The Pop Corporation
WORDS ABOUT MUSIC + POP CULTURE
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When you’re singing along to a song at the top of your lungs, sometimes you don’t know what you’re singing. Sometimes you can be singing the saddest lyrics imaginable, but you’ve not realised because you’re half-cut on a bottle of rum and some floor-drugs, and it’s Friday night. Ever danced to ‘Gimme Gimme Gimme’ by
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We’re not arsed if you already knew about this, because some of us didn’t. Below is a video of Nico (Velvet Underground/Warhol) playing in Preston, and that’s exciting. Nico’s time with the Velvets is well documented, but ever the Bohemian, she moved from romantic partner to country and was generally a nomad going where the
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It really is hard to imagine the shape of pop and soul music without Barrett Strong. While he may not have been the household name that many of his peers were, where would popular music be without his hugely influential and soulful powerhouse that is ‘Money (That’s What I Want)’? There’s more too – he
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Imagine for a second, you’re driving past Abbey Road, and you nearly hit a pedestrian on that famous crossing. Imagine some more, that the pedestrian in question is Paul McCartney. The car in question is a Prius, so it’s kinda funny that he nearly got offed by a green motor. Also, let’s go with the
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We all need cool stuff to read. Finding it in the soup of the algorithm can be tricky, with a bunch of former broadsheet sorts going solo, and trying to flog subscription content on their mailers and whatnot. No harm, no foul – but these things tend to skew toward the po-faced and overly earnest.
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Caroline Polacheck’s is an adventurous pop star, and that’s always a good thing. She’s recently hit out at lazy comparisons to Bjork and Kate Bush, preferring to make music under her own steam, which is fair enough. She’s got a big voice and likes to be mildly awkward, which we say as a compliment of
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Hey! Do you like new music and, not just new music, but slightly difficult music that’s fun? Well, you should check outy Rob Mazurek’s Exploding Star Orchestra newbie, ‘Future Shaman’. Apply here if you like wonky jazz and post-rock. It’s discordant, good stuff. Mazurek is a composer/trumpeter and the Exploding Star Orchestra features Damon Locks
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We like a popstar making bold choices, and Sam Smith has been doing exactly that lately. It doesn’t matter whether you like the tunes or not, we should absolutely support a commercial artist when they lean into the experimental and off-kilter. Did you see them on SNL, with Sharon Stone draping themselves all over the
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It feels kinda shitty referring to a new artist as ‘Bjork’s daughter’, but needs must. Isadora Bjarkardottir Barney is her name, and she’s released her debut solo work as part of a comp showcasing Icelandic music. The comp is called ‘DRULLUMALL 4’ and Isadora’s track – ‘bergmál’ – is really good, you’ll be glad to
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The mighty Pet Shop Boys are all set to share some previously unreleased songs in April. It’s all part of a new thing they’re doing and that new thing is a book called ‘Annually’. The 2023 edition of the yearly release (hence the name) will be a 64-page hardback affair, containing journals, photos from their
STOP HOARDING TUNES
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REVIEW / ETHEL CAIN / WILLOUGHBY TUCKER…
What do you do when you’ve amassed an adoring, fevered set of fans and you need to occasionally tell them off? It’s something we’ve seen with Chappell Roan, and so too, with Ethel Cain, who is an underground sensation, now gently bursting overground. Before you even get to the music, you’re aware that there’s been…
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BEGINNERS GUIDE / NU BALEARICA
Is it Nu Balearica? Is it Nu Age music? Whatever it is, there’s been a spurt in creativity in good vibe music that doesn’t make the demands off anyone as a listener, but is spiritually nourishing and washes over you with that good time feeling. As young DJs and dancers have found a parallel lane…
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SAINT ETIENNE + ORBITAL
There’s something very wholesome and pure about Saint Etienne. That’s not to say they’re weedy nerds or anything, but their love of pop is an admirable thing, so the mere mention of them makes you feel all gooey, and that’s to be celebrated. So with that, they’ve shared a new song called ‘Take Me To…
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RIP SLARTA JOHN
One of the most infectious, dancefloor exploding tracks of the ’90s was the irresistible and utterly immense ‘Jump N Shout’ by Basement Jaxx, headed up by the irrepressible Slarta John who made the song erupt with energy and joy. Sadly, Slarta John – real name Mark James – has passed away, as confirmed by Basement…
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