Countdown Eurovision: Our favourite songs this year
Slovakia’s Sammy Hagar sound-a-like Max Jason Mai.
It’s a bit mid-era Van Halen (think 5051) and a bit Soundgarden.
Max Jason won Slovakia’s X Factor. Which makes us think their version is a bit more interesting than the MORfest we get rammed down our throats every year.
Please vote for this in Semi Final 2, 24th May, so the final show gets a dose of proper rock.
What we done and gone and seen at the Camden Crawl
So it was the Camden crawl the other weekend and I’ve only just got out of bed to write this wrap-up – it was a pretty heavy one. Here’s a list of interesting things that went down:
Saturday
First off we went to see Three Trapped Tigers because I thought it might actually be three trapped tigers and this was something I’d never seen before. As it happened it was not three trapped tigers, but a band called Three Trapped Tigers, who I had similarly never seen before. They were interesting to say the least – I liked some of their songs, they had nice melodies and the lark, but some were way too manic for that time of day. Still, at least the drummer gave me a good laugh by going absolutely mental on pretty much every song. Here’s a good’un from them (listen for the mental drums):
Then it was on to see Hymns, because I thought they were someone else. They weren’t. They were Hymns. And unfortunately I didn’t like them much, not really my kind of thing, but each to their own and all that.
Then it was off to see Clement Marfo and The Frontline because I thought they were Clement Marfo and the Frontline. I was right. And they were SODDING GREAT. They were so good I went back to see them again on Sunday.
After that, a bit more hip-hop in the form of Jehst, who I used to listen to back at school, so I jumped at the chance to finally see him live. He was really good, one of the most skilled rappers working in the UK at the moment. Here’s my favourite ever Jehst track:
We stayed in the same venue because it was Icona Pop up next; a pop duo from Sweden who make really good music and that. Here’s a good one:
Finally, we went to see the Futureheads for some reason. They weren’t great – far too wacky for me. Still, they did do quite a good cover of Kelis – ‘Acapella’:
Sunday
To start things off we did the hip-hop thing again (least hip-hop thing ever said) and went to see Lady Leshurr, who was really rather good. I didn’t like every song, but even when I didn’t, her talent was impressive – she can rap quickly. Look:
After that, we headed on down to see a bit of Josh Kumra, who you’ll know from Wretch 32′s ‘Don’t Go’. In a nutshell, I liked him:
Then it was Clement Marfo and the Frontline again. They were even better this time because only bloody Sway turned up on stage too. Well good these guys, can’t wait for the album:
Finally, it was off to see True Tiger, who were pretty damn good, especially as D Double E and Footsie turned up to support. Good stuff.
Once True Tiger had finished, we decided we’d use our wristbands for the ‘exclusive’ afterparty, in the hopes of seeing someone famous and maybe saying something inappropriate to them. This didn’t happen. At least I don’t think it happened, things get a bit blurry from here on in.
But one thing I do know was, The Camden Crawl was proper good and I’m DEFINITELY going back next year.
Danny Dyer’s Second Pwoper Gaff
Looks like Danny Dyer’s gone and round himself a new gaff outside of the capital. After proudly declaring the Tottenham Opera House to be a “pwoper gaff”, he has now bestowed the very same honour upon Rockafellas in Corby.
As far as we know this is the second club in the UK to be officially certified as a Danny Dyer Pwoper Gaff. If you know of any other clubs that Danny has gone on record as having said the same of, drop us a line – we’re thinking of starting up a few coach packages.
Know another Pwoper Gaff? hello@popbitch.com
New Kids on the Bloc
Russian boy band Heroes release a new animated video ‘Red Sunsets’to commemorate the May 9th ‘Day of Victory in Great Patriotic War’ (one day after VE day thanks to Moscow time). Misha, Vlad, Seva and Andrey have previous form and with the singles ‘Kilometer’ and ‘Free Ears Speak’, and as junior Eurovision entrants.
May 9th is celebrated every year and is considered one of the most important in the Russian calendar. For a smaller section of the population it is also the date on which the birth of David Gahan is celebrated, as documented in the excellent ‘The Posters Came from the Walls: a Doc of Faith and Devotion’ Click here
Also born on May 9th: Matthew Kelly, Billy Joel, Ghostface Killah and Joan Sims.
Bagpipes at Eurovision? WTF!
Romania has been a powerhouse of European dance music for a few years – and can usually be relied on for a finish near the top at Eurovision. But their entry this year…. BAGPIPES! WTF?
It’s the Camden Crawl this weekend BY THE WAY
If you hadn’t realised, it’s actually a big old bank holiday this weekend, and let’s go ahead and say it’s going to be nice weather too. I realise I shouldn’t have said that, and I also have no basis for saying it because I’ve not even looked at the forecast, but whatever, I’m trying to drum up interest here. Either way, I know it’s definitely The Camden Crawl this weekend too – 4th to the 6th – and I predict it’s going to be ace.
I’ve had a look at the line-up and because I’m not actually that cool, I haven’t actually heard of all the bands but I do know that there are a couple of people I’m looking forward to seeing. AND THEY ARE:
GLASVEGAS
GHETTS
ICONA POP
RUSTIE
SWAY
TRUE TIGER
CLEMENT MARFO AND THE FRONTLINE
JAYMO AND ANDY GEORGE
ST LUCIA
And also there’s a hop hop karaoke event so I’ll have a real-life chance to demonstrate exactly how un-cool I am. Can’t wait yo.
Get your sodding tickets here.
Rock me Amadou (and a bit of Mariam)
Ali Farka Toure – The River
Eurovision’s most annoying song?
San Marino’s Eurovision entry for this year – The Social Network song – must be up there with the worst entries of all time.
Come on, they might have thought an ode to Facebook was funny for a few minutes, but how embarrassed must Valentina Monetta be by now singing lyrics like:
“Do you want to come to my house, and click me with your mouse”
DJs From Mars hit the spot again…
Everyone loves that Gotye track, don’t they?
But secretly everyone thinks it could have been improved if it sounded a little more like Robert Miles’ Children.
Bingo!
The opening scene – which movies have the best musical starts?
Like the first 30 seconds of a pop song, it’s the bit that lures you in. Sure, there’s enough mid-movie classics to stick in your memory – like the Layla/Goodfellas mash-up or the breathless Bowie scene in Inglourious Basterds – but what about the tunes and their accompanying visuals that grab you before you’ve even started your popcorn? Here’s a selection of our faves, some chosen by us and some by PB readers inc JBW, littlejoemag, HC, ECB and ivy_trellis.
1. Jackie Brown – we’ve come to expect something big from Quentin every time we sit down to watch one of his masterpieces, and sure enough he always delivers, but surely the beautifully calm airport walk, tracked to Bobby Womack’s Across 110th Street, is his best.
2. Blow – Scorsese would have been proud of how the Stones’ Can’t You Hear Me Knocking was used in the opening credits of Ted Demme’s drug kingpin movie.
3. Velvet Goldmine – much misunderstood, loved and hated, this Bowie ‘biopic’ divided both fans and critics. But you can’t argue with its sense of style, even if the American view of early 1970s England is a little overdone. A little Eno gets the film off to a flyer, with Needle in the Camel’s Eye from his 1973 masterpiece Here Come the Warm Jets.
4. Staying Alive – the greatest contribution to cinema that anyone called Stallone has ever made. No, not that chump Sly, who wrote this movie, a so-bad-it’s-good sequel to Saturday Night Fever (Satan’s Alley: best Broadway musical title ever), but his lesser-known brother Frank, who came up with the slice of 80s genius that opens it.
5. Live and Let Die – you can’t have a countdown like this without a Bond film. And that’s hard going, considering the nailed-on classics that have been part of the series. We almost chose The Spy Who Loved Me (for the Union Jack parachute/ Nobody Does It Better combo), and you can’t beat a bit of Shirl, but in the end Macca won out…
6. Flash Gordon – we need not explain why this cult classic is being included. The entire movie is filled with top tunes but you can’t beat the opening…
7. Trainspotting – a movie we all watched and obsessed over in the 90s, it’s aged very well indeed. And to think, Iggy’s apex of cool has now plummeted to a man doing insurance ads.
8. Dog Day Afternoon – Elton made a string of absolutely brilliant albums in the early 70s, the best of which was Tumbleweed Connection. Here’s a track from it opening Sidney Lumet’s one-of-a-kind gay bank heist drama…
9. The Rocky Horror Picture Show – as a teenage rite of passage, it’s never been bettered. Sing with me, Michael Rennie was Ill the Day The Earth Stood Still…
10. Apocalypse Now – surely one of the greatest opening scenes of all time. A hellish two year shoot, a near-fatal heart attack for Martin Sheen, some predictably insane Brando behaviour, and The End at the beginning. Unbeatable.
Also
Gremlins/Baby Please Come Home, The Hunger/Bela Lugosi’s Dead, Shaft/Theme From Shaft, Saturday Night Fever/Staying Alive, Se7en/Closer, Mean Streets/Be My Baby.
Do you think these should be included? Or something else? email hello@popbitch.com
