Browsing Tag rock
Wildcard (week 21):
Håkan Hellström – Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda
Long after Phil Collins, Don Henley, Sheila E. and several others, singing drummers are back again. Georgia is my favourite of the current bunch, but I just discovered Håkan Hellström as well. He recorded several albums as a drummer and bass player with acts like Broder Daniel and Honey Is Cool, before completely focusing on his solo career. He is very successful in his homeland Sweden. All but one of his ten albums so far reached #1.
Last week Hellström released his new album Rampljus Vol. 1, another chart topper. Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda, his new single, shot straight into the Swedish Top 10. I don’t know if it’s meant to be, but the track sounds like a pop quiz. How many historical references do you spot?
The song starts with a version of the ‘ging, gi-gi-gi-gi-ging’ part in Marlena Shaw’s Woman Of The Ghetto (the live version of which was famously sampled in Blue Boy’s Remember Me). The percussion must have been inspired by The Rolling Stones’ Sympathy For The Devil, Baba O’Riley by The Who is incorporated and Bruce Springsteen’s Jungleland springs to mind as well. With so many great influences, what could possibly go wrong? Well, nothing. Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda is both classic and timeless. Well done by Håkan Hellström and (Caesars and Teddybears frontman) Joakim Ahlund, who co-wrote and produced the song.
An edited version with English lyrics could very well become a hit outside of Sweden as well. But why wait? This week, Alla Drömmar Är Uppfyllda by Håkan Hellström will feature prominently at the top of the Carte Blanche Music blog as our new Wildcard!
In the Wildcards 2020 playlist you’ll find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.
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 21)
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:
- Gizmo Varillas – Born Again (Wildcard this week)
- Bloxx – Lie Out Loud (Wildcard last week)
- May-a – Green
- Moby Rich & Bishop Briggs – Friends*
- The Rehats – Nothing But The Truth
- Washington – Dark Parts
- X Ambassadors with K.Flay & grandson – Zen
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: Editors, Ozark Henry, Indigo Girls, The Jayhawks, 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.
Stuck On Planet Earth – Ghosts On The Radio
Adam Bianchi (guitars/vocals), Al Capo (bass/vocals), and Andrew Testa (drums) are Toronto-based alternative rock band Stuck On Planet Earth. They formed the band as teenagers in 2007. Since then, they developed their sound over thousands of hours of playing together on stage and in the studio. In 2020, SOPE are known for their primal, high-energy live shows and a signature mix of alternative rock and R&B.
13 years after its formation, the band is finally set to release its debut album Beautiful Nowhere on 26 June. Ghosts On The Radio is their new single. A rock track with big guitars and hard hitting drums, with the vocals front and center in the mix. Stuck On Planet Earth call the new track ‘an homage to some of our biggest musical inspirations,’ delivering ‘a bass line that has Dr. Dre’s The Chronic vibe and bright guitar style chanks channelling The Police’s Andy Summers’.
Recommended as well:
Stuck On Planet Earth – Rising
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.
Liza Anne – Bummer Days
After earlier tracks like Paranoia, Panic Attack and Bad Vacation, new single Bummer Days adds to the party vibe 😉. Don’t be mistaken however. Okay, on her upcoming album Bad Vacation (out on 24 July) Nashville pop-rocker Liza Anne reflects on mental health, destructive habits, and toxic relationships, but all in all it’s an empowering affair.
“I was writing what I needed to hear”, Liza explains. “I was writing what I needed to feel. Quite literally I was writing a stronger, more empowered version of myself into existence.” This makes her fourth long-player a collection of liberating, thoughtful and confident songs. Art rock anthems, new wave jams, and power pop earworms, set to provide her with her well-deserved breakthrough.
New single Bummer Days is a catchy self-critique of wallowing in sadness. “I don’t know what I want but I know that I feel bad / And then when I feel good I think I make myself sad”, Liza Anne sings. “I wanna feel like I can get out of my own way.”
Recommended as well:
Bad Vacation
Panic Attack
Paranoia
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.
On Video – Bête Noire
This one is for all of you who think ‘they don’t make decent guitar music any more’. East London foursome On Video are currently building a reputation for their fast-paced punky garage rock. After listening to their new single Bête Noire, your appetite for hooks and guitar riffs will be fully satisfied.
Frontman Hassan Anderson says about the track: “Bête Noire is a song inspired by our bassist George Williams. He was very misbehaved in his early days at school and was told by a teacher: “You, boy, have a bête noire inside of you.” Since then, George has made minimal improvements. This song aims to document that.”
More generally, the track is about the experience of being diagnosed with ADHD as an adult and the stigmas that come with that.
Bête Noire (French for ‘black beast’) comes ahead of On Video’s new EP Stuntman.
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.
Boston Manor – Plasticine Dreams
Somehow, I missed this song, but I wouldn’t want you to miss it. So here we go, after all. First of all, a little introduction… Contrary to their band name, Boston Manor are from Blackpool, UK. However, the rocking five-piece have many fans in the country of Uncle Sam.
A month and a half ago, Plasticine Dreams was the fifth track Boston Manor released ahead of their album Glue. This third album finds the band questioning the state of the world around them. They hope the album will be a call to arms for everybody who listens to it.
Plasticine Dreams for instance, is about what frontman Henry Cox calls ‘the throwaway culture of media’. He says art is treated as content nowadays. “One minute something is plastered everywhere you look and the next it’s faded into obscurity. I also feel like because it’s so easy to go viral now it also encourages people to make ‘content’ rather than art. We’re getting so much information constantly thrown at us that nothing is really absorbed or appreciated, you just click next when it’s finished.”
With its huge singalong chorus, Plasticine Dreams is destined to become a live favourite.
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 21)
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:
- Bloxx – Lie Out Loud (Wildcard this week)
- Shade – Morningmaker (Wildcard last week)
- Boniface – It’s A Joke
- Demi Lovato (feat. Travis Barker) – I Love Me [Emo Version]
- Kailee Morgue – This Is Why I’m Hot
- The Academic – Anything Could Happen
- Videoclub – Enfance 80
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: Alma, Nek, Sofie Tukker & Gorgon City, 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.
X Ambassadors with K.Flay & grandson – Zen
In times of Corona, some artists decide to postpone their work. Others get increasingly productive. And in more and more cases, the latter leads to interesting collaborations, with everyone working from their own homes. This is a fine example.
Zen was written virtually. K.Flay and grandson recorded a verse each, and X Ambassadors worked on the final production. The lyrics are about all the thoughts and anxiety someone can face during isolation.
The track comes with a music video directed by K.Flay. Instead of simply the song’s lyrics, it includes explanations on why each artist needs to ‘zen’.
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.
Moby Rich & Bishop Briggs – Friends*
Maxwell Joseph and Connor Pledger are Los Angeles-based alt-pop duo Moby Rich. On their new single, they collaborate with Bishop Briggs. She featured here multiple times before. Their very first meeting resulted in them writing Friends* together.
It’s a dynamic duet, perfect for anybody yearning to make an escape from the friendzone. Their voices go back and forth between bass-heavy production, distorted guitars and emotionally charged screams. It culminates on an infectious chorus, “I hate that I want to be more than friends. Sometimes, losing friends is alright.”
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.
Phantom Planet – Only One
LA alt-rock band Phantom Planet is best known for its track California. It became a huge hit in 2001 after becoming the theme song for the TV series ‘The O.C.’. Five years later, frontman Alex Greenwald was the featured singer on Mark Ronson’s cover of Just by Radiohead. In 2008, Phantom Planet announced they were going on an indefinite hiatus.
Good news: the hiatus is over. Later this summer, the band will return with their first album in over a decade: Devastator. Four tracks off the album have thus far been released. Only One is their latest single. According to Greenwald, the song is meant to help momentarily ease folks’ pandemic anxieties. “This song is about pondering infinity and wondering how many people here are in the same boat”, he explained in a statement. “Loneliness can kill you,” he added, “so I wanted to create a song where listeners could sing along together to move past such a feeling.”
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.
