Children of Nature.

HMLTD announced today via a live streamed interview with Ann Marie Alanes that they are moving into the crypto sphere with a new interactive project named Leaving. They are by no means the first musicians to dabble in this area, Imogen Heap released an NFT single as long ago as 2015 and has since been heavily involved in the medium with her Creative Passport project. However it remains so far a world predominantly dominated by visual artists, most notably poking its nose above the parapet of tech news into the mainstream consciousness when digital artist Beeple sold a single NFT piece for $70 million last month, so it's interesting to see a band like HMLTD moving into this space

Has there ever been a more perfect trip through the infinity mirrors of pop alter-ego than the love letter to Hannah Montana penned by Miley Cyrus this week?

(Everything you never needed to know about the Village People but will be glad I told you anyway.)

My favorite new releases from the week ending 18/12/2020.

Like everything Miley has done since Can't Be Tamed (a record that has more in common with Plastic Hearts than you might imagine), there is a perfect concoction of visuals, artwork and fashion orbiting the music.

Signed to Alan McGee's label and supporting The Happy Mondays at the Creation Festival next year, the band have some pretty strong Britpop credentials. The chuggy chorus of Spaceman certainly fits this bill, but in its best moments the verses have a melodic hook that's strangely reminiscent of Aztec Camera.

Dirt Royal, a well loved fixture of the South Coast music scene who have supported the likes of Sham 69 and 100 Yard Stare, have a spiky garage punk sound that, along with the requisite amount of snottiness and raucous energy, also firmly knows its way around a good pop tune.