New Music: Oliver Richards - D.I.V.A.

Our review of the Aberdeen local and soul legend's new single & EXCLUSIVE interview 

Oliver Richards performing live
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bootbearwdc/39038159/By dbking

"Can you handle the funk?!" demands Oliver Richards' new single (listen here) subliminally. The 'I Got You (I Feel Good)' singer has been quiet in recent weeks following the release of his Kick and Pull EP, which has gone multi-platinum in Bolivia, Armenia and 1978, making 'D.I.V.A.' a much welcomed return to the spotlight. 

Older than much of the material on his EP, the fan favourite starts strongly with drum loops that wouldn't seem out of place on Fleetwood Mac's 'Say You Will' album, a vibe that is continued in some of the guitar tone, vocal effects, and much of the singer's Stevie Nicks inspired wardrobe. 

Apart from a worrying moment around the 2.00 minute mark where it feels as though he may be embarking on a cover of Rage Against The Machine's 'Killing in the Name', Richards keeps everything light-hearted and tongue in cheek, a surprise given the serious nature and existential aspect of the title.

We interviewed Oliver Richards about the song in the below freezing temperatures of Aberdeen earlier today:

MME: Why go back to recording older songs after releasing newer ones like the sublime 'Gimme Love'?

OR: Prob cos I wanted to.

Wise words from the 'It's a Man's Man's Man's World' singer in that extensive interview, showing that it's not just through his music that he is able to communicate. 

Our verdict: If the music doesn't get you dancing, then the lyrics will get you singing.

8/10

'D.I.V.A.' will be released on the 28th January on iTunes and Amazon, and you can listen now via soundcloud

Review: 'Our Love Has Solar Equinoxed' by Muse

Not content with just releasing album 'The 2nd LAWL' this year, Muse have put out a new single as part of the Breaking Dawn Part 2 soundtrack, but is it any good?

Matt Bellamy doing a guitar playing
Image: 'Matthew Bellamy' http://www.flickr.com/photos/14726595@N02/1632910575

We really enjoyed 'The 2nd LAWL', so we were a little disappointed when we heard new single 'Our Love Has Solar Equinoxed', which features in the final instalment of the Twilight franchise. 

The clear move tie-in sound effects of wolves howling and vampires vamping gives way to a synth chord riff, which bears more than a passing resemblance to Queen's 'A Kind Of Magic', before moving on to a chorus which sounds a lot like something Queen might have written around the same time as 'Flash'. The lyrics are instantly recognisable as Muse, with the chorus containing a revolutionary call against the New World Order:

"We must stop them / End their reign of terror / But our love has solar equinoxed."

Although this is all very Muse, it is also quite reminiscent of some Queen songs such as 'Fat Bottomed Girls', although singer Matt Bellamy seemed completely unaware of this in interview when he said: "It's actually got quite a INXS-U2-R.E.M.-IDM-IBM- MFI-IKEA-funk-punk-pop feel to it, just this sort of feeling of oppression, knowing that the end of the world is coming and the energy is escaping. And we're just letting them get away with it."

Our verdict: the song is catchy enough, but it's nothing new from the band.

5/10

Review: 'Little Things' by One Direction

"A combination of surely all things good that exist, Ed Sheeran has written a song for / 'with' One Direction called 'Little Things', which will be released as the second single from their forthcoming album "Take Me Home" on Monday.

One Direction in colour (pre-Sheeran)
Image: 'one direction 371'
 http://www.flickr.com/photos/29103849@N00/6704958383

The video is shot in faux-artistic black and white, to gently remind you that THIS IS AN ACOUSTIC BALLAD, with all of the members sporting inane, vacant grins that hint at a recent induction into Scientology, or any fucktard religion that requires more money than sense and a set of radioactive-glow teeth.

They all get a shot at singing, which is arse-numbingly lovely, and allows a good chunk of the song to pass by almost completely unnoticed with nothing making any particular impact, until halfway through the second verse when this abominable snowfuck of a voice cunts its way into the song, sounding like a cheese grater has been taken to the vocal chords in a desperate attempt to inject anything into the meaningless singer-songwriter lyrics about loving a girl no matter what she looks like, because One Direction are definitely like that.

The song is so bed-wettingly dull that it can only ever reach people on a subliminal level, meaning horse shit Sheeran-isms such as:

"You can't go to bed without a cup of tea, and maybe that's the reason you talk in your sleep"

will have most listeners rushing to boil the kettle without having a fucking clue why, a faint throbbing pain at the back of their head being the only reminder that any music is playing at all, as their subconscious begs them to pour scalding water into their ears in a semi-hopefull but ultimately fruitless attempt at the escapism of deafness."

said Noel Gallagher. You can form your own opinion by listening to the song below: