Some of you may be aware of my general frequent behavior of getting weak in the knees in the presence of anyone or anything British. For those of you who don't know, let me quote Sienna Miller's character from Alfie when she finds out her limo driver is from jolly old England:
"You're British? I love British."
Such is the life philosophy of your blogger Miss Taylor here. Since much of my heritage is composed of Welsh and English blood, I feel very connected through some odd force I don't quite understand myself to the Brits...even though I've never been to the Queen Mother's country. But never fear, I'm in the process of fixing that as I type (more for a later entry).
My favorite guilty pleasure is British pop music. Good or bad, I love all of it. I don't judge either. I'm willing to give all of it at least one listen. It all started with Sophie Ellis-Bextor and from there, escalated. Girls Aloud, Sugababes. Robbie Williams. Alcazar. Duffy. Rachel Stevens. Well, technically it started with Robbie when I stayed up late at 13 to watch the video for "Rock DJ" on the MTV2 special Most Controversial Videos. Y'know, the video where he pulls his skin off and dances as a skeleton with all of the girls on roller blades? Maybe it's just me on this one.
In any case, a few weeks ago I got on my Pandora to my handcrafted Sophie Ellis- Bextor radio station I've spent a sizable amount of time editing and sat and listened whilst writing. Then I heard a voice, of a song I never heard before, the voice of someone that sounded intriguing and just wonderful. I felt that weird prickle you get when you know you're listening to someone who will infinitely make you feel happy, even for no apparent reason, even when you feel like you'll never be happy again. The sound like peppermint candy canes crackling apart in the cold wind with the echo of laughter and gasping for breath with sleigh bells ringing. It's this wild intrigue that just tells you things are going to be swell. Your heart knows it, because it just popped 12 times its size to inflatable proportions and is know doing a wacky sock hop dance next to your lungs. It's just how I felt for those 3 minutes and 16 seconds.
Check the name.
Little Boots
I adore her.
Victoria Hesketh is her real name. Her voice is a touch difficult to place in comparison to someone else, but her music influences include a solid list of greats from Kylie Minogue to Pink Floyd and even Gary Numan.
She sits cozy in the 20-something girl singer group comprised of Lady Gaga, Florence Welch from Florence and the Machine, and Pip Brown (Ladyhawke). If you're inclined to listen to these ladies, I highly, highly recommend giving Little Boots a shot.
Key tracks to listen to include:
New in Town (note: I am aware that this song was on the Jennifer's Body soundtrack. Do not worry. I promise, it's fun and not irritating. Then again, Hole also had the song Violet on this soundtrack, but they did have an album with the same title as the movie so I guess Courtney Love had to get roped into the soundtrack somehow.)
Remedy
Stuck on Repeat
Hearts Collide
Earthquake
Catch 22
Very much worth the listen indeed. Especially if you're in the mood for an accent.
You know I always am.
Love to you all,
Heather
