seagull strange, talk taxis, cold war kids, THE go! team and more... - singles for week beginning 2nd july

THE GO! TEAM / GRIP LIKE A VICE (MEMPHIS INDUSTRIES)

The Go! Team have always had the energy of a hyperactive toddler, but it sometimes seemed that they were unable to harness it. Still, whether it’s Ritalin or just maturing as they head towards their second album, this hyperactive toddler has been tamed – and the band sound all the better for it. ‘Grip Like A Vice’ could be the lovechild of Bootsy Collins and Grandmaster Flash which was conceived during a weekend-long electro love-in. This infectious and unashamedly upbeat slice of disco is sure to have you grooving round your living room for at least a week.

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ROISIN MURPHY / OVERPOWERED (EMI)

Cast your mind back to the mid 90s. You may remember Róisín Murphy fronting Moloko and prancing round in an outfit that was essentially the precursor to Noel Fielding’s ‘Mirror ball suit.’ The years since ‘Sing It Back’ have seen Murphy pawning the groups singles to every programme Sky Sports has to offer – and on the face of debut single ‘Overpowered,’ you’d have to say that she would have been better served sticking to it. Flimsy lyrics are interspersed with choruses that sound closer to Kylie Minogue than the trendy Goldfrapp vibe Murphy may well have been seeking.

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FALL OUT BOY / THE TAKE OVER, THE BREAKS OVER (ISLAND)

Aside from the endless photos of Pete Wentz’s dangly bits being plastered all over the internet, Fall Out Boy have become known for their exceedingly long song titles. That said, I can’t help but think that there’s an apostrophe missing from this one. This is the same mindless pop-punk we’ve come to expect from the genre and proves once and for all that the only fun to be had by listening to Fall Out Boy these days is trying to guess what the bejesus Patrick Stump is actually saying.

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SEAGULL STRANGE / LA LA LA LEY (SHIFTY DISCO)

‘La La La Ley’ is more of a slow burn than an instant hit, but certainly isn’t without its charm. It takes a while to figure out what all six members of the group actually do, as much of the focus is on Dan Telling’s vocals and Millins’ incredibly dirty sounding guitar. But after the initial few bars they launch into the songs rousing chorus and it all becomes clear: ‘La La La Ley’ is a successful marriage between the Black Keys and the Flaming Lips. The only question listeners need to ask themselves is whether we really need another song expressing anger and disillusionment at the modern age.

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SCRIM / (A:) MY REVOLUTION (AA:) OLD SCHOOL (BLACK MOON RECORDS)

Scrim sound a lot like one of those bands you might have stumbled across in a dingy student union somewhere – which is ironic given that the opening lyrics to ‘Old School’ seem to be laced with a hint of contempt for the ol’ educational system: “Gotta go to uni get my education / Gotta do it all for the good of the nation…” As a single, ‘My Revolution’ does everything right, but is let down by the overall production which sees the guitars pushed back in favour of a much more cymbal and Hi-Hat heavy effort. Unfortunately, this means that the track loses some of its intensity.

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TALK TAXIS / (A:) LIVERLESS (AA:) TWO HANDS ON THE CLOCK (EWYE RECORDS)

‘Straight outta Balham,’ doesn’t have quite the same impact as N.W.A’s ‘Straight outta Compton.’ Still, anyone who’s been to Balham may believe otherwise. Balham quartet Talk Taxis are living proof that music genres can be made up by simply combining two words that were nonsense to begin with. They lump themselves in the ‘Grindie’ genre – not some random Auzzie slang, but a combination of ‘Grime’ and ‘Indie’ music - and whilst the ’Grime’ element isn’t particularly obvious, the Indie side is solid enough to make this a fairly passable single.