Browsing Category wildcard
Wildcard (week 34):
Say Lou Lou – Golden Child
Remember Australian band The Church, of Under The Milky Way fame? Singer Steve Kilbey has two daughters, Miranda and Elektra, who have a musical career of their own under the Say Lou Lou moniker.
After debuting in 2015 with their album Lucid Dreaming, they took the time to produce a follow-up. Earlier this year, they released the new song Ana, which is now followed by Golden Child. Both will be on the twin sisters’ second album Immortelle, due for release on 21 September. It’ll be a moody and sensual collection of songs with subtle nods to film noir, but always with the duo’s dreamy, ethereal vocals at the centre.
Golden Child is a percussive pop anthem, with an intro that brings back memories of the wonderful single Sing by Travis. Then, it opens up with irresistible guitar licks and crisp drum fills, that give it a distinct 70’s West Coast feel. At the same time, it sounds modern, thanks to the addition of delicate sound effects and a productional trick or two.
This week, Golden Child by Say Lou Lou is the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard! The songs that preceded it this year, can be found in the Wildcards 2018 playlist.
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 33):
Cookin’ On 3 Burners feat. Kaiit – Warning
Australian Hammond organ trio Cookin’ On 3 Burners formed in 1997, but got worldwide recognition in 2016, after French DJ Kungs remixed their classic soul track This Girl into a global hit.
Two years later, Cookin’ On 3 Burners release the lead single from their upcoming album Lab Experiments Vol. 2. Warning, which features vocals by 20-year-old Ozzy talent Kaiit, is a funky affair, somewhere halfway The JB’s and The Brand New Heavies. A punchy, hard hitting vocal banger with a great groove, that’s only one mouse click away for a whole week, as it’s the new Wildcard on this blog. You can find of the Carte Blanche Music Wildcards of the year so far in this playlist.
By the way: the instrumental B-side The Jump Off is a treat as well!
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 32):
Jade Bird – Uh Huh
Only a year ago, now 20-year-old Jade Bird released her debut EP Something American, which featured the lovely single Cathedral. Since then, she hit the jackpot again with Lottery and put out Furious, which sounded all but that.
Now, she’s back with her most raw, powerful and rocky tune yet. An upbeat melody accompanying Bird’s great voice, Uh Huh lasts only less than two and a half minute, but it is convincing from the first second. Without a doubt an important next step towards wider success.
In an attempt to help Jade Bird spread her wings, I chose Uh Huh as this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. You can find the full bunch of great songs that preceded her in the Wildcards 2018 playlist.
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):
Manic Street Preachers – People Give In
No need to introduce Manic Street Preachers. Ever since their 1992 debut album Generation Terrorists I’ve been a fan of this Welsh band, often colloquially known as The Manics.
Their latest album Resistance Is Futile, released on Friday 13 April, is their 13th. Sounds like a good luck charm to me 😉. The long-player is, in the band’s own words, ‘obsessively melodic’. It’s clear from opening track People Give In on, it has the orchestral sweep of their most successful album to date, 1996’s Everything Must Go.
People Give In has now been chosen as the album’s sixth and last single. A song about growing old(er), it brings listeners through the trials and tribulations life often brings our way and comments on people’s responses to it. People get tired, people get old, people get forgotten, people give in, people move on, people stay strong. It’s a hopeful reminder of human resilience.
This week, People Give In by Manic Street Preachers is the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. You can find a full list in the Wildcards 2018 playlist.
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 30):
Young Gun Silver Fox (feat. Seaweed Horns) – Kingston Boogie
I admit, it would be a horrible thing to do, but what would happen if bands like Hall & Oates, Steely Dan, the Doobie Brothers, and Ace were thrown in a blender? It would give a mess, obviously, but musically, something deliciously juicy would come out. Luckily for us (and for the artists especially) it’s not necessary to do that blender thing, because the band whose sound incorporates all of the above (and more) has already stood up. And the best part is: despite of all these well-known ingredients they don’t sound like clones, but are a phenomenon in their own right.
I’m talking about Young Gun Silver Fox, of course, like I did before, when I recommended Lolita, Midnight In Richmond and Take It Or Leave It. All of these tracks can be found on the band’s latest album AM Waves, but they decided to save the best for last. My favourite album track, Kingston Boogie, is YGSF’s new single. An über sunny, sophisticated dance tune, and one of the tracks on the album to feature a horn section, the Seaweed Horns. In short: what’s not to love about this song?
Kingston Boogie by Young Gun Silver Fox is this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard, meaning you can find and enjoy it here in only one mouse click. Wondering what other fine tunes were hand-picked as this blog’s ‘powerplay’? You can find them all in the Wildcards 2018 playlist.
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 29):
Lizzo – Boys
Lizzo is the stage name of 30-year-old American rapper Melissa Jefferson. She’s based in Minneapolis, which probably explains the funk in her music. But she doesn’t shy away from injecting a fair amount of soul into her songs either. Good As Hell and Worship (both from her Coconut Oil EP) are great examples. And don’t forget to check YDLM by The Griswolds (‘you don’t love me’), which features Lizzo in a major way. I loved the track so much back then, It ended high in the Carte Blanche Top 2016. Over the years, Lizzo featured on songs by Bastille, Clean Bandit and Prince & 3rdeyegirl as well.
Boys, however, is a new solo outing. And boy, do I like it. The song combines a heavy bassline, tinkling cowbell and groovy guitar licks with Lizzo’s trademark funny verses about all varieties of boys lucky enough to get her attention. An infectious homage to unbridled joy, energy and sexuality, Lizzo’s Boys is this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard (all of which you can find in the Wildcards 2018 playlist).
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 28):
Satellite Stories – Carried Away
Satellite Stories is the most successful Finnish indie band ever, with over 60 million streams to their name, as well as playing 300 headline shows in 17 countries on three continents (record labels don’t lie about that kind of stuff, you know).
Next question, then, is: why have they decided to call it quits? I can only imagine they intended to stop at their peak. If that’s indeed the case, they did a wonderful job with this new single. I think it’s their best yet.
Carried Away will of course be featured on the band’s final album Cut Out The Lights, out on 7 September. A week later, Satellite Stories begin a farewell tour through Europe, which ends on 27 October in Oulu, the Finnish town where the band was formed, 10 years ago.
As a thank you to this wonderful band, Carried Away by Satellite Stories is this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard (all of which you can find in the Wildcards 2018 playlist). Stream it as much as you can and make it their biggest hit ever! Enjoy it while it lasts…
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 27):
Carlos Jean feat. Teyou & Annya – Yucatán
Carlos Jean is currently one of Spain’s most successful artists, both as a producer/remixer of other peoples’ work and as an artist himself. From 1998-2010 he was half of the duo Najwajean (with actress/singer Najwa Nimri) and since 2011 he is active as a solo artist under his own name.
His new single Yucatán, featuring Spanish singer Teyou and electric violin player Annya, sounds like a potential summer hit to me. The song, the title track for a new Spanish comedy that comes to the theatres on 31 August, was taped and mixed in the same Abbey Road studio The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Queen recorded in. Yucatán is a tropical mix of musical styles, and includes – mind you! – real handclaps 😉.
Please, clap your hands for Yucatán by Carlos Jean feat. Teyou & Annya; it features prominently on this blog for a week as the new Carte Blanche Music Wildcard (all of which can be found in the Wildcards 2018 playlist).
Mambo No. 6!
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 25):
Shanguy – King Of The Jungle
I wrote about Shanguy’s debut single La Louze when it came out in december 2017, and made it the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard at the start of this year. Since then, it grew out to become one of your favourite recommendations on this blog, based on the number of views.
Now, French singer-songwriter Eon Melka, Italian DJ NRD1, and indie singer-songwriter Frank-O are back with their second single and once again, it’s a cracker! Just like on their first effort, Stromae is a clear inspiration. I’m sure this song will appeal to a broad audience, and playlist curators could be helpful by giving it the prominent placing it deserves.
Allow me to set a good example: King Of The Jungle by Shanguy is this week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard (all of which you can find in the Wildcards 2018 playlist). This will provide the track with a prominent place on this blog for a full week. Enjoy!
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 23):
The 1975 – Give Yourself A Try
At the start of their career, Manchester band The 1975 scored mainly with singles who’s titles had only one word in it: Chocolate, Sex and Girls, for instance. With the title of their second album, they explored the other end of the spectrum: I Like It When You Sleep For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It was the album with the longest title ever to reach #1 in the United States. It spawned two powerplays (now: Wildcards) in my then radio show Carte Blanche: Love Me and She’s American.
After releasing a cover of Sade’s By Your Side and a live album in 2017, The 1975 come up with a third long player in October. Another one with a great title: A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships. And that’s not all: the follow-up has been announced already as well: Notes On A Conditional Form is planned for May 2019.
But first things first. Give Yourself A Try is the first taster off the band’s upcoming album. A haunting track, built around a fuzzy guitar melody that’s backed with a beat straight out of a drum machine. I’ve chosen this high energy pop tune as The 1975’s third Carte Blanche Music Wildcard, meaning it features here prominently this week.
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.
