SINGLES - Layo & Bushwacka -Love Story (Out now, XL Recordings)

BUSHWACKA'S bootlegging has really paid off here, and there's not a thing the boys and girls from Customs and Excise can do about it. He's taken two huge dance anthems, dug out the Superglue, and left us with a seamless offering that should fill the Ibiza dance floors for yet another summer. On top of Layo & Bushwacka's Love Story, we find Kings of Tomorrow's vocal from Finally to give a decent dance offering. Just watch yourselves on the way to Calais though, lads.

Lemon Jelly - Nice Weather For Ducks (Out Monday, XL)

LEMON Jelly was one of the surprise packages of last year and here we find the second single from the incredible top 20 album, Lost Horizons. It is a bizarre but brilliant blend of folk guitar over nursery rhyme madness and fantastic music that creates an unforgettable experience. Words really don't do it justice, so have a listen yourselves. And an added bonus on the single is the B-side, Soft, which samples Chicago's If You Leave Me Now, and the video for the excellent Spacewalk. Still here -- what are you waiting for? Go and get a copy for yourself.

ALBUMS

Erasure - Other People's Songs (Out January 27, Mute)

POP duo Erasure's unique take on Peter Gabriel's hit Solsbury Hill left me eager to see what they would do to Other People's Songs. It is always risky tinkering with a timeless classic but Vince Clarke and Andy Bell have been doing it for years, and are just about the best in the business. Cockney Rebel Steve Harley's Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me) benefits from Erasure's upbeat pop style, as does the Buddy Holly smash Everyday.

The boys add a bit too much pop into the mix for Buddy's True Love Ways, which is a bit too upbeat and loses impact. It doesn't come across as sincerely as the original.

The same is true of Can't Help Falling In Love, but the boys come bouncing back with You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.

Proceedings draw to a close with a highly electric version of the Buggles' Video Killed The Radio Star, a fitting finale to an excellent collection of electro-pop, a must for Erasure fans, and for anyone looking for decent cover versions of some rock 'n' roll classics.

HHHH

INME

OVERGROWN EDEN

Out January 27, Music for Nations

THE Kerrang! Award nominees for best new British band look set to make a name for themselves in the heavy metal stakes. In fact, this is so heavy, be careful not to drop it.

Although the trio's first two singles, the thumping UnderDose, and the catchy Firefly, failed to reach the top 40, they have a lot going for them, and as I said recently, the POD/Fun Lovin' Criminals Crushed like fruit could be the one that catapults the Essex boys into the limelight.

InMe play Manchester University on Friday.

VARIOUS

GODSKITCHEN: DIRECT

Out now, Godskitchen

THIS was plastered across the telly over the weekend as the clubber's bible.

That it may be, but it certainly ain't my cup of malted chocolate Horlicks.

The first of five DJ-led releases this year, Godskitchen: Direct is a triple CD that features "the biggest, freshest tracks and the very best mixes".

Well, the only thing I recognised from CD one was Moby's In this world (push vocal club mix). And the recognition stopped there, as you couldn't pick it out from the other club beats until the unmistakable "Lordy don't leave me" chorus.

As for the rest, we have Hybrid's Gravastar; the Tiesto remix of Jan Johnston's Flesh 2002; Darren Tate's Fall from grace; Umek's Gatex; Pale X's Modifier (after dark mix) and Rob Tissera's Burning (Guyver remix).

I recognise some of the words as English but can't quite pick out the language. Anyway, each to their own.