The video for the new Shane Macgowan-fuelled charity Haiti song thing. Once again, the musical merits aren’t really the point, but at least the song isn’t as much of a whinge-fest as the Everybody Hurts cover. Plus as a Pogues fan, it’s great to hear some new Macgowan vocals. (And a pleasant surprise that it’s possible to understand what he’s saying…)

Above is a video by “Jedward”, the Irish twins of dubious talent. It’s not their finest hour though, that would be this little gem, featuring the first (and probably last) occurrence of heavily implied gay twincest on primetime ITV.

The above single entered the charts at number 2 yesterday, failing to beat some song which has been at number 1 for two weeks. This probably doesn’t bode well for their future red-hot pop career, and suggests that the public was far more endeared to them as a novelty act on a talent show than as “artists”.

It’s a shame, as even if they themselves are ridiculous, the public reaction to them has been brilliant. People have been leaping onto their high horses as if pop music is some sacred temple with a definite minimum talent threshold. Before now, no-one with very little musical worth has ever stumbled into a pop career through luck. No.

So yeah, if this is the last we hear of the boys, it’ll be a shame, because at least they’re fun. Even if, yes, the actual music isn’t very good. Even “irony” couldn’t persuade me to buy it.

Above is an embed of the Simon Cowell Haiti benefit “Everybody Hurts” cover thing. Unsurprisingly, it removes any restraint that song ever had and turns it into a quasi-inspirational power ballad. (You can tell they waited the whole time for that “so hoooold on!”)

It has been pointed out that saying this is bad is irrelevant. It has been banged out quickly to provide people with an excuse to give money to charity, not to be musically worthwhile. And there might even be a few who genuinely like it. In fairness, it isn’t offensively bad, it’s just very boring.

I was fishing for some kind of social point, but it isn’t coming. I have, however, successfully put off doing the “proper work” I was meant to be doing for another ten minutes. Victory is mine.

Space Shot, the new single by Ash, was released today for download and so forth. I have the MP3 because I subscribe to their new-song-fortnightly A-Z Series thing, and am enjoying it.

Other songs especially worth checking out from the A-Z include True Love 1980, Arcadia and Pripyat. However, all of them have been good, fun indie-pop. If you’ve ever liked Ash, they’re doing some good stuff here.