French Indie-pop
There was a point in the indie scene a few years ago when credible bands covering chart acts was de rigeur; Arctic Monkeys did Girls Aloud, (and vice versa), Travis performed Britney's 'Baby..' and pretty much anyone who was anyone offered versions of Rihanna's 'Umbrella', with varying results, (Starsailor was a surprise entrant.) It would appear that such sardonic imitation is still a quick and effective form of gaining public notoriety, as the youthful French self proclaimed 'boy wonder' Sliimy proved when he unleashed his acoustic guitar and xylophone assault on Britney Spears' 'Womaniser', his delicate falsetto serenading over 160,000 You Tube fans and counting, including his number one follower, that cultivating svengali of young talent, Perez Hilton.
Now he has the virtual world in his palm, Sliimy has released his debut album 'Paint Your Face' which has scored big in the French iTunes chart. To accompany the promotion of 'Paint Your Face', a single has also been proffered, the infectious, sing along, bubble-gum pop anthem, 'Wake Up', complete with layered major-key harmonies, stutteringly bright vocals and an annoyingly catchy instrument in the background that sounds suspiciously like a 'slide whistle', a la 'Groove Is In The Heart'.
The sheer weirdness of Sliimy's whole mystique is part of his charm; with his velvet jackets, cravats and geek chic glasses, he comes across as a young Prince, 'before he turned himself into a symbol'. With the natural ebullience of Sliimy's delivery, even the, “dinga dong's” that end each chorus don't sound contrived, fitting aptly into a song that proclaims that, “I'm not Mr. Muscle but I can be loathsome and I can hustle you.” As long as he doesn't let Perez Hilton's adulation go to his head, Sliimy should go far.