Florence Gets The Benny Benassi Treatment

"Lungs" was one of my favourite albums of 2009 and kept me company well into 2010. But somewhere towards the end of last year I began to suffer Florence-fatigue. Her transformation from the Benjamin Buttons of indie-pop to the dolled-up hitmaker of today was disconcerting and I began to suspect she was a bit of a one-trick pony when the dreary and predictable "What The Water Gave Me" dropped a couple of months ago. Happily, "Shake It Out" restored...

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Win A Signed Elen Levon Promo

To celebrate the release of Elen Levon's awesome debut single "Naughty" - available on Australian iTunes NOW - I'm giving away 10 incredibly rare signed promos. Only 50 were printed, so these are harder to find than Rihanna's dignity. They are numbered and include the following tracks:1. Naughty (Radio Edit) Ft. Israel Cruz2. Naughty (Radio Edit) (No Rap)3. Naughty (Vandalism Remix)4. Elen Levon (Back Stage Interview)To enter, you need to be following...

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Rihanna's Latest Desperate Scam

RiRi's sad desperation for chart success knows no bounds. The shadiest woman in pop is on something of a roll this week. After flashing her flat pancake breasts around the Irish countryside in the name of publicity whoring art, the label puppet has gone into major damage control stateside after "We Found Love" failed to top the iTunes chart - it has already tumbled down to #5 - by bundling the song together with her "Loud" album for the bargain price...

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Zoë Badwi - Album Review

Zoë Badwi's album has been out for a while now but as Sirens' biggest (and possibly only) fan, I feel it's my duty to preach the virtues of this wondrous listening experience to anyone who will listen. There's another reason why this project is close to my heart. A long time ago in galaxy far, far away I did some work for Neon Records and one of my first tasks was putting together digital promos for Zoë's early club hits like "Don't Wan'cha", which...

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New Laura Imbruglia!

By now you're probably used to my Laura Imbruglia obsession. I have reviewed both EPs, ranked her debut album the 5th best of 2007 (in retrospect, she was robbed) and named her sophomore effort the second-best offering of 2010. I've even waxed lyrical about her stunning Microsoft Paint wizardry! Then there was the time I got drunk and wrote the counter-culture icon a long email, explaining that we were destined to be best friends because I've also...

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Move Over Willow, China's Got This!

Poor Willow Smith. She's already a hair-whipping has-been at the ripe old age of 10. While her flops are gathering dust in Will and Jada's home studio, 13-year-old China Anne McClain is scalping divas three times her age with the top 60 US iTunes smash "Call All The Monsters". Before you reach for a knitting needle and violently pierce your eardrums, let me reassure you that this is NOT a tribute to Lady Gaga fans. Instead, it's a catchy electro-pop...

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Shannon Noll - 'A Million Suns' Showcase

For a while there Shannon Noll was Australian Idol's biggest success. And based on sales - he probably still is. The 36-year-old's first three albums went nine times platinum between them and he had a run of ten straight top 10 hits (eleven if you include "Rise Up"). Unfortunately for Nollsie, his brand of perky pub-rock fell out of favour and he's been quiet for the past couple of years. But the rest seems to have done him good. "Switch Me On" (below)...

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Elen Levon Covers Britney

With her debut single set to drop on September 30, Australian pop princess-in-waiting Elen Levon is ramping up the promo with a series of shows around the country. I caught the first of them on Friday night at Sydney's RNB Superclub and the 17-year-old delivered the goods, overcoming the dodgiest sound system in Australia. The setlist was pretty much the same as her recent industry showcase. She belted out a note-perfect rendition of "Naughty", while...

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Rihanna - Pop Music's Biggest Fraud

The lead single from Rihanna's sixth studio album since 2005 was released on Friday. If you had a big one last night and are still feeling a little fuzzy, let me do the math for you. That is 6 records in 7 years. If you include her two remix albums and multiple re-releases, the tally is closer to 10. And yet, Fenty Forehead gets no flack for flooding the market with her generic tunes. It wouldn't be so bad if she was growing and evolving as an artist...

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Listen To Luciana's Duet With Betty White

The most eagerly-awaited duet of the century is here! Luciana's stunning collaboration with Betty White hit US iTunes on Friday and I've finally managed to upload a LQ version of the song to share with you (below). As expected, the fabulous re-imagining of "I'm Still Hot" - currently sitting at #1 on the US club chart! - is camper than Kylie's bedazzled vagina. Amazing lyrics like "I'm Betty from the block, I hide my Emmys in my beatbox" crack me...

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Nicole Scherzinger - Wet Interview

Along with reviewing Beyoncé's "4" showcase at the Roseland Ballroom, the professional highlight of my LA trip was definitely interviewing Nicole Scherzinger. I was sent along to cover the former Pussycat Doll's appearance at the Hard Rock Cafe for Idolator. On my way there I got a text saying I might be able to talk to her. Needless to say, the prospect of speaking with the iconic diva behind "Puakenikeni" kind of threw me - so my dear friend Bruce...

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Another Flawless Destiny's Child Fashion Moment

Could your fav...

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Australian Pop Update

Since re-opening the blog, I've written about a number of Australian pop songs - from the sublime to the ridiculous - but there are too many noteworthy singles to comment on individually. So I thought I'd do a round-up post. Here are some random musings on the latest tunes by some of the country's best (and worst) purveyors of pop music.Stan Walker feat. Static Revenger - Light It Up (Video)I love Stan and know Dennis (Static Revenger) through Luciana...

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Pattyboy, I Take It Back

You are no longer the worst pop star of all time. Brandon Hilton snuck up behind you in his bargain basement Lady Gaga ensemble and snatched your wig. Look on the bright side, babe. You'll always be the queen of NZ iTun...

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Ms Kelly's Fisting Anthem

Reviewing Kelly Rowland's latest album has been on my 'to do' list since returning from LA. The problem is I still can't decide if it's a lazy collection of soulless club-bangers and babymakin' slow jams or a tight R&B offering that I subconsciously begrudge for overlooking killer tunes like "Rose Colored Glasses" and "Forever And A Day". I'm sure the truth lies somewhere in between and I'll keep listening to "Here I Am" on repeat until I get...

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The Second Coming Of SSS

Ok, that headline is a little dramatic but "Big" is so breathtakingly brilliant that it feels like a whole new beginning for Sneaky Sound System. Over the years, the electro-pop pioneers have been a regular feature on the blog - I still maintain that "2" is one of the best Australian albums of the noughties - but I almost lost interest with "We Love". The song isn't as jaw-droppingly awful as Rogue Traders' "Love Is A War" or Vanessa Amorosi's "Gossip"...

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Stellar > Your K-Pop Faves

I don't get to feature as much K-Pop as I'd like on this blog but then I've always gone for quality over quantity. Cough. While less discerning blogs like The Prophet and Pop Reviews Now write about has-beens like KARA and 2NE1, I keep it classy by ruminating on the brilliance of underground icons like LPG and INY. You know, fearless pioneers whose artistry and elegance will stand the test of time. It's been a bleak couple of months in the K-Pop...

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Remembering Jinny

I don't think Jinny gets enough credit for singing along to an anonymous black woman's vocal on this genre-defining '90s anthem. Does anyone know what she's up to these da...

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Ness Ness Is Back On Track... Kind Of

I'm angry at Vanessa Amorosi. After a seven year gap between top 20 hits, Ness staged one of the decade's most unlikely comebacks in 2007 and has been on a roll ever since. It's been a treat to witness her career revival but the perennial underdog of Australian pop took ten steps back with "Gossip". As a card-carrying fan since 1999, I've supported Vanessa through some bad decisions - her unconvincing R&B phase springs to mind - but I can't find...

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Martika - The Pop Trash Interview

In August I caught up with my friend Joe in Chicago. He's the visionary behind Milk Carton Pop Stars and Martika's undisputed number one fan. I think I'm demented when it comes to La Toya and Beyoncé but Joe takes stanning to previously unimagined heights. He has boxes of merchandise, thousands of clippings from around the world and even Martika's phone number! Which came in handy when we drunkenly decided to interview her. Some of our conversation...

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Havana Brown, I Really Don't Get It

I've spent the past couple of hours trying to make sense of the new Havana Brown single. And I still have no idea what's going on. "Get It" sounds like "Firestarter" mixed with every dodgy house record released in 1997 - finished off with a sprinkling of the superstar DJ's trademark reed-thin vocals. Who threw this mess together? D:Ream? It's so disappointing given the double platinum success of her stunning Cascada knock-off "We Run The Night"....

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Beyoncé's Mystery Third Single

As much as I worship at the alter of "4", there's no denying that the album's promo campaign is the year's hottest mess. "Run The World (Girls)" sat on iTunes for a month with no video or promotion before being thrown away like a used condom after Bey's iconic BBMA performance/ground-breaking Oprah appearance. She then rushed out "Irreplaceable 2011" within weeks - but not before performing "1+1" on American Idol and "End Of Time" at the BET Awards....

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How Do You Solve A Problem Like Jessie J?

I have a confession to make. After months of soul-searching and deep reflection, I think I'm ready to come out... as a Jessie J fan! Her album was a bit average but the woman can sing and sure knows how to pen a hit. I even like the fact that she looks like a East German Olympian circa 1983. So why I am so embarrassed? It could be her painful appearance at the VMAs, where she sat in a chair and destroyed other people's songs between ad breaks. Perhaps...

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