Browsing Tag funk
Werner’s Weekly (week 45)
Before the digital revolution, release strategies in the music business were clearly structured; the big-shot artists all came up with new material in October and November, well-placed to fully benefit from the tradition of exchanging presents at Christmas. The start of each new year was the best moment for emerging artists to drop new music, as the established ones had already shot their bolt in the months before.
However, things have changed since the arrival of – especially – the streaming platforms. They lowered the bar to put out music to a potentially worldwide audience, causing a diarrhoea of releases throughout the year, particularly on New Music Fridays. Personally, I love it, but the downside is, that we’re now in a situation of quantity over quality…
This is where Carte Blanche Music comes in! Each week, I listen to as many new songs as I can, but I only add the best tracks to my Carte Blanche Music Spotify playlist. Those additions are then narrowed down into my alphabetically ordered ‘best of the best’ list Werner’s Weekly, which is your compass to the music that matters.
This week’s edition is below, with links to my original recommendations. You can listen to the songs via the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar.
- The Proclaimers – Then It Comes To Me (Wildcard this week)
- Isaac Gracie – Show Me Love (Wildcard last week)
- Arthur Adam – O
- Clean Cut Kid – Emily
- Club Drive – Satisfied
- Reel Big Fish – You Can’t Have All Of Me
- Roads To Roam – Believe
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.
Club Drive – Satisfied
After coming to the scene with their debut EP Dangerous, in 2016, and subsequent singles Spare Time, Voyager, International (all 2017) and WDYD (earlier this year), Club Drive’s new single Satisfied is only their sixth release.
Club Drive are a Hertfordshire synth-infused guitar pop trio, consisting of Aaron Trowbridge, Tommy O’ Malley and Christian Murphy, and Satisfied is easily their most satisfying (did I say that?) single, so far. Its pulsating rhythms are built around funky guitars, tantalising drums and luscious vocals. Cleverly crafted and nicely produced, it sounds like the Justin Timberlake song that JT himself forgot to deliver, recently. If you’re looking for a catchy, rocky synthpop banger, look no further!
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.
Werner’s Weekly (week 44)
Who said rock is dead? Last week, Buffalo Tom, Johnny Marr, Nothing But Thieves, Sam Fender, The Struts and White Lies all came up with great tracks, that I gladly added to the Carte Blanche Music playlist. As you may know, it only contains the best new songs for you to discover (not only rock, by the way, but music, great music). Just follow that playlist and let me do the ‘dirty’ work. I love it!
As an example of what you’ll find there, below is my ‘best of the best’ selection: Werner’s Weekly, your compass to the music that matters. If you can spare 26 minutes, you can hear them all in full via the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar. Otherwise, just click the links of the tracks of your liking to find out more (including the song itself, of course).
- Isaac Gracie – Show Me Love (Wildcard this week)
- Harts – Shake Ya Pants (Wildcard last week)
- FIDLAR – Can’t You See
- Jealous Of The Birds – Marrow
- Leoniden – People
- Noémie Wolfs – Let Me Down
- Only Yours – Everlasting
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.
FIDLAR – Can’t You See
L.A. band FIDLAR (which is short for ‘Fuck It Dog, Life’s A Risk’) have their third album coming up. Almost Free will be let loose on 25 January 2019. It was produced by Ricky Reed, who worked Twenty One Pilots and Phantogram before. Singer/guitarist Zac Carper says about the record: “A lot of the vibe was, ‘Well, why can’t we do that? Why can’t we have horns? Why can’t we have key changes? Why can’t we have a harmonica loop?’ It was about taking the ceiling off. Having it be limitless. Ain’t no rules.”
The long player was preceded by the singles Alcohol and Too Real, and the album announcement came with third single Can’t You See. The track appears to signal a change in musical direction for the band, that used to be a punk outfit. Can’t You See is much more easy-going and has more of a funky blues feel to it. It even features a fair amount of piano.
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.
Werner’s Weekly (week 43)
‘Old’ heroes like Claw Boys Claw, Def Leppard, Eagle-Eye Cherry, Kim Wilde, Kylie Minogue, Macy Gray, Richard Ashcroft and Weezer never die, even though you hardly hear them on the radio anymore. Giving them the credits they deserve, I added their new singles to the Carte Blanche Music playlist last week.
However, most of this list consists of younger, mostly emerging artists, like Amber Arcades, Angèle, Boy Azooga, Fil Bo Riva and Oh Pep! The playlist is updated constantly, so if you follow it, I’ll keep you updated about great new music, the moment it comes out (and often even earlier 😉).
The best of them all can be found in Werner’s Weekly, your compass to the music that matters. This week’s edition is below, including links to more information about each track. All for of them are in the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar, for your listening pleasure. Enjoy!
- Harts – Shake Ya Pants (Wildcard this week)
- Janelle Monáe – Americans (Wildcard last week)
- Anteros – Ordinary Girl
- Fyfe & Iskra Strings – Gold
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 42):
Harts – Shake Ya Pants
I’ve always been a fan of Darren Hart’s music, but the multi-talented multi-instrumentalist just launched another multi-genre cracker. And ladies and gentlemen, here it is: his best and most catchy track so far. Shake Ya Pants is as funky as ever, but this time, Harts adds some extra production. The song combines a wicked bass guitar, old-school brass, Temptations-like (bass-heavy) vocals and an overall juicy sound into a song that’s too infectious not to dance to.
“Shake Ya Pants is a light hearted and fun tune about being comfortable in your own skin. It’s kinda like a fun pep talk, encouraging somebody to be themselves when they may lack self-confidence,” the artist explains.
As always, the ghost of Prince looks over Harts’ shoulder, but with Shake Ya Pants, he appears to have found the sound he was always looking for. This epic career high is next week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. You can find all of them 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.
Werner’s Weekly (week 42)
How many Indian summers can one year hold? Not that I’m complaining… Likewise, there are sunny spells in musical respect as well. What other conclusion can be drawn after a week that saw artists like Alma, Joe Jackson, Maggie Rogers, Paloma Faith, Razorlight and Young The Giant drop brand new music? Not to mention the many less known musicians that made our lives a little bit better with great new tracks?
As always, Carte Blanche Music tries to introduce you to the best new tunes, regardless of the artist’s prior status, descent, gender, the language, genre, etc. Just great music for open-minded people that aren’t stuck in a niche but are happy to discover.
All of those wonderful songs are added to my Carte Blanche Music playlist on an ongoing basis, and each Monday I publish my ultimate shortlist: Werner’s Weekly, your compass to the music that matters. This, my friends, is it:
- Janelle Monáe – Americans (Wildcard this week)
- They Might Be Giants – The Communists Have The Music (Wildcard last week)
- Angèle feat. Roméo Elvis – Tout Oublier
- Satellite Stories – The Fame
- SOAK – Everybody Loves You
- Tom Helsen – Be The One
- Wooze – Party Without Ya
More info is behind each link and all seven songs can be enjoyed through the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar. Have fun!
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 41):
Janelle Monáe – Americans
On her latest album Dirty Computer, which was preceded by the single Make Me Feel, Janelle Monáe saved the best for last. Americans is the closing track on the album. Combining elements of pop, gospel, R&B, funk and neo-soul, it sounds like a tribute to Prince’s Let’s Go Crazy, but in fact, the song preaches the importance of all Americans coming together and being recognized for who they are and what they contribute to their country. But as we all know, that’s not the way it works in the United States nowadays. Non-male Americans, queer Americans, Americans of colour, poor Americans, etc. are looked down upon.
A spoken bridge and outro by Reverend Sean McMillan lists the marginalised people in contemporary America: “Until women can get equal pay for equal work… Until same-gender-loving people can be who they are… Until black people can come home from a police stop without being shot in the head… Until poor whites can get a shot at being successful… Until Latinos and Latinas don’t have to run from walls… this is not my America.”
I’m not sure if this is Monáe’s new single, but it’s playlisted by BBC Radio 6music. And that’s not all; a great track like this, with such an important message, deserves to be next week’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcard! All 41 of them, so far, are 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.
Satellite Stories – The Fame
Asked if they were ready for the fame, during an interview in 2012, Satellite Stories’ Olli-Pekka Ervasti responded: “You never know how the music industry goes, but reaching the fame is not the thing for us.” Six years later, in my opinion, the band didn’t achieve the fame they deserved. After ten years, five albums and one last upcoming European tour, the Finnish indie band splits up.
But Satellite Stories go out with a bang. The bonus track on their final album Cut Out The Lights has now been released as their farewell single. The Fame is the kind of up-tempo pop track we’ve come to know from the band, as danceable as ever. Fame at last!
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.
Christine & The Queens – Le G
In 2014, all of a sudden, a new pop star stood up in France: Héloïse Letissier with her musical alter ego Christine & The Queens. A stylish act, both musically and in clothing, that can count artists like Stromae, Lorde and Madonna as fans.
Her debut album Chaleur Humaine contains slightly disruptive synthesizer pop (which she calls ‘freak pop’ herself). Letissier sings an awkward mix of French and English, that even the French don’t quite get. Yet (or perhaps because of that) it became a multi-platinum hit. First in her home country, and a year later in the rest of Europe. In order to try and conquer the United States, she re-recorded some of her songs in English and re-released her album.
Now, the artist makes her next move: her new album Chris comes in two versions: one in French and one in English. They’re not completely the same, though, as the French version has one track more, and two of the French songs don’t appear on the English version.
One of those two songs is my favourite on the set: Le G. The music on this new album being more funky and more sexy, I’m not sure whether this track is about G-funk or the G-spot, but either way: it’s as great as it is funky and sexy. Think Janet Jackson, for instance. Even the electric guitar solo at the end fits in nicely with the smooth overall production. Formidable!
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.
