Dirty Dancer by Kingsland Road review

Kingsland Road are an up and coming five-piece boyband hailing from London who developed a legion of fans after gigging round the country, then raised their profile considerably when they appeared on The X Factor last year. Since then they have been co-writing with the team behind McFly’s music and working with producer Cam Blackwood.

While they are likely to be compared to the currently ubiquitous boyband of the moment One Direction, commendably Kingsland Road have a bit more edge to their music and look than the clean-cut 1D. It could be compared to how East 17 were the edgy alternative to the biggest boyband of the era , Take That, in the 90’s.

Dirty Dancer is essentially still pop, but with undertones of rock/indie and a slightly more raunchy subject matter than you’d get from One Direction. After a catchy verse, the whole group sing the chorus in unison, sung in quite a strong cockney twang which adds personality. I liked the delayed guitar on the verses and the lyrics are more ‘rock n roll’ than you’d expect from a boyband, as can be guessed by the title. They are still what you’d call radio-friendly, however.

Overall, this is an excellent choice for a first single and having a different sound and look to their competitors will stand them in good stead. Their vocal abilities are strong and with an album released in January 2015, this could be a group that becomes a household name in the near future.

By Alex Faulkner