Browsing Tag soul
Werner’s Weekly (week 13)
This is Werner’s Weekly, your compass to new music that matters, containing the two most recent Carte Blanche Music Wildcards, and the best of the other new releases in alphabetical order:
- Estella Dawn – Buzzcut
(Wildcard this week)
- Haley Ganis – Just Pretty
(Wildcard last week)
- Darinka – How’s The View?
- Hedda Mae – Rhythm To Myself
- Maddy Jane – It’s A Lot
- Mamas Gun – Good Love
- Stumble Steady – Transducer
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: Bloc Party, Placebo, The Vaccines, and more.

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.
Mamas Gun – Good Love
Mamas Gun are preparing for the release of their sixth studio album Cure The Jones, due out on 1 April. It was recorded direct to tape with analogue gear at front man Andy Platts’ home studio in just three days. A press release promises the 11-track record will be their most complete and powerful work to date. ‘A joyous and sophisticated exposition of song-craft, that explores themes of love, loss, life through the most pressing social and political issues of the day’.
Good Love, arguably one of the best tracks on the album, is Mamas Guns’ new single. Blending warm bass and organ grooves with funky guitars and caramel-smooth vocals, this is classic R&B for modern times.
Platts says about the track: “This is a love song, no doubt about it. But it was really prompted by life in the pandemic which forces you to reflect on what you have. The thought of getting through this pandemic alone like so many others out there – on top of everything else like work struggles and raising children – was overwhelming. So it is about counting your blessings, the constant and dependable love of your significant other.”
If Mamas Gun hadn’t published this ‘disclaimer’ with the video themselves, I would’ve done it for them: “Rated ‘G’ for ‘Groovy’”.
Recommended as well:
Looking For Moses
Golden Days
I Need A Win
Follow Mamas Gun on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music 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.
Shirley Davis & The Silverbacks – Take Out The Trash
Shirley Davis has been around the world quite a bit. Born in London to Jamaican parents, she moved to Australia when she married at 16. She stayed downunder for many years and built a successful career in the funk/soul/R&B scene. In 2016, shortly after returning to Europe, Sharon Jones invited Davis on stage at one of her shows in Madrid. A label representative who attended the concert immediately invited her to record an album with Spanish band The Silverbacks.
This resulted in the successful record Black Rose, which was followed in 2018 by sophomore long-player Wishes And Wants. Their colourful blend of exotic soul and funk, both light and heavy, firmly put the band on the international map. On 23 March, third album Keep On Keepin’ On will come out. It’s named after the last advice Sharon Jones texted to Davis.
Take Out The Trash is her new single. A fast and frantic funky soul track that sounds old-school and organic. Almost 50 years old, Davis gives it her all. Props to The Silverbacks as well, who are strutting their stuff as if they were The Dap-Kings themselves.
Follow Shirley Davis on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
Follow The Silverbacks on Facebook | Instagram | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music 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.
Tippy Balady – Soul Eater
Hailing from Dallas, Tippy Balady is currently studying popular music at the University of South Carolina. She may be a solo artist, but her music is the result of a rather permanent collaboration with producer Jason Burt. He’s been helping her shape her musical vision since 2018. Together, they created the entirety of Tippy’s discography and plan on continuing to work together in the future.
Following the release of ten of Tippy’s tracks, she just put out her first EP The Dallas Sessions. It contains her two 2021 singles German Boy and Family Dinners, and two brand-new songs. Soul Eater is my favourite of that pair. It’s a friendly-sounding song in that ‘Tippycal’ style: neo-soul with a bedroom pop vibe. Her strumming on the ukulele adds a folky element though, while the instrument also adds a latin kind of flavour.
Follow Tippy Balady on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music 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.
Werner’s Weekly (week 4)
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:
- Nile Marr – Only Time Can Break Your Heart
(Wildcard this week)
- Iris Gold – Piece Of Mine
(Wildcard last week)
- Bash! – In My Head
- Emma Dilemma – Vulnerability
- Mamas Gun – Looking For Moses
- Niko Rubio – Hold Me Down
- Stacey Jackson – Flipside
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: Aurora, Billy Talent, Purple Disco Machine + Sophie & The Giants, and more.

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.
Elisa – Show’s Rollin’
2022 marks the 25th anniversary of Elisa Toffoli’s debut album Pipes And Flowers. And I’m old enough to be able to say I played its singles Sleeping In Your Hand and Labyrinth a lot on the radio at the time. A lot has happened since then. For both of us… 😉
21 years after Elisa won the prestigious Sanremo Festival, the artist is about to put out her double album Ritorno Al Futuro/Back To The Future. That’s right, it’ll contain one disc in Italian and the other in English. Ahead of its 18 February release, the opening songs of both discs – A Tempo Perso and Show’s Rollin’ – have been served up as singles.
The latter is my favourite of the two. Show’s Rollin’ has a soulful vibe and gospel-like choirs. Elisa calls the song ‘the curtain that opens on Back To The Future’. She continues: “I’d like to go back to the future, but I’d like to go back in order to change something. To save what’s precious and to let go of the redundant stuff.”
Recommended as well:
Will We Be Strangers
Follow Elisa on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music 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.
Werner’s Weekly (week 3)
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:
- Iris Gold – Piece Of Mine
(Wildcard this week)
- Superbird – Elevation Airways
(Wildcard last week)
- Goodbye June – Stand And Deliver
- Karin Simonian – Beat On My Heart
- Spence Paull – When I’m Lonely
- The Vices – Strange Again
- Who Parked The Car – Rock Climbing
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: Eddie Vedder, Placebo, Richard Ashcroft, White Lies, The Wombats and more.

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.
Mamas Gun – Looking For Moses
It’s hard to believe four years went by since Mamas Gun dropped their latest album Golden Days. The success of front man Andy Platts’ side project Young Gun Silver Fox is to blame for this long absence. Although that band isn’t sitting still either, now is the time for Mamas Gun to claim back the spotlights. Their first single in two years, Looking For Moses, seems perfectly fit for purpose. It’s the first track off the band’s next album Cure The Jones, which will be out on 1 April 2022.
If you think Looking For Moses echoes the sound of Bill Withers, you’re right. The song was written on the day he passed away, and is meant to be an ode to the great soul man. Although other classic soul artists like Marvin Gaye and Labi Siffre also had their share in inspiring the song, it ultimately sounds like a trademark Mamas Gun tune. It’s lush, sophisticated, groovy and beautifully crafted. Contemporary soul with an old heart, taped on analogue gear to best preserve the warmth and energy of the recording session. Another job well-done!
Recommended as well:
Golden Days
I Need A Win
Follow Mamas Gun on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music 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.
Nona – Liar
Nona is an up and coming pop/soul singer from a small town in the Netherlands. She has yet to break out of her home country, but that’s just a matter of time. My recommendation for her 2018 debut single It’s Alright remains one of the best-read Carte Blanche Music posts.
Now, four years later, some of her singles have done great on the radio, attracting millions of Spotify plays in the slipstream. Since the release of her eponymous first album, she put out multiple new songs. So hopefully, a second long-player is on its way. ‘til then, here’s her new single.
Liar is still a soulful tune, but with a more modern sound. This is largely thanks to a breakbeat kind of drum part. The trumpets add extra excitement to the song. Apart from its sound, its length is very modern as well: Liar clocks in at 2’16, leaving us begging for more…
Recommended as well:
Last To Know
It’s Alright
Follow Nona on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music 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.
Wildcard (week 2): Iris Gold – Piece Of Mine
With Indian and Jamaican roots, Mercedes Seecoomar was born in London and raised in Copenhagen. During her nomadic youth, she was surrounded by free thinkers growing up in hippy communes and squats that celebrated ‘60s and ‘70s counterculture. All of these elements made her the unique, charismatic artist she is today.
Using the stage name Iris Gold, she calls her music ’hippie hop’. This is a colourful and infectious mix of retro hip hop, soul and power pop with a generous sprinkle of flower power. Having shared the stage with some of the biggest acts in the world (like Robbie Williams, Blur and Taylor Swift), she developed into a great live artist herself.
Gold is currently operating under the wings of Eurythmics’ David A. Stewart, who co-wrote and produced her most recent tracks. The same goes for her new single Piece Of Mine. It’s a retro-flavoured funk tune with huge horns, squelchy synths and a catchy chorus. A song with attitude in every possible way. Sounding like Uptown Funk for 2022, this one is for fans of Lizzo, Janelle Monáe, Mark Ronson, Ameriie and Sheila E.
This week, Piece Of Mine by Iris Gold is the Carte Blanche Music Wildcard. That means it’ll proudly feature at the top of the blog for seven full days.
Follow Iris Gold on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
In the Wildcards 2022 playlist you’ll find all of this year’s Carte Blanche Music Wildcards so far.

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.