The Next Big Thing OST

I haven't seen the movie which spawned this soundtrack, but the music certainly stands up on its own and should prove another winner for Madonna's Maverick label.

Doubtless, you've already heard her take on 'American Pie', complete with William Orbit's assured sonic pyrotechnics. Despite its decidedly cheesy qualities, I really like it, although whether this version will rescue Don McLean's song from drunken singalongs or condemn it to karaoke hell for eternity, I'm not so sure. Madonna's other contribution is a ballad, 'Time Stood Still', which will doubtless prove another massive global hit but doesn't sound a whole lot different to her plethora of previous releases.

The fact that Cork/Ivory Coast duo Metisse don't sound remotely out of place next to industry heavyweights like Madonna, Christina Aguilera or Moby is a tribute to their talent. Wouldn't it be a wonderful irony if they were to become the next big thing of the title? Similarly Mandalay, whose pristine 'This Life' was criminally neglected on its original release - hopefully this will propel it to a wider audience.

The aforementioned Ms Aguilera's 'Don't Make Me Love You ('Til I'm Ready)' is typically Yank teen-pop: Christina trying her best Britneyisms, with enough breathless vocals and purred words to set many a teenage heart racing. Moby's masterful 'Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?' kicks in on a wing and a vibe. And Beth Orton's fabulous 'Stars All Seem To Weep' reminds me just how good she is, balancing an assured, muscular rhythm with her fragile vocals.

The standout, though, is Solar Twins' 'Swayambhu': an amazing, soaring, ethereal, affair, which will make the hairs on the hairs of the back of your neck stand to attention or shiver with an intensity that even French composer Gabriel Yared's closing, calming 'Forever And Always' cannot assuage. It's pop music, Jim, but not as we know it. Who cares about the movie?