If you yearn for effortlessly cool and quirky novelty alt-pop songs then newcomers Wet Leg have the perfect product for your enjoyment in their first single “Chaise Longue”:
Wet Leg are Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers from the Isle of Wight off the south coast of England. “ChaiseLongue” evokes a kind of thrillingly off-kilter hybrid of Plastic Bertrand’s bubblegum buzz-pop, and the cool-but-weird disinterest of post-punk dada pop band The Flying Lizards. Or, if those names from the distant past mean nothing to you, perhaps Wet Leg offer a more-strangely-sweet-than-sour variant on Dry Cleaning.
In any case “Chaise Longue” is excellent sardonically absurdist pop fun, with just the lightest undercurrent of menace.
“There’s no way out but fight” sings Ela Minus in “Megapunk”, a very cool electro-pop anthem with equal parts dark-wave and dance-floor appeal. This 2020 single seems as good a way as any to kick-start 2021:
“Megapunk” is a timeless electronic dance pop anthem. It’s a bit dark and walks the line between being sinister at the same time as being an uplifting call to arms, as much personal as political. The dark undertones here are reminiscent of the kind of shadow-dark regions of electro-pop inhabited by Dunedin darkwave trio Èlan Vital on their only album “Shadow Self”.
The music of Ela Minus (real name Gabriela Jimeno, and originally from Bogota, Colombia) first appeared on PopLib some 5 years ago and everything heard since has had a rare quality. Well-crafted melodic songs with pop hooks, yet without sounding formulaic. The songs were constructed within skeletons of electronic sounds, programmed beats and miniature sonic detailing. Voice and lyrics added a compelling human connection. Where it sounded different was the electronica was soft toned and playful, with plenty of adventure and action-packed spacey minimalism, full of tiny subtle details. It just sounded right and very good.
Fortunately Domino Recordings reached a similar conclusion and have now a released an album. “Megapunk” was released as a single ahead of the “acts of rebellion” album, which it is also included on.
The album is a varied collection of personal/ political dance-floor electro-pop interwoven with some more experimental soundscapes which work alongside the more structured tunes to set the album’s mood and darker non-conformist electronica textures.
Spinning Coin at Lynn Park, Glasgow, 04/08/2019 – photo by Owen Godbert
Now here’s a sure fire way to cheer up a grey damp day in Dunedin, NZ…. some new Spinning Coin from Scotland’s rain city Glasgow. Their 2nd album “Hyacinth” was released yesterday and here’s the second song “Feel You More Than The World Right Now”:
Their first album “Permo” was a hyper-jangly melodic 21st century update of that 1980s/ 1990s Glasgow guitar pop sound. Following “Permo” the group had a slight line-up change, drafting in Hairband‘s Rachel Taylor on bass and vocals (and songwriting duties), and the new album “Hyacinth” reflects a broadening songwriting approach while retaining all the essential elements that made them so appealing from the outset.
This particular song stood out on first listen because of the sparkling light shining out from the first seconds from those hyperactive jangling guitars. Sean Armstrong’s wavering croon takes on the attitude of Edwyn Collins in early Orange Juice, pumps it full of lighter-than-air gasses, and blasts it into space in a flower-filled rocket-ship. Free-wheeling, ebullient, beautiful, and just a little bit loopy.
The LP of “Hyacinth” is released on The Pastels Stephen McRobbie’s Geographic Records imprint in the Domino Records stable. It’s also available mailorder via Monorail Music in Glasgow and Norman Records.
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