Blog: 100b

It's New Band Day! I have three brand spankin' new bands for you today. These bands are very, very different from each other, and are a testament to the diversity and originality of the British music scene right now. First Up is Butterfly Bangs . This band's debut single "On The Street" comes out in ten days exactly. It'll pick you up faster than you can say superkellyfragalisen ... tric ... Oh forget it, it's upbeat, fast and catchy! Listen to the three other songs and tell me that this band is not totally schizophrenic. I [...]

• Hands on Heads - Romantic

Bumped into Vivek Shraya samples at MISSINGTOOF during my Weekend Adventures On The Internets. Some interesting stuff, I think. Don't ask me why, but I'm going to call him the indie-disco-pop Justin Timberlake. That'll surely insult someone. Maybe one of his Toronto-based hometown fans. Maybe Vivek himself. Nevertheless, the indie-disco-pop Justin Timberlake he shall be to me. (Vivek, if you're searching for yourself on the Internets and happen across this ... It's meant to be a compliment. Oh, and Vivek ... It's okay to search for yourself on the Internets.) If We're [...]

Yesterday an article I read some time ago rolled out off the bed inside my noggin and got naked busy. The article was about the history of "Apache", which, unless you've been wandering the musical wilderness for more than two decades, you probably know as the Sugarhill Gang's semi-classic. But, do you know where it evolved from and where it went to? If not, this is your chance to sample some of that evolution. From guitarist Bert Weedon's 1960 original to the ... Incredible Bongo Band cut, progenitor of hip-hop [...]

Oh my god, it has started. We are well into the 21st century and I've been waiting for my jetpack and funny robot servant in the style of Rosie The Robot for years now. Hiroshi Ishiguro has put us one step closer to my vision of the future with his robotic clone. It's called Geminoid and it frowns when you poke it, it also breathes and its face moves on its own! It won't be able to replace Mr. Ishiguro in the workplace yet, but I'm sure that technology is just around the corner. [...]

I thought it was going to be impossible to follow up an album that was lauded as much as Funeral was, but Arcade Fire pulled it off with Neon Bible . I can only imagine how intimidating it must have been to create something that would be compared to such an instant classic. I love their massive, soul hugging sound so much. They manage to fill your ear to maximum capacity without ever going over the top. Choirs, church organs, orchestras, they use them all but they also know when to cherish the quiet [...]