October 31st, 2019
single track
Zola – Crystal Floors
How do you mix genres and languages within a song, while avoiding that it sounds like a mess? Singer-songwriter Zola Johnson, from San Francisco, has the formula. Just listen to her new single Crystal Floors. Itâs an indie pop song, adding jazzy elements and bossa nova rhythms. On top of that, she smoothly alternates between English and French (in a rare case of French lyrics sung by an American artist really sounding like French).
Zola explains: âI wanted to create this character of myself; mischievous and mysterious. (âŠ) Switching to French helped emphasize the mysterious aspect of the song. It gives a dramatic and cinematic effect which is the vibe I was going for.â
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Sex Machine Octopus – I Know
Laurent Boland (vocals, guitar), Oliver Cohen-Daigle (bass), Samuel Morissette (drums) and Georges Gagnon (guitar) are all from Montreal. They met in high school in 2015, where they formed Sex Machine Octopus. Since their first EP Fish In The Sea (2016), they have worked on their debut full-length Plastic Scenes.
During the making of this album, the bandâs music style shifted from soulful indie folk to punchy, groovy alternative rock. Both styles are represented on the record, making it an eclectic bunch of songs.
One of the nine tracks on Plastic Scenes is the Canadian outfitâs new single I Know. The band say about it: âWith I Know, we took one of our older, less mature songs we had written in high school and exchanged the sad, bluesy ballad parts of it for something way more groovy and badass. It’s still a love song in every way but now it feels fresher and a lot more like summer than previous versions. Honestly, we just want people to have fun with this one. It was one of our first tries as well to push the band into a much more groovy and fun universe.â
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Inge van Calkar – Get Out Of My Way
Inge van Calkar, a Dutch songstress from the northern town of Groningen, has beefed up her already impressive electropop sound. She wrote her new single with two of the Netherlandsâ most talented songwriters: Radboud Miedema and Gordon Groothedde. The latter produced the song as well.
Get Out Of My Way is about being too modest for your own good. âI have stood in line for too long, waiting for my turn to come. Thatâs outrageous,â says Van Calkar. Sounding rather irritated in the chorus: âGet Out Of My Way, Liar!â, she is angry with anyone who wants to stop her. âBut just as well Iâm angry with myself, because I was waiting,â she admits.
Luckily, this frustration results in a great pop song with a pounding electro synth riff. It deserves to become just as big a radio hit as her most recent single Touchdown. Both track are taken from Inge van Calkar’s upcoming EP Full Color.
Recommended as well:
Inge van Calkar – Imaginary
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track, wildcardWildcard (week 44):
Wildcard (week 44):
Palaye Royale – Hang On To Yourself
Palaye Royale are a Canadian fashion-rock trio (Remington Leith, Sebastian Danzig and Emerson Barrett), currently based in Las Vegas. The band is named after the Toronto dancehall where their grandparents met in the 1950s. Combining fast-paced dirty rock ânâ roll, glam, sweat, showmanship and song-writing, Palaye Royal aim to build a bridge between the swinging cool of the â60s and the swagger of latter day Brit Pop. The Animals singer Eric Burdonâs daughter Alex persuaded the founder of the Sumerian label to go and see the band. He offered them a contract the same night.
So far, Palaye Royal put out two albums: Boom Boom Room Part 1 and Part 2. Additionally, they released 3 singles in anticipation of album #3. Perfectly timed for Halloween, the bandâs latest single is a smash. Hang On To Yourself by Palaye Royale is this weekâs Carte Blanche Music Wildcard!
In the Wildcards 2019 playlist you can find all of this yearâs Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Barrie – Drag
Following 2018âs EP Singles, Barrie Lindsay released her album Happy To Be Here earlier this year. A 10 -track collection of well-crafted pop songs. But apparently, she recorded two more tracks during those sessions: Human Nature and Drag. Both of them, and alternative versions of album tracks Clovers and Chinatown, now appear on her new EP Happy To Be Here (Ext). This marks the end to the Happy To Be Here chapter.
Drag is my favourite of the two new songs. Its lush harmonies drive home the chorusâ infectious hook. Probably my preferred Barrie track, so far.
Recommended as well:
Barrie – Clovers
Barrie – Darjeeling
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Jara – Donât Drop The Funk
Jara Jurado, a musician and songwriter from San Diego, is inspired by â80s horror films like âNightmare On Elm Streetâ and âThe Lost Boysâ, as well as artists like Prince and The 1975. Just in time for Halloween 2019, the horror-pop icon has launched a new single.
Donât Drop The Funk opens with a playful intro before a tight synth-bassline kicks in. Further synth stabs, screams and a guitar solo add some suspense, but it never gets scary. On the contrary, this might be the most (radio-)friendly Halloween song youâll hear this year.
Recommended as well:
Jara – Something Else
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Hayley Mary – The Piss, The Perfume
So, I was in Australia the last month. A great country/continent, with a great music scene. A lot of bands from down under have graced these pages already, and I will continue to ask your attention for them.
One of Australiaâs most popular bands is The Jezabels. With the group on hiatus since 2017, it was only a matter of time before frontwoman Hayley Mary went solo. Her debut single The Piss, The Perfume was produced by Scott Horscroft (Silverchair, Middle Kids, The Presets). Part punk, part classic American rock, the track doubles as both a love song and an ode to the singer-songwriterâs hometown Sydney.
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Latest Wildcards: Client Liaison, Sheila & The Kit, Kasador, Lizzo & Ariana Grande
Aaaaaaaaaand, weâre back! After a great holiday in Australia, Iâm completely ready to continue and recommend you the best new tracks. Most of them are too good for the radio, but as a music missionary man, I see it as my duty to provide them with a platform. In the end, of course, itâs you who decides.
October wasnât only a great month to take some time off, it was also a great month for new music. Traditionally, in anticipation of the year-end period, October is a month with many releases. This year is no exception. Throughout my holiday, I updated my Carte Blanche Music Spotify playlist regularly. Head over there for an overview of recent new tracks you wouldnât want to miss. Today, Iâll also resume my recommendations on this blog. But for a start, let me present to you the Carte Blanche Music Wildcards of the past four weeks:
Week 40: Client Liaison – The Beat Supreme
It only felt appropriate that the first Wildcard during my holiday would come from an Australian act. Enter indie-pop duo Client Liaison, consisting of Monte Morgan (vocals), and Harvey Miller (keyboards, producer). I wrote about their earlier single The Real Thing before. The band are influenced by late â80s and early â90s electronic and house music, as can be heard again on their new single The Beat Supreme.
Week 41: Sheila & The Kit – Mike [Edit]
Easy Lover by Philip Bailey & Phil Collins was the very first Wildcard in 1985. Mike by Sheila & The Kit was #1800! Itâs a track off the Dutch alternative synth-pop outfitâs first EP, appropriately titled EP. Since it lasts 7â39 on there, I suggested it should be edited and put out as a single. And ta-dah⊠someone listened đ. Although four and half a minute have been chopped off, the song still has the same great vibe and energy. It now fits the dance floor and the radio!
Week 42: Kasador – Givinâ It Up
You may know Canadian indie-rock band Kasador from their recent track High Rise. This is one of the 12 tracks on their debut album Brood And Bloom. The long-player was partly produced by Rob Baker and Gord Sinclair of The Tragically Hip, and partly by Graham Walsh (Sam Roberts, Lights, Wintersleep). The latter produced the bandâs new single Givinâ It Up.
Week 43: Lizzo & Ariana Grande – Good As Hell [Remix]
In 2016, Lizzo recorded Good As Hell for the soundtrack of the movie âBarbershop: The Next Cutâ. It also served as the lead single from her debut EP Coconut Oil. Following her performance at the MTV Music Video Awards, itâs climbing up the Billboard charts. A new version of the song, as a duet with Ariana Grande, will only enhance this success. A well-deserved belated hit.
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
chart
Your favourites (September 2019)
Because of a â if I may say so myself â well-deserved holiday, not much will happen here on the Carte Blanche Music blog during the month of October. But I will continue to update my Spotify playlist. So, if want to keep track of the best new music, please follow that one, if you didnât already. Furthermore, during my absence, this blog is a wonderful archive of recent music. It holds over 1500 recommendations of songs from all over the world, in all genres and many languages. Listening via your platform of choice is only one mouse click away.
That said, letâs look back upon my tips that were most-read in the month of September. What strikes me, is that 4 out of the Top 10 tracks are songs in French. Videoclub continue their winning streak, but elsewhere, we find Ethel (#7), Shanguy (#8) and Claire Laffut feat. Yseult (#9). One possible explanation is the popularity of France among holiday-goers, who may have heard these songs on the radio there and searched for more information when back home. But thatâs only guessingâŠ
The only recommendation that was published in September, was for Calbyâs The Everyday Bit. It shows up at #3 among your favourites of the month. All of the other entries are slightly older, which proves you like Carte Blanche Music for its archive as well.
Your full Top 10 of favourite recommendations in September is below. All of these tracks, and circa 800 more, are in my 2019 container playlist Carte Blanche Music, which will continue to be updated during my holidays. Click here to follow it. See you again in November!
- Videoclub – Roi
- IBE – Table Of Fools
- Calby – The Everyday Bit
- Eliza & The Delusionals – Just Exist
- Friedberg – Go Wild
- The Brand New Heavies feat. NâDea Davenport – Getaway
- Ethel – Rubikscube
- Shanguy – ToukassĂ© (WC)
- Claire Laffut feat. Yseult – Nudes
- Sheppard – Kiss My Fat Ass
(WC) = former Carte Blanche Music Wildcard
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
