
Crooked Steps – Daiquiri
I depend on good garage rock to keep me going as others do on giant quantities of caffeine and nicotine. While Belgium’s Crooked Steps are a group of the garage variety, they certainly sound like they enjoy their showtunes as much as anything created by the Stooges.
“Daiquiri”, as the name would suggest is a playful and vibrant single, with a touch of self-irony sprinkled in case young fans were to accuse the band of taking themselves too seriously.. Fast-paced retro-soul vocals move over a simple bass and drum dominated verse. It all builds towards a chorus of power-chords and singalongs.
If they can produce singles equally as catchy as “Daiquiri”, Crooked Steps could be looking at a long and interesting career.
Spineapples – Archie
Spineapples’ Archie is the equivalent of rock n roll emotional blackmail. Who can deny a song about a cute, with matching artwork to boot? The fact that it’s a good tune is an added bonus.

Spineapples are of the Jonathan Richman School of writing about small things that you know much about. The two-minute power-pop romp is a description of all the ways in which Archie is annoying, yet lovable.
As for the music, it happens to be a treat. Inspired by Weezer, reminiscent of Fountains of Wayne, Spineapples is a group that knows how to use a guitar to prop up a record. From lead/rhythm guitar separation of the verse to the way power-chords elevate the chorus, to the guitar noises that accompany the end of verses, Spineapples sure know how to put a song together.