Browsing Tag indie
werner's weekly
Werner’s Weekly (week 10)
It’s impossible for me to write about all good music that comes out each week. So I must make a selection for this blog. With a few exceptions to the rule, I usually choose brand new artists to feature on Carte Blanche Music, tracks that you probably haven’t heard yet, and that would run the risk of passing by unnoticed if I wouldn’t place them on a pedestal.
But there is so much more… Thankfully, there is Spotify. My Carte Blanche Music playlist has enough room to feature all great new tracks that appear each week. Not only by brand new acts, but also by more established artists like Little Steven, Bush, Lorde, DJ Premier, Di-Rect and Spoon. All of them great acts, with great new songs. Subscribe to that playlist and you’ll never miss any good new music anymore. Promised!
Which brings me to this week’s alphabetically sorted list of my most highly recommended tracks: Werner’s Weekly (which you can subscribe to as well, of course). Listen to these eight songs via the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar and read my recommendations by clicking the links.
- San Fermin – No Promises (this week’s Wildcard)
- MisterWives – Machine (last week’s Wildcard)
- Banner. – Compass
- Disciples – On My Mind
- Dreadzone – Area Code
- Groenland – Healing Suns
- Kid Francescoli – The Player
- The Curious Incident – Honey Hunger
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single trackGroenland – Healing Suns
Groenland – Healing Suns
After Japan, Spain, Boards Of Canada, Hungry Kids Of Hungary, Eskimos & Egypt, Dutch Uncles and of course Cyprus Hill (wink) there is a new band that named itself after a country: Groenland (which is, oddly enough, Dutch for Greenland). And even more odd: Groenland hails from Canada…
After touring ever since the release of their debut album The Chase (in 2013) they are now ready to unleash the follow-up, A Wider Space, which will come out on 31 March. The first single combines a synth that’s deliberately out of tune with analogue elements such as a cello, a violin and a saxophone to great effect. A brilliant slice of indie pop, worthy of your attention (and playlist).
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Banner. – Compass
In the ‘About’ section of this blog you can read: ‘Carte Blanche is all about great new music’. I like to live up to that promise. Therefore, today I proudly present Banner., a new Dutch singer-songwriter, who was born and raised in The Hague. He is a self-taught musician since he started playing guitar at the age of 14. His songwriting career began when he was 18 and currently, he is studying vocals at the Herman Brood Academy in Utrecht.
Banner. names Queens Of The Stone Age, Fink and Sticky Fingers as his influences. But Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Japan and David Sylvian are never far away either. This makes it difficult to describe his music. Something like ‘indie folk’ or ‘indie pop’ comes close, but doesn’t do right to the outbursts of guitar that are present as well.
You know what? You’d better listen! To whom? To Banner.! That’s Banner with a dot. Point taken…
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
border breaker, single track
Von Wegen Lisbeth – Sushi
This German indie pop band started off in 2006 as Fluchtweg. After changing their name several times, they now go by the moniker of Von Wegen Lisbeth. One of the things that make them stand out is their use of unusual instruments like a toy Glockenspiel, a Casio keyboard and a steel drum.
After releasing two EP’s (in 2012 and 2014), their full debut album Grande came out in the summer of 2016. The great single Bitch was the first to catch my ears and their new one is called Sushi. It is currently bubbling under the European Border Breakers Chart.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
werner's weekly
Werner’s Weekly (week 7)
Kickstart your working week with the best new music, collected in Werner’s Weekly. Nine alphabetically ordered tracks, including this week’s and last week’s Wildcard. You can listen to the songs via the Werner’s Weekly player in the sidebar and read about them by clicking on the link below:
- Van Echelpoel – Ziet Em Duun (this week’s Wildcard)
- LP – Other People (last week’s Wildcard)
- Bad Sounds – Wages
- Cold War Kids – Love Is Mystical
- Gabrielle – Vekk Meg Opp
- Magnus Bechmann – It Bothers Me
- Mew – Carry Me To Safety
- Rag ‘n’ Bone Man – Ego
- Trip To Dover – I’ll Be Juliet
The above playlist contains a selection of all the great music I added to my container playlist Carte Blanche Music in the last week. To hear all of those songs, please click on the image underneath the Spotify player in the sidebar.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
border breaker, single track
Bad Sounds – Wages
If you like (electronic) brass (STOP THE PRESS: those are real horns!), dirty mouth organs and an overall baggy sound that resembles the Madchester sound of the late eighties/early nineties, this is your new favourite track. If you think that sounds good, let me introduce you to Bad Sounds…
Bad Sounds are a British five-piece from Bath, who like to channel their energy into upbeat songs. And into fun video’s, as well. Like the one for their single Wages, below. The track was released in September 2016 already, but has taken since then to reach the European Border Breakers Chart, which it enters this week at an impressive #39.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Roads To Roam – We Are
As you know, all roads lead to Rome. But apparently, Hilversum (the Netherlands) 5-piece Roads To Roam prefers to wander around. Which doesn’t mean they’re not ambitious. On the contrary. They certainly have a goal, and eventually they will get there.
Last year, Roads To Roam presented their 7-track debut EP A Guide To Your Mind, featuring the great singles Building Bridges and Walking Away. The band hasn’t sat still since then. They continued writing new songs and yesterday evening, in their hometown, they presented their new single We Are with the accompanying video. Instead of just playing the clip they did a full-blown concert, showcasing their skills without being afraid to honour their musical heroes, like Kings Of Leon and fellow Dutch band Kensington. Bands that are more than modestly popular, who could use some company to keep themselves sharp. Roads To Roam are more than willing to fulfil that role. Onwards to Rome!
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
werner's weekly
Werner’s Weekly (week 4)
As always, Werner’s Weekly consists of the very best of all tracks that I put in my Carte Blanche Music playlist last week. In this container playlist, which features the highlights of all music releases in 2017 so far, you’ll find additions of Halestorm, The xx, Temples, Declan McKenna, K’s Choice feat. Skin, Spoon, Lady Antebellum, and many more. But only the following have made it to my narrowed down selection (in alphabetical order) of top tracks. Activate the player in the sidebar to listen to the songs and if you want to know more about them, click on the links below:
- Powers – Dance (this week’s Wildcard)
- Izzy Bizu – Talking To You (last week’s Wildcard)
- Blackfield – How Was Your Ride?
- Blaenavon – Orthodox Man
- Dan Croll – Away From Today
- Electric Guest – Back From Me
- Gloria Estefan – One Day At A Time
- Saint Motel – Move
- Train – The News
Mind that as of this week I give extra support to the Wildcard by featuring it twice in Werner’s Weekly: in the current week and the week after.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single track
Blaenavon – Orthodox Man
Of course, last week’s edition of showcase festival Eurosonic Noorderslag brought back memories of earlier editions. No better way to get surprised than to just walk into a venue, not knowing what band is playing. That way I ‘discovered’ Blaenavon a few years ago, a very young band playing rattling rock. I started playing their single Into The Night in my radio show, calling them ‘a promising British psychedelic teeny wave band’.
By 2017, the only part of that description that still stands, is ‘promising’. Their songs are more compact, the song structures more accessible and their overall sound more sophisticated. If fact, there is absolutely no reason for radio not to embrace Blaenavon as one of the next big things. I liked their latest single My Bark Is Your Bite already, and Orthodox Man is a great follow-up.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
single trackKakkmaddafakka – Young You
Kakkmaddafakka – Young You
Spotify already shortens the band name Kakkmaddafakka and calls them KMF, so I would not be surprised if the band would soon start abbreviating it themselves as well. And let’s be honest: the pretty ‘controversial’ name of the Norwegians could generate wrong expectations about the music they’re making, which is actually very accessible.
Kakkmaddafakka’s latest album KMF was co-written and co-produced by Erlend Øye (Kings Of Convenience, Whitest Boy Alive), like their last two albums. It already produced the singles May God and Galapagos, but I like the new one, Young You, even better.
I’m a music industry watcher and journalist. Worked at a CD club, a record store chain and was editor in chief of an entertainment trade magazine. Have been in the radio business since 1987, producing and presenting shows. Was music director of several stations. Also, I developed the European Border Breakers Chart, Music Moves Europe Talent Chart and ESNS Chart. CEO of Werner Bros. tekst | uitleg.
