This video is EPIC and anyone who is not an enemy of pop must watch it immediately (video)

Ok so the fad of re-doing Rihanna's 'Umbrella' in a variety of different genres has certainly peaked and plummeted into the bowels of Youtube mediocrity,  but when we stumbled across this there was something absolutely enrapturing about it.  The 'it' in question is a video by a group of three young men called The Baseballs, and despite the impression the video gives, they did not live in the early 1960's.  No, they are, in fact, alive today, and still making music.  Other people's music, yes, but music just the same.  In any case, it's amazing and demands to be watched. 



Amazing.

Florence and the Machine are 'Hurricane Drunk' in new video - watch now!

Florence is a machine, chucking out tracks off the album 'Lungs' (see what we did there...), and for the sixth single we get 'Hurricane Drunk.' 

We'd say something about how unnecessary a sixth single is, but clearly the label is doing something right.  Just a couple weeks ago, 'Lungs' hit number 1 on the album chart after a bazillion weeks in release.  In any case, here's another ginger dancing around in strange outfits:



The single is out in March in the UK

Kelis celebrates '4th of July' on new leaked track - listen now

So another track has leaked from Kelis' upcoming dance album.  If you recall, we posted 'Acapella,' an absolutely brilliant club track that made us super duper excited about the whole project. 


Now there's this, and while the quality isn't the best, the whole sound of the project is shaping up to be pretty damn great, don't you think?

Is it any surprise Lady Gaga's 'Teeth' inspired the gayest video ever? Watch ripped vampires bite each other now!

Lady Gaga's 'Teeth' (which morphed into an almost religiously incredible experience on her tour) is one of the many gems on 'The Fame Monster.'  With its swagger, pulsing rhythms and sexual tone, it quickly became a fan favorite.  And we don't mean to generalize, but gays freakin love it.  A lot.  So it only stands to reason that the track would spawn what will go down (*snicker*) as one of the gayest videos of all time alongside such classics as 'Party in the USA' and Johnny Hazzard's 'Soccer Practice.'   Essentially the video is 'Twilight,' if it were set in the basement of a gym in Chelsea and was produced by Chi Chi LaRue. 



Amazing?

Amazing.

Mariah gets 'Up Out My Face' in new video - watch now!

Oh, Mariah.  This 'Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel' thing didn't go quite to plan, did it?  Mere weeks after the release of the parent album her label is doing the universal 'hail mary,' releasing a remix album of the album's tracks (see: Madonna's 'American Life').  To launch the impending mess, here's a video that features Mariah being 'funny.'  



The remix album is out in March

Lady Gaga does something good - (video)

Lady Gaga seems to be a compassionate, if somewhat heavy-handed, overlord.  On January 24th she donated all proceeds of her final concert, and any merchandise sales made at that concert or through her website, to the relief efforts in Haiti.  All told, the broad drummed up over $500,000.  Not bad, eh?  ScopiSat was lucky enough to catch one of her Radio City shows here in NYC, and during 'Speechless' she said, in reference to the crisis in Haiti, "some things are more important than music and wigs."  Apparently her fans agree.  Good job, guys.

Here's the tribute to Haiti:

Nerina Pallot's new video is really just an ad for the new Kylie album - watch now!

We love Nerina Pallot.  We really do.  But as soon as we heard she was working with Kylie on her new album, Nerina's own LP, 'The Graduate,' ceased to be about Ms. Pallot and began to be one big advert for the new Ms. Minogue.  Nerina penned the brilliant 'Better Than Today,' which Kylie debuted on her US tour, and has kept herself busy recording some delightful ditties as well.  Unfortunately, 'I Don't Want To Go Out' doesn't scream 'HIT SINGLE', and is unlikely to break Nerina's run of non-charting tracks.  Still, cute video though. 



Out March 1st in the UK

Vassy recounts our 'History' - watch the new video of the girl you're about to love

Vassy is an Australian singer/songwriter who is going to be hopping the pond with her infectious pop attitude in the next few months.  She won some talent contest back in 03 and has been making hits ever since, but with a sampler in Time magazine and rumors of collaborations with the world's top producers, she seems poised to break the international market.

The first volley in her multinational attack is the delightful 'History,' which is kind of a jazzy 'Tik Tok' if Kesha weren't strung out.




 

Amazing.  Out in Australia Feb 8 on ABC/Ultra and available on US iTunes now for some reason.

N-Dubz and Mr. Hudson are 'Playing With Fire' - watch the video now

Sometimes a song comes a long that defies any logic as to why it might exist.  On paper it might look good, yes, but somewhere along in the process of actually recording the thing it seems as if someone would say 'hey, this is quite shit isn't it.'  Alas, the quality-control workers have failed us yet again, and we are left with this epic mess.  It's essentially a slumming Mr. Hudson duetting with an adolescent sex pest while a series of ill-advised wardrobe choices parade before the cameras.



And that's 3 and a half minutes of your life you can never get back.

New Goldfrapp - listen to 'Rocket' now!

So the new Goldfrapp is making all sorts of waves, as apparently they are keeping on in the tradition of each album sounding wildly different than the last but still being rather phenomenal.  'Rocket' is all synth, but not the same synth as before, and all upbeat but not the same upbeat as before.  Regardless, it is very good and even though we can't link to it because the label feels that NO ONE SHOULD BE ABLE TO LISTEN TO IT, you can hear a clip here.

Very nice.

Who wants to hear a new Madonna track? (new song)

Ok so it's not exactly NEW...  'Across The Sky' was recorded during the 'Hard Candy' sessions and features vocals from Justin Timberlake.  It's alright, as it goes, but we'd love to hear what sound Madge is going to come up with next.  The youth-clinging R&B swagger isn't doing it for us...

Tiesto and Nelly Furtado ask 'Who Wants To Be Alone' in new video - watch now!

It is bass-heavy beats.  It is strobe lighting and smoke machines.  It is poppers-o'clock revelry.  It is a duet by two music heavyweights,  and manages to be the best thing either has put out in ages.  In all its glory, here is 'Who Wants To Be Alone' from Tiesto and Nelly Furtado. 



Turns out, Nelly just needed to put a donk on it. 

Ellie Goulding gets 'Starry Eyed' in new video - watch now!

Ellie Goulding topped the BBC list of what will be hot in 2010, and while that may be the very definition of a self-fulfilling prophecy, the prediction wasn't unwarranted.  She is, as 'the blogs' say, "VERY GOOD." 

Here is her debut video.  It has singing and dancing and is the perfect introduction of the world to post-Gaga indie-pop. 

Sugababes would like you to 'Wear My Kiss' in new video - watch now

So the video for 'Wear My Kiss,' from Sugababes version 56 or something, is out and is a CGI MASTERPIECE IN THE VEIN OF AVATAR or so their label would have you believe.  It is, in fact, not, and is instead a rather boring visual accompaniment to a passable Sugababes song with predictably insipid lyrics.  Still, it's pretty fun and at least it's not another 'babes ballad. 



The album, Sweet 7, is out March 8

Timbaland and Katy Perry mug for the cameras in 'If We Ever Meet Again' video - watch now

This is a tough one for ScopiSat.  We love Timbaland.  We also tend to hate Timbaland.  We really enjoy 'Hot n Cold' but, more often than not, can't stand Katy Perry.  You might even say we're hot and then we're..... no we're not going to say that.  Anyway this video for the TimbaPerry collaboration presents us with quite the challenge - two artists who can get it really right or REALLY wrong ('Waking Up In Vegas' anyone?) working together on a plot-heavy video.

First things first - the plot is kind of cute and works well with the song.  Other than that it's a bit of a visual mess, though, isn't it.  4 minutes of Katy Perry being 'sexy' and Timbaland touching his chin and incessantly for no reason.  Seriously.  Stop touching your chin.

Second - the music alternates between hands-in-the-air pop glory and overproduced autotune nightmare.  And sometimes...just sometimes...it's both at the same time.  Something about Katy Perry's voice just doesn't suit the track, and by the time Timbaland has finished with the production both singers might as well be Japanese sex robots for all their 'artistic contribution.'

Fully realizing that everything we've written up to this point is decidedly negative, it's only fair to tell you we pretty much can't stop listening to the track.  Why?  Because sometimes a trainwreck is just what you need.  A big cargo train full of bubblegum barreling into the side of a pop mountain.  As you watch each car derail and fly into the abyss, you know it's terrible.  You know you should be ashamed that you're enjoying watching it.  And you know it's going to make a mess.  But what a wonderful, wonderful mess it is.

Stephen Gately's last song is Boyzone's new single - watch the video now

Boyzone have a new track out, and although it's penned by Mika, it's nothing to write home about.  The most notable thing about the song is that it is one of the last vocals recorded by "the cute one," Stephen Gately, who tragically died a few months ago.  We here at ScopiSat were always fans of his, even if we weren't necessarily fans of Boyzone.  He handled being 'outed' with a measure of maturity and went on to become one of the modern heroes of the international gay rights fight, on top of being a very talented guy.  To be fair it's the best Boyzone track in ages, and serves as a fitting tribute.  



Out March 1st, with the album released a week later on Mercury

Lady Gaga crashes Oprah - watch the video now!

We're not sure how this one slipped by us, but Lady Gaga performed on Oprah's show a couple days ago and it was very good.  Not quite 'bloody suicide hanging from wires' good, but not 'sitting in a bathtub on X-Factor' boring either.  All in all, a pretty average Gaga performance - keeping in mind that the Gaga scale starts at 8/10 and just keeps going up.  Let's call it a 14/10 then. 

Let's all listen to the new Diana Vickers track 'Once'

Diana Vickers did not win the X Factor.  She is, apparently, about to win the 'best X-Factor alum album' contest. 

Exhibit A: 


Out April 19

Barbie goes Gaga (pics)

Ok so everyone knows we love Gaga.  Furthermore, everyone knows we love watching what Gaga wears.  Judging from these pictures, so does photographer Weikang Lu.  He recreated Lady Gaga's most iconic looks and slapped them on the Barbie doll (which has a striking natural resemblance to Lady G, don't you think??).  Is it just us or, when viewed on a doll, do some of her outfits actually start to make...sense?

"Amazing."

Boyband JLS use up their 'One Shot' in new video - watch now

Here is a video by chart-topping British boyband JLS.  It has all the things that one has come to expect from a video by a chart-topping British boyband.  And because of that it will be number 1 for 3 months. :(

Kylie ahead of schedule on new album - TBR in 2010

Miss Minogue apparently hasn't slowed down since her all-conquering US tour, as NME reports she recently surprised EMI execs with a number of new tracks ready for her new album.  While on her US 'For You, For Me' tour she performed one new song from the set, 'Better Than Today,' and it is what we in the business call 'quite good.'  Here is Kylie and a very very fit dancer doing dodgy American accents and dancing around to the new track:

M.I.A. is no longer MIA - watch the video for brand new ‘There’s Space For Ol’ Dat I See’

M.I.A. is gearing up for her big return this summer, and giving us a pretty nice taste of what's to come.  New track, 'There's Space For Ol' Dat I See' is essentially 'M.I.A. Sings the Songs of Tricky' and is accordingly brilliant.

The video, however, is pretty much just a screensaver but not one of the cool new ones, and in sum it ends up as "NYU Student Union in association with the Soho Art Installation Project Present: 'M.I.A. Sings The Songs of Tricky to Windows 97 (c) Starry Night."   You can almost smell the hipster swarm.

Hurts show you their 'Blood, Tears and Gold' - watch the video now

Music elitists:  You have a new band to promote and go on and on about until people start listening to you, they become popular, and you are forced to hate them for "selling out."

The duo Hurts have been making some waves recently, and 'the blogs' continue to buzz about them even though they're not exactly the most mainstream sounding band vying for listeners' attention at the moment.  This video for non-single-but-sort-of-single 'Blood, Tears and Gold,' however, proves that given a chance (we're looking at you, Radio 2) the guys just might break through.  By 'break through,' of course, we mean score a number 33 also-ran and top the Belgian iTunes Electro-Alternative Synth EP chart        for  a couple hours on a Sunday, but it is what it is.


Anyhow, readers, if you're looking for an early week pick-me-up, go watch Gabriella Cilmi's new video again.  But if you're in the market for a moody and surprisingly touching synth ballad, we've got just the clip for you.


"Intriguing."

Sade's 'Soldier of Love' video is pretty (video premiere)

Look!  Horses!  Ropes!  Lightning!  And a very good song to boot...



The album is out Feb 9

Gabriella Cilmi's new video for 'On A Mission' is AMAZING - watch now

Just today we were talking about how great Gabriella Cilmi's prospects seem to be for the new year, and then by some stroke of fate, look what landed in our inbox.  The video for 'On A Mission' is a bit Little Boots, a bit Euro and a lot great.  The video (and presumably album/radio) version of the song is all synths and stomps and comes off a little 'Van Halen at the Disco,'  and despite as grotesque as that sounds, it is actually a very very good thing.

Gabriella Cilmi - On A Mission (Official Music Video HD)
by Musics-Exclus

Gabriella Cilmi is a 'Woman On A Mission' - listen to the new single now!

18 year-old Gabriella Cilmi, the Australian Amy Winehouse - Taylor Dayne hybrid (Amor Daynhouse just doesn't work does it :( ), burst onto the scene last year with her slow burning jam 'Sweet About Me.'  While the follow up singles didn't really light the charts on fire, the album was a decent hit, peaking at 8 in the UK and scraping the lower reaches of the US top 20.  But now, judging from the reaction in the 'blogosphere' (ugh), her new album is poised to propel her into the realm of full-on superstardom.  Let's look at the evidence:

1.  She's working with Xenomania
2.  She's working with Xenomania
3.  She's working with Xenomania

Yes, things are looking very good indeed.

The album is said to have a 70's/80's feel, influenced by Blondie.  With production help from the likes of Greg Kurstin (of Kylie and Little Boots fame), this record is shaping up to be a corker.  Here's the debut single 'Woman on a Mission,' remixed by the ever-dependable Wideboys. 



The single is in buzz mode now, to hit radio soon, and the album will follow in early 2010

New artwork for Rihanna's 'Rude Boy' single and Goldfrapp's 'Headfirst' album

Rihanna is in about the same place now as Goldfrapp was on their last album. Both did something unexpected and met with tepid sales. After the successes of their previous packages, however, it was unrealistic to expect that level of success to continue straight through. Sometimes it's a good idea for an artist or band to take a step back, have a lower profile, and then they can stage an epic comeback as the underdog. It's what Kelly Clarkson just did with the whole 'My December' thing. While Rihanna is in the midst of her rebuilding album, about to release a third single 'Rude Boy,' Goldfrapp are ready to emerge bigger and better with their next project 'Headfirst.'
The artwork for each just premiered, and they're both interesting in their own way.

Yes.  Very interesting.

No let's hope after this single Rihanna gets back in the studio for her big triumphant comeback.  Because we're still waiting for 'SOS' Mk II.

Marina and the Diamonds strip down 'Hollywood' for new video - watch now!

A while ago (on December first, actually) we posted this, a Marina and the Diamonds video for sort-of-but-not-really-single 'Hollywood.' Well that clearly went SUPER because now a new video has been made of Marina standing in a room and singing to a stripped down version of the song. That's really about all there is to say about it. Here it is.

Alphabeat make a 'Hole In My Heart' - watch the video now!

Alphabeat's BIG COMEBACK SONG 'The Spell' didn't really set the charts afire, despite being very very good, so prior to the launch of the full album (also called 'The Spell') they are releasing another single.  It is just as 90's-pop but less accessible and at first listen far less commercial than 'The Spell,' and truth be told screams "BAD SINGLE CHOICE" at a very loud volume.  But still, the guy is quite hot in the video and there are some pretty colors to keep us busy. 



The single is out the 22nd of February while the album hits on March 1

Who wants to see Mariah Carey giving a speech WASTED? (video)

Mimi's been having a pretty alright year, all things considered - showing all the popstar-to-actor wannabes how it's done with a role in Precious, and....well ok, that's about the only thing that's gone right this year for her, but still - so who can blame her for celebrating a little.  Well here she is celebrating a LOT at an awards show while receiving a best supporting actress award for her work.  




Mess.  Now let's watch again.

Toni Braxton's "Yesterday" and rehearsal interview @ SoundCheck - watch now!

So Toni hasn't been the luckiest artist  -  she was famously bankrupt a while back and has had some health problems - but she's making another run at it with a whole new album and promo tour.  To kick things off here's Toni talking about the project and wearing some sexy outfits at Wal-Mart's SoundCheck.   



My, that's a husky voice isn't it...

Lets all watch the brand new Lady Gaga "Don't Give Up" video no one wanted us to see

Ages ago, presumably before Gaga ruled the world, her record company farmed her out to appear on this remake of Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush's 'Don't Give Up' with something called The Midway State.  I'm sure they were all trying for some sort of hipster-lightning-in-a-bottle but instead they got.......this.  The label subsequently killed the whole thing but thanks to the magic of the interwebs here it is in all its 'glory.' 



...and that's why it was never released.

New Roisin Murphy - Come to 'Momma's Place', it's LITERALLY AMAZING

Roisin (of Moloko and solo incredibleness fame, if you don't know) has been off living her life and having babies and such, which we suppose is fine but it really is about time she got back to thinking about US.  Apparently she has, because this new single was just announced by her people and it is very very good in a way that only Roisin can be very very good.

Here is 'Momma's Place' (or Mamma's Place, depending on who you believe):


Amazing.

Out January 18.  Buy it.  

Anjulie gets under her "Headphones" - is she the Canadian Lily Allen? Listen now!

Here is a delightful track by Anjulie, an Ontario native who has made a moderate impact on the Billboard dance charts in the last few months. Her music has been heard on everything from The Hills to The Vampire Diaries, and with a new album coming out soon, 2010 just might be her year. This new song, called 'Headphones,' is a light and springy number but with a lyrical bite and wit reminiscent of Lily Allen. In other words, it is very good and deserves a good listen.



See, that was nice, wasn't it?

Chart Chat UK: January 3, 2010

Lady Gaga reigns supreme once again, as 'Bad Romance' edges up 2 places to kick Joe Mcelderry out of the top spot. The only new entry in the top 5 is Ke$ha, whose 'Tik Tok' keeps its momentum going. We're in that weird stagnant time of the year when sales are a bit sluggish and there can be lots of movement - like Alexandra Burke's 'Bad Boys' flying up 13 places despite being 12 weeks old. Next up is the odd chart life of 'You've Got The Love' by Florence and the Machine. The album has been flying off shelves for months now, and in fact the single peaked at 16 a good number of weeks ago. This week, however, sees the single scale a brand new height of 13, up an impressive 18 places on the back of a new video and promo push. Down at 22 is the first new entry in the chart, by Wiley and something called Chew Fu. Stay tuned to see how this one fares next week when people start remembering to buy music. A final note mention should be made of Rage Against the Machine's 'Killing in the Name,' which after a triumphant Christmas number 1 victory brought on by a grass-roots fan campaign, drops 2-40. Though the success wasn't long term, the overwhelming response to the campaign has led to others - most notably one to get Girls Aloud's only single to miss the top 10, 'Untouchable,' into the top 10, thereby preserving their "every single charting at 10 or higher" perfect record. Like in the Rage Against the Machine campaign, fans of the song/band are to download the track en masse in a specific week, in this case, the week of February 1st. Stay tuned to see how that turns out.

The UK Top Ten:
1 - Bad Romance: Lady Gaga
2 - The Climb: Joe Mcelderry
3 - Meet Me Halfway: Black Eyed Peas
4 - Tik Tok: Ke$ha
5 - 3 Words: Cheryl Cole
6 - Starstrukk: 3Oh!3
7 - Don't Stop Believin': Journey
8 - Russian Roulette: Rihanna
9 - You Know Me: Robbie Williams
10- Look For Me: Chipmunk

The first "next big thing of '10": Mary N'diaye - a little Gaga, a little Rihanna

Most blogs started their "hotly-tipped for '10" lists back in like, 2008, but ScopiSat prefers to bide our time and see who actually makes it down the record label pipe. Turns out, back in 2008 a lot of people were right, and Mary N'diaye is gearing up to be quite huge. Let's look at the evidence:

The Evidence:
1. She is working with Akon
2. She is AMAZING
The end.

Yes, it is looking very good for her isn't it.

Here is "Take Me Home," which is an absolutely brilliant piece of pop.



Mary's cover "Oh, Pretty Woman" is out on iTunes in both the US and in Europe/UK, and is a must-download. No really. Do it now.