Kevin Courtney'sguide to singles, downloads and free audiostreams
DUFFY
Mercy
*****
Amy Duffy's dropped her Christian name to avoid confusion with the other Amy, but there's no doubt about it - this soulshakin' tune could well be this year's Rehab. We tried to say she was hyped up, but now we say no, no, no.
PUGWASH
Take Me Away
1969
****
We need some musical jollity to usher in the spring, and who better to provide it than Crumlin's answer to Lennon, McCartney, Wilson, Partridge and any other jangly giant you'd care to mention. This is the first single off their upcoming Eleven Modern Antiquities album, and it makes you realise that Oasis have been wasting everybody's time for the past 10 years.
THE KINETIKS
Bite the Bullet
Rapture Records
****
Last year they asked you to shuffle your feet; now they want you chow down on a live slug. But when you hear this kinetically driven punk-pop tune from the Dublin dynamos, you'll want to take a big bite of that love missile. 'Kin brilliant.
OWEN BRADY
Angry
SonyBMG
***
Anger is not the emotion that comes to mind when you hear the mellow, breezy tones of this Irish singer-songwriter. One listen to Brady's beachfront ballads and you'll be too chilled out to get worked up about anything. If this doesn't calm you down, the free acoustic version of Waiting for the Sun (www.owenbrady.com) will send you drifting off.
THE HIVES
We Rule the World (T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S)
Polydor
**
Are they not men? They are Hives, but they sound like a blend of Devo and Chic on their latest megalomaniac anthem. Our old favourite band are not the world-dominating force they once were, so this comes across a bit like a tinpot dictator claiming victory while his palace crumbles around him and his army deserts him in droves.
COLBIE CAILLAT
The Little Things
Island
**
Her dad co-produced Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, and this Malibu beach bunny is on a mission to recreate the simple joys of radio-friendly soft rock on her debut album, Coco. While this isn't quite Say You Love Me or Dreams, it's at least as bubbly as an outdoor Jacuzzi.
