CAPITAL G

Nine Inch Nails

I have to hold my hands up and say I was wrong. Do you remember when I reviewed Year Zero a few weeks back? You do? Blimey. Well, I did say that there could no doubt as to the subject matter of this song, didn't I? Yep… only it turns out I misinterpreted it. I thought Trent Reznor was giving George W. Bush a severe telling off, but in fact the G in the title doesn't stand for George, it stands for Greed. Easy mistake to make, I suppose. Still, it doesn't matter, because I also said this ought to be a single and would you look at that, they've only gone and released it. It's just a shame it's only being released on 9" vinyl, because it really deserves much wider exposure than that. In fact, it's not even getting a Halo number – every Nine Inch Nails release, be it single, album or whatever is numbered sequentially, Year Zero being Halo 24 – that's how minor a release this is. That's a shame, because this is one of the highlights from the album. On the face of it, it's quite a bouncy, mischievous little number with Mr Reznor playing in character as a complacent American voter who sees the ills of the world as someone else's problem, but there's a rather dark undercurrent running through the song – this may sound jolly, but it certainly doesn't feel it, and that's the whole point. It's wonderful, and if the band can see their way to releasing God Given as a single too, that'd be lovely.

NEVER AGAIN

Kelly Clarkson

Hullo, looks like someone's got a bee in her bonnet. Now, I appreciate that the phrase Best Kelly Clarkson Single Ever doesn't really count for a great deal at the moment, but this is something of a stormer. First Nine Inch Nails, now this, it looks like this week's singles so far have got something to say and then some. This is a pop/rock single, but the emphasis is very firmly away from pop – the whole band gets to have fun here, and the end result is a much harder sounding tune than you'd expect. And all this is before we even get to what La Clarkson's singing. The first line is "I hope the ring you gave to her turns her finger green" – fantastic stuff, more please. The best thing is, the song delivers on the early promise and from thereon in the song moves into full-on Hell Hath No Fury territory with the singer thoroughly in her element. From start to finish, there's no hint that she may be reading the lyrics off a card, instead she plays the part of the dumped girlfriend as if her very record contract depends on it. This song is extremely bitter, extraordinarily angry and I love it. I demand more of this sort of thing.

THE ONE-OFF SONG FOR THE SUMMER

Koopa

So, fresh from becoming the first unsigned band ever to reach the Top 40, Koopa are back. Of course, with a title like this they're asking for trouble if it ever appears on an album, but no matter. This is fun, energetic, and above all not bad at all. I don't want to sound rude, but Busted could've ended up sounding like this if only they hadn't bothered churning out kid-friendly tat like Air Hostess. Koopa have gone about things the right way and more power to them.

I'D WAIT FOR LIFE

Take That

This must be their first out-and-out clunker in ten years, and to be fair a lot of bands would kill for that sort of strike rate. Yes, I know they've only released three singles in the last decade, but let's not split hairs. This is very grown-up, very mature, but ultimately very, very dull. The song plods along until the last thirty seconds, and then the band wakes up and starts playing, and as soon as they've done that the song ends. Nope, not impressed with this one at all I'm afraid.