Velvet is the Queen of swedish Pop

I first heard of Jenny Petersson, a swedish blonde whose stage name is Velvet, when she entered the Melodifestivalen in 2006 with the TWIN produced latin R&Bish Mi amore. It didn't stand a chance to win, Carola's Invincible only could be the one, but it made me search for who she was and I discovered she had covered Livin' Joy's Don't stop movin' the year before with the help of September's producer Jonas von der Burg. It made me take interest in her album Finally but I found it was a mixed affair of R&B, pop & dance with great moments, from City of angels to DJ take me or the wonderful In & out of love including the other von der Burg production & single Rock down to (electric avenue) using Eddy Grant's song. But there was too many styles & filler tracks to really win my heart, compared to September's latest albums for example, 2004 September and 2005 In Orbit.
I still kept an eye on her though and she followed the album with a brand new song as single, Fix me like if she knew the album needed new seeds. Like City of angels, she worked with Niklas Pettersson and that song was a winner. The album as re-issued in some places with Fix me as a bonus track and I finally bought me the polish CD/DVD edition...
Then came further new singles, Chemistry, Déjà vu (she took to Melodifestivalen 2008 without winning for a second time in a row), then Take my body close and finally The queen, once again in Melodifestivalen 2009. And all these singles were WINNERS ! I couldn't wait more for a full length CD of her, wondering why it didn't came... Forget about September, it has now. It is called The Queen and it sounds more like a Greatest Hits than just an album. It would have been if the best songs of Finally had appeared on it too but they can be added to the digital version we make for our MP3 players. The fact is this new album is an absolutely must-have for every popmusic lover, post-PWL addict, Euro fan and swedish pop follower !



1/ THE QUEEN 10/10
People take a bow... I am, I am, I am the queen starts the CD and we instantly fall on our knees to show some respect to the pop perfection Tony Nilsson has written & produced for miss Jenny. Dance arrangements, memorable melody and easy-to-sing-along chorus, this song had everything to win her the ticket to Eurovision but the swedish people had a different mind (Alcazar's Stay the night was even better but neither of them won...). This song is the perfect intro though to the new musical world of The Queen Velvet.
2/ CHEMISTRY 10/10
Like Fix me before, Chemistry was produced by Niklas Pettersson and it's another dance-pop perfection. Although being a single in 2007 in her homeland, her UK new record company has chosen it to be her first single to start what can oponly become an international carrier for sure. Good verses, uplifting pre-chorus and memorable chorus once more with good rhythm and nice beats plus some na na na na bits to help people sing along in the bridge. It deserves a UK Top5 chart placing. Pete Hammond has even made a retro mix like he did with Alphabeat's Boyfriend last year, and it needs to be released as an alternative radio version 'cos it feels so good to feel like it was PWL times all over again.
3/ TAKE MY BODY CLOSE 10/10
Pitchline Productions on duty this time for another winner. Take my body close keep us on the dancefloor for another 3'30 of pop perfection. How can it be ? It took her 3 years to release it but she only took the best recorded songs for sure ! The melody is even more appealing than the previous ones and it needs to be a further international release too.
4/ SOUND OF MUSIC 10/10
An echoed intro gives us a few seconds to rest before entering into another brilliant piece of pop designed for the dancefloor. Ooh it's on my mind she goes on Sound of music's chorus and we can't help keeping this one more tune totally glued into our ears after just one listen. It is sure to become one of her following singles !
5/ RADIO STAR 9,5/10
This other Tony Nilsson written/produced song starts with electronized sounds like on Daft Punk's Around the world but then it goes back into pure dance-pop territory once more. I wanna make it serious she sings in the Radio star chorus and she's got another potential hit in her hands here. Maybe less instant than the previous ones but of quality too. I especially adore the end of the song with her voice being cut off like if you had put the CD player off-line...
6/ MY RHYTHM 10/10
Another french touch's influenced intro builds up into a more dance than pop anthem with My rhythm, once more with Niklas Pettersson on duty. The chorus is particularly uplifting and moving, making me stand up and put my hands up in the air to sing along with her. And I can't get enough of the gimmickly "Are you ready?" addition in some key points of the song. There's a lot of vocoderized additional vocals all along the song and it makes me think of Daft Punk & cie, in a more commercial approach.
7/ PLAY 4/10
Play is the one and only let-down of the album ! So seeing Niklas Pettersson in the credits isn't warrant of perfection after all... Jenny goes into laidback and etheral atmosphere with this very mid-tempo that only leaves me bored. I even skip it now when I listen to the album. Maybe other people needed a rest after 6 dancing anthems but I was ready for some more straight away.
8/ COME INTO THE NIGHT 10/10
Thankfully, Come into the night brings back the good beats and this time, it's all in the schlagger-pop from Sweden. The song is just a little too longer at 3'27 or it could have been another entry for Eurovision (3' format). It has key changes, feelgood melody and dance arrangements. Once more, the Pitchline boys are on board for a winner and further single for sure.
9/ DEJA VU 9,5/10
This already-one-year-old Velvet tune is included (but wasn't Chemistry too?) and we stay in the Europop with this song that didn't win her a ticket to Belgrade in last year's Melodifestivalen. Produced by TWIN like Mi amore, Déjà vu pushes all the right buttons this time.
10/ DANCING WITH TEARS IN MY EYES 8/10
You must have already known by its title, this new track is a cover of the Ultravox hit of the 80's. Velvet goes into pure Eurodance style with it maybe reminiscent of what Novaspace already did with the song a couple of years ago. Good version but nothing new, alas... Or maybe have we heard too many dance cover versions of it already ? Or is it because her original songs are so good that we don't need her signing some cover song ?
11/ FIX ME 10/10
Like I already said, this Niklas Pettersson previous single is another perfect pop-dance anthem and its inclusion here is a good thing, for those who bought Finally before its re-release for example. It would have bettered if included previously at the start of the CD and then here near the end in its calmed down acoustic version. But hey, I must find something to complain about... Else, I'd have nothing wrong to say.
12 MY DESTINY 10/10
A beautiful piano intro gives us the pace for this last song and you can bet My destiny is the other downtempo of the album, but what a difference with Play ! When the first one was boring and went nowhere, this new ballad builds up calmly into a solid and vocally strong uplifting anthem, like Bird in flight was on Scooch's album ; Jenny's voice shows off here and we now know she's not just a beautiful face (and body) whose voice can be handled well by studio wizzards. With only a piano, she can shine with magic and strength. Please, someone, make Celine hear this new Pitchline song to cover it on her next album ! The canadian lady needs good material and this one would suit her voice nicely.
13/ THE QUEEN (REMIX) 10/10
Tony Nilsson has made a remix of his opening song and it is a slightly more dance oriented remix that clocks here at 3'38. Perfect for me, even if it doesn't add a lot more to the original.
14/ CHEMISTRY (DIGITAL DOG REMIX) 6/10
I can't understand why this is the Digital Dog full length remix that has been chosen to end this yet perfect tracklisting. Their sound is more electro & hyped for sure but the radio edit would have fitted nicely and it could have been followed by some more remixes or bonuses like leaked demo Superlove. But now that I know the one and only ex PWL MixMaster Pete Hammond (aka God, nearly...) has remixed it, I had hoped it would be HIS remix that would fit The Queen tracklisting. Maybe on the UK edition... ?

YES! the real Pet Shop Boys are coming back !

YES, the Pet Shop Boys are back in town and this time, there's no acoustic pop-rock or trendy electronica, it's all about pop music like they used to do and like their fanbase like them to be.
Yes, is the name of their tenth studio album and it is also available in a double CD limited edition titled Yes, Pet Shop Boys etc., the etc. bonus CD including a bonus track featuring Phillip Oakey of the Human League and 6 dub versions of some of the album songs.

The album has been completely produced by Brian Higgins & his Xenomania team (of Girls Aloud UK fame, whose single The loving kind has been co-written by the Pet Shop Boys while recording their album) and latest big producing sensation of last years. They co-wrote 3 out of the 11+1 songs of the album so you don't really hear their usual song signature but they've managed to make the duo sound himself as well as up-to-date. The goal for this new album is clearly to appeal to the masses like their poptastic album of 1993 Very did.

The lead-off single, Love etc., is one of the 3 collaborations and is a bouncy uptempo with repetitive rhythm and galoping melody, with a Xenomania verses/chorus typical trademark. The boys' real work was on the lyrics, meaning superficial lifestyle and never satisfied people are missing the real thing, love. Although odd in style, this single is a perfect introduction to their comeback album and a memorable anthem for sure.

Following track, All over the world, was featured in their Brits award TV show's medley so could easily become a single too. Including a Tchaikovsky theme melodic line, it is another pop anthem with memorable chorus.

Beautiful people cools things down a little, being a classic PSB mid-tempo all with brass & strings, the boys wanted to feature in the soundtrack of the UK TV Series of the same name. It reminds me of some of their previous work but I can't think of which ones. Classic would sum it up. Noticeable is Johnny Marr's guitar and harmonica on this one.

His guitar is back on board as soon as the intro of Did you see me coming? starts but it all fades into the pop perfection of this sure-to-be the next single (I hope so). It has it all, with the title phrase being the lead chorus line you cannot get out of your head after only one listen... It has HIT written all over it!

Another memorable song perfection in the classic PSB territory, but the melancholic & mid-tempo one a la Being boring, Vulnerable is another single potential song on this album, but aren't they all ? Clocking at 4'47, the song would only need a little editing to fit radio formats and it wouldn't sound bad to have some vulnerable lines cut, the title word being far too repetitive all in all in the whole song for my taste.

More than a dream is the second Xenomania co-written song included and has a strong melody and arrangements, anthemic lyrics and uplifting choruses in perfect Xenomania style ; another highlight of the album for sure and in my heart. I believe we can change, we can make it more than a dream it goes and this song particularly makes me think of what the Boys said about the inspiration for this Yes album, the Obama Yes, we can! campaign. This optimistic song sums it all and should appeal to US audience even more.

Then comes Building a wall. Johnny Marr's guitar is once again featured on this upbeat song that see Chris shouting back to Neil some lines with more narrative parts too, that talks about being reclusive more than excluding. A fine album track.

I have the same déjà vu feeling for King of Rome I had about Beautiful people, and even more. It sounds like Dreaming of the Queen, Part 2, all laidback and breezy. It apparently refers to Napoleon's son (...?) and is a nice classic PSB mid-tempo, nothing new but nothing bad (except maybe its length, 5'31, a little long compared to the usual 3'30 length of the other pop numbers).

Next track, Pandemonium is another single must-be, all dance-pop at its best, uplifting, with electronical arrangement, memorable Wooo hooooo choir line, scanding rhythm and even bits of harmonica. This song inspired by the love/hate lovestory of Kate Moss & Pete Doherty was meant for Kylie Minogue but she apparently thought it wasn't for her. Although I like her too, I think it suits PSB's style more than hers. It was even at some stages supposed to give its name to the whole album. It would have sounded good as an album name too, but The Time already used this in 1990.

Then comes another perfect addictive track (again!), The way it used to be. It si the third Xenomania collaboration but it sounds more classic PSB than for the previous other two. All melancholic but upbeat, I would love to see it released as a single too. But That means more than half the album would be so I woudln't want to be in the place of the Boys and their record company to decide which song is going to eb released as 2nd and 3rd single. More could be too but that isn't the pace nowadays... In final, I'd say this is the song I like the most on the album, Pet Shop Boys at their best but modern.

The album is ending with an epic and orchestral 6'21 final song called Legacy. The song is not really memorable, only the lines You'll get over it stay in mind. It is all about being musically experimental here, I think. It would have suited best a B-side to me... The only let-down of the album but a bad one as it is the last track.
Thankfully, I've bought the limited edition and I've got a second CD to put in my player.

After some atmospherical intro bits, This used to be the future really starts with electronical noises & keyboards, to pay tribute to 80's coldwave a la Gary Numan, Erasure & Human League I think. This song is all retro sounding with Chris & his vocoder back on board (like in the days of Paninero) before Human league's leader Phillip Oakey comes & share the mic too. It wouldn't have found its place on the Yes tracklisting so it sounds better to have it aside opening the etc. CD.

The other tracks are Dub versions by Xenomania with or without the Boys of More than a dream, Pandemonium, The way it used to be, All over the world, Vulnerable and Love etc. These versions take the songs more into the Club sounds than the initial Pop but they stay poptastic with still vocals included. It reminds me of Relentless, the bonus disc for Very, but it was all unreleased songs there, not just remixes so I would have prefered more bonus new songs but these dub versions are fine though. That bonus tracklisting makes me think that songs that don't appear have less chances to become singles as it partly includes best potential ones for sure and it leaves me regreting Did you see me coming? hasn't been remixed there...

Just a few words on the Love, etc. B-sides. The Pet Shop Boys have always given their fans extra tracks displayed on singles formats and this time like always : First, there's We're all criminals that, despite its lyrics, is a breezy sing-a-long song I would have loved to see included on the album, then, there is Gin and jag, a darker and moody track. Both were completed and produced after the Xenomania recording sessions.

So What?
If you're a PSB fan, you already have ordered it so I'm sure it will soon & for long feature in you CD player,
If you're a PSB addict, you had pre-ordered the limited edition and you already know this new album by heart and it has entered your Top3 of PSB albums,
If you're curious about it, know and like some of PSB oldies and have been thinking Love etc. was a nice but odd piece of electronical pop, go for it, you won't be deceived !
Else, I'm afraid this wonderful piece of art will pass you by, just like all PSB albums since the Very era. Like Depeche Mode, Erasure and all thoses 80's synth-pop bands, nowadays, the Pet Shop boys only sell to their fanbase and hardly gain new fans. A real shame ! I can only their collaboration with Xenomania opens them a door to new recruits among the young generations that like Girls Aloud, Alesha Dixon, etc.

Heritage, by Shazz, when soulful House meets Blues a la Moby

I already bought an album by french house veterans SHAZZ (aka Didier Delesalle). It was his 4th album "Beautiful", released in 2004, on which he invited an all women's vocal cast of quality to sing beautiful songs for a whole package of delicate & mellow after-hours electronic and organic soul. A stripped to the bone cover version of the Annie Lennox song "Cold" by Laura Mayne-Kerbrat (ex Native) introduced me to it but the whole album is an intemporal masterpiece for loungin' evenings with friends, all with good french food and good wine, the perfect music to listen to -and- to have conversation with.


After years of wait, Shazz delivers another masterpiece and I didn't even knew it before seeing its beautiful cover in a record shop. I was tempted but wanted to hear it a little before buying it straight away, even though the cover art and nice price made me want it hard... So when I came back home, I surfed into myspace and went to his page (www.myspace.com/shazzmusic ) to listen to his player with current songs and instantly knew I already regretted not to have bought it. So I ordered it on line and finally had this latest object of desire a few days after in my CD player.



"Heritage" is another warm and mellow piece of time that you need to listen from its start to its end, untemporal, which means, like for "Beautiful", it will stand the test of time and won't sound "old" in ten years from here. Shazz goes back to his House roots, never leaving the organic Soul, but adding a touch of Blues. This album makes me think of "Play" by Moby, but with less electronics & samples and more soul & real vocals.
Shazz delivers this album credited with the lead vocalist, previous partner in crime on some songs for first albums, Michael Robinson. Pianos are played by long-time partner & co-writer Alexandre Destrez, who has collaborated with Ludovic Navarre (aka Saint-Germain), and to know what to expect from this musical-journey-into-after-clubs-drive-out-in-the-american-desert-at-sunrise, just feel it's all breezy and warm, more mid-tempo & atmospheric than uplifting and uptempo but all in all, it is all cheerful and joyful, as if you were laying arms open wide like a cross on a warm desert ground with the eyes closed and a red sun upon you re-charging your inner battery. This album is an absolutele must-have ! In these troubled times, it will make you forget your worries for a while and have a musical journey in a better place, between yesterday and today, between dreams and reality.

I've only got one bad word to say about it : it is TOO SHORT! When the play is over, you can only push the "repeat" button once more, again and again, or put on the repeat mode .
Shall I add this physical CD is once more packed up in a quality digipack with beautiful photographs and if you want to buy it, buy it physical rather than digital, please !

Disco Defenders come from Sweden (again!)

Time to write more music reviews because there are LOADS of fresh pop albums that I cannot help but talk about...

First in line, the third studio album of swedish trio-then-quatuor-then-back-trio ALCAZAR. It is called Disco Defenders and has just been released as a double CD album including a 12 tracks new album (+1 remix) backed with a 13 best of compilation as a bonus.




FORGET ABOUT THE AWFUL COLOURFULL & KITSCHISSIME COVER ART !

It's ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC, Thank you !

After a third line-up change, Andreas & Tess are coming back with a new brunette Lina and they's musically back in form, as if they were never gone, thanks, for a great part, to super-producer Anders Hansson, who lately produced Agnes Carlsson's third album and pop masterpiece Dance Love Pop.

1. We Keep On Rockin' 9.5/10
CD One, called "Now", starts with the first single that was released last year to tease fans for their return. We keep on rockin' is a pure disco cheesy anthem that clicks on every right button to make us revival their best moments, claps, disco loops, rollovers, instant chorus and Alcazar brand-name dropping. There is no doubt Anders Hansson has produced the best item from the Alcazar factory's new collection here.
2. Burning 10/10
Next song (and single for sure) sees Alcazar go for a more electro-ized sound, still with disco roots though, and it fits them perfectly too. We're not far from something between swedish queens Velvet or September, but with male/female vocals. Vocally I miss Magnus though. The girls sound equally good when I think the quatuor version with Magnus & Andreas (who used to be lovers) voices mixed very well.
3. Stay The Night 10/10
Stay the night is Alcazar's third attempt at Melodifestivalen and current single and it completely ROCKS ! The music starts and you're totally taken, blown away by it. You can't do nothing but be lost in the catchy melody, memorable chorus, perfect vocals... It's a real shame they didn't won to go for Sweden at this year's Eurovision show. It was the best song of all. Stay the night, co-written by Anders Hansson with the band, has already becomed a favourite of mine along Someday, Ménage à trois or Crying at the discotheque.
4. From Brazil With Love 7.5/10
Co-written by Danny Saucedo, this new song is a festive brazilian inspired disco number that, on their Disco Defenders album, is like Kylie's Loveboat on her Light Years album : a Copacabana exotic musical fantasy lost in a disco-pop album. The strangest thing about it is not its inclusion here as it fits Alcazar well but who wrote it as it is far far away from what Danny usually is musically, either solo or in E.M.D.
5. Inhibitions 7/10
Another Anders Hansson song & production, but with full on phatt guitars still in for a disco inspired single. This one was digitally released after We keep on rockin' but didn't really clicked with their fanbase to launch the album. Truth is the song is little too repetitive in its melody/chorus lines and the more rocky sound doesn't fit them really. The song lacks their usual glamour & musical strass.
6. Harlem Nights 6.5/10
Anders Hansson is still on duty on the next track and we all go with some Cabaret inspiration with this very rythmic with fingers snapping song. Very old school approach with still a modern base : the song is strange but it may be a grower. It's not my cup of tea though. When it comes to a Broadway sound-a-like, I like it the way miss Kylie re-invents her Better the devil you know or I should be so lucky in concerts in stripped to the bone cooled down versions. Their Harlem Nights leave me a little cold...
7. Baby 10/10
Thankfully, next track is another disco-pop gem and once again, they've been given a song by english pop genius Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe (aka the Pet Shop Boys) like Lovelife was. You call me baby goes the chorus and even if the song is lyrically a lot more simple than your usual psb song, it is a winner. I hope it becomes a further successful single for them with its moving melody and catchy chorus, surrounded by disco-dance arrangements. I am eager to hear (maybe one day) the original Pet Shop Boys produced & sung demo if it exists too...
8. Jump Straight Into The Fire 10/10
More disco rhythms with big bass, Jump straight into the fire starts like it is, another disco stomper and another Anders Hansson production. The song & chorus is catchy as hell and the lyrics are a little naughty, with the girls & boy being sexy. Single potential Alert !
9. My My Me And Mine 9/10
With still Anders Hansson on board, My my me and mine takes Alcazar back to their start musically to me. It wouldn't have sounded out of place on their debut but it isn't a let-down. I think it only expresses the continuity in their music goal : go round like a record on what they know how to do best : disco inspired dance-pop where all their influences melt together. Once again, all Alcazar's members co-write this one too.
10. Funkytown 8/10
As its title showed, next track is a cover of the disco anthem by Lipps Inc. The intro sounds like being speeded up but the rhythm goes down the right route very fast with their rendition being faithful as well as up-to-date, once again with Anders Hansson on production duties, amongst others. It is sometimes hard to convince when recording a new version of a song that is part of the collective musical history but I have to say they've succeed : their version is okay. I don't think I'll get away with it as a single release but as an album track, it is right.
11. Put The Top Down 7.5/10
The tempo sounds like it's being toned down a little with this close to the end more accoustic song. The melody is very light, catchy but although a good song, it doesn't sound like Alcazar to me. It is folk, not disco... It could have been recorded by Danny & friends on their E.M.D. album. Anders' voice dominates more than half the song but the girls take the lead on a breezy bridge before final choruses & fade. I think it is a very strange choice for inclusion on the album.
12. Thank You 10/10
A full on grand piano and vocal intro start the song very slowly, like some of Steps' song did when they were trying to re-catch ABBA's magic and it is just what Alcazar are doing here : when comes the chorus, the 70's are back there with campy & glamorous outfits like only Frida & Agnetha could wear back in the days. Musically and lyrically, Thank you is a tribute to ABBA, Alcazar's Thank you for the music or sort of. A little too old-fashioned maybe for a single release for masses but definitely one of the greatest moments Alcazar have ever recorded !
13. Stay The Night (Club Mix)
The album's conclusion is a more clubby remix of Stay the night that erases a little the disco sounds for a more contemporary dance sound a la Burning.

Second CD, called Then, puts all their previous hits together, like they already were on their previous release Alcazar Deluxe, except for Here I am which is not included here and Don't you want me is not the Almighty remix like it was on previous Best Of :
1. This Is The World We Live In
2. Crying At The Discoteque
3. Ménage À Trois
4. Sexual Guarantee
5. Don't You Want Me
6. Start The Fire
7. Shine On
8. Not A Sinner Nor A Saint
9. Physical
10. Ritmo Del Amor
11. Alcastar
12. Love Life
13. Someday

In conclusion, Disco Defenders assumes its title for Alcazar are making every disco style theirs here all with pop brilliance and you cannot do without it in your discography for sure. The Then CD makes all the more this new album a must-have for every Alcazar old like new fan and even more when Alcazar Deluxe wasn't one of the albums you had bought (like for me).
So you can bet I used my http://www.msplinks.com/MDFodHRwOi8vd3d3LmNkb24uY29t once again... So should you !

Set your body free with swedish boy Danny Saucedo

With his second solo album (and third in all) stuck in my multi-CD player since I got it from my favourite swedish music-online retailer CDON.com last weekend, I was feeling it was hightime to post about Danny Saucedo's music.



Danny gained the swedish public's attention while being one of the finalist on TV show Idols 2006 (Nouvelle Star in France). He didn't win but got a music contract with Sony/BMG and released his first single, the piano-driven eurodance number one Tokyo. His album Heart Beats followed with next single Play it for the girls, both number one in the swedish charts either. While lots of ex-Idols go middle of the road musically, Danny chose dance music and with success. His first album was a package full of quality tunes, including work from 2N Production team or September's producer to name a few, from the melodic orchestral/trancy I'll be over you, to the single potential Only wanna be with you, energetic dance-pop numbers Doe or die, Blue, Hey (I've been feeling kind of lonely) or the disco inspired Pure delight. The secret treasure was the third single Danny re-recorded into a duet with swedish diva Therese, If only you, which "only" reached #4, although the instant melody and melancholic piano overtune made it an instant hit.



Following that success, Danny didn't start working on a new album but instead joined forces with two other ex-Idols to tour Sweden and release a new album as a boysband ; E.M.D. was born : E was for Erik Segerstedt, M for Mattias Andréasson and D... guess who?




They first single was a cover version of Bryan Adams hit All for love and it was a new number one on the swedish charts. So were the following singles Jennie let me love you & Alone and the album A State Of Mind, which includes another great cover, You, originally by Ten Sharp, but the dance sounds were all gone : the trio were all in for mainstream MOR success and the album full of romantic ballads and pop/rock numbers to make the heart of the swedish girls melt in tour. Maybe the purpose was to make them a greater fanbase, I don't know but I'm glad Danny returned back to his solo career in dance music as he released Set your body free after Christmas 2008 with the opening single Radio.



Starting with piano notes, Radio builds up into a pure dance/nrg anthem and the rest of the album follows. Danny's new single All on you is made by none other than The Attic and is pure disco-housed dancepop like they know how to do. Emely is very reminiscent of Abba, which is a must-have in every swedish album, but there's a little bit of R&B flavour added to the dance bits too, on Andreas Carlsson's Utopia for example, which can only be the next single, or Schitzophrenia and Just like that where Danny does his best Justin Timberlake. The latter or Set your body free could easily be further singles too. While I'm talking of singles, shall I say that Tokyo and the duet version of If only you have been included at the end of the CD after the 12 new songs and that an acoustic version of Radio can be downloaded as a bonus from iTunes.

You can go check him further at his site http://www.myspace.com/dannyartist too

Quentin Mosimann : album#2 : Arrêtez de parler de ré-édition!

J'étais énervé, la semaine dernière encore, à l'approche de la sortie de la "ré-édition de l'album DUEL" de Quentin Mosimann.
D'abord, parce que j'avais cru lors de la sortie initiale qu'un double album bien rempli (chroniqué ici sur une page plus ancienne) nous éviterait le petit jeu marketing d'Universal de le ressortir allongé de remixes ou clips en bonus puisqu'il était déjà constitué d'un CD de remixes.
J'ai donc tiré à boulet rouge sur cette ré-édition en demandant pourquoi il ne sortait pas plutôt un nouvel album s'il y avait "7 inédits" dans cette "ré-édition" et m'arc-boutant sur cette résistance typiquement gauloise aux lois du marketing, je clamais haut et fort qu'il ne faudrait pas espérer me voir acheter le dit objet en version physique mais juste collecter sur site légal les titres nouveaux...

IL N'Y A QUE LES IMBECILES QUI NE CHANGENT PAS D'AVIS...


Parce qu'après tout, le tracklisting ressemble finalement plus à un nouvel album (bien rempli aussi, 15 plages) qu'à cette "ré-édition" que l'on essaie de nous vendre.
Bon d'accord, on y retrouve le deuxième single extrait de "Duel", Il y a je t'aime et je t'aime ainsi que le précédent, Cherchez le garçon, version swing comme version electro, ainsi que C'est l'amour et Il mio refugio (toujours versions swing) et Such a shame et Holiday (de la face electro cette fois). Mais ces retours en arrière sont finalement moins nombreux que les nouvelles plages. Enfin presque puisque l'on arrive à égalité 7 contre 7, départagé par un remix de Holiday de 6'59 (contrairement au temps imprimé sur le CD qui fait bégayer celui de la version radio le précédant... bin alors, y'a pas de contrôleur avant envoi en typo chez Universal? Fallait pas compresser le personnel comme ça, merde! A combien d'exemplaires boulettés a-t-il été pressé ce CD?? Il finira collector). Les pinailleurs -comme moi- diront que J'pensais pas n'est pas si new que ça puisqu'il figurait en bonus du CD single de Il y a je t'aime et je t'aime. OK mais dans une version différente et plus longue qu'ici... Allez, on se la fait à 50/50 alors!
Et puis pour clore le débat, c'est pas compliqué, si c'était une "ré-édition", ça se serait appelé Duel Reloaded par exemple. Pourquoi changer le titre, hein? Le problème, c'est que les dieux du Marketing d'Universal ne savent pas comment vendre un CD avec du nouveau matériel après un premier album sous-exploité.

Ce que je retiens donc en tout cas ce sont les nouvelles chansons : Exercices de Mate, Ose, Switzerland, J'pensais pas, pour l'entrée de CD calme, et Carpe diem, Tears (sensual mix) et Coexist pour la deuxième partie plus Club.

En deuxième position, Après une entrée en matière lumineuse et magnifique (mais j'ai déjà tout dit sur Il y a je t'aime et je t'aime et l'amour que je porte à ce titre), Quentin nous surprend avec Exercices de Mate. Signée Christian Bouclier et François Bernheim, cette chanson se la joue rythmique swingante et très entrainante pour enrober à la perfection un texte très drôle jouant sur l'allitération en "Mat" au phrasé forcé et donc très second degré de Quentin qui se prend même un rateau en direct live par une Dani invitée de 2 secondes qui le traite de "Primate" de sa voix de papier gitane. J'adorerais voir ce titre être le single suivant mais ça risquerait tout de même d'avoir du mal à passer en radio : trop décalé sans doute, mais au combien jouissif !
Ose, toujours sur une compo François Bernheim, enchaîne en jouant sur la corde sensible déjà titillée par Il y a je t'aime et je t'aime. C'est normal, c'est la même parolière. "Ose être toi, ose vivre ta vie quelques soient tes choix" implore Quentin sur ce refrain et l'on se dit que c'est un bien bel hymne que chacun pourra trouver à son goût, gay dans son placard, hétéro amoureux de la femme de son pote, sauteur en parachute, etc.
Switzerland rallonge la sauce du mid-tempo soutenu par le piano, moins dans l'émotion, plus dans l'ambiance ouatée et enveloppante, rythmée par les "ich liebe dich" de la belle voix de Quentin jusque dans le murmure pour la conclusion. Notez que Bernheim signe paroles et musiques cette fois.
On reconnait la chanson suivante, J'pensais pas, pour peu que l'on ait acheté le CD single portant le même nom que l'album et c'est un titre 100% Quentin, paroles et musiques, qui gagne en puissance à avoir été écourté de sa version single, même si la chanson est toute en douceur et calme planant.

Je passe donc sur les plages intermédiaires qui reprennent les moments "forts" (?) de Duel (OK pour les non-singles C'est l'amour et Such a shame mais pourquoi donc Il mio refugio ? Ce doit être un favori de Quentin... ou alors parce que c'est une signature Bernheim ?) et l'on tombe plage 11 sur Carpe diem. Poussez les chaises et les tables, agencez-vous une piste de danse au milieu du salon, Tube clubbing en puissance ! On se croirait sur le dernier album de David Guetta sauf que c'est du Quentin écrit et réalisé avec son compère d'avant Star Ac' Christian Sims. Et comme pour les suivants Holiday ou Tears, Quentin quitte la langue de Molière pour celle de Shakespeare en boostant les BPMs. Tears, dans une version sensual mix de 7'25 un peu trop longue à mon goût, enchaîne en mêlant aux rythmiques dance un saxophone porteur, parfaite symbiose Jazz/Club. Holiday continue tel que déjà représenté en bonus de Duel avant de se faire bis repetita en version longue remixée par Loic B, qui alterne nappes de synthé planantes et rythmique electro sous acid pour un bel effet mais encore une fois, la longueur me donne néanmoins envie d'utiliser la touche Next. Dois-je préciser que je suis un inconditionel des remixes version edit plutôt que des versions épiques qui carburent à plus de 7' . On ne me referra pas...
Enfin, pour finir le CD en nouveauté, la deuxième création 100% Quentin Mosimann, Coexist, déjà présentée sur son player MySpace, est une plage plus instrumentale clubby planante avec néanmoins des vocaux très en avant par moment qui tournent en boucle, comme un message subliminal à se graver entre les oreilles avant d'appuyer sur la touche Play à nouveau.

Pour conclure donc, oui j'ai été eu, j'ai acheté mon exemplaire de ce deuxième album de Quentin. Et j'ai deux regrets : D'abord, à part Il y a je t'aime et je t'aime, Holiday et peut-être Cherchez le garçon (version electro), j'aurais préféré voir de nouvelles chansons plutôt que des reprises de Duel, parce que ses nouveaux titres sont très bons. Ensuite, que les paroles de ces nouveaux titres justement n'aient pas été imprimées sur le livret, assez pauvre finalement, à part de nous offrir qu'un patchwork de photos de notre jeune chanteur. Rien qui ne soit sans doute de sa faute donc... On ne fait pas toujours ce qu'on veut chez Universal.

Welcome to the Alesha Dixon Show

There is an album that was released in the UK at the end of 2008 and that is to get a release in the coming months in France that I JUST CAN'T GET OUT OF MY home CD player, car CD player, MP3 player... It is called The Alesha Show and is by Alesha Dixon.

From jamaïcan roots but born in the UK, Alesha was part of the R&B/garage UK girlsband MIS-TEEQ and first tried to go solo in 2006 with a #14 summer hit, Lipstick. The following single, Knockdown, a Xenomania production, failed to hit the top of the charts and her follow-up album Fired Up! only got released in Japan the next year... Her solo career looked all but bright from that moment on but in 2007, she appeared in a TV british show, Strictly Come Dancing, where her dance skills and personality helped her steal the lights and win the show. Brian Higgins, head of the Xenomania team, who produced her 70's inspired Knockdown flop, called her to work on new songs and The boy does nothing was born. It led her to a #5 UK hit and opened her the doors to another CD contract with Warner Music... Thankfully! Welcome to the Alesha Show could easily end 2009 as my Album of the year from now on... Let me explain why with a full track by track review :

1/ Welcome to the Alesha Show 15/20
From a 25 seconds intro in its CD form to a full length 3'18 song, Welcome to the Alesha Show is a sassy R&B mixture that makes me think of the PussyCat Dolls, upbeat and entertaining. Naturally the CD version only marks the intro of the album and opens it up perfectly after the first look from the cover art. The full version is a free downloadable mp3 you get by puting your CD in your PC while connecting to the site of the artist. Although only in 128 kb quality, it's the kind of initiative that will help us buy more physical supports...

2/ Let's get excited 18/20
Let's get excited spices things up with this perfect upbeat that could easily be a further single off the album. Energetic, sexy, funny, this song has it all to make our heart melt and our feet move.

3/ Breathe slow 17/20
Breathe slow, on the opposite site, calms the tempo down with a mellow intro, delicate vocals and sweet melody. It has been chosen as the second single, maybe not to follow on too easily on the success of the first hit The boy does nothing. Soulshock & Karlin are the ones behind this haunting song that is a true grower. There's a Cahill remix that elevates it into an atmospherical trance-dance number with success too.

4/ Cinderella shoe 19/20
Rolling drums and a 60's inspired gimmick let us in the following track, first Xenomania collaboration on the CD, and like previous singles a true masterpiece. Repetitive but addictive, Cinderella shoe is a cute old-fashioned though modern popsong you can't get out of your head! Another contender for a single release... I've got one complain though : the song, at 2'41, is WAY too short for its brightness and appeal.

5/ The boy does nothing 20/20
"I've got a man with two left feet" goes Alesha in the intro of the song and the first seconds stick to your brain and capture your heart and soul completely : there's no denying Brian Higgins and his Xenomania team know how to write a hit, although melting verses, choruses in a joyful chaotic melting-pot. Based on a mambo rhythm, The boy does nothing is a feelgood instant song you can't get enough of. There is a promo only Bimbo Jones remix but while I'm usually addicted to their remixes more than to the originals, this time, their transformation of the song into an electro dark-house number fails to distract me from the original mambo dancing piece of art.

6/ Chasing ghosts 17/20
Chasing ghost is another haunting mellow mid-tempo track, with musical arrangements inspired by the 70's, produced by Steve Booker so sounding a bit like the Sugababes as he has worked with them lately too. This song is another grower and single potential.

7/ Play me 18/20
Xenomania's on board again and Play me is another rhythm frenzy with an upbeat chorus and piano led melody that goes round and round till it's stuck in your head. Maybe a little too repetitive for a single release but who knows?

8/ Hand it over 16/20
Time to fly to the other side of the Atlantic for a string of tracks, the first of ones by Harvey Mason Jr. The verses and overall melody are totally bland, with no real strong lines you can memorize ...until you reach the chorus. It comes in like a raging storm that rush into your ears and make you love the song you were about to quit by using the skip button... It saves the song from being a waste of time and leaves you surprised with a strong overall loving feeling, like you were kidnapped and all fell in love because of Stockholm syndrome.

9/ Do you know the way it feels 17/20
Cheesy standard ballad time! But what a wonderful time it is. We get on track 9 an invitation by none other than ballads-writer-of-the-century Diane Warren on writing duties along Stephen Lipson on production skills. So Do you know the way it feels doesn't take us by surprise : it's all warm and sweet, melancholic and emotional but uplifting like every Diane Warren song that has H-I-T written all over it. This one could easily fit on the soundtrack of some Hollywood romantic blockbuster and help Alesha break in the US market.

10/ Can I begin 15/20
A strong beat breaks in back although we're still in the mid-tempos territory with (How) Can I begin (to love again). The song is a nice and pleasant love song and good album filler but maybe three midtempos in a row is too much. I'm starting to get sleepy Zzzzzz Zzzzzz...

11/ Italians do it better 20/20
Thankfully Italians do it better speeds it up just a little bit but with so much melodic perfection that it feels like you're falling deep in a marshmallow-made warm bed full of lips, arms and legs embracing you, kissing you, making love to you... The song, another Xenomania masterpiece, is all about Alesha's man who, although not italian, does it better than anyone. The song's all about LOVE and you can feel it in her warm voice, mellow and sweet like honey. The world NEEDS this song to be a single to help us heal from the crisis' wounds simply with these simple words of love... When we hear this, we all feel like we're in love, deep in love, so deep nothing else matters than push on the repeat button.

12/ Ooh baby I like it like that 19/20
From now on, Xenomania reigns over the end of the CD and Ooh baby takes us back when times were full of eurodance gimmick lines like I like it like that or come on and touch me, BUT with a modern sound. Again, it's pure pop perfection, this time with some dance-clubbin' funky vibe, still sexy, still joyful and still addictive. Repeat. Repeat. It feels so good to surrender to your index control...

13/ Don't ever let me go 17/20
Back now to sounds of yesterdays revamped for today, Don't ever let me go is all sunny and bright with mellow verses and a breezy uplifting chorus you can't help but sing along to. Another highlight of the album.

14/ I'm thru 17/20
Originally a song by Xenomania team member Miranda 'Moonbaby' Cooper for a promotional EP that didn't help her get a signature for a major release, I'm thru (with love) is a nice feelgood 70's inspired song. It seems so incredible how Xenomania unreleased songs get recycled for other artists like if it was the PWL Hit Factory times again, when songs that flopped were given to another artist by Stock Aitken & Waterman to make it a hit. From the Moonbaby EP, three out of four have been re-vamped : Here we go for Aqua front-girl Lene, then for Girls Aloud, who were given Deadlines & Diets too, and now I'm thru with love. Only Moonbaby may look like too sticky to its original singer for not being re-used on another Xenomania project...

15/ Mystery (hidden track) 16/20
On the same CD track as I'm trhu comes a hidden track, Mystery, that finishes the album all in rhythm and hands in the air bouncing musical energy.

I don't wanna mess around (other downloadable bonus) 15/20
Now if you insert your CD in your PC while connecting to the Alesha Dixon site you get two bonus downloadable tracks, Welcome to the Alesha show in full version and this one. I don't wanna mess around is a pleasant upbeat song but you understand why it is only a bonus track. Compared to the perfection and addictive sides of previously reviewed tracks, this one sounds a little middle-of-the-road.

Colours of the rainbow (free downloadable song from the Alesha site) 18/20
Colours of the rainbow, on the contrary, although just a free teaser for the album from her site, is another incredible song ; maybe more electronical than the others to be included on the CD, it has a good melody and a very good chorus you want to sing along : it goes "I'm like the colours of the rainbow, red, white, gold and blue..."

Gold, that's all I wish for Alesha and this record. Gold, Silver, Diamond, every kind of sales prizes in every country The Alesha Show will get a release because it is simply a CD you cannot live without.
It has everything inside : party music, dance routines, emotional moments, love sounds, joyful funkiness, sympathic girl-next-door confidences...

Perfect Pop on Saturdays

Although I have bought their album when it was released (on 27th of October 2008 in the UK) and it hasn't left my CD player ever since, I didn't manage to write down a review of it on my blog. Tonight is saturday night and it's perfect time to take the time and help you discover the magic pop of The Saturdays with the Chasing Lights full review.

The Saturdays have been marketed by their record company Facination records (home of UK PopStars Girls Aloud and affiliated with Polydor / Universal) as the New Girls Aloud. They supported the superstars in their latest tour to promote their first singles and their album has been certified gold now with 3 UK Top10 hit singles.
The Saturdays are a 5 piece girlband consisting of two former S Club Juniors/8 members, über-cute Frankie Sandford & vocal talented Rochelle Wiseman, along 3 other girls, Vanessa White, Una Healy and Millie King.
Their sound is a lot more electro-dance oriented pop than the dance-rock oriented pop of Girls Aloud so their only common points are the number of members of the bands and their record company.

1/ If this is love 9/10
Co-written and produced by R&B-pop hit-makers Cutfather & Joe, their first single borrows heavily from the Yazoo Situation 80's hit with the melodic line repeated all along the track with new melody & lyrics leading the song into an uplifting dance-pop song that was perfect to introduce the band and marks their sound territory with an instant appeal. It peaked at #8 in August in the UK Charts so the girls had their chance at releasing more.

2/ Up 10/10
It was in October that their even better new single, Up, reached the #5 UK charts place and it was total injustice it didn't get to #1. Penned by another hitmakers' team, swedish Quiz & Larossi, Up had a chorus you can do nothing but sing along to. The music was all electro & bouncing with full vocals and memorable video clip. It is a track that will stand the test of time for sure!

3/ Keep her 6/10
Next track is a good electro-R&B song with strong vocals and raw synthé sounds, a favourite amongst fans, but not for me. A strange Track3 placing for a good album filler...

4/ Issues 9/10
"Me and my heart, we got issues... Don't know if I should hate you or miss you..." goes Issues' chorus and it's time for the first mid-tempo of the album, written & produced by Carl Sturken & Evan Rogers. It is their third single and the January charts peak gave the girls their best entry with a UK #4 this time. The video shows the girls in some winter beach & cosy house, with bad weather & grey atmosphere that fits the melancholic song very well.

5/ Lies 9/10
The tempo is speeding it up again with the following track to reach its climax with the "All you ever told me is lies" fantastic catchy chorus. This one is another contender for a single release but nearly 3/4 of the tracks could be... Some said this album was their Album of the year for 2008. I can't help but understand why each time I'm listening to it.

6/ Work 10/10
Second best song of the album after Up, Work is a full on rhythm R&B piece of art, your head can only nod in rhythm with, and the one that Beyoncé would kill for, and has been reported as their fourth and forthcoming single. Put that song on a turntable, pump the volume to the max, put your hands in the air and sing along in rhythm ; Work is pure raw energy !

7/ Chasing lights 9/10
Time for another mid-tempo beautiful ballad that has given its name to the album and could easily be another single. Then again, you can't help but sing along the "Go on, go on, go on" chorus lines with passion. Penned by Chris Braide with a girl that is, as named in the booklet, the group's sixth member, Ina Wroldsen, lyricist of all the songs but three on the album.

8/ Set me off 7/10
Still electro sounding but rather more a R&B thing, Set me off is another perfect album filler, but not the one that sets my heart on fire, penned by the same producers as Keep her & Lies.

9/ Fall 10/10
Led by a piano intro that immediately calms down the tempo, Fall is the true romantic masterpiece of the album, the kind that would be perfect for a single release around the 14th of February if you know what I mean... Another highlight for the girls with very strong vocals and beautiful harmonies.

10/ Vulnerable 8/10
The rhythm speeds up a little with Vulnerable but we're again in the mid-tempo pace with a soulful R&B approach. Arrangements are inventive and the song is another addictive one.

11/Why me, why now 8/10
Originally a demo by Alex Cartana, Why me, why now tends to extend the Saturdays' musical territory with a more pop-rock approach, always with soul and bits of electro. Girls Aloud could have easily made this song theirs for sure, although not a Xenomania song.

12/ Up (Wideboys remix edit) 10/10
The album ends with a remix of the leading single, done by much in demands garage first, now electro mix-wizzards Wideboys. Their remix adds electro sounds & uplifting loops that put even more energy in Up.

I personally think the Moto Blanco radio remix of If this is love should have been included as well as it added something to the original. The Yazoo sampled track became a full on disco-house winner but hey, if I did it for my digital home-made album, you can do the same correction to your own album.

I shall then talk about The Saturdays singles B-sides as, for now, every single release has seen a new song added to the single's CD.
What am I gonna do was a pleasant pop song but I understand why it was only put as a Bside to If this is love. Same doesn't apply though to Crashing down, a cover of The Nolans produced by ex-PWL remix team Jewels & Stone that is only available on the Up single. The track is a pure electro-disco stomper and I can't understand it hasn't been featured on the album!!! Like most of previous Jewels & Stone collaborations with Sophie Ellis-Bextor, their tracks are hidden to the mainstream public and I still wonder why as they bring out the best of the artist they work with... For Issues, The girls covered the Four Seasons hit Beggin' in an accoustic way, surfing the wave after the previously covered hit version by Madcon.

Now for Work, I assume we will get another new track, maybe some unreleased material from the album sessions like Not good enough (nice mid-tempo that has leaked in low quality) or Believe in me (still to hear) or maybe a brand new song. Release date has yet to be confirmed but I can't wait !

I hope you've been teased enough by this review to give The Saturdays their chance but I still add some 7digital samples (where you can buy it on 320kb mp3 for less than £5...

My Top 25 Hits of 2008

It's the traditional time of the year when a year fades away and another new one begins to take a look at what's behind and think of the best moments...
Musically, it will expressed by my Top 25 of the songs I liked best during 2008.

Here they come!

01 Ysa Ferrer Sens interdit
From the moment I got my hands on Ysa Ferrer's Imaginaire Pur album, I fell deeeeeeeeeply in love with this song, knowing it could only be destined to be her next single. It will be released soon in January but for now on it is its album version that tops my charts of the year. I'll never ever get enough if it !!
02 US5 Round & Round
Looking back at the first time I clicked on a link to the video of the new song of this obscure german boysband, I didn't thought I would find this is the second best song of the year for me but truth is it has stayed on my mp3 player since that time, I am still hypnotised by the Can't get you out of my head inspired video and Jay's gorgeous & sexy look cannot explain it all... This song is simply an instant hit, electro dance/pop at its best with bits of R&B, melodic vocals, vocoderized lines that stick to your brain...
03 The Saturdays Up
First time I heard this new UK girlsband with a single that is further down my top, I thought to myself they were the new Girls Aloud, with less rock and more electro. Their second single, Up, proved they were more than one-hit wonders. This track is simply addicting. Listen to it once and you'll be singing its chorus for the rest of the day !
04 Louisy Joseph Assis par terre
I wouldn't have bet on this ex L5 (first french popstars) to become a favourite of mine with a more reggae oriented accoustic pop but this song has a killer chorus. I still can't get enough of her singing with her musky voice WwwwwAssis par terre, voir le monde qui défile et n'avoir pour domicile qu'un bout de trottoir... The lyrics, written from the point of view of a homeless people living on the street and beggin' for life, are very good and fit this pop song, which is a real treat. Second best french song of the year !
05 Eurobandið This is my life
Like every year, the Eurovision song contest is one of my cherished moment of the year and this song was the icelandic entry, a pure moment of dance energy that deserves a very good placing in my personal charts.
06 Freemasons feat. Katherine Ellis When you touch me
Freemasons cannot do wrong these days and this collaboration with power diva Katherine Ellis is the best anthem of the year for me : disco house at its best.
07 Ysa Ferrer On fait l'amour
Whatever the version, radio edit, acoustic mix done by the Cassandre duo or other remixes, this other Ysa single, based on a sample of La Serenissima, is another classic of the year that has just faded. I've listened to it the whole year. 2008 Has really been the year of the return of our kosmic french diva.
08 Girls Aloud The Loving Kind
First only an album track, now the first single of the girls for 2009, this Pet Shop Boys co-written Xenomania song stands as the best of the Girls Aloud sound for me, one of the best songs they have ever recorded. I really hope they could become more famous in France with the new year that's beginning but ...is that a goal for them when these UK Popstars have charted worldwide with 5 hit albums and a best of already... ?
09 Britney Spears Womanizer
The song of Britney's big comeback and truly a masterpiece, served by a perfect video and a repetitive but addictive chorus. I can only imagine if it had been released earlier in the year to which level it could have finished in my charts...
10 Kylie Minogue The one (Freemasons radio edit)
This year, Kylie has been a little shaded by the poor promotion EMI uses for her lastest album X. The one has only been a digital release in the UK but the song, which was one the best of the album, has been remixed by the Freemasons duo and once again, it has becomed a gemm that will stand along Better the devil you know or Your disco needs you in my most played songs of her list.
11 Alphabeat Boyfriend (Pete Hammond retro mix)
Alphabeat's song was nothing but a good one till they got it remixed by ex PWL star Pete Hammond. He has done it so that it would sound like a vintage mix like in the Hit Factory times and the magic has worked all over again ! It has become a classic for all S/A/W fans, no matter the year of production. WE WANT MORE OF THESE KINDS OF MIXES IN 2009 !!!! Please...
12 Kylie Minogue Wow
Wow! Another Kylie song and the best of her X album for sure, except I've listened to it maybe a little too much... before its release as a single. Another intemporal hit of her nevertheless.
13 Girls Aloud Can't speak french
Another Girls Aloud single, but an older one, the last one from the previous album and from the start of 2008, but one I still haven't got enough of. For us poor lil' french unknowing people of their gorgeousness and unlimited talent, the girls have recorded a french version that is ...haunting. I like their accent when they speak in the language of Moliere but original is incredible and the video portrayed them dressed like in Versailles outfits. That is what classy pop should always mean !
14 Jennifer Hudson Spotlight (Moto Blanco radio edit)
The original song is a good R&B popsong but the Moto Blanco, like all their remixes, took the song to the dance pop territory with more power and it has found the way to my heart, what the original song's melody had not. 2008 has been a terrible year for the young lady, seeing her both hit the spot with this single and her performance in the Sex & The City film, and go through the loss of some of her clsoe family, shot dead at home.
15 Estelle feat. Kanye West American boy (SoulSeekerz radio mix)
Once more the original of a song did nearly nothing to me while getting to the top of the charts worldwide BUT a remix of it made my heart melt. This time it is the Soul Seekerz that did the job perfectly and made me love this too much heard before hit of 2008.
16 Dannii Minogue vs Jason Nevins Touch me like that
Lazy Dannii's only new single of the year was a perfect disco dance collaboration with top stars remixer Jason Nevins and even if it lacked the lil' bits that could have made it a BIG hit, it is still a powerful anthem on my private dancefloor playlist.
17 The Saturdays If this is love (Moto Blanco radio edit)
Second hit on my charts for the girls and first single from them in 2008, this Yazoo sampled dancepop jewel was good in its original version but reached a higher level with the Moto Blanco (them again!) remix. Speeded up and with a watered down sample presence, it became another favourite of mine for months.
18 M.Pokora feat. Timbaland & Sebastian Dangerous
When it got released this lil' french boy's attempt at breaking it BIG in the international market made me fall in love immediately. Along with US5's song it got played and played again in my car while driving early in the morning to work with forceful use of the Repeat mode but the magic disappeared faster than Round & Round. Or I got bored by my overuse of it. It stayed a very good commercial pop/R&B track, one of the better ones Timbaland have produced.
19 Alesha Dixon The Boy Does Nothing
Ex Mis-Teeq girl came back from far, far away but Xenomania's touch hit the spot like most of the time and this mambo flavoured pop song is addictive. Its Bimbo Jones remix is good too, taking it more on the dancefloor than in the dance class.
20 Gabriella Cilmi Sweet About Me
Fourth Xenomania's production and second in a row, Sweet about me must be one of the most long hit of the year in the UK. If it wasn't an instant one, it slowly climbed the charts and stayed for months in middle places, selling her classy album. I wish our latest Nouvelle Star's winner of 2008 could record such a good song to fit her voice and music style perfectly.
21 Ysa Ferrer To Bi Or Not To Bi
Released by the end of 2007 and being #15 in my last year's charts, this comeback song of Ysa Ferrer praising sexual versality has stayed one of the best of 2008 in my heart too.
22 Quentin Mosimann Il y a je t'aime et je t'aime
Best ballad of the year ! Tender, touching and simply beautiful, this original composition from last year's Star Academy winner was the real treat of his album and now the lead single of its re-release. If the video is a lilttle cheap for me (I would have liked a simple man-to-piano close-up best) the song can still become a best of 2009...
23 Ne-Yo Closer (Stonebridge radio edit)
Ne-Yo was in my eyes some talented R&B star but this single, even in its original mix, made it more of a dance/pop divo and Swedish house master Stonebridge gave it a full treatment that can't be ignored.
24 Rihanna Disturbia
2007 saw two hits for Rihanna in my personal charts, 2008 only see one and a poor one. Must be because her latest album si gettin' old now and there has been too many re-releases. I am waiting now for her next one in 2009 but Disturbia nevertheless has been a wonderful & odd hit.
25 Cassandre Liberté
Transposed into music with magnificience and usual talent by the french duo, this Paul Eluard poem is simply touching and beautiful in its original piano version but the single release dressed it with dance remixes like Thomas Dorian's one that made it a hidden treasure ; maybe hard to discover but so warm & pleasant when you're into it...

On the album side, you would have bet, Ysa Ferrer's Imaginaire Pur is the winner of the year !
But very close comes the digital-only release from 2007 by Cassandre, Il était une histoire, that is widely available on digital stores and that I can only ask you to check, then BUY!!
Then, all in alphabetical order, I would name Lene Alexandra Welcome To Sillycon Valley, Almighty ShowGirls We Love Kylie, Bimbo Jones Harlem 1 Stop, BWO Pandemonium, Agnes Carlsson Dance Love Pop, Gabriella Cilmi Lessons To Be Learned, Alesha Dixon The Alesha Show, Colton Ford Tug Of Wars, Girls Aloud Out Of Control, Infernal Electric Cabaret, Lady Gaga The Fame, Quentin Mosimann Duel, Neo One, Kate Ryan Free, Sabrina Erase/Rewind, Same Difference Pop, The Saturdays Chasing Lights, Seal Soul, The Snoopy Lads A Ruby In Blue, Britney Spears Circus, Donna Summer Crayons, Vogue From Klubland With Love, Laurent Wolf Wash My World.
Plus, there have been albums released by the end of 2007 that have stayed in 2008 on my playlist : Freemasons Unmixed, Booty Luv Boogie Tonight, Cerrone Celebrate!, Alan Connor After Midnight, Danny Heartbeats, Rihanna Good Girl Gone Bad.

NB : Danny has just released his second solo album Set Your Body Free so it should count as a 2008 album of notice but it surely stand in my 2009 list !

Disco-Soul Divas Alert : The Plan !

It's been nearly two years I think that I know Soren Jensen in the networld. He is a HUGE Ian Levine addict and completist and as I like a lot the 90's productions of the man, I first surfed pages about the man's discography that Soren put online and asked him a couple of questions before sharing more info and becoming MySpace friends.
He first reached one goal when he became close to his beloved producer, being able to touch old demos and unreleased material then releasing newsletters for every new Ian Levine releases.
Now he has reached another limit : create his own music label, Night Dance Records, and release his first record, a 2CD package of soul flavoured discopop like a fan of Ian Levine could do : The Plan.

Named after the first single Stick to the plan, this album includes 20 (!) original songs written or co-written by Soren, some with Ian Levine partner in crime Clive Scott, some with UK lyricist Philip Carter, all sung by several disco soul divas, from yesterday to nowadays, but all sounding better than ever.

First, there's Evelyn Thomas, the never forgotten performer of the Ian Levine hit of the 80's High Energy. Here she sings the great Stick to the plan she co-wrote with Soren, whose single release includes fabulous electro house remixes by french Laurent Schark or Wayne G & Porl Young.

She sings three other songs, the equally disco stomping Infidelity, the laid-back melancholic & breezy Why must the sunrise and the galloping disco-fun number Missing the target. The lady's voice hasn't lost any power at all and this collaboration must have been a blessed one for the young producer.

Then there is Tahira Jumah, a young session singer that has previously worked with Ian Levine. Soren tried to get qualified for the danish pre-selection for Eurovision in 2008 with a song he wrote and make her sing, Every day's a new day. He wasn't selected but this song, all soulish and poppy, ends the CD and is the only track which Ian Levine put his production skills on along with Soren & Clive Scott. She has been given 3 other songs here, Been there, done that and Seasons come around again, Motown-inspired as well, and To be loved by him, which sounds to me like a My man, the sequel.

Another Ian Levine's young session lady, Corine Armstrong, has 4 songs here, the full-on dreamy mid-tempo Point of no return, and 3 disco numbers that could all compete for being the next single : The challenge, a powerful up-to-date disco house anthem, Feet keep on movin', another galloping disco stomp on which you can't help your feet movin'..., and Stronger than ever, a beautiful orchestred disco soul song with a strong anthemic chorus. The lady co-wrote the latter with both Soren Jensen & Clive Scott and Ian Levine's partner's influence on these tracks is clear. They could have been featured on any recent Northern Soul compilation for sure.

Another session singer, Donna Williams, sings on Thinking of you and on the euro-cheese I will follow my dream, all wrapped with key change & a good rhythm, and brings us back in the days when europop was all over radios.

Pamela Ivonne-Cole, a talented background vocalist, has another contender for next single with the pure anthem Spider in a cobweb. This powerful disco hit has all the right spots : good vocals, good melody, good lyrics & a good beat. The chemistry's all here to make it a hit ! The other song she sings here, Let us try again, is a sweet ballad with a spanish guitar intro, pleasant & nice like a necessary pause between the dance tracks to take a sip and then get back on the dancefloor.

Then there is Pearly Gates (of The Flirtations) who's been given an old school flavoured disco soul number, One time too many, and another Motown inspired winner Stop for love where her voice shines all bright.

Finally, there is dance diva Erire who sings the hit-written-all-over-it Come to the decision, an incredibly memorable anthem where her powerful vocals suit the track & arrangements very well, as well as Standing on top of the world, which starts with a calm intro then builds up around uplifting strings to become a full on vocal disco soul powertrack.

So let's count with me, there's just enough fingers on my hands and your hands for the extra value tracklisting of The Plan CD except... that was just the first !
For a first release, Night Dance Records have chosen to give us no choice BUT buy it for this release comes all in a glossy digipack with classy booklet and two (!) CDs. The second one includes remixes of 10 songs from the first CD, all in full length version and housefully made by Laurent Schark plus a megamix of The Plan songs by MySpace man Crazy Pitcher.

So what do you think?
Isn't this release a must-have for every -disco soul lover?, -northern soul completist?, -Ian Levine follower?, -disco house addict?, -good pop songs fan?
SURE!
All you have to do is get to the Night Dance Records MySpace page http://www.myspace.com/nightdancerecords, then click on the Add to cart button for a worthy price of £15.00 (incl. p&p), then wait for Mr. Postman and then lay down for over an hour and a half to surrender to the power of this disco souled divas' heaven.

Another useful link, for those who like it more housey is the remixer's page : http://www.myspace.com/laurentschark for he has had a couple of good releases and I can't wait for his second album coming...