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Artist:
Take That
 Like a 50 year old vintage port..., 2008-12-03
...these guys just get better with age.
Having being pretty blown away by Beautiful World, I was wondering if Take That could top it.
When I heard Greatest Day, the first single to be taken from this new album, I have to say I had my doubts. Having now listened to the album as a whole, it still wouldn't be my choice for the first single but it does fit into the mix of styles showcased here.
Lead vocal duties have been dished out much more here than on any previous Take That release. Gary Barlow, surely one of the best British songwriters of his generation, has allowed his fellow band members to take centre stage here, only singing the lead on a handful of tracks. Jason Orange follows up his folky vocal on Beautiful World's Wooden Boat with the up-tempo 'How Did It Come To This?', Howard Donald superbly handles a ballad in 'What Is Love?', but this album is surely the Mark Owen show. The wonderfully infectious 'Hello' is noughties pop at it's absolute best and you'll find yourself singing it all day.
Opening track 'The Garden' sees, for the first time, all four members of the group taking lead vocal on a verse each and is all the better for it - a truly standout track and a highlight for me, alongside 'Hello', 'What Is Love?' and 'Up All Night'.
A lot of people have criticised this album for being too quirky. Yes it is quirky, but for me that's what makes it so good. Beautiful World was always going to be a success due to the anticipation related to the comeback and so it was going to be on this album that I think the new 'man-band' Take That would be judged.
This is a superb album. Dare I say it? The best album they've ever done? I think it is, you know...
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £7.99
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Artist:
Girls Aloud
The album title, Out of Control, is of course a misnomer-- if there is a more in control, empowered, dominant and disciplined pop tour-de-force out there, then Girls Aloud must still be sassier and brassier and a whole lot noisier, because we're not noticing anyone else. And this is also possibly the most restrained, or at least sleek and refined, collection of songs from the Girls yet. There are a couple of deeply pulsating off-the-peg club floor-fillers in "Turn to Stone" and "The Loving Kind" that embody an out-of-body hedonism, poised retro pastiches like the gliding and punchy "The Promise" and sassy rhythmic "Love Is the Key", then up-tempo 80s-flavoured ballad "Rolling Back the Rivers in Time", direct steamy pop of "Fix Me Up" and brilliantly on the button infectiousness of "Miss You Bow Wow". The fluency is palpable across such a range of subtle twists and turns, their confidence such a given they don't ever need to force the point. This is album number five and although it's impossible to fight the feeling of it being the next tidy package from a well oiled production line it's about as hard not to gawp at the electrifying consistency that sneaks and smashes through its twelve tracks--and in that sense maybe you could say it is a little Out of Control, compared to the competition. --James Berry
here's how to get the latest iPod for next to nothing,, 2008-12-04
YouriPod.co.cc
So everyone wants one!!!! Stylish ,compact , everything you need and best of all here's how you can get it for next to nothing!!
To get one go to YouriPod.co.cc sign up and complete ONE offer - you choose which offer best suits you maybe a dvd rental trial , bingo , a football bet , even aa cover there are loads to choose from and a lot of them are free ! recently featured in T3 magazine as a great way to get a cheap/free gadget and also the 8BC showed how this works on the newsnight
You can choose from a range of items from any Apple product to custom orders and its sent direct to you
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £8.49
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Artist:
P!nk
Whilst easily one of the most distinctive female pop vocalists of the last ten years, with her hot-headed persona and torching rock vocals barrelling through empowered songs both infectious and tender, P!nk did step back into line somewhat for more one-size-fits-all last album I'm Not Dead. Her voice aside, there was little pull her apart from her peers or to suggest she'd ever again go on to release anything as definitive as her breakthrough album M!ssundaztood. But whether driven by young pretenders like Katy Perry making a grab for her crown or by that perennial emotional motivator--break-up (she was divorced between albums)--Funhouse utterly redeems P!nk. From the front cover through most tracks on the record she stokes the wild-child inside herself that made her famous in the first place, but in most examples there is also evidence of a fostering maturity, whether in the crystal beauty and depth of ballads "Glitter In the Air" or "I Don't Believe You" or the firm-handed command of more built-up tunes like the Red Hot Chili Peppers vs. Joan Jett coarseness of "Sober" or sassy rocker "Boring" that somewhat improbably combines The Dandy Warhols' "Horse Pills" and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds' "Get Ready For Love" as though delivered by the Pussycat Dolls. And maturity aside, bold first single "So What" and future-funk swing dance "Bad Influence" are about the catchiest, and indeed gutsiest, things she's delivered in years. --James Berry
P!NK: THE BEST SO FAR, 2008-11-15
I am not going to lie. I am a massive p!nk fan. I love her. So i may be a little biased. But after a love hate relationship with the last two albums I must say this is worth your pennies. Its a beautifully crafted c.d with such ecclectic styles it fits any mood you maybe in.
Theres the first single so what (which I sometimes love and sometimes hate), but the songs which are the most beautiful are the ones sprinkled through the album.
Ave mary a : an amazing rock stomp.
Glitter in the air : a beautiful raw song which made me cry the
first time I heard it
i dont believe you : the most beautifully raw song on the album. MAKE THIS A SINGLE DAMMIT!
BUY THIS ALBUM!
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £6.94
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Artist:
Various Artists
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £8.98
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Artist:
Kings Of Leon
Already on course to be one of the year's biggest sellers, Only By the Night has sealed Kings of Leon's unlikely position as Britain's favourite American rock band. The Followill brothers (and cousin) have always been tagged as part of a southern rock tradition of family bands such as the Allmans and Lynyrd Skynyrd, a label they vehemently refuted. But the skinny lads certainly looked like a classic rock act, even as they took musical inspiration from indie contemporaries The Strokes and eighties new wave acts such as The Cure and New Order. Only By the Night is effectively a sequel to 2006's terrific Because of the Times, their third record and the first where they nailed their own sound, a striking amalgam of bluesy vocals and post-punk primitivism. In comparison Only By the Night consolidates rather than advances their style. The appropriately incoherent "Sex on Fire", already a chart topping single, is catchy but sounds lightweight next to songs like the fierce "Crawl" and the stadia-ready "Cold Desert" and "Manhattan". The dissonant, almost amateurish "17" is most out of place, though Caleb Followill still bawls it with the same passion he brings to even the clumsiest couplet. More notable are several sparse romantic pleas that often borrow licks from classic Southern soul. The yearning "I Want You" is little more than its title, but it certainly convinces, while "Revelry" and the vulnerable "Use Somebody" show signs of impending maturity. Only By the Night's simplicity certainly has a wide appeal. --Steve Jelbert
Kings Of Modern American Rock, 2008-11-29
Like a lot of people I bought based on "Sex On Fire" and quite liked "Use Somebody" too. Thing is, when I listened to this in my car after buying, I realised right from the opening "Closer" that there is quite a lot more to it that those songs. I am a music lover and buy a lot of cds based on a whim but this is one of those albums that stands out and I know I will never grow tired of this. The lead singers voice is just outstanding and sounds just as good live from when Ive seen them on TV, they are also all fantastic musicians. Rarely do bass players stand out in bands but here along with the drums and lead guitar it affords the band the credibility few of todays bands have.
Far from being a sell-out pop album which some people have said, it is one of the best rock albums ive bought all year, and a lot of people seem to agree with that. Bands do have to evolve and you can be sure that this was a genuine band progression, after all that whole new wave sound ala "The Strokes" is on the way out. Reason they are more popular now is simply because they are better. There are one or two fillers and I do agree that "Use Somebody" is a tad poppy at first listen(still great), but all in all a solid album from a rock solid band. Glad now I bought this instead of the new Razorlight album.
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £8.85
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Artist:
Snow Patrol
The Snow Patrol we meet on A Hundred Million Suns is a band facing the same dilemma that Coldplay met on 2008's Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends; having conquered the world with a rousing, melancholy brand of MOR indie, where now? On the surface, A Hundred Million Suns seems to suggest, nowhere especially new: producer Jacknife Lee, who first worked with the band on 2003's Final Straw and went on to work with the likes of U2 and REM returns to the fold; and an opening brace of songs suggest that a successful formula--chiming guitars, gentle builds, and Gary Lightbody's quavering, tremulous vocal--persists. Still, "Take Back The City", a windswept, electronic-tinged rocker, rather does for this band what "Dakota" did for Stereophonics, proving that a spot of sleek, synthetic motorik is not beyond their grasp, and there's a new, bright optimism to Lightbody's lyrics that sets the likes of "The Planets Bend Between Us" in light relief to some of Snow Patrol's earlier work. If you want experiment, though, you'll have to wait until the closing "The Lightning Strike", a 16-minute track in three parts that investigates Phillip Glass-style minimalism and electronic beats with some aptitude. --Louis Pattison
here's how to get the latest iPod for next to nothing,, 2008-12-04
YouriPod.co.cc
So everyone wants one!!!! Stylish ,compact , everything you need and best of all here's how you can get it for next to nothing!!
To get one go to YouriPod.co.cc sign up and complete ONE offer - you choose which offer best suits you maybe a dvd rental trial , bingo , a football bet , even aa cover there are loads to choose from and a lot of them are free ! recently featured in T3 magazine as a great way to get a cheap/free gadget and also the 8BC showed how this works on the newsnight
You can choose from a range of items from any Apple product to custom orders and its sent direct to you
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £7.59
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Artist:
The Priests
Voices Of Angels, 2008-11-28
Listening to this album has been a spritual experience for me. Ave Maria and Pie Jesu are my favourites, but you don't want to skip any of the songs on the album. All songs are beautifully recorded and absolutely captivating. I will listen to this album for a very long time.
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £8.11
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Artist:
Rhydian
Rhydian Roberts was the runner-up, and indeed most memorable contestant, from X Factor 2007. He was pipped to the post by the more fresh-faced Leon Jackson in the series finale, but thanks to some unique stylings and bold song interpretations the determined, classically-trained singer from Wales with a chiselled visage and striking white hair left a deep and potentially lasting impression. For his eponymous debut album though, a year in the making, it's a hard not to be disappointed that his bookish yet bombastic versions of tracks like Pink's "Get the Party Started" and the Pet Shop Boys' "Go West"--staples of his success, surely--have been left behind in favour of aligning his operatic tones with more traditionally suitable song vehicles. There are still some reminders of his scene-stealing slots on Saturday night TV--a sterling, sombre re-telling of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and pristine showcase for his voice, "Somewhere" from West Side Story. Add to this old musical standard "The Impossible Dream" (a popular choice, also recorded by fellow X-factor x-pat, crooner Andy Abraham) and straight covers of 'popera' veterans Meatloaf and Queen (with "Not a Dry Eye in the House" and "Who Wants to Live Forever" respectively) and though his voice is given a fine workout and chance to evidence those years of training, his personality doesn't quite break through with it as expected. Let's hope Rhydian can be rationalised as the contractual obligation and that this is just the start of his story. --James Berry
World Class Singer, 2008-12-03
Having watched the X Factor show for 2007 I knew I was in for a nice surprise, when my husband came home with the CD. Wow! Rhydian is certainly up there with the world class singers. What a voice. The songs are just wonderful. I hope my husband surprises me in 2009 with tickets for his UK tour. I highly recommend this CD.
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £8.94
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Artist:
Original Soundtrack
Great!!!!!!!, 2008-10-29
This CD is fantastic, I bought it straight after going to watch the film at the cinema and the songs were still as good as they were in the movie, my fave songs are want it all and now or never.
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £7.97
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Artist:
Various Artists
here's how to get the latest iPod for next to nothing,, 2008-12-04
YouriPod.co.cc
So everyone wants one!!!! Stylish ,compact , everything you need and best of all here's how you can get it for next to nothing!!
To get one go to YouriPod.co.cc sign up and complete ONE offer - you choose which offer best suits you maybe a dvd rental trial , bingo , a football bet , even aa cover there are loads to choose from and a lot of them are free ! recently featured in T3 magazine as a great way to get a cheap/free gadget and also the 8BC showed how this works on the newsnight
You can choose from a range of items from any Apple product to custom orders and its sent direct to you
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List Price: £17.99
Our Price: £11.20
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