Carte Blanche Music

Since her 2017 debut single Don’t Kill My Vibe earned Sigrid Solbakk Raabe a European Border Breakers Award the year after, she continued to score hits like Strangers, High Five and, most recently, Sucker Punch. All of them are expected to appear on the Norwegian singer’s first album Sucker Punch, that will be out in March.

Ahead of the long player, Sigrid provides us with one more taster. A great sophisticated pop song. Don’t Feel Like Crying deserves to be as big a hit as Carly Rae Jepsen’s Call Me Maybe, for instance.

“There’s a certain grace to heartache,” Sigrid says of the new track. “A sort of… epic grace! I like good, heartfelt pop songs.” So do I, that’s why Don’t Feel Like Crying is the new Carte Blanche Music Wildcard!

In the Wildcards 2019 playlist you can find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

pop

single track

Ivan & The Parazol – Changin’

January 22nd, 2019

For some strange reason, record labels, radio makers, music directors (and as a consequence: consumers) hardly look beyond bands from Great-Britain, the United States and their own country. While there is so much more to enjoy! Take Kelemen Kabátban, Margaret Island, and Punnany Massif for instance. All very different acts, with a few things in common: they make great music, they’re from Hungary, and I featured them here at Carte Blanche Music.

Garage rock band Ivan & The Parazol are another group from Hungary, incorporating the spirit of 70’s glam-rock and modern psych-rock into their music. Their third album Exotic Post-Traumatic will drop in March and was produced by Wil Anspach, who worked with acts like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Muse, Justin Timberlake and Frank Ocean before.

Changin’ is Ivan & The Parazol’s new single. A song with great guitar licks and a groovy bassline. Could have been a Reef track!

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

indie | pop | rock

single track

Superbird – Cola Bottle Fizz

January 22nd, 2019

Prince may have passed away, but his legacy is alive and kicking. Artists like Janelle Monáe and Harts don’t hide their admiration for the purple one, and you can add Superbird to that list.

Superbird are a British trio, consisting of Joe Sin (lead vocals, guitar), Alex Ash (drums, vocals), and Freddy Sidero (bass, vocals). Their debut single Cola Bottle Fizz is an uplifting slice of funky pop, with a groovy retro 80’s vibe that’s sure to make you dance. They’re a welcome arrival in a world that takes itself way too seriously. Superbird will make you happy!

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

funk | indie | pop

single track

Judah & The Lion – Over My Head

January 21st, 2019

In December last year, Nashville-based band Judah & The Lion released their first new music since their latest album Folk Hop n’ Roll. Not one, but two tracks: Quarter-Life Crisis and Pep Talk. Only a month later, they keep the vibe going with yet another new track.

Over My Head is an energetic, synth- and banjo-driven track (but far from country music), which offers a deeply personal look into vocalist Judah Akers’ mindset during a time that was both professionally exciting and personally turbulent. “I was on the road and homesick,” he recalls. “So that feeling’s rushing in, mom’s not doing well, not talking to dad, my sister’s sad. All these thoughts were happening and I was so overwhelmed with life. I was medicating and distracting myself in different ways so I could get through.”

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

indie | pop | rock

werner's weekly

Werner’s Weekly (week 4)

January 21st, 2019

This is Werner’s Weekly, your compass to the music that matters, containing the two most recent Carte Blanche Music Wildcards, and the best of the other new releases in alphabetical order:

Jon Tessier – For A Little Eye Candy (Wildcard this week)
Lizzo – Juice (Wildcard last week)
American Authors – Stay Around
Jesse Hite – When It All Comes Down
Stats – Lose It
Videoclub – Roi
whenyoung – Never Let Go

Click the links for more info and listen to each of the tracks via the Werner’s Weekly player below.

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist. Also added last week: The Cranberries, The Dandy Warhols, Hozier, Jade Bird, Joe Jackson, Sigrid, Yungblud and many more.

remake, single track

Mighty Oaks – Driftwood Seat

January 18th, 2019

Eight years have passed since Ian Hooper, Craig Saunders, and Claudio Donzelli of Berlin-based band Mighty Oaks self-released their first EP Driftwood Seat. Although the collection was never officially released – not supported by a label anyway – the songs garnered several hundred thousand plays on SoundCloud.

While working on their third album, the band decided to have another go at the four songs on the EP that started their career, and whose title track closed almost every show over the years. The new recording reflects the current change over time: not a radical rework but a natural evolution.

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

folk | pop

single track

whenyoung – Never Let Go

January 17th, 2019

2018 was a good year for Irish-born, London-based band whenyoung. Their debut single Pretty Pure was a banger straight away, just like their first EP Given Up, which featured follow-up Heaven On Earth.

Never Let Go is the band’s first offering of the new year. Vocalist and bassist Aoife Power explains: “It’s a song about mental health and hope. It’s a message to let people know that you can share your pain with others. It’s a reminder that someone is always there for you even in the darkest times. There is always a reason to not let go.”

The band photo on the artwork shows what you can also hear in the music: it has become more stylish, more sophisticated. The guitars are less prominent in the mix, in favour of synths. This gives the song a fuller sound, ready for radio and hopefully a next step towards the masses.

If you happen to be at showcase festival ESNS in Groningen, the Netherlands: tomorrow (18 January) they play in venue Vrijdag from 10:50PM. See you there!

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

pop | rock

single track

Jesse Hite – When It All Comes Down

January 17th, 2019

Never heard of Jesse Hite? You’re not to blame, When It All Comes Down is only his debut single. But what a way to start a career!

Jesse Hite is an American artist, who currently lives in France. This first release is equal parts funk and soul, in a way Jamie Lidell, Jamie Woon, or even Hall & Oates combined them. And the horn section at the end makes it even groovier. His debut EP, with even more of this, is something to look forward to. It comes out this Spring.

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

funk | pop | soul

single track

American Authors – Stay Around

January 16th, 2019

The members of American Authors met while attending Berklee College of Music in 2006. The quartet spent their first years in Boston, recording and performing music under the name the Blue Pages. In 2010, the band relocated to Brooklyn, where they changed their name to American Authors in 2012.

Now, five year since their break-through single Best Days Of My Life, the band are about to issue their third album Seasons. It contains the last year released singles Deep Water, Say Amen, Neighborhood and the brand-new track Stay Around. A beat-driven, up-tempo song!

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

pop | rock

single track, wildcard

Wildcard (week 3):
Jon Tessier – For A Little Eye Candy

January 16th, 2019

Jon Tessier is a Brazilian-French singer-songwriter and music producer, who spent childhood and most of his teenage years in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia). The last three years however, he’s been working on his music from Ibiza (Spain) and Paris (France).

He draws inspiration from a diverse range of musical heroes, including Mötley Crüe, Depeche Mode, The Doors, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers as well as the Brazilian bossa nova artist João Gilberto. None of them are overtly present in the music Tessier makes himself, which can be described as guitar-driven pop music with an alternative rock edge. A new artist with a fresh sound, that I like very much.

For A Little Eye Candy, Jon Tessier’s new single, is this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard, which means it features prominently on this blog for seven full days.

In the Wildcards 2019 playlist you can find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

indie | pop | rock

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Wildcard (week 4):
Sigrid – Don’t Feel Like Crying

Ivan & The Parazol – Changin’

Superbird – Cola Bottle Fizz

Judah & The Lion – Over My Head

Werner’s Weekly (week 4)

Mighty Oaks – Driftwood Seat

whenyoung – Never Let Go

Jesse Hite – When It All Comes Down

American Authors – Stay Around

Wildcard (week 3):
Jon Tessier – For A Little Eye Candy

Wildcard (week 4)

Werner’s Weekly (week 4)

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