BLAG, STEAL AND BORROW

Koopa

There you go kids, it can be done. Proof positive that it's now possible for anyone at all to reach the Top 40, and it's all thanks to downloads. This is the unsigned band that put out a single on their own, got their fanbase mobilised and went straight in at No.31… blimey, I can remember when going into the chart below No.10 probably meant the end of your career in the music business, how things have changed, eh? Of course, it's not just the fact that their fanbase rolled into action, it also helps that this is actually not that bad a song. Yes, it sounds like Busted would've if they'd had the chance to grow up together, but the lyrics have something to say (basically, the music industry is screwed – well, we know that) and it's got so much heart and passion put into it that frankly, it deserves its place on the listings and if they make new fans out of it, fair play. The fact that the video looks like it cost around 25p to make doesn't hurt, either. If this lot can do it, I wonder how long it'll be before a Milton Keynes band does it…

PERFECT (EXCEEDER)

Mason vs Princess Superstar

Do you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to cheat on this one. Watch this...

EXCEEDER

Mason

Ah, that's much better. I know the Princess Superstar version is the one aimed towards the charts, but let's be honest, if you're going to go down the digital route when buying your singles as most people seem to be doing these days, the original's the one to go for. There's no vocals, which means the tune isn't restructured to fit the verse-chorus-verse way of doing things and if you ask me (which I bet you didn't), this is one of those tunes that really needs a free rein to do what it wants when it wants to do it. It's completely electronic, and manages to be uplifting without teetering over the edge into naffness, which to be fair is a pretty clever trick. The problem that the new version has is that it feels as though Princess Superstar's contribution has been crowbarred in as a way of getting both artists a spot of exposure, a bit like when the Egg and David Guetta were lumped together last year. Although this contribution works out better than that, it's nice to know that the original is doing the rounds as well. In fact, if you go to his MySpace page, you can hear The Exceeder Fanfare – which is basically Exceeder played by a proper marching band! Fantastic! It even succeeds in changing the entire character of the song – it now sounds like the sort of music you'd hear during a Connery-era Bond movie just as the villains of the day are sneaking up on some poor unsuspecting NASA space rocket with the intention of doing something really naughty indeed to it, but that just proves how adaptable this song actually is. The Princess Superstar version is tolerable, but this is really where it's at.

THE PRAYER

Bloc Party

I'm going to show my age here. Sorry. For the first few seconds until the singing starts, the tribal sounding beat makes this sound just like an Adam and the Ants single – have a listen, you'll see what I mean. Now, I'm not saying that as a way of saying "I'll tell you what, this single's rubbish!", because as it turns out, Bloc Party have only gone and released their best single so far. If you're announcing your return, you want to let people know you're back and this does it in style. I've always liked songs that start off sounding disjointed and messy and then gradually come together by the time the chorus rolls into town and this is exactly that. It ought to be huge, but seeing as I've now jinxed it by saying I like it, you can expect to see this one crawling to No.35 or thereabouts. Sorry, Bloc Party.