"hi pod, please shut up and go listen to these real beauties"

with the hardest working day of the week now consigned to water cooler history, and only four office days left until field day festival i thought i'd get home, relax and put my weary feet up with some terrible television. i wanted terrible but watchable tv. you know, shit, but still leaves you feeling warm inside (surprise surprise, howard's way, that kind of thing). to my annoyance i've painfully just watched the first 41 seconds of 'snog marry avoid?' and i'm left questioning our existence. but instead of writing a tear and blood stained final message directed at jenny frost, 'pod' and overweight orange girls giving them the satisfaction they crave, i've instead gone through my itunes to make a rather more life embracing note of my favourite five albums of 2010 so far. so for all those looking for something other to do than start gang warfare against glowing perma-tan girls, go listen to the following...

foals, 'total life forever'

raising the bar not just for bands from studious oxford, but for all british bands right now. amazing. 9

favourite song... 'spanish sahara'

arcade fire, 'the suburbs'

not out for a few days yet, but thankfully for us (but not their bank manager) it's leaked and is currently set on repeat on my iphone. quite brilliant. 9

favourite song... 'ready to start'

mystery jets, 'serotonin'

the strongest middle of an album i've heard in a long time, irresistibly catchy. 8

favourite song... 'show me the light'

avi buffalo, 'avi buffalo'

sounds like the album mgmt tried (but failed) to make with their second offering. poppy and summery, lovely stuff. 7

favourite song... 'truth sets in'

yeasayer, 'odd blood'

in places sounds like the perfect pilled up, loved up, but very weird summer party. odd blood, odd sounds and oddly scattered bits of genius. 7

favourite song... 'love me girl'

so there you have it, my top five. a special mention should also go to sleigh bells, ariel pink's haunted graffiti, the coral and two door cinema club who just failed to make the grade, i'm sure they're crying into their supper right now. with that written, i'm off to watch 'lee nelson's well good show'. someone pass me a gun.

sarah told him to listen to the mystery jets...

album review >> the mystery jets >> serotonin

riding my bike through london in a mad dash to work, slowed by summer’s whirling winds, the light spitting rain and HGVs is a tough and dangerous task at the best of times. add to that my ipod beating my ear drums with the latest mystery jets album 'serotonin' and the dangers suddenly reach new levels. a lack of attention towards the heaving traffic is the obvious risk but the other problem with hearing a new album in such congested conditions is the threat of missing the best parts. turns out though, after one albeit rushed and background noise-filled listen, i've heard enough to want to race home and give it the time it deserves (minus the hazards of london roads).

'serotonin' is a good album. not great as some are suggesting but a good, upbeat, indie pop album. these chaps are obviously very comfortable with the music they're making right now and so they should be. heavily relying on the '80s for the basics of their sound, nearly every song takes interesting and unexpected twists and is backed with beach boys-inspired '60s harmonies. with my hands gripping my handle bars, i had no digital display to check the track names, so simply had to remember the basics and the things that struck me straight away: track one is a good intro to the album, track four is catchy, track seven is the stand out and it seems, most of the songs are about the loss of a girl or dizziness of drugs. off my bike and settled at my desk with said digital display in front of me (my ipod of course) i made some brief notes of the songs that really stood out, here’s what i discovered...

the first track 'alice springs' is a favourite, but also 'flash a hungry smile', 'show me the light' and the obvious yet excellent (and substance inspired) 'dreaming of another world'. title track 'serotonin' is another i could clearly recall (i initially put this down to the repeated cries of "sarah told him" - sarah told him what lads? get to the point - but it soon became clear they were indeed singing "serotonin"), but it's simply because it's a good electronically led song.

various influences include aforementioned synth based '80s pop, but also indie oldies the super furry animals and even a slight touch of more recent chord progression-based top 40 friendly acts. some lyrics are a little immature and obvious, especially in 'it's too late to talk' and 'the girl is gone', but perhaps this is the charm of this album. they're not trying to do a radiohead or take a new direction - this is pop, it's simple, it's memorable and it's an easy listen. the fact that there’s nothing too inventive or explorative here is something to appreciate at a time when so many bands panic in an attempt to challenge their fans two or three albums in. i'm hoping the simple and ear-pleasing basics of 'serotonin' keep me alert enough on my bike tonight so i can appreciate this masterful pop perfection in the comfort of my own home... go take a listen, but not on a bike.

8