yeah, they're OK but I think you are exaggerating". But back then I really thought I wasn't; I instantly fell in love with this Danish trio. I felt like their music it was tailor-made for me -it was almost too perfect: slightly more synth-pop than St. Etienne with touches of fuzzy shoegaze distorsion, catchy melodies, upbeat yet melancholic. Now, I've never done any music myself (okay maybe one truly dismal thing on midi that would fit nicely on a cheap soft porn movie, but that was years ago) but this is how imagine (and by that I mean 'wish' of course) my own music would sound like.

After looking obsessively for their debut album, Lost In You and listening to it for a few weeks my enthusiasm waned a bit. Maybe I'd overplayed it, maybe it just was the kind of love that's too intense to last. But I'm in love again (butterflies in the stomach and all) and excited like a little kid after listening to their new single, "At Least I'm Honest", and the news of an upcoming album (which you can pre-order here). This time I know it may not last, but who cares, really?

Polka dots

2006-03-15T00:14:00.000-05:00

Today I want to write about The Pipettes. I discovered The Pipettes about a year ago but only recently this post on tremble clef reminded of the wonder that is this girl-group. They dress up in matching polka dot dresses. They do silly dance moves and sweet vocal harmonies. And they'll most likely remind you of all those Brill Building "-ettes" groups from the time before 'The Beatles came and ruined everything' (their own words). They have their 'indie' side too: they use a 'real' backing band, The Cassettes, they've signed to Memphis Industries (also home of The Go!Team) and, at least to me, their sound is closer to Belle & Sebastian than Phil Spector. They are also a bit under-produced, which is totally fine with me by the way. But what I like the most about them is the unapologetic emphasis on their image. Yes, they are very good looking (as you can see) and flirty in a deliberately faux-naif way. And, like myself, they see nothing wrong with that. You may or may not agree but by now you probably know what to expect from the following YouTube videos which I urge you to watch: Dirty Mind and Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me, first and second singles (respectively) from their forthcoming album on Memphis Industries. Let's just say I wouldn't mind 'wasting' my kisses on them!

Cutting Edge

2006-03-05T20:26:00.000-05:00

If my two previous post weren't enough evidence that I am more or less obsessed with Sweden at the moment, this one should dissipate all doubts. It would be a crime to comment on the vibrant current Swedish pop scene without mentioning The Knife. Formed by siblings Karin and Olof Dreijer in 1999, The Knife make music that could be described as catchy, yet unconventionally produced, electro-pop. With their mysterious aura (see picture) and subversive attitude towards the media, they remind me a bit of the KLF (early '90s music-revolutionaries who strove to challenge copyright laws by making records consisting almost entirely of samples from existing works). They've been the subject of mostly high praise by critics and pop music bloggers, especially since the release of their almost-instant classic track "Heartbeats". And I guess that would explain my major disappointment when I finally listened to it. That's right, I didn't like it. It's difficult to explain why, I've listened to it several times now and even though I recognize some of the elements I would normally find appealing, I clearly fail to see (or hear) what everybody else seems to love about it. Well, actually that can't be entirely true, or else I probably wouldn't like this version (a live recording, apparently) so much! It basically consists of a synth arpeggio repeating itself (with slight variations) throughout the song, a synth-bass (reminiscent of Berlin's "Take my Breath Away"), and a drum loop. The vocals are a bit, well, difficult at first -I've read a few Bjork comparisons but to me they sound closer to some of the New Wavers like Lene Lovich or Aimee Mann- but after a few listens one realizes how effective they really are, adding to the emotional intensity of the song. Bottom line: pure aceness!

Legendary

2006-02-20T23:25:00.000-05:00

When you're me, there are days (not too many) in which you discover the perfect pop song. You know there is of course no such thing as the perfect pop song. But for a brief period, you can't help feeling that the music you are listening to is just flawless. And the only thing that stops you from hearing it over and over is your fear of getting bored of it. And you will get bored of it eventually, but for a while it will remind you of why you spend so much time listening to (and thinking about) music.

Of course you are not me, so obviously you may not love (or even like) The Legends' "He Knows The Sun" as much as I do. But you should give it a chance, especially if you wonder how an inspired mid-80s collaboration between The Cure and New Order might have sounded (It also reminds me of Lush's "For Love" which also blew my mind the first time I heard it.) So click here for a 1:20 min sample from the Labrador website (I almost forgot to mention they're one of the Labrador bands) or here to watch the video, featuring a guy in white walking around and two other guys in a Kendo fight. Buy it here.

Quick update

2006-02-16T16:50:00.000-05:00

I've uploaded Belanova's "Me Pregunto" (see below) for a very short period only. Get it while it lasts!

Swedish Twee

2006-02-14T14:39:00.000-05:00

Here come the Loveninjas, a lovely indie/twee-pop band form the lovely country of Sweden which happens to be the 'it' place for pop music at the moment. Because it's Valentine's Day, I'm posting a link* to their latest single (released on the absolutely amazing Labrador label) "Keep Your Love" which is -you guessed it- a lovely song, and it will make you happy.

Keep Your Love

Buy it here (Canada) or here.
*Available for a limited period and for sampling purposes only.

Lasser Ssounds

2006-01-16T21:24:00.000-05:00

Just got back from my (sort of) annual trip to Mexico for the holidays. As usual I had a blast seeing friends, family and getting my fix of tacos de rajas I so desperately needed. But let's get straight to the interesting stuff: yep, the music. Well I'm a bit embarrassed to admit I've never been particularly fond of Mexican pop (by now, my 0.3 readers should have realized that I'm into pop music). This may be related to the fact that I tend to prefer what, to my own ears, sounds unfamiliar or exotic, but it may simply be that the very distinctive elements that constitute the particular flavor of Mexican pop have been (or had been) unappealing to me. Fortunately, things are changing. I was pleasantly surprised by two acts in particular. The first one, Belanova is not the only Mexican synth-pop act but it is the only good one. At their best ('Me Pregunto') they sound like a cross between New Order and St. Etienne (both artists I love). Their latest album 'Dulce Beat' is so-so but I think they have the potential of producing something rather remarkable if they go a little more adventurous in the production department. The second act I want to mention in this entry is Maria Daniela y su Sonido Lasser, a punky high-energy disco beat (electroclash, if one has to pick a label) delivered along with off-key, overly-enthusiastic vocals (the closest thing I've listened to is Peaches, except that the Mexican duo is not nearly as raunchy). Their lyrics manage to be funny, sexy and at times a little disturbing. And, in a way, they sound very Mexican too! They're also one of the most successful new acts from the Nuevos Ricos label (also home of Titan) which I also discovered recently. Check them out if you can!

2/16/2006 Update Belanova - Me pregunto

Power Laws, Weblogs, and Inequality

2005-11-03T01:08:00.000-05:00

I found this article interesting. It may also help in understanding why nobody reads my blog.

The '80s

2005-10-31T01:11:00.000-05:00

1980-1989. I am old enough to have memories of pretty much the whole decade. I wasn't really involved in anything but I was there. I remember what was on TV, the music on the radio, and most vividly, the movies I wasn't allowed to see. Music-wise, fashion-wise, and pretty-much-everything-else-wise, the '80s are remembered as a decade of excesses, bad taste and plain goofiness. Well I disagree, or rather I half-agree with that notion because I also think that, in many ways the '80s were vibrant times. And I guess now would be a good time to post a list of my ten favorite singles of the '80s which I have submitted -along with other 40 fantastic songs- to the ILX Top Singles of The Eighties Poll:

1.-Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls
2.-Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind
3.-The Smiths - Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
4.-Berlin - Take My Breath Away
5.-Morrissey - Suedehead
6.-Church, The - Under The Milky Way
7.-Jesus and Mary Chain - Just Like Honey
8.-New Order - True Faith
9.-Bananarama - Cruel Summer
10.-Echo & The Bunnymen - The Killing Moon

I should mention that I had to chose from an extensive yet limited list of nominations. Unsurprisingly, two Pet Shop Boys songs top my list, which also includes two tracks sung by Morrissey. Also, seven of these artists are British, one is Australian and the German one (Berlin) is actually American.

West End Girls

2005-10-12T14:01:00.000-04:00

The Pet Shop Boys' first single, released 20 years ago, is probably my favorite song of all time. It is also the name of (what seems to be) a Pet Shop Boys tribute teen-pop group from Sweden. They are about to release a cover of "Domino Dancing" (another PSB hit). I quite like it, although I must admit their voice is a little too high-pitched for my taste. Hopefully, they'll get better with time. You can listen to it at their website. You can also check out fantastic pictures of these two girls in typical PSB poses wearing construction worker suits and metallic helmets!

This one is pretty good too!

2005-10-06T00:15:00.000-04:00

Ladytron, who were initially associated with electroclash, have now adopted a slightly less robotic and, at the same time, darker sound for their latest album 'Witching Hour'. It's still essentially icy synth-pop, but they've added a few post punk and shoegazer elements to most of the songs. The result is nothing short of amazing.

It came out only this week and it's already being ignored just about everywhere. Don't ask me why! :(

Album Of The Year

2005-10-05T02:06:00.000-04:00

Like I said, this space will be mostly dedicated to music, so I guess it is appropriate to start writing about it. It is only early October so it may seem like a little too soon to have a favourite album of the year already. But I do. It's 'Come And Get It' by Rachel Stevens. That's who? Well I don't really know much about her, but I know she's British and she used to be part of a teen-pop band formed by the guy who invented the 'Idol' TV shows. Oh, and that her album is the best slice of pop music released so far this year. Nothing groundbreaking really, just a collection of perfectly written and impeccably produced electro-pop songs; about half of them good enough to be singles.

Of course you could be thinking "What the ****? Album of the year? How about 'more shallow, manufactured pop, conceived by record label executives who care about nothing but profits and delivered by a talentless puppet whose involvement in the actual process of music making is close to zero?' " And in way you would be right, but in another way you would be very wrong.

It comes out October 17 in the UK. You should buy it if you live over there or order it if you live anywhere else (or completely ignore my recommendations if you still think I don't know what I'm talking about).

Stuff I like

2005-10-03T20:19:00.000-04:00

So what else do I like besides music? Very little. I like movies. I like physics. I like Montreal, the city I'm currently living in, especially when it is inhabitable. Anything else? Hmmm...ah yes! I like the internet.

I'm in a band!

2005-10-02T23:53:00.000-04:00

First of all, lets make it clear that this not be at all about signal processing. I just liked the name "Correlated Noise" cause I thought it sounded cool. But I may get bored of it and change it in the future. Instead this will be, like most blogs, about what I feel like talking about (which most of the time will be related to music, 'cause I Love Music).

Since I was in high school (or prepa, as we call it in Mexico), I've always wanted to be in a band. Actually, I played keyboards in a band a while ago. We had about two or three practice sessions before they kicked me out (lack of commitment). They kept jamming without me for a few weeks before they disbanded.

Ten years after, I've joined a new band. For reasons that will appear clear below, I don't have high hopes for international success anytime soon, but who knows? We still don't have a definitive name but for now we're Princess Tuborg and the Nobel Laureates. Kelsey (aka "Princess Tuborg") is our lead singer and guitarist. The "Nobel Laureates" are Marjorie on keyboards, Jens on guitar, Rene on drums and myself on bass. We're even recruiting a few roadies already. Unfortunately Kelsey is already giving us attitude. She thinks she's cooler than the rest 'cause she's the leader and (unlike everybody else) she actually knows how to sing and play her instrument (I think Jens knows how to play too). As if that sort of thing mattered! Everybody knows that the best bands aren't formed by real musicians. We should be working on important stuff like hairstyles, dance moves or a better name.

First post

2005-08-04T02:31:00.000-04:00

Not sure what this will be about. But it should be interesting...