Pop

Review: We all fondly remember Swedish pop group Ace of Base from school disco days back in the 90s. 'The Sign' was one of their biggest hits, reaching number two in the UK before spending a total of six weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US, as well as charting at number one in countries including but not limited to Australia, Canada, Germany and New Zealand. The bubbly, tropical and dub tinged europop tune also got a nomination for Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. While it isn't going to be remembered as one of the greatest tunes ever, it sure is fun to hear it again

Review: The fourth album from the English pop experimentalist was made over just six week in a "do-it-yourself" collaborative process with her fans. It is inspired by the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown and was executively produced by A. G. Cook and BJ Burton. Fans and critics alike fell immediately in love with the record which was also shortlisted for the 2020 Mercury Prize. Edgy experimental production and hooky pop songwriting have rarely collided as successfully as they do here, with plenty of hyper-energetic sounds and shimmering synths, bubblegum bass and mechanical motifs all making this as much an impromptu mixtape as a studio album. Truly, this is a work of its time.

Review: The fourth album from English pop experimentalist XCX was made over just six week in a "do-it-yourself" collaborative process with her fans. It is inspired by the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown and was executively produced by A. G. Cook and BJ Burton. Fans and critics alike fell immediately in love with the record which was also shortlisted for the 2020 Mercury Prize. Edgy experimental production and hooky pop songwriting have rarely collided as successfully as they do here, with plenty of hyper-energetic sounds and shimmering synths, bubblegum bass and mechanical motifs all making this as much an impromptu mixtape as a studio album. Truly, this is a work of its time.

Review: Original American diva Gloria Estefan turned out concept album 'Into The Light' in 1991, informed by the emotions she felt after a near-death experience during the 'Get On Your Feet' tour, confronting dark feelings and bouncing back from disaster. It worked, and the album saw plenty of commercial success, selling almost two million units and spawning huge singles like "Sex In The 90s." As ever, the sound is big, lung busting pop with Latin elements, an underlying funk and hints of house, as well as some big rock lullabies.

Review: Terry Hall's album Home is the archetypal sound of gentle mid-90s pop rock, which is when it was released on Anxious. It was Hall's first solo record and spawned singles 'Forever J' and 'Sense', while much of the album was written with guitarist Craig Gannon and includes features with then-acclaimed musicians such as Ian Broudie of The Lightning Seed. As such, there are plenty of big jangly guitars, soaring and tender vocal deliveries and post-baggy grooves that might well still get festival crowds swaying along without a care int he world.

Review: 'Songs About Jane' is the album that made megastars of Maroon 5. The Californian band wrote it during a spell living in New York and the eponymous Jane dated frontman Adam Levine for a few years after they met at a petrol station. The record was one of the year's biggest sellers and shifted millions of copies as well as earning the band the 2005 Grammy for Best New Artist. Fun fact, actor Rashida Leah Jones, of Parks And Recreation fame, provides backing vocals on three of the album's songs - "Tangled", "Secret" and "Not Coming Home".

Review: Amy Winehouse's debut album Frank was well received by critics and fans alike, but the general consensus remained that it only really setting the scene for the breakout smash that was its follow up, 'Back To Black'. Still, listening back now, it deserves just as much praise for its honest vocal delivery and subject matters. Jazz, R&B, soul, pop, hip-hop and even bossa nova colour its sound and the loose, organic songcraft draws you in over and over. Confident, assured and somehow accessible yet also edgy, it more than hinted at the brilliance of the artist behind it. Interestingly, the lady herself often bemoaned its lack of marketing and promotion, so who knows what it could have been?!