Baby, we can make it through these hard, hard times

It's been too long since I posted something from a full-fledged, out-and-out, there's-no-disagreeing-with-it boy band...and luckily, Part Six are stepping in to fix that. The German-based boy band (is there room for both Part Six and US5?) wasn't one I planned on paying any attention to; their first single was a cover of Darin's "Want Ya" that had nothing on the original--and I mean absolutely nothing. Sometimes boy band covers can work great--I really like A1's cover of a-ha's "Take On Me," for example. This one, to say the least, did not. The singing, the power, the fun--nothing could measure up to Darin's version, and it just sort of all felt awkward to me. That's not to say I held a grudge or anything against Part Six or anything--I just wasn't interested in them. Their most recent single, though, has caught my attention. Before we get to it, though, I want to point something out: what is the world coming to when it's easier to enjoy boy band songs when you don't know what the boy band looks like? There's something about how they're presented nowadays that throws me off. (By the way, if you need some amusement, you could watch the video for this song--standing in the rain! Classic. Though I have to to admit I like the dancing near the end, cheesy as it is. Plus, I can't be too upset with anyone who manages to find a way to work choreographed group dance routines into even a ballad.)

Drive So Far--this is a ballad, I guess, though it's got a back beat that's supposed to give it a little extra energy. What on Earth the whole talk at the beginning about "people on the streets all alone" who "lost all they had because of a loan" has to do with anything, I'm not sure--is it supposed to be social commentary? Just an easy rhyme? I'm not sure. This isn't exactly classy boy band stuff, but whoever wrote this song somehow managed to make it work, despite seemingly countless attempts to mess it up (more lyrical issues: the whole "you're like a nice surprise to my life" bit? And how it's delivered doesn't help--normally, lyrics don't matter too much to me, but how they're sung here really emphasizes them). It's got some pretty bits, but, most importantly, the chorus works (plus there's a really short musical part around 2:31 that I like), and the music is generally decent boy band ballad stuff--so, as much as I may criticize this song, it is cute, and I do really like it. The audio quality isn't top-notch, but I might have a better version soon--I'll post it if I get it (I do have a better audio quality version of the "X-mas Version," but it's not as good).

To buy Part Six's single "Drive So Far," go here (physical) or here (digital; you'll have to search for "Part Six").

I've been meaning to do some links for forever now, but I keep forgetting. Finally, though, here are some things worth reading around the web:

You all remember Anžej Dežan from Eurovision, right? He was from Slovenia and sang the great song "Mr. Nobody" (one of my favorites at the contest), but didn't make it out of the semifinals. Well, Goggle over at The Goggles Do Nothing has found out that his website has just been relaunched, complete with legally downloadable mp3's of some of his songs! Now, if only we could get an album from him...

Adem at I'm Always Right has an adorable post about Take That and growing up--definitely worth reading!

And speaking of nostalgia, after a great post about Darren Hayes, Raj of Electroqueer has a great and really interesting post about music and growing up--how he got into music and all the stages he's gone through.

Trixie of Karinski likes Go:Audio, which means anyone who was worried about losing too many hipness points by liking them can breathe a sigh of relief. Plus she's also coined the word "emop"...

Craving more boy bands? Then check out the Zapping's three day feature on the Irish group D-side, the original singers of Clay Aiken's "Invisible."

Don't Stop The Pop is celebrating its one year anniversary--congratulations! Can't wait for another year of amazing pop discoveries.

Have I mentioned A Kind Of Love In here yet? It's the newest project of PinkieDust from PopEatsPop, and it's brilliant. Anything's fair game, so you'll get random but clever musings from him and Robpop (and I'll chip in something sometimes, too). It's a lot of fun--check it out if you have time!

Digital Technique continues to be as brilliant as ever, now featuring bunches of reality TV show contestants.

Continuing with reality TV, have you seen Poptastic's Popstars special yet? You're guaranteed to be introduced to some new--and great--pop songs.

The incredibly wide-ranging Enthusiastic but Mediocre reveals the top song of 2006--have you heard it?

I don't know if I've mentioned yet on this blog how much I'm enjoying Mika's music, but it's really great--you can listen to two of his best songs over at the Eye-pod, and definitely pick up his album when it comes out.

Talent In A Previous Life continues its excellent coverage of Celebrity Big Brother.

You see, that's what happens when my awful memory prevents me from doing this a bit at a time (and I'm sure I've forgotten some sites I meant to mention, too)...but all those sites are worth visiting!

Next up: maybe more songs from Germany, or a "we're not really a boy band even though we sound like it!" group from Australia.