Mad4these 2005 Here's our chart of the year, our favourite pre-releases measured with a points system on our weekly pre-release chart, with the original review (we seem to like guitars) ... |
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The Strokes - Juicebox new single 5 Dec They're back and this will be a massive hit. A bass riff modelled on the Peter Gunn & James Bond theme and atmosphere, soaring vocal and a catchy tune, serviced two months before release ... a new album 'First Impressions Of Earth' released on 2 January 06 - 14 tracks recorded in New York over the past ten months of which 11 were produced by David Kahne and three were produced by David and Gordon Raphael who produced their excellent debut 'Is This It' in 2002. XXXX www.thestrokes.com (Posted 17 October) |
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Queens Of The Stone Age - Little Sister new single 14 March 'No One Knows' was such a massive hit, cutting accross various audiences, it pretty well guarantees massive success for the follow up album 'Lullabies To Paralyse' out on 21 March. Little Sister is the first single from the album and it's fast and furious, pulling in at 2'47". This is designed to stomp, Top 5 I'd say! XXXx www.qotsa.com |
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Beck - E-Pro new single 14 March The Man is back, the King Of Cool. Whatever it or the X factor is, Beck has it in abundance. 'E-Pro' is the first single to be released from 'Guero', the new Beck album out on March 28, and it even has a Nah-nah-nah-nah chorus, along with pounding drums and guitar riff - all set to hit No.1 and push Elvis into 2nd Position with whatever the other King's label is pushing that week. XXXXx www.beck.com Check out this very special link for a cool remix by 'Bad Cartridge', www.bandbuilder.com/beck/index.php |
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Hal - Play The Hits new single 4 April This is a fine pop tune from their 'Hal' album, now due for release a couple of weeks after the album. With lush Beach Boy-style harmonies, a sublime mystifying lyric and great pop sensibility this should be a massive hit. The only thing against it's chances are, they weren't on Pop Idol and this is more pop than rock, but I love it. XXXXX www.halmusic.com |
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Ordinary Boys & Lady Sov - Boys Will Be Boys new single 6 June Every now and then an artist or group will come along with stuff you could have written yourself, capturing your subconscious thoughts and putting them over better than you could ever imagine. The Ordinary Boys manage to do that for me, Over The Counter Culture was spot on and I look forward to their second album. This collection the Lady Sovereign 'Boner' Remix of Boys Will Be Boys, the "We Soldier On" song for the silent majority, the controversial "The KKK Took My Baby Away" and here's another great title "Quarter Life Crisis" - awesome! XXXXX www.theordinaryboys.co.uk |
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The Futureheads - Hounds Of Love new single 28 February Yep this is a cover of Kate Bush's 1985 Album Track and we've started getting requests for it as far back as November, this is a massive hit in waiting, Top Ten possibly. Wow hang on, that's an underestimation, this should be number one, it is a quite different interpretation of Kate Bush's original with an 05 indie sense of urgency that should be number one! XXXXX www.thefutureheads.tk |
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Ian Brown - All Ablaze new single 5 September 'All Ablaze' is a brand new track recorded to tease the release of Ian's 'The Greatest' 17 track hit compilation out on 12 September. This is a cracking single acid basslines, eastern guitar and funky drums and a tune speculating that organised religion and their hierarchies have attempted to steal rock and roll and sell it back to the people - let me just ask Sir Cliff about that one! All Ablaze is a great three track single featuring the trailblazing 'Kiss Ya Lips (No ID) and the album version of the classic show ender 'Fear'. XXXXx www.ianbrown.co.uk (Posted 28 July) |
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The Go Team! - Bottle Rocket new single 26 September This is without doubt one of the best records of the year, uplifting, invigorating, exciting, unpredictable, fun, beaty, catchy ... three great tracks 'Bottle Rocket' and 'We Just Won't Be Defeated' from The Mercury Award nominated album 'Thunder, Lightning, Strike' and 'Huddle Formation' from a Zane Lowe Session - Lightning, Strike' - it's brilliant. XXXXX www.thegoteam.co.uk (Posted 21 August) |
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Ill Nino - My Pleasant Torture from new album 'One Nation Underground' out 26 September Il Nino are back with a bang, mixing Hispanic flavas and it works really well. Their third album One Nation Underground, the follow up to 'Revolution Revolucion' big tour and big hits scheduled for 06. 'This Is War' features a rather soft accoustic style break which has all the more effect being surrounded by the choking vocals that trademark Ill Nino. I like their use of a variety of vocal style, it works well and makes it more accessible. After a few plays you become aware of a monster stand-out track that should be a massive hit single 'My Pleasant Torture' - Unique XXXXx www.illnino.com (Posted 14 Sept) |
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My Chemical Romance - The Ghost Of You new single 22 August Well, this is a little lurrv song .. medium paced, a rather dramatic hook "never coming home, never coming home", and to be fair it's rather good. More accessible than I'm Not Okay etc, lovely guitar intro, Top Ten ... hope so. See them on tour in November - Wolves, Pompey, London, Glasgow, Newcastle, Manchester and Newport, South Wales. XXXXx www.mychemicalromance.com (Posted 22 July) |
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Stereophonics - Dakota new single 28 February Interesting, this is not Word Gets Around and Jo Whiley had the exclusive first play. There is an airy feel to 'Dakota' and a rather different vocal style - more laid back, easy on the ear until Kelly's trademark vocals seer through on the chorus. 'Dakota' is a grower but rather like 'Have A Nice Day' was a second single I feel this may not be the strongest track on their 'Language Sex Violence Other' album. XXXx www.stereophonics.com |
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Beck - Girl new single 27 June Beck is a unique entity, 'the coolest man in pop!'. More live shows coming Homelands, The Bowl near Winchester on 28 May, Glasgow Academy 29 May, Hammersmith Apollo 1 & 2 June, Manchester Apollo 3 June. Girl is interestingly different from the anthemic E-Pro, a tantalizing twisting elctro feel - what shall we say - Top Ten without really trying! XXXXx www.beck.com |
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Foo Fighters - |
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The Features - The Way It's Meant To Be new single 18 July A fantastic record, a storming commitment to rock & roll. Great lyrics "Gonna tuck you in tonight, fall asleep right by your side, take a swift kick in the head when you push me out of bed and that's the way it's meant to be!" See them on tour with The Kings Of Leon you'll love them, hailing from Sparta, Tennessee this two minutes is a gem! "wipe your nose and dry your eyes, zip your dress and tie your shoes coz I'll love you til I die, coz I'm yours and you are mine, and that's the way it's meant to be!"! XXXXX www.thefeatures.com |
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Hot Hot Heat - Goodnight new single 23 May Awesome - 2 mins of divine short sharp power pop .. call it what you will. I still get plenty of requests for Bandages, and this is even more brilliant, catchy hook, great instrumentation and you will never be bored with it - Top 5 XXXXx www.hothotheat.com |
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Super Furry Animals - Lazer Beam new single 8 August Laser Beam is the taster for the new Furries Album 'Love Kraft' to be released on 22 August. This has the usual Furry approach and then some ... Beastie Boy Producer Mario Caldato enlisted to produce the twelve tracks which feature 'swooning' strings and a 100 strong Catalna choir! Recorded in three Catalonian weeks and mixed in Rio De Janeiro and you know what? "They make an awful lot of coffee in Brazil!" XXXX www.superfurry.com |
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Buck 65 - Kennedy Killed The Hat new single 7 November Buck 65 is really on the edge, the boundary between hip hop and alternative rock, "the evil outsider". Don't expect to glean what this 'Kennedy Killed The Hat' business is either. A very much more aggressive outing than previous releases, a taster for the album 'Secret House Against The World' coming in three 12" mixes, Album, Dance and Rock Mixes. Rather brilliant but not for the faint hearted or impatient. XXXX www.buck65.com (Posted 25 Sept) |
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FAITHLESS - FATTY BOO new album Forever Faithless, Greatest Hits out 2 May All you need is a track listing to get the gist of this brilliant compilation:- Insomnia, Mass Destruction, God Is A DJ, Don't Leave, Salva Mea, Bring My Family Back, Fatty Boo and there's plenty more. Hell seven uniquely awesome tracks puts this amongst the finest of hits collections. XXXXX www.faithless.co.uk |
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Green Day - Holiday new single 21 February Awesome! How fantastic that Green Day's brilliant 'American Idiot' Album in reaching number one put the Simon Cowell-esque manufactured pop nonsense where it should be - secondary. XXXXx www.greenday.com |
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Ordinary Boys - Rudi's In Love from new album 'Brassbound' 20 June The Ordinary Boys are my favourite band of the past two years, their lyrics are great, the production is superb, the songs are catchy pop tunes with biting invective. 'Life Will Be The Death Of Me' is to be the next single although if it's coupled with 'Rudi's In Love' it could be a Summer Number 1 - I hope this album does the same on the album chart, a worthy followup to last year's Over The Counter Culture XXXXX www.theordinaryboys.com |
| Mad4these 2005 1 STROKES Juicebox 2 QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE Little Sister 3 BECK E-Pro 4 HAL Play The Hits 5 ORDINARY BOYS & LADY SOVEREIGN Boys Will Be Boys 6 FUTUREHEADS Hounds Of Love 7 IAN BROWN All Ablaze 8 GO TEAM! Bottle Rocket 9 ILL NINO My Pleasant Torture 10 MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE The Ghost Of You 11 STEREOPHONICS Dakota 12 BECK Girl 13 FOO FIGHTERS The Best Of You 14 FEATURES That's The Way It's Meant To Be 15 HOT HOT HEAT Goodnight Goodnight 16 SUPER FURRY ANIMALS Lazer Beam 17 BUCK 65 Kennedy Killed The Hat 18 FAITHLESS Fatty Boo 19 GREEN DAY Holiday 20 ORDINARY BOYS Rudi's In Love |