April 18th, 2018
Arkells – People’s Champ
Almost exactly a year ago, Arkells’ single Knocking At The Door was the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. A great (and in Europe greatly overlooked) track that was later added to the Deluxe Edition of the Canadian band’s fourth album Morning Report.
Not ready to succumb to the deafness of many radio stations, Arkells just put out another heart-pumping (and hard pumping) hi-energy pop/rock track that would do so well on the airwaves… People’s Champ is graced with a horn section and lovely call-and-response vocals that make you want to shout to your radio (or your streaming service of choice, for that matter).
Frontman Max Kerman says about the song’s lyrics: “We’re comforted every day by the people in our neighbourhood who go the extra mile for their community – especially when they don’t have to. We love that person. This song is about the opposite of that: it’s about the guy who acts like Robin Hood, but is the farthest thing from it. But that’s OK: look around and you’ll find people’s champs all around ya.”
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Wildcard (week 16):
Cute Mess – Untied
Honestly, I can’t remember the last Polish band that scored a pan-European hit. However, Cute Mess might soon pull it off!
Cute Mess are a young quartet, consisting of Mateusz Olechno, Kacper Witkowski, Franciszek Wojnarowski and Zuzanna Stępkowska, who’s voice sometimes reminds me of former 10,000 Maniacs singer Natalie Merchant. Untied is only their second single, and reflects upon the necessity to distance oneself from unhealthy relationships.
A great track, that I proudly present as this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. You can find all of them in the Wildcards 2018 playlist.
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
James – Better Than That
Sure, James (one of the ‘Madchester’ bands) are still best remembered by their first hits, released at the start of the ’90s of the last century. How about Sit Down, Sound, Laid, or – one of my all-time favourites – Born Of Frustration?
But don’t set them aside as one-hit-wonders or an ‘old’ band, for James are still going strong. Their latest album Girl At The End Of The World (2016), earned them their highest debut entry in nearly twenty years, reaching number two in the UK, second only to Adele.
18 May, James will release the Better Than That EP, with four new tracks. All of them produced by Charlie Andrew, who has previously worked with alt-J and Wolf Alice. The title track is the upbeat EP opener and its first single. Great proof the band continues to be one of Britain’s finest.
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Foxe – Honeytop
Foxe (pronounced as fox) are a young band, fresh out of University. In their short career, Antonia (bass), George (guitar) and Mat (drums) already supported The Magic Gang and Rat Boy.
Their biography claims they play ‘loud guitar based indie/pop music with choruses so catchy they haunt you while you sleep’, but I think their music is best described by the titles of their two singles to date: Bubblegum and Honeytop. If you like bands such as The 1975 and Pale Waves, you really need to discover Foxe. Do it here, and do it now…
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Not.Your.Regular.Boy. – Crazyland
Ferry de Ruiter from Amsterdam is not your regular boy. I repeat: Not.Your.Regular.Boy.
He was the first person in the world to ever appear in ‘The Voice’ in full drag, winning the Rainbow Award for Best Media Moment. Subsequently, he declined a place in the TV talent show’s finale, refusing to sign a contract that would make him lose control of his image, songs and life. Instead, he decided to go it alone.
As Not.Your.Regular.Boy., he recorded a bunch of tracks that are being described as a mix of Muse, MGMT, The White Lies, Empire Of The Sun and Passion Pit. Crazyland is his first single!
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Werner’s Weekly (week 16)
No better way to start the new week than with a selection of last week’s best songs. Werner’s Weekly is your compass to the music that matters:
- Stars – Ship To Shore (Wildcard this week)
- boy pablo – Losing You (Wildcard last week)
- Alice Merton – Lash Out
- Freak Power – Hear My Call
- Kelemen Kabátban – Úton
- The Academic – Fake ID
- The Spectors – Dorothy
23 minutes is all you need to listen to them all via the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar. For more background on each track, simply click the links above.
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist. Other great additions to the collection include Ash, Chvrches, Elisa, Frank Turner, Isaac Gracie, Janelle Monáe (feat. Grimes), Sigrid, Tracyanne & Danny, and Waylon.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Laish – Dance To The Rhythm
Laish is the musical project of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Danny Green. Yorkshire born, but currently based in London, he has had an impressive independent career, performing both solo and with a full band.
Last Friday, Laish released his fourth album Time Elastic. Following up on the album’s title track, Dance To The Rhythm is the second single off it. A joyful affair, released just in time to accompany the sunshine that’s been announced.
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Dead Sea – Know Where
Google ‘Dead Sea’ and you’ll probably stumble upon photos of a large pool of super-salty water. That, obviously, is not the Dead Sea I’m referring to here…
Dead Sea is also a French four-piece that operates at the crossroads of (danceable) pop and rock. Think shoegaze-inspired pop with a pounding rhythm. They released their first two singles 8.50 and Lotion at the end of 2017 and their third is called Know Where. Clocking in at just under 5 minutes it may be a little too long for the radio, but there are tricks to overcome that problem 😉 . On the dance floor, however, Know Where has a hypnotic effect.
On 4 May, Dead Sea release their 4-track debut EP Colorate.
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
Kelemen Kabátban – Úton
Kelemen Kabátban is a Hungarian band with seven members: Boldi Horváth, Gáspár ‘JumoDaddy’ Horváth, M-Papa, Miklós Kiszin, Gábor Gajdacs, Róbert Nagy and Tamás Szabó. They got together in 2013 and played many club and festivals since then, both in Hungary and abroad.
The secret of Kelemen Kabátban’s success lies in its catch combination of musical styles. In Úton, the funky guitar and bass are the driving forces, complemented by a keyboard melody that’s as simple as it is epic.
Excuse me for not understanding the lyrics, but luckily the track has a lyric video, so we can still sing along 😉 . I think an English version of this song could do very well internationally!
For more great new music follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
European Border Breakers Chart 13 April 2018
Friday 13 April is our lucky day! Last week’s edition of the European Border Breakers Chart was relatively slow on new music, but today it’s revenge time. We welcome 23 emerging European artists in the Top 100, 14 of which tracks never graced the chart before.
Please say hi to: Bvd Kult feat. Ot – Let You Go (#14), Mike Rogers feat. Abee – What Should I Do (#46), Alice Merton – Lash Out (#47), Berna – Won’t Stop (#56), Sam Fender – Friday Fighting (#60), Biig Piig – Perdida (#66), Project Mama Earth feat. Joss Stone – Mama Earth (#72), Goat Girl – Viper Fish (#77), J Colleran – Bera (#90), Tamino – Habibi (#92), Mist – Game Changer (#93), NOTD feat. Bea Miller – I Wanna Know (#95), Dead Sea – Know Where (#97), and Keir – Squeeze Me (#100).
As always it’s funny to see that what radio stations play is totally different from what music lovers stream. See for yourself by comparing the Airplay Chart with the Streaming Chart.
For the main Top 100, combining airplay and streaming data, click the ‘EBBChart’ tab in the top menu of this blog (loading of the PDF may take a little while). More charts, like the Tips (ranking the tracks that are on their way to the Top 100), are available at www.europeanborderbreakerschart.eu, where you can also listen to all of the tracks and watch their videos, as well as share them via social media.
Music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Has been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, he developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart.
