The Saturday Surf #24

Night draws in for the Saturday Surf. This is the last one for 2011. We’re giving this feature a little rest until the New Year, but it will be back in January. Next week also sees the last ever Music That Made Me post. That will be on Monday, and will include some conclusions and thoughts that wrap the whole series up.

We have some new features planned for 2012, but as we soon dive into late November /December the blog will be taken over by our Ones to Watch for 2012 and a post by post run down of our ten favourite albums of the year. Then we’ll have a break for Christmas and all being well the site will be back up and running on New Years’ Day 2012. Yes, this feels like the downhill stretch at the end of a music blogging marathon. Year on year we’ve increased the amount of posts on the blog to the point where we’ve gone way beyond hitting the blogging wall and we reckon a rest is well deserved. Of course there's still more to come in November, but as we ease up to the finishing tape there will be a slight slow down in blog posting before we sprint for the line in the last month.

So without further ado, here is the final Saturday Surf of 2011.

Princess Chelsea – The Cigarette Duet

Quirky music box fairy-tale oddness from Princess Chelsea aka Chelsea Nikkel, a bedroom producer from Auckland, New Zealand who charms with this simple song about, yes, smoking a cigarette. Complete with boy-girl vocal interplay, la la la’s and a video filmed in a hot tub, this ditty is like one of those long lost easy listening classics.“I was different then, I don’t need them to be cool,” sings Jonathon Bree. He’s right, this is stupidly cool.

Princess Chelsea - The Cigarette Duet

War of Words – Panic (Ben’s Panic Street Beaters Remix)

War of Words is a new pop duo that are releasing not just one, but two singles on the same day through Popjustice Hi-fi in December. They consist of Abi and Lucy who are both 23 years old. They’ve (whisper it quietly) come through the Brit School route to be recording artists, but before you shove your snobby indie nose in the air, have a listen to this remix by Ben Langmaid of La Roux, its sexy electro sound rampages around the dance floor but keeps a very strong song element. Apparently there’s a remix of the other single – Battleground - from the other half of La Roux (Elly Jackson) in the offing too. Hopefully this remix work signals the start of further La Roux action and hopefully album number 2 in 2012.

War Of Words - Panic (Ben's Panic Street Beaters Remix)

Rizzle Kicks - Mama Do The Hump

Finally, there's a Brighton residents bed-in with Rizzle Kicks and the funky uncle of big-beat Mr Fatboy Slim on this choice track from the Rizzle Kicks debut album Stereo Typical. Like a crazy cowboy in hip-hop chaps and stetson this one drags you in with a musical lassoo that's very 1998-2000.

Rizzle Kicks have been an interesting phenomena this year for Breaking More Waves. We post hardly any hip-hop on the blog, but when we first heard these two lads we were quickly smitten with their cheeky brand of brit-rap. Having supported them throughout the year, when many others in our peer group were telling us they were awful and wouldn't appeal to anyone, Rizzle Kicks have answered with hit singles, a hit album and sell out UK shows. Whilst commercial success doesn't always equate to good, it does show that in terms of music blogging you have to trust your instincts and not follow what everyone else says. Sometimes, as a blogger, if you like something, other people will too. Thus ends the Saturday Surf, or should that be Saturday Sermon? Have a great weekend.

Rizzle Kicks - Mama Do the Hump