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 ...

  John Rossall is probably best known as the musical leader of the Glitter Band way back in the '70s (for those unaware, the band actually had a whole separate music career away from their disgraced singer and chalked up a fair few hits on their own). Last Glam In Town sees him making a comeback with an impressive backing case including John Robb (Membranes/Goldblade) and various members of '80s indie stalwarts the Nightingales who comprise his backing band nowadays. If you're expecting some flat trip down Memory Lane here then prepare to be surprised - this is very much the '70s glam sound but much as Joe Elliott and the Quireboys did in their Down 'n' Outz side project, it gives the formula a much-needed 21st century makeover. Opener Fear of a Glam Planet uses Robb's sinister whispered vocals to create something that owes as much to imperial phase Marilyn Manson as it does to Marc Bolan and it's not a bad sound at all. Elsewhere, Neon Lights , featur...