The debut album by Salford's The Ting Tings comes hot on the heels of their No.1 single "That's Not My Name", a nugget of pop gold that comes on like a genetic splicing of Toni Basil's "Micky" and The Knack's "My Sharona". The bulk of We Started Nothing follows a similar formula, navigating a path between the smart, angular indie of CSS, Bonde Do Role, et al and the pop mainstream. Here and there, they pull it off perfectly: the stutter-rap of "Fruit Machine" sees vocalist Katie White leading on some poor sap with sultry charisma and lip-gloss sass, while the excellent "Shut Up and Let Me Go" is snappy dance-punk in the spirit of Blondie's "Rapture" or Tom Tom Club's "Genius of Love". Elsewhere, they branch out with mixed results. "We Walk" builds from quiet flourishes of piano into a surprisingly steely manifesto: "Smash the rest up/Burn it down/Put us in the corner cause we're into ideas", sneers White. Rather less good is "Traffic Light", a light, jazzy number that employs a number of somewhat forced driving metaphors to describe a relationship hit the skids. Still, it's a debut with promise, and a string of good singles is nothing to be sniffed at. --Louis Pattison

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

It's difficult not to like Danish six-piece Alphabeat. Their retro-fuelled `wonky pop' is pure optimistic fun of the kind that only po-faced too-cool-for-schoolers could possibly diss. This Is Alphabeat, their UK debut, is a version of their platinum-selling Danish release Alphabeat, minus some of the cheesier moments and with three brand new tracks produced by Mike Spencer (Kylie, Beverley Knight, Jamiroquai). 80s-style pop is still very much the motto here, with singles like "Fascination" and "10,000 Nights" manifesting more than just a casual aura of fame school about them. "Boyfriend" is reminiscent of 80s Madonna and the skewed electro of "Touch Me Touching You" is ridiculously saccharine and highly infectious. One of Spencer's additions is worth noting - a cheerful romp through PiL's "Public Image," chirpy whistling and all, that will undoubtedly make John Lydon purple with rage. This Is Alphabeat packs in the musical clichés for sure, but there's no denying the band's zest and sincerity. At only ten tracks, this is a short but defiantly sweet statement.--Danny McKenna

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

Did they drop from space?, 11 Aug 2008
This "band" dropped from space, or have been trapped somewhere for over 50 years, these is the only logical reasons i can think of that they must have travelled many many miles from their home planet still thinking that everyone on earth still dress like a 1950's sitcom. Then try and set a style when they land with some of he worst music i have ever had the misfortune of listening to.

Alphabeat = Amazing, 04 Aug 2008
Debut album from Danish group Alphabeat. I have seen them perform live twice now, they would have to be the pop band of today. Great songs, great live performers!! Fascination is pop at it's best, along with the new single Boyfriend. Great 80's influenced band. One group to watch out for!!

a lovely upbeat guilty pleasure, 28 Jul 2008
The alphabeat album is bound to help lift the gloom of those who had a hard days work with poppy upbeat tracks like "10,00 nights of thunder" and "fascination" which are popular updated throw backs to the 80's when the commitments, housemartins and everything 80's music had to offer but thankfully without the ott fashion statements.

Disappointing Rehash, 07 Jul 2008
This is not the original album. Three of the best tracks have been removed (Into the Jungle, Ocean Blue and The Hours) and replaced with sloppy generic synth-pop dribble (Gogo, Public Image and Touch me touching you). Get your hands on the original. Its much better than this one.

At once frothy and retro, 24 Jun 2008
A great album, all high-octane Scissor Sister-esque camp one moment and full-of-itself grandeur the next.

"Go-Go" and "Boyfriend" sound like True Blue-era Madonna, having a mix with Opportunities-era Pet Shop Boys, whilst "10,000 Nights" and "Fascination" could have been on the last SS's album.

There's also a Grease soundtrack / rockabilly thing going on, which resurrects the shades of Aqua and <> The Cartoons, but there's a great sense of genuine fun and songwriting nous which elevates this album way beyond any of that.

The male vocalist has a kind of twang to his delivery that put me in mind of the lead vocalist of The Tubes ('Fee' Waybill) - no bad thing, in my book.

I didn't expect to like this, to be honest, but it has an inevitability and joie de vivre that's simply irresistible, as Robert Palmer once said.

Yes, there are other acts exploring similar ground, but this lot have the smack of authenticity about them.

Fun!

Portishead's Third has been a long time coming, the result of a lengthy creative topor following 1997's dark, distinctly underrated album Portishead. Importantly, though, they've shaken it. While the core trio of Beth Gibbons, Geoff Barrow, and Adrian Utley remains, this is quite a different band to Portishead's 90s incarnation: gone is the slo-mo turntable scratching and smoky jazz feel, replaced by heavy, brooding rhythms, vintage-sounding electronics, and spindly guitar. Still present, though, is that sense of emotional fracture and deep gloom. "Silence" opens with a dense drum loop which suddenly falls away to reveal Gibbons' voice, cold but magnificent: "Wounded and afraid, inside my head/Falling through changes". "Nylon Smile", meanwhile, is a fine example of Third's occasional folksy edge, an acoustic song reminiscent of Leonard Cohen that, around its midpoint, lifts off on a propulsive electronic rhythm, Gibbons holding one clear, hard note as synthesisers bubble beneath. At times, it's a harsh and foreboding listen: the electronic drums of "Machine Gun" might put off the listener hoping for smooth dinner party fare. But Third is a brave and forward-thinking return, and one great enough to justify its lengthy gestation. --Louis Pattison

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

Did they drop from space?, 11 Aug 2008
This "band" dropped from space, or have been trapped somewhere for over 50 years, these is the only logical reasons i can think of that they must have travelled many many miles from their home planet still thinking that everyone on earth still dress like a 1950's sitcom. Then try and set a style when they land with some of he worst music i have ever had the misfortune of listening to.

Alphabeat = Amazing, 04 Aug 2008
Debut album from Danish group Alphabeat. I have seen them perform live twice now, they would have to be the pop band of today. Great songs, great live performers!! Fascination is pop at it's best, along with the new single Boyfriend. Great 80's influenced band. One group to watch out for!!

a lovely upbeat guilty pleasure, 28 Jul 2008
The alphabeat album is bound to help lift the gloom of those who had a hard days work with poppy upbeat tracks like "10,00 nights of thunder" and "fascination" which are popular updated throw backs to the 80's when the commitments, housemartins and everything 80's music had to offer but thankfully without the ott fashion statements.

Disappointing Rehash, 07 Jul 2008
This is not the original album. Three of the best tracks have been removed (Into the Jungle, Ocean Blue and The Hours) and replaced with sloppy generic synth-pop dribble (Gogo, Public Image and Touch me touching you). Get your hands on the original. Its much better than this one.

At once frothy and retro, 24 Jun 2008
A great album, all high-octane Scissor Sister-esque camp one moment and full-of-itself grandeur the next.

"Go-Go" and "Boyfriend" sound like True Blue-era Madonna, having a mix with Opportunities-era Pet Shop Boys, whilst "10,000 Nights" and "Fascination" could have been on the last SS's album.

There's also a Grease soundtrack / rockabilly thing going on, which resurrects the shades of Aqua and <> The Cartoons, but there's a great sense of genuine fun and songwriting nous which elevates this album way beyond any of that.

The male vocalist has a kind of twang to his delivery that put me in mind of the lead vocalist of The Tubes ('Fee' Waybill) - no bad thing, in my book.

I didn't expect to like this, to be honest, but it has an inevitability and joie de vivre that's simply irresistible, as Robert Palmer once said.

Yes, there are other acts exploring similar ground, but this lot have the smack of authenticity about them.

Fun!

Awful Awful Awful. , 26 Aug 2008
As you might guess from the title, I don't like this one bit. Loved their first two albums, and the live in New York CD, and have been waiting for this third album for years. But it is awful to the point where I can't listen to it. It's like Eric Morecambe said - all the notes are there, but not necessarily in the right order. It gives me a headache every time I turn it on. What were you thinking Beth? Look out my copy on Amazon Marketplace! Erm, it's brilliant, you must buy it...

The gap between releases shows...., 25 Aug 2008
We all know and love 'Dummy' and even quite liked the difficult second self-titled album but then we had to wait a long time for the 'Third' to show up - and I think that's it's problem.

Any good band should progress over time and change their sound and Portishead have obviously done so in the years they have been away. Trouble is, we were all expecting something Dummy-esque from Third but having missed out on the evolution got an album which is pretty far from it.

Some of the tracks are very hard to listen to (Machine Gun being the worst), others are fairly non-offensive yet ordinary and one or two are real gems and I wish they lasted a bit longer.

I think that if I had heard the evolution from 'Portishead' to 'Third' I'd be more forgiving but this is so different (and hence I am so disappointed by it) that I can only give it 2 stars and hope that the next album is not quite so far away, either in time or sound.

Not exactly easy listening, 22 Aug 2008
Strange, bleak, dark and slightly unsettling. Haunting vocals as per usual, but none of the commercial friendly drum and bass beats of the earlier Dummy album. More noise - it made me question whether my stereo was faulty (it wasn't!). The last couple of tracks turning to rock. Some folk rock sounding stuff, with others (Machine Gun) sounding like it's come straight from one of the early Terminator films.

Not worth the wait, 19 Aug 2008
Fine, Dummy was so cutting edge that it sounded horribly dated horribly quickly. But it was wonderful. This isn't. It's harsher, more electronic. Not necessarily a problem in itself. Only they forgot to write any songs. They've gone all Radiohead - I imagine they felt they were too popular so decided to disappear up their own back passage to show how muso and serious they are. Disappointing.

Not so good, 13 Aug 2008
I've been waiting some time for their third album to come out, I seem to remember their website said they were recording and it would be out soon - this was in the late 90s. Anyway after a longer wait eventually there it was. First listen - hmm, give it another go - is it a grower? Not so sure. After a bit of a break and a "third" listen I, unfortunately, have to say it's not a good album. There is virtually nothing here that makes me want to listen again. Fellow Bristolian Tricky has also released an album this year and while he's developed different styles throughout his career I feel his music has always stayed fresh. Portishead on the other hand appear to have tried to do something different, challenging and artistic here but there is no soul, message or feeling in it so most of the songs come across as w..k pretending to be art. Which they undoubtedly are.

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

Did they drop from space?, 11 Aug 2008
This "band" dropped from space, or have been trapped somewhere for over 50 years, these is the only logical reasons i can think of that they must have travelled many many miles from their home planet still thinking that everyone on earth still dress like a 1950's sitcom. Then try and set a style when they land with some of he worst music i have ever had the misfortune of listening to.

Alphabeat = Amazing, 04 Aug 2008
Debut album from Danish group Alphabeat. I have seen them perform live twice now, they would have to be the pop band of today. Great songs, great live performers!! Fascination is pop at it's best, along with the new single Boyfriend. Great 80's influenced band. One group to watch out for!!

a lovely upbeat guilty pleasure, 28 Jul 2008
The alphabeat album is bound to help lift the gloom of those who had a hard days work with poppy upbeat tracks like "10,00 nights of thunder" and "fascination" which are popular updated throw backs to the 80's when the commitments, housemartins and everything 80's music had to offer but thankfully without the ott fashion statements.

Disappointing Rehash, 07 Jul 2008
This is not the original album. Three of the best tracks have been removed (Into the Jungle, Ocean Blue and The Hours) and replaced with sloppy generic synth-pop dribble (Gogo, Public Image and Touch me touching you). Get your hands on the original. Its much better than this one.

At once frothy and retro, 24 Jun 2008
A great album, all high-octane Scissor Sister-esque camp one moment and full-of-itself grandeur the next.

"Go-Go" and "Boyfriend" sound like True Blue-era Madonna, having a mix with Opportunities-era Pet Shop Boys, whilst "10,000 Nights" and "Fascination" could have been on the last SS's album.

There's also a Grease soundtrack / rockabilly thing going on, which resurrects the shades of Aqua and <> The Cartoons, but there's a great sense of genuine fun and songwriting nous which elevates this album way beyond any of that.

The male vocalist has a kind of twang to his delivery that put me in mind of the lead vocalist of The Tubes ('Fee' Waybill) - no bad thing, in my book.

I didn't expect to like this, to be honest, but it has an inevitability and joie de vivre that's simply irresistible, as Robert Palmer once said.

Yes, there are other acts exploring similar ground, but this lot have the smack of authenticity about them.

Fun!

Awful Awful Awful. , 26 Aug 2008
As you might guess from the title, I don't like this one bit. Loved their first two albums, and the live in New York CD, and have been waiting for this third album for years. But it is awful to the point where I can't listen to it. It's like Eric Morecambe said - all the notes are there, but not necessarily in the right order. It gives me a headache every time I turn it on. What were you thinking Beth? Look out my copy on Amazon Marketplace! Erm, it's brilliant, you must buy it...

The gap between releases shows...., 25 Aug 2008
We all know and love 'Dummy' and even quite liked the difficult second self-titled album but then we had to wait a long time for the 'Third' to show up - and I think that's it's problem.

Any good band should progress over time and change their sound and Portishead have obviously done so in the years they have been away. Trouble is, we were all expecting something Dummy-esque from Third but having missed out on the evolution got an album which is pretty far from it.

Some of the tracks are very hard to listen to (Machine Gun being the worst), others are fairly non-offensive yet ordinary and one or two are real gems and I wish they lasted a bit longer.

I think that if I had heard the evolution from 'Portishead' to 'Third' I'd be more forgiving but this is so different (and hence I am so disappointed by it) that I can only give it 2 stars and hope that the next album is not quite so far away, either in time or sound.

Not exactly easy listening, 22 Aug 2008
Strange, bleak, dark and slightly unsettling. Haunting vocals as per usual, but none of the commercial friendly drum and bass beats of the earlier Dummy album. More noise - it made me question whether my stereo was faulty (it wasn't!). The last couple of tracks turning to rock. Some folk rock sounding stuff, with others (Machine Gun) sounding like it's come straight from one of the early Terminator films.

Not worth the wait, 19 Aug 2008
Fine, Dummy was so cutting edge that it sounded horribly dated horribly quickly. But it was wonderful. This isn't. It's harsher, more electronic. Not necessarily a problem in itself. Only they forgot to write any songs. They've gone all Radiohead - I imagine they felt they were too popular so decided to disappear up their own back passage to show how muso and serious they are. Disappointing.

Not so good, 13 Aug 2008
I've been waiting some time for their third album to come out, I seem to remember their website said they were recording and it would be out soon - this was in the late 90s. Anyway after a longer wait eventually there it was. First listen - hmm, give it another go - is it a grower? Not so sure. After a bit of a break and a "third" listen I, unfortunately, have to say it's not a good album. There is virtually nothing here that makes me want to listen again. Fellow Bristolian Tricky has also released an album this year and while he's developed different styles throughout his career I feel his music has always stayed fresh. Portishead on the other hand appear to have tried to do something different, challenging and artistic here but there is no soul, message or feeling in it so most of the songs come across as w..k pretending to be art. Which they undoubtedly are.

Madonna's back., 06 Aug 2008
I'm not really a fan of Madonna - I like the odd song. I fell in love with '4 Minutes' and decided to get the album. It definitely has a dance/techno feel to it, but don't let that put you off. Here's my mini review of the songs:

1. Candy Shop - Starts off good, but gets very repetitive.
2. 4 Minutes - Fantastic, as most of you know.
3. Give It 2 Me - Brilliant.
4. Heartbeat - Very addictive. I liked it.
5. Miles Away - Funky, and fun throughout.
6. She's Not Me - Upbeat, funky, fresh and a great beat.
7. Incredible - It's... incredible.
8. Beat Goes On - Hm... really good. Kanye West wasn't too bad, but he got a bit repetitive.
9. Dance 2night - Great. A solid beat, with great vocals and lyrics.
10. Spanish Lesson - Very different, but great. Very rhythmic.
11. Devil Wouldn't Recognise You - Great beat, with Madonna sounding great. Lots of variation.
12. Voices - Great end to the album.

Overall, a great return to form from Madonna. This album proves that she's still got some magic left in her. Definitely buy this.

Give this candy a try..., 30 Jul 2008
When the rumours started to fly that Madonna was doing another hip-hop/r n b album, after the success of Confessions on a Dance Floor, most people probably scratched their heads and wondered whether she would pull another reinvention just as successfully... and once again I think she has with a mixed bag of sweet treats this time round.

The whole album is divided into Pharrell / Timbaland-Timberlake productions and despite Madonna's insistence that you can't tell the difference, I can. Maybe I've been paying too much attention to the Timbaland production line of late...

Having just listened to Boys by Britney Spears; "Candy Shop" sounds very dated considering that Pharrell was panting over a beat for Britney about 7-8 years ago.

4 Minutes is the album's first single, so by now you will have heard the new Timbo/Timba sound. One to be loved or loathed.

Give It 2 Me is a great track (an instant love the first time I played the CD) and I've grown to like "Heartbeat" too.

"Miles Away" is a wonderful dedication to Guy and long distance relationships.

"She's Not Me" is another grower, is it about another woman in her relationship or about one of the contenders for Madonna's pop crown?

The main disappointment of the album is "Incredible" clocking up an impressive six minutes. The end section sounds like part of that Soulja Boy track , with the hollering - and I hated that.

"Beat Goes On" is a success, I can see it being a future hit single with the additional rapping of Kanye West - to the extent that it sounds like a Kanye West song more than anything else.

"Dance 2night" has a lot of Prince influences, both in terms of sound, song title and lyrics ("...Don't need no diamonds and pearls"). If it were released as a single, I get the feeling Timberlake may pop up in the video due to his backing vocals. Funky stuff.

"Spanish Lesson" is one of the messier productions here, due to M's inability to speak Spanish, but non Spanish speakers would know no different. Its inclusion is gimmicky but it's supposedly about a new dance craze called The Percolator, so it'll be on The Sticky and Sweet Tour I'm sure in the same way that "Jump" was a great visual element on The Confessions Tour: +DVD.

"Devil Wouldn't Recognise You" and "Voices" provide the slower numbers on the album, in the same way that "How High" and "Like it or Not" were on Confessions on a Dance Floor

Try this album and see what happens. It's grown on me in the same way that American Life has. What saves this album so far is that it is a Madonna album so therefore the diehard fans will pick this up, the major downer is that if it weren't a Madonna album this probably would have sunk a long while ago, considering that the following list have worked with Pharrell / Timbaland over the last few years:

Gwen Stefani, Britney Spears, Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake etc etc

Stale Candy!, 26 Jul 2008
over the years i have enjoyed listening to madonna and have several of her cd`s, but this is the worst release from her ever, trite ,boring lyrics that a primary school child could have written, forced dull tunes, its appaling on every level.

One for the trash bin - Get 'Bring ya to the brink' instead, 14 Jul 2008
Brought this album, managed to listen to it once and now ive had to sell it on. Its truly awful and the worst album of the year so far.

I would recommnend getting bring ya to the brink by cyndi lauper. Its the best thing ive heard since 'confessions'.


Does what is says on the tin, 12 Jul 2008
Well for Madonna's 11th and latest album she has made it a very good one!
For starters she has featured with other people such as:
Justin Timberlake
Timbaland
Kanye West
Pharell

So the more the merrier!

Now for the tracks:

1. Candy Shop 9/10
A Good starter to the album, bouncy and erotic with Pharell. Very Good, likley for a release as a single.

2. 4 Minutes 10/10
The best track on the album. The hit single that zoomed to number one as fast as a Ferrari car with passengers Timbaland and Justin Timberlake. Very well written and god choice as a single.

3. Give it 2 me 10/10
The second single (which comes out on the 14th) which has a bouncy and catchy tune again with Pharell. Another good choice for a single and should need another Ferrari car to get to it's rightful spot.

4. Heartbeat 7/10
Nice tune and very good beat. This makes the heart beat.

5. Miles Away 10/10*

In my opinion (not including the singles) this is the best track on the album. I love it! It's catchy and is well written. Hopefully a release of a single, but they need to shorten it a bit.

6. She's not me 8/10

Brilliant song about a relationship. Could be a single.

7. Incredible 6/10

Okay, Not that exciting culd do with more oomph.

8. Beat goes on 9/10

Cool song with a cool appearence from Kanye West. It's bouncy catchy and I like the lyrics.

9. Dance 2night 6/10

Nice use of the voice

10.Spanish Lessons 8/10

Love the spanish bit at the start on the gutair.

11. Devil Wouldn' Recognise You 5/10

Don't really get this track but it's okay.

12. Voices

Decent tune nice lyrics calm



So a bouncy album with 10 good tracks

5 Star

* * * * *

In Silico might be the second album from Pendulum, but it's their first as a fully-fledged rock band. Of course, this Australian dance collective have paddled in these waters before: their debut album Hold Your Colour was a muscular collection of hard drum'n'bass and slamming breakbeats that, for all its synthetic construction, displayed firmly rock sensibilities. On In Silico, though, hard-riffing guitars are pulled right up in the mix, and the band's production core, Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen, lead from the front, reaching for the microphone and making clattering loops the bedrock for a suite of anthemic rockers. Comparisons to the likes of Enter Shikari and The Prodigy are not too wide of the mark, capturing something of Pendulum's fairground waltzer adrenaline and polished, metallic aggression. Beyond straightforward rush, though, some interesting ingredients find their way into the brew: storming opener "Slowdown" imagines an unholy synthesis of DJ Hype and Muse in full progressive rock-out mode, while the elegiac "Propane Nightmares" commences with a Mariachi trumpet serenade. Dance connoisseurs will probably complain Pendulum's beats lack a certain finesse, but if you like your dance music a) fast and b) hard then In Silico has all bases covered. --Louis Pattison

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

Did they drop from space?, 11 Aug 2008
This "band" dropped from space, or have been trapped somewhere for over 50 years, these is the only logical reasons i can think of that they must have travelled many many miles from their home planet still thinking that everyone on earth still dress like a 1950's sitcom. Then try and set a style when they land with some of he worst music i have ever had the misfortune of listening to.

Alphabeat = Amazing, 04 Aug 2008
Debut album from Danish group Alphabeat. I have seen them perform live twice now, they would have to be the pop band of today. Great songs, great live performers!! Fascination is pop at it's best, along with the new single Boyfriend. Great 80's influenced band. One group to watch out for!!

a lovely upbeat guilty pleasure, 28 Jul 2008
The alphabeat album is bound to help lift the gloom of those who had a hard days work with poppy upbeat tracks like "10,00 nights of thunder" and "fascination" which are popular updated throw backs to the 80's when the commitments, housemartins and everything 80's music had to offer but thankfully without the ott fashion statements.

Disappointing Rehash, 07 Jul 2008
This is not the original album. Three of the best tracks have been removed (Into the Jungle, Ocean Blue and The Hours) and replaced with sloppy generic synth-pop dribble (Gogo, Public Image and Touch me touching you). Get your hands on the original. Its much better than this one.

At once frothy and retro, 24 Jun 2008
A great album, all high-octane Scissor Sister-esque camp one moment and full-of-itself grandeur the next.

"Go-Go" and "Boyfriend" sound like True Blue-era Madonna, having a mix with Opportunities-era Pet Shop Boys, whilst "10,000 Nights" and "Fascination" could have been on the last SS's album.

There's also a Grease soundtrack / rockabilly thing going on, which resurrects the shades of Aqua and <> The Cartoons, but there's a great sense of genuine fun and songwriting nous which elevates this album way beyond any of that.

The male vocalist has a kind of twang to his delivery that put me in mind of the lead vocalist of The Tubes ('Fee' Waybill) - no bad thing, in my book.

I didn't expect to like this, to be honest, but it has an inevitability and joie de vivre that's simply irresistible, as Robert Palmer once said.

Yes, there are other acts exploring similar ground, but this lot have the smack of authenticity about them.

Fun!

Awful Awful Awful. , 26 Aug 2008
As you might guess from the title, I don't like this one bit. Loved their first two albums, and the live in New York CD, and have been waiting for this third album for years. But it is awful to the point where I can't listen to it. It's like Eric Morecambe said - all the notes are there, but not necessarily in the right order. It gives me a headache every time I turn it on. What were you thinking Beth? Look out my copy on Amazon Marketplace! Erm, it's brilliant, you must buy it...

The gap between releases shows...., 25 Aug 2008
We all know and love 'Dummy' and even quite liked the difficult second self-titled album but then we had to wait a long time for the 'Third' to show up - and I think that's it's problem.

Any good band should progress over time and change their sound and Portishead have obviously done so in the years they have been away. Trouble is, we were all expecting something Dummy-esque from Third but having missed out on the evolution got an album which is pretty far from it.

Some of the tracks are very hard to listen to (Machine Gun being the worst), others are fairly non-offensive yet ordinary and one or two are real gems and I wish they lasted a bit longer.

I think that if I had heard the evolution from 'Portishead' to 'Third' I'd be more forgiving but this is so different (and hence I am so disappointed by it) that I can only give it 2 stars and hope that the next album is not quite so far away, either in time or sound.

Not exactly easy listening, 22 Aug 2008
Strange, bleak, dark and slightly unsettling. Haunting vocals as per usual, but none of the commercial friendly drum and bass beats of the earlier Dummy album. More noise - it made me question whether my stereo was faulty (it wasn't!). The last couple of tracks turning to rock. Some folk rock sounding stuff, with others (Machine Gun) sounding like it's come straight from one of the early Terminator films.

Not worth the wait, 19 Aug 2008
Fine, Dummy was so cutting edge that it sounded horribly dated horribly quickly. But it was wonderful. This isn't. It's harsher, more electronic. Not necessarily a problem in itself. Only they forgot to write any songs. They've gone all Radiohead - I imagine they felt they were too popular so decided to disappear up their own back passage to show how muso and serious they are. Disappointing.

Not so good, 13 Aug 2008
I've been waiting some time for their third album to come out, I seem to remember their website said they were recording and it would be out soon - this was in the late 90s. Anyway after a longer wait eventually there it was. First listen - hmm, give it another go - is it a grower? Not so sure. After a bit of a break and a "third" listen I, unfortunately, have to say it's not a good album. There is virtually nothing here that makes me want to listen again. Fellow Bristolian Tricky has also released an album this year and while he's developed different styles throughout his career I feel his music has always stayed fresh. Portishead on the other hand appear to have tried to do something different, challenging and artistic here but there is no soul, message or feeling in it so most of the songs come across as w..k pretending to be art. Which they undoubtedly are.

Madonna's back., 06 Aug 2008
I'm not really a fan of Madonna - I like the odd song. I fell in love with '4 Minutes' and decided to get the album. It definitely has a dance/techno feel to it, but don't let that put you off. Here's my mini review of the songs:

1. Candy Shop - Starts off good, but gets very repetitive.
2. 4 Minutes - Fantastic, as most of you know.
3. Give It 2 Me - Brilliant.
4. Heartbeat - Very addictive. I liked it.
5. Miles Away - Funky, and fun throughout.
6. She's Not Me - Upbeat, funky, fresh and a great beat.
7. Incredible - It's... incredible.
8. Beat Goes On - Hm... really good. Kanye West wasn't too bad, but he got a bit repetitive.
9. Dance 2night - Great. A solid beat, with great vocals and lyrics.
10. Spanish Lesson - Very different, but great. Very rhythmic.
11. Devil Wouldn't Recognise You - Great beat, with Madonna sounding great. Lots of variation.
12. Voices - Great end to the album.

Overall, a great return to form from Madonna. This album proves that she's still got some magic left in her. Definitely buy this.

Give this candy a try..., 30 Jul 2008
When the rumours started to fly that Madonna was doing another hip-hop/r n b album, after the success of Confessions on a Dance Floor, most people probably scratched their heads and wondered whether she would pull another reinvention just as successfully... and once again I think she has with a mixed bag of sweet treats this time round.

The whole album is divided into Pharrell / Timbaland-Timberlake productions and despite Madonna's insistence that you can't tell the difference, I can. Maybe I've been paying too much attention to the Timbaland production line of late...

Having just listened to Boys by Britney Spears; "Candy Shop" sounds very dated considering that Pharrell was panting over a beat for Britney about 7-8 years ago.

4 Minutes is the album's first single, so by now you will have heard the new Timbo/Timba sound. One to be loved or loathed.

Give It 2 Me is a great track (an instant love the first time I played the CD) and I've grown to like "Heartbeat" too.

"Miles Away" is a wonderful dedication to Guy and long distance relationships.

"She's Not Me" is another grower, is it about another woman in her relationship or about one of the contenders for Madonna's pop crown?

The main disappointment of the album is "Incredible" clocking up an impressive six minutes. The end section sounds like part of that Soulja Boy track , with the hollering - and I hated that.

"Beat Goes On" is a success, I can see it being a future hit single with the additional rapping of Kanye West - to the extent that it sounds like a Kanye West song more than anything else.

"Dance 2night" has a lot of Prince influences, both in terms of sound, song title and lyrics ("...Don't need no diamonds and pearls"). If it were released as a single, I get the feeling Timberlake may pop up in the video due to his backing vocals. Funky stuff.

"Spanish Lesson" is one of the messier productions here, due to M's inability to speak Spanish, but non Spanish speakers would know no different. Its inclusion is gimmicky but it's supposedly about a new dance craze called The Percolator, so it'll be on The Sticky and Sweet Tour I'm sure in the same way that "Jump" was a great visual element on The Confessions Tour: +DVD.

"Devil Wouldn't Recognise You" and "Voices" provide the slower numbers on the album, in the same way that "How High" and "Like it or Not" were on Confessions on a Dance Floor

Try this album and see what happens. It's grown on me in the same way that American Life has. What saves this album so far is that it is a Madonna album so therefore the diehard fans will pick this up, the major downer is that if it weren't a Madonna album this probably would have sunk a long while ago, considering that the following list have worked with Pharrell / Timbaland over the last few years:

Gwen Stefani, Britney Spears, Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake etc etc

Stale Candy!, 26 Jul 2008
over the years i have enjoyed listening to madonna and have several of her cd`s, but this is the worst release from her ever, trite ,boring lyrics that a primary school child could have written, forced dull tunes, its appaling on every level.

One for the trash bin - Get 'Bring ya to the brink' instead, 14 Jul 2008
Brought this album, managed to listen to it once and now ive had to sell it on. Its truly awful and the worst album of the year so far.

I would recommnend getting bring ya to the brink by cyndi lauper. Its the best thing ive heard since 'confessions'.


Does what is says on the tin, 12 Jul 2008
Well for Madonna's 11th and latest album she has made it a very good one!
For starters she has featured with other people such as:
Justin Timberlake
Timbaland
Kanye West
Pharell

So the more the merrier!

Now for the tracks:

1. Candy Shop 9/10
A Good starter to the album, bouncy and erotic with Pharell. Very Good, likley for a release as a single.

2. 4 Minutes 10/10
The best track on the album. The hit single that zoomed to number one as fast as a Ferrari car with passengers Timbaland and Justin Timberlake. Very well written and god choice as a single.

3. Give it 2 me 10/10
The second single (which comes out on the 14th) which has a bouncy and catchy tune again with Pharell. Another good choice for a single and should need another Ferrari car to get to it's rightful spot.

4. Heartbeat 7/10
Nice tune and very good beat. This makes the heart beat.

5. Miles Away 10/10*

In my opinion (not including the singles) this is the best track on the album. I love it! It's catchy and is well written. Hopefully a release of a single, but they need to shorten it a bit.

6. She's not me 8/10

Brilliant song about a relationship. Could be a single.

7. Incredible 6/10

Okay, Not that exciting culd do with more oomph.

8. Beat goes on 9/10

Cool song with a cool appearence from Kanye West. It's bouncy catchy and I like the lyrics.

9. Dance 2night 6/10

Nice use of the voice

10.Spanish Lessons 8/10

Love the spanish bit at the start on the gutair.

11. Devil Wouldn' Recognise You 5/10

Don't really get this track but it's okay.

12. Voices

Decent tune nice lyrics calm



So a bouncy album with 10 good tracks

5 Star

* * * * *


in silico, 26 Aug 2008
My first impressions were good, as pendulum introduced me into d`n b. But after much listening and reading outher reviews I have come to notice that this album is just there to get them into the charts, regardless of true brum and bass.

Pendulum have fused together a load of power chourds and a live drummer to what could potentally been a d`n b track.

So in all; this is just really bassy rock music, (and I hate rock).


An album that will be quickly forgotten, 18 Aug 2008
I must say that I agree entirely with the review by Mr H Pearce, entitled "A change of direction", and cited as the "most helpful critical review" - he has hit the nail on the head.

I too was a big fan of Hold Your Colour as a superb cross-over album, with just the right amount of grittiness to make substantial rock and DnB references, without making both completely homogonised and bland. Alas, in Silico homogonises pretty hard, and the result is an album that sounds as though it were expressly composed for the lastest Hollywood blockbuster soundtrack.

As per Mr Pearce's insightful review, it will doubtless have a few feet tapping when it comes on that bit later in some of the bars, but this album will be forgotten long before Hold Your Colour. No stand out classics here, in an effort to appeal to absolutley everyone. Bit of a shame.

Had to listen to a few songs twice but...., 25 Jul 2008
Its a great album! I must admit they do seem to have changed their sound since hold your colour, however im an indie/rock/bassline guy, and pendulum seem to have mixed these genres plus sum drum n bass, tho i must also admit that they seem to have moved slightly away from drum n bass, but each song is unique, my fav's being 'different', 'the other side', 'mutiny', and 'the tempest', where 'the tempest' and 'the other side' are more heavy than most of the other tunes.

Overall id say 9/10, took a cuple of goes before liking the album but very hard for me to put the album down!

makes a change, 25 Jul 2008
this cd was brought in by one of my 16-year-old's friends. It is the first bit of music that any of this group of metalheads have played that I have enjoyed. I will go further. I love it - I usually like clubby stuff, trance (loads of different Euphoria in my collection) so this is a bit different for me. Anyway this old lady likes pendulum, you too may find that it makes it easier to live in a house full of male teenagers.

True corssover album, 24 Jul 2008
Well the D&B hardcore fans and the, most probably, beat junky chavs that hate this album can whine ans bawww all they like, but the fact remains that drum and bass is not, and never was, an art form. Until now. The introduction of more electronica influence and even some unexpected fusions of hard, progressive, rock/metal and the obvious addition of the vocals (which I have heard criticised as 'not fitting' in one review, how very dare you!)have transformed this album into something truly special.

I'm not a huge fan of 'hold your colour' mainly because of the people I knew who liked it and how it always seem to be the same track blaring out of peoples phones. (I've had had another look at the album and have decided that it has more merit than the generic DnB I thought it was)but upon hearing 'In Silico' my attitude of pendulum has completely shifted

This album truly transcends genres with Pendulum adding Spades more welcome electronica, rock, funk, progressive and a host of other styles whilst keeping that underlying D&B energy that their previous release consisted of. This is a HUGE leap forward,not only making them more listenable to those not in the cap wearing demographic but lifts it to a whole other realm of musical prowess.

Im a huge fan of things like The Prodigy, he chemical brothers, tool etc. and you can really hear some of each of these (weather intentionally or not) so i guess I bias towards their new direction but tracks like 'Different' with is slightly more house feel, Show down with its heavy vocals and my personally favourite 'The Tempest' with its progressive overtones. none of this compromises the power of pendulum, this album is relentless in its power without being to abrasive, indeed the whole thing goes down pretty smoothly. although ~I think they could have developed it even more away from their last recording I suppose you have to go in increments as not to confuse your fan-base.

In summary, if you want some mindless drum and base go else-ware and don't whine about it. if you want an album you can listen to in nearly every situation that crosses boundaries and stirs things up, by all means treat yourself and purchase this album.

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

Did they drop from space?, 11 Aug 2008
This "band" dropped from space, or have been trapped somewhere for over 50 years, these is the only logical reasons i can think of that they must have travelled many many miles from their home planet still thinking that everyone on earth still dress like a 1950's sitcom. Then try and set a style when they land with some of he worst music i have ever had the misfortune of listening to.

Alphabeat = Amazing, 04 Aug 2008
Debut album from Danish group Alphabeat. I have seen them perform live twice now, they would have to be the pop band of today. Great songs, great live performers!! Fascination is pop at it's best, along with the new single Boyfriend. Great 80's influenced band. One group to watch out for!!

a lovely upbeat guilty pleasure, 28 Jul 2008
The alphabeat album is bound to help lift the gloom of those who had a hard days work with poppy upbeat tracks like "10,00 nights of thunder" and "fascination" which are popular updated throw backs to the 80's when the commitments, housemartins and everything 80's music had to offer but thankfully without the ott fashion statements.

Disappointing Rehash, 07 Jul 2008
This is not the original album. Three of the best tracks have been removed (Into the Jungle, Ocean Blue and The Hours) and replaced with sloppy generic synth-pop dribble (Gogo, Public Image and Touch me touching you). Get your hands on the original. Its much better than this one.

At once frothy and retro, 24 Jun 2008
A great album, all high-octane Scissor Sister-esque camp one moment and full-of-itself grandeur the next.

"Go-Go" and "Boyfriend" sound like True Blue-era Madonna, having a mix with Opportunities-era Pet Shop Boys, whilst "10,000 Nights" and "Fascination" could have been on the last SS's album.

There's also a Grease soundtrack / rockabilly thing going on, which resurrects the shades of Aqua and <> The Cartoons, but there's a great sense of genuine fun and songwriting nous which elevates this album way beyond any of that.

The male vocalist has a kind of twang to his delivery that put me in mind of the lead vocalist of The Tubes ('Fee' Waybill) - no bad thing, in my book.

I didn't expect to like this, to be honest, but it has an inevitability and joie de vivre that's simply irresistible, as Robert Palmer once said.

Yes, there are other acts exploring similar ground, but this lot have the smack of authenticity about them.

Fun!

Awful Awful Awful. , 26 Aug 2008
As you might guess from the title, I don't like this one bit. Loved their first two albums, and the live in New York CD, and have been waiting for this third album for years. But it is awful to the point where I can't listen to it. It's like Eric Morecambe said - all the notes are there, but not necessarily in the right order. It gives me a headache every time I turn it on. What were you thinking Beth? Look out my copy on Amazon Marketplace! Erm, it's brilliant, you must buy it...

The gap between releases shows...., 25 Aug 2008
We all know and love 'Dummy' and even quite liked the difficult second self-titled album but then we had to wait a long time for the 'Third' to show up - and I think that's it's problem.

Any good band should progress over time and change their sound and Portishead have obviously done so in the years they have been away. Trouble is, we were all expecting something Dummy-esque from Third but having missed out on the evolution got an album which is pretty far from it.

Some of the tracks are very hard to listen to (Machine Gun being the worst), others are fairly non-offensive yet ordinary and one or two are real gems and I wish they lasted a bit longer.

I think that if I had heard the evolution from 'Portishead' to 'Third' I'd be more forgiving but this is so different (and hence I am so disappointed by it) that I can only give it 2 stars and hope that the next album is not quite so far away, either in time or sound.

Not exactly easy listening, 22 Aug 2008
Strange, bleak, dark and slightly unsettling. Haunting vocals as per usual, but none of the commercial friendly drum and bass beats of the earlier Dummy album. More noise - it made me question whether my stereo was faulty (it wasn't!). The last couple of tracks turning to rock. Some folk rock sounding stuff, with others (Machine Gun) sounding like it's come straight from one of the early Terminator films.

Not worth the wait, 19 Aug 2008
Fine, Dummy was so cutting edge that it sounded horribly dated horribly quickly. But it was wonderful. This isn't. It's harsher, more electronic. Not necessarily a problem in itself. Only they forgot to write any songs. They've gone all Radiohead - I imagine they felt they were too popular so decided to disappear up their own back passage to show how muso and serious they are. Disappointing.

Not so good, 13 Aug 2008
I've been waiting some time for their third album to come out, I seem to remember their website said they were recording and it would be out soon - this was in the late 90s. Anyway after a longer wait eventually there it was. First listen - hmm, give it another go - is it a grower? Not so sure. After a bit of a break and a "third" listen I, unfortunately, have to say it's not a good album. There is virtually nothing here that makes me want to listen again. Fellow Bristolian Tricky has also released an album this year and while he's developed different styles throughout his career I feel his music has always stayed fresh. Portishead on the other hand appear to have tried to do something different, challenging and artistic here but there is no soul, message or feeling in it so most of the songs come across as w..k pretending to be art. Which they undoubtedly are.

Madonna's back., 06 Aug 2008
I'm not really a fan of Madonna - I like the odd song. I fell in love with '4 Minutes' and decided to get the album. It definitely has a dance/techno feel to it, but don't let that put you off. Here's my mini review of the songs:

1. Candy Shop - Starts off good, but gets very repetitive.
2. 4 Minutes - Fantastic, as most of you know.
3. Give It 2 Me - Brilliant.
4. Heartbeat - Very addictive. I liked it.
5. Miles Away - Funky, and fun throughout.
6. She's Not Me - Upbeat, funky, fresh and a great beat.
7. Incredible - It's... incredible.
8. Beat Goes On - Hm... really good. Kanye West wasn't too bad, but he got a bit repetitive.
9. Dance 2night - Great. A solid beat, with great vocals and lyrics.
10. Spanish Lesson - Very different, but great. Very rhythmic.
11. Devil Wouldn't Recognise You - Great beat, with Madonna sounding great. Lots of variation.
12. Voices - Great end to the album.

Overall, a great return to form from Madonna. This album proves that she's still got some magic left in her. Definitely buy this.

Give this candy a try..., 30 Jul 2008
When the rumours started to fly that Madonna was doing another hip-hop/r n b album, after the success of Confessions on a Dance Floor, most people probably scratched their heads and wondered whether she would pull another reinvention just as successfully... and once again I think she has with a mixed bag of sweet treats this time round.

The whole album is divided into Pharrell / Timbaland-Timberlake productions and despite Madonna's insistence that you can't tell the difference, I can. Maybe I've been paying too much attention to the Timbaland production line of late...

Having just listened to Boys by Britney Spears; "Candy Shop" sounds very dated considering that Pharrell was panting over a beat for Britney about 7-8 years ago.

4 Minutes is the album's first single, so by now you will have heard the new Timbo/Timba sound. One to be loved or loathed.

Give It 2 Me is a great track (an instant love the first time I played the CD) and I've grown to like "Heartbeat" too.

"Miles Away" is a wonderful dedication to Guy and long distance relationships.

"She's Not Me" is another grower, is it about another woman in her relationship or about one of the contenders for Madonna's pop crown?

The main disappointment of the album is "Incredible" clocking up an impressive six minutes. The end section sounds like part of that Soulja Boy track , with the hollering - and I hated that.

"Beat Goes On" is a success, I can see it being a future hit single with the additional rapping of Kanye West - to the extent that it sounds like a Kanye West song more than anything else.

"Dance 2night" has a lot of Prince influences, both in terms of sound, song title and lyrics ("...Don't need no diamonds and pearls"). If it were released as a single, I get the feeling Timberlake may pop up in the video due to his backing vocals. Funky stuff.

"Spanish Lesson" is one of the messier productions here, due to M's inability to speak Spanish, but non Spanish speakers would know no different. Its inclusion is gimmicky but it's supposedly about a new dance craze called The Percolator, so it'll be on The Sticky and Sweet Tour I'm sure in the same way that "Jump" was a great visual element on The Confessions Tour: +DVD.

"Devil Wouldn't Recognise You" and "Voices" provide the slower numbers on the album, in the same way that "How High" and "Like it or Not" were on Confessions on a Dance Floor

Try this album and see what happens. It's grown on me in the same way that American Life has. What saves this album so far is that it is a Madonna album so therefore the diehard fans will pick this up, the major downer is that if it weren't a Madonna album this probably would have sunk a long while ago, considering that the following list have worked with Pharrell / Timbaland over the last few years:

Gwen Stefani, Britney Spears, Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake etc etc

Stale Candy!, 26 Jul 2008
over the years i have enjoyed listening to madonna and have several of her cd`s, but this is the worst release from her ever, trite ,boring lyrics that a primary school child could have written, forced dull tunes, its appaling on every level.

One for the trash bin - Get 'Bring ya to the brink' instead, 14 Jul 2008
Brought this album, managed to listen to it once and now ive had to sell it on. Its truly awful and the worst album of the year so far.

I would recommnend getting bring ya to the brink by cyndi lauper. Its the best thing ive heard since 'confessions'.


Does what is says on the tin, 12 Jul 2008
Well for Madonna's 11th and latest album she has made it a very good one!
For starters she has featured with other people such as:
Justin Timberlake
Timbaland
Kanye West
Pharell

So the more the merrier!

Now for the tracks:

1. Candy Shop 9/10
A Good starter to the album, bouncy and erotic with Pharell. Very Good, likley for a release as a single.

2. 4 Minutes 10/10
The best track on the album. The hit single that zoomed to number one as fast as a Ferrari car with passengers Timbaland and Justin Timberlake. Very well written and god choice as a single.

3. Give it 2 me 10/10
The second single (which comes out on the 14th) which has a bouncy and catchy tune again with Pharell. Another good choice for a single and should need another Ferrari car to get to it's rightful spot.

4. Heartbeat 7/10
Nice tune and very good beat. This makes the heart beat.

5. Miles Away 10/10*

In my opinion (not including the singles) this is the best track on the album. I love it! It's catchy and is well written. Hopefully a release of a single, but they need to shorten it a bit.

6. She's not me 8/10

Brilliant song about a relationship. Could be a single.

7. Incredible 6/10

Okay, Not that exciting culd do with more oomph.

8. Beat goes on 9/10

Cool song with a cool appearence from Kanye West. It's bouncy catchy and I like the lyrics.

9. Dance 2night 6/10

Nice use of the voice

10.Spanish Lessons 8/10

Love the spanish bit at the start on the gutair.

11. Devil Wouldn' Recognise You 5/10

Don't really get this track but it's okay.

12. Voices

Decent tune nice lyrics calm



So a bouncy album with 10 good tracks

5 Star

* * * * *


in silico, 26 Aug 2008
My first impressions were good, as pendulum introduced me into d`n b. But after much listening and reading outher reviews I have come to notice that this album is just there to get them into the charts, regardless of true brum and bass.

Pendulum have fused together a load of power chourds and a live drummer to what could potentally been a d`n b track.

So in all; this is just really bassy rock music, (and I hate rock).


An album that will be quickly forgotten, 18 Aug 2008
I must say that I agree entirely with the review by Mr H Pearce, entitled "A change of direction", and cited as the "most helpful critical review" - he has hit the nail on the head.

I too was a big fan of Hold Your Colour as a superb cross-over album, with just the right amount of grittiness to make substantial rock and DnB references, without making both completely homogonised and bland. Alas, in Silico homogonises pretty hard, and the result is an album that sounds as though it were expressly composed for the lastest Hollywood blockbuster soundtrack.

As per Mr Pearce's insightful review, it will doubtless have a few feet tapping when it comes on that bit later in some of the bars, but this album will be forgotten long before Hold Your Colour. No stand out classics here, in an effort to appeal to absolutley everyone. Bit of a shame.

Had to listen to a few songs twice but...., 25 Jul 2008
Its a great album! I must admit they do seem to have changed their sound since hold your colour, however im an indie/rock/bassline guy, and pendulum seem to have mixed these genres plus sum drum n bass, tho i must also admit that they seem to have moved slightly away from drum n bass, but each song is unique, my fav's being 'different', 'the other side', 'mutiny', and 'the tempest', where 'the tempest' and 'the other side' are more heavy than most of the other tunes.

Overall id say 9/10, took a cuple of goes before liking the album but very hard for me to put the album down!

makes a change, 25 Jul 2008
this cd was brought in by one of my 16-year-old's friends. It is the first bit of music that any of this group of metalheads have played that I have enjoyed. I will go further. I love it - I usually like clubby stuff, trance (loads of different Euphoria in my collection) so this is a bit different for me. Anyway this old lady likes pendulum, you too may find that it makes it easier to live in a house full of male teenagers.

True corssover album, 24 Jul 2008
Well the D&B hardcore fans and the, most probably, beat junky chavs that hate this album can whine ans bawww all they like, but the fact remains that drum and bass is not, and never was, an art form. Until now. The introduction of more electronica influence and even some unexpected fusions of hard, progressive, rock/metal and the obvious addition of the vocals (which I have heard criticised as 'not fitting' in one review, how very dare you!)have transformed this album into something truly special.

I'm not a huge fan of 'hold your colour' mainly because of the people I knew who liked it and how it always seem to be the same track blaring out of peoples phones. (I've had had another look at the album and have decided that it has more merit than the generic DnB I thought it was)but upon hearing 'In Silico' my attitude of pendulum has completely shifted

This album truly transcends genres with Pendulum adding Spades more welcome electronica, rock, funk, progressive and a host of other styles whilst keeping that underlying D&B energy that their previous release consisted of. This is a HUGE leap forward,not only making them more listenable to those not in the cap wearing demographic but lifts it to a whole other realm of musical prowess.

Im a huge fan of things like The Prodigy, he chemical brothers, tool etc. and you can really hear some of each of these (weather intentionally or not) so i guess I bias towards their new direction but tracks like 'Different' with is slightly more house feel, Show down with its heavy vocals and my personally favourite 'The Tempest' with its progressive overtones. none of this compromises the power of pendulum, this album is relentless in its power without being to abrasive, indeed the whole thing goes down pretty smoothly. although ~I think they could have developed it even more away from their last recording I suppose you have to go in increments as not to confuse your fan-base.

In summary, if you want some mindless drum and base go else-ware and don't whine about it. if you want an album you can listen to in nearly every situation that crosses boundaries and stirs things up, by all means treat yourself and purchase this album.

Great album. Mamma Mia soundtrack isn't a patch on it!, 19 Aug 2008
The original and the best ABBA. Nobody can rerelease/rerecord these songs to make them better. Includes classics featured in Mamma Mia! the movie but the original is definitely the best in this case.

An undiscovered gem, 14 Aug 2008
I've just downloaded this and I can't believe I missed such a cracker when it was originally released. 'One of Us' is just the perfect pop song and 'The Day Before You Came' has to win the prize for the best lovesong written while the writers were breaking up with their partners. Perfect pop.

One of the best albums of all time by any band, ever!, 07 Aug 2008
The Visitors is one of the best albums ever made by any artist, ever, period. Right up there with:
-The Beatles - The Beatles (white)
-Beach Boys - Sunflower
-Bee Gees - Living Eyes
-Bee Gees - This Is Where I Came In
-Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
-Stackridge - Something for the Weekend
-Tears for Fears - Everybody Loves a Happy Ending.
Packed with amazing song after amazing song and including one of their best ever: "I Let the Music Speak". Sheer genius.
Sad that so few people have yet to discover it. For those of us that have, however, life is glorious!

Pay a visit to ABBA's "The Visitors"., 03 Feb 2008
In my opinion this is one of the finest albums that the band did. This seems to be an album that like me, only true ABBA fans will appreciate. This wasn't a massive commercial success like some of the other albums but it really should have been. It seems that because the hits weren't as "happy-clappy" as the others such as "Dancing Queen" they were overlooked.

Included on here is "When All is Said and Done" which is a remarkable song. Agnetha had "The Winner Takes it All" as her "break-up" song and this is Frida's. It is amazing. Also worth mentioning is the heartbreaking song Slipping through my fingers.

Others that should have been big hits are my favourites "Under Attack" and "The Day Before you Came" - probably the spookiest song that ABBA did.

If you have never heard these or are an ABBA fan who hasn't got this album you really are missing out.

lets re-evalute this album!, 04 Nov 2007
on its initial release the album was a stark contrast from what had come before! the lead of single "one us us" was abba at their best, doing what they did best..heartbreak...not the "winner takes it all" but very close! it only reached no.3 in the uk a flop by abbas standards! but this was the age of new romantics!

the album when released reached no.1 but it didnt hold the same chart run of previous albums...times had changes and when the 2nd single "head over heals" peaked at no.26 it was "time out" for abba

yes the album is a lot darker and sadder..very experimental..ahead of its time!

"the visitors" which opens the album is dark, haunting..but 25 years on it sounds so fresh! what it is about still remains a bit of mystery..russia...a lover returning...frida deliverys a perfect vocal and the chorus is big...its not a song you will love but one you will find yourself listening to again and again! 9/10

"head over heels" flopped as a single..a woman dragging her husband around to parties..it shows what was to come in the field of musicals...it tells a story..it has some amazing vocal harmonies 8/10

"all is said and done" is a abba classic! frida delivers a song about her and bennys split...lyrically perfect..vocally perfect! it has a fire to it that agnetha could not deliver its very frida! was released a single in some countrys i wonder how it would have done in the uk 10/10

"soldiers" is a big agnetha number...not sure what its about but i love to play it when its raining or thunder and lightning! its haunting..like the approaching dark clouds...was my favourtite on the albums release and still has a special place in my heart 9/10

"i let the music speak" is a musical masterpiece! more stage musical than pop song..but vocals and music as amazing! 10/10

"one of us" is prehaps the only classic abba sound on the cd..its faultless 10/10

"two for the price of one" again is a story song..more musical than pop song..it is a song of meeting through an ad and if get the girl you get the mother as well...its not the best abba moment lyrically...but the girls deliver some amazing harmonies 7/10

"slipping through my fingers" is a agnetha epic..how bjorn can write such heartrending lyrics and get his ex-wife to sing them is amazing! its good and has its place 8/10

"like an angel passing through my room" is frida on her own with very little backing! a haunting track! beautiful 8/10

"should i laugh or cry" the b-side of "one of us" can hold its own..frida delivers an amazing vocal..harmonies are great..great chorus...a favourite abba song of mine! sound have made the album..could have been a single! 10/10

"the day before you came" flopped at no.32 on release..the lead single from the upcoming "first 10 years" its a musical masterpeice..again the story runs through....agnetha delivers it perfectly..frida gives a rare opera interude! its an amazing track..it deserves all the credit it gets as an abba classic! 10/10

"cassandra" again is more musical than pop song...still its beautiful..it has its own amazing quality 9/10

"under attack" the last single isnt one of my favourites..but again i end up playing it...the sound is amazing 8/10

Don't call Santi White an R&B artist: on her debut album Santogold, this former music biz A&R and pop songwriter for hire is challenging race stereotypes and playing fast and loose with genre, mashing up dub, punk, and electronics to make an energetic, anger-fuelled music that blurs the lines between the dancefloor and the moshpit. Comparisons to MIA hold some water, especially on the bullish "Creator" (it's worth nothing that Santogold features production turns from sometime MIA collaborators Diplo and Switch). For the most part, though, Santogold's debut follows a quite different path. "L.E.S Artists" is stirring new-wave pop that builds to grand, tearful choruses reminiscent of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, while "You'll Find a Way" and "Say Aha" are propulsive ska-pop numbers that hark back to its creator's previous band, Bad Brains-influenced punks Stiffed. But it's not just skilful genre-skipping to recommend this record, though: White is the rare vocalist that can sound empowered and vulnerable within the space of the same song, and it's her force of character that places Santogold ahead of the pack. --Louis Pattison

another annoying band for wannabe indie kids to rave about, 12 Aug 2008
the album was playing whilst i was in hmv i had to walk out the store it pissed me off so much
and to be honest i dont care if people leave bad comments about this review because i will never value an opinion from the type of person who defends the ting tings

WHY?, 11 Aug 2008
Why would you punish yourself by listening to any of this I almost thew my CD player against they wall to make this torture device stop instead I threw the CD I'd been bought...it woz one of the most satisfying moments ever. Don't buy this unless u hate yourself and are just to lazy for an interesting or painless suicide.

Bringing Indie Back, 09 Aug 2008
The Ting Tings have sure made a good long career for them selves, Sometimes recemendations can be awfully wrong on amazon, like just because i bought Little Voice by Sara Bareilles dosen't mean i want to bye MGMT's album , anyway thankgod this one was recomended, i was not sureof them at first by dislikeing Great DJ, But Lovin' Thats Not My Name, i followed the recomendation and i was glad i got it, i later grew found of Great DJ, i realised this was the best indie album, (sorry), Best album id ever heard, i learnt about there style, i have every single of the album, Go Forthe and Bye

Example of overhyped crap!!!!, 06 Aug 2008
Having had to endure this poor excuse for a band at Glastonbury, i thought i would give them a second go and borrowed my sisters cd, it is truely awful. I am not articulate or smart enough to do justice to how bad this album is. An album of cats screaming and children crying would of been more enjoyable.

The band themselves seem to have been styled by the stylest from Skins, whom was having a bad day, or maybe the band upset her. But they look like every other idiot from St Martins, whom wants too "fit in". Waste your money if you must, but be aware that you are merely jumping on the hype and one catchy track. If you think that you will listen to this album more then once then you are deluded and deaf. Truely truely awful!!!!!!

Confused?, 03 Aug 2008
Not sure if this is BAD? Well it IS. It is REALLY REALLY BAD!

Confusion solved.

((This is the kind of album that 5 years from now you will be really embarrassed to have in your collection))

Did they drop from space?, 11 Aug 2008
This "band" dropped from space, or have been trapped somewhere for over 50 years, these is the only logical reasons i can think of that they must have travelled many many miles from their home planet still thinking that everyone on earth still dress like a 1950's sitcom. Then try and set a style when they land with some of he worst music i have ever had the misfortune of listening to.

Alphabeat = Amazing, 04 Aug 2008
Debut album from Danish group Alphabeat. I have seen them perform live twice now, they would have to be the pop band of today. Great songs, great live performers!! Fascination is pop at it's best, along with the new single Boyfriend. Great 80's influenced band. One group to watch out for!!

a lovely upbeat guilty pleasure, 28 Jul 2008
The alphabeat album is bound to help lift the gloom of those who had a hard days work with poppy upbeat tracks like "10,00 nights of thunder" and "fascination" which are popular updated throw backs to the 80's when the commitments, housemartins and everything 80's music had to offer but thankfully without the ott fashion statements.

Disappointing Rehash, 07 Jul 2008
This is not the original album. Three of the best tracks have been removed (Into the Jungle, Ocean Blue and The Hours) and replaced with sloppy generic synth-pop dribble (Gogo, Public Image and Touch me touching you). Get your hands on the original. Its much better than this one.

At once frothy and retro, 24 Jun 2008
A great album, all high-octane Scissor Sister-esque camp one moment and full-of-itself grandeur the next.

"Go-Go" and "Boyfriend" sound like True Blue-era Madonna, having a mix with Opportunities-era Pet Shop Boys, whilst "10,000 Nights" and "Fascination" could have been on the last SS's album.

There's also a Grease soundtrack / rockabilly thing going on, which resurrects the shades of Aqua and <> The Cartoons, but there's a great sense of genuine fun and songwriting nous which elevates this album way beyond any of that.

The male vocalist has a kind of twang to his delivery that put me in mind of the lead vocalist of The Tubes ('Fee' Waybill) - no bad thing, in my book.

I didn't expect to like this, to be honest, but it has an inevitability and joie de vivre that's simply irresistible, as Robert Palmer once said.

Yes, there are other acts exploring similar ground, but this lot have the smack of authenticity about them.

Fun!

Awful Awful Awful. , 26 Aug 2008
As you might guess from the title, I don't like this one bit. Loved their first two albums, and the live in New York CD, and have been waiting for this third album for years. But it is awful to the point where I can't listen to it. It's like Eric Morecambe said - all the notes are there, but not necessarily in the right order. It gives me a headache every time I turn it on. What were you thinking Beth? Look out my copy on Amazon Marketplace! Erm, it's brilliant, you must buy it...

The gap between releases shows...., 25 Aug 2008
We all know and love 'Dummy' and even quite liked the difficult second self-titled album but then we had to wait a long time for the 'Third' to show up - and I think that's it's problem.

Any good band should progress over time and change their sound and Portishead have obviously done so in the years they have been away. Trouble is, we were all expecting something Dummy-esque from Third but having missed out on the evolution got an album which is pretty far from it.

Some of the tracks are very hard to listen to (Machine Gun being the worst), others are fairly non-offensive yet ordinary and one or two are real gems and I wish they lasted a bit longer.

I think that if I had heard the evolution from 'Portishead' to 'Third' I'd be more forgiving but this is so different (and hence I am so disappointed by it) that I can only give it 2 stars and hope that the next album is not quite so far away, either in time or sound.

Not exactly easy listening, 22 Aug 2008
Strange, bleak, dark and slightly unsettling. Haunting vocals as per usual, but none of the commercial friendly drum and bass beats of the earlier Dummy album. More noise - it made me question whether my stereo was faulty (it wasn't!). The last couple of tracks turning to rock. Some folk rock sounding stuff, with others (Machine Gun) sounding like it's come straight from one of the early Terminator films.

Not worth the wait, 19 Aug 2008
Fine, Dummy was so cutting edge that it sounded horribly dated horribly quickly. But it was wonderful. This isn't. It's harsher, more electronic. Not necessarily a problem in itself. Only they forgot to write any songs. They've gone all Radiohead - I imagine they felt they were too popular so decided to disappear up their own back passage to show how muso and serious they are. Disappointing.

Not so good, 13 Aug 2008
I've been waiting some time for their third album to come out, I seem to remember their website said they were recording and it would be out soon - this was in the late 90s. Anyway after a longer wait eventually there it was. First listen - hmm, give it another go - is it a grower? Not so sure. After a bit of a break and a "third" listen I, unfortunately, have to say it's not a good album. There is virtually nothing here that makes me want to listen again. Fellow Bristolian Tricky has also released an album this year and while he's developed different styles throughout his career I feel his music has always stayed fresh. Portishead on the other hand appear to have tried to do something different, challenging and artistic here but there is no soul, message or feeling in it so most of the songs come across as w..k pretending to be art. Which they undoubtedly are.

Madonna's back., 06 Aug 2008
I'm not really a fan of Madonna - I like the odd song. I fell in love with '4 Minutes' and decided to get the album. It definitely has a dance/techno feel to it, but don't let that put you off. Here's my mini review of the songs:

1. Candy Shop - Starts off good, but gets very repetitive.
2. 4 Minutes - Fantastic, as most of you know.
3. Give It 2 Me - Brilliant.
4. Heartbeat - Very addictive. I liked it.
5. Miles Away - Funky, and fun throughout.
6. She's Not Me - Upbeat, funky, fresh and a great beat.
7. Incredible - It's... incredible.
8. Beat Goes On - Hm... really good. Kanye West wasn't too bad, but he got a bit repetitive.
9. Dance 2night - Great. A solid beat, with great vocals and lyrics.
10. Spanish Lesson - Very different, but great. Very rhythmic.
11. Devil Wouldn't Recognise You - Great beat, with Madonna sounding great. Lots of variation.
12. Voices - Great end to the album.

Overall, a great return to form from Madonna. This album proves that she's still got some magic left in her. Definitely buy this.

Give this candy a try..., 30 Jul 2008
When the rumours started to fly that Madonna was doing another hip-hop/r n b album, after the success of Confessions on a Dance Floor, most people probably scratched their heads and wondered whether she would pull another reinvention just as successfully... and once again I think she has with a mixed bag of sweet treats this time round.

The whole album is divided into Pharrell / Timbaland-Timberlake productions and despite Madonna's insistence that you can't tell the difference, I can. Maybe I've been paying too much attention to the Timbaland production line of late...

Having just listened to Boys by Britney Spears; "Candy Shop" sounds very dated considering that Pharrell was panting over a beat for Britney about 7-8 years ago.

4 Minutes is the album's first single, so by now you will have heard the new Timbo/Timba sound. One to be loved or loathed.

Give It 2 Me is a great track (an instant love the first time I played the CD) and I've grown to like "Heartbeat" too.

"Miles Away" is a wonderful dedication to Guy and long distance relationships.

"She's Not Me" is another grower, is it about another woman in her relationship or about one of the contenders for Madonna's pop crown?

The main disappointment of the album is "Incredible" clocking up an impressive six minutes. The end section sounds like part of that Soulja Boy track , with the hollering - and I hated that.

"Beat Goes On" is a success, I can see it being a future hit single with the additional rapping of Kanye West - to the extent that it sounds like a Kanye West song more than anything else.

"Dance 2night" has a lot of Prince influences, both in terms of sound, song title and lyrics ("...Don't need no diamonds and pearls"). If it were released as a single, I get the feeling Timberlake may pop up in the video due to his backing vocals. Funky stuff.

"Spanish Lesson" is one of the messier productions here, due to M's inability to speak Spanish, but non Spanish speakers would know no different. Its inclusion is gimmicky but it's supposedly about a new dance craze called The Percolator, so it'll be on The Sticky and Sweet Tour I'm sure in the same way that "Jump" was a great visual element on The Confessions Tour: +DVD.

"Devil Wouldn't Recognise You" and "Voices" provide the slower numbers on the album, in the same way that "How High" and "Like it or Not" were on Confessions on a Dance Floor

Try this album and see what happens. It's grown on me in the same way that American Life has. What saves this album so far is that it is a Madonna album so therefore the diehard fans will pick this up