Nite Songs

  And so we reach the halfway point of our Albums of the Year rundown. Bring on the Top 30... 30. HELEN LOVE - "Power On" ( Bandcamp ) ( Review ) Still as endearingly enthusiastic about everything as ever, this latest album from indie veterans Helen Love provided a much needed dose of sunshine, sherbet and singalongability when the world needed it most. Songs such as Debbie Take Control Of The Stereo  and Dead In My Head  were a real delight with the band putting their stamp on the material in their own inimitable style. Long may they reign. *** 29. FAZ WALTZ - "Rebel Kicks" ( Bandcamp ) ( Review ) Still Italy's premier exponents of '70s style bootboy glam, Rebel Kicks  is another good offering from Faz Waltz. Sure, the influences are nothing you won't expect - Slade, T-Rex, Mott The Hoople but when the result is cracking tunes like the Stonesy Born In  The Wrong Time  and the strutting Chuck Berry style riff of Last Train To Nowhere , it's well and ...

  Lucy & The Rats have been staples of the London power-pop/garage rock scene for a few years now and they offer a more mid-paced melodic take on the formula. Their self-titled debut album, while a little bit patchy in places, showed a band with plenty of potential and on the evidence of Get Lucky , their sophomore effort, they're continuing to progress nicely. Once you realise that this band are closer to the pure pop of bands like the Records than the spiky pop-punk of the Buzzcocks or similar, their sound is actually pretty pleasant to listen to with the likes of September , Real Thing  and Not One Tear  having the sort of irresistably sweet melodies that you can't help but be drawn in by. Ironically, it's when they try to up the tempo on Pinch Myself  that they sound weakest (though I'm sure it's nothing a bit of practice wouldn't sort out). There's a sweet rough-around-the-edges Television Personalities style DIY charm to Get Lucky  as well as evide...

  Well, here we go, part 2 of this month's Singles Bar as we finish rounding up all the good stuff that's landed in my inbox over the last few months while I was in reviewing hibernation. Hopefully everyone will find at least something they like in here! Cheers again and hopefully we'll see you with the next instalment either next month or in November depending on how much stuff lands in my inbox between now and then! Starting off with a band who I'm friends with from my days living on the Herts/Essex borders, Touch of Blue  reformed a couple of years ago and "Here It Goes"  (🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑), their new single, is a good slice of low-slung and loose Stonesy rock with a slight nod to the bar-room stomp of the Quireboys as well. If you're looking for something nice and simple to sink a pint to this coming Friday night then you could do a lot worse than this - downloadable from their Bandcamp page (along with a couple of other recent re-releases) if you want to i...