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Scars On Broadway - They Say (Interscope Records) 21/07/2008

T: Daron Malakain and John Dolmayan's (System Of a Down) new band. Did anyone bother to tell them that the Sex Pistols existed?

N: I've just read Daron's comment that following "System's decade long run atop the metal and hard rock world, they had started to lose that feeling of newness". He goes on to say "I feel like this is a brand new band". Er, Daron, it IS.

T: Indeed. And it's distinctly average. Sorry mate. 5/10

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Pram - Prisoner Of The Seven Pines (Domino) 21/07/2008

T: The normal tuneless twaddle from Pram, but again, as usual, I find myself actually liking it quite a lot. To be fair though, the outfit does have hypnotic qualities.

N: Certainly numbers not for the casual listener, although give them their due, when they try, this isn't half bad.

T: Possibly reminiscent of Stereolab at times, they're certainly innovative and definitely worth a punt on. 8/10

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She & Him - This Is Not A Test (Double Six) 21/07/2008

T: Wow, this is the actress Zooey Deschanel displaying the fact that she's got a damn fine voice, in fact, and clearly has deep rooted folk influences coarsing through her veins. It's actually a pretty damn good tune. Not quite sure about the improvised vocal trombone though!

N: All that, but I found this number a little plodding for my liking. 6/10

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The Vivians - A Human Angle (Electric Toaster Entertainment) 21/07/2008

T: Fast and frantic...

N: ...with a singer whose vocal is not too dissimilar from Robert Smith's...

T: ...but with little of the atmospherics...

N: Oh, totally.

T: Anyway, a very short single that's as entertaining as a glass of coke. Quite enjoyable but nothing special. 6/10

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Jack McManus - You Think I Don't Masturbate (Polydor) 14/07/2008

T: Hey, theres no shame in it Jack, we all do it.

N" It's "You Think I Don't CARE". Now go and change the heading.

T: No (stubbornly). I prefer my title.

N: Ok readers, this is the not so TV advertised version of Jack's new single from his debut album, 'Either Side Of Midnight'. Think David Gray, think rock, combine the 2 and you're pretty much there. If you're not already aware, this single is in fact titled - "You Think I Don't Have a Big Knob But I Assure You It's Huge", - TONE LEAVE THE KEYBOARD ALONE, it's called "You Think I Don't Care" - Alright I think you're pretty much aware Tone has been over dosing on the E-numbers this lunch time, so getting any sense out of him with respect to this release is going to be nada. In short - M.O.R. 7/10

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Oh Laura - Release Me (Cosmos Records) 21/07/2008

T: Plod.

N: She's not moving this on too much is she?

T: No. 3/10

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The Thirst - My Everything (Wooden Records) 14/07/2008

T: When I go home from the Atomicduster office, I pass a heck of a lot of sheep.

N: Did you find that eighth down the back of the sofa last night?

T: Hmmm. I thought that was cat shit.

N: Either way, digesting either is going to leave you feeling somewhat funny.

T: As I was saying, I pass a heck of a lot of sheep.

N: I think that was solid, it certainly wasn't cat shit, but I'll try to translate; This single is like the musical version of a colour by numbers picture book your mum bought you as a child, in someway hoping you'd grow up to be Damien Hirst, but whereas no one else had thought of putting a shark in aspic jelly, this is the first session in a budding musician's musical career.

T: Exactly. Except it ISN'T solid. And it IS cat shit.

N: No wonder you've been rushing to the shitter so much this morning. 4/10

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White Denim - All You Really Have To Do (Full Time Hobby) 07/07/2008

T: If you, like us, are too young to have ever seen the MC5 live, then White Denim are resurrecting their spirit perfectly. I love the fact thay they've chosen to release a track which is NOT one of the more commercial on their brilliant debut (that is, if they HAVE any songs that could be deemed commercial). This is another storming single. White Denim are the unsightly stain on the wedding cake, they're the persistent fly on your jam sandwich or the Rohypnol in your tea. They're ready to attack, and once they've bitten, you realise they have the kiss of the spiderwoman. What the fuck am I going on about?

N: Well, it would appear it has put my colleague under its spell. This dirty garage rock that's bombarding our senses is sweet on the ear and hot to the touch. All you need to know is that this is just pure brilliance. 10/10

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Air Cav - Embers (Surbia) 07/07/2008

T: A gratifyingly uplifting single which has a kind of late eighties MBV vibe to it, but sounding rather more darkly commercial than they ever were. I'm not suggesting these compositions sound like the aforementioned shoegaze kings, but for some reason I'm drawn to the comparison. Maybe it's due to the scrunching white noise of the guitars, I'm not sure. Either way, the violins were a spark of genius and give these already tremendous songs an atmosphere rarely found in the ranks of today's young pretenders.

N: Certainly music with an edge, music which encourages an intrigue in their sound. Mashing indie rock with the folk provided by violinist Sophie, this band are providing something other than all the Kaiser Chiefs clones out there today. Maybe a fitting similarity might be "Porcupine" era Bunnymen. Most of all, this group are putting out a take on late eighties indie, and it's most refreshing. 9/10

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