December 31st, 2018
Carte Blanche Music Top 2018
Ahead of your favourites among this year’s Carte Blanche Music recommendations, which I publish on New Year’s Day, I round off 2018 with my personal choice.
The last year, I introduced you to 1104 great new songs via my container playlist Carte Blanche Music; over 65 hours of music. Exactly 500 of those translated into a written endorsement through this blog. In other words: only one out of each 11 suggestions (and one fifth of all of my posts) made it onto the Carte Blanche Music Top 2018.
I’m very proud of this year-end list, as it differs largely from the majority of charts you’ll find. Just a few statistics:
- 58% of the tracks feature female lead vocals (up from an already impressive 43% in the Carte Blanche Music Top 2017)
- 43% of the tracks are guitar-based (rock is dead? Think again!)
- Apart from British and American acts, my list contains artists from Australia, Norway, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, France, Belgium, Ireland, Estonia, Germany, Sweden, Hungary and South Korea
- By consequence, you’ll not only hear lyrics in English, but also in French, Hungarian, Spanish, Portuguese and Korean
- Needless to say, my year-end list contains no proper hits whatsoever 😉
The Carte Blanche Music Top 2018 features 100 tracks by 100 different artists. As making that choice was hard enough, the songs are sorted alphabetically. Just use the shuffle button if you prefer another order 😉.
I hope you enjoy listening to the list via the Spotify player. Meanwhile, you can read my original recommendations through the links below.
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 28 December 2018
Today, three years after its first edition, the last European Border Breakers Chart is published. That is to say: the name will change. In order to make it a perfect selection tool for potential winners of a Music Moves Europe Talent Award, some changes will be made to the new chart, which will be rebranded as the Music Moves Europe Talent Chart. More details can be found here on 4 January 2019.
However, the EBBChart goes out with a bang. One third of the Top 100 consists of (re)entries, and 9 out of those 33 are complete newcomers. Highest of them all, at #34, is this year’s surprise Christmas #1 in the UK charts. LadBaby (the moniker of successful British ‘dad blogger’ Mark Hoyle – pictured) made a new version of Starship’s 1985 hit We Built This City, with all proceeds going to the foodbanks in Great Britain.
At #98, Pale Waves also come in on the back of a cover. They add some jingle balls to Wham!’s Last Christmas.
All 9 newcomers are below:
#34: LadBaby – We Built This City
#37: The YD – Hoping
#65: Sebastian Walldén – Everything
#69: Spielbergs – 4AM
#78: Da Beatfreakz feat. AJ x Deno, Deno Swarmz & Cadet – Jumpy
#80: Lankum – What Will We Do When We Have No Money
#92: Free Money – U Got Me
#93: Drpeura – This Year
#98: Pale Waves – Last Christmas
#99: Fauness – Sixteen
For the full Top 100, 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), the Airplay Chart and the Streaming Chart, 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.
Friska Viljor – Unless You Love Me
Daniel Johansson and Joakim Sveningsson are a Swedish duo who claim to never compose sober. Whether that’s true or just a little line to beef up the bio, their band Friska Viljor is very popular, especially in Germany.
Three and a half years after their latest sign of life, the band returns to the scene with their new single Unless You Love Me. A vibrant pop song, so happy, it’s hard to believe the duo mostly write about breaking up and heartbreak.
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.
Sabrina Carpenter – Paris
Sabrina Carpenter is an actress and singer from Pennsylvania in the United States. She landed her first acting role at the age of 12.
Sign of the times: her albums get shorter and shorter. Her 2015 debut Eyes Wide Open contained 12 tracks, follow-up EVOLution (2016) had ten, while this autumn’s Singular Act I only features eight songs. However, the latter’s companion album – Singular Act II – is due ‘very soon’.
Paris is the first promotional single off Singular Act I. A smart and sensual pop song that talks about Carpenter being in Paris, the city of love, and being reminded of a Los Angeles lover while there.
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.
Judah & The Lion – Quarter-Life Crisis
Nashville band Judah & The Lion broke out in 2016 with their single Take It All Back, which reached #1 on Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart. After subsequent singles Suit And Jacket (2017) and Going To Mars(!) (earlier this year), they just put out two new tracks: Pep Talk and Quarter-Life Crisis.
Pep Talk is a two and a half minute long folky instrumental/chant. But confusingly, it’s the other one, the Mumford & Sons-like folk rock song Quarter-Life Crisis, that prominently features the line ‘I need a pep talk’ in its lyrics. The single questions truth in emotions, self-confidence (or lack thereof), and is a plea for help from family and friends. It contains a strong ‘yeah yeah yeah, oh’ part, that will doubtlessly do well in their live shows.
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 52):
Mokono – Signs
Georgia Lee (vocals), Charlie English (guitar), Annabel Thornton (keys), Ross Millar (bass), and Ben Lester (drums) met at university, where they decided to start a musical project together. The Southampton-based band, which they called Mokono, spent last year playing gigs in the South of England and just released their highly anticipated debut single.
Signs is a great, groovy introduction of a band that calls their music ‘psychedelic soul’, but at the same time incorporates complex jazz structures, and elements of funk and world music into their sound. As far as one can determine such things after hearing only one song, that is…
In the Wildcards 2018 playlist you can find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.
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.
The Raconteurs – Now That You’re Gone
The Raconteurs are Jack White (formerly of The White Stripes and The Dead Weather), solo artist Brendan Benson, Jack Lawrence (of The Greenhornes and The Dead Weather), and Patrick Keeler (also of The Greenhornes). An all-star line-up is not a guarantee for great music, but as far as I’m concerned, singles like Steady, As She Goes (2006) and Many Shades Of Black (2008) are pretty legendary.
After a 10-year period of silence, The Raconteurs announced their reunion earlier this year. And now, they come up with not one, but two new tracks at the same time. Sunday Driver is one of them, but I’d like to recommend Now That You’re Gone. A slow-moving monster of a blues rock jam.
Both tracks are also available on Spotify under the moniker The Saboteurs, which is their official name in Australia. There, a band named Raconteurs existed prior to Jack Black’s outfit, and they didn’t comply to the label’s offer to buy-out the name.
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 52)
Exactly one week from now, on the last day of the year, I publish the Carte Blanche Music Top 2018, my 100 personal favourites of the past 52 weeks. And the first day of 2019, I’ll announce your favourites of 2018. In other words, below you’ll find this year’s last edition of Werner’s Weekly, your compass to the music that matters:
- Babyteeth – Cocoon (Wildcard this week)
- I Wear* Experiment – Almere (Wildcard last week)
- Giant Rooks – Wild Stare
- Locks – The Hangover Song
- Lou Doillon – Burn
- Tessa Violet – Bad Ideas
You can listen to each of the tracks via the Werner’s Weekly player below and click the links for more info.
Meanwhile, I’ve also added great new music by Indian Askin, Indochine, Paul McCartney and more to my constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist. Follow if you like, I like it when you follow 😉.
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 21 December 2018
Although Sigrid is closing in, she is not yet able to give a ‘sucker punch’ to Silk City feat. Dua Lipa, who remain on top of the European Border Breakers Chart with Electricity. More sensation is to be found in this week’s Streaming Chart, where Czech artist Zayo ‘pulls an Angèle’, by entering with all 11 tracks off his last week released album Navzdy Mlady. Apart from his home country, the album streams very well in Slovakia.
Looking more closely at the overall Top 100, which combines airplay and streaming data, we once again see a huge amount of 28 (re)entries. Six of those tracks make their maiden voyage. Most notable are the two entries by Daughter singer Elena Tonra’s solo project Ex:Re, bringing her total number of tracks in the chart to four.
All six newcomers can be found below:
#41: Giant Rooks – Wild Stare
#56: Wwwater – Screen
#59: Shy Martin – Just A Little Longer
#86: Crewel Intentions – Youth And Overload
#89: Ex:Re – Too Sad
#94: Ex:Re – 5AM
For the full Top 100, 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), the Airplay Chart and the Streaming Chart, 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.
Locks – The Hangover Song
London-based Locks released The Gin Song two years ago and it always made people dance. For this winter season, they wanted to release something in the same vein, but a bit more light-hearted and carefree. Enter The Hangover Song. A knees-up, foot stomping track.
They call their music ‘skeleton blues’, because they write – in their own words – ‘parts of murder ballads, which see gin drinkers rubbing shoulders with the damned, murderers burying bodies in the back yard and family secrets being whispered through the night’. Musically however, it sounds like pure folk to me…
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.
