Pop! Goes The Indieface

It all started on the Internet. Lily Allen's It's Not Me, It's You is the second act in her rise to indie and mainstream pop fame after the release of her 2007 debut LP, Alright, Still. The new album combines influences from jazz to dance to a bit of country. Produced by The Bee (Greg Kurstin), It's Not Me, It's You once again features Allen's witty, yet biting lyrics all packaged in a cutesy electro-britpop present. The lead single, The Fear, reviews Allen's own insecurities about fame and relationships in general with a catchy dance beat. Other must hears include the hoedown-inspired, "Not Fair", the mellow but introspective, "I Could Say", and the self-explanatory, "F*ck You". The album was released this week.

Overall Rating: 8 out of 10

On the indie pop tip:

Also worth checking out is Brooklyn's own Matt & Kim's new joint, "Daylight", off their album, Grand, which came out last month. I had the good fortune of seeing Matt & Kim at Lollapalooza 2007 when they were asked to fill in for CSS who had missed their inbound flight from NYC. I was one of maybe 100 or so peeps that dropped by to listen on their impromptu side stage performance (they had previously played earlier that morning). Having heard their music before, I stayed to enjoy a raucous two-piece indie pop-rock powerhouse deliver some of the most memorable songs I experienced that summer. And this is a big PJ fan talking here; I remembered Matt & Kim when all I wanted to hear was Vedder belt one out!

Take some time to discover Matt & Kim if you haven't already. Their live performance (THE show I saw) will captivate you!