The 2kDozen 500: #335 - Savages, "I Am Here EP"

So the hot band get nothing but hotter. Tracks leaking out, every now and then. And now a live EP - two tracks from a show in Nottingham and two from Bristol. That seems a strange move. That's more of a contractual filler of a move of a band much further on down the road.

They sound pretty intensive and fiery. The oddness of their single in the summer has been subsumed by big flames. It sounds like watching Snub TV footage used to feel: lively and theatrical and essential. "I Am Here" is big on the drums, heart-quickening drums. The whole spirals up and up. Then "Husbands" closes proceedings - sounding more like Jello Biafra. Far less sleek than the single. That's all I really have to go on.

There is some area of the imagination that this music prowls about in - like Pixies or The Slits. A part where sex lives and there is blood and full, dark colours and things outside the window. I'm not sure what they are about lyrically on "Give Me A Gun"; but they are hanging around in those dark garages of the soul. All "ill at ease". There's more of an atmosphere than a structure exactly. There's less for me to latch on to; but it's powerful.

I want to see them live.

Rating: Quick Heart out of Dark Garages

The 2kDozen 500: #334 - Lucy Rose, "Like I Used To"

Sad pop business. A hint of defiance in the downtrodden voice. Low-key production; the sound of a few instruments quite close up. I think you get the picture. Nothing really to set it aside from a crowd of similar folk, writing their emotional songs with sparse lyrics and sparser drama. Not enough tension.

After five tracks, I looked down the overlong list of 15 titles and thought that both my evening and my life were too short, so I pulled out. A song called "Shiver" reaches the lyrical peak of considering how different she felt when she was in love. Titles like "Be Alright" and "All I've Got" and "Scar" do nothing to encourage me to change my mind. I think she uses bikes as a kind of a metaphor on "Bikes", which could as easily have been called "Rollercoaster", I imagine - or "Teacups".

In years to come, I may sit bolt upright in bed, stiff with the realisation that I missed my big chance to get in on Lucy at the ground level. Until that time comes, I shall try and sleep as easy as I can.

Rating: Sarcasm out of Late Night Irritation