Hadouken! - Leap of Faith (single)
A marketing mogul somewhere obviously have great faith that the oddly-named Hadouken! will be the next big thing. The CD was send in a sleeve (yes, this is unusual), and had two pages of glowing reviews and tour dates accompanying it. This immediately puts me on the defensive – exactly what am I trying to be suckered into?
The summary of 'indie-grime' probably isn't far off the mark. This electro-rock single has plenty of energy and style to please fans of electro, indie, and rock. Think Kaiser Chiefs melded with Killers and one of those generic east London punk b(l)ands. So it was difficult to decide what I liked about this single. Its upbeat rhythm and punky attitude will certainly make it a hit in all the clubs, but there was nothing about it that was instantly memorable – I had to listen for an entire day before I even remembered the title. Needless to say, that's not a good sign.
This would probably be what I call 'Marmite music' – a case of instantly loving or hating it. But there's absolutely nothing offensive about this. Which worries me more – aren't bands full of attitude meant to be slightly controversial? That marketing mogul has done his job well.
Punchy and to the point, this is bound to be a hit with the downloaders amongst us, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The band are issuing their first album (can it be called that?) in memory stick format – innovative case of giving the people what they want, or shameless trendy self-publicising – you decide. But if this single is anything to go by, seeing Hadouken! live may make your mind up about them – the digital age has many wonders, but a live show can make or break a band.