Kylie’s X is for Xtatic, seXy or eXcellent...you choose!

Now comes the time for me to post my review of Kylie's latest CD "X"

1/ 2 Hearts 8.5/10
Everyone knows now this one, first single, electro piece of glam rock she got from band Kish Mauve... not the way we wanted her to come back, but a grower and a killer chorus!
2/ Like a drug 8/10
Another grower, I'm afraid. When i bought my CD, there was a sticker saying "including the singles 2 Hearts, Like a drug, In my arms..." so when I first listened to it, I thought SH****T! this one can't be a single! It sounded too messy without a real key phrase in the chorus except for the repeated "like a drug, like a drug" in the end... After several listens, I admit I now like the song. I still hope though it ain't ever be a single 'cos there's more single potential packed in there to waste a place for this one!
3/ In my arms 9/10
Leaked a couple of months ago, this track looks like it is worth its place here and should become second single off X. It's a nice electro pop number with a good chorus. Still ar away from her pure pop roots but poppy enough to appeal to everyone.
4/ Speakerphone 4/10
Another piece of electro noizy track with annoying lyrics "singing" and a vocoder effect that captures Kylie's voice all over the chorus... There have been leaked tracks that should have took this place for sure. Both Mylo tracks were FAR FAR superior. This one ain't worth a B-Side!!!
5/ Sensitized 10/10
Using this over-used (for french ears only thanx to MC Solaar's previous hit Gangster moderne) sample from Gainsbourg's Melody Nelson was a good idea as this breathy & rythmic light pop song captures your brain and makes itself a place in there for the rest of the day. Another studio leak that stands its place here, close to "Tightrope" in Kylie's mid-tempo perfection department and single potential ! Thank you pop genius Cathy Dennis & pop guru Guy Chambers .
6/ Heart beat rock 8/10
Back to rhythm, bleeps, noizes & extra phatt beat for an electro repetitive but extremely addictive track : the more you want to dislike it, the more you whistle it...
7/ The one 10/10
A disco synthetic rhythm displaid all over the song for a pure anthemic dance pop number I had high expectations for (due to favourite remixers Freemasons co-production credits) and ... it didn't deceive me ! When the chorus comes and Kylie sings "I'm the one, love me, love me, love me", I can't help but jumping on my too feet to sing along and even answer her that YES, she's the only one, queen of pop in our hearts and we LOVE HER, LOVE HER, LOVE HER !!! That should be a highlight in the Live X Tour next year with the crowd singing along her... I dream... I anticipate ! Another single potential too.
8/ No more rain 10/10
The intro puts the marks right there. We're back in the pop territories, electro clashy sounds are over and we can savor the melody, the voices & lyrics, all melting together like a torrent of white chocolate, warm and sweet, while the song is flowing into our ears. A moment of pure bliss, though I don't see it becoming a single.
9/ All I see 9.5/10
Another nice album track, more rhythmic than before, even quite funky with a good chorus where lead idea "All I see is you" stays in our minds long after it has ended.
10/ Stars 9.5/10
It could be "light years" part II. A disco beat, synthé effects behind, a killer chorus but with a rockier sound. Definitely another single potential !
11/ Wow 100/10 (YES! I meant this eXtra note...)
This is the stand-out track for me here ! A must-be second or third single if Parlophone or Kylie aren't dumb at all. A pure pop number like she needs it to ride high in the charts again with a deserved number one position worldwide... The intro is pure perfection, like only Stock Aitken & Waterman used to do, the sounds here get her back in the Fever era with filtered disco house and the chorus makes me go ..Wow wow wow woW ! I know it was easy but it's the truth. I think I will never get enough of this song EVER ! Put at this position on the CD, it is as if they have wanted to hide a secret jewel when everybody would have thought only fillers were still to come...
12/ Nu-di-ty 2.5/10
Did we talked about fillers ? Here comes one, back to electro sounds with a R&B rhythm that Beyoncé could have sung. That means for me that it's a piece of music non-sense that could only bettered by a Freemasons remix.
13/ Cosmic 7.5/10
Time to cool down now it's the last song from the CD. A nice ballad with nice vocals, like for some Disney soundtrack or from some Broadway musical. A timeless classic to end somehow a better album than Body Language was, although Light years and Fever perfections are still far away...

Open-disc bonus : Rippin' up the disco 8/10
It has been hard to manage to get my bonus track on my computer as I hadn't the right Java applet to get it but after numerous tries & updates, I got it. It is a good electro disco track that wouldn't sound out of place in Scissor Sisters' catalogue. As It's from the net, I don't know who wrote/produced this one but it's a nice try though I think Kylie's voice sounds too cold while singing "rippin' up the disco". Worth grabbin' anyway !

i-Tunes bonus : Magnetic electric 9.5/10
I think I'll never understand how the music industry tries to make us all still buy physical CDs when bonus tracks are only available from online stores... !? Anyway, at least, this one wasn't available in a bundle only cash-in offer and is pleasant enough it makes me regret it wasn't included on the CD in the 4 or 12 positions...

Bonus DVD Edition bonus : White diamond (ballad version) 8/10
Every Kylie fan knows this song for this Scissor Sisters exclusive appeared first on her Showgirl Homecoming Tour. The problem is that it's a nearly symphonic ballad version of the wonderful song we all wanted to hear in studio quality that has landed on the special edition along photos gallery & interview... A beautiful song that will be cherished by those (like me!) who liked her live cabaret versions of Better the devil you know or I should be so lucky but still not the real thing .

2 Hearts' Bonus tracks Don't know what it is (6.5/10) and king and queen (8.5/10) are nice tracks too but when the first lets itself playing without further notice, the second, when it comes to end, makes me push the PLAY button : Syncopated & still electro, it is spicy like a ginger candy could be ...and only lasts 2:38.

Overall an album that will for sure stay a year or more in my mp3 player but that makes me wonder which further singles are gonna be released ! It has some variety enough in there to let EMI choose the best as well as the crapiest to try and hit the charts so I'm scared...

Lorie goes Kylie

LORIE GOES KYLIE!
and sure it sounds better than before...

Some may have left Lorie like me while she released some music for teenies on her previous records.
But now things have changed.
She is a woman, not a girl.
No more french Britney, call in french Kylie!
No sex, just sexy
No trash, just classy
No R&Bish, just ElectroPop
and she comes back with such a GREAT single "Je vais vite", written & produced like most of her album by Mr. Frédéric Chateau (remember 80's hits "le malheur des uns et le bonheur des autres", "stop Lucie", "Les liaisons dangereuses", "Ferme les yeux", etc.), aka Asdorve (of Pascal Obispo's music team), aka half of Mademoiselle (remember electro "do you love me?"), aka the leader of 90's Foxalone poprock band, aka writer of summer hit "Hey arriba!" by Raydel... the list is endless! Frédéric Chateau is a major not-so-well face in France's music landslide.

Her single has been remixed by frenchie Benoît Courti, germans Spencer & Hill and english lads of Thriller Jill (Mr. Trouser Enthusiasts aka Ian Masterson & Terry Ronald with Paul Harris, who have worked with both Minogue sisters) and all mixes are great. The video looks like Kylie's "can't get you out of my head", very futuristic and technoïd, with lots of tektonic hip dance.



The album is mainly produced (and written/composed) by Fred Chateau, but not only and there's more international talent in there :
Thriller Jill boys are there on two tracks, "Le bonheur à tout prix!" (written with Richard X & Hannah Robinson) and "Pas un ange" with french lyrics by Thierry Sforza. Their collaboration must have been pleasant as Lorie is featured on their new project "2A.M." with a nice electro dance single "Lonely" where she laid the vocals and danced in the vid) to appear soon for the international market I hope... A snippet of it is to be seen on Ian masterson's myspace page here : http://www.myspace.com/ianmasterson.
Swedish team is on board too with Hugo Lira on "L'accalmie". Star Academy vocal coach Jasmine Roy was there for Lorie's voice and Lorie even co-wrote some stuff.
Most interesting lyrics goes to "1 Garçon" where she tells her boyfriend she has noticed he has fallen in love with a boy and that it won't be the end of the world for her if he tells her the truth, some kind of "menage à trois" like Alcazar could have been singing in french...

10 songs out of 12 are upbeat and electro except for the first track, "2LOR en moi" (which could mean there's gold in her as well as two Lorie in herself) that is R&B like a shade of her past before turning the page to the new music on there.
It gets better with "Je vais vite" and "Play" but then the tempo slows down with a candy sweet ballad "On ne grandit vraiment jamais" that is out of place there right in the middle"... The other slower song "Loin des yeux" is greater and closes the tracklisting, which is perfect after 45' of tektonic dancing .
Other great tracks & potential singles are "1 Garçon" and "Avance encore" for me.

The booklet is classy with all lyrics and credits, thank you's and nice photos on a glossy paper and I can't help but ordering everyone to go to her page, take a listen and then buy it for a taste of good popdance made in France!

Spencer’s album : a dedication to SAW

Maybe Spencer and the Charlene & Scott muppets mean something for someone out there in UK or maybe Oz?

For me, it meant nothing except I remembered having seen Spencer's name associated to a cover of Jason Donovan so when I saw his album on eBay, I couldn't help but click on "buy it" as the tracklisting made me dream :
Jason Donovan's She's in love with you & When I get you alone along Adam Rickitt's Make me believe in love, Barry Stone's Never felt as good & Erasure's Oh l'amour... !


I received my CD today and as I'm listening to it, I can't help but think it's a very good SAW fans' selfmade dance pop collection (except for the slowed down part at the end) with good original songs too.

Production helps come from some well-known names from my Stock Aitken & Waterman's Hit Factory forum or MySpace friends (Steen Ulrich, SAW Surfers & Yisraelee) along main actors (Chris Daniels, Miles Young, Surebackings.com & SoOutThere) so I thank them all for their dedication by writing some lines and promote their poptastic work...

As it's available for a nice price at www.thespencershow.co.uk I think you should all rush there and buy it like I did :)

My copy came with a promo page a la "Smash Hits" that made me have a good laugh too. Check the front page at www.myspace.com/SpencerOfficial

Young Divas : episode 2... new member, new attitude

26/11/2007 will see the release in Australia of the Young Divas' 2nd album, New Attitude.

Just a couple of weeks after Ricki-Lee's solo album after her departure from the vocally talented quatuor, the girls, who have recruited a new member as Jessica Mauboy, another Pop Idol reject, are releasing a new collection of good old disco anthems and the albums looks BRILLIANT! Judge by yourself :

1. Got To Be Real, the Cheryl Lynn anthem
2. If I Can't Have You, the Bee gees disco gemm for Yvonne Elliman
3. Turn Me Loose, a song by Loverboy (who?)
4. I Can't Wait, a Stevie Nicks original
5. Jump (For My Love), a hit from the Pointer Sisters
6. Love Will Lead You Back, a stunning Diane Warren penned ballad that belonged to Taylor Dayne
7. Chain Reaction, the Diana Ross cult anthem
8. New Attitude, the disco hit from the 80's from Patti Labelle
9. I'm So Excited, another one from the Pointer Sisters that everybody know by heart
10. Tell It To My Heart, the first hit and global disco anthem of Taylor Dayne (again)
11. (Bonus Track) Dear Santa (Bring Me A Man This Christmas), ... a seasonal track, for the Christmas market / radio airplay, a Weather girls original, that looks like it could be Camp too and means the girls wish us all a happy christmas gay, sorry day

Sure this one will seem too short (only 11 tracks!) but the tracklisting makes me want to be very soon at the start of December when Mr. Postman will have brought me my imported CD from Oz'... It will be Christmas day!

BONUS : There is an iTunes bonus track 12 that is, like tell it to my heart, another song Kelly Llorenna previously covered, as it is Whitney Houston's I wanna dance with somebody. And it's ...fabulous!

Welcome to Dannii Minogue’s Club Disco

November 2007 is Minogue Sisters' month !

Before Kylie releases her critics acclaimed new single 2 Hearts & album X,

Before Dannii releases her stunning new single with Jason Nevins Touch me like that,

Danni's old record companies are releasing 4 (FOUR ! QUATRE ! VIER ! QUATTRO !) albums ! .

- a re-release of her 1997 Girl album on a 2CD set including all unreleased tracks & remixes,

CD1
01. All I Wanna Do
02. Heaven Can Wait
03. So In Love With Yourself
04. Am I Dreaming?
05. Everybody Changes Underwater
06. Everything I Wanted
07. It It Moves – Dub It
08. Disremembrance
09. It's Amazing
10. Movin' Up (Extended Mix) *
11. Keep Up With The Good Times *
12. Someone New (Radio Edit) *
13. Coconut
14. All I Wanna Do (Trouser Enthusiasts Radio Edit) *
15. Everything I Wanted (Xenomania Radio Edit)
16. Disremembrance (Trouser Enthusiasts Radio Edit) *
CD2
01. All I Wanna Do (12" Extended Mix)
02. Everything I Wanted (Xenomania 12" Club Mix)
03. Heaven Can Wait (Trouser Enthusiasts Cloud Nine Mix)
04. Disremembrance (Full Orchestral 12" Mix) *
05. All I Wanna Do (Qattara's Club Mix)
06. Everything I Wanted (Jupiter 6 Soul Surround Mix)
07. Disremembrance (Twyce As Nyce 1:40AM Club Mix) *
08. Movin' Up (Getting Harder Mix) *
09. Keep Up With The Good Times (Xenomania 12" Mix) *
10. All I Wanna Do (Tiny Tim & The Mekon Dream Dub) *

- a re-release of her 2003 Neon Nights album on a 2CD set including all unreleased tracks & remixes just like the previous one,
CD1
01. Put The Needle On It
02. Creep
03. I Begin To Wonder
04. Hey! (So What)
05. For The Record
06. Mighty Fine
07. On The Loop
08. Push
09. Mystified
10. Don't Wanna Lose This Feeling
11. Vibe On
12. A Piece Of Time
13. Who Do You Love Now? (Radio Edit)
14. Come And Get It (Radio Version) *
15. Nervous
16. Just Can't Give You Up *
17. Hide And Seek
18. Don't Wanna Lose This Groove (Radio Edit)
19. Est-Ce Que Tu M'Aimes Encore?
20. Goodbye Song
21. It Won't Work Out (Acoustic Version) *
CD2
01. Don't Wanna Lose This Groove (Extended Version)
02. Begin To Spin Me Round (Extended Version)
03. Who Do You Love Now? (Riva's Bora Bora Club Mix)
04. Put The Needle On It (Jason Nevins Freak Club Creation Mix)
05. Hide And Seek (Thriller Jill Original Extended Mix) *
06. Come And Get It (Jerome Isma-Ae Remix) *
07. Put The Needle On It (Tiga's Cookies Dub)
08. Creep (Jon Dixon Club Mix) *
09. I Begin To Wonder (Almighty Transensual Club Mix) *
10. Put The Needle On It (Cicada Vocal Mix)
11. Come And Get It (Sharam Jey Remix) *
12. Don't Wanna Lose This Feeling (Jupiter Ace Speared Thru The Heart Mix) *

- a budget compilation Unleashed of unreleased songs & mixes,

01. All I Wanna Do (Innocent Girl Mix) *
02. Blame It On The Music *
03. Spend Your Love On Me *
04. Don't Wanna Lose This Feeling (Jewels & Stone Radio Edit) *
05. Going Going Gone *
06. Everything I Wanted (Metro 7'' Mix)
07. Undeniable *
08. No Romeo *
09. Hide And Seek (Original Thriller Jill Version) *
10. Hurt In Love *
11. Who Do You Love Now? (Riva's Bora Bora Edit)
12. Put The Needle On It (Cicada Vocal Edit)
13. Come And Get It (Alternative Radio Cut) *
14. Begin To Spin Me Round (Radio Edit)
15. Love Me Like This *
16. Bad Weather *
17. Invitation *
18. It Won't Work Out (Ross Cullum Single Mix) *
19. (iTunes Bonus) Viva L'Amour *

- an album intended for release in 2006 Club Disco but shelved for her The Hits & beyond compilation by AATW Records and now available for download only, though most of it was made available on her best of or as singles' Bonus tracks

01. Feel Like I Do
02. Perfection (Extended Version)
03. You Won't Forget About Me
04. Love Fight
05. I'm Sorry *
06. Gone
07. So Under Pressure
08. Good Times (Remix)
09. Sunrise
10. He's The Greatest Dancer (LMC Radio Edit)
11. I Can't Sleep At Night
12. I Will Come To You *
13. I've Been Waiting For You
14. Round The World *
15. Do You Believe Me Now? (with Roger Sanchez) *
16. Xanadu *
17. You Won't Forget About Me (Afterlife Lounge Mix)
18. I Can't Sleep At Night (Afterlife Lounge Mix)

* all unreleased songs/mixes

Needless to say I've already bought my Club Disco and Unleashed albums and I'll save the remastered & expanded double CDs for later this month...
There are too many good CDs releases these days for my money in my pocket... (Kylie, Dannii, Celine Dion, BWO, Ari Gold, Peter Wilson, Melissa Mars, September, Worlds Apart, Alan Connor, Sugababes, Freemasons, Booty Luv, Jenifer, Roisin Murphy, E-Type, Britney Spears, Westlife, Jennifer Lopez, Boyz II Men, ...and there's still more to come with Madonna, Young Divas, Delta Goodrem, Jackie 'O', Florent Pagny, Seal, Spice Girls, Shayne Ward, Paul Oscal, Craig David, Girls Aloud, Ian Levine's Disco 2008, Da Buzz, Cyril, Colton Ford... !)

Worlds Apart try a french comeback à la Take That

It's been a long time that I hadn't taken the time to post something and it was mainly due to my work taking all my energy at the time, and maybe there wasn't some strong release making me want to post about it ...till tonight .

It's midnight and I'm about to write something new about some good old guys that have just released a best of here and it gets me excited enough to post about them :

Worlds Apart are back!
There are only three of them remaining but we all know manufactured girls / boys bands see their members come and go with every single release.
Worlds Apart is no stranger to that fate but what amazes me is that they're coming back with a nice piece of a Best Of CD called Platinum, including their most greatest old hit singles (10 tracks) as well as some new songs (4) arranged with 3 interludes. The boys still look sexier as ever and they just sound as good!
But first, for those who weren't even born in the Boys bands era, let's sum up things a little :

Worlds Apart first came up in England in 1993 where five boys were lined up by Garry Wilson to be opposed in the UK medias & charts to pop phenomenon Take That.
Steve Hart, Dan Bowyer, Aaron Paul, Patric Osborne & Schelim Hannan did their best, sang in perfect harmonies, appeared shirtless on their CD covers & videos, and appealed to both little girls & gay guys, but they didn't succeed in gettin' that high in the britcharts...
Heaven must be missing an angel started at 29.
Everlasting love did better but only reached 20.
Could it be I'm falling in love was their finest moment by reaching 15. Noticeable is the fact that, like previous single, it was co-produced by Kim Wilde's brother Ricki.
After this, they went through their first line-up change when Patric left to go solo (but only released one single Love me on Media records, house of Cappella) and Cal Cooper was called in as new member, and then they could release and promote properly their new single & album Together.

It included the last two Stock & Waterman songs before the final PWL split, Same old promises & Experienced, as well as a cover of Earth Wind & Fire's September or a song oddly called Arnold Scharzenegger, all wrapped up with some good pop producers like Phil Kelsey (of DMC), Tim Lever & Mike Percy (of Dead Or Alive), Pete Schwier, Mark Taylor (of future METRO fame), ex PWL mixmaster Dave Ford or Ray Hedges.
Their fourth single Beggin' to be written, some nice ballad, gave them back the 29 position and then they were off. It must have been a bad choice of single after 3 pop-dance cover versions...

The group looked like it splitted up with Dan & Aaron being the next ones leaving and the truth is that their UK career ended then. But like a cat having more than one life, Worlds Apart weren't calling it a day and they re-surfaced in late 1995 in Germany with a new member, ex Brother Beyond singer Nathan Moore, along with remaining members Schelim, Steve & Cal.
Having recorded new material with some german dance producers, they were given a new life in a more Dance Group image with Baby come back. After some Christmas single for fans, When it's christmas time, they followed with Everybody and the album of the same name, soon releasing all these in France to greater success than ever.


Everybody got released and re-released, giving life to a good string of hit singles, Baby come back, Everybody, Je te donne, Everlasting love '96, Just say I said hello & You said, before a brand new album reached the same heights : Don't change, Quand je rêve de toi, Back to where we started, Je serai là, Rise like the sun all were issued from the Don't change album (in two editions due to Schelim's departure & replacement by cutie Tim Fornara).
In between Germany had its fair of exclusive singles, as their french ones were limited to France naturally, Queen's cover I was born to love you or Beatles' She loves you / Sie liebt dich.
Then there was some strange Haribo sponsored single Close your eyes before it all became quiet and less shouty in the Worlds Apart fans' clan... The boys bands mania had passed!


The boys didn't give up and after some break, they got back in 2000 with the Here and now album, sounding mature and pop-rock instead or pop & dancey. It flopped badly and only two singles were released, I will & Language of love.

Then it seemed Worlds Apart were gone for good, Tim leaving the other three, Nathan doing some managing job for UK Real TV flopstars Phixx, Steve doing some acting an Cal becoming a father. They reunited for an online only album The Brotherhood in 2005, just before Take That intended to come back by touring the UK and making the BIGGEST comeback of the century with their latest album Beautiful world.

Worlds Apart reformed for a little show in Leipzig and when fans from all over the country rushed in the snow to attend to the concert, their management decided to try and come back like Gary Barlow & co just did.

The boys, among whom Steve is the only former band's member, worked on new material and chose to cover some Romano Musumarra's hit of the 80's for Demis Roussos, On écrit sur les murs. Backed by two more english songs (Keep smiling, One million times) and some more french lines (Au-delà des larmes) written by Pascal Obispo pal Asdorve (aka ex popstar Frédéric Chateau), it is their comeback single and the taster of their best of, called Platinum, that got released (in France only first) on 29th of October.

I wish them the best, if the success is on the rendez-vous, there'll be a new album in 2008, and ...em, em, Cal, I've got a personal message for you : You've always been the cutest one and you still are .

Peter Wilson’s Invitation to Follow Him

Tonight when coming back from work I had a great surprise in my post, Pete Wilson's CD album I ordered on line a couple of weeks ago on www.klonerecords.com.

I already knew some of its songs from recent Klone compilations and I have been totally in love with Forum-pal produced I love you unashamed. I knew I wouldn't be deceived by the other tracks from the snippets I listened to on the site and from now on, after two listens, I AM NOT :)

First, it's a worth-buying-it CD as there are 18 tracks on it, 4 full length tracks and 14 radio edits ones. Most of it is pure 90's inspired dance/pop and it's a total good energy music injection you get while pumpin' the volume of your hi-fi UP!

I love you unashamed stand here right in the middle in its original radio edit, while the CD closes with a club remix of it for party people, and still no other songs has made itself a place in my heart as prefered Peter Wilson's song ever ...YET, but lots are in pole position for gettin' to it!

The CD opens with 4 wonderful tracks, the David Wilks penned In my dreams and the Fancy cover version, all in full length glory, of Follow me. Then comes a radio friendly sure-to-be-a-hit Boney M Daddy Cool sampled Doin' fine followed by Best years of my life, the latest of them being kind of PWL flavoured.

Then comes Seven sins and the tempos slows down a little, the temperature's rising and some moist sexiness invades the blasters as Peter croones some new wavesque electro pop that sounds different from the pure happiness that we left with the opening tracks and this 5th track starts a new 4 tracks chapter in his album. Your love is my light, Wait by the radio and High on it are following and there are more ambiant synth saves, hypnotic loops there though the rhythm keeps increasing back with High on it, that features some disco bells, before reaching my beloved pop anthem.

Don't cry tonight, Peter co-wrote (like lots of other songs here) with producers Steen 'Luv U Unashamed' Ulrich & Chris Richards, keeps up with pop style and I hear a track the Steps guys could have sung.

Then Chemical reaction takes me back to a cold wave inspired haunting mid-tempo with a chorus makin' me think of Samantha Fox's Touch me in some bits, with the same sexiness in musical arrangements as there was in Seven sins, surely some magic touch of same producer Chris Richards.

Track 12 is the album's ballad and... well, I must admit, it's not my cup of tea. Dare I say it's like the commercial pause in a good Hollywood film, time for a break in a good party album ? Backing vocal arrangements are very good here or at least, their beautiful harmony remains long after the song. The melody is nice, the vocals good but the tempo's not here and my feet needto beat the floor in rhythm so maybe it'll take me longer to get into this :).

Lucky me, the following song, Don't go away, is another highlight of the album and it kicks in with speedy rhythm, 80's inspired dance/pop with some wonderful retro vocal effect like I cherished in my best SAW/PSB 1988/89 productions. Once more, David Wilks is on writing/production duties so I should check out what other work he has done recently cos it's pure heaven !

Best love you never had brings us back in the 2000's with Peter singing with his sexier voice of the album. I'd surely believe he could be the best love I ever had if he whispered these lyrics in my ears... em em! Back to the song, good rhythm, filtered disco housed arrangements, another favourite of mine. Isn't this the tenth or so?

Track 15 starts and ...SAW are back!
Not those who recently tried to chart with The Sheilas' (I'm so) Happy happy (you're mine), no! The real ones, those who knew how to program synthes to create a pure hi-NRG wall of sound a la Dead Or Alive. Whisper to a scream clocks in at 5:11 but there's no boring at all ! Backing vocalist Sophie Clarke is featured on the lead in some little bridge in pure Sandra style (except it was a male vocal featured on her singles) and this one sure will finish with some REPEAT button overpushed!

Rob Technic then pushes Peter into nearly Benassi styles territory with Rocket to your heart, which sounds a little out of place in this whole 80's/90's tribute anthology of today's pop-dance anthems. A little too hardstyled for me too... and Pete's vocals are too vocoderized too. The second time around, I couldn't help pushin' the skip button because NOW COMES THE STOCK AITKEN & WATERMAN sounding special dedicace !!

PWL Hit Factory Forum's resident danish Stoney has taken over Peter's first single I wanna dance and has build a 2007 remix that sounds like it is 1990 all over again, and SAW would have produced some PWL remix for Mr. Wilson between aussie fellas Jason D & Miss Kylie :) A real treasure!
I just noticed that Steen's studios are named "Sanctuary Studios"... I can't see nothing but some link to PWL's promo/underground label of 1993 or so :)
Finally comes Willie2400's remix of I love you... you must know now... I've said it all about this song.

So I guess all is said and done except I got to think before going to sleep taking this CD from my hi-fi player to have it in my car to go to work tomorrow morning. I gotta listen to it one more time ...and again... and again, soon. Best addictive sh*t since, well, Kylie's Fever CD? Maybe... Only time will tell so check it out by yourselves!

www.myspace.com/peterwilsonfollowme
www.peterwilsonmusic.com

Kylie Minogue’s future comeback single

2007 is gonna see Kylie Minogue come back on the radio, TV screens & CD shops.
First, she's gonna release a brand new single called 2 Hearts on November, 12th. It is written/produced by electro team Kish Mauve and the cover looks incredible!
Then, she's gonna appear along Celine Dion in the new Star Academy french TV show and that will surely help her tenth album, tentatively called X, rush to the top of our charts by the end of November.

Back in studio after her years of battling her breast cancer, she's rumoured to have been working with (usual partner) Richard Stannard, "huge in demand after Beyoncé's hitsingles" remixers Freemasons, Cutfather & Joe, Bloodshy & Avant, Calvin Harris, Boy George, Pet Shop Boys (again), Greg Kurstin, Eg White, Guy Chambers, Mylo and (always) Cathy Dennis.
I bet Steve Anderson will still be on board too, as he has always been since her departure from PWL Studios in the 90's.

Tracks that could appear on X have leaked : Excuse my french, I am ready, Mood for love, Spell of desire (both of which are available for download from Mylo's MySpace page http://myspace.com/mylo), When the cat's away, Fall for you, Stars, Sensitized, Lose control, In my arms...

www.kylie.co.uk have just posted an "official" tracklisting and some of these looks like they will still be featured on the CD :

01/ 2 Hearts
(Kish Mauve) Produced by Kish Mauve
02/ Like A Drug
(Mich Hedin Hansen / Jonas Jeberg / Engelina Andrina Larsen / Adam Powers) Produced by Cutfather & Jonas Jeberg
03/ In My Arms
(Kylie Minogue / Adam Wiles / Richard Stannard / Paul Harris / Julian Peake) Produced by Richard 'Biff' Stannard
04/ Speakerphone
(Christian Karlsson / Pontus Winnberg/ Henrik Jonback / Klas Ahlund) Produced by Bloodshy & Avant
05/ Sensitized
(Guy Chambers / Cathy Dennis / Serge Gainsbourg) Produced by Guy Chambers & Cathy Dennis
06/ Heart Beat Rock
(Kylie Minogue / Karen Poole / Adam Wiles) Produced by Calvin Harris
07/ The One
(Kylie Minogue / Richard Stannard / James Wiltshire / Russell Small / John Andersson / Johan Emmoth / Emma Holmgren) Produced by Richard Stannard & Freemasons
08/ No More Rain
(Kylie Minogue / Christian Karlsson / Pontus Winnberg / Jonas Quant / Karen Poole) Produced by Greg Kurstin
09/ All I See
(Jonas Jeberg / Mich Hedin Hansen / Serano) Produced by Cutfather & Jonas Jeberg
10/ Stars
(Kylie Minogue / Richard Stannard / Paul Harris / Julian Peake) Produced by Richard 'Biff' Stannard
11/ Wow
(Kylie Minogue / Karen Poole / Greg Kurstin) Produced by Greg Kurstin
12/ Nu-Di-Ty
(Christian Karlsson / Pontus Winnberg / Karen Poole) Produced by Bloodshy & Avant
13/ Cosmic
(Kylie Minogue / Eg White) Produced by Eg White

As always with each forthcoming Kylie album release, maybe only a couple of these should make the final cut but I bet we're in for an electro-pop masterpiece and I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!

And as a taster to her new sound, Kylie's just been featured on Just Jack US album release, adding her vocals on I talk too much, a solo track on the UK version of the album. Nothing really to rave about but still good enough to make us wait till November...

Celine Dion’s taking new chances in 2007!

Yes, Celine Dion is finally coming to the end of her Las vegas show contract so she's coming back on the international music planet with a brand new english album, Taking Chances, which has to take international charts by storm if she wants to take her crown of worldwide middle of the road pop diva back...
From her brand new hairdo, storm alert's already been there...
She looks purely ridiculous like this... You can't be Tina Turner anytime poor lil' Celinn'! And you look so severe it could be her statue from Tussault that's been photoshopped here.

And isn't there some little bit of a breast (!!!) we can glance here ? Beware of Janet Jackson's showoff, miss Renée... OK, there's more Jane Birkin than Pamela Anderson in here but that could be shocking these conservative middle-aged female CD buyers of yours and then there will only be gay hardcore fans to buy Taking Chances.
The songs are better be good 'cos your latest albums were all a bit lame since Falling into you... You need to call some house remixers back on board to boost your balladery back in the clubs, as well as Diane Warren's romantic songwriting to put emotions back in your voice.
If only... (sigh!)

Come what may... The songs are all recorded so I guess I just have to wait until the day of release and... rush to my supermarket and buy it straight away to check! And even if the songs are not what I'd have been dreaming of, there will always be your voice... I just hope you haven't followed Whitney & Mariah's road to HipHop/R&B nonsense! I like my mainstream diva to stay in her ballad/pop highway, it's better then remixed .

Here is the (tentative) tracklisting :
1. Taking Chances
2. Alone (a Heart cover)
3. Shadow of Love
4. A Song for You
5. This Time
6. Surprise, Surprise
7. Can't fight the Feeling
8. Let Me Be Your Soldier
9. Eyes on Me
10. My Love
11. World to Believe in
12. Right Next to the Right One
13. Just Fade Away
14. That's Just the Woman in Me

To promote it in France, we all know now she will be mentor along with Kylie Minogue of the new Star Academy but as, by the end of the year, we should expect some strong awaited new albums by Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Sugababes, Girls Aloud, Alicia Keys, BWO, Kristine W, Madonna, Whitney Houston..., the race is gonna be tough in the album charts!

Love To Infinity : 15 years of Classic Paradise

Thankful to one of my favourite pop blog http://poptrashaddicts.blogspot.com/, I have learned on this anniversary day of mine that one of my beloved production/remix team will be celebrating this year their 15 years in the music industry by relaunching their career with none other than one of the most underrated diva in the UK : Kelly Llorenna is Love To Infinity's new vocalist.
And they're coming back with a new recorded version of their 1995 anthem "Keep love together"!



First, who are Love To Infinity ?
I can't believe one dares to ask this question... It is the UK most talented and successful remix team on the commercial uplifting house & dance/trance sides of the club planet!
Want some proof?
Easier than ABC : I just got to list worldwide artists who've chosen to place their hits in Andy & Pete Lee's hands :
3SL, 911, 98°, Abbacadabra, Ace Of Base, Adeva, Alizée, All Saints, Alsou, Anastacia, Anna Vissi, Aqua, Aretha Franklin, Ashanti, Ashley Jade, Atomic Kitten, Aurora, Baby D, Bananarama, Barbra Streisand, Beyoncé Knowles, Black Box, Boxcar, Boyzone, Canto, Carole Laure, Cartoons, Celine Dion, Cher, Cheryl Lynn, Christina Aguilera, CoCo Lee, Code Red, D:ream, Damage, Daytona, Deja Vu, DeLacy, Delta Goodrem, Desoto, DeVox, Diana King, Diana Ross, DJ Bobo, Double Exposure, Easy Street, Emilia, Erasure, Espresso, Esprit, Eurogroove, Faith Hill, First Choice feat. Rochelle Fleming, George Michael, Georgie Porgie, Gifted feat. Denise Gordon, Gina G, Gloria Estefan, Gloria Gaynor, Gloworm, Grace Jones, Hannah Jones, Harlan, Hear'Say, Honeyz, Ilene Barnes, Indigo, Jacksons 5, Jaki Graham, Janet Jackson, Javine, Jennifer Holliday, Jessica Simpson, Jo Breezer, Joose, Judy Cheeks, Kahal & Kahal, Karaja, KD Lang, Kenny Thomas, Kerri-Ann, Kuva feat. Beverly Skeete, Kym Sims, Las Ketchup, LeAnn Rimes, LFO, Lighthouse Family, Lightning Seeds, Lisa Scott-Lee, Loleatta Holloway, Louise, LoveHappy, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Mary Griffin, Maryanna Matiss, Masai, Matt Goss, Matthew Marsden, Melanie Williams, Michael Jackson, Michelle Lawson, MN8, Mozaic, Music Relief, MyTown, Nassa feat. Charlotte Day, Nootropic feat. Ruth Campbell, Pasadenas, Patricia Kaas, Pet Shop Boys, Phil Bailey, Puff Johnson, Pulp, Rachel Stevens, R.D.A., Reba McEntire, Re-Joice, Robbie Williams, Rockmelons, Roger, Rosie Ribbons, Rowetta, Rozalla, Sacred Spirit, Sarah Washington, Sarah Whatmore, Sean Maguire, Shania Twain, She Moves, Simply Red, Sirens, S'N'G, Soko, Spandau Ballet, Stephen Gately, Stereopol feat. Nevada Cato, Steve Balsamo, Strict Instructor, Sub Sub, Sunshine Anderson, Supersister, Sweet Mercy, Sybil, Tabu feat. Mitzi B, Tak Tix, Take That, Taylor Dayne, Texas, The Full Monthy All Stars feat. TJ Davis, The Other Two, The Similou, The Who, Thunderbugs, Tina Arena, Tony Di Bart, Tyson, Undercover, Urban Cookie Collective, Vittesse, Whitney Houston, Will Smith, Willa Ford, Workin' Happily feat. Melanie Murial, Zomkiat... The list is endless!

Truth is that under their different aliases, Love To Infinity, then Soda Club and M*A*S*H, the Lee Brothers (the family includes Dave "Mr. Joey Negro" too) have been since 1992 always in demand remixers. They have released several self-made club hits too :
First, "Keep love together", "Pray for love", "Someday" & "No apology" from 1995 to 1998 under the Love To Infinity artist name and along with Louise Bailey then Loleatta Holloway as vocalists, plus a japanese double CD release named after their trademark remix theme "Classic Paradise".


Then, back in 2002 till 2004 under new alias Soda Club, "Take my breath away", "Heaven is a place on earth", "Keep love together" (again), "Venus", and "Ain't no love, ain't no use", with blondies Hannah Alethea, Andrea Anatola & Ashley Jade, as well as releasing a whole new album "Anthem Alert" featuring more vocal talents by Gina G (of Eurovision famous "Ooh aah... Just a little bit")and Charlotte Day (which was featured on the Love To infinity comeback single of 2005, CeCe Peniston's cover version "Finally").

From the beginning, as the remix team labelled LTI to new concept Soda Club (more trancey) and then M*A*S*H, or as self-artist, they have never deceived me (except for one or two less dance-able, more R&B remixes for Will Smith, Michael Jackson & Gloria Estefan) and I've always followed them with passion, collecting the singles that featured their remixes!

Here would be my Top10 Remix tunes of them :
01 Diana King "I say a little prayer (LTI classic radio edit)"
02 Gloria Estefan "Everlasting love (LTI Classic Paradise radio mix)"
03 Judy Cheeks "As long as you're good to me (LTI original production)"
04 Lisa Scott-Lee "Lately (Soda Club radio mix)"

05 M*A*S*H feat. Stacy D "I touch myself (LTI radio mix)" (before High Street Honeys covered this 1991 Divinyl song to 34 in the UK charts of 2007)
06 Sybil "When I'm good and ready (LTI stratoradio mix)" (their remix even topped the original Stock & Waterman production and that comes from a die-hard Stock/Aitken/Waterman fan!)
07 Atomic Kitten "Someone like me (Soda Club radio edit)"
08 Kenny Thomas "When I think of you (LTI radio edit)"
09 Puff Johnson "Over and over (LTI stratomaster radio edit)"
10 Supersister "Summer gonna come again (LTI radio edit)"

So now they're back!
And their latest vocalist is none other than ex N-Trance "Set you free" diva, Kelly Llorenna.

Times have been hard for Kelly since she charted high worldwide along her mates of N-Trance with hits like "Set you free", "D.I.S.C.O.", "Forever"... She decided to go solo in 2002 (with help from AATW label mates Flip & Fill) and rocketed to 7 with "True love never dies" then the 9 Taylor Dayne's cover "Tell it to my heart" followed by "Heart of Gold" (19), her album "All clubbed up" and Donna Summer's SAW anthem "This time I know it's for real" (14) in 2004.

Then things got worse when less dance but instant pop hit "Nobody like you" didn't get released and then her fabulous rendition of the METRO written Lara Fabian's song "I will love again" only got to 105...

But now she had re-recorded with Love To Infinity their all-time classic "Keep love together" as well as a cover of 1995 Joe T.Vannelli "Sweetest day of May" in pure LTI classic paradise style and an album is on the way!
Put your hands up in the air, clap your hands in rhythm and move your feet to the rhythm of the Love To Infinity beat!
THEY'RE BACK!! ...and I'm in cheese heaven .
They were along with Loveland my favourite Handbag/commercial house act of 1994/1995 and I miss this kind of refreshing happy sing-along party house numbers you can't help but sing along to while nodding your head in rhythm.

If you want to listen to their brand new tunes, get yourself here :

http://www.myspace.com/lovetoinfinity
or here : http://www.myspace.com/classiclovetoinfinity
and if you want to know more on them, check these fan sites (that haven't been updated for some while but that is worth checkin' out anyway) : http://www.freewebs.com/sodaclub4u/index.htm
http://www.geocities.com/kellyllorennaforever/index_old.html

Vous avez dit 35?

Aujourd'hui, 9 Septembre, je me suis réveillé plus vieux...
Heureusement, après tout un été passé sous le règne musical de Rihanna et de son umbrella, le ciel était loin d'être pluvieux.
35 ans déjà me disent les papiers officiels...
35 ans déjà?
Sûrement pas!
Dans ma tête, je me sens toujours ado...
Un peu plus, d'accord, lorsque je suis au boulot,
Mais depuis longtemps déjà, mon compteur est bloqué sur 25 et ça me va
Il paraît même que les 35, je ne les fais pas!
Alors quoi!?
Rendez-vous dans quelques années...
Déjà que 35, c'est de 70 la moitié,
Je me demande ce que mon trouillomètre dira
Lorsque la quarantaine approchera...
A moins que d'ici là,
Une épaule soit venue se joindre contre moi...
A deux, les bougies se soufflent plus facilement!
Mais en attendant...
Les candidatures sont ouvertes!
Visez ma boîte aux lettres...
Et vite car attention!
Jai peur de ma date de péremption...

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Un peu d'auto-satisfaction personnelle pour mon nouvel article en français... ça fait toujours du bien aux chevilles et si ça peut en encourager quelques-uns à tenter le coup, ça vaut la peine !

Je veux dire, ça vaut la peine, à compter que vous soyez habitué à surfer le net sur des sites anglais et que vous vous aidiez de votre wikipedia chéri pour suivre qui est qui, d'oser le tenter en anglais ; lire Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows en VO non sous-titrée...



Un collègue se l'était commandé et m'a proposé de me le filer après l'avoir lu et en avoir été enchanté, sachant que j'étais Harry-Potter-ophile moi aussi. Je n'ai pas dit fan car je suis monté dans le Poudlard Express quelques wagons de retard j'avoue...
Quand j'ai entendu parlé de Harry potter pour la première fois, j'ai pensé, comme certains, "ouais, c'est des histoires de magiciens pour enfants... bof, bof!". En plus, moi qui suis très Science-fiction mais pas du tout Heroic Fantasy dans mes lectures, je ne me décidais pas à voir vraiment ce que ça valait.
Et puis, quand le premier film est passé à la télévision, un Noël que je passais en famille, j'ai d'abord été surpris de voir mes parents d'habitude peu enclins au fantastique, et peut-être aussi faute de mieux, accepter de le regarder avec moi et, une fois la soirée terminée, s'étonner d'avoir apprécié le film autant que moi finalement... !
Damned, il allait falloir que je m'intéresse tout de même de plus prêt à cette littérature pour jeunes ...de 7 à 77 ans donc!

J'ai donc acheté en poche les premiers tomes sortis et les ai dévorés comme de bien entendu à la vitesse de l'éclair (de feu ). Une autre collègue ayant commencé sa collection dans la version reliée m'a passé ensuite au fur et à mesure les volumes suivants avant qu'ils soient issus en poche (et que je les achète à ce moment là) et j'ai fait la queue au cinéma comme tant d'autres à chaque sortie du film suivant tout en mettant dans mon caddie chaque DVD sa semaine de sortie... J'étais eu! Englué dans la toile d'araignée magique de J.K.Rowling...

Je me demandais donc cet été comment j'allais pouvoir me rebeller contre ce marketing implacable qui fait sortir la version anglaise en plein coeur de l'été tout en repoussant la version française pour les achats de fin d'année...
L'attente allait être longue, d'autant que le volume 7 était le dernier et que j'étais sûr de par la prophécie annoncée d'y lire la mort double du héros et de son égal rival...
Je ne m'épancherai pas ici sur l'histoire, le dénouement, etc. Qui ne peut pas attendre de le lire pour savoir peut toujours surfer le net et y lire le résumé jusqu'à la fin sur le même site dont je parlais plus haut. Mon propos ici est de dire que c'est possible! Le lire en anglais, au début, on accroche sur chaque mot inconnu, on les cherche dans son vieux dico de lycée anglais/français, pour au final n'en trouver qu'un sur deux parce que le langage magique, c'est moitié inventé, moitié non courant. Puis on découvre que les noms ou des prénoms ou même les deux parfois ne sont pas les mêmes en anglais et en français pour un tiers des personnages... Bref, les premières pages sont difficiles à descendre... Et puis, une fois la barrière du vocabulaire sautée, une fois que le sens de la phrase, son sens dans le paragraphe, son déroulement dans le chapitre, s'emboîte au fur et à mesure dans l'histoire complète, on oublie qu'on a un mot manquant au milieu et on enchaîne!

J'ai donc commencé le livre lundi soir, continué mardi soir après le travail toujours, et ai profité du jour férié du 15 Août pour tourner les pages, et tourner les pages, sur mon canapé, sur la moquette, en mangeant, devant les infos, en écoutant la musique, jusqu'à me rendre compte vers 23H30, que j'étais allé trop loin et que je ne pouvais plus laisser les quelques 100 pages restantes pour le lendemain, que sinon, je ne saurai pas m'endormir et qu'il me fallait les lire, absolument, les lire jusqu'au bout, pour savoir le dénouement, savoir la fin, pour étancher ma soif, savoir s'il fallait que je sorte les mouchoirs, savoir si oui ou non la victoire de Harry Potter sur Voldemort signifiait sa propre mort ou pas...

Alors, oui, le lendemain, le réveil a été un peu difficile à 6H30 puisque j'avais finalement posé ma tête sur l'oreiller à 2H00, oui, j'ai baillé un peu plus qu'à l'accoutumée devant mon ordinateur toute la journée mais je l'avais fait ! Je l'avais lu ! 600 pages en 3 jours et EN ANGLAIS !

Bien sûr, j'attends toujours la sortie en français avec impatience pour le relire aussitôt, pour, en plus du plaisir de l'histoire, retrouver le plaisir des mots, des phrases, comprises de A à Z... mais de l'avoir lu dans la version originale m'a fait découvrir d'autres choses, comme la manière dont J.K.Rowling fait parler la française Fleur (et c'était délicieusement drôle pour un français de le lire) en V.O., ou (et c'était un peu plus dur à lire) les paroles en argot de Hagrid , à moins que ce n'exprime un fort accent en tout cas, et que la version française me laissait moins voir...
Et justement, d'avoir lu le septième volume des aventures de Harry en anglais m'a permis d'apprécier à sa juste valeur le travail incroyable d'adaptation plus que de traduction d'ailleurs de Monsieur Jean-François Ménard, le traducteur des Harry Potter en français. Parce que trouver le mot juste pour exprimer l'inventivité de J.K.Rowling dans tout ce que son monde imaginaire incluait, comme inventer le mot "Portoloin" là où la version originale appelait "Portkey" cet objet ensorcelé pour emmener ailleurs toute personne le touchant, c'est génial et je dis Chapeau bas à ce monsieur qui a su faire un travail exceptionnel et difficile à partir des mots anglais de l'auteur original... !

Alors maintenant, vous savez ce qui vous reste à faire! Inutile d'attendre fin Octobre, lancez-vous! Osez! Vous saurez la fin de l'histoire et en plus, ça ne vous en fera qu'apprécier mieux la version habituelle que vous lisez en français...

BWO third album’s tracklisting & cover art

Bodies Without Organs' third album, "Fabricator", which is expected on 19/09/07 for release in Sweden, looks promising from its tracklisting & cover art, isn't it?

01. Last Flight To San Francisco
02. Give Me The Night
03. Let It Rain
04. The Destiny Of Love
05. Gomenasai
06. We Should Be Dancing
07. Stay with you again
08. Rhythm Drives Me Crazy
09. Save My Pride
10. Happiness
11. Hooked On The Danger
12. Concrete Jungle
13. Paradise On Mars
14. Chariots Of Fire
15. Save My Pride (The Attic radio edit)
16. The Destiny Of Love (The Attic radio edit)

It reminds me a lot of Army Of lovers and after rumours at the start of the year that Alexander Bard was seen in the PWL studios, I can't help dreaming track 6 could be a Stock/Aitken/Waterman cover song he could have re-recorded with the re-united trio... If only !

Sagi Rei's dance hits in acoustic versions

Surfing the net I found last week an israelian singer that has settled now in Italy where he produced last year a 12 tracks album called "Emotional Songs - Acoustic Dance" made of his own vocal/guitar versions of dance anthems.

The album enlists Billie Ray Martin's Your loving arms, Lisa Stansfield's All around the world, Gala's Freed from desire, Jam & Spoon's Right in the night, Snap!'s Rhythm is a dancer, Gigi D'Agostino's L'amour toujours, Robin S' Show me love, Blast & V.D.C.'s Crayzy man, Ultra Naté's Free, Raul Orellana & Jocelyn Brown's Gypsy rhythm, Haddaway's What is love and Alex Party's Wrap me up : All dance/club hits from 1992 to 1997 (except for Lisa Stansfield's 1989 classic) that Sagi sings as if they were ballads or romantic songs with his beautiful voice and just his guitar... and it's FABULOUS!



I, for sure not one who usually likes it when the tempo's down or when there is no synthés, analogic beats nor keyboards, have found me completely spellbound by these versions and I even forgot it was a guitar that gives the rhythm and embodies the stripped-to-the-bone acoustic versions.

Don't expect these dance anthems to sound still like club hits (except for the dance remix of Rhythm is a dancer that found its place as a B-side to the single release of the original album version) but you will re-discover all these songs and will agree then that a good song sounds good either when expensively recorded & mixed with loads of electronic equipement AS WELL AS recorded live with just a guitar by a talented guy with a voice of gold.

Not only has he apparently met some huge success in some places around the world but Sagi Rei has just released a brand new album called "Emotional Songs - Part 2" which duplicates the reciepe of the first, but with greater arrangements involving piano & strings this time. My Heart melted again!

This time, he chose his songs in an extended range of styles & years and picked on Crystal Waters' Gypsy woman, Tina Charles' I love to love, Joe Smooth's Promised land, Everything But The Girl's Missing, Alcazar's Crying at the discotheque, Livin' Joy's Don't stop movin', Supermen Lovers' Starlight, Moloko's Sing it back, Dead Or Alive's You spin me round (like a record), Boys Town Gang's I can't take my eyes off you, Modjo's Lady, Ace Of Base's All that she wants, La Bouche's Sweet dreams and Bobby Brown's Two can play that game.
The result sounds as great as on "Emotional Songs 1" and you can't help loving his interpretations of all these beloved and rather well-known hits.

On the whole package, there's only one single track that I can't get used to : his take on Robin S Show me love where I think he lost the magical rhythm of the original. There are other lesser known songs (Crayzy man & L'amour toujours) that I don't know the originals enough to compare but really like his versions and there are others that fit its guitar-led arrangements perfect because of the latino/gipsy original inspiration (Gypsy rhythm & Right in the night). The best ones for me though, and the ones you should first listen to, if you want to make yourself an opinion about his work, are Free, Promised land, All around the world, Gypsy woman, Rhythm is a dancer and Your loving arms.

So go to his Myspace page and take a listen before iTuning his name!
www.myspace.com/sagireitan
And remember you've heard of him here first :)
This man is gonna be HUGE!

Now I dream, before he chooses some new classics to make his own, of a remix album made of dance mixes of all these acoustic versions, just to make sure the usual dance addicts get to know this artist that looks like he loves the dance scene enough to re-invent its best anthems for the after party cooldown times.

Nouveau Riche's Pink Trash

Another swedish album for tonight, bought on www.cdon.com again, and found in the same parcel as Magnus Carlsson : the long awaited Nouveau Riche duet's first album Pink Trash.

When I first wrote about them here (see in my blog's archives on 10/02/07), their album was supposed to be called Matters of the heart... It's finally made it to Pink Trash and the cover is fabulous with these two mannequins close-up face to face. My version of the CD is not the digipack but the simple crystal box so as for Magnus' there's no lyrics included here, nor lots of photos but what is impressive is the tracklisting : 16 tracks!
But your CD player will indicate 18 as there's an introduction at 17 to the bonus Dusty Springfield cover version of the Pet Shop Boys written song In private as track 18 as well as new single apparently... There's a Soundfactory remix of it floating on the net...

Nouveau Riche's male part, Ulrich Bermsjö, looks here like the mastermind behind the project because he co-wrote some songs when Camilla none. Army Of Lovers' heritage proof lies here in the contributors : Magnus Frykberg, Mattias Lindblom & Anders Wollbeck (aka Vacuum), Jeanette Olsson, Emil Hellman and... Mister Alexander Bard himself it seems!

The album is much darker electro cold pop than Magnus' campy disco cheese so I would say it's a cross between Vacuum and BWO, although at some moments, there is some AoL extravaganzza too (Psychosexuality makes me think of an electro remix of Heterosexuality from Army Of Lovers' Gods of Earth & Heaven album). Included are Nouveau Riche's previous songs with Dominika, Oh Lord, Hardcore life & It's my party, but resung by Camilla, latest single, Angels, and more potential single material like the evident choice of the Vacuum written Wounds of love, Stay (where Camilla takes the lead), the fabulous anthem It's my party, the camp cover Calling all boys or Atomic love.
Their cover of In private is a good revival of the Dusty Springfield classic of 1989 and I suspected that Camilla, who sang backing vocals on the album of Pet Shop Boys cover versions of swedish West End Girls, wanted to do her part in the PSB Tribute... So it came as a surprise to hear Ulrich sing it all (or it seems). I don't know what it is with the Pet Shop Boys and Sweden but swedish people tend to like to sing their songs more than anyone (remember Alcazar sang Lovelife too!) and I won't complain at all! I'm a PSB addict !

The only plus they could have made would have been to include at the end the Soundfactory radio mix of Angels 'cos it transformes the ballad song in a club anthem and I like it maybe more than the original but I'm still satisfied with the original tracklisting : I will only add this one to my mp3 player's version of this album that will stay for long in my favourites ...for sure!

Magnus Carlsson's first post Alcazar english album

After a self-named solo album in swedish in 2006 and a swedish/english christmas album the same year, Spår I Snön, ex Alcazar (and former Barbados) singer Magnus Carlsson has finally released his first album in english. Named after his entry of this year MelodiFestivalen, Live Forever, it includes the A-Ha inspired single version as well as an accoustic one and 11 other disco pop gemms. THIS song should have gone to Eurovision's night instead of The Ark's one and sure 2008's party would then have been in Stockholm! This tune was Take on me Part II, vamped up for 2007 and with some Magnus' incredible vocal performance. Magnus even recorded this song in french (and spanish) on the CD single and although it suffered of some translation (its title J'ai vivrai is ungrammatical and should have been Je vivrai), like previous Alcazar's french version of Here I am, his french singing is charming and I'd be ready, more than willing & able to help him with his french accent with some tutoring anytime he wants .


The new single Waves of love is a summer anthem in the making but the album is full of pure pop dance hits. Crazy summer nights, I won't cry, Another rainbow, Give a little love, Don't you worry, You, Boogie time should ALL become singles as they're catchy as hell!
Magnus has worked with 3 different swedish songwriting/producing teams (HitVision, Thomas Thörnholm & Michael Clauss and Figge Bogström) but they've managed to create a full on disco pop anthem party from track 1 to 12, just before Magnus calms it down with his piano led acoustic version of Live forever. Track 7's midtempo, Never walk away, was right at the middle to slow it down a little too.
Live Forever - The Album is so much the follower of Alcazar's Alcazarized album that I now nearly can bear with the lack in my heart this missing quatuor have created. Andres, Magnus, Tess & Annikafiore were such a fabulous group I still hope they reunite someday. Till then, and with Andres' career not as sparkling as his ex boyfriend's, we only have this CD to help us forgive them for parting away...

I had waited for this CD to come in my post for long (it is an import from Sweden you know, thank you www.cdon.com!) and I was hoping for a great surprise maybe with the booklet or hidden tracks... I was deceived : no printed lyrics nor bonus included! I was so harder deceived that the iTunes version of the album includes some bonus material and I can't understand why Warner Music gave bonuses for digital downloads and none for CD buyers.
THAT will only lead to the die of the CD format! And I still like having that piece of plastic in my hands, opening it up feverishly to read the notes, discover who wrote what, who produce what, which guests have been invited, sing along to it with the help of the lyrics...

Instead, I've been to iTunes and have bought the bonus tracks to complete the tracklisting and the added part is GREAT!
Nothing less than 3 other new songs plus a demo version of one of the songs that made it to the CD version plus some remixes, and the newbies What about love, I found love & I belong to you could all have fitted in the original tracklisting. The space was enough to include them too so that makes me hate it a little more when the music industry takes us CD buyers for fools : that can only lead to peer-to-peer files trade and make consumers take over the market.

Till then I hope there'll still be plenty of releases of that quality on CD and I will sure buy them all ! I'm so proud to have this new CD in my personal discothèque.
I also hope Magnus will release plenty of singles off it just to get them with fabulous remixes as we've been used to with its Alcazar & former releases... Bring Emil Hellman & his Soundfactory's mixes in! There's never enough of a good song and there ain't a bad one here!

www.magnusonline.se

From under Her to His Umbrella...

Sometimes nowadays, R&B charts unleash a tune that is poppy enough to appeal to me and make me want to dance to its beat.
There haven't been loads in the last past years but, to name a few, I'd admit I've liked Beyoncé's Crazy in love original or all her recent Freemasons remixes, Rihanna's S.O.S. or Umbrella, and not only remixed, even in its original flavour...
The point must be that when a song is good, whatever the arrangements, dance, R&B or acoustic, the song will reach you straight to the heart!

And that leads me to where I'm going tonight : just before going to sleep (I still have to wake up early tomorrow morning 'cos it's one more saturday morning of work...), I wanted to share with you a link that I just came up to tonight and it's so good I want to share it with everyone :

Just go to this MySpace page : http://www.myspace.com/scottsimonsmusic and click on the music player to listen to this man's own rendition of Rihanna's last hit Umbrella...
It's AMAZING!
He's made a haunting mid-tempo sticky version of the syncopated R&B track and it's pure genius... His rendition must become a HIT very soon or the whole music industry doesn't deserve to be saved...

It may be a shame for an artist that apparently is a songwriter first to break it with a cover maybe but it must be because of his songwriter & arranger talents that he's magnified this already instant song and made a true musical pearl of it.
Add to this that his version will still sound fresh in a decade as its sounds are untemporal and you've got a hit! A shame it is not him that have released Umbrella first...

David Guetta's third studio offering : POP LIFE

After 2002 Just A Little More Love and 2004 Guetta Blaster, David Guetta released on 18th of June his third album Pop Life and I naturally added this nice piece of electro pop dance to my CDtheque.

Not that I liked all tracks from his previous releases, I have always been mixed up between high standards like Just a little more love, Love don't let me go, You, Give me something, People come people go, Money, Stay, Get up, Time, and less poppy tracks like Distortion, Atomic food or Last train but as you see there has always been enough (and more) good songs to win in my heart against the other ones...
This time I ain't disappointed at all!
David Guetta and his partner in crime Joachim Garraud deliver good electro in pure pop format, what is to say for me songs that do not last over 4'30, are radio friendly, and with bonus cuts, this album extend to 16 tracks !

Once again, favourite vocalist Chris Willis is back on board and for the better, for 8 tracks, just half of the album. He's lead on the new single Love is gone, that is featured in its original edit version and in the radio remix, by Fred Rister & Joachim Garraud. His other performances are ALL great and I wish this man could have his own moment of glory with a full album under his name very soon... Check Everytime we touch, Tomorrow can wait, Don't be afraid & Take me away. The 7th song is the original version of his Ghostbuster's sampled radio mix (Never take away) My Freedom and the 8th the The Egg confrontation on Love don't let me go (Walking away).

From 2nd album has stayed other vocalist JD Davis who, this time, still sounds like Dave Gahan on Winner of the game but like Roland Orzabal on future single potential Always. His last collaboration This is not a love song has his voice so filtered that it's awful and maybe the only track of the album I skip each time!

But David invited new team mates too and what a team!
Ex pop star & now awarded worldwide hits songwriter Cathy Dennis wrote the lyrics to the first track and for sure next single Baby when the light, which features unknown vocalist Cozi on a production collaboration with swedish star Steve Angello. This one teams up with David & Joachim again and with fellow Sebastian Ingrooso on Everytime we touch and it looks like Ibiza's F**ck Me I'm Famous! star David Guetta is now a big name enough around the planet to get their partnership on a record... Fine for him and for our ears too.
Tocadisco, whose remix version was the radio one for The Egg single, is their partner on Tomorrow can wait and it sounds just like the previous hit...
Another unknown Thailand sings on the very Benassi influenced trashy electro cut Joan of Arc which closes the tracklisting at #12 before the bonus and Avalon's Juliet offered her vocal on the angry & repetitive Do something love. But it's from the other female vocalist invited, Tara Mc Donald, that comes the latest jewels : Delirious (a sure hit single again!) & You're not alone... There ain't no skipping on these ones!

So to conclude this new offering from Mr Guetta, there are still sounds that made him famous with his first hits but he has added the latest ones that got him back high in the charts a la Tocadisco and when some will say it's auto plagia, I'd say it's just declension : David is offering us what he is made of today and it appeals to me a lot.
I have to add to that that I can't thank him enough not to make albums full of epic 7' and over tracks that bore before gettin' to your heart like other DJ star release. The extended & remix versions are reserved for the club/CDmaxis and I like that!

A last word to say that Mr Jean-Baptiste Mondino himself shot the cover & booklet photos and Mr Guetta must have felt praised cos the booklet is nearly only made of that... lyrics would have been fine too!

Ultra Naté, 5th studio album : exception to the rules for a dance diva

When so many dance/house divas release a couple of singles and one single hit among them, and no album at all (or in certain successful cases, one collection of fillers around the hit and a remix package soon after), one of the finest house divas from America has just released her 5th (!) CD and there's never even been some best of or remixes collection in between studio albums.

Her name sounds already full of promises : Ultra Naté.
The Name she chose for her new album too.
It's called "Grime / Silk / Thunder" from a comment some music reviewer made of Nirvana's "Nevermind" CD saying it included all this and that was what a great record should be made of. So Miss Naté intended to match perfection with this long awaited new album (her last one is from 2001!) and, let's face the truth, she quite succeed!

With its 14 tracks, including two re-recordings of old 1989/90 tracks "Scandal" & "It's over now", a cover of the Pointer Sisters' hit "Automatic", her previous collaboration single with swedish Top producer Stonebridge (who mixed all the tracks here) "Freak on", a featuring from David Guetta's favourite vocalist Chris Willis and another one from previous B-Crew partner Dajae, a previous single produced by house wizzard Eric Kupper and inspired by Moroder/Summer's "I feel love", "Love's the only drug" and loads of other fellas and, to name a few, Quentin Harris, Lati Kronlund, Craig C., Louie Balo, Bill Coleman, Andres Levin or her past collaborators Mood II Swing, Ultra Naté couln't do wrong. She co-wrote and co-produced the whole package so you see she ain't no singin' puppet standing in front of the microphone for some studio masters and this album is all HERS.

Not that this was a change for the miss...
From the beginning, she took part of the making process and was already involved in her lyrics on her 1991 first album "Blue Notes in the Basement", which was produced by The Basement Boys.
Same recipe for her second offereing "One woman's insanity" from 1993 but D-Influence, Nellee Hooper and Soulshock, Cutfather & Karlin were added to the team. I can't help but remind you that Boy George's "I specialize in loneliness" were there magnified by Ultra Naté in an epic 7 minutes version of pure bliss.
But that wasn't until 1997 and her worldwide anthem "Free" - not to mistake with Rozalla's raver "Everybody's free (to feel good)", Ultra's song was going like 'Cos you're free... to do what you want to do... You've got to live your life, do what you want to do!" - that the whole planet knew her name. She sang with Amber & Jocelyn Enriquez the single from the discoïd movie Studio 54, "If you could read my mind" and charted again.
Her third album "Situation : critical" followed the year after with the same team as for the single, Mood II Swing, but still with D-Influence and Al Mack & Masters At Work for the sublime "Divine love". More single hits followed with "Found a cure" and "A new kind of medicine" and her fourth album in 2001, "Stranger than fiction" kept the pace but with less chart success, though still high quality, with singles "Desire" & "Get it up (the feeling)".

She got us entertained with various collaborations since then :
"There is" with germans of Tiefschwartz in 2001, "Music came to save my life" with D-Influence's D-Vas project in 2002, "Brass in my pocket" in 2003, "A wonderful place" on Blaze's United For Dance 2004 album, along the same year with "Bittersweet melody", "Feel love" (which is included on this album) or "Time of our lives" with Gerry DeVeaux as Ultra Devoted.
But it was Stonebridge and her vocals on "Freak on" for his first artist album "Can't get enough" that led her back in the worldwide charts as their song was released as third single off his album.
Her collaboration with Def Mix ex keyboard player Eric Kupper "Love's the only drug" announced at the end of 2006 her BIG come back and now it's on.
The new single is "Automatic", a perfect disco housed anthem that has a sexxxy video to promote it as well (see it on my major MySpace profil page), and I can't see why "Falling", "Getaway" or "Give it all you got" wouldn't become the following singles as they're catchy as hell, while the rest of the album takes dance/house standards to a new level.

It'll be hard to top this release for the rest of 2007... Beware! Ultra's back for good .

http://www.ultranate.com/
http://www.myspace.com/ultranatemusic

Nouvelle Star 2007 : Tigane ou Julien?

Hier soir, j'ai passé ma soirée devant M6, comme chaque jeudi ou mercredi soir de diffusion de la saison 2007 de la Nouvelle Star (ou Pop Idol à la française).
A mesure que les primes se sont écoulés, j'ai vu l'étau se resserrer dangereusement autour de Julien et hier, il a gagné sa place en finale contre Tigane. Julien paraît être le favori de tous, ses prestations déchainent applaudissements, hurlements, hululements, cris déchainés et extatiques dans le public de Baltard. Notre jury préféré l'encense quasiment à chaque fois mais du côté de mon salon...

Vous pouvez répéter la question?
Ah pardon, j'avais oublié le coton que je m'étais mis dans les oreilles hier soir pour ne pas écouter Julien hurler de sa voix déglingée...

Si certaines prestations n'ont pas manqué d'originalité et se sont révélées être à mes oreilles réussies ("Like a virgin", "Moi... Lolita", et même le "Tainted love" d'hier soir), la plupart du temps, je dois avouer que non seulement il me passe totalement à côté, mais en plus, ses prestations m'insupportent et ne me laissent d'autre choix que de :
[TAPER 1] couper le son!
Merci Katerine, mais je ne veux pas remettre le son tant que le mec à la barrette est toujours à l'image, nan, nan!
[TAPER 2] zapper, mais entre le match de foot et le téléfilm des autres chaînes, j'aurais encore préféré la pub...
[TAPER 3] éteindre ma télé... comme de toute façon, il chante toujours en dernier quasiment depuis le début (ne me dites pas qu'il y a tirage au sort!) et que l'on sait qu'il sera repêché lors du supplice de l'enveloppe, y'a plus de suspense...

C'est vrai que je n'ai pas la fibre rock. A la base, moi, c'est la pop dance, bien cheesy, camp et disco, ou la house, la soul, l'eurodance, les ballades ou la variét' qui filent la gerbe à Manu Katché mais de temps en temps, je m'écoute ma dose de guitares (pas saturées quand même, j'ai le coeur fragile!) mais le problème est que Julien tient son inspiration de ces rockers ovniesques voire éthyliques (Iggy Pop, Joe Cocker, Jim Morrison, etc.) et que je ne vois pas l'intérêt :

Pourquoi infliger aux téléspectateurs (ou auditeurs) une chanson massacrée, à la mélodie oubliée, aux paroles revisitées (pour ne pas dire oubliées et donc improvisées), à l'accent anglais digne d'un niveau CM2 (formidable "Wizor Wizaut You" hier!), et aux effets de voix exaspérants... Vous voyez sûrement ce que je veux dire, quand il arrondit sa bouche comme s'il voulait sucer son micro et prend un accent autrichien, suédois ou de quelque contrée que ce puisse être avant d'éructer la fin de sa tirade et se déchirant les cordes vocales, tel un cerf en rut en train de bramer.
Ce doit être ce qui met Dédé Manoukian dans tous ses états (à moins que ce ne soit les mini-jupes et le minois de Gaëtane). ce qui plaît à Manu le teigneux, c'est bien évidemment qu'il fait du rock même avec les pires "daubes" variétoches et que c'est donc plus crédible pour l'image de l'émission que le grand public de la Star Ac'. c'est ce que se tue à répéter la divine Marianne d'ailleurs, qu'ils sont fiers d'être sur la 6 plutôt que sur la 1 (Benji, t'as compris le message?) même si c'est elle qu'il énerve aussi de temps en temps en singeant les grimaces d'Iggy. Quant à Dove, lui, tant qu'il y a du show, ça lui plaît. C'est vendeur et, que ce soit pour du savon, de la comédie musicale ou de l'audience, faut qu'ça plaise au public. Faut que les appels téléphoniques surtaxés pour défendre le chouchou des minettes prépubères qui le trouvent "Troooooooop biens" et dépassent le forfait SMS illimités de papa maman toute la soirée. Lui-même l'a dit : Julien ne laisse personne indifférent : il y a ceux qui adorent et ceux qui détestent...
Je suis encore étonné que les premiers soient toujours plus nombreux que les seconds et j'ai donc peur pour la semaine prochaine...

D'un côté, gagner la finale de la nouvelle star n'est pas gage de réussite pour autant (Jonathan Cerrada?). Ou en tout cas, ne pas la gagner ne veut pas dire non plus que c'est foutu. Amel Bent était troisième de sa saison qui a vu le rockeur Steeve Estatof gagner (mais un rockeur est moins vendeur qu'une diva de banlieue...) et qui se souvient encore du N°2, le beau et peu sûr de lui Julien Chagnon à part moi? Et Thierry Amiel s'en sort plutôt bien aussi. Pour rester sur Amel, elle a interprété hier soir en exclu son nouveau single extrait de son 2° album, "Nouveau français". La chanson, signée Lionel Florence / Pascal Obispo, la déporte sur le créneau de Nâdiya, plus pop R&B que pop soul mais surtout, on se demande ou Lionel avait la tête pour écrire un refrain aussi ininspiré (Nouveau français, français nouveau, nouveau français, sous le même drapeau... même Barbelivien aurait pu faire mieux et moins répétitif!). Quant à Obispo, c'est un peu mieux mais quand la chanson tourne à moitié en marseillaise, ça devient gonflant! Y'a un conseiller artistique chez BMG qui a du souci à se faire pour sa place vu le single qui va lancer l'album...

De l'autre côté, Julien, qui avoue ne s'être présenté aux castings que pour faire de la pub pour ses groupes, ne veut sans doute pas gagner et subir la pression de la maison de disques. Il préfèrerait garder sa liberté artistique tout ensurfant sur sa notoriété acquise lors de l'émission. Avis aux SMSeuses!

Reste Tigane alors... Si mon favori du début était la gueule d'ange Soma (pour son "Ain't no sunshine" magnifique des castings), ses déraillements vocaux des primes m'ont fait retomber l'intérêt aussi vite qu'une douche froide, d'autant que j'ai découvert au premier show le talentueux et vocalement impressionnant Pierre avec sa reprise de Michel Jonasz. Mais il était finalement trop lisse pour attirer les SMS, et ses performances à chaque prime n'y ont rien changé. Il aurait peut-être dû faire un coming out à Baltard, ou violer Marianne en coulisses, ou montrer son cul à Jérôme Pitorin, ou... Enfin, j'espère franchement qu'il saura tirer son épingle du jeu. J'achèterai son album les yeux fermés.
Tigane, donc, s'il a la voix un peu grave à mon goût, sait distiller en tout cas un magnétisme lors de ses prestations qui capte l'attention et, avec les bonnes chansons ("Love's divine", "On s'attache"), il pourrait trouver son public. Il manque un interprète soul comme lui à la scène français.

Résultat la semaine prochaine mais on fera le point dans un an pour voir les débuts sur CD des participants de cette année.