Cool hair, cool clothes, cool tunes. Is it no surprise, then, that Essex-lad Ben Esser and his electro-pop-ska beats have been tipped for big things?

This coming Monday sees uber-hip Esser back with yet another super-catchy single release following debut track, ‘Headlock’. It’s a shame about the weather, as ‘Satisfied’ is a track fit for a bright, summers day. I can’t help but imagine myself lying on a warm beach with a Solero while listening to this sunny tune. The tinkling repetitiveness of the charlston-like piano is truely addictive, while the steel drums bring out the tune’s groovy reggae undertones. A warning - the chorus is lethal - one listen and it’s stuck in your mind for days. “You know a man can never win, even if you buy her all the shoes”. Ok, the lyrics aren’t exactly Shakespeare, but does it really matter? This quirky little track will still be taking over the airwaves, so watch out.

“She’s never satisfied, no matter how hard I try”, Esser complains. Terribly predictable pun, I know, but Esser - I certainly am.

‘Satisfied’ is released on Monday via digital download, 7″ vinyl or CD, which you can pre-order here.

With every album release Nickelback manage to produce a host of chart filling singles but the new track from the Canadian rockers seems extra special. “Gotta Be Somebody” has already been filling the top ten from the album “Dark Horse” (set to be released on the 18^th November) and it did well to not disappoint fans after the anthem Rockstar set the bar for future hits very high.

I’ve always been frustrated with Nickelback though. With each album they firstly release the most poppy and commercial sounding track which is fair enough but they never seem brave enough to allow the second single to be the fast paced rock track that always features on the albums track listing.

This time though, they’ve nailed it with “Something in Your Mouth” which I think is one of the most complete Nickelback songs ever. It sounds like a blend of Animals and Side of a bullet from the previous CD “All the Right Reasons”.

The tune starts with ear perplexing guitar riffs and catchy vocals that are almost impossible to not sing along with while the drummer, Daniel Adair, makes brilliant use of the bass drum to produce a thumping beat that drives the track along.

I have to say that Nickelback amaze me. With every fresh song I am certain that they have peaked and now I am getting used to being proven wrong. Personally, I can’t wait for Dark Horse to come out. I’ve seen the band get better with each album so I am forced to wonder what will the next one be like?

Rock your socks off by visiting their MySpace and be sure to listen to Something In Your Mouth.

And so the honeymoon continues for Alex Turner and Miles Kane’s orchestral side-project, The Last Shadow Puppets. Now blossoming into a fully-fledged super-group, the boys have recently released their third single ‘My Mistakes Were Made For You’ which keeps the bombastic bandwagon rolling along marvellously.

These boys clearly know their pop history, but if there wasn’t more to their sound than mere homage the gimmick would have worn thin by now. Turner’s lyrics are as sharp as any he’s penned for the Arctics, only here they are complemented by epic arrangements and lush orchestration.

Opening with a guitar chord twangy enough to grace a David Lynch film, My Mistakes Were Made for You is very much more restrained than ‘Age of the Understatement’ or ‘Standing Next To Me’ yet still it sounds good enough to be on a James Bond soundtrack.The mix is woozy and cavernous with Turner’s broad Northern tones sounding like they’re being sucked into a void. And the lyrics are similarly disquieting; all this talk of tumbling rocks and being “smashed into smithereens” is a world away from ‘Mardy Bum’.

I’ve enjoyed everything The Last Shadow Puppets have thrown our way and it’s hard to believe that this is a side project but what about the other bands that these chaps front? I’ve heard lots of people anxious about the attention Alex Turner and Miles Kane give to their own bands but from what I can see the future is bright for both. Arctic Monkeys are set to work with Queens of the stone ages’ Josh Homme and The Rascals seem to have really grown their sound since Miles started his “side project”.

Don’t take my word for it, visit their MySpace and see what you think.

Living in self-imposed exile in Paris, Dan Black meshes sounds and genres with the same fluidity, ease and cultural nous as his heroes David Bowie and The Neptunes to create his own blue-eyed culture clash of soul, hip hop, rock and electronica and the result is utterly beguiling.

We were first introduced to Dan, in major terms, when he released an astonishing cover of HYPNTZ by Notorious B.I.G. which fused the beat from Rihanna’s “Umbrella” with heavily chopped-up samples from the film soundtrack of John Carpenter’s “Starman”.

Now signed to A&M records, Dan Black is finally set to release his debut single. ‘Yours’ is a propulsive, electro anti-love song (“I don’t want to be yours no more”). Its amazing accompanying video showcases Black’s hyper-coloured modernity even more brightly. The single is likely to set the charts on fire with its catchy riff in the background and the massive drum beat.

The track has been highly rated by Zane Lowe on national Radio 1 and the tune is certainly radio friendly. It’s easy to predict that this tune is going to be overplayed but at the moment it grows with every listen. The single will be released on December 1^st and should be the first milestone of many for this young Frenchman. Black is currently at work on his debut album, which is set for release in early 2009.

For a quick sample of Dan Black, take, devour and enjoy the two MP3s below:

MP3: Dan Black - HYPNTZ

MP3: Dan Black - These Things Take Time

Attack and Release sees The Black Keys produce their fourth studio album and it is full of classic bluesy riffs and inventive rhythms. “Same Old Thing” is the fourth single released from the album and the track gives your ears a nice work out but, for me, there were other tracks that have been released such as “I got mine” which were more typical Black Keys songs. The bands tone and sound has changed a little which will make it interesting to see how the new tunes are accepted. Anyway what do we think of the single?

The new track starts off with a couple of random noises but it soon kicks into a satisfyingly fuzzy, lo-fi guitar riff. This is retro bliss, just smoking, bluesy rock goodness. It’s not often you think of rock music and involve it with flutes but this track gets a nice quirky injection from a few sublime flute melodies.It’s important to remember that this band is made of just two people! I’ve been lucky enough to catch The Black Keys doing a few live shows and the raw power created by the couple is mind boggling.

The track lacks an explosive climax which you’re sure will come when you listen to it and don’t get me wrong, the tune is not disappointing, it is still a top quality tune but it is not The Black Keys at their best.

If you do want to hear The Black Keys at their best, check out their MySpace!

Conor Oberst has always had the knack of causing division amongst his fans. Each one of his albums seems to have a completely different sound showing the talent and variety that Conor can produce. His latest album (bright eyes) has followed route and is nearly unrecognisable to past releases. The tracks on Bright Eyes also show the depth of skill Conor Oberst has and the tune that stands out has to be I don’t want to die (in the hospital).

Conor raves it up big time with this piano driven tune and the high octane tempo is sure to grab the ears attention. The song boasts exceptional lyrics such as “They don’t let you smoke and you can’t get drunk/ all there is to watch are these soap operas,” giving the track a fantastic sense of wit.

The tune is not some people’s cup of tea but its sheer oddness gives the track as well as the album a bit of extra charm. So what kind of thoughts do you need to produce this sort of manic song? When asked what inspired him, Oberst replied with a story of someone he met in a hospital. “This guy didn’t mind the idea of dying, but he just didn’t want to die in such an undignified place (as a hospital). He wanted to be out in the desert, under the stars. He told me if he was ever in a hospital that I should break him out. It’s a jailbreak song.”

The tune has its doubters but Conor Oberst has probably produced something for everyone in his career. Conor has a busy November tour list in America but if you can’t make the venues check out his Myspace.

Top photo comes from massayoshi oota’s flickr stream under the Creative Commons License.

September saw the release of psychedelic New Yorkers, Mercury Rev’s, new album ‘Snowflake Midnight’. Described by the band as “a set of nine self-luminous and astonishing new songs”, you may understand why I was so intrigued to hear the band’s latest offering, including their latest single release which I shall be reviewing today - ‘Butterfly’s Wings’.

The trance track is truly spell-bounding. The glittering synth and gentle percussion, combined with hypnotic vocals allows the listener to float away to a mellow land, far, far beyond. Ignoring the rather, well, creepy child laughter mid-way through the track, listening to ‘Butterfly’s Wings’, one can understand why the album achieved 5-star ratings all around. So get out your incense sticks, stick on Mercury Rev and relax…. ahhhhhhhhh….

(Mercury Rev are currently on tour around the U.K and Europe, finally finishing in the U.S in December. Tickets are still available should you want to check them out in the flesh!)

Top Photo is taken from vk-red’s flickr stream.

You don’t need to be a genius to know that I love Bloc Party with a passion. They’re releasing brand new single Talons in about two weeks time, and frankly, it’s amazing. If you haven’t heard it yet, catch the video below.

I particularly love the moment at about 2:55… the video matches the song perfectly, and makes this one of the best songs Bloc Party have done - right up there with Positive Tension and Sunday for me - all different, all amazing in their own right.

Bloc Party’s Talons is the second single from their forthcoming new album, Intimacy, and is out on 20th October on Wichita Recordings ahead of Intimacy on 27th October.

I was never a huge fan of CSS‘ debut album Cansei de Ser Sexy, though in hindsight I think it might just have been because of Lovefoxx’s disgusting catsuits that she seemed to wear at all the festivals last summer, and the overexposure of most of the tracks on Radio 1 and blogs etc.

Now they’re back with their second album, Donkey, and having ditched bassist Iracema Trevisan they’ve gained a bit more consistent sound (well, at least to me anyway…), and got a whole lot tighter and more professional sound. I love it and might actually check out the whole album instead of just lead single “Rat is Dead (Rage)” and this one, Move.

Backwards straight to the dance floor
Will you still be waiting for me?
Will you still be my friend?
I don’t wanna bug you
All these crazy, crazy ideas
For I know this ain’t a good place for us to talk

So, watch and enjoy.

CSS’ “Move” is out on Monday 13th October on Sub Pop

Okay, so I’ve been slacking a bit on the posting front recently. I know, shocking. But, thankfully very few new tours have been announced in the run up to Christmas. Expect a newly redesigned TGTF come January (if I pull my finger out…)

Anyway, moving on.

One of my hottest tips for 2008, Yoav, has announced his first tour of the new year, seeing him playing some smaller venues around the UK.

His new single, “Beautiful Lie” is this week’s single of the week on iTunes last week, so why not click here and download it for free until Christmas Eve? (That’s in just two days for all you not-so-bright ones out there!)

Yoav plays the following dates in January. Tickets for the Manchester and London dates go on sale next Friday, 4th January, when no doubt you’ll all be nursing huge hangovers and a rather large credit card bill, but he’ll clear up your January blues for you!

Monday 14th January - Brighton The Albert
Tuesday 15th January - Cardiff Clwb Ifor Bach
Wednesday 16th January - Glasgow King Tut’s
Saturday 19th January - Lancaster Music Library
Sunday 20th January - Liverpool Korova
Monday 21st January - Manchester Night and Day
Wednesday 23rd January - Oxford Jericho Tavern
Thursday 24th January - London 93 Feet East
Friday 25th January - Nottingham The Bodega Social