Not Many Experts

(Reposted minus mp3s)

Whenever I hear about a new “buzz band” being signed by a major label, I always make the effort to listen to them. Of course, they’re often spouting awful, generic rubbish that is guaranteed to sell, but you know that they’re going to be marketed to death on Radio 1, so you may as well get used to it. Thankfully, major labels are still signing up great bands like Delphic and Hockey, two of the most recent bands that have gone from blog buzz to major money relatively quickly.

I first heard about Delphic (above) on Good Weather For Airstrikes, but the mp3 link was removed by the evil forces that be. Strangely, I received an e-mail from their new record label a day or two later, with details about the new video for their debut single, “Counterpoint”. You can find that here . Unfortunately, Polydor don’t have anything mp3-ish to distribute at the moment (credit crunch anyone??) but I have it on their assurance that they are locked up in the studio in Berlin at the moment and the single will be out 13th April, followed by an album later this year. Fantastic single + broody European city + tour supporting Bloc Party = superstardom and drugs problems in approximately two albums from now.

Hockey are a strangely established band to be posting about in a feature like this… their fantastic debut album “Mind Chaos” was released last year, and it was one of those records that was loved by all those that heard it, but didn’t manage to really catch on. Now, however, they have been snapped up by Capitol in the US and Virgin in the UK, and the album has spookily disappeared. As in… they destroyed the album and you can’t buy it anymore. I told you I was right to be scared of major labels! Now, “Mind Chaos” will be released in May in the UK, but funded by Virgin Records, it’s likely that people will actually hear about it this time. Check out their myspace, their great single “Too Fake” is out now.