Happy New Year from ‘all of us’ (that’s me) at Carte Blanche Music! Like the past year, 2019 will undoubtedly be full of musical surprises. Especially when you’re open to let some new sounds into your life. And if you don’t have the time to find them yourself, please let me help! Simply follow the Carte Blanche Music playlist on Spotify for daily updates of great new music, or bookmark this blog.

Carte Blanche Music doesn’t intend to list all new releases. On the contrary: I make a strict selection and only give you the best new music, twice a day. Since last year, I restrict the number of recommendations to two per day: one around 9AM, and the other around 7PM (CET). This limitation provided for a 35% increase of the number of views per post in 2018.

This brings us to the question: which of my recommendations have been viewed the most throughout the year? In other words: what are your favourites of 2018? The answer is: a totally different set of songs than my year-end list, the Carte Blanche Music Top 2018 😉 and that’s totally fine!

Just a few statistics to kick things off:

• Your Favourites (2018) contain nine songs that were in Your Favourites (2017) already, and apparently stuck with you
• The full Top 3 of your list contains Dutch artists (in total, there are 21 tracks by acts from the Netherlands. Dutch fans are the best)
• 36% of the visitors are Dutch (like myself… Hi mom!)
• 19% of the visitors are Americans, 16% are from the UK; a total of 87 nationalities have come by in 2018 (dank je wel, thanks, merci, obrigado, danke schön, etc.!)
• 26% of all traffic comes from direct searches for specific titles, so Carte Blanche Music also seems to have an archive function
• Other important referrers are Facebook (22%), and Twitter (13%)
• Impressive: the relatively high position of Mokono’s debut single Signs, the final Carte Blanche Music Wildcard of 2018

Okay, I can hear you thinking: ‘Don’t bore us, get to the chorus’, so here they are… Just two more things: all of these great songs (plus 1.000 more) are in my Carte Blanche Music 2018 playlist, and the links below direct you to my original recommendations for more information. Now, enjoy the music!

1. Nona – It’s Alright
2. Gruppo Sportivo – (This Is A) Normal Song
3. Sir Notch – Gimme That Sunshine
4. DRMS & L’Isle – La Vague
5. Shanguy – La Louze ^(WC)
6. AKA George – Manic Machine
7. Mamas Gun – I Need A Win
8. James – Better Than That
9. Cute Mess – Untied ^(WC)
10. Barns Courtney – “99” / Good Thing
11. Danko – Hit Me Up
12. Inge van Calkar – Imaginary
13. Shed Seven – Won’t Get Home Tonight
14. Angèle – La Loi De Murphy
15. Freak Power – Hear My Call
16. The Revivalists – All My Friends
17. Ed Struijlaart – Make It On Your Own
18. Nona – Last To Know
19. The Dark Light – It’s Alright
20. The Nectars – We Will Run
21. eMMa – Fått Deg På Hjernen
22. Stalking Like Candy – Can You See The Light
23. Sophie & The Giants – Bulldog
24. Gecko Turner – Cortando Bajito
25. Mokono – Signs
26. Waylon – That’s How She Goes
27. Your.Regular.Boy. – Crazyland
28. The Knocks (feat. Sofi Tukker) – Brazilian Soul
29. Jonas Brøg feat. Laura Mathilde – I Think Of You I Cry ^(WC)
30. The Nectars – Heaven ^(WC)
31. Lume – Tip Of Your Thumb
32. The Chordaes – Something New (Remix)
33. Belle & The Beats – Deeper
34. Jimi Charles Moody – Happy Song ^(*)
35. TenTemPiés – Only You
36. Buika – Deadbeat
37. Arthur Adam – O
38. Sophie & The Giants – Waste My Air
39. Parov Stelar feat. Muddy Waters – Soul Fever Blues
40. Cookin’ On 3 Burners feat. Kaiit – Warning ^(WC)
41. Eckhardt & The House – If She Cannot Talk
42. Cesár Sampson – Nobody But You
43. Ana & The Changes feat. Dan Byron – Take My Hand
44. Saveus – Time Can Heal A Man ^(WC)
45. Mamazzoop – Summer Is Shining
46. Ronald Maas – Lines In The Darkness
47. Julian Velard – Sweatpants On The Living Room Floor
48. Priest – Lost Lions
49. Joan – Stop And Stare
50. Sun Gods – Subtle Science
51. Paljaz – Uniek
52. Harts – Shake Ya Pants ^(WC)
53. JZMN JYN – Going Under ^(WC)
54. Audio Adam – Emma Watson
55. Gecko Turner – Un Limón En La Cabeza
56. Nicole Atkins – Brokedown Luck
57. Mylène Farmer – Rolling Stone
58. Yorick van Norden – More Than Words
59. Corine – Il Fait Chaud
60. Fatboy Slim – The Rockafeller Skank (Sam La More Remix Edit)
61. Feu! Chatterton – Zoé
62. Hoshi – Je Vous Trouve Un Charme Fou
63. The Greyhound Factory – New Year’s Eve
64. High Contrast – God Only Knows
65. Buffalo Tom – All Be Gone
66. Airways – Reckless Tongue
67. Ed Struijlaart (feat. The Hornaments) – Guitar
68. Luz Casal – Que Corra El Aire
69. Lead Pony – Soul Sucker
70. Radkey – Basement
71. Dermot Kennedy – Moments Passed
72. Satellite Stories – The Fame
73. Stereo Honey – Through The Dark
74. Jerry Williams – Left And Right
75. The Dead-On / The New Madness – Lovesick
76. a-ha feat. Ingrid Helene Håvik – The Sun Always Shines On TV (MTV Unplugged)
77. Bernhoft & The Fashion Bruises – Humanoid ^(WC)
78. Tiny Fighter – New Century ^(WC)
79. Charmless I – Fire Up (Here We Go)
80. Your.Regular.Boy. – Get Down Make Love
81. Dreadzone – Area Code ^(*)
82. Creeping Jean – Bandit
83. Peggy Gou – It Makes You Forget (Itgehane)
84. Sam Fender – Dead Boys
85. Aviator Stash – Shot Song
86. Club Drive – Satisfied
87. Julian Velard – Don’t Ask Me About Hamilton (Anymore) ^(WC)
88. TANA – Leave Away ^(WC)
89. Stillmode – Wild One
90. Eckhardt & The House – Put Me In A Cape
91. You Me At Six – Back Again
92. Haerts – No Love For The Wild
93. Maicø – Hey Hey
94. Janelle Monáe – Make Me Feel
95. Piroshka – Everlastingly Yours
96. The New Schematics – Who Do You Think You Are?
97. Kat Eaton – Robbing You Blind
98. Knife Club – When My Eyes Are Heavy
99. Young Gun Silver Fox – Take It Or Leave It
100. 1010 Benja SL – Ultimaby

^(WC)   ex Carte Blanche Music Wildcard
^(*)       album track

Werner Schlosser

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.