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TRACK: Sunset Sun

WHO: Karen O’s side project, Native Korean Rock.

WHAT: Pure poetry in motion.

THE HYPE: “Rather than being punk-pop, this is smacked-out, biscuit-tin acoustics” - ElectricRoulette.com

WE SAY: You can’t fail to notice that, of late, there are more than a few too many Amy Winehouse clones walking around. It’s eerie - you can’t throw a hairpin these days without hitting a wannabe.

Cast your mind back to the not so distant past and you’ll recall a very different Indie Queen du jour - Karen O. With her truly unique style, enigmatic stage presence and a voice that can melt your heart and jolt your brain simultaneously, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman has built up a well-deserved fanbase.

Alongside her super successful career with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, for the past two years Ms O has been making songs with her side project, Native American Rock. And it makes for a very different sound.

There are no yelps, jerks or energetic firecracker performances here. It’s just Karen and her touchingly vulnerable voice singing lo-fi, beautiful love songs to the backing of simplistic strings and guitars. Real proof that less is more, this is guaranteed to send a little shiver down your spine.

Last month, Native Korean Rock played a couple of gigs in New York, but Karen says it’s unlikely the material will ever be released as she’s too busy concentrating on the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ third album. They have made a few demos available through their MySpace though, so you can have a listen there and just hope against hope that the band stop teasing us and release something soon.

IF YOU ONLY NEED TO KNOW ONE THING: They can’t seem to make up their mind about what to name themselves: sometimes it’s simply Native Korean Rock and other times they go under the moniker Native Korean Rock & The Fishnets. Karen hasn’t explained what the difference is, if indeed there is one at all.

WHERE CAN I GET MY HANDS ON IT: Sorry folks, as mentioned, Karen hasn’t promised this will ever be released.

FIND MORE: www.myspace.com/nativekoreanrock

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