Taio Cruz Feat. Pitbull - There She Goes

As much as Taio Cruz's courting of American success has to be admired, it's sort of a shame to see how readily he's played into the uber-generic commercial dance-pop formula when he previously came out with far more considered, individualistic gems such as I Can Be and Moving On.

And the trouble with new Pitbull-featuring track There She Goes is that not only is it generic, but it isn't even that good. If we wanted a new Pitbull-athon, we'd go to the new J Lo track, which is infinitely better. And even Taio's previous chart workout Hangover at least came with a indelibly catchy chorus hook - even if the track wasn't to your tastes, odds were that it'd be lodged in your brain before the day was out.

But There She Goes is neither overly catchy or possessed of any real sign of quality, and with even Hangover stalling at 27 in the UK charts, we're inclined to ask whether it's time for Taio to make a return to his roots.

There She Goes is released on the 11th June.

Taio Cruz feat. Flo Rida - Hangover

As a bright New Year dawns on the the 1st of January, we imagine there'll be a fair few sore heads out there this morning. And while most people would probably want to forget those shaky memories of berocca and being too sick to clamber from bed, Taio Cruz has gone and done a song about hangover. Brilliant.

The thing about Taio is that for all his seeming commercial artist simplicity, recently, as he's dabbled in the American market, things have all gone a bit weird. Previous album Rokstarr ended up splitting off into semi-greatest hits compilation The Rokstarr Collection - while super-smashes Break Your Heart and Dynamite did exceedingly well everywhere, other singles like No Other One flopped without trace.

And the piecemeal approach to round the world success seems to continue with third album TY.O, already released in Germany on the 2nd December, but not out here until the 26th March. Go Figure. New single Hangover has all the makings of another mega-hit though, with 19 Million views on YouTube already and a de-rigeur guest rap from Flo Rida.

It's a suitably standard club-based affair, the synths going for a harder edge than Taio's previous singles and with a bit of guitar thrown in for good measure. Beneath any surface embellishments though, Hangover is a thoroughly to-formula track, working to a tightly planned schematic of contemporary urban-pop tropes. It's tediously predictable, a mish-mash of sounds we've already heard a thousand times on assorted tracks across the past year.

It's a disappointing turn for the artist many of us still remember as capable of producing beautiful, reflective R&B like I Can Be and Moving On. But whatever format they take, Taio's hit-making talents can't be faulted, and if the track's 'I got a hangover, whoooahhhh!' isn't one of the most indelible pop hooks we've heard recently, we don't know what is.

Hangover is released on the 19th March.

Talay Riley - Make You Mine

We got sent Talay Riley's album sampler yonks ago, and we must confess, we were kinda wondering what had happened to him, because pretty much every track on there was brilliant - the kind of snazzy urban pop that should be right up there at the top of the charts.

Riley's credentials are impressive - he featured on the big Chipmunk hit Look For Me as well as touring with N-Dubz. Sounding like a new, rejuventated Taio Cruz or Tinchy Stryder, his specialty is robotic beats and gloriously dirty synth basslines. Previous singles Humanoid and Sergeant Smash were the epitome of this sound, seeing releases towards the end of 2010/start of 2011.

It is Riley's new single Make You Mine, however, that sees him at his best. More mainstream and clean-sounding, if any track is to see him propelled to the top of the charts, it'll be this one.

A strong, piano-driven track, it presents Riley as a kind of British Drake, which makes him Rather Good indeed. The chorus is a towering, wondrously catchy thing - one of those magical moments that sounds like you've known it all your life.

Make You Mine is released on the 1st August and can be pre-ordered from iTunes here.

Polly Mackey & The Pleasure Princple - Higher (Jeuce Rework)

There's something enchanting about a great amazing. Take Higher by Polly Mackey & The Pleasure Princple. There's been a fair deal of buzz about the Jeuce rework of the track and it's most definitely justified. From those quieter moments, all delicate touches of rubbery synths... then right into the heart of the track and the chorus, a pure hand-aloft in the club moment. It's uplifting, anthemic, everything a memorable dance mix should be. This is the soundtrack to memories of an amazing night out. And all centered around a strong, soulful vocal.

Hailing from Wrexham, Polly Mackey & The Pleasure Principle hold the honour of opening SXSW 2010 and with Robert Harder on production duties (Babyshambles, Brian Eno), they're in good hands. BBC6Music taste-maker Lauren Lavern is also a big fan of them.

Songs called 'Higher' seem to be going through something of a renaissance at the moment, just look at The Saturdays or Taio Cruz. We can definitely add this one to the list too. It's fantastic.

Polly Mackey & The Pleasure Principle - Higher (JEUCE REWORK) by ThePlayground

McFly - Shine A Light

One song I’m particular loving at the moment is McFly’s brilliant new single Shine A Light. Ever since the band went all electro with the boundless energy of Party Girl, I’ve had a newfound respect for the boys. They’ve kept the youthful spirit of their early days, but combined it with a new ‘knowing’, a new intelligent and some absolutely cracking melodies.

Shine A Light illustrates this perfectly. And even better, it’s got Taio Cruz on it too. Now, when i first heard Party Girl, its sound struck me as very ‘Taio’, so it seems only right McFly are now working with him. And together these two stalwarts of British pop music have come up with a pure winner of a track. Its strength comes in its relative simplicity, the track is very ‘clean’, all breezy and light – in many ways a breath of fresh air in a world of music where tracks have become so production heavy you often feel like you’re drowning in them.

The chorus is sublime, the melody moving and powerful in equal measure. And then there’s delicate little touches like the echoing guitar hook that bookends the song, or the twinkling piano that plays gently over the end of the track. It’s things like this that revitalise McFly, shooting them out as a force that is very much still to be reckoned with.

Taio Cruz & Kylie Minogue - Higher

Taio Cruz’s ‘Break Your Heart’ was a piece of sheer fantastic pop joy, and although ‘Dynamite’ did eventually come to grow on me, it never sounded anywhere near the level of amazingness of the former track. So ‘Higher’ comes with a massive sigh of relief, it’s Taio Cruz bang on the money, working his songwriting magic into a track that has got Number 1 written all over it.

Now, the song itself is fantastic in its own right, but add in the ever-wonderful pop princess Kylie Minogue and things go off the scale. ‘Higher’ is one of those tracks that is simply SO good. It demands you to listen again, again and again. The chorus is about as infectious as you could possibly create within the realms of natural science. Kylie’s vocals slot in effortlessly next to Taio’s, seeing a cool return to the R&B side of things she dabbled in for her much underated ‘Body Language’ album.

And then we’ve got the brilliant video, which is just as sleek, glossy and cool as the song itself (although it could be argued it is just one massive advert for BMW). Either way, we absolutely LOVE Higher.

Watch the video by clicking here