12 stone toddler, black lips, madam, los campesinos! and more - singles for week beginning 4th june

THE ICARUS LINE – GETS PAID (V2) The history of The Icarus Line reads like a litany off petty vandalism, substance fuelled arguments and run-ins with Johnny law. The band have currently been through more drummers than Spinal Tap (6 in all, though none have perished in mysterious gardening accidents) and after 3 years in the musical wilderness the band are back to remind us why we should love them no matter what they do. ‘Gets Paid’ plays like a fantastic meeting between T-Rex and Primal Scream circa ‘Give Out But Don’t Give Up’, delivering a slice of glam-rock otherwise unseen this side of the 1970s. If the singles additional tracks are anything to go by, The Icarus Line’s upcoming album could be something very special indeed. OPERATOR PLEASE - JUST A SONG ABOUT PING PONG (BRILLE RECORDS) It’s hard to openly dislike a band whose members are barely old enough to grow some dodgy facial hair, saunter into their local shop and in a deep but unconvincing voice ask for 20 Marlborough lights. Criticising these youngsters would be a bit too much like punching a kitten in the face - and that’s just not on. ‘A Song About Ping Pong’ is bubblegum pop-punk at its most shameless – not particularly deep, not particularly interesting, but unnervingly catchy. As much as you may want to dislike it (and believe me you will) there’s something about it that sticks with you long after the song ends. Prepare to be incredibly frustrated. BLOOD RED SHOES – IT’S GETTING BORING BY THE SEA (V2) We all remember being dragged to some middle-of-nowhere seaside town as kids, only to discover that the ‘fine sand’ your parents told you about is actually pebbles the size of your knee caps. Disappointing indeed. It’s only when you stumble across the kid doing wheelies on a BMX that everything suddenly seems better. Blood Red Shoes are that kid. ‘It’s Getting Boring By The Sea’ is a riot of a song which has injected fresh life into the nu-rave genre by giving it a rather satisfying Blondie makeover. The glorious vocal work from Carter and Ansell combined with a stunning melody may mean that this is the best thing to come out of nu-rave yet. LOS CAMPESINOS! – YOU! ME! DANCING! / IT STARTED WITH A MIX ( WICHITA) For a band who favour the heavy use of the exclamation mark, you could be forgiven for thinking that ‘You! Me! Dancing!’ would burst through your speakers and ingrain itself deep within your brain. Unfortunately this little ditty from the Welsh 7-piece trickles rather than bursts, leaving a puddle of musical liquid so sickly sweet that it may actually be bad for your health. Attempts to salvage a phenomenally dreary intro with an abundance of xylophones and slightly off-key singing fall short. Meanwhile, ‘It Started With A Mix’ falls flat by spinning a rather trite tale about the hardships of releasing a record – yawn. MADAM - CALL AMERICA (REVEAL RECORDS) Madam’s ‘Call America’ is the latest addition to the ‘songs to be played during the final scene of a film’ mixtape. It successfully evokes images of a forlorn lead character getting into a cab before embarking on a long journey towards self-analysis amongst a sea of unnecessarily long, sweeping, airborne shots. If nothing else, this probably means it will find its way onto the soundtrack of a Zach Braff or Sofia Coppola film in no time. The soft, though admittedly beautiful vocals set against a backdrop of acoustic guitars show great promise and give the track a distinct Portishead feel, but it ultimately lacks the same bite and fails to hold your interest. BLACK LIPS – COLD HANDS (VICE RECORDS) Fresh off the back of a marathon ten shows at indie-fest SXSW, American 4-piece Black Lips are set to prove that Atlanta is so much more than a breeding ground for bland R n’B and ridiculous terms such as ‘Krunk.’ Their 2nd UK single release ‘Cold Hands’ is a glorious regression to the late 60’s where guitars sounded fuzzy, melodies were simple and vocals were raw - even if they were largely influenced by some mind-bending substances. Capturing this perfectly on ‘Cold Hands’, Black Lips have effortlessly combined early Rolling Stones, The Who and a melody which sounds uncannily like the theme tune to Rawhide, to produce a truly great single.