The Ex Factor

In years gone by, we've given quite detailed coverage to The X Factor - everything from live blogs, to exclusives on the latest odds, to compilations of some of those dramatic bits of music they use in their montages.

After last Sunday night's shambles of a show, I won't be watching The X Factor again. It's not even a case of whether or not it's fixed, it's more that I knew from the moment Carolynne Poole's VT began on Saturday night - portraying her as a perfectionist who'd beat people up for getting in the background of her camera shot - that she was doomed.

She's clearly not the worst performer in the show, and absolutely did not deserve to be the first to be booted off (even if she received the fewest votes, you only have to compare the sparseness of her production with the over-the-top glitz and glamour of Rylan's to see why she failed to connect with the viewers).

And yes, it's not really the unfairness of it - more the feeling that the show, and its outcome, are more manufactured and predictable than ever. If Union J win (and that's admittedly a very big 'if' at this stage) that will be hammered home like never before.

What this means for you, dear readers, is that there probably won't be any coverage of The X Factor on Popsiculture this year. We put ourselves through a fair bit in our pursuit of news and reviews to bring to you, but there are limits.

Best of luck to those of you who stick with the show - the only question we need to answer now is what to do with our Saturday and Sunday nights, here at Popsiculture HQ??

Racing Glaciers - Racing Glaciers EP

What did you do with your summer? Did you spend it in the sun (what there was of it, at least...), with an ice-cold cider in a beer garden? Or trapped indoors, watching the flood waters rise?

Given the weather, it's no surprise that Macclesfield four-piece Racing Glaciers spent their time working on this six-track EP that draws plenty of inspiration from rivers and the darker hours of the day.

Named after the group, Racing Glaciers was recorded in the summer of 2012, not in a recording studio, but in a living room - but there's plenty of quality underpinning this release, and it would be harsh to call it an amateur effort.

From the haunting opening of the EP's Intro, which leads directly into the anthemic South, to the energetic closing track Little River, there are more than a few goosebump moments if this is your kind of music (and enough to keep you listening, even if it's not).

Songs with a strong sense of progression and storyline to them are somehow still unafraid to return to their chorus to provide some continuity, while the musical motifs introduced along the way mix things up to prevent anything from getting stale - as if it even could.