March's Top Tips

WHO: TEGAN & SARA
FROM: Vancouver, Montreal
THE LOWDOWN: Last time, Tegan & Sara played the UK in late 2007, they played at Bush Hall. Just a few months later, last week in fact, they headlined Camden's Koko Club in front of a sold out crowd. Absolutely sold out, "yes that means no tickets" as the note on the door kindly pointed out. Yes, they are lesbians twins, and much is made of that - and also no doubt played a huge part in the aforementioned show selling out - but what is more interesting about the Quinn sisters is that their latest album 'The Con', is fantastic. Where previous record 'So Jealous' wasn't so immediate, the songs on the new album draw you in to their world. Subtle angst and the sweetly innocent vocals combined with almost nursery song-like instrumentation makes for one of the albums of the year so far. 'The Con'? This is anything but; get educated...
CURRENT RELEASE: 'The Con' (album, Sire)

WHO: DANGER RADIO
FROM: Washington, USA
THE LOWDOWN: Now that Panic At The Disco have turned into The Beatles, we need a new hip, exciting young things to replace them. Enter: Danger Radio. Like Panic before them they are scarily youthful, but don't let that scare you off. PATD with added soul and Cute Is What We Aim For with a healthy dose of funk, their 'Punch...' EP is as effervescent as munching a packet of pop-rocks chased with a fizzy drinks. Giddy and joyous on tracks like 'Party Foul' and 'Sparkle Baby Shine' , the five-piece have been touring with fellow young guns The Audition and Envy On The Coast over in the States. And with another three demos already up on their Myspace page, they seem to be intent on keeping the good times coming. There are no UK dates planned as yet, but we've got our glittered-up fingers & toes firmly crossed.
CURRENT RELEASE: 'Punch Your Lights Out' (EP, Photo Finish)

WHO: MY AMERICAN HEART
FROM: San Diego, California
THE LOWDOWN: Just as MAH were beginning their recent UK tour with Welsh rabble The Blackout, one of their guitarists quit and headed home without saying a word to the rest of the band. Whilst we wouldn't like to speculate about what goes on behind closed doors, there's no doubt that it could have left the remaining four members in something of a pickle. Instead, they soldiered on. And how. A 2007 UK tour with Madina Lake helped capture the attention of UK audiences, but this time around, there was a ferocious fire burning in them. Whether a result of that sudden departure or not, they found their rock 'n' roll spirit and kicked it hard, with songs like 'The Shake (Awful Feeling)' and the tongue-in-cheek 'Boys! Grab Your Guns' coming to life like never before.
CURRENT RELEASE: 'Hiding Inside The Horrible Weather' (album, Bodog Music)

WHO: THIS CITY
FROM: Brighton
THE LOWDOWN: Never has mainstream indie in the UK sounded so utterly bleak and pretentious. Which is why a band like ThisCity are so vital to the lifeblood of our music scene. Their Myspace page describes them as "indie/hardcore/pop" and this is scarily accurate. Raw like early-days Biffy Clyro on former Club Fandango-released single 'Romantic', Bloc Party with a more aggro side on 'With Loaded Guns', not to mention the balls-to-the-wall angular rock of current single 'Kids With Fireworks'. Forget all the drab Pigeon Detective/The Enemy/One Night Only bollocks that our towns are spewing forth; ThisCity are one of the bands we need gracing the covers of our magazines and taking over the airwaves.
CURRENT RELEASE: 'Kids With Fireworks' (single, no label)