Fan video vs band video

Nebraskan purveyors of off-kilter pop Tilly And The Wall have been given Song of the Day status over at the almighty Popjustice for their current single Beat Control.

But there are two videos doing the rounds - the official one, complete with special effects and a man wearing a watermelon necklace; and one made by a bunch of grade four children at an international school in Taiwan (seemingly led by Justin from Ugly Betty).

So which is best? Watch both and cast your vote below.


Beat Control - the official one


Beat Control - Made in a primary school

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Girls Aloud album title revealed...

It's (provisionally) called Out Of Control !

All the info - and a hi-res version of The Promise video - can be found on the BBC. And here's the "amazing moment" when Kimberley revealed the news.

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Notes on Britney's Womanizer

It's strange to think that when Britney was at her lowest ebb last year, she managed to turn out the most consistent run of singles of her entire career - Gimme More, Piece of Me and Break The Ice.

Now that she's seemingly back on the mend, she's got some new material and it's... also rather good. Womanizer (you can hear it on Britney's beta website) may not have the chutzpah to announce "It's Britney, bitch" or the cheeky, self-aware lyrics of Piece Of Me, but it's a damned sexy slice of electronic chart cake.

It is the sort of cake that has two layers of melody, plus a nice filling of creamy harmonies and a strawberry jam synth line. Britney's robotic vocals suggest it might be more of a mass-produced supermarket Victoria Sponge than a home-baked Vanilla Slice, but at least it's not one of those experimental Heston Blumenthal cakes made out of gravy, or iced cats livers or what have you. [that's quite enough of the cake metaphor, thankyouverymuch - ed]

But I have a huge problem with the song, and it is this... When Britney sings the bridge:


I can't help but sing this instead:


Yes, that's right. In my head, I have confused Britney Spears and Lulu.

I think I may need a shower now.

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Amazing x5

Here's a quintuple dose of awesome to kick off your weekend:

1) Alesha Dixon's new single
Through the medium of mambo, Alesha is reaching out to her two, distinct audiences - (a) People who mourn the passing of Mis-Teeq (b) People who only know her because of Strictly Come Dancing.

The Boy Does Nothing is the name of the song, and I can prove to you how amazing it is in just 20 seconds:



There's more on Alesha's MySpace.

2) Ninja Cat is comin' to getcha



3) Ben Folds Five and Regina Spektor
My two favourite people who sit behind a piano and sing at the same time have sat behind two pianos and sung at the same time as each other. Result = Brilliance.

Ben Folds - You Don't Know Me (feat Regina Spektor


4) Barack Obama visits the West Wing
Aaron Sorkin takes time out from writing a movie about Facebook (the mind boggles) to imagine what advice The West Wing's Jed Bartlett would give the current Democratic Presidential Candidate.

:: Jed & Barack [New York Times] Warning: Socks will be blown off.

5) A Girls Aloud video with a budget in excess of £2.50

Girls Aloud - The Promise


Trivia: I interviewed Kimberley yesterday. She was tired, but very polite.

The End.

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Girls Aloud Live Lounge pt 3!

Without make-up and without Nadine (shingles, apparently) Girls Aloud have just made their third trip to Radio 1's Live Lounge, which was temporarily relocated to Jo Whiley's garage for some reason.

As ever, the format is to perform the new single (Promises: Growing on me all the time) and a cover (One Republic's Apologise: Screechy).

The girls did pretty well without their vocal lynchpin, especially as it was their first ever performance of the new song. Have a listen and let me know what you think...

:: Girls Aloud - The Promise (live lounge)
:: Girls Aloud - Apologise (live lounge)





More pictures over at the Radio One website. I covet Jo Whiley's bookcase, by the way.

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I'm not disappearing

Discopop Directory will be moving over to a new server on Friday, so it might disappear from the internet for an hour or two. But don't worry, I'll be back as soon as the boffins have pressed all the right switches.

See ya!
Mark

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