Carte Blanche Music

Wildcard (week 9):
The Heavy – I Feel The Love

March 1st, 2023

Put a big red cross in your agenda to mark 21 April. That’s the date The Heavy will release their sixth album, Amen. You might want to set your alarm as well, just to be sure. For a new album by this British quartet always turns out to be a true ‘event’. Especially since it’s three and a half year since they last put out new music. The long-player was produced by Tchad Blake, who worked with everybody from Crowded House and Pearl Jam to Sheryl Crow and The Black Keys.

I Feel The Love is the band’s new single. In good The Heavy tradition, it’s full of energy. The song combines rock, funk, soul and – first and foremost – a healthy dose of gospel. As a result, it’s a super swinging affair that soothes the mind and spirit. An ultra American sound for a band from the European continent. Praise The Heavy!

Speaking about the track, front man Kelvin Swaby says: “The world feels as if it’s burning down at times and that it’s being torn apart by divisive agendas and evil personality traits. This is a solid reminder that as challenging as that is and may feel from day to day, we feel and will always believe, in Love. Always and forever.”

This week, we totally feel the love for The Heavy’s new single. It’s the new Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. That means it’ll be featured prominently at the top of the blog for a whole week.

Recommended as well:
Last Man Standing
Fighting For The Same Thing

Follow The Heavy on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify

In the Wildcards 2023 playlist you’ll find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

werner's weekly

Werner’s Weekly (week 9)

funk | indie | pop | rock | tropical

February 27th, 2023

This is Werner’s Weekly, your guide to the best new music, containing the two most recent Carte Blanche Music Wildcards, and the best of the other new releases in alphabetical order:

Bailen – Call It Like It Is (Wildcard this week)
Gabrielle Aplin – Be Yourself (Wildcard last week)
The Boo Radleys – The Unconscious
Gorillaz (feat. Stevie Nicks) – Oil
Tilly Louise – Join The Club
Drew Sycamore – Paradise
Zuco 103 – Aruenda [2023 Version]

Listen to each of the tracks via the Werner’s Weekly player below.

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

playlist

Additions to the Carte Blanche Music playlist (week 8)

February 25th, 2023

Not all, but only the *best* new music. Added this week (alphabetically):

The Boo Radleys – The Unconscious indie | pop
Emerson Brophy – Day Job indie | pop
Calicos – Comedown indie | pop | rock
Gorillaz (feat. Stevie Nicks) – Oil pop
The Heavy – I Feel The Love gospel | indie | rock
Lipstick Palms – New Year indie | pop
Tilly Louise – Join The Club indie | pop | rock
Mood Bored – Lucky indie | pop | rock
Meg Smith – All The Things You’d Ruin indie | pop | rock
Drew Sycamore – Paradise/Surfer pop
Tamir – Roses indie | pop | soul
Lucy Warr – Better indie | pop | rock
Melanie Wehbe – For The Show indie | pop
Zuco 103 – Aruenda [2023 Version] funk | indie | pop | tropical

Check them all in the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music Spotify playlist.
Follow (click ‘♥’) to hear the best new music first.

single track, wildcard

Wildcard (week 8):
Bailen – Call It Like It Is

indie | pop | rock

February 22nd, 2023

Twin brothers Daniel and David and sister Julia Bailen were born and raised in New York. The rising indie-pop trio just announced their sophomore album Tired Hearts will be out on 5 May.

While they recorded their debut album after testing the songs on the road tirelessly, they took another approach on this follow-up. This time, many of the songs were honed in the studio as opposed to live. This resulted in 12 original songs that are centred around Bailen’s radiant harmonies and adventurous arrangements. Lyrically, they wrestle with an uncertain future where ethics and morality – both communal and personal – are constantly shifting. In their own words, it’s a set of songs that ‘navigates the space between the heart’s expectation and the head’s sober reality’.

Bailen co-produced their new album with Brad Cook, who worked with Bon Iver, Waxahatchee and Snail Mail before.

Alt-pop anthem Call It Like It Is is the first single off Tired Hearts. It was co-written by Bailen and X Ambassadors’ Adam Levin and Sam Harris. It’s ‘an anthem for anyone who refuses to be taken advantage of’, the band stated. “It unmasks the ugly truth behind shiny veneers.” The beat-driven, bass-heavy track comes with a cult classic thriller style video.

Call It Like It Is by Bailen is the new Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. That means it’ll be featured prominently at the top of the blog for a whole week.

Follow Bailen on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify

In the Wildcards 2023 playlist you’ll find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

werner's weekly

Werner’s Weekly (week 8)

indie | pop | r&b | rock

February 20th, 2023

This is Werner’s Weekly, your guide to the best new music, containing the two most recent Carte Blanche Music Wildcards, and the best of the other new releases in alphabetical order:

Gabrielle Aplin – Be Yourself (Wildcard this week)
Dolores Forever – When I Say So (Wildcard last week)
beabadoobee – Glue Song
Black Honey – OK
Desirée Dawson – Lonely
Bea Miller – Cynical
Jason Mraz – I Feel Like Dancing

Listen to each of the tracks via the Werner’s Weekly player below.

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

playlist

Additions to the Carte Blanche Music playlist (week 7)

February 18th, 2023

The best from a crazy amount of new releases. Added this week (alphabetically):

Anna Of The North – Swirl indie | pop
Bailen – Call It Like It Is indie | pop | rock
Nessa Barrett – Bang Bang! pop | rock
beabadoobee – Glue Song indie | pop
Black Honey – OK indie | rock
Cole Bleu – Heartbreakers indie | rock
Gia Darcy – I’ll Never Drink Again indie | pop | rock
Desirée Dawson – Lonely indie | pop | r&b
Death Of The High Street – Not Fair indie | rock
FloodHounds – Psychosemantics indie | rock
James Gittins feat. Sophie Naglik – What You Want [Dance Remix] dance | indie | pop
Tara Hack – Bounce disco | electronic | funk | indie | pop
The Hengles – Flashes Of Green indie | pop | rock
Tycho Jones – Risk To My Reward indie | pop
Daimy Lotus – Friends 😉 indie | pop | rock
Melle – Can’t Come Home indie | pop
Bea Miller – Cynical indie | rock
Jason Mraz – I Feel Like Dancing indie | pop
noelle – Mars indie | pop
Lo Noom – Too Much For Me acoustic | indie | pop
Giovany Revelle – Time indie | pop | rock
Rews – Misery indie | rock
Bebe Rexha – Heart Wants What It Wants pop
Bartees Strange – Tisched Off indie | pop | rock
Temples – Cicada indie | pop

Check them all in the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music Spotify playlist.
Follow (click ‘♥’) to hear the best new music first.

single track, soundtrack, wildcard

Wildcard (week 7):
Gabrielle Aplin – Be Yourself

indie | pop

February 15th, 2023

English singer-songwriter Gabrielle Aplin rose to prominence early in her career, when she was asked to record a cover of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s The Power Of Love. It was the soundtrack of department store John Lewis’s annual Christmas commercial and went on to top the UK Singles Chart. The one-off single was soon followed by her debut album English Rain, which became a hit as well.

Aplin started 2023 with a bang, putting out her fourth album Phosphorescent. Less than a month after that, she’s already come up with two brand-new tracks: Side By Side and Be Yourself. Both were written and recorded for the computer-animated fantasy comedy film ‘The Amazing Maurice’.

In an interview with Atwood Magazine, she says about the project: “I am big into music and film. I love it. It was really lovely to work to a brief. (…) As a fan, it was a really wonderful experience. It’s a really wholesome film about literally being yourself and community, and how your individuality is your superpower. I loved writing that. I love putting bits of the script into the song. It was a really wonderful thing to do and a really wholesome experience.”

Be Yourself is Aplin’s new single. A joyful, up-tempo song with a lively beat and an infectious guitar riff. The uplifting lyrics reflect the film’s main theme.

Be Yourself by Gabrielle Aplin is the new Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. That means it’ll be featured prominently at the top of the blog for a whole week.

Follow her on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify

In the Wildcards 2023 playlist you’ll find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

werner's weekly

Werner’s Weekly (week 7)

acoustic | indie | melancholic | pop | rock

February 13th, 2023

This is Werner’s Weekly, your guide to the best new music, containing the two most recent Carte Blanche Music Wildcards, and the best of the other new releases in alphabetical order:

Dolores Forever – When I Say So (Wildcard this week)
Nell Mescal – Homesick (Wildcard last week)
Eddie Benjamin – All For Nothing
Django Django feat. Self Esteem – Complete Me
Harm & Ease – Meet Me At The Riot
Kezra – Insane
Hannah Scott – Into Your Grief

Listen to each of the tracks via the Werner’s Weekly player below.

For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.

playlist

Additions to the Carte Blanche Music playlist (week 6)

February 11th, 2023

Not all, but only the *best* new music. Added this week (alphabetically):

Gabrielle Aplin – Be Yourself indie | pop
Eddie Benjamin – All For Nothing pop
Bitter Kisses – Pr*y indie | pop | rock
Crystal Cities – I Should Have Known That This Was War indie | pop
Depeche Mode – Ghosts Again electronic | pop
Django Django feat. Self Esteem – Complete Me indie | pop
Harm & Ease – Meet Me At The Riot indie | pop | rock
Kezra – Insane indie | pop | rock
Naia Lika – Gas Station Bouquet funk | indie | pop | soul
Little Green – Dinner With The Moon indie | pop
Mal Fantôme – Higher indie | pop | rock
Manning – Hearts On Fire indie | pop
Peking Duk feat. Darren Hayes – I Want You pop
Roe – My Greatest Fear indie | pop | rock
Hannah Scott – Into Your Grief acoustic | indie | melancholic | pop
Super Ghost – Don’t Talk About It indie | pop | rock
Tired All The Time – One Big File indie | pop | rock
Joshua Ziggy – Can’t Go Back indie | pop | rock

Check them all in the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music Spotify playlist.
Follow (click ‘♥’) to hear the best new music first.

single track, wildcard

Wildcard (week 6):
Dolores Forever – When I Say So

indie | pop

February 8th, 2023

Close friends and songwriters Hannah Wilson (from Yorkshire) and Julia Fabrin (from Copenhagen) met at a house party in London. Connecting over their love of Mitski, Sharon Van Etten, Stevie Nicks and the Spice Girls, they formed Dolores Forever. Their 2022 EP Baby Teeth collected the singles the duo released since 2021. They went on to release three more tracks that same year and have been tipped across media and radio alike as one of the most exciting new acts to make an impact in 2023.

Their first single of the new year is titled When I Say So. It was produced and mixed by Grammy Award winner Ben Allen, who worked with Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective, MIA and Big Moon before. The song takes Dolores Forever’s dreamy pop to yet another level, with hooks, harmonies and a festival-sized chorus to boot. This is the track to elevate the duo from just ones to watch, to one of the most exciting acts of 2023.

“When I Say So is about reluctantly growing up,” Dolores Forever explain. “A song for the curious who want more than they are supposed to expect. There’s the moment when you’re suddenly not the ingénue in the room anymore and everything around you is changing. You’re not sure you’re on the same ride as everyone else.”

When I Say So by Dolores Forever is the new Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. That means it’ll be featured prominently at the top of the blog for a whole week.

Follow Dolores Forever on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify

In the Wildcards 2023 playlist you’ll find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

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