Browsing Category single track
Janet Devlin – Away With The Fairies
Radio stations and curators don’t just put any song on their playlists. Generally, each submission must include a solid marketing plan or at least a great story. Now here’s an artist with a great story, and – equally important – lots of talent.
In 2011, Northern Irish singer-songwriter Janet Devlin competed in the eighth series of ‘The X Factor’. She ended fifth. In interviews, Courtney Love said that she believed Janet and her family to be distant relatives of Kurt Cobain. In response, Devlin herself stated that she was unaware of any connection.
She raised money to record her debut album Hide And Seek through crowd funding. Paying fans received the limited edition album in July 2013. Only in June 2014, it was released to the rest of the world. This was quite a different album however. It had a new title (Running With Scissors) and it contained new songs plus reworkings of tracks from Hide And Seek. The single Wonderful was record of the week in my then Carte Blanche radio show.
5 June, Devlin releases her sophomore album Confessional, which was five years in the making. That same day, she publishes her autobiography My Confessional. Both offer an intimate look into the last decade of the 25-year-old’s life. Away With The Fairies is her new single. At first listen, it’s ‘just’ a light folk-pop song, dipped in mandolin, bodhran, cello, and harp. The hidden subject matter of the song however, is Devlin’s teenage battle with an addiction to alcohol.
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 22):
Håkan Hellström – Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda
Long after Phil Collins, Don Henley, Sheila E. and several others, singing drummers are back again. Georgia is my favourite of the current bunch, but I just discovered Håkan Hellström as well. He recorded several albums as a drummer and bass player with acts like Broder Daniel and Honey Is Cool, before completely focusing on his solo career. He is very successful in his homeland Sweden. All but one of his ten albums so far reached #1.
Last week Hellström released his new album Rampljus Vol. 1, another chart topper. Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda, his new single, shot straight into the Swedish Top 10. I don’t know if it’s meant to be, but the track sounds like a pop quiz. How many historical references do you spot?
The song starts with a version of the ‘ging, gi-gi-gi-gi-ging’ part in Marlena Shaw’s Woman Of The Ghetto (the live version of which was famously sampled in Blue Boy’s Remember Me). The percussion must have been inspired by The Rolling Stones’ Sympathy For The Devil, Baba O’Riley by The Who is incorporated and Bruce Springsteen’s Jungleland springs to mind as well. With so many great influences, what could possibly go wrong? Well, nothing. Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda is both classic and timeless. Well done by Håkan Hellström and (Caesars and Teddybears frontman) Joakim Ahlund, who co-wrote and produced the song.
An edited version with English lyrics could very well become a hit outside of Sweden as well. But why wait? This week, Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda by Håkan Hellström will feature prominently at the top of the Carte Blanche Music blog as our new Wildcard!
In the Wildcards 2020 playlist you’ll 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.
Stuck On Planet Earth – Ghosts On The Radio
Adam Bianchi (guitars/vocals), Al Capo (bass/vocals), and Andrew Testa (drums) are Toronto-based alternative rock band Stuck On Planet Earth. They formed the band as teenagers in 2007. Since then, they developed their sound over thousands of hours of playing together on stage and in the studio. In 2020, SOPE are known for their primal, high-energy live shows and a signature mix of alternative rock and R&B.
13 years after its formation, the band is finally set to release its debut album Beautiful Nowhere on 26 June. Ghosts On The Radio is their new single. A rock track with big guitars and hard hitting drums, with the vocals front and center in the mix. Stuck On Planet Earth call the new track ‘an homage to some of our biggest musical inspirations,’ delivering ‘a bass line that has Dr. Dre’s The Chronic vibe and bright guitar style chanks channelling The Police’s Andy Summers’.
Recommended as well:
Stuck On Planet Earth – Rising
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.
Liza Anne – Bummer Days
After earlier tracks like Paranoia, Panic Attack and Bad Vacation, new single Bummer Days adds to the party vibe 😉. Don’t be mistaken however. Okay, on her upcoming album Bad Vacation (out on 24 July) Nashville pop-rocker Liza Anne reflects on mental health, destructive habits, and toxic relationships, but all in all it’s an empowering affair.
“I was writing what I needed to hear”, Liza explains. “I was writing what I needed to feel. Quite literally I was writing a stronger, more empowered version of myself into existence.” This makes her fourth long-player a collection of liberating, thoughtful and confident songs. Art rock anthems, new wave jams, and power pop earworms, set to provide her with her well-deserved breakthrough.
New single Bummer Days is a catchy self-critique of wallowing in sadness. “I don’t know what I want but I know that I feel bad / And then when I feel good I think I make myself sad”, Liza Anne sings. “I wanna feel like I can get out of my own way.”
Recommended as well:
Bad Vacation
Panic Attack
Paranoia
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.
Daði Freyr & Gagnamagnið – Where We Wanna Be
Daði Freyr and his band Gagnamagnið should have won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest with Think About Things. Alas, the event was cancelled. But in March and April, it was one of the most popular songs on Carte Blanche Music, and things are looking good for May as well.
Meanwhile, Freyr doesn’t wait for things to happen. He makes things happen all by himself. His new single Where We Wanna Be continues the sound we’ve come to expect. It’s funk, it’s disco, it’s cool and it’s totally unique at the same time. Instantly recognizable, Daði Freyr & Gagnamagnið have taken off and are sure to fly way past the borders of their homeland. I bet they’ll be an established act by the time they represent Iceland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021.
Recommended as well:
Daði Freyr & Gagnamagnið – Think About Things
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.
Josephien – Talk To Me
Incredible how a small country like Belgium can hold so much talent. Take Josefien Deloof, for instance. In 2018, she and her band won the public’s choice award at the Rock Rally competition. Since then, they toured a lot in Belgium and its neighbouring countries. During that time, she changed stage names a few times. Josefien became Josephine, but she now goes by the moniker of Josephien. Details matter!
Early this year, I saw her performing a Warner Music showcase at the ESNS festival. An impressive set, even though she was onstage with only a keyboard. And honestly, her recognizable, husky voice (reminiscent of Selah Sue’s) doesn’t need much instrumental accompaniment. Her debut single Talk To Me is great proof of that. The start of it, with only a simple guitar melody alongside her voice, immediately makes for a lounge-y feel. Only a few soft high synth notes and a languid rhythm section are added, and that’s all the song needs.
Josephien doesn’t believe in musical monogamy. Therefore, she hasn’t decided upon her musical direction yet. But the restrained happiness of this confident, soulful debut single fits her like a glove.
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.
On Video – Bête Noire
This one is for all of you who think ‘they don’t make decent guitar music any more’. East London foursome On Video are currently building a reputation for their fast-paced punky garage rock. After listening to their new single Bête Noire, your appetite for hooks and guitar riffs will be fully satisfied.
Frontman Hassan Anderson says about the track: “Bête Noire is a song inspired by our bassist George Williams. He was very misbehaved in his early days at school and was told by a teacher: “You, boy, have a bête noire inside of you.” Since then, George has made minimal improvements. This song aims to document that.”
More generally, the track is about the experience of being diagnosed with ADHD as an adult and the stigmas that come with that.
Bête Noire (French for ‘black beast’) comes ahead of On Video’s new EP Stuntman.
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.
Sophie Hunger – Everything Is Good
Sophie Hunger is a Swiss-born, Berlin-based singer, multi-instrumentalist and film composer. 28 August, she’ll release her seventh studio album Halluzinationen. Just like its predecessor Molecules, it was produced by Dan Carey (Franz Ferdinand, Bat For Lashes). The album was captured in Abbey Road, in a very special way. Over the course of two days, Hunger and her band played the entire album six times in live, continuous takes. The album was compiled out of these six takes. She identifies this approach as ‘full risk’, but it gave the album a vulnerability and intimacy that would have not been possible any other way.
Everything Is Good is the album’s new single. A great upbeat synth-pop track with an original twist, that sounds like a video game soundtrack. The song’s name is taken from a design by British artist David Shrigley. A big ‘thumbs up’ for this tune!
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.
Boston Manor – Plasticine Dreams
Somehow, I missed this song, but I wouldn’t want you to miss it. So here we go, after all. First of all, a little introduction… Contrary to their band name, Boston Manor are from Blackpool, UK. However, the rocking five-piece have many fans in the country of Uncle Sam.
A month and a half ago, Plasticine Dreams was the fifth track Boston Manor released ahead of their album Glue. This third album finds the band questioning the state of the world around them. They hope the album will be a call to arms for everybody who listens to it.
Plasticine Dreams for instance, is about what frontman Henry Cox calls ‘the throwaway culture of media’. He says art is treated as content nowadays. “One minute something is plastered everywhere you look and the next it’s faded into obscurity. I also feel like because it’s so easy to go viral now it also encourages people to make ‘content’ rather than art. We’re getting so much information constantly thrown at us that nothing is really absorbed or appreciated, you just click next when it’s finished.”
With its huge singalong chorus, Plasticine Dreams is destined to become a live favourite.
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 21):
Gizmo Varillas – Born Again
Since releasing his debut album El Dorado in early 2017, Spanish singer-songwriter Gizmo Varillas received praise from Yoko Ono, opened up for Jack Savoretti and was added to George Ezra’s Spotify playlist. Varillas’ mix of folky pop, tropical instrumentation, and Latin and Afrobeat rhythms make for an overall happy sound. But don’t be mistaken, in some cases this contrasts with sad lyrics.
His new single however, has a message of hope. In Gizmo’s own words, Born Again is ‘about personal transformation, changing from within and giving yourself the chance to start over’. “Even if we reach our lowest point, we can always rise up again. And in many ways, it’s about never giving up and empowering yourself to go on.”
Born Again is the third single off Varillas’ upcoming album Out Of The Darkness (out on 5 June). It’s also featured in the BBC’s brand-new series ‘Alabama’. The song’s chorus has a slight resemblance with XXL by Mylène Farmer, of whom I’m a big fan as well.
This week, Born Again by Gizmo Varillas is the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. As a result, it’ll feature prominently at the top of this blog for a whole week.
Recommended as well:
Gizmo Varillas – Losing You
In the Wildcards 2020 playlist you’ll 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.
