Pet Shop Boys Queen Elizabeth Theatre October 3rd 2013

Two albums in less than a year, a world tour and the “boys” are still going strong. At 8:10 the show opened up with a shear curtain covering the theater stage, you could see Neil and Chris’ outline over flashing graphic images like out a video game with rushing tunnels transporting us to another dimension, all to the the sound of their new album opener and dance club banger “Axis”. The curtain stayed up for a mash up of  "One More Chance” from their first LP with “A Face Like That” from the underrated “Elysium” project, their last for Parlophone records. The projection screen was well done but the crowd was happy when the curtain fell to the sounds of “Let’s Make Lots of Money…” from then on everybody stood up and never sat down.

The Boys have a large repertoire to choose from, this show could have easily been a greatest hits tour, while many hits were played it’s obvious the Boys are doing it for the die hard fans, many cuts from the two new albums were played along with some lesser known hits like “Miracles”, “Rent”, the B-side “I Get Excited”, and their glorious dance version of  Bernstein and Sondheim's “Somewhere”. I have to admit a few of these songs seemed to go over the heads of the audience which to my surprise was a mixed bag of young/old straight and gay. While some might have been lost to the unknown tunes, the incredible laser show kept most of the audience mesmerized, one thing you are never bored at a Pet Shop Boys concert. They had two dancers which were OK but didn’t seem to always dance in unison. Tennant who almost had as many exotic wardrobe changes as Cher (a rubber jacket made out entirely of straws and a metal bulls head hat covering his face) seemed in great form although he sounded a bit hoarse at the beginning of the show, his voice sounded better on the newer tracks as oppose to songs like “West End Girls”. “I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing” preceded by the “Rite of Spring” was my favorite highlight but the winner of the night artistically was “Love Etc.” with both Neil and Chris strapped to vertical beds while images of moving bodies where projected below their heads.

Neil who usually seems stiff in concert finally seemed to loosen up at the end with “It’s A Sin”, and then let the audience sing almost the entire version of “Domino Dancing” but he came right back with“ I think you might know this one” before going into the fan favorite cover of “Always on my Mind”, and the encore “Go West”. The show ended with the appropriate “Electric” LP album closer “Vocal” Neil sings: “I like the people, I like the song, this is my kind of music, they play it all night long, I like the singer, he’s lonely and strange, every track has a vocal…”

…how true.

 Setlist 

1.    Axis

2.    One More Chance / A Face Like That

3.    Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)

4.    Memory Of The Future

5.    Fugitive

6.    Integral

7.    I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing

8.    Suburbia

9.    I'm Not Scared

10. Fluorescent

11. West End Girls

12. Somewhere

13. Leaving

14. Thursday

15. Love Etc.

16. I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too)

17. Rent

18. Miracles

19. It's a Sin

20. Domino Dancing

21. Always on My Mind

Encore:

22. Go West

23. Vocal

2012 The Year In Review

For a year with a lot of “pop music” I actually found it difficult to choose the ten best. There were many good albums but nothing really blew me away.

I flip flopped back and forth with the #1 position any of my top 5 could have filled the bill but I believe that the Scissor Sisters and Mika produced superior products and interesting outputs. A few albums surprised me like Lionel Richie’s country “Tuskegee”, which become one of the top ten selling albums of the year in the USA, and Kylie Minogue’s “Abbey Road”, I did not think I would like either of them.

A few albums missed my top ten like Taylor Swift’s “Red” which had some great tracks but I found needed more pruning, The Wanted’s North American EP, and One Direction who had two albums chart at #1, “Take Me Home” could have made my list but I thought their first effort had better tracks. The most surprising is two of my favorite divas not making my list. The first is Madonna, I originally liked “MDNA” but it quickly wore off, she really needs to rethink her music for her next album. Then there’s Celine Dion who French album “Sans Attendre” just didn’t cut it for me despite the great single “Parler A Mon Père”.

The single charts were much more interesting than the albums charts, they were ruled by Riahnna, Marron 5, Fun, Gotye (who topped the Billboard Hot 100 songs of the year), Taylor Swift and Canadian Idol Carly Rae Jepsen (who didn’t cover “Call Me Maybe”), unfortunately I found her full length album really disappointing. There were great singles by the Scissor Sisters, Mika, One Direction and Ke$ha.

Top Ten Albums of 2012

1) Magic Hour—Scissor Sisters

Their best effort since their debut album the “Sisters” keep delivering solid, exciting and fabulous music, from Jake’s plead to his lover on the sultry “Baby come home” to their Calvin Harris collaboration “Only The Horses” one of the best dancefloor tracks of the year, so much better than “We Found Love” which Harris gave to Rihanna.  “Inevitable” produced by Pharrell Williams for the Neptunes is lush and gorgeous, Jake’s falsetto evokes memories of the BeeGees at their best, while “The Year Of Living Dangerously” feels like a James Bond theme, maybe they could replace Adele next time.

The album is a bit of a mixed bag “San Luis Obispo” is a typical Spanish/Island flavoured ditty but hey if Madonna could do it why can’t they? While never boring some of the tracks like “Keep Your Shoes On”, and “Shady Love” which I find mildly annoying especially Jake’s attempt at Hip Hop, are kind of hit and miss, but a “Sister” miss is still better than a chart hit by any other. 

“Self Control” turns to the house beats of the 90’s, while the average “Best In Me” is kind of forgotten by the end of your listen. Luckily the last 2 songs get back on track with the beautifully haunting “The Secret Life of Letters” and “Somewhere” the Pet Shop Boys-esque dance jam that is pure bliss, this song should have been a single.

Then there’s “KIKI”, who would have thought that this would be the song everybody including Hollywood’s stars would be clamoring about. The little Ms Matronic jam, with nothing but pulsating drums over her complaints about having her “par-tee” closed down even took the TV show Glee by storm, yet despite all that the Sisters have yet to produce a hit single in the USA.

2) The Origin Of Love—Mika

When you open a Mika album you never know what you are going to get, but melody and lots of fun are a given. This album his 3^rd, feels a little more grown up and less sugary pop, but he hasn’t lost his sense of wonder, poetry or joy. Many collaborate with him including some of the industry’s best. Nick Littlemore from the Australia dance duo Pnau lends a hand for a many of the songs including the fabulous title track whose melody and lyrics “Love is a drug and you are my cigarette, love is addiction and you are my Nicorette”, “sticks in your head like glue, but once the breakdown/guitar verses kicks in, its bliss, this song has everything from pulsating drums, a double chorus “to the one I love…”, too bad it’s too unique for radio. “Lola” is a fun synth 70’s bass line romp but following it is my favorite track “Stardust” produced by Benni Benassi, a fantastical dance floor pulsating jam over Mika’s fab falsetto. “Make You Happy” whose video was filmed in Montreal, has a beautiful synth and string arrangements melded over an auto tuned muffled chorus which produces a really nice effect. “Underwater” is a stunning and haunting piano electro ballad, a song begging to be a big film score. “Kids” sound like an old familiar 70’s classic tune but updated to our time, while “I Love You When I’m Drunk” is a fun take on his love life. “Step with Me’ is a bit too formulaic for me but I give two thumbs up to the track “Popular Song” with Priscilla Renea, both authors give a big “middle finger” to their haters in high school with a cheeky silly synth song.

“Heroes” is a heartfelt and bittersweet song especially in this time of civil war around the world, “fighting someone else’s’ war” Mika’s sing “Your blood on me, my blood on you”, “Heroes aren’t meant to survive”. The moment doesn’t last long as Mika breaks up the sombre tone with Pharrell Williams for “Celebrate” a Madonna-esque dance floor anthem perfect to dust off the sadness.

Included is Emily the English version of his fabulous French song “Elle Me Dit”, whose friends tells him to stop wasting his life, get off his ass and do something with his life, write a song, make a million dollars, while he might not be making millions or having many hits, he and I are having lots of fun, eh Emily?

3) Elysium—Pet Shop Boys

Nobody does smooth electronic dance music like the boys, from the opening track “Leaving”, you feel like you are covered in a warm and fuzzy blanket of beats. We aren’t talking about hit you over head like Guetta or Calvin Harris but soothing melodies. A departure and less “pop” then their previous effort “Yes” this album takes a few listens to get into. Unfortunately it starts off in my opinion with a few week tracks. “Invisible’ is a little too low key for me. The single “Winner” picks it up a bit and it only gets better from there.

I love how the boys they both don’t take their status too seriously, they get cheeky and make fun of themselves with the inspired story “Early Stuff” about a cabbie who chats them up on a ride “You've been around but you don't look too rough, And I still quite like some of your early stuff” Neil sings “Those old videos look pretty funny What's in it for you now, need the money?"They say that management never used to pay, honestly you were ripped off back in the day”. Then there’s “Ego Music” at first listen I found the song annoying, but I think that was the point, this song most likely about Kanye West and his rapper buddies “Ego music, it’s all about me” , sense of entitlement…” How ironic that the boys hired Andrew Dawson (Kanye’s album engineer) to produce the album.

“A Face Like That” and “Hold On” bring us back to the old PSB’s, I love the latter whose choir like atmosphere are matched along with the cheeky lyrics “Hold on hold on or the world will end today”. "Breathing Space" and "Give It A Go" are just middle ground but the album really shines with 2 songs buried at the end. “Memory Of the Future” is a Pet Shop Boys opus, Neil sing “It’s taking me all of my life to find you” his voice surrounded with swirling magical, melodic synthesizers, covering him in a warm blanket of pure bliss. “Requiem in Denim and Leopard skin” is like finding an old Pet Shop Boys gem that was lost in a vault, unfortunately the song sounds like a happy “goodbye” from the boys, let hope this is not the case.

4) Up All Night—One Direction

Only Simon Cowell can turn five unknown twinks, into the world’s biggest superstars. It might not last long but he knows how to get what he wants from the best in the business. From the brilliant debut single “What Makes You Beautiful” the album is filled with great slick and fun produced pop songs, almost any song could be single material. “One Thing” is just as good as it’s predecessor and the title track was screaming to be released “Katy Perry’s on a plane, she’s on a plane” they sing over a thumping beat as good as any of Perry’s hits. “More Than This” and “Taken” fill the slots for pretty ballad which don’t sound kiddy but grown up band.  “Tell Me A lie” penned by Kelly Clarkson” is a rocking rolling dance gem along with the Beatles/Take That sounding “I Want”. Even the songs they co- write like “Everything About You” holds up to the other tracks. The album ends off with 2 of the best tracks “Save You Tonight” and "Stole My Heart" which is  one the best dance songs of the year, I don’t understand why they released a 2^nd album so quickly instead of releasing this as a single, a wasted opportunity.

5) Overexposed—Maroon 5

Inspired by their mega hit “Moves Like Jagger” the new album produced by hit maker Max Martin (Backstreet Boys, Kelly Clarkson,  and many others), venture the boys into a pop infused dubstep album, from the opening reggae influenced song “One More Night” which spent 9 weeks at #1 to their previous single “Payphone”, the album is jammed packed with winners. “Daylight”, “Lucky Strike” (with Ryan Tedder) and “Love Somebody” with its clever synth 80’s hook are future hits in the waiting. “The Man Who Never Lied” is a sly rocking thumping dance romp with Adam trying to convince himself it’s OK to not tell the truth.  “Ladykiller” is olf Maroon 5 with a funky baseline,  less production and more vocals, but “Fortune Teller” and “Tickets” goes right back into dubstep. Favorite track is the Shellback produced “Doing’ Dirt” which feels like a long lost 70’s disco gem crossed with the Sugababes “Red Dress”. Could Maroon 5 be the crowned kings of the dancefloor? Maybe so. 

If you get the deluxe edition be sure to check out their fabulous jazzed up version of Prince's "Kiss".

6) Tuskegee—Lionel Richie

The idea of Lionel Richie doing a country album might confused the average music listener, but if you were more attentive you would see that his songs like “Stuck On You” and “Deep River Woman” are pure Country, not to mention the mega hit “Lady” which he penned for Kenny Rogers. For this project Lionel got some of country’s best singers and musicians to duet with him. When I first heard snippets of the album I was a bit disappointed but after hearing the full LP I love it.  R&B staples like my favourite “You Are” with Blake Sheldon are just as good if not better, this guitar flavoured version only adds to the song without taking away any of the original magic. “My Love” with Kenny Chesney, “Sail On” with Tim Mcgraw and “Stuck On You” with Daruis Rucker are perfect. “Deep River Woman” with Little Big Town, in my opinion rivals the original sung with Alabama back in 1986 on his “Dancing On The Ceiling album”, the harmonies here are gorgeous, this song needed this production. A song that should have been a bigger hit “Just For You” is another stand out with Billy Currington. “Hello” with Jennifer Nettles from Sugarland, is an interesting mix but I’m not sure their vocals work well together while “Easy” with Willie Nelson sounds like it could have been written for him.

I only wish it was less of a Greatest Hits list, “Dancing On The Ceiling” and “All Night Long” do not translate into country, Lionel what were you thinking? Even Rascal Flatts couldn’t country-fi “Ceiling”. “All Night Long” gets saved by going more island flavoured then country with the help of Jimmy Buffet and some cool Hawaiian like steel drums. “Say You Say Me” with Jason Aldean is another oddity that doesn’t translate well.  I read all about the lengths Lionel went through to get Shania Twain to record “Endless Love”, but I don’t think their vocals match well plus did we really need another version? I never liked the Mariah Carey Luther Vandross one, nothing compares to the original with Diana Ross. Speaking of vocals, despite the guest list nobody sounds as good as Lionel singing his own songs, his voice still sounds great, unlike Kenny Rogers who’s losing it, I would have preferred a solo version of “Lady” instead.

7) Good Morning To The Night—Elton John VS Pnau

What happens when you take a modern electronic Australian duo and give them Elton John’s early classic masters to play with? You get this little ingenuous piece of heaven. I’ve never like sampled music, but this album is a whole new ballgame. Elton actually hired the duo Pnau when he heard their previous recordings and fell in love with their music. These are not remixes but total reconstructions of his songs. I find that remixers have gotten quite lazy, Pnau have definitely set the bar high. Every song has a familiar feel but sounds shiny and new, Pnau have created a certain atmospheric charm, unlike modern remixes which seem to only hit you with bass and sound and no melody. Trying to figure out which parts of what song they used is also part of the fun, they didn’t used his most famous material, the title track, a UK dance hit, borrows from 'Mona Lisa' and 'Mad Hatters' and 7 other tracks. “Sad” feels like a long lost disco classic, it doesn’t sound like a remix but rather a sophisticated new song. “Black Ice Stare” feels like a lost reggae classic, while “Foreign Fields” is a fantastic take on Elton “High Flying Bird”, “Telegraph to the Afterlife” slows down to a Beatlesque acid trip and “Phoenix” take on Elton’s “Grey Seal” to new heights. Only 8 tracks long the album leaves you wanting more.

8) The Abbey Road Sessions—Kylie Minogue

I thought I was going to be disappointed, after all who needs a jazzy acoustic album of Kylie’s dancefloor classics? Kylie is not known for her vocal prowess, but this album definitely delivers. While some songs are misses, “On A Night Like This” just doesn’t have enough melody to work, and who needs “Slow” slower, really? Opening track like “All The Lovers” proves how good a song really is. “Better The Devil You Know’ is fab but we’ve heard this version in concert before same goes for “I Believe In You and “I Should Be So Lucky”. “Never Too Late” is absolutely fabulous, a forgotten gem that translates well, same goes for “Finer Feelings”, interesting how most Stock Aiken and Waterman tracks work well into many mediums and genres proving that a good melody counts. While I think that “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head” should be banished to never be heard or recorded again, I actually love this version, the strings/violins are beautiful. Love At First Sight is cute. I was worried that we would get the snooze jazzy version of “Locomotion” but luckily we get a somewhat upbeat version. Having Nick Cage record his vocal for “Where The Wild Roses Grow” was a definite delight, but the true gem is the only new song “Flower” a fan favorite which up until now was only sung in concert, the sad song (as most fans speculate), about her longing to have a child, is emotional and poignant.

Too bad songs like “Spinning Around” which sounded fabulous when she sang it at the Proms concert was not included and “Wow” and “In My Arms” were only bonus tracks on certain editions. I would have preferred less of a hit package and more lost classics that suited the genre.


9) Take The Crown—Robbie Williams

After a return to Take That greatness Robbie delivers another solo album, he claims this is the album he wanted to do instead of “Reality Killed the Video Star” which I actually liked. While “Take The Crown” it’s no “Sing When You’re Winning”, or “Escapology”, it’s a valiant effort. “They said the magic was leaving…” he sings on the opening track, “Be A Boy”, he still has some magic with the #1 saccharine sweet cutesy UK hit “Candy”, and the synth 80’s inspired “Shit on the Radio” which reminds me of Queen’s “Radio Gaga”. “Gospel” sounds a bit like early Robbie rebel but it doesn’t come close to anything on his first 2 albums. “Different” the required power ballad is likable enough like “Feel” or Come Undone”.  The next 2 tracks are probably my favorites, “All That I Want” is an 80’s funky electro sounding piece that could make a good single and “Hunting For You sound more authentic than anything else on the album, Robbie’s vocals and falsetto really shines. “Into The Silence” could be another power rock ballad but it tries too hard and sounds overproduced. “Hey Wow Yeah Yeah” is just filler in my opinion, I don’t get it. “Not Like The Others” is a bit of return to form, the music reminds me of good old Robbie but after 3 to 4 songs I’m getting tired of lyrics about his sex life.

The bonus track “Eight Letters” originally written and sung by Take That proves that Robbie should just stay with the group who are producing better pop songs and albums.

10) Ke$ha—Warrior

My guilty pleasure of the year. A Dr. Luke/Max Martin production I was actually expecting more, but it’s Ke$ha, trashy, brassy and fun. “Die Young” is the catchiest pop song of the year, “I hear your heartbeat, to the beat of your drums…”, Ke$ha definitely goes to the beat of her own drum and she sings, raps and vomits glitter all over the dancefloor. I almost wish she would give up the silly raps and autotune, the fabulous country pop track “Wonderland” proves that she can sing and write a great song, but unfortunately the other stuff has become her signature.

Highlights are the catchy guitar driven “Crazy Kids” (wishing she would of deleted the awful rap parts) , and the unusual garage/rock duet with Iggy Pop “Dirty Love”, who can’t like a song that name checks Rick Santorum and cockroaches and how they “do it”, no auto tune here. Her voice sounds great on “Thinking Of You”, a big “f*ck you” to her ex, is as good as any mad Taylor Swift song but much more fun. “Whenever You Are” could be another single with it brassy baseline and catchy chorus. So many tracks could be singles including “I Only Wanna Dance With You” a collaboration with The Strokes, “Supernatural” with it’s beautiful haunting verses and a brassy pounding chorus, and “All That Matters (The Beautiful Life)” a thumping 90’s Ace Of Base like track. The regular edition album ends of with a haunting Phil Collins like ballad “Love Into The Light”, another testament that she is more than just a silly pop singer.

Best Singles of 2012

1.    Only The Horses—Scissor Sister

2.    What Makes You Beautiful—One Direction

3.    Glad You Came—The Wanted

4.    Sad—Elton John VS Pnau

5.    We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together—Taylor Swift

6.    Flower—Kylie Minogue

7.    Parler A Mon Pere—Celine Dion

8.    Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen

9.    Memory Of The Future--Pet Shop Boys

10. Origin Of Love—Mika

11. Little Things—One Direction

12. Troublemaker—Olly Murs

13. Celebrate-Mika

14. One Thing­­--One Direction

15. Die Young—Ke$ha

16. Let’s Have A Kiki--Scissor Sisters

17.  Live While We’re Young-One Direction

18. Chasing The Sun—The Wanted

19. Baby Come Home-Scissor Sisters

20. Diamonds--riahnna

2009 the year in music review

2009 the year in music review

2009 was an exciting year for music with acts like Lady Gaga busting on to the scene and bringing the dance/electronic sound so popular in Europe to the shores of the USA. Acts like Taylor Swift and The Black Eyed Peas dominated the Billboard charts breaking all kinds of records, and the reality shows like American Idol seemed to be revived with the likes of Adam Lambert.

Despite all the excitement I felt that the “album” suffered. Aside from my top 3 albums the rest of my top ten just kind of blends together and was kind of hard to place in order. I always feared that the digital age would make the “concept album” obsolete I hope that doesn't happen.

Lady GaGa continues to blow me away from her debut “The Fame” to her EP “The Fame Monster”. She has musical talent, style and can actually sing live. Mika has the talent but seem to be unable to break into the charts. Some efforts by established artists like Robbie Williams and Bananarama left me a bit disappointed, while The Pet Shop Boys and Whitney Houston delivered the goods. Reality stars Blake Lewis and Adam Lambert surprised me with their albums. Too bad Blake's sophomore album has got no support and barely sold.


Note qualifications: Lady GaGa The Fame was released in late 2008 but only gained recognition in the USA in 2009. Since she decided to release her 8 new tracks as a separate EP called The Fame Monster it qualifies as well and charted separately on the Billboard charts.


Top Albums of 2009



01 The Fame--Lady GaGa

A heaven of dance and electronic GaGa knows how to write a pop song with hooks and melodies that drag you right in. I have to admit I was first put off by "Just Dance" and "Poker Face" but the album is quite solid. My favourite tracks are the slower jams "Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" , "Paparazzi", Summerboy and "Boys, Boys, Boys" her ode to Mötley Crüe's hit "Girls, Girls, Girls. Her version could well become a gay anthem. "Paper Gangsta" has a great melody and a driving keyboard line throughout the song that is just delicious, the lyrics “Sometimes I felt so Def in the Jam”, “don't want no paper gangsta won't sign no monkey papers I don't do funny business not interested in fakers” could the song be about her record deal with Def Jam that fell apart? The only odd song is the ballad "Brown Eyes" which seems lost on the record. 9/10


02 The Boy Who Knew Too Much--Mika

Mika knows how to write a catchy tune and his sophomore album delivers the good. Mika borrows the best from pop music, although sometime you have to wonder if he doesn't take too much, the opening track and first single “We Are Golden” sounds a lot like Belinda Carlisle's “Heaven Is A Place On Earth”. The album just gets better with the tongue and cheek cabaret style of “Blame It On The Girls” and the wonderful falsetto gem and possibly the best track “Rain ”. Mika's lyrics are not empty and have a kind of whimsical and satirical style on songs like “DR. John”, “ One Foot Boy” and the circus themed “Boy Toy”, but when you peal away the happy melodies you're left pondering what is he really talking about? “I See You” slows the album down along with the reggae style "Blue Eyes". “Good Girl Gone” sounds like he sampled the magic of Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys. Mika's music is probably too gay and sugar pop to be played on American radio stations but his albums are never boring, his music leaves you singing and dancing and wanting more. 9/10

03 Heatbreak On Vinyl--Blake Lewis

I never took him seriously but Mr. Lewis sophomore effort is a delicious slice of dance/electronica. The album is a throwback to the 80's without sounding dated. The music is catchy and has melodies to match the beats. Best track are the title track, a wink to those who remember the record store, “Binary Love”, “Sad Songs” and “Freak“."left My Baby For You” showcases Blake's hidden falsetto and sounds like it was plucked out of the early 80's techno era. “Rebel Without A Cause” sounds like a mix of Sting and reggae. The album is superbly produced, cohesive, and not in the way where all the tracks blend as one. Each has its own style. A shame the album sold so poorly and got no publicity. 8.5/10

04 I Look To You--Whitney Houston

“Million Dollar Bill” penned by Alicia Keys opens the album, a homage to the R & B groove of 70's and from there the album doesn't disappoint. Favourite track is Leon Russell's “A Song For You” which start off slow and builds to a dance floor anthem. There was a bit of confusion as to which song would be the first single, “I Didn't Know My Own Strength” penned by Diane Warren was a contender and then dropped in favour of “I Look To You”. I usually like Warren's song, the lyrics are very meaningful to Whitney but there is something off with the vocal arrangement, it's like the lyrics don't fit the music. When reviewing an artist with a voice like Whitney I usually concentrate on the songs because she's not a songwriter and is usually at the whim of her songwriters, but it's no secret that Whitney has abused her vocal chords probably from smoking drugs through the years. Her voice is not what it used to be, you expect her to soar or crescendo on some of the songs but it never seems to happen, whether it was written that way or not it leaves you wondering. On the positive side her voice has a new raspy edge to it which gives it character and life. Lyrics like “I've acted out my love in stages with ten thousand people watching” come across as autobiographical, you get the feeling that all the songs were written for her. You can't help but see the similarities to her life from the track “Nothing but Love” to the closing number “Salute” her swan song to Bobby Brown. “I Look To You” is great collection of songs and one of her most cohesive albums. 8/10

05 Yes--Pet Shop Boys

20 years later the boys are still putting out excellent pop music and remain masters at dance and electronica. This time around they hire Brian Higgins and his power machine Xenomania (Sugababes, Girls Aloud) to help co-write and produce some of the tracks. The team up produces a very cohesive, although sometimes homogenized modern pop album. Best tracks are “Did You See Me Coming?” with its beautiful guitar backing, “Beautiful People” and “Pandemonium” which sounds like classic Pet Shop Boys (think “Can You Forgive Her’). The album gets beautifully haunting with “All Over The World” a track that borrows from Tchaikovsky Nutcracker and the poetic war song “Building A Wall” where Neil sings "There's no where to defect to any more, I'm building a wall A fine wall Not so much to keep you out More to keep me in". Many have said this is their best since their 1993 album "Very" 8/10

06 The Fame Monster (EP)--Lady GaGa

GaGa was only suppose to write a few extra tracks as bonus songs for her debut album's re-release but after writing a few more she decided to release an EP of 8 tracks. From the explosive catchy “Bad Romance” the album is just as good as any full track CD. “Alejandro” has shades of ABBA, Speechless is an epic ballad and a huge hit in the waiting. The dancefloor burns up with the Depeche Mode flavoured “Dance In The Dark” and the Beyonce duet Telephone. GaGa has a way of mixing the best bits of pop music to create a unique vision and sound. 8/10


07 For Your Entertainment--Adam Lambert

Adam's debut album produces a mix of sound and vision, but lacks a bit of direction. “Music Again”, “Sure Fire Winner" and the Teddy Riley penned “Aftermath” follow the rock path and direction you would expect from him. “Sure Fire Winner” reminds me of the 80's stadium songs and “Pick You Up” throws a dash of Broadway into the mix. All songs would make great singles but instead his record label released the Britney-esque dance track “For Your Entertainment”, and the Pink penned track “Whataya Want from Me” which I think are horrible choices. My favourite song is the operatic ballad “Soaked”, Adam's vocals soar to epic proportions, the song is beautifully produced but probably not radio friendly. Linda Perry's pretty ballad “A Loaded Smile” slows the pace down. The album goes back into dance territory with “If I Had You" and the Lady GaGa catchy contribution “Fever”. The album closes with the opus 2012 film track ”Time For Miracles”. You can tell a lot of time and production went into this album and produced a pretty good effort from a karaoke contest winner. 7/10

08 Reality Killed The Video Star--Robbie Williams

I was looking forward to this album but I find it a bit underwhelming. Robbie says he's back to big ballads a la ”Angels” but the album is missing his signature spark, the kick he usually has. I love the opening track “Morning Sun” which he wrote last minute after Michael Jackson's death, and “Blasphemy” which he co-wrote with long time collaborator Guy Chambers, the song was actually a leftover from his Escapology album from 2003. I wish he would have gotten back with Chambers and written more songs. The rest of the album blurs together all very nice, but nice is the last thing you want on a Robbie Williams album. 6.5/10


09 Complete Me-Frankmuzik

Frankmusik remind me of Howard Jones, and the electronic artists of the 80's. His single “Confusion Girl” is an absolute delight and so much fun in an era of homogenised music. His songs are quirky and catchy like “Better Of As 2” and “3 Little Words”. “When Your Around”, which contains an interpolation of The Stranglers "Golden Brown" has a Depeche Mode quality to it. The album slows down with the tracks “Complete Me” and the more successful “Vacant Heart”. “Time Will Tell” mixes synths with borrowed loops from “Put The Needle On The Record”. He has a nice voice and his falsetto can be pretty but sometimes it can become grating. Unfortunately some of the music can come off sounding repetitive and annoying like the opening track “In Step”, “Gotta Boyfriend?” And “Done Done” where the synthesizers over power his voice too much, but how can I not like an artist who wrote a song called “Wonder Woman”. 6.5/10

10 Viva Bananarama

After 25 years I still love Bananarama, they don't take themselves too seriously and still produce fun pop music like their 2006 album “Drama”. Their follow up was supposed to be an album of cover tracks but they started writing so many new songs and changed their mind. Their new single “Loves Comes” produced by Ian Masterson delivers all the goods and was hopeful to a great album. “Love Don't Live Here” could make an OK single and “Dum Dum Boy” is fun but the rest of the album becomes a bit too homogenised and uses too much auto-tuning, I'd rather hear the girls voices and less manipulation, the song “Twisting” is just grating. I love some of the digital bonus tracks like the cover versions of “Voyage Voyage”, and “The Sound Of Silence”. 6/10


Singles of the year

01 Heartbreak On Vinyl----Blake Lewis
02 How Do You Sleep?----Jesse McCartney
03 We Are Golden----Mika
04 Confusion Girl----Frankmuzik
05 Bad Romance----Lady GaGa
06 Blame It On The Girls----Mika
07 Sad Song----Blake Lewis
08 Celebration----Madonna
09 Million Dollar Bill----Whitney Houston
10 Love Comes----Bananarama
11 Just Dance----Lady Gaga
12 Time For Miracles----Adam Lambert
13 About A Girl Sugababes
14 Evacuate The Dancefloor----Cascada
15 Did You See Me Coming----Pet Shop Boys

Atlantic City Boy

Pet Shop Boys Concert Review

Over 25 years in the business and the boys are still in top shape and can outdo many of their modern contemporaries. They put on a fabulous visual show but it started late and the sound wasn’t great. The doors opened at 8:00 but they didn't grace the stage till 9:50 and that was after their computer technician was testing and arranging the generated images on the screen for about 10 minutes. It was a small venue and it was great seeing them up close but the acoustics had too much bass and it almost drowned out Neil’s vocals, the venue with a low ceiling did not seem to be made for good sound.

They always have interesting set lists which include hits, fan favourites and lesser know songs. I would have replaced “Jealousy”, and the “Two Divided by Zero” medley which seem to lose momentum after Go West. The dancers, choreography and visuals were superb especially when the wall in “Building A Wall” came crashing down to reveal the back drop to “Go West”, who would have though that simple boxes could create such imagery. Many of the songs had bits and pieces of other songs, "Domino Dancing" is listed on the set list but it’s just a line or two from the song. There were so many mash ups I probably missed a few. I wish they would have sung the full version of “Closer To Heaven” which sounded beautiful in acapella. I was grateful that they added “New York City Boy” a favourite of mine which they never usually do. The crowd seem to go crazy for “Always On My Mind”, “Suburbia” and "Se A Vida E". They did 5 songs from the new album most went over well especially “All Over the World” (It would make a great single). “The Way It Used to Be” is nice on CD but it got lost in concert, I would have preferred to have heard “Beautiful People” which is being released as a single in Germany.

They did not sell out, I was able to buy tickets the night before and the room was not full. It was a strange crowd, there were some die hard fans but I don’t think Atlantic City was typical of their audiences. A fun visual concert, I’d be curious to see it in a different venue.


1. Heart
2. Did You See Me Coming?
3. Pandemonium/Can You Forgive Her?
4. Love etc.
5. Building a Wall/Integral
6. Go West
7. Two Divided by Zero/Why Don't We Live Together
8. New York City Boy
9. Always on My Mind
10. Closer to Heaven/Left to My Own Devices
11. Do I Have To?
12. The Way It Used to Be
13. Jealousy
14. Suburbia
15. All Over the World
16. Se A Vida E/Discoteca/Domino Dancing/Viva la Vida
17. It's a Sin
18. Being Boring
19. West End Girls

Did You See Them Coming?

Review: Pet Shop Boys album “Yes” (Released on 23 March in the UK and April 21 in the USA)

20 years later the boys are still putting out excellent pop music and remain masters at dance and electronica. This time around they hire Brian Higgins and his power machine Xenomania (Sugababes, Girls Aloud) to help co-write and produce some of the tracks. The team up produces a very cohesive, although sometimes homogenized modern pop album. Best tracks are “Did You See Me Coming?” with its beautiful guitar backing, “Beautiful People” and “Pandemonium” which sounds like classic Pet Shop Boys (think “Can You Forgive Her’). The album gets beautifully haunting with “All Over The World” a track that borrows from Tchaikovsky Nutcracker and the poetic war song “Building A Wall” where Neil sings "There's no where to defect to any more, I'm building a wall A fine wall Not so much to keep you out More to keep me in". Many have said this is their best since their 1993 album "Very" 8.5/10

The Boys will be kicking off their North America tour at the end of the summer in Montreal and continue throughout the month of September.



Aug 29—Montreal, Canada (Metropolis)
Sept 1—New York, NY (Hammerstein)
Sept 2—New York, NY (Hammerstein)
Sept 3—Washington, DC (Constitution Hall)
Sept 5—Boston, MA (House of Blues)
Sept 6—Atlantic City, NJ (House of Blues)
Sept 9—Miami, FL (Fillmore)
Sept 10—Tampa, FL (Tampa Bay PAC)
Sept 11—Orlando, FL (House of Blues)
Sept 12—Atlanta, GA (Chastain)
Sept 14—Chicago, IL (Chicago Theater)
Sept 15—Milwaukee, WI (Pabst Ballroom)
Sept 19—Vancouver, BC (Vancouver Centre of Performing Arts)
Sept 20—Seattle, WA (Moore)
Sept 22—San Francisco, CA (Warfield)
Sept 23—San Francisco, CA (Warfield)
Sept 24—Los Angeles, CA (Greek Theatre)
Sept 26—Las Vegas, NV (Joint)

New Pet Shop Boys

New Pet Shop Boys single "Love Etc" to be released March 16th from the forthcoming album "Yes" which drops March 23rd, co-written and produced by Xenomania.



Xenomania are the hot producers/songwriters in the UK at the moment, they have written many hits for the Sugababes, Sophie Ellis Bextor, Girls Aloud, Dannii and Kylie Minogue. Their leader and founder Brian Higgins co-wrote "Believe" for Cher before he started his own label.

The song was posted on Youtube but EMI Records pulled it off, you would think they would want it promoted no? Record companies are really stupid sometimes.

I really like the song, love the boys choir in the background, it's very catchy. Too bad that radio probably won't play their music. If you're not 20 or the sound du jour you'll never never get on a playlist or chart.

Top Albums Of 2006

The music of 2006 was up & down. Many of the albums I was waiting for from artist like Robbie Williams and Scissor Sisters were OK but did not blow me away. A few veteran artists like Elton John & Lionel Ritchie surprised me with stellar albums. I did manage to find a few new dance acts, the Brit born German act Cascada and the Danish group Infernal who burned up the dance floor with their hit "From Paris To Berlin". While Elton's "The Captain & The Kid" was my favourite disc it was hard to place an order to the other albums.

Some of the big Pop artists of the year included Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake bringing Sexy Back, Sean Paul, Gnarls Barkley & the Pussycat Dolls burning up the charts. My discovery of 2005 Brit singer Natasha Bedingfield broke into the US charts with her top 5 hit "Unwritten", the song ended up being # 6 on Billboards top songs of 2006. Canadian Daniel Powter scored the # 1 song of the year in the US with "Bad Day", thanks to American Idol who played the song every week after a contestant got booted off. Speaking of Idol winner Carrie Underwood had the biggest album in the US with "Some Hearts". In The UK the Scissor Sisters scored big with a # 1 album and single.

The Worst: don't "Wind It Up", someone please tell Gwen Stefani that "The Lonely Goatherd" from the "Sound Of Music DOES NOT make for a good pop song.

Top Albums of 2006


01The Captain & The Kid--Elton John
In my opinion, one of his best albums. Part 2 to his 1975 classic "Captain Fantastic and The Dirt Brown Cowboy", it continues the story of Elton's & Bernie Taupin's rise to success. The music however sounds more like a homage to the "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road " album with shades of "Candle In The Wind". The album blast off with "Postcards From Richard Nixon" (the best cut) that give me chills every time I hear it. It puts you right in '75 when Elton & Bernie visit America for the first time. Another favourite "Tinderbox" recalls the split between the 2. Every track is great which culminates in the autobiographical title cut.


02 Taller In More Ways--Sugababes
UK Pop/R&B girl group follows in the steps of Banarama. Like the "Nana's" they were school friends who started a singing group and they co-write most of their music. This is their 4th studio album and their best with great pop tracks like the #1 "Push The Button" and "Ugly" written with Dallas Austin. The girls team up with dance producers Xenomania for the fab "Red Dress" & Ace Reject. Originally released in 2005 the album was re-released in 2006 with a new member Amelle. Unfortunately only one original member is left and this could spell the end of the group.

03 Everytime We Touch--Cascada
Brit born/German singer Natalie Horler joins forcers with DJ/producers Yanou and DJ Manian to produce a great club/dance album. The single "Everytime We Touch" goes mainstream and break into the US top 10. My only complaint is that the album sounds all the same, there is one exception the great ballad "Another You' which showcase Nathalie's vocals. Favourite tracks include the Roxette cover "How Do You Do" and Kim Wilde's "Kids In America".

04 Coming Home--Lionel Richie
Lionel Richie puts the young guys to shame as he shows them how it should be done. Still sexy & cool with funky tracks like "Up All Night" & "All Around The World" that will keep you dancing on the ceiling and beyond. He slows it down with the hit "I Call It Love", the haunting "What You Are" and my favourite "Coming Home". Don't forget a bit of reggae with "Stand Down". A great album that will keep you up all night.

05 Rubebox--Robbie Williams
After a disappointing melancholy album last year Robbie is back with "Rudebox". This definitely a more upbeat dance album but I'm not a fan of all the rapping he does. The best tracks are the 2 "Pet Shop Boys collaborations, "She's Madonna" and "We Are The Pet Shop Boys". I wish he would have done a full album with them. The rest is kind of hit and miss. The song "The 80's" is cute but the follow up "The 90's isn't as much fun. "Never Touch That Switch & the cover "Lovelight" are dance floor fun.

06 Ta-Dah--Scissor Sisters
I love the lead single "I Don't Feel like Dancing" which collaborates with Elton John, maybe that's why I find the rest of the album a bit disappointing, it's very different. The album has a "vaudeville circus" sound. The tunes aren't as catchy or disco-y as their debut effort.


07 Fundamental--Pet Shop Boys
The Boys are back with 80's producer Tevor Horn. While it's not my favourite album of theirs (I find it a bit too subdued) they are still masters at dance music and synthesizers. Best tracks are "The Sodom & Gomorrah Show", "Integral", and the Dianne Warren penned epic ballad "Numb".


08 Never Say Never--Kim Wilde Remember British singer Kim Wilde? She hit #1 with "You Keep Me Hanging On" in the 80's, in the UK she had a long career of hits. I'm not usually big on artists covering their own songs but I love this album. The new rock version of "You Came" is so cool. Only 6 out of the 14 songs are remodelled covers the rest are all new songs and they are as good if not better then her old hits. The new single "Perfect Girl" rocks on. "Together We Belong" and "Forgive Me" will burn up the dance floor while & "Baby Obey Me" & "Fly" is perfect "pop". Too bad the album has only a limited release in Germany and some parts of Europe .

09 Loose--Nelly Furtado
The biggest Canadian success story of 2006 with # 1 mega singles in the UK ("Maneater") and the US ("Promiscuous"). Nelly is turning into a truly worldwide artist, but is it at the price of selling out as she teams up with Justin Timberlake's producer Timbaland? Other stand out tracks are "Glow", and the hit "Say It Right".


10 Back To Bedlam--James Blunt
The Brits are back with breakthrough artist James Blunt and his mega #1 hit "You're Beautiful". Love him or hate him the album has great tracks like "High" and "Wiseman". It will be interesting to see where he goes from here.


11 From Paris To Berlin--Infernal
Danish dance act consisting of Lina Rafn & Paw Lagermann. This is actually their 3rd album which was propelled into international status when their hit "From Paris To Berlin" started burning up the dance floors. The song was even re-recorded as "From London To Berlin" for the 2006 World Cup. The album is one big clubland and a touch of Europa with tracks like "Fairytale", "From The A To The B" and "Keen On Disco". Look out for the Australian Tour Edition which come with a bonus CD of live tracks and remixes.


12 Somewhere Else--Eva Avila
She could be the first Canadian Idol success story. Her first CD delivers with an R&B pop feast of songs. Stand out tracks include "Some Kind Of Beautiful" which is screaming to be released, "Old Love Song" and the Alicia Keys like "Weak In The Knees". Looking forward to see what she does next.
Honorable Mentions

Singles of the year
01 Unwritten--Natasha Bedingfield
02 I Don't Feel Like Dancing--Scissor Sisters
03 Red Dress--Sugababes
04 Jump--Madonna
05 Everytime We Touch--Cascada
06 From Paris To Berlin--Infernal
07 You're Beautiful--James Blunt
08 The Bride--Elton John
09 I Call It Love--Lionel Ritchie
10 What's Left Of Me--Nick Lachey
11 Lovelight--Robbie Williams
12 Promiscuous--Nelly Furtado