The UK pop duo Mini Viva has quite the pedigree—their music is produced by the brilliant knob-twiddlers in Xenomania, and they’re managed by Idol/Spice Girls impresario Simon Fuller—and their relentless first single “Left My Heart In Tokyo” has been hanging out in the UK top 10 for the past few weeks. “Tokyo” pretty much sounds like it was unearthed after being misplaced sometime in the early ’90s, when people were putting together an early-’90s dance comp (also on that album: “Touch Me (All Night Long),” “Show Me Love”). Recommended if you’re hoping that all this ’90s-revival stuff that’s been going on means that we’ll revisit the better bits of the Club MTV era. Clip after the jump. More »
Apoplectic British music magazine NME has just issued its latest Future 50 list—“the 50 acts pushing things forward in 2009,” in the rag’s sorta-esteemed opinion—and one thing that’s sort of surprising to me is how pop-centric the overall list is. Sure, the top two slots are taken by Pitchfork darlings (a one-two punch of Animal Collective and The Knife), but the list also includes Lady GaGa, frequent Girls Aloud collaborators Xenomania, and the Idolator-beloved site Popjustice? Also the kids’ program Yo Gabba Gabba!, and… The Take That stage show?? Also, perhaps to goose newsstand sales by putting a little bit of the fear of God into anyone browsing the list online, the hyper-annoying, hypersexist, Hypercolored outfit 3OH!3 is at No. 41. The full list after the jump. More »
