TOP OF THE POPS

Wow, its been a pretty long time since I last updated! Reason for this being I've been living it up in London, Brighton and Glasgow, watching spazzcore bands play in peoples living rooms, downing glasses of Bucky, dancing to some dirrrty electro beats at Subclub, smoking strawberry shisha and drinking Yogi Yogi Tchai, riding the Waltzer til I was almost sick, watching the moons reflection on the water from Brighton Pier, y'know, that kind of stuff. It was dandy =)

And now here I am, back to normality. On the long, arduous train journey back I had some thinking time, and inspired in part by the Nylon Book of Music (birthday present from the lovely George) I decided to put together a list of my top ten stylish girlies in bands, just for shits and giggles, like. In no particular order, here goes!

1. Chloe - Battant
I saw these guys play on Sunday at Optimo in Glasgow, and their minimalist electro-punk blew me away. Singer Chloe looks like Jean Seberg in Breathless, all pegleg highwaisted trousers, black hair in a gamine crop and little white daps. Simple but effective!
Download 'Jump Up!'

2. Leesy - Help! She Can't Swim
Yeah so, these guys may have gone their seperate ways a couple of years back, but the influence they had on the way my sixteen year old self dressed and thought about music was pretty huge. I saw them live at a tiny club in Mayfair about 5 years ago and remember looking at Leesy jumping about the stage in her sequinned shorts and ripped day-glo t-shirt and thinking 'I want to be her'.
Download 'Fermez La Bouche'

3. Kate Jackson - The Long Blondes
Yes, another band that have ceased to be (sadly due to guitarist Dorian suffering a massive stroke that left him unable to play), but in the short time the Sheffield five piece were around they managed to bash out a multitude of killer choons and establish themselves as darlings of the music press. Kate Jackson was their outspoken frontwoman who was always perfectly attired in 40's inspired pencil skirts, neckties and cardigans, yet somehow managed to make it look totally rock'n'roll.
Download 'Lust In The Movies' - if only because of its reference to my ultimate style icon Edie Sedgwick!

4. Millionaires
Dani Artaud, Melissa Marie and Allison Wonderland are three LA girls who make contagious-as-swine-flu electro-pop under the name of Millionaires. Dani and Melissa were former darlings of the abhorrent internet fad known as 'Scene Queens' but have since ditched the stereotypical myspace-whore appearance for a look thats part trailer trash, part glam-rock and totally original.
Download 'Alcohol' - ultimate party soundtrack.

5. Karen O - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
No list would be complete without the yelping, mad-as-a-badger-in-a-partyhat YYY's frontwoman. Whether she's rocking a spraypainted, diamante catsuit or a pink chiffon ballgown with neon stripes under her eyes, she's been the bedrock of cool since the band burst out of New York at the beginning of the 21st Century. A true icon.
Download 'Date With The Night' or 'Art Star' - the oldies are the goodies.

6. Joanna Newsom
The elfin-voiced harp-player has stolen hearts with her whimsical tunes and eloquent, perfectly penned lyrics. Her eclectic style complements her music perfectly - with Joanna anything goes, be that wolf pelt hats, tie-dye dresses or simple corduroy jackets. Her ethereal beauty just adds to her enigmatic charm.
Download 'The Sprout and the Bean'

7. Annie-Claude - Duchess Says
The keytar wielding, budgie worshipping frontwoman/resident mentalist of Montreals Duchess Says is more reknowned for her on-stage antics than her dress sense, but in my humble opinion the petite singers long straggled hair, ripped up tshirts and the manic glint in her eye are the epitome of cool.
Download 'Ccut Up'. Fuckin' mental.

8. Helen and Mira - Ladytron
I've never known how to classify Ladytron, but for those who've not heard of them I'll have a go. They're a four piece who fuse electro, ambient and goth-rock into a weird subgenre of their own that strangely seems to work. I saw them at Koko's when I was 18 and their gothic yet minimalist look inspired me to get a bowlcut and wear a black polo-neck for an entire year. No lie.
Download 'He Took Her to a Movie'

9. Debbie Harry - Blondie
This one doesn't really need an introduction, does it? Blondies peroxide hair and new-wave glam has stood the test of time, so much so that her influence can still be found in clubs across the world 30 years on. Both her style and her music just seem to be getting better with age.
Download 'Atomic'

10. Imogen Heap

I thought long and hard over this last one. there were a fair few ladies who could have taken this spot, but after much (well, 3 seconds) deliberation I decided that Ms Heap and her outlandish, devil-may-care attitude to fashion was the most fitting. A true British eccentric who thinks nothing of teaming a corseted ballgown with an entire gardens worth of foliage in her hair, shes as well known for her amazing dress sense as she is for her fresh take on electro pop.
Download 'Hide and Seek'.

Coming soon: The Duloks answer some questions, we talk to Dead Against The Rest's frontman Paul Marshall, and Kooki Two Bit help us out with a shoot!

© Copyright Betti Hunter 2009