It's quite nice when a band touted as "Electro Pop" actually manage to pull it off without any pretension. Certain bands labelling themselves with the title end up skewed one way or the other, either turning in an absolute racket or bubbly pop. So it's nice when a band like MGMT (pronounced "the Management") come along who actually manage to balance the label. Check them out.

MP3 MGMT - Time to Pretend

Here's a couple of quick bits for a Saturday afternoon.

A new N*E*R*D track dropped this week, and it seemed like every blog on the web decided to post it. Not wanting to be excluded from everyone else, here it is below. It's not bad either.

MP3 N*E*R*D - Everybody Nose

I might get into trouble for posting this, but what the hell. Here's a remix of Mancunian electro pop sorts Modernaire.

MP3 Modernaire - Fait tes jeux (Hemme Fetale Remix)

It's been a while since I've written about Cat Power. Long time readers of this blog might remember that in the early days, she featured quite a bit on here while "the Greatest" was out. Anyway, she's got a new covers record out now, titled "Jukebox", and it features Ms Marshall covering tracks by the likes of James Brown, the Highwaymen and George Jackson. It's alright, but not great, with the first four tracks sounding confident, and the rest of the record falling into a bit of a dirge. For completists only really, though the following Sinatra cover is great.

MP3 Cat Power - New York, New York

I know little-to-bugger-all about dubstep. Yeah, I got into Burials album last year (as listed in my '07 best of) but that's about where it ends for me. That said, this tune has been on 6 music (daytime no less) a bit lately, and it certainly stands out from the usual mix of Adele and rare punk. Apparently, Benka is a dubstep don and has been doing it since the whole thing started, while Coki is one of Digital Mystikz. I'm still none the wiser, but it's definitely worth a listen.

MP3 Benka and Coki - Night

Heath Ledger was found dead in his apartment earlier today in NYC. It's a real shame, I'm a fan of comics and I've been really looking forward to his appearance in the new Batman movie as the Joker, a role he's said to have nailed. I'm not overly familiar with his work, but still he's the same age as me and that always drives something home.

Rest in peace.

Yawn. I'm working on a presentation for work tomorrow, and it's something that seems to have gone on ALLLLLL night. Yeah, I did take a couple of hours off for dinner and to watch Eastenders, but now I find myself sat back at the computer resizing images (of John Rambo, as above, don't ask) while slowly finding my will to sleep getting sucked away. That is, until this track reared his head on iTunes, and while it's not maybe the kind of thing I would usually like, it's made my day. Check it out.

MP3 Muscles - Sweaty (Shazam Remix)

News has broken today that former Take That member (and all round dickhead) Robbie Williams has been recording with Blockhead/Disco Expert Chaz Jankel. Williams has had some interesting producers over the last few years, including Mark Ronson, Soul Mekanik and has sampled the likes of Sly and Robbie. It's a bit of a pity that with that kind of pedigree, some of his output has been so Godawful. Lets hope Chaz can do something good with the wayward fat boy.

MP3 Chaz Jankel - You're my occupation

Cut Copy are back with a new album on 22nd March, produced by a popular guy who remixes under the name the Loving Hand. A few bits have leaked, and this dropped in my inbox this morning. Taking the NYC Disco groove and marrying it to Daft Punk infectiousness, this could well be one of the tunes of 2008, and it's only fucking January. Hold on, and hold tight.

MP3 Cut Copy - B.A.B.Y

BONUS MP3!! Ssion - Clown (Glass Candy Remix) *

* EDIT - I obviously had something else on my mind when I posted this, seeing as I marked the track down as "Passion". Hmm.

Here's another slice of Detroit goodness from our man on the ground. This time, it's from seminal garage rockers MC5.

"Contrary to popular mythology, Detroiters are not raised on a steady diet of the MC5 (no thanks to the NME for that). I, for one, didn't hear the MC5 until I was a teenager.

I was laying in bed, blatantly disregarding parental orders by having the radio on after curfew. I was listening to the Jere Stormer Show, a late-night smorgasbord of non-standard rock, when suddenly the most ripping rock sounds I'd ever heard started clawing their way out of my speaker. I sat up in my bed, thinking 'What the fuck is THAT???' I'd been listening to punk rock since 1980, and I'd NEVER heard something as outre' as THIS. While most punk bands sounded as if they were playing chainsaws, this bunch sounded like they were playing JET ENGINES. Also, the lead singer was actually SINGING, which stuck out amongst all of the adenoidal yelling in punk rock. Right after the first verse, with no chorus or anything, the lead guitar took off for the stratosphere, and never seemed to find his way back before the whole thing crashed against the speakers with a huge "Ker-WHUNNNGK!!!!" that seemed to blast all the air out of the room, fading out with the apparent sounds of wreckage tinkling across the studio floor.

When the song ended, I snuck out and called the radio station. When Jere answered the phone, I started babbling. "That record you just played! Who -- what in the -- who the -- Who WAS that???"

There was a slight pause on the other end while Jere grinned like the Cheshire Cat (I could practically hear him doing it over the phone). "Kid" he finally said, 'That was the MC5."

"No way!" I protested. "The MC5 play that noodly Classical shit!" Like all properly-raised children of my era, I had been under the impression that all bands labeled 'Late-60s' and 'heavy' played that noodly Classical shit (BKA Prog Rock). While I was wrong on at least two counts, I here note without a trace of irony that Detroit's own contribution to the original Prog scene, Symphonic Metamorphosis, was made up of sitting members of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

Anyway, Jere schooled me proper that night, and we have enjoyed some good laughs over it in the intervening years.

The MC5 *destroyed* my faith in punk rock that night. NONE of those bands sounded like that, not even the ones I *liked*, like Stiff Little Fingers. It didn't matter what they were singing *about*; they SOUNDED like sonic revolution. I never heard punk rock the same way, after that. The first time I heard The Exploited, I said 'Tch. Poseurs...'"

MP3 MC5 - Looking at You

It's late, I'm tired, but I've found a few really interesting bits to share with you all. First up, here's a Chad Hugo remix of Kings of Leon. I've often thought that Chad Hugo is the balls behind the Neptunes, with Mr Williams adding the syrup to make the girls swoon. And on this offering, I guess I may be right.

MP3 Kings of Leon - My Party (Kenna and Chad Hugo Remix)

Now please, I want you to take a deep, deep breath. In a move so hip that any self respecting hipster could literally combust on the spot without any form of incendiary device, MIA has been given the remix treatment by DFA. It was given an airing on Annie Mac's show the other night, and the below MP3 is a rip from that.

MP3 MIA - Paper Planes (DFA Remix) / ZShare *

* I don't mind you sharing this with people you know, but please be aware that it really is for evaluation purposes only, as an edit from a radio show really isn't the best way to showcase a track. Still, you get the idea, and we all know that bass riff driving the track along is going to be fucking huge.

About fucking time. When I heard that "they" planned to do a film version of the A Team about 5 years ago, only one man fell into my mind that could fill Mr T's rather large boots - Ice Cube. And after many other names being associated with the role, finally today it's been reported that he's up for the role. About fucking time too.

MP3 Ice Cube - You can do it

I've been meaning to post this for ages, but I've never got round to it. Anyway, with a a belly full of Sunday Scran here it is, and think of me while I try and convince the Mrs it's a good idea to go to this. Wish me luck.

MP3 Friendly Fires - Paris

Some of you Channel 4 viewers will have been haunted in recent weeks by the rather good new Hollyoaks trailer. Yes, I know that the words "good" and "Hollyoaks" rarely go together in the same sentence, but while the promo looks fun, it's backed by this track by the Brunettes. It's taken from one of those albums from 2007 that I listened to only once, which did lead to something of a eureka moment when it was played on the radio earlier today and I realised what it was. Ka ka ka ka ka ....

MP3 The Brunettes - Brunettes against Bubblegum Youth

Woo hoo - it's my Birthday today! It's quite possibly the most rubbish day to have a Birthday on, but still I'll press on and have a good time anyway. Here's a tune that I've heard on every Birthday I've had this decade. Happy New Year.

MP3 Alan Braxe and Fred Falke - Intro