'Ello Lolo

Can a singer get away with scrapping everything and starting again? You'd think not - changing your name or your musical style means admitting you weren't being genuine in the first place. But it happens more often than you'd think.

In 2011, winsome singer Lizzie Grant entered her cocoon and emerged, fully formed, as doompop overlord Lana Del Rey; Dear Eskiimo got dumped by their label and came back as The Ting Tings; Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem achieved moderate success after they rechristened themselves Red Hot Chili Peppers (a massive mistake, if you ask me).

So it's not entirely bad news for Lolo - an exciting new urban artist, unless you happen to remember pop crooner Lauren Pritchard, whose 2010 album Wasted In Jackson scored positive press, but failed to leap of the shelves.

As a result, Lauren has started using her nickname (Lolo Pritch), giving her license to pursue a harder, crunchier sound than the watered-down Winehouse of her debut. You might have spotted her recently on Panic! At The Disco's Miss Jackson, but it's her new solo single you should really be listening to.

Year Round Summer Of Love crashes through your speakers like a dumper truck, as a madman pounds out chunky piano chords and Pritchard's voice is fed through a shredded loudspeaker. It sounds tremendous.

It's taken from Lolo's forthcoming debut album. She hasn't given it a name yet, but she says it'll sound like "Fiona Apple & Eminem's love child," - IE "loud, very loud". I'm ready and waiting.

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