Pop Corner

AILBHE MALONEknows that pop isn't rock

TRACK OF THE WEEK: Love Pt 2– Bright Lights Bright Lights

Hello! Pop Corner is back from its holidays, where we spent a lot of time complaining about the heat, and even more time demanding to be bought another ice cream. To show you how much we’ve missed you, here’s an absolute corker of a track of the week. The second release from the nascent Popjustice Hi-Fi label (we had their debut, Waterfalls by Rosanna, as track of the week recently) Bright Lights Bright Lights is one man with both Pet Shop Boys living in his soul. Super stuff.

- Justin Bieber is one chap who hasn't been on holidays. In our absence, he's filmed his guest slot on CSI as a "troubled teen" (we've seen more troubled-looking fish fingers) and has also lent his vocals to a chillwave remix (unauthorised). Go to tinyurl.com/justinslow to hear Biebz's U Smilelike you've never heard it before.

- Little Taylor Momsen’s been mouthing off again, this time in the direction of Rihanna. The Courtney Love wannabe launched a tirade against other people who, like, try to wear, like, things that she wears too. “People think pop is rock and the lines are getting blurred,” she whinged. “Now Rihanna’s wearing f***in’ leather jackets and it’s really annoying.”

Oh Taylor, yours is a hard life.

- X Factor's only been on a week, and already the gossip mills are turning. So far there's been uproar over the auto-tune, and now Shirlena Jackson (remember her? The questionable Mercy singer?) has been chucked out of the competition on medical grounds. The show's doctors warned that the pressures of fame might be too much for Shirl, and alas, she's in the running no more.

- By the time you read this, Jedward: Let Loose, the reality show, will have aired. Pop Corner predicts an insight into Jedward's odd eating habits (they only eat protein, and have water on their cereal) and a definite lack of punctuation, if their tweets are anything to go by.