The last six years, starting in 2017, I posted 10 musical recommendations per week on this blog. A total of well over 3.000 tracks, mostly by upcoming – often female (fronted) – artists from all over the world. As I explained yesterday, Carte Blanche Music is entering a new era. One in which I’ll focus my efforts on my constantly updated Spotify playlist.

For sure, that doesn’t mean the blog is closing down. It’ll continue to be the home of my ‘best of’ collection (Werner’s Weekly) on Monday mornings (CET) and my favourite new track (the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard), every Wednesday morning. Also, I’ll post the latest additions to my playlist on Saturdays. For updates, follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

No better way to round up the last six years than by publishing the Your ‘All-Time’ Favourites, a chart compiling the 500 most popular (as in best-read) Carte Blanche Music recommendations from 2017 to 2022. You’ll find the Top 25 below, but click through for the full list. My original recommendations are behind the links. If you’re an artist, don’t be shy and search (Ctrl+F) to find out if you made the list. You might be surprised…

Enjoy and thanks for joining the ride so far. Follow the Carte Blanche Music playlist (click ‘♥’ in Spotify) for many more recommendations to come!

Your ‘All-Time’ Favourites (2017-2022)

1. Videoclub – Roi
2. Wildcard (week 7): Drew Sycamore – 45 Fahrenheit Girl
3. Aili x Transistorcake – Dansu
4. Wildcard (week 13): Placebo – The Prodigal
5. Super db – Wait For Me
6. Wildcard (week 12): Shanguy – Toukassé
7. Japanese Breakfast – Paprika
8. Saint Motel – A Good Song Never Dies
9. IBE – Table Of Fools
10. Angèle – La Loi De Murphy
11. Wildcard (week 22): Håkan Hellström – Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda
12. Rick Astley – Every One Of Us
13. Friedberg – Go Wild
14. Wildcard (week 26): Videoclub – En Nuit
15. Agnes – Here Comes The Night
16. a-ha feat. Ingrid Helene Håvik – The Sun Always Shines On TV (MTV Unplugged)
17. Angèle – Libre
18. Temples – Paraphernalia
19. Lola Le Lann – Portofino
20. Pixey – Free To Live In Colour
21. Eliza & The Delusionals – Just Exist
22. Videoclub – Enfance 80
23. Izzy Bizu (feat. Chris Martin) – Someone That Loves You ’19
24. Mina Okabe – Miss Those Days
25. Just – Walk Slow Smile More Read More →

Ahead of your favourites among this year’s Carte Blanche Music recommendations, which I’ll publish tomorrow, these are my personal choices from the songs that came out in 2020. This list holds only 100 tracks, but you can find all of my 994 recommendations in my container playlist Carte Blanche Music 2020.

As always, I love to share some statistics about the Carte Blanche Music Top 2020. These findings are further evidence of the fact that the music radio stations play for you is far from representative of the wealth of great new music out there. Thankfully, there are blogs like Carte Blanche Music that are independent and unbiased, and don’t want to please everybody at the same time. We’re here to surprise you with great new music, no matter what genre or gender, origin or orientation. Just a few statistics:

• Judging from this Top 100 alone (let alone the full container playlist), 2020 was a great year for pure pop music, young artists, ‘80s influences, independent releases, the Australian music scene, queer pop-rock and female vocalists
• A whopping 70% of the tracks in this year’s list feature female lead vocals (and I thought the 60% in the Carte Blanche Music Top 2019 was impressive already)
• Overall, rock ruled. 54% of the tracks in my year-end chart is guitar-based (just over last year’s tally)
• The list clearly shows there are more countries that produce great artists than Great-Britain and the United States alone. This year, more nationalities than ever are represented in my Top 100. You’ll also find artists from Armenia, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland
• As a result, although most lyrics are in English, you’ll also hear songs (partly) sung in French, Italian, Japanese, Spanish and Swedish

The Carte Blanche Music Top 2020 features 100 tracks, which are presented below in alphabetical order. You can listen to them all via the Spotify player. If you prefer another order, just use the shuffle button 😉.

Meanwhile, you can read my original recommendations through the links below.

• A Is For Arrows – Every Now And Then
• Abbie Ozard – True Romance ^(WC)
• Aili x Transistorcake – Dansu
• Aitana – 11 Razones
• Alex The Astronaut – I Think You’re Great ^(WC)
• Alice & Moi – T’aimerais Que Ce Soit Vrai
• Altered By Mom – Better On The Page
• Amy Allen – Difficult
• Archie X – Loud Boy ^(WC)
• Ava Max – Kings And Queens
• Awolnation feat. Alice Merton – The Best
• Badflower – 30
• Baxtr – Bloom ^(WC)
• Bée – Nothing Alike ^(WC)
• The Beths – Mars, The God Of War
• Betty Who – The One
• Blossoms – It’s Going To Be A Cold Winter
• Bloxx – Off My Mind
• Bloxx – 5000 Miles ^(WC)
• Calogero – La Rumeur
• Charles – Far Gone
• Daði Freyr & Gagnamagnið – Think About Things
• Dagny – Coulda Woulda Shoulda ^(*)
• Don Diablo – Invincible
• Don’t Bring Stacey – Waiting For It
• Dopha – Anti Breakup Song
• Doves – Prisoners ^(WC)
• Dua Lipa – Physical ^(WC)
• Dua Lipa – Break My Heart
• Dua Lipa (feat. DaBaby) – Levitating [Single Version]
• Efecto Pasillo feat. Huecco – Funketón [2020 Version]
• Egoism – You You ^(WC)
• Ella Grace – Unfree
• Ellur – Alive
• The Flowers – You Don’t Say!
• Francesco Gabbani – Il Sudore Ci Appiccica
• Genes – Super Single
• Gin Wigmore – HBIC
• Grace Farriss – All The People ^(WC)
• Gracie Abrams – Friend
• Grand Corps Malade – Pas Essentiel ^(WC)
• Håkan Hellström – Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda ^(WC)
• Harper Bloom – Walk My Way
• Hedda Mae – Madness
• The Hold Steady – Family Farm
• Hollie Col – She Knows ^(WC)
• Holy Holy (feat. Queen P) – Port Rd ^(WC)
• Hope D – Second
• Hoshi feat. Corine – Larmes De Croco ^(WC)
• Icona Pop & Sofi Tukker – Spa
• Indochine x Christine & The Queens – 3Sex
• Izo FitzRoy – Red Line ^(WC)
• Jaclyn – Energy
• Jake Bugg – Rabbit Hole
• Joan – Want U Back
• Joel Culpepper – WAR ^(WC)
• Julie Bergan – Commando ^(WC)
• Kailee Morgue – This Is Why I’m Hot ^(*)
• Keleketla! – International Love Affair ^(WC)
• Killboy – That’s OK I’ll Just Fuck Myself
• King Princess – Pain
• Kristiane – Wish I Could Be Your Girl
• La Oreja De Van Gogh – Te Pareces Tanto A Mí
• Lauran Hibberd – Boy Bye
• Lime – Fever
• Lola Lennox – Back At Wrong
• London Grammar – Baby It’s You
• The Lottery Winners – An Open Letter To Creatives ^(WC)
• Lova – Black Converse
• Lova – One Day Left
• Lucas Hamming – Falling
• The Magic Gang – Make Time For Change ^(WC)
• May-a – Apricots
• Miss Li – Therapy
• Miss Machine – Tout Autour
• MisterWives – Rock Bottom ^(WC)
• Monowhales – BL/FF (Fake Friends) ^(WC)
• Ocean Grove – Dream
• ONR (feat. Nile Rodgers) – Kill TV ^(WC)
• Palace Winter (feat. Penny Police) – Richard (Says Yes) ^(WC)
• Pixey – Just Move ^(WC)
• Pyro – Your Love
• Raave Tapes – Habitual
• The Radar Station – Zanzara [2020 Version] ^(*)
• Raye – Love Of Your Life
• Red Rum Club – The Elevation
• Ren – I Drive Me Mad ^(WC)
• Rinse feat. Hatchie – Back Into Your Arms
• Rooue – What You Want ^(WC)
• Sebu with Eraserfase – The Worst That Could Happen To Us ^(WC)
• Semisonic – Basement Tapes
• Sidonie with Delaporte – Mi Vida Es La Música
• Slum Sociable (feat. Kye) – You’re In My Head
• Super-Hi x Neeka – Following The Sun
• T99 vs. Youngr – Anasthasia [Youngr Bootleg]
• Temples – Paraphernalia
• Texas & Wu-Tang Clan – Hi
• Town Of Cats – Lemons ^(WC)
• Veronica Fusaro – Beach
• Videoclub – Enfance 80

^(WC)    ex Carte Blanche Music Wildcard
^(*)       album track