When I stumbled across London’s Mad Staring Eyes mid-way through their set last month at North by Northeast, I thought to myself that I’d discovered the new kings of pub rock. When bass player Dan Lee handed me a copy of Bored of Looking Cool, and I saw they have a track called “King of Pub Rock,” I figured I wasn’t alone in my opinion. They’re also one of the few bands I’ve ever seen to list Ian Dury as an influence, so there you go.

Like their predecessors in the genre, MSE play straight-up rock with a raucous attitude. They’ve got a great bunch of tunes on this disc, however this recording comes a little short of capturing the band’s frenetic live energy. It does, however, do a rather nostalgic tip of the hat to the heyday of pub rock simply due to the fact that it sounds like it could’ve been recorded in the early ’80s (the dated keyboard textures on tunes like “Out of my Head” definitely drive that point home).

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Featuring Bowie on Bowie, The New Pornographers are raising money for good causes and Crtstal Castles get a slap on the wrist at Glastonbury

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Subscribers to the Daily Mail, like my little sister, got one hell of a treat in the Sunday edition - a CD of David Bowie’s all-time career best tunes as chosen by the man himself. Big surprise; some of them are pretty obscure tracks you can’t get through the standard greatest hits collections. Big bonus, extensive liner notes written by Bowie as well.
 
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