Pick of the week
Aly & AJ
Potential Break Up Song (Hollywood)
Aly & AJ are a terrifyingly blonde pair of sisters from Seattle who, despite this reviewer confusing them momentarily with Nazi pop twins Prussian Blue, have shifted almost a million copies of their debut album in the US. Potential Break Up Song sees the girls threatening their useless boyfriends with a thorough dumping. Switching between breathless choruses and verses citing cases of boyfriendial neglect, there's an air of menace that's sadly missing from most teen chart music. Possibly the best bit of US pop since Since U Been Gone. You wouldn't mess with them.
Natasha Bedingfield
Say It Again (RCA)
Speaking of which, you wouldn't mess with Natasha Bedingfield either. After cementing her position as the British pop star most likely to take being dumped by altering her jogging route to go past your front window and then jogging on the spot, slowly, with the scary I Want Your Babies, N-Bed is back with Say it Again. Which is another desperate number where Natasha shrieks "I have so much love for you - do with it what you will". Tha's fighting talk round here.
Joe Lean And The Jing Jang Jong
Lucio Starts Fires (YALC)
There's an episode of Seinfeld where Jerry explains to George that the reason for salsa's popularity in the US is because, "People like to say "salsa". "Do you have salsa?" "We need more salsa." "Where is the salsa? No salsa?" Former Pipettes drummer and budding actor of Peep Show/The Tudors fame, Joe Lean will presumably taste success for similar reasons. Jing Jang Jong is a lot of fun to say - try it. Jing Jang Jong, Jing Jang Jong. See. Lucio Starts Fires is decent enough, but you've heard enough lackadaisical indie pop in the last few years to plaster your living room walls with the stuff. Especially the type that sounds like Razorlight.
Ali Love
Late Night Session (Sony)
Thank goodness for Ali Love. If there's one thing British pop needed then it's a personification of popular nightclub chain Flares. Love might well be the perfect soundtrack for your various hen night/wedding disco requirements, but it's about time that tired old playlist featured something by someone born this side of 1970. Late Night Session, a thematic sequel and/or prequel to this summer's equally fun Secret Sunday Lover is the synthesiser-tinged prelude to, golly, a night on the tiles. Love doesn't mention if it's on a provincial high street, but it will be soon. Followed by Lambrini-flavoured vomit.
Gwen Stefani
Now That You Got It (Interscope)
It's not hard to locate the precise moment when the public's love for Gwen Stefani turned from musical darling to slightly odd dotty aunt. As soon as Mrs Gavin Rossdale began to be accompanied by a pack of Asian schoolgirls like she was Anna Leonowens and sang about Harajuku as if it was more than the Japanese equivalent of Camden Town, she had no chance. Can you imagine a J-Pop star strolling around the world with a load of moody goths? Now That You Got It, despite the presence of Damian "Jr Gong" Marley, proves that, finally, Stefani after 20 years, hasn't.
