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The Niche Reference

The Niche Reference

A new name, inspired by all influences…

  • About Me (and the Blog)
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Author: Alex the Pensmith

Thirtysomething. Essex born and bred. Son. Uncle. Dreamer. Writer and blogger. Pop music, books, VW campers and comedy. Fanboy of many things. Makes an excellent cup of tea. Likes bacon.

The Story of Pop: 2002 (Chapter 6)

Feb 10, 2022Nov 13, 2024 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Following their mega success with their Tragic Kingdom album and worldwide number one "Don't Speak" in the late 90s, and Gwen Stefani's collaboration with Eve, No Doubt returned to prominence with their Rock Steady album...

The Story of Pop: 2002 (Chapter 5)

Feb 3, 2022Nov 13, 2024 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Until 2002, Enrique Iglesias' career outside of the US had stalled after his debut during the Latino craze of 1999. Four weeks at number one later and "Hero" put him firmly back on track...

The Story of Pop: 2002 (Chapter 4)

Jan 27, 2022Nov 13, 2024 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

With their third album, and after a tragic set of circumstances forced them to reevaluate their priorities, A1 took a step in a more mature direction away from their boyband roots to guitar pop...

The Story of Pop: 2002 (Chapter 3)

Jan 20, 2022Nov 13, 2024 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Despite initially being marketed in the R&B-pop mould on her debut in 2000, with her second album Missundaztood, P!nk firmly repositioned herself as a pop rock queen with a party starting comeback...

The Story of Pop: 2002 (Chapter 2)

Jan 13, 2022Nov 13, 2024 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Following her tragic death in a plane crash just months before, the legacy of Aaliyah as one of R&B's most gifted young stars was kept alive with a posthumous number one record...

The Story of Pop: 2002 (Chapter 1)

Jan 6, 2022Mar 29, 2025 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ 1 Comment

Making the move from indie to dance pop following her turn on Spiller's chart topping "Groovejet (If This Ain't Love)" was completed by the release of Sophie Ellis-Bextor's biggest hit to date...

Alex’s End of Year Prizes 2021

Dec 26, 2021Sep 13, 2024 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Happy Boxing Day - hope you've all had a good, safe and peaceful Christmas so far! As is annual tradition on this corner of the web, today is when I hand out my End of Year Prizes, where I name my favourites from the world of music, TV, books and podcasts from the last 12 … Continue reading Alex’s End of Year Prizes 2021

My Grate-ness List

Dec 24, 2021Dec 23, 2021 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Hello everyone, Once again I know this festive season is looking different for a lot of people when they hoped it would be approaching something more normal. But I hope with this little poem I have written about my "Grate-ness" list (a Christmas Gratitude List, if you will) that I have encapsulated the reminder that, … Continue reading My Grate-ness List

A definitive ranking of all of Blue’s singles.

Dec 7, 2021Dec 6, 2021 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

20 years ago. That is exactly how long it has been since British boyband Blue released their debut album. When I first learnt of this on Instagram a week ago, I had two immediate reactions.Firstly, I am that mature now (I was 12 in 2001 for reference, date fans). Secondly, after cranking up that album … Continue reading A definitive ranking of all of Blue’s singles.

#CrazyStupidAlbum: JLS (@JLSOfficial) – ‘2.0’

Dec 5, 2021Jan 3, 2022 ~ Alex the Pensmith ~ Leave a comment

Just over two years ago in 2019, when we wrote our 10th anniversary blog for the release of their debut album, we confidently predicted (or at least hoped) that JLS would both get back together and return to the UK and Ireland's arenas in December 2020 to tour and mark the occasion properly. Whilst the … Continue reading #CrazyStupidAlbum: JLS (@JLSOfficial) – ‘2.0’

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Recent Posts

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  • A Reflection On A Year
  • Top 10 Singles and Albums of 2025

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