Tracks: The 1975, Sleigh Bells, & More

If ‘Love Me’ was the bonkers introduction to the debauched world of The 1975’s forthcoming second album, then ‘UGH!’ is the sound of the band settling into their bizarre, funk pop groove.

There’s an airiness to the tropicalia-tinged synth backing. It swings and sashays in a groove, revealing odd little sonic quirks with every listen. The chorus could make Justin Timberlake fume with jealousy. It’s clear more than ever that The 1975 are ready to take on the pop establishment on their own terms. (Martyn Young)

Just in time for Christmas, Sleigh Bells are back. Less jingle bells and more rock, Alexis Krauss and Derek Miller seem slightly sweeter, on a surface level at least. There might be a glossy veneer, and a pop ambition surpassing everything the duo have pulled before. But like a super-sour centered gob-stopper - the sort of super saccharine variety you have to order from behind the counter - a-juggernauting bass line still shakes at the supports, lining ‘Champions Of Unrestricted Beauty’s vital foundations. Blimey, it feels good to have this noisy pair back. (El Hunt)

The Magic Gang like to filter their loved up odes into a romantic, nostalgic world. Most of the time, they could easily be mistaken for hot-footed ‘50s crooners, especially when it comes to the attire. But ‘She Doesn’t See’ finds them in more modern form, untucking their vintage shirts and letting everyday frustration into the process. “I’m just waiting up in the sky,” they chant, isolated to the point of no return. Poor guys sound like they need a holiday (even though this number was recorded in Jamaica with Sly and Robbie and they probably had the best time ever). (Alberto Wordy)

A plodding, whammy bar-drenched ballad, it’s no great leap of the imagination to picture Black Honey playing ‘Mothership’ in a seedy, neon-lit basement bar of True Detective (first season, obvs). There’s the same spaghetti-western twang to their new b-side, which struts its way down the central parade of town, thumbs in belt, and a chaff of wheat hanging artfully from its mouth. Izzy B. Phillip’s usual unhinged screams make way for more subtle theatrics; gasping yells of “help” almost submerged in the film-noiry guitar lines. (El Hunt)

Like everything Charli XCX puts her hand to, there’s a playful contrast between the bubble-gum coloured front, and the low-key lyrical lewdness of her new Mr Oizo collaboration, ‘Hand in the Fire’. Like former Mickey Mouse Club stars on a debauched trip to the neon-lit basement bars of Soho, Mr Oizo’s spliced sickly-sweet chants and trademark springy electronica meets headlong with calls to “come and get me started.” In other words, it’s ace. (El Hunt)

Shimmering, lush, and more looming than a neck-craning look up to the top of the Shard, ‘The Cherry Pit’ shares the same lofty ambition as Pinkshinyultrablast’s previous efforts, and typically, their shoegazing sensibilities are carefully balanced with a knack for occasional minimalism; knowing just when to rein it back. Lyubov’s vocals skate atop uneasy, angular chimes, before colliding into a fish-slappingly sudden wall of reverb, getting lost and indistinguishable among the glittery sonic mud. (El Hunt)

Tags: Sleigh Bells, The 1975, News, Listen