I'm not exactly the model type

For someone whose music I enjoy so much, I'm surprised I've only posted songs by Gareth Gates once. Thus, today, the focus is on some of Gareth's B-Sides. I really like both his albums, but I think at least a few of his B-sides are even better than some of the album tracks.

Gareth Gates came second in the first season of the UK's Pop Idol. He then went on to release several very successful singles and a first album, What My Heart Wants To Say, that sold well. He began the singles from his second album with a cover of "Spirit In The Sky" (which included interjections by fictional TV family the Kumars) for Comic Relief. His next two singles, "Sunshine" and "Say It Isn't So," did fairly well, but, when album Go Your Own Way was released, it didn't do as well as the record company wanted. He's now no longer with that record company and trying to find a new one to sign to so he can release his third album, though his management has hinted they are willing to release the album on their own. I really hope we get to hear this album. Will it do well, if it ever is released? I don't know, but I hope so; based on his past albums and the demos for this one, I think it would be great.

Dance With Me--as you might guess from the title, a dancey song (though not in the dance-pop sense). Gareth certainly records ballads, but he also consistently has a high number of faster songs on his albums, which is great, as it makes them a lot more fun. "Dance With Me" is from the "Say It Isn't So" single, so this song--faster and a little funky (funky in the sense of the sort of music you can picture leading to a music video set in a club; I keep wanting to say it's got a bit of a clubby feel to it, but I don't want to imply it has the feeling of remixed or techno-influenced dance-pop that you often hear in clubs; "groovy," maybe?)--was a really nice contrast to the actual single.

Forever Blue--a ballad and the B-side to "Anyone Of Us (Stupid Mistake)." In style and production, it feels like it would fit in well with his first album (I'd say his second album has a more mature sound and more complex backing tracks; his voice seems different between the two albums, too).

She Doesn't Even Know--also from the "Say It Isn't So" single. Mid-tempo (though it might even be too fast to fall into that category; the music does a good job of propelling the song along) and totally cute, with all these adorable electronic-produced (I'm presuming) backing noises. In the middle, there's a tiny, tiny, tiny hint of R&B or hip-hop influence (really tiny! So much so that I feel odd just making the comparison. It's just the feeling given to it by some minor beatboxing--not by Gareth; maybe funky would have been a better word) before the song slows down and the some of the backing effects disappear for a few lines. Finally, the song returns to its former state, with some more backing vocals by Gareth.

To buy the "Anyone Of Us (Stupid Mistake)" single, go here; to buy the "Say It Isn't So" single, go here. I really recommend his albums, too.

Next up: possibly two days of the Click Five.

gareth gates