Songs you may have missed: Three weeks off edition

Let's just gloss over the three week gap in posts (the longest unscheduled break I've taken in 11 years) and crack on with some great music.

Here's what you (I) missed.

1) Justin Bieber - What Do You Mean?
Justin's first UK number one, and deservedly so, this is a collaboration with Skrillex and Diplo, as part of their Jack U project. It's been around since Christmas, slowly creeping into people's consciousness, thanks to an understated and, dare I say, emotional performance from the former brat. Best bit is the summery flute solo which, it turns out, is actually a heavily-processed vocal sample.





2) Taylor Swift - Wildest Dreams
This is a song from Taylor Swift's underappreciated recent album 1989. The video has caused some controversy because the lion does not eat Taylor's face off, or something.




3) Halsey - New Americana (live)
Why Ashley Nicolette Frangipane decided to adopt a stage name is beyond me... Maybe there was another Ashley Frangipane registered with ASCAP?

It doesn't really matter, though, when her music is this catchy. New Americana is a strident pop anthem set to a marching beat, in which the 20-year-old declares the next generation of Americans was "raised on Biggie and Nirvana". Imaginging the British equivalent - "raised on Dizzee and the Gallaghers" - makes Halsey's version seem even cooler.




4) Half Moon Run - Turn Your Love
Montreal indie outfit Half Moon Run scored Annie Mac's "Hottest Record" accolade on Tuesday with this skittering, psychedelic track. It starts off like an Alt-J cast off but builds into a beautiful crescendo with a "was that really human" falsetto.






5) Jarryd James - Sure Love
A laid back, loose fitting love ballad from Brisbane's Jarryd James, who scored a top 10 hit in Australia earlier this year and has been working extensively with Lorde's producer, Joel Little.

This song, however, comes via US super-producer Malay (Frank Ocean), who sprinkles his vocals over a twinkling Rhodes piano and a pleasingly chunky tambourine sound. Luscious listening.





6) Troye Sivan - Wild
Strewth, it's another Aussie singer-songwriter. Troye Sivan hails from Perth, and is being tipped for big things by the likes of Rolling Stone and Popjustice (who, somewhat prematurely, named him "pop entity of 2014").

He makes pop music that's quietly anthemic (if such a thing is possible), delivering monumental hooks with a subtle intimacy. Wild is the "big single", capturing the first tilt of romance, when you're walking home from a club with someone new and thinking: "Oh my God, they're hot".

It's the title track of his new six-song EP which, he says, is a mere snapshot of the "upwards of sixty" songs he's written over the last year. Expect big things.




7) Janet Jackson - Unbreakable
The title track, and opening number, from Janet's new album is a supple, funky little number about gaining strength from your friends and family. "The truth is that I wouldn’t be here Without the love I stand on," sings Janet over an old-time soul groove.

I've said it before, but everything about this new Janet project screams "return to form".




8) Oh Wonder - Livewire (live lounge)
Oh Wonder are something of an indie sensation. They appeared on Soundcloud last year, describing themselves simply as a "writing duo, releasing one song a month for a year." They did just that, captivating their small band of followers with a sequence of fragile, melodic songs set to heavy - if subdued - hip-hop beats.

Last week, they popped into Radio One for their first ever session... which also turned out to be their first ever live performance. Rarely do bands emerge so perfectly formed - but these guys are the real deal.




9) Alexx Mack - Sunglasses
2015 is turning out to be a vintage year for uncomplicated, balls out pop - from Demi Lovato's Cool For The Summer, to Little Mix's Black Magic. I guess we have Taylor Swift to thank.

The latest entry into canon is a minor one, but worth noting simply for the lyric: "Let's wake up naked and make out". Think Charli XCX by way of Katy Perry and you'll get the idea.





10) John Newman - Tiring Game (ft Charlie Wilson)
John Newman's been threatening to go gospel for ages. Now he finally goes for it, on this frantically cheesy duet with Charlie Wilson. A Philip Bailey and Phil Collins for the sound system generation.




11) Grace Mitchell - Jitter
Left-field, glitchy, speaker-threatening pop from 16-year-old Grace Mitchell, who is signed to Republic Records - home to Lorde and Taylor Swift.

The big surprise is that this avant garde track is produced by Mark Foster of Foster The People "fame".




12) Avicii - For A Better Day
Taking his cues from Mumford and Sons, Avicii has dropped the banjos and gone stadium rock. I'm not kidding.




13) Chvrches - Leave A Trace (Four Tet Remix)
Deconstructing Chvrches' wall of synths and viewing the debris through a haze of television distortion, this is an unsettling, but brilliant, remix. The original's still better, though.

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Robbie goes EDM and 10 other songs you may have missed

A semi-regular round-up of songs that I didn't have time to blog about this week because I was pushing swings and watching In The Night Garden. Quality guaranteed.

1) Avicii ft Robbie Williams - The Days
The first lead single from Avicii's second album Stories, this is excellent - like ELO remixed by, well, Avicii.

It was accidentally uploaded to the Swedish DJ's YouTube channel for a couple of hours earlier this week. But it stuck around long enough for people to grab the audio and upload it elsewhere. Et voila.




2) Odesza - Say My Name (RAC Mix)
The original version of Say My Name is pleasant enough but RAC - as they so often do - track down the song's sweet spot and exploit it ruthlessly. This is brilliant.






3) Aretha Franklin - Rolling In The Deep (The Aretha Version)
The parenthesised subtitle is audacious, but if anyone's earned the right to plant a flag in Adele's song and declare it their own, it's Ms Franklin. (Although, with the greatest r-e-s-p-e-c-t, the original is about 20 times better).





4) Kendrick Lamar - i
Over in America, the hip-hop heads are having a heated debate about Kendrick Lamar's new single, accusing the so-called "Savior (Saviour) of hip-hop" of selling out. Why? Because the song is a radio-friendly, Isley Brother-sampling, freewheeling juggernaut of positivity.

To which I say: Your loss.




5) Pharrell Williams - It Girl
In a further effort to rehabilitate his image, Pharrell spends this video chatting up a pre-teen manga character with unfeasibly large breasts. Oh, hang on...






6) Billie Black - I Don't Need Another Lover
Nineteen-year-old Londoner Billie Black really impresses on this slinky soul track. Her voice will remind you of Jessie Ware, but that's not a criticism. This is pure pleasure.






7) Becky Hill - Losing
The voice behind Oliver Helden's Gecko (Overdrive) and Rudimental's Powerless, and a former contestant on The Voice-although-we-don't-talk-about-that, Becky Hill is one to watch for 2015. This MNEK-produced single is further proof that she possesses a healthy serving of special sauce.





8) Clean Bandit - Real Love (ft Jess Glynne)
A fantastic treat from the Clean Bandit crew - a new, unreleased track with Rather Be vocalist Jess Glynne. Their Facebook page says its a co-release, suggesting its from Jess's forthcoming solo album, but Clean Bandit get top billing. How odd.

Real Love is one of those songs that tricks you into thinking it's going to be a lighters-aloft ballad before exploding like a bejewelled kitten. And we all love bejwelled kittens, right?





9) Chromeo - Old 45s
The lyrics are an ode to the singles of your youth, and the video stars Haim and Napoleon Dynamite. I couldn't resist.




10) Ben Howard - Hideaway (Kiesza cover)
I'm not usually a fan of the "slow down a dance song and reveal untold depths" school of Live Lounge covers, because dance songs always have untold depths and only music snobs think otherwise. But this beautiful, solemn take on Kiesza's future classic is so beautiful it gets a free pass.

That's this week's pick. What was your favourite? Let me know in the comments or on the Twitter "sphere".

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Little Mix throw some shapes and seven other songs you may have missed

A semi-regular round-up of songs and videos that didn't make the blog in the last seven (or, in this case, 10) days. It's a veritable treasure chest of quality pop.

1) Little Mix - Move (X Factor rehearsal)
Jade, Jesy, Perrie and Leigh-Anne bunged this footage up on YouTube last Friday, while they were rehearsing the routine for Sunday's X Factor.

Filmed on a fixed camera in an anonymous dance studio, it's far superior to the televised version, which dropped some of the choreography, and (frustratingly) cut away to cavernous wide shots during all the best bits. They paid for that ridiculous set, so they're damn well going to make the most of it.

If you like this, you'll be pleased to hear the girls are releasing a dance-only edit of the proper video to Move at some point in the next few days.





2) Blood Orange - You're Not Good Enough
We love Dev Hynes for his stellar work on Solange's jaw-dropping True EP and MKS's un-loved but sublime Flatlines.

You're Not Good Enough is a new single under his "Blood Orange" moniker, featuring the vocal talents of Samantha Urbani of US indie-poppers Friends. As subtle and sexy as any of the Solange material, it's the roller-coaster bassline that really makes my stomach drop.






3) Avicii - Hey Brother
You know what? I think Avicii's hit on something with his ridiculous "House Music x Bluegrass" formula. Two of the world's biggest-selling musical genres, side by side in unholy matrimony (with apologies to Stevie Wonder).

After scoring a number one with the Aloe Blacc-featuring You Make Me, his new single ropes in Dan Tyminski (literally, with a lassoo) - who you might know as the man who sang Man Of Constant Sorrow on the O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack.

It shouldn't work, but it kind of does.




4) Ella Eyre - Deeper
19-year-old Ella has already scored a number one this year, as the featured vocalist on Rudimental's Waiting All Night.

Deeper is her debut single, and a stunning showcase for her slightly blurry, soulful vocals. The tempo comes down a couple of notches from Waiting All Night, but she sounds just as urgent and exciting as ever.






5) Laurel - Fire Breather
Urgh, another insanely talented 19-year-old. How about a nice middle-aged pop star with an achy knee for once?

Anyway, we can't complain about Laurel, who styles herself as "London's last sweetheart trying to set the world to rights with love songs." She comes recommended by Ms Nicola Roberts (aka the only member of Girls Aloud with musical taste) and her debut EP is a Delicious Del Rey Delight.

The A-side is Fire Breather, which thuds with lust like a palpitating heart; while the B-Side is a slow-burning ballad called The Desert. Both are free to download right now.





6) Angel Haze - Summertime Sadness
Angel Haze's 30 Gold series continues "apace" with this yummy strummy cover of Summertime Sadness. The girl can sing, I'll give her that.






7) NoNoNo - Scared
I'm not really sure what happened to NoNoNo's single Pumpin' Blood. It got delayed and delayed in the UK because it was due to be featured in a major TV commercial - but the wait apparently killed the song's momentum. It's out now, but radio never quite got on the bandwagon despite lots of early support.

Still, the band are doing incredibly well in the rest of Europe, so they'll have to remain our little secret for now. Scared is their latest track, recorded for a Kitsune Maison compilation, and its got hooks that'll stick in you for days.





8) Charli XCX - I Want Candy
I don't normally post videos from gigs because (a) the quality is awful and (b) the people that make them are awful.

But I'm making an exception because this encore, from Charli XCX's recent show in San Francisco, is utterly brilliant (if boringly faithful to the original). It should be a single.

And that's your lot. If you have any suggestions for next week's list, drop me a line using the address at the bottom of the page.

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