Browsing Category single track
Wildcard (week 32):
The Howl & The Hum – Human Contact
The inspirations of The Howl & The Hum range from Leonard Cohen and Phoebe Bridgers to Lizzo and Kendrick Lamar, and they have also been likened to Massive Attack, Radiohead and Alt-J. To be honest, I hear neither of these influences shine through in their own music, and that is meant to be a compliment. The Howl & The Hum created their own style, while playing live, a lot.
Hot on the heels of recent single Hall Of Fame, the band unleash the furious follow-up track Human Contact. A damn tight piece of music! “Human Contact is a fast-paced miserable disco touching on mental health and what it means to be alone in a digital age,” frontman Sam Griffiths explains. “The lyric deals with the idea of alienation vs. technology. When there’s so much communication going on around us at all times, can we ever feel a true connection?”
A great song with an important message. Does is get any better? Yes it does. Human Contact by The Howl & The Hum is this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard!
In the Wildcards 2019 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.
Marika Hackman – All Night
After their break-up, both Amber Bain (a.k.a. The Japanese House) and Marika Hackman dedicated their new albums to documenting the relationship. Bain’s debut full length Good At Falling is a beautiful, but painfully personal collection of songs. We’ll only know what Hackman’s third album Any Human Friend sounds like once it’s released on 8 August.
However, some previews are already available. Following recent singles I’m Not Where You Are and The One, she just put out a third one: All Night. A sexually charged song.
Hackman explains: “I thought it would be exciting to write a really overtly sexual song about a woman from the perspective of a woman. You don’t hear much about sex between women in music, or if you do its usually from a fetishized male perspective. I thought I’d reclaim a bit of that power.”
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.
Grace Lightman – Repair Repair [2019 Version]
Before going solo, British electro-pop artist Grace Lightman fronted London psych-rockers The Hypnotic Eye. Her solo work is characterized by a somewhat detached vocal delivery, over dark beats and moody production. She describes her music as ‘one part ABBA and two parts Twin Peaks’.
One of her first solo outings, at the end of 2016, was the single Repair Repair. Lightman says of it: “The track started out as a jingle for a fictional weight loss milkshake advert but became a song about people’s fear of change, and the inevitability of becoming robots.”
A new version of this song now appears on the singer’s debut album Silver Eater, along with a new video. You can check it via the player below. The original, totally different video is harder to find, but if you’re curious: it’s here.
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.
Dirty Heads – Lift Me Up
Ahead of their new album Super Moon (due on 9 August), Dirty Heads reveal its third single. Lift Me Up follows Listen To Me and the long-player’s title track.
While their latest single copied the horns of The Ides Of March’s Vehicle, their new effort features the bassline of Serge Gainsbourg & Jane Birkin’s Je T’aime Moi Non Plus. A great idea, which makes Lift Me Up sound like a laid-back summer jam. Vocalist Jared Watson explains it’s a weed song. “We tapped into our own lives – we used to be drug dealers, so this is our version of Curtis Mayfield’s Pusherman, the theme song for some Shaft-style weed-seller.”
The Southern California alt-rock band’s upcoming album was produced by Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb. He produced the A Star Is Born soundtrack, Brandi Carlile, Chris Stapleton, and many more).
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.
Sheppard – Kiss My Fat Ass
Amy Sheppard is the 28-year-old front woman of Aussie band Sheppard. Their new single Kiss My Fat Ass isn’t just a fun song with a fun title, it has a message as well. A message that started on Instagram.
Half a year ago, Amy posted a picture of herself beside the pool. She explains: “I was sick of trying to keep up with the Instagram game and I posted a photo of me in a bikini from behind with my cellulite on full display. (…) We all have perceived imperfections. I’m not sure who set the beauty standard bar, but it’s not achievable and very unrealistic.”
Shocked by the huge positive reaction, she has posted many more ‘bootylicious’ photo’s ever since. All of them tagged with #kissmyfatass. The gimmick then started to become a movement. More people appeared to be as unconfident about their body as Amy was. Strengthened by all of the responses, she and her band decided to devote their new single to the cause. The video features a diverse group of Australian women, including trainer Tiffany Hall, fitness fanatic Kara Saunders, and Paralympic swimmer Monique Murphy. They all show off their bodies, with all of the variety that comes with them.
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.
Prince – Holly Rock
When Prince recorded a demo of a song he wrote for another artist, it wasn’t really a demo. It was often the full final version of the track, usually with nearly all instruments played by the purple one. More than once, the only difference between Prince’s version and the eventual release, were the vocals. That’s why most of the songs on the recently released album Originals are instantly recognisable.
One of my personal favourite Prince compositions has always been Holly Rock, made famous by Sheila E. She recorded her version in 1985 for the ‘Krush Groove’ soundtrack, and boy, did the track groove! Earlier that year, Prince put his demo to tape, where he was fully inside the skin of the one the song was intended for. You can hear him rap ‘Sheila E.’s my name / Holly Rock’s my game’. By the way, Hollyrock was the name used for Hollywood in the TV cartoon series ‘The Flintstones’, but it’s not sure this inspired the title.
34(!) years after it was recorded, Prince’s own version of Holly Rock is featured on his Originals album. It has been edited for release as a posthumous single. A master piece!
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.
Kesha – Best Day [Angry Birds 2 Remix]
Kesha has some terrible years behind her. No need to explain that, I guess. But judging from the title of her new single, her Best Day has now come. “I’m feelin’ so nice / I ain’t got no negative energy / High fives and good vibes / Wrote this one for all my friends / And enemies”, she sings.
In a statement, Kesha said: “I wanted to write a song that would make people feel GOOD. Life can be hard sometimes, and I wanted to write something to listen to in the morning to remind myself to be happy, grateful, positive and remember that I can choose to have the best day of my life (of my life, of my life). Every day. I also think high fives are great and would like to promote high fives whenever possible.”
Best Day is a bouncy tune, with plenty of finger snaps and funky plucked bass. Meanwhile, her vocals are being dubbed so often, it sounds like a whole choir.
Featured on the ‘Angry Birds 2’ soundtrack, Best Day isn’t the first song Kesha wrote for a movie. 2017’s This Is Me (from ‘The Greatest Showman’) and 2018’s Here Comes The Change (from ‘On The Basis Of Sex‘) are other recent examples.
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.
L.A. Rochelle – No More (Encore)
L.A. Rochelle is a London-based, French-born artist, and No More (Encore) is only his debut single. A moving pop song full of heartbreak, the track is dedicated to the loss of someone whose memory is forever haunting. There’s a tragic story behind this song…
The stage name L.A. Rochelle came about, after he desperately tried to escape his flat in Paris, where his best friend took the life of his other best friend. The two of them had been in a secret gay relationship. Dealing with the trauma and grief, L.A. Rochelle immersed himself in his music. He bought time and saved to travel to L.A. from La Rochelle. Through his music he has redefined his perspective of love, friendship and loss.
In 2012, L.A. Rochelle moved to London. There, he perfected his own musical style, often incorporating layered vocals, a bed of sub-heavy urban beats, home-made instruments, prepared pianos, orchestral string ensembles, baritone horns sextets, typewriter sections, washing mashing laments and other sound ambiances.
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 31):
Tape Toy – Sad Girl
Two years ago, Roos van Tuil (vocals, guitar), Wesley Fransen (guitar, vocals), Maurice van de Graaf (bass) and Marc van Dongen (drums) were put together by their teacher at the Amsterdam school of music. The assignment: “Just show us what you’ve got.” Well, they did.
The quartet clicked and the school project turned into a real band, with quite a bunch of catchy, up-beat songs in their bag. All of them guitar-driven, with great synth melodies and smart lyrics. Tape Toy call their music ‘bubble-grunge’. Within a year after forming, the band amassed an agenda full of festival gigs, and recently supported Skunk Anansie.
Sad Girl is the band’s most recent single. It was released alongside new track 020, which is the area code of their hometown Amsterdam. Following the funky opening riff, dreamy verses alternate with energetic choruses. Near the end, trippy synths build up to the ‘grande finale’, where the huge singalong chorus shines one more time.
This whole week, Sad Girl by Tape Toy will shine at the top of the Carte Blanche Music blog as the new Wildcard!
In the Wildcards 2019 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.
Lola Marsh – Echoes
Lola Marsh is formed by Tel Aviv, Israel-based lead vocalist Gil Landau and multi-instrumentalist Yael Shoshana Cohen. They came to prominence in 2014, when they played the Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona as a five-piece band.
Inspired by artists ranging from Edith Piaf to Sufjan Stevens, their catchy, cinematic indie-pop combines folk and surf music. Listening to their new single Echoes makes me think of a Quentin Tarantino directed Wild West movie. It sounds like an up-tempo Lana Del Rey track, if you will.
Lola Marsh say about the song: “Echoes is about that feeling you sometimes have when you want to disappear, but at the same time, want to be found. That scary beautiful moment just before falling asleep, when you are the most lonesome version of yourself.”
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.
