The Noisettes

Dropping the spiky punk edge of their debut while amping up the band's '60s soul influences, Noisettes' sophomore record, Wild Young Hearts, is a blast of pop energy. With throwback grooves on songs like "Never Forget You" and the title track, it would be easy to accuse the UK act of copping Amy Winehouse's mojo. But Noisettes sound far less contrived than their tabloid shit-show countrywoman. On "Don't Upset the Rhythm (Go Baby Go)," they're able to incorporate more dance rhythms without giving up the playful fun of their basic sound. That these ten tracks were primarily written and performed by the group ― singer/bass player Shingai Shoniwa, guitarist Daniel Smith and drummer Jamie Morrison ― is a minor miracle. Labels spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on teams of professional songwriters and still can't spit out an album as catchy as this.