Singled Out! - May 12th 2008

Singled Out! this week takes a look at a group of Australians who are still young at heart, a two piece from Salford with name problems and a bunch of bad kids.

The Ting Tings – ‘That’s Not My Name’

Those who are used to being called by the wrong first name from time to time will probably find that they have an innate appreciation for ‘That’s Not My Name’.  “They call me hell, they call me Stacey, they call me her, they call me Jane / That’s not my name, that’s not my name…” yelps singer Katie White angrily, in her familiar tone – you know, the one that for some reason doesn’t ever grate like it should. Lyrics aside, what really makes ‘That’s Not Me Name’ is that while White continues to endure her identity crisis – no matter who hard she tries to ‘glam it up’ – along with drummer and vocalist Jules De Martino, she crafts an utterly absorbing electro-pop song that’s both clever and infectious. You’ll certainly do well to forget its name.

Want to know more about The Tings Tings? Then check out our interview with them here.

Hot Chip – ‘One Pure Thought’

After the “Do, do, do it, do, do it, do it, do it now…” of their last single, on first listen, Hot Chip seem to have underachieved with ‘One Pure Thought’. There are no frustratingly infectious vocals insight as a single electric guitar melts into a tribal rhythm during the songs opening moments. But who ever wanted Hot Chip to be a commercial giant anyway? ‘One Pure Thought’s’ skill comes from the way its sinister sounding vocal harmonies – about a trip that they thought would never end – are absorbed by the equally baleful synths and bubbling basslines. Proof you don’t need a stupid chorus to make a good song.

Check out the fantastic video for ‘One Pure Thought’ here.

Foxboro Hot Tubs – ‘Mother Mary’

I first heard this song being played on an independent radio station in New York in February. At its conclusion, the DJ declared: “And that’s ‘Mother Mary’ from new band the Foxboroooo Hot Tubs – they sound a lot like Green Day to me.” I’m sure that DJ felt like an American idiot (excuse the pun) two months later when it was revealed that Foxboro Hot Tubs are in fact Green Day’s new side project. In his defence, however, if you stripped Billie Joe Armstrong’s vocals from the song, you probably wouldn’t know it was them either. Seemingly Green Day’s way of expressing their love for Beach Boys-esque vocal harmonies, ‘Mother Mary’ is a fragrant slice of summer pop-punk that doesn’t do much but still manages to tick all the right boxes. 

Black Lips – ‘Bad Kids’

You have to respect Black Lips for the fact that they don’t mince their words. In a recent interview with Gigwise, they accused Jay-Z of ruining hip-hop, Green Day’s Bille Joe of being a “douche bag” (lets hope they don’t read this) and annihilated David Beckham for, well, being David Beckham. Three very different subjects – none of which have anything to do with them. This liberalism flows through their music as well. From the outset, ‘Bad Kids’ is an absorbing listen – a song packed with witty vocal exchanges that ride effortlessly over jangly untroubled melodies. Black Lips, it has to be said, don’t care; and for that reason, you’ll find it hard not to love them.

You can catch the video for ‘Bad Kids’ here.

Teenagersintokyo – ‘Very Vampyr’

For the record, Teenagersintokyo aren’t teenagers and they don’t come from Tokyo. They are in fact four women in their mid-twenties who met ten years ago in an Australian high school and recently recruited a male to play drums. Feel duped? Well, don’t. Their music is still more uninhabited than an adolescent sampling vodka for the first time. Crammed full of dirty electro melodies, stomping drumbeats and shouty vocals, ‘Very Vampyr’ (look, they even spell in text speak) makes fellow Australians Operator Please sound like they’re on the verge of retirement – and they really are teenagers. 

Rate this lots craziness – check out the video below…