Browsing Tag indie
Casey Lowry – Psycho
Hot on the heels of his EP Nervous, which came out last autumn, Casey Lowry has a new single out. Psycho is a danceable pop rock song. In other words: another ridiculously catchy ditty. For fans of up-tempo indie bands like Satellite Stories.
Talented multi-instrumentalist Lowry says about the track: “Not too long ago my friend had a house party that got completely out of control and (long story short) ended up setting her house on fire. She’s still adamant that I was the cause of it and always calls me a ‘psycho boy’ every time I see her… So I wrote a song about it.”
Recommended as well:
Casey Lowry – Boyfriend
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.
Jonas Brøg feat. London Community Gospel Choir – My Father’s Hand
Jonas Brøg recently released a new version of That Feeling, featuring the London Community Gospel Choir. Once they were in the studio, he asked him to record a contribution to his next single as well. You can hear the result here now.
My Father’s Hand is a larger than life production, with heavy drums, strings, and of course the choir. Just because of this big sound, the quieter parts resonate deeply. The slowly building intro for instance, or the bridge with only a piano and Jonas’s voice. Or the moving end, where his voice breaks as he sings ‘Hey dad / I’ll make you proud / I’ll try’. Elsewhere, the song sounds like a producer’s candy store, where you discover new sounds and samples at every listen.
The Danish-born musician started recording his own songs on a therapeutic basis, trying to overcome a depression. Despite his perfectionism (quote about this song: “It took me 252 versions to find the right words for my thoughts”), Jonas is getting more and more prolific. The songs are still reflections and stimulations to get the best out of life. But meanwhile, I’ve got a feeling I’m starting to hear more hope and optimism in his lyrics. That’s a great and well-deserved development!
20 March, Dutch-based Brøg will release his debut EP. May is be the end of an era and the start of a new one…
Recommended as well:
Jonas Brøg – That Feeling
Jonas Brøg – All Across The Sky
Jonas Brøg feat. Laura Mathilde – I Think Of You I Cry
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.
Dizzy – Sunflower
Dizzy are a quartet including three young brothers from suburban Ontario, Canada: Charlie, Alex and Mackenzie Spencer. Their neighbour Katie Munshaw is the lead singer of the band. Winning the Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year in 2019 with their debut album Baby Teeth wasn’t exactly a bad way for them to start their career.
Moving into a new episode, they just released a new single: Sunflower. It’s described by Munshaw as ‘a three and a half minute ‘snap out of it!’ to myself when I’m feeling low, unconfident or not myself’. The band produced the track themselves. It was mixed by Craig Silvey (Arcade Fire, Florence & The Machine). A song with a pleasingly vibrant sound, that sits somewhere midway Maggie Rogers and Soccer Mommy.
Recommended as well:
Dizzy – Heavy
Dizzy – Backstroke
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.
Samuel Jack – Gonna Be Alright
Samuel Jack was born in London, moved to Johannesburg aged 12 and has now settled down in Dorset, UK. He once described himself as ‘a poor man, with a rich mind’ and he used to write and record in a caravan. The first fruit of those sessions was his debut EP Live From My Caravan (I’m not making this up).
A few EP’s and numerous separate tracks later, he’s finally ready to unveil his debut album Empty Pockets, Crowded Heart. Out in March, it combines the blues, Motown, soul and roots music from his childhood with his new love for hip hop and pop.
Lead single Gonna Be Alright is a celebration of recovery. The song stands as a reminder that we have to keep telling ourselves we can overcome anything and that all is going to be alright. It touches on very personal issues about dealing with anxiety and depression. However, Jack juxtaposed this heavy concept with an upbeat, joyous feeling, gradually building the track into a huge, anthemic chorus.
Recommended as well:
Samuel Jack – Let It All Out
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.
Oklou – Entertnmnt
French producer, vocalist and composer Marylou Mayniel goes by the stage name Oklou. She started her career producing boundary-pushing electronic underground music. Currently however, she’s moving towards chart-worthy pop music.
Her new single Entertnmnt is a bewitching single that glides across a strange, haunting aural landscape. It’s a well-built love song about ‘when people see you as strong and proud but you’re crying on the inside, putting up a fake smile’. The song’s co-producer Mura Masa calls Oklou ‘an amazing songwriter and this song isn’t any exception to that’.
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 – Think About Things
Icelandic-born, Germany-based singer Daði Freyr Pétursson and his band Gagnamagnið will represent their country at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020. They won Söngvakeppnin, the music competition that selects Iceland’s entries. Appearing in the local competition with the song Gagnamagnið (Icelandic for ‘the amount of data’), but will participate in the European contest with an English version, titled Think About Things.
In an interview, Daði stated that the meanings of the two versions’ lyrics differ. The Icelandic version’s lyrics talk about ‘the band Gagnamagnið coming from the future and outer space to save the world with their brand new dance’. He claims however that the English-language lyrics are ‘the real version of the song’. These are about his new-born daughter and ‘being excited to know what she thinks about all kinds of things’.
Musically, the fun track leans heavily on the current new wave of disco. Might be a surprise contender for a high placing in this year’s ESC.
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.
Baxter Dury – I’m Not Your Dog
If Baxter Dury wouldn’t have been the son of Ian ‘Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick’ Dury, I’m Not Your Dog would still have been a great song. Based around an ‘80s-inspired, Pet Shop Boys-like synth line, it‘s a bilingual piece of class. Beautiful strings, as well! Lyrically, the song’s about social media-enabled stalking.
Following Slumlord and Carla’s Got A Boyfriend, it’s the third single ahead of his new album The Night Chancers. Out on 20 March, it was co-produced by Dury and Craig Silvey (Arcade Fire, John Grant, Artic Monkeys).
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 10)
This is Werner’s Weekly, your compass to the music that matters, containing the two most recent Carte Blanche Music Wildcards, and the best of the other new releases in alphabetical order:
- Sports Team – Here’s The Thing (Wildcard this week)
- The Magic Gang – Think (Wildcard last week)
- Betty Who – The One
- Efecto Pasillo feat. O’Funk’illo – Chacho [2020 Version]
- Elle Exxe – Rose Gold
- Papooz – Figs And Gorgonzola
- Tout Va Bien – This Is How We Say Goodbye
Click the links for more info and 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. Also added last week: Christine & The Queens, Half Moon Run, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, and many more.
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.
Kingswood – If Only
If you’re lucky enough to live in Adelaide, Sydney or Melbourne (Australia), I’ve got a great night out to recommend. Early March, Aussie alt-rockers Kingswood will throw launch parties for their new album Juveniles. Fans will have the opportunity to secure a physical copy of the record, and enjoy free beer and pizza. Devotees in any other country of the world can only wait for the album until 13 March, and will have to arrange their own booze and food.
For warming-up purposes, Kingswood just put out the single If Only. A melodic rock song with classic vocal harmonies.
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.
Fletcher Gull – Deciduo [2020 Version]
Fletcher Gull is a 21-year-old singer-songwriter from Melbourne, Australia. His musical career so far reads like a boy’s adventure tale. He first picked up a guitar and started gigging at the age of 8. His first EP followed at 13. Two years later he toured China with an orchestra. He started his own band, Galb, at 17. Right now, Gull is a solo artist, who describes himself as a ‘song boy’.
Two years ago, he released his first solo EP Remember That you’re Gone. A remake of the opening track Deciduo has now been re-released as a single. It’s got a colourful, bright alt-pop sound. Think of a cross between MGMT’s Kids and Walking On A Dream by Empire Of The Sun.
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.
