Swedish Fun

Brand new porn-to-music single feature today with Fun, sung by swedish blond hottie Carsten Andersson, which apparently was made for the Melodifestivalen 2010 but didn't make the cut, nor the Eurovision song contest naturally. But the song is a nice catchy piece of euro cheese like I like it, swedish dance/pop with nice vocals and good beat, except the chorus is a little repetitive. I wouldn't mind though seeing this porno blond record a whole album, between his scenes for Lucas Entertainement. I don't know which career will take off first for him. I don't feel he's a major porn star so maybe the dirty gay pop singer talkabouts could help him break the scene in pop first !

Melodifestivalen 2011

Yesterday, Sweden chose their 2011 entry for the Eurovision song contest that will take place next 14th of May in Düsseldorf. The winner of their Melodifestivalen song contest is Eric Saade with his Fredrik Kempe written song Popular. This song was one of this year's entiries that i like a lot so I am not deceived at all. It was a strong contender and nearly sure winner apparently as it finished first in the swedish public televotes as well as juries votes. It wasn't the only good entry naturally as the Melodifestivalen always brongs me every year a ton of cheesy euro pop hits.

Let's start with the ones I like, alphabetically, winner included :

First, Julie Alvgard's Better or worse is a modern piece of northern pop, sounding like Robyn with a diva voice. It has an anthemic chorus where Julie's vocal shines like a diamond, strong and powerful, and the arrangements sounds just right, but I don't know, it doesn't sound like a radio hit, not straight forward enough I think. I like it much though and wish this girl that was a web wildcard in the competition will get signed to release more material of that kind very soon.

Anniela's Elektrisk may be her first release sung in sedish, it is one of her best too. I liked her 2009 album Extravaganza and singles Stripteaser and My confession, but she was more a swedish Britney doing catchy commercial R&B/pop. This time around, this first song off her forthcoming second album Electric is pure electro dance/pop and even though I would have loved english lyrics, the swedish ones weren't a problem for me nor a reason not to like this very catchy song. I am awaiting for the album to come fore sure !

Linda Bengtzing's Ed det fel pà mej is a pure ABBA inspired retro euro pop song and the fact it is sung in english adds to the fact we can feel like it was 1990 again, before the Eurovison rules let countries record their entry in any language, english proeminently. Sweet and cheese pop overdose with this one but I don't care, I like it :)

Danny's In the club finished second and it is one of this year's entries I like the most. Saucedo's new single, released just after his cover version of The Attic's In your eyes is leading the way for his third solo album of the same title and is an anthemic electro dance number, that for sure would have brought dancers and fireworks on the Düsseldorf scene if it would have won. It hasn't but I suspect it won't prevent this song from being a hit ! Strangely, it seems this man can really lead two carriers at the same time : being a dance/pop solo act and releasing romantic acoustic pop/rock with his mates in the band E.M.D.

Dilba's Try again is a retro dance/pop song that sees the swedish singer of kurdish origin try a comeback. She failed to qualify to the final but I like her song. I hope she will try again... lol

Anders Fernette's entry, Run, a very pop/rock song with dance arrangements, is another entry that was strong enough to make it to the final but failed. Co-written by american superstar songwriter Desmond Child with Hugo lira and swedish team, sure high hopes were put in this new release, even though Anders is no newcomer in the swedish pop scene.

Sebastian Karlsson's No one else could starts with much more electro sounds than I remembered him for but soon the song becomes the usual catchy pop/rock song this former Swedish Idol 2005 contestant (and runner-up behind Agnes). I imagien he performs it on the scene with a guitar and even though I like it, there were better choices for Düsseldorf for sure.

Le Kid's Oh my God is a cheesy 80's inspired electronic piece of pop, sounding not too dissimilar from Alphabeat, with nice female vocals and a good rhythm. The band co-produced Same Difference's Karma karma reunion song with Alcazar on my recently reviewed album from them, and I can't help thinking they've kept the best song for them. Oh my God is really addictive !

Loreen's My heart is refusing me is another modern electro piece of pop with strong and deep haunting vocals by this former Swedish Idol contestant. It is her second release since she made herself known in the 2004 TV show and I must admit I'd like to hear more from her. She's got a good voice and an interesting own musical style.

Love Generation's RedOne penned Dance alone was sure a strong entry in this year's contest but it didn't win his ticket into the final in his semi-final, nor in the second chance round for which the four girls won a ticket. Dance alone nevertheless is a strong and über catchy dance/pop surefire hit and I only hope their underperformance in the Melodifestivalen won't get their forthcoming RedOne produced album withdrawn by their label as I want it badly.

Sara Lumholt's Enemy is the latest attempt from this ex A*Teens girl to have a successful solo career. She released Let's get physical then Glamorous bitch a couple of years ago but then her album was shelved before release and now we've got this Enemy as a tatste of what is next to come, I hope, as it is a pleasant power pop song with nice strings arrangements and dance elements thrown into it, along a repetitive sing-along chorus line and the girls -now a woman- sure can sings.

Melody Club don't change their recipe and their The hunter is a catchy mix of electro pop and glam rock, like they release since nearly a decade now. Even though it didn't qualify for the final, I feel the band's aim was more to come back with a bang for their fifth studio album Human harbour and to use the Melodifestivalen exposure for that, rather than hope to win and go to Düsseldorf. Even though there's much more guitar in these Melody Club releases than my usual tastes, I have always found enough electronic pop and catchiness in their tunes to follow their career. The hunter won't make me change my mind.

Sanna Nielsen is not new to the Melodifestivalen, I liked her Empty room in 2008 already, and her 2011 entry, I'm in love, has a strong anthemic chorus. The emotion break is nice too and all in all, her song is a perfect piece of pop, not too into electro/dance nor not really middle-of-the-road, so that it can appeal to everyone, including me.

Eric Saade tried to qualify for Eurovision last year with his second solo single Manboy (he first was in the swedish boysband What's Up). He finished third but this year, he's been luckier. He didn't change his style, catchy dance influenced power pop, nor his team, Fredrik Kempe on music & lyrics, but Popular has that little something else that makes it a winner. Maybe it is his Giorgio Moroder electro rhythm in the intro, or his universal repetitive chorus, or the easy to sing-along verses' melody, or simply the fact it has an eurovision-esque chord change at the end of the song that made a must-be swedish entry for the Eurovision song contest.

Shirley's Angels is a super-group made for the Melodifestivalen around Shirley Clamp with Vera Prada and Jessica Marberger and their entry, I thought it was forever, is a nice catchy mid-tempo with strong chorus that incorporates some slight eastern folklore elements I feel, to appeal to the eastern countries. It has been co-written by Alexander Bard who, for once, didn't compete with his current formation, Gravitonas. Despite this, he didn't make it to the final, neither from its semi-final nor its second chance round.

Jenny Silver's Something in your eyes sounds like pure swedish euro pop, the one that some would call schlager-pop, just because it sounds like it was 1980 all over again, and Jenny's just Agnetha/Frida's daughter singing an ABBA tune we didn't know before. Call this one a retro entry or simply a guilty pleasure for lots of us...

Linda Sunblad's Lucky you is a repetitive and slightly irritating pop song but you can't help but nod your head to its rhythm and your feet surely can't stand still while it's playing. Nice but surely not a winner, nor a memorable hit of the year.

Christian Walz's Suicide is a nice piece of pop, soulful and catchy with nice string as well as slightly electro arrangements, and Christian's voice is moving, but maybe the song's theme didn't suit the Eurovision. I like it though and it makes me want to hear more from that man.

To be fair, I'll have a quick talk about the other entries, those who simply weren't good enough for me, or weren't to my music appeal.

Pernilla Andersson's Desperados is an acoustic uptempo folk/country song in swedish and even though it has a frenetic rhythm and the lady has written and composed it by herself and sings it nicely, it is not my cup of tea AT ALL !

Elisabeth Andreassen is a wellknown swedish/norwegian popopera singer and although she's got the voice of an angel, sweet and powerful, touching and crystal-clear, her Vaken ien dröm is a calm ballad that may have been of bigger appeal to me if sung in english, but I'm not even sure...

Babsan's Ge mig en spanjor first, may be pure schlager but, first it is a festive latin-styled one, second, the transvestite's vocals are very poor, and the performance, overall, sounds more like a schlager pastiche than a real cheesy piece of pop like I like it in the swedish contest.

Nicke Borg is the lead singer of the swedish rock band Backyard Babies and I easily can do without his rock song Leaving home and its saturated guitars and vocals. Stop it before your ears bleed !

Brolle's catchy pop/rock 7 days and 7 nights performed well in the selections, finishing second to Sanna Nielsen in the second semi-final but was the least performing song in the final with the juries' vote and it finished last. It is not that it is not a catchy song, but it sounds old-fashioned commercial rock'n'roll, definitely not what everyone hopes to see win the Eurovision in 2011.

Simon Forsberg's Tidd att andas, like Popular, is a song that has been written and composed by Fredrik Kempe, but not to compete with Eric Saade's pop appeal, this tone is an all sweet ballad, except for the note-breaking break at the end of the song, where this former Fame Factory singer shows he's got what it takes to belt out a tune or two. I don't like the overall song but I wish I get to hear a Soundfactory remix of this one though...

Lasse Stefanz's En blick och nànting händer sounds so retro pop/rock I don't even feel this swedish dansband can be called schlager. It belongs to Elvis Presley's days, with 50's guitar riffs and fingersnaps and when I saw the song was written by pop-musicGod Alexander Bard along Tim Norell, like back in the Army Of Lovers days, I first thought it was a cover version or an old song they wrote that has been covered by this band, except all entries must be new unreleased songs so I guess it is really a brand new writing from Mr. Bard. I'm still waiting for the release from his latest band Gravitonas, but from how this swedish new song sound, I doubt he's a genius anymore...

Jonas Matsson's On my own, although having a strong chorus, is just a boring piece of acoustic folk, with flower power "ba-ba-ba" backing vocals and a whistling break that irritate me. NEXT!

Linda Pritchford is a swedish singer with a strong voice that struggles to find success. She did Idols 2008, sang background vocals for Velvet or tried the Melodifestivalen in 2010 already with You're making me hot-hot-hot but she didn't win. Nor did she this year with that boring ballad called Alive, although it displays her Celine Dion-like voice range perfectly. Strangely enough, her song is co-written by the same Fredrik Kempe who wrote the winning dance/pop song for Eric Saade.

Swingfly's Me and my drum is an irritating mixbag song rapped by an american native (but now naturalised) who worked with Dr; Alban or Blacknuss and his entry is a crosstable of multiple influences, rap, rock, pop and dance but the final result is awful, even though the chorus' chant is a little catchy and more appealing than the unbearable verses.

The Moniker's song won its place in finale in the second chance round but Daniel karlsson's Oh my God! is nothign as good as Le Kid's same titled entry. His is an exhuberant and kitsch pop/rock declamation that finished third in the final, just behind Eric Saade and Danny Saucedo. I cannot imagine people foudn this song like-able enough to vote for it... Maybe he gained a fanbase from his Idol 2007 participation ? But they must be very trustful because he hadn't released anything since then, and I hope after this one, he will never again !

The Playtones' The king is an even more Presley-esque entry than Lasse Stefanz' one was. Truth is it is a rockabilly swedish dansband so it must be natural. The song is in fact better than a whole others that I dislike here but that retro rolling drums and old-fashioned rock vocals just don't fit the bill and give me a cold sweat.

Sara Varga's Spring för livet is a gentle accoustic fingersnapping song sung in swedish and even though it is breezy, pleasant and everything, it sounds too acoustic for me, and there's too much folklore influence in it too. And for once, I don't get into the swedish lyrics, not feeling them melodic. Maybe I would have liked it a little if sung in english, maybe.

Rasmus Viberg's Social butterfly is an odd uptempo oldschool folk/rock song but I won't tell more about it except the use of accordion in the intro and then all along the song made me use the STOP button from my music player ASAP. It's like that. I have developped an accordion phobia since I saw Yvette Horner dressed in a french flag designed by Jean-Paul Gaultier in the 80's on TV.

So there were more entries this year that I like so I bet this is a good year. I hope it will be for the other countries a good Eurovision year too.

For having heard Sognu last week on french TV, I know for France it is not.

Peter Cunnah's D:ream new album is finally out !

It has been a year and a half that Peter Cunnah's dance combo, D:ream, reformed as a duo with Al Mackenzie, has come to a new life with his single All things to all men that was released in September 2009. A new album, their third studio album, was announced to be recorded and soon to be released but it has taken some time for them to get it out ! In Memory of... has finally hit the stores, both digital & physical. I couldn't hep myself and bought it on Emusic to listen to it straight away without having to wait endlessly for an imported CD to come through the Channel, and shall I say it all comes as a surprise ; gone are the 90's sparkling handbag arrangements that I like, sadly, but Pete's voice is still as good as ever, the melodies are still catchy and the overall vibe is, like always, to get our feet moving to the rhythm of their beats. Except their sound has matured too. Some pop/rock influences have been added to their dance/pop mixture. Sometimes it sounds odd to me, but you cannot say they've gone the easy route and gone retro. They have re-invented themselves and evolved into a new D:ream, made of everything they must have gone through during these years.

The album starts with the 2009 single, All things to all men, in it's full length version (9'28 !) and I feared a little too epic piece of music with long instrumentals that would bore me ...but I was wrong : the intro builds itself fast into the song and I don't see the minutes pass by. All things to all men is very reminiscent of what D:ream used to sound like between 1992-1997 with some anthemic feelgood chorus you want to sing along to, and reminds me of Things can only get better, which still sound fresh and good today. A nice guitar riff has been added to follow the chorus and it sounds like some Johnny Marr part inspired from a New Order/Electronic song. It is a shame this song hasn't been the hit it deserved to be, but independant releases from self produced independant labels cannot spread in the worldwide charts, or can they?

It is followed by another New Order inspired track with full guitar, Drop beatz not bombs, that was promoted last year to announce the forthcoming album, but without a proper release. Once again, the album version is extended to full length with nearly 6 minutes but I, who is usually not too keen on songs that are over 4'30, take it nice and easy without needing to push the NEXT button of my music player. The song is more dance/rock though than the previous dance/pop hit but I wonder how a single edit would have sounded if released to the radios ?

Next is a funky nervous track of normal length (3'43) called Free thinkin' mind but the guitars are always there and it sounds like a revival of the 70's funk/rock fusion times. Nice but not what I would want to hear from Peter Cunnah.

Thankfully Gods in the making comes next and this brand new single sees D:ream back to their usual dance/pop with house vibe and new rock influences. Call this All things to all men, part II. Once again, the chorus is very catchy and the guitar is omnipresent this time, but it still sounds like dance music. Plus, very strong female backing vocals are featured on this one, like on most of their previous hits, and I wonder which diva has been called : TJ Davis, like back in the days, Sylvia Mason-James, whoever : she sounds good !

I'll be your dog follows with a reminiscent 70's funky groove, still mixed with some guitars and female vocals, but this time to full disco heaven. Peter's voice, when he sings the title line, sounds so raw and painful, that I imagine this could be a sort of ode to S&M love addiction, but I may be wrong though and should search for the lyrics online...

Into the fray starts gently and atmospheric but this all changes when comes the chorus with its rolling mad rhythm and guitar riff. This one is another psychadelic funky/rock affair that reminds me of the UK band Primal Scream, with electronic though. Despite all this, I like it. Maybe Peter Cunnah's smooth voice would make me love any kind of music ?

The song melts into the following one, Sleepy head and this time again, the verses are on minimal rhythm like for a midtempo but when comes the chorus, Cunnah's got us all confused, with a Beatles-esque melody. Then second verse sees D:ream female additional vocalist take the lead and the disco beats invade all spaces for a full hands-in-the-air house part that makes me horny and hard for more to come. Thankfully, more choir vocals - nearly gospel - are added to a soulful house break that sees the rhythm slow down and decelerate 'till Pete's vocal comes back and takes the song back into the Love is all pastiche with acoustic folk guitar... I don't understand this : it sounds like 2 different songs have been megamixed together. But that doesn't last long as once again this song melts with the following one, like some were on their first album D:ream on vol 1.

There is only now gets a pulsating dance rhythm, back with New Order guitars, become a funky rock-influenced dance/pop I would say. The chant is free and inspired, like a mantra maybe and I feel Peter Cunnah's pleased himself on this new one.

On U make me, D:ream gets balaeric percussions build a nice feelgood midtempo with sax parts and an euphoric chorus reminiscent of Sweet harmony. The point is they sound like The Beloved on this one, and I have always liked Jon Marsh's pop/house combo too, but I doubt the song is strong enough to become a single.

The point is I haven't heard lots of songs that would suit a single release format here. While nearly all songs from their two first albums were made of potential singles (and 7 were issued from the first !), I feel on this one, they have decided to experiment more and record an album as a whole, and not a collection of pop singles. Even though I don't dislike the result, I miss the D:ream I cherished.

The 9'34 final track, We are fans, surely doesn't make me change my mind as it starts with an hypnotic but uptempo pulsating beat on which layers and layers of music are displayed. It is only after 3 minutes that vocals appear and I don't even recognize Peter Cunnah. Could it be Al Mackenzie on the mic ? Or is it the rhythm loops that have penetrated my brain that have disturbed my mind and ears ? This couldn't have been placed anywhere on the tracklisting as it could only suit a final placing : as the last song, you want to hear it till the end as there won't be anything else on the album (and you hope for a hidden track maybe) but in the middle, inbetween other proper songs, sure you would have used the NEXT button to pass on this one. I hate the way this album ends... We are fans is all repetitive and the chorus line is even annoying. The best part is the final acoustic and instrumental melody on piano that closes the show.

So after this bitter end, my immediate feeling is that I don't need this album on CD as it doesn't belong to the D:ream discography I like, but then I take a look back at the songs and pick up some, this one, and then another one, needing to listen to them once again. In fact, most of them are good. It's just that they are mixing too much influences compared to the usual and former dance/pop I know Peter Cunnah for. Even in between these D:ream years when he's been writing and producing for others (Steps, allSTARS and A1 mostly, but also Sophie Monk, The Honeyz & Sergey Lazarev), he has made feelgood pop songs aimed for commercial audience, and I feel this album's target is more of an underground appeal. That must be the problem with me : I like it when it is straightforward, commercial and poppy/cheesy. In Memory Of... surely is NOT cheesy pop. So I will try to get used to its more underground vibe but that doesn't make it a bad album for most of you : so take a listen and judge by yourself ! My final aim is just to let you know it is out...

Alexis Jordan, a Good girl whose album brings us Happiness

Comme ça fait un moment que je n'ai pas posté in french, et que la jeune chanteuse américaine qui mérite ce nouvel article est sûrement moins connue en France que dans les pays anglo-saxons, ça peut être utile.

Je voulais parler de son album depuis que je ai reçu son CD la semaine dernière mais faute de temps, je remettais ça de jour en jour et hier soir encore, devant TF1 pour les quatre épisodes à la suite de la saison 6 de Grey's Anatomy et sa finale bain de sang, je n'eus pas le temps de tapoter du clavier à mon PC. Aujourd'hui, je le prends enfin.

Alexis Jordan est une américaine de 19 ans qui se fit connaître du public il y a plus de cinq ans déjà dans l'émission America's Got Talent, l'équivalent de La France a d'incroyables talent sur M6 si je ne me trompe pas, la version US du show qui révéla Susan Boyle en Grande Bretagne. Si elle ne remporta pas la victoire, ses videos postées sur YouTube fidélisèrent ses fans tant et si bien que le rappeur/producteur Jaÿ-Z (et mari de Beyoncé) la signa finalement sur son label RocNation.

Elle sortit l'été dernier son premier single, Happiness, produit par les norvégiens émigrés aux states StarGate, et cette plaisante ritournelle basée sur l'instrumental du combo house Deadmau5 Brazil est depuis devenu un hit dans pas mal d'autres pays (#3 UK par exemple).

Anecdote : le titre original de Deadmau5 a également été utilisé par Kylie minogue pour un titre enregistré pour son dernier album Aphrodite, mais son Change your mind n'a finalement pas été utilisé. On dirait que StarGate ont décidé de ne pas laisser un pareil joyau sonore à l'abandon et ont rajouté une mélodie lead et des paroles par dessus. Hypnotique, entrainant et sirupeux à la fois, Happiness fleure bon le tube crossover, entre dance, pop et R&B, style When love takes over en plus planant. Remixé pour sa sortie par Dave Audé, les Wideboys ou Jump Smokers, il ciblait manifestement les dancefloors et m'avait conquis les oreilles, évidemment. D'autant que la jeune fille semblait avoir une voix fort agréable et que l'on devinait qu'il y en avait encore sous le capot, rien qu'à l'entendre monter sur le refrain "Throught strength I found love, in time I found myself in happiness with you".

2011 voit son premier album éponyme sortir accompagné du second single, Good girl, et vu la recette de ce dernier, meilleure encore que son prédécesseur, j'ai commandé l'album les yeux fermés. J'avoue avoir été un peu déçu, d'abord par sa longueur (11 titres seulement...), puis par le fait que tous les titres ne sont pas aussi bons, sans aller jusqu'à dire qu'il est nul non plus. Ne me faites pas écrire ce que je n'ai pas pensé, hein ! Disons juste que tous les titres ne sont pas de futurs singles, même si, heureusement, il y en a sûrement plus qu'il n'y aura de singles réels.

L'album commence par les deux premiers extraits par ordre chronologique et Happiness enchaîne donc à merveille sur Good girl, composé et produit par StarGate et le frenchy Sandy Vee (Julien Wilhelm, compère de David Guetta sur certains tubes extraits de One Love et récemment de Taio Cruz sur le Higher que l'anglais a partagé avec Kylie Minogue), c'est-à-dire la dream-team responsable des tubes Beautiful monster de Ne-Yo, Firework de Katy Perry ou encore Only girl (in the world) et S&M de Rihanna. Good girl, c'est un peu tout ça à la fois, mais avec une superbe voix soul et pop à la fois, puissante quand il faut, comme sur le pré-refrain "you might mistake me for a heartbreaker..." qui n'est pas sans me rappeller Kelly Rowland version David Guetta. Couplé avec le refrain répétitif "I can be a good good girl" plus mesuré niveau volume vocal, la belle Alexis tient là un tube encore plus fort que son premier même s'il n'a atteint que la place #6 en Angleterre le mois dernier.

Tout l'album à deux titres près est écrit et produit par StarGate et l'on retrouve leur patte pop/R&B sur ces titres. How you like me now voit Alexis Jordan presque rapper sur les couplets même si le refrain bien entrainant sonne très Rihanna, avec une voix bien sûr moins nasillarde... Say that est plus mid-tempo acoustique quand Love mist se la joue rhythmique binaire reggae pour mélopée estivale et ensoleillée.

Mais les futurs autres tubes sont l'évident Hush hush d'abord, où Sandy Vee reprend justement du service pour un titre dans la même veine que ceux auxquels il a participé pour Rihanna, puis Habit, au refrain répétitif addictif sur rhythmique electro qui donne envie de reprendre en choeurs ses "but it's nothing without your love", mais aussi et surtout Shout shout, qui reprend le refrain du Shout des Tears For Fears, pour un titre solide et puissant qui me rappelle les meilleurs titres de l'anglaise Alesha Dixon, époque Alesha Show. Laying around pourrait aussi faire la surprise au rayon des singles potentiels pour l'été car c'est un mid-tempo énervé qui repose sur une mélodie à la guitare accoustique enlevée et un refrain très frais à la mélodie très entrainante qui donne envie de siffler à l'unison.

Restent deux titres que le duo de StarGate n'a pas co-écrit/composé ou produit (mais sur lesquels ils ont finalisé le mix et produit les voix d'Alexis), le disco/dansant High road très réussi pour les couplets au beat imparable, mais au refrain trop R&B "in ya face" pour moi, et le calme et délicat The air that I breathe qui ferme l'album à la manière d'un Encore unplugged de concert. Ce dernier, tout en guitare acoustique et voix, a été écrit et produit par le chanteur norvégien Espen Lind avec son team de production Espionage, en collaboration avec le songwriter américain à la mode Claude Kelly. Ce titre clôt bizarrement un album très pop/electro urbaine, avec ce pied de nez en forme de ballade folk accoustique où la part belle est faite à la voix de la chanteuse, comme s'il voulait dire de ne pas oublier que son principal atout, c'était sa voix, sans artifices.

Au bout du compte donc, aucun titre que je n'aime pas mais certains plus fades que j'aurais voulu aussi épicés que leurs voisins, mais un album qui, parce que leurs chanteuses me paraissent être sur le même créneau, est bien meilleur que les deux derniers albums de Rihanna réunis. A découvrir plus profondément donc si vous aimez les deux premiers extraits.

Un dernier mot pour dire que je voulais insérer ses deux videos YouTube mais Sony ne l'autorise pas donc pour la peine, je ne vous mets aucun lien... Grrr :(

Same Difference's 2nd CD album is pure POP!

It is more than a month ago that I posted about Same Difference's forthcoming second album release and I promised a full review of it as soon as I get it. It has been released on 7th February but it has taken me nearly a month to finally receive my imported CD ! Needless to say I downloaded the songs already as I couldn't wait but I wanted to have the full piece of album with CD, booklet, credits & lyrics to make my review. I'm more than ready today because this is really a true pop masterpiece ! Signed to the POPLIFE label, Sean & Sarah, the ex X-Factor celebrities, have grown up but their sound still sounds fresh and poppy like it was still 2000 and Steps were still releasing hit single after hit single with Pete Waterman... Maybe some will feel they sound dated, maybe some will think they're too cheesy but to my heart and for my ears, they just sound P-E-R-F-E-C-T.

01 SOULED OUT 4:09

(Mark Topham / Karl Twigg / Yamit Mamo)

Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

The album starts with a song written and produced by the ex PWL duo behind Steps' success and snippets of the song were revealed last year as a possible single before Shine on forever was released. Souled out is a 500% instant hit, very upbeat and catchy with an incredible strong chorus that sticks to your head while your feet move to the rhythm of the whole song. It reminds me a lot of the songs Topham & Twigg did for PWL post Steps boys/girls group Pop! (Heaven & Earth and Can't say goodbye). So that means it sounds a little 2004 with Same Difference's pop being led into full energetic dance/pop but it doesn't sound dated to me. It needs to become a single ! I need to hear further remixes of that heavenly bound hit ! I can't get enough of it and play it on repeat... Addictive syndrome #1. 20/20

02 EUPHORIA 3:38

(Mark Topham / Karl Twigg / Nathan Thomas) Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

Next track is from the same songwriters/producers and belongs to the same dance/pop musical territory even though it doesn't sound like Pop! '04, but '05, as it reminds me a lot of their Serious last single, with funky disco elements thrown in the continental euro dance/pop overall feeling. Once more, the rhythm is fast, the chorus is catchy and there is not a doubt this new one will help the duo " let the music elevate us into euphoria" as they're singing. Single alert #2. The chorus' intro would sound perfect, refrained by fans' voices in unison singin' "Oh I wanna be outrageous, I don't care where it takes us..." They've grown up, I told you. They've grown up and the photos from the CD booklet shows it too. 19,5/20

03 KARMA KARMA 3:07 featuring ALCAZAR

(Anders Hansson / Sharon Vaughn) Produced by Anders Hansson, Felix Persson & Märta Grauers

Mixed by Al Unsworth with Vocals Recorded, Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

Third track on CD and the UK siblings offer themselves a party song with the swedish disco/pop band Alcazar. Once again, the song is very upbeat, but in a latin disco vibe this time that reminds me of some songs from the swedes' first album Casino. I admit it is not the song I like the best as I have never been into those latin pop fiestas but no doubt the Alcazar featuring as well as the Anders Hansson credit (he produced all Agnes international hits) could lead this one, if released as a proper single, into some mainstream charts success. I only have the feeling Karma karma was an Alcazar song in which Same Difference have been invited to sing into, rather than one of their own song they could have shared with Andreas, Tess & Lina. 16/20

04 THE REST IS HISTORY 3:46

(Tony Nilsson / Hanne Sorvaag) Produced by Tony Nilssen

Mixed by Al Unsworth with Vocals Recorded, Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

The song that gives its title to the album starts as a calmer one but the intro hides well the fact that it is another upbeat number, and not a powerful mid-tempo as it first may seem or a ballad at all. Maybe it is the song that sounds the most like Steps to me, but very actual, with today's sound. It could be another mainstream hit single if released properly. The chorus is very strong and catchy but Sarah's (beautiful and strong) voice is proeminent over her brother's so maybe this one wouldn't sound really as a Same Difference single... 20/20

05 SHINE ON FOREVER [PHOTO FRAME] 3:57

(John Myers / Sarah Smith / Sean Smith) Produced by John Myers

Mixed by Al Unsworth with Vocals Engineered by Pete Waterman Jnr

Shine on forever [Photo frame] follows and it was released last year as the first single off the album on their new label, with their new image and sound, and indeed, it does have a nearly electro dance/pop sound. This makes it the most trendy sounding song on the album maybe and it is a shame it only managed to get to #100 in the UK charts, but the CD single was only available via their own site's shop page and on digital download with big medias campaign and major company's promotion so it is a full achievement in itself, isn't it? Co-written with its producer John Myers, we hear the siblings' involvement in the song and it is odd to think their new start's first single was produced by the same man who produced their Stock/Aitken/Waterman cover version Turn it into love on their first album... But while on Pop his sound was polished by Quiz & Larossi's post-production, his raw dance vibe is on full effect here and I am still not bored on it, even after the thousand listens I've indulged myself to... 19/20

06 WAITING FOR THE MOMENT 3:52

(Daniel Sherman / Andy Gilbert) Produced by The Flames (aka Daniel Sherman & Andy Gilbert)

Still no sign of a ballad or filler on the album while the sixth track plays but there is a new team on board. Daniel Sherman is no newbie in my book as he formed with ex PWL engineer Peter Day in the 2000's the Point4 songwriting/production team. Their best moments have been for sure ex Steps' Lisa Scott-Lee hit singles Lately and Too far gone or Gina G's Tonight's the night. Now he's teamed up with Andy Gilbert to form The Flames and their Waiting for the moment is another pure disco/pop anthem that shines like a glitter ball while the music is playing. Single potential once again, so I'm startin' to think this release was well worth the wait as it sounds like the Greatest Hits that my heart had dreamed of from the duo. 19,5/20

07 BEST MISTAKE 3:31

(Mark Topham / Karl Twigg / Nathan Thomas) Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

From the songwriting & production credits I know the following song won't deceive me and Best mistake, who's been penned by the same people that were behind Euphoria, sounds like Steps' Stomp, Part II. Like the previous song, it is an all disco/dance anthem, very upbeat, very catchy, with nice high-pitched funky backing vocals where Sean shows what he got too. Shall I admit it would easily be a single's choice in my heart once again? One regret though, is that Sarah's ad-libs at the very end of the song sounds very good with a nice melody, but are just too short, cut off nearly as soon as they are starting... 20/20

08 THIS IS ME 3 :46

(Ian Curnow / Georgie Dennis / Sarah Smith / Sean Smith) Produced & Mixed by Ian Curnow & Dave Ford

On track 8, the siblings are for the first time going the romantic route with a piano-led ballad that first appeared as the B-side on Shine on forever [Photo frame] CD single. Co-written by themselves with Ian Curnow and Georgie Dennis (Cathy's young sister), it sounds like a Diane Warren typical ballad, with vibrant pre-chorus melody and poignant chorus line. "No matter where you are or who you wanna be (...) this is me". I must admit I didn't really listened to it when I bought me the single as I was heavily deceived this Ian Curnow penned song wasn't an upbeat pop song but a big ballad. Put back on this album after all these catchy numbers, I re-discover it and appreciate its simple beauty, although it will never be a what I would like to see them record really... This is me is to play on your mothers' day, having her talk and remember of the cute siblings from the X-Factor show of a couple of years ago... 15/20

09 EMOTION 2:56

(Tony Nilsson) Produced by Tony Nilssen. Mixed by Al Unsworth

with Vocals Recorded, Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

Rhythm guitar then carribean percussions build up a festive and joyful music background for this second Tony Nilssen song, that is upbeat but not a dance song. Pop and organic would sum up Emotion's real essence but it is no problem to me as it is really catchy. The only thing is the chorus memorable line is more "I'm thinking about it, thinking about it" over "I gotta put a hold on my emotion" so an additional title (Thinking about it) to Emotion would fit the bill if a single release was in question but I very doubt it as there are so much better choices here. There is no shame to say this is only a good album track. 18,5/20

10 SUPERSTAR 3:15

(Ian Curnow / Georgie Dennis / Sarah Smith / Sean Smith) Produced & Mixed by Ian Curnow & Dave Ford

This is me partners are back on duties but this time, it is for a full upbeat pop song with a melody that sounds like the best of PWL from the 90's. Superstar doesn't sound dated though, with some vocoderized effects and nice instrumentations. It sounds indeed like a patchwork of influences and melodies, where Sarah and Sean alternately take the lead all through the verses, pre-chorus, chorus or post-chorus. But what is it that this cold ending ??!!! At 3'15, when the song doesn't sound finished at all, the music sounds like tumbling down and it stops as if the recording tape operator has just cut it down by mistake... A further minute wouldn't have sounded out of place at all to display more of its harmonies and rhythms. 18/20

11 HEARTBEAT 3:50

(Pete Hammond / Georgie Dennis / Sarah Smith / Sean Smith) Produced & Mixed by Pete Hammond

Thankfully, Heartbeat follows and while it sounds like Superstar suite perfectly, this time, the retro PWL sound is all over it, like Pete Hammond has been doing it these days, with all the typical sounds that made Stock/Aitken/Waterman productions famous and successfull for ...in the 90's. I personally like Sarah's "It's just a heartbeat" cute backing vocal line after chorus that sounds sooo 1989 to me. This is a retro heaven for all PWL addicts like me and as I doubt everybody would recognize itself in this sounds today, I feel this placing near the end of the CD suits it well, like a secret jewel or hidden guilty pleasure, for those who can patiently wait. And I must admit that although I'm a radio edit fanatic over full extended mixes, I feel it's been too short when the music stops and I need to put it back with the Repeat touch... Maybe a Pete Hammond full extended retro mix is needed after all ? Can we have it as a bonus on Same Difference's next digital release, please. Thank you. 20/20

12 BROKEN MEMORIES 4:24

(Luke Juby / Sarah Smith / Sean Smith) Produced & Mixed by Topham & Twigg

with Additional Production & Strings by Luke Juby

This is already time for the end and Sean & Sarah offer us another moment of peaceful music, Broken memories being a pleasant melancholic mid-tempo. Not what I like the most but surely the best way to end an album that is so full of upbeat pop/dance anthems that just one more could have had your CD player explode in BPM hell. And in truth, Broken memories is very catchy, with a nice memorable melody and a beautiful acoustic vocal break where Sarah's voice shows her deepness. And I so love it when there is a piano leading the way for the voices... 18,5/20

All in all, this second album stays in the bubblegum pop territory they belong to since they first appeared on the X-Factor show and through their Syco years with previous album Pop and single We R one. But their voices, look and sound have matured and their target audience is not the kids anymore. Apart from the Stock/Aitken/Waterman PWL fanatics like me and those from the Hit Factory forum who can not pass on this release (for being the first to see Ian Curnow, Dave Ford & Pete Hammond all re-unite on the same release, as well as being a strong work from Topham & Twigg duo), I think all those who like good pop/dance music, all those who will forever be in Steps nostalgia, and a lot more people should get their hands on this CD, or at least download it from iTunes, Emusic, 7digital or elsewhere it is available worldwide ! They need to sell some to get to their next release. Pop is rumoured to be re-released with bonus tracks and I'd love to hear their original recorded version of Turn it into love as well as more unreleased material recorded at the PWL studios.

As a reminder of where they've come from, let me say this first album is still available and is another enjoyable trip into Pop-land. Mostly produced by swedish duo Quiz & Larossi (who were hired by Pete Waterman to replace Topham & Twigg and Andrew Frampton after they left his PWL company), it features lots of cover versions, some well-known ones they sang on the X-Factor show, like High School Musical's hit Breaking free or the Diane Warren penned song Nothing's gonna stop us now Starship popularized back in the 80's, some lesser known like Six previously recorded with Pete Waterman Let me be the one and Still amazed or Marie Serneholt (from A*Teens)'s I need a house. But the remake that enlightened all pop addicts' hearts was the Stock/Aitken/Waterman song Turn it into love, that Hazell Dean turned into a hit in 1988 after Kylie Minogue first featured her own version on her first album. The rest of the album was made of swedish compositions/productions courtesy of Quiz & Larossi duo as well as Max Martin's ex partners at Cheiron studios, Kristian Lundin and Jörgen Elofsson, except for the disco/dance upbeat number If you can't dance, that was co-written by the siblings with the METRO producers Graham Stack & Paul Barry. In conclusion, their first album was already a must-have for those who liked Steps/H&Claire and if you passed upon this release, you should make yourself a double-take with both CDs from Same Difference now.

Gaga 'bout this danish Lady...

For once, it's not from Sweden that the new electro/pop sensation comes from, but from another scandinavian country, Denmark. The synthpop duo's vocal comes from a blonde lady who's got a good voice and they've called themselves Electric Lady Lab. But to call them the danish Lady Gaga would be too cliché... Stine Hjelm Jacobsen and Martin Bøge Pedersen are more than that !

Even though they started back in 2009 releasing their first single It's over now, they seem to gain international attention from the blogosphere because of their Snap Rhythm is a dancer sampled new single You and me. Truth is their first album Flash! has just been released too and it's a winner from track 1 to its end and after downloading off 7digital, I've decided to even order my CD via cdon.com asap. Made of eleven electro popsongs mixed with retro synthpop, 90's eurodance inspiration, catchy melodies, brilliant lyrics and sensitive vocals, I've fallen deep for this Flash!.

Last virgin alive starts it with an electronic pulsating rhythm building a wall of sound a la Giorgio Moroder for Stine's vocals. The "Where are you" melodic lines is very catchy and makes way for the chorus that sounds like a siren's chant lost in the middle of a music heritage of 80's best coldwave.

Next track is current single You and me and as soon as the intro starts we recognize the Snap anthem's music. The new melody and lyrics are build all around the original Rhythm is a dancer backing track and the chorus line "the streets are lonely" should have led to the song's title for me : Lonely streets would have fitted it better than You and me if you wanna know my opinion... But the result is incredible : catchy and addictive, and very sexy too, when Stine's deep breathings lead to the bridge where her vocals are stronger than ever before an emotional and stirring end. An acoustic version backed up with guitar reminiscent of Sagi-Rei's version from a couple of years ago is to find on the single package and I would have loved to find it at the end of the album's tracklisting as a bonus... Even without the Rhythm is a dancer sample and stripped to the bone, the song is a hit !

I follow you is next in line and the rhythm is electrified, even more upbeat with retro sound effects a la Depeche Mode. "I follow you into the night whoever you are" she sings in a haunting voice that remembers me of Kate Bush. This one is moving but I won't see it getting a single release.

Next one's a surehit single and it must be the one I love the most from this album : Dancing with a ghost is another 80's influenced electro pop jewel, very upbeat with a chorus that's über catchy. I can't get enough of it and sing along every time on the "I am dancing with a ghost, dancing with a boy I used to know". The instrumental break sounds maybe too retro for mass medias, with Erasure kind of synthé loops before vocoderized sampled vocals, but it makes me think of my youth in the 80's and of all this music I still listen to nowadays.

Let go is more laid-back, with a hush-hush mid-tempo instrumental ; nice album track and pause inbetween the upbeat numbers.

Depeche Mode revival time #2 ! Flash starts and it makes me feel of the Just can't get enough melodic line, except in truth, it sounds more like Yazoo's Situation... On this one, I feel though that Stine's voice makes me think of Deborah Harry as it sounds more raw and rock. The lyrics about "gettin' on her knees and pray" because "they say he's gay" remembers me of Starmania's Ziggy theme and with the proper remix, it could easily get them cross over in the clubs.

Wondering is next and apparently the next single too. I'd say it is a good choice as it must be the most instant pop song from the album, with not too much retro sounding new wave in it. Very upbeat, it has a strong repetitive chorus ("have we danced for last time, I'm wondering...") and catchy melody. I especially like the 90's vocal dubbing break that brings a big smile on my face. Well, maybe it does sound retro synthpop too.

Dangerous follows with a heavy rhythm and once more Depeche Mode influences to me. I don't know what to think of this one's future potential as the verses are inoffensive and low-key, but the chorus is, once again, very catchy "your beauty is dangerous, you keep me hangin' on..." it goes and it sticks to your brain, proving that in the charts, this song too would be ...dangerous.

AAAAHHHHHHH!!! I forgot about this one when I said Dancing with a ghost was the one I liked the most... When Fascinated's intro starts, I forget all previous tracks to only think of this Company B cover version that mixes a PWL inspired rhythm loop (like Pete Hammond uses on his recent retro mixes) with the original freestyle ambiance. So Fascinated fascinates me but I must not forget it is not one of their original songs so I'll stick to what I said for Dancing with a ghost being my prefered original song by Electric Lady Lab.

A pulsating nearly oriental mid-tempo rhythm opens up for Imagination and once again, even if I have nothing wrong to say about it, I'd only say it is another nice album track for me... But all songs on a CD can't be singles, isn't it? Or this CD would be called a Greatest Hits, and it must be a little too early in a career when it is their first release...

The album ends with their first single from 2009, It's over now and as their sound is retro and 80's inspired, it doesn't sound dated at all. It even has more electro pop in it than retro synthpop. The duo seems to have taken a deeper breath into their 80's memories before working further for their album, and this ain't no shame as it builds their sound from their tribute to the music they loved from the 80's to 90's. The title suits this end of album perfectly as it is already the end.

If you want to know more and listen/watch their music, go to their MySpace page :

http://www.myspace.com/electricladylab

L'Album de Max Boublil : Chanteur ou Comique ?

J'ai connu Max Boublil il y a déjà quelques années en entendant son premier single Ce soir... tu vas prendre à la radio. J'avais adoré le côté décalé des paroles salaces du refrain à l'humour potache façon American Pie et la musique sirupeuse et romantique. J'avais découvert ensuite que le jeune chanteur n'en était pas vraiment un et qu'en fait, ce single était surtout une façon pour lui de faire parler de lui et de son one-man show puisqu'il était avant tout un humoriste...

J'avoue l'avoir un peu perdu de vue après ça (c'était en 2007), alors qu'il se consacre à son show à travers la France, tout comme sans doute un partie du public, puisqu'il revient à la chanson en 2010 en diffusant de nouvelles videos de titres régulièrement sur Internet. Le buzz fonctionne à merveille, notamment avec le titre Susan Boyle et Chatroulette, pour lequel Sophie Favier apparaît même dans le clip. C'est ainsi qu'entre Mai 2010 et Février 2011, il poste sur le net une nouvelle chanson par mois, souvent illustrée d'une vidéo sketche impayable. L'album, sorti ce 14 Février comme un grand pied de nez à la Saint Valentin, compile ces 10 titres et reprend en bonus son premier single et une ode à l'inspecteur Derrick de 2008.

Bien sûr je regrette qu'il n'y ait pas d'inédit puisque toutes ces chansons me sont maintenant plus ou moins connues via le net, mais au moins, sur ce CD, on en a la version studio en qualité optimale, avec les paroles sur le livret et un lien Opendisc pour retrouver les videos hilarantes dont Max Boublil a le secret. Chanteur ou Comique ? La question m'importe peu. Les chansons aux textes rigolos et second degré de Max(imilien) me plaisent, les musiques suivent l'air de l'époque et le garçon sait chanter, pas plus mal que certains chanteurs officiels. Une chose est sûre, je suis heureux de compter son CD dans ma discothèque et pour rappel, je vais en retracer le tracklisting tout de suite. A vous ensuite d'en visionner les videos sur Youtube, de le télécharger sur Virginmega ou iTunes ou de courir acheter le CD.

J'aime les moches, révélé en Janvier dernier avec son clip où Max livre à une psy coincée son amour des moches, est un titre power pop/rock efficace écrit et composé comme tous les titres du CD par Max avec Anthony Marciano. La rythmique très uptempo vous fait battre la mesure des deux pieds tandis qu'accompagné d'un piano bien présent Max chante "J'aime les moches parce qu'on se les fait pas piquer (...) on se sent plus beau à côté". On se surprendrait presque à chanter à tue-tête en choeur avec lui ; c'est dire si le titre est efficace !

Chatroulette suit et, si la rhythmique ne faiblit pas, elle se dope d'arrangements electro/dance qui habillent façon 2010 son refrain entêtant où Max se vante d'avoir trouvé l'amour sur le net avec la mère de son pote. Tout est dit sur l'esprit du titre avec ces paroles : "Bientôt, j'irai là où t'as passé neuf mois. Bientôt, tu pourras m'appeler papa".

La plage suivante marque sa différence côté musicale puisqu'il s'agit d'un mid-tempo romantique à souhait, comme son titre semble l'indiquer. En réalité, Depuis que tu n'es plus là est une ode à la masturbation, seul moyen que Max semble avoir trouvé pour se remettre d'une rupture, et c'est un nouveau pur tube qui date de Septembre 2010. Encore une fois, les paroles sont géniales, enfilant perle sur perle comme autant de bonnes répliques à la suite : "Je me touche, il n'y a qu'avec ma main que je couche. C'est toute ma descendance qui part dans le syphon de ma douche. Je vais l'annoncer à mes parents : bientôt, c'est ma main droite que j'épouse."

On enchaîne avec son single de Juin 2010, déclaration d'amour à la chanteuse anglaise Susan Boyle. On dirait que Max aime chanter les amours intergénérationels. Sur une musique electro/pop, on a droit encore une fois à des paroles à pisser de rire style "J'adore ses yeux, j'adore ses dents, elle me les prête de temps en temps. Elle m'a présenté ses enfants, ils ont l'âge de mes parents. Comme on collectionne les vieilles bagnoles, moi je me tape Susan Boyle." Et le meilleur pour la fin : "C'est pas du sexe qu'on fait au lit, c'est de l'archéologie."

En plage 5, Max livre un texte particulièrement second degré avec sa Chanson raciste qui, prise au premier degré pourrait être l'hymne de la prochaine campagne présidentielle de Marine Lepen. J'avoue cette fois que cette chanson me laisse un peu sur le carreau, d'autant que la musique semble plagier We are the world en étant une grosse ballade pompeuse façon variété humanitaire des années 80 ; hyper quinzième degré donc pour coller à son texte raciste à la taille du globe.

Suit son duo rap Clash gentil avec le rappeur Alibi Montana. Vu le phrasé rap de Max, ce titre est celui qui ressemble le plus à un sketch, puisqu'après s'être essayé au flow, il se fait laminer par le vrai rappeur et que le duo tourne gentiment au règlement de compte SM.

Un bandonéon ouvre L'inconnue du Boulevard Bessières façon java où Max chante sa complainte d'un niais épris d'une pute rencontrée dans la rue. Très beau texte ("Tu m'as dit : tu me donnes combien? Je t'ai dit 24 ans à tout casser") presque pas comique pour cette chanson rétro qui me fait penser au titre des garçons bouchers Dans la salle du bar-tabac de la rue des martyres.

Pour continuer le patchwork musical de cet album, Montrez les nous s'appuie sur une rythmique ensoleillée façon reggae où Max retrouve son rôle de petit pervert lubrique attachant en demandant aux filles du monde entier de nous montrer leurs seins. Encore une fois, la mélodie humaniste semble à 180° avec les paroles mais le résultat est très plaisant et quand Max clôture le titre avec les ad libs "Montrez nous les tétés, montrez nous les nénés, oh montrez nous les lolos", on ne peut s'empêcher de sourire, séduit par l'esprit bon-enfant de sa supplique musicale.

Son titre le plus récent (clip de Février) enchaîne et cette fois, avec Mon colloc' Max chante ses inquiétudes face à un co-locataire gay qui le colle de très près. Le clip est hilarant et le texte a une très bonne chute. "Et l'autre fois pendant que je dormais, j'ai senti sous mes draps qu'il n'y avait pas que moi..." Musicalement, on a affaire à un titre midtempo pop et frais qui une fois encore est un parfait contre-emploi du texte finalement dramatique.

En dixième position, un Joyeux Noël au texte trop acide sur la fausse magie de Noël sur une musique très pling-plong Bontempi que Max chante cette fois comme s'il ne savait pas chanter, en suivant de trop près la mélodie : un titre baclé ou, en tout cas, dont l'effet cousin à la guitare qui veut gâcher le noël des petits parce qu'il est de corvée de garde me passe largement à côté : titre 100% sketch.

Heureusement c'est le TUBE de Max qui enchaîne et sauve la fin du CD puisque je ne me lasse pas de son Ce soir, tu vas prendre. De son intro au piano, de ses couplets romantiques sur musicale sirupeuse à ses refrains lourds où Max chante que sa copine va s'en prendre plein le cul, je trouve que ce premier titre annonçait parfaitement l'univers décalé du chanteur/amuseur : un peu lourd, graveleux, mais romantique aussi et acide. Impayables, les paroles "Ce soir, tu vas prendre (...) comme si je sortais de prison après vingt ans de réclusion. Et si jamais t'as encore faim, j'ai ramené deux, trois copains." Seul reproche, son "j'espère que t'es véhiculée parce que tu pourras plus marcher" ...Musicalement, "véhiculée" ne sonne pas bien du tout !

Dernier bonus, son Une larme qui coule dédié à l'inspecteur Derrick avec un texte rappé sur une musique au piano bien en avant et des arrangements de cordes. Encore et toujours un texte bien pensé ("281 épisodes et pas une seule scène d'action (...) J'ai jamais vu une fin d'épisode, je m'endormais à chaque fois") mais pour un titre moins fort que son premier single ou les titres de 2010.

Au final, une collection de 12 titres aux musiques très variées et aux textes ciselés, interprétés magistralement par le jeune comique, mais pour un résultat assez inégal : des titres purs tubes comme J'aime les moches, Chatroulette, Susan Boyle ou Ce soir et beaucoup de bons titres entre deux, mais avec quelques fautes de goût, Joyeux Noël en tête ; pas assez cependant pour me faire regretter mon achat.

Pour vous faire votre opinion, ses meilleures vidéos ci-dessous pour le plaisir de vos oreilles, des yeux et de votre cerveau :

Max Boublil J'aime les moches


Max Boublil - Chatroulette feat. Sophie Favier


Max Boublil - Depuis que tu n'es plus là


Max Boublil - Susan Boyle


Max Boublil - Mon Coloc

another Lady Gaga "Born this way" Youtube cover

here is another Youtube video of someone covering up Lady Gaga's #1 new hit Born this way and this time she is called Maria Aragon and doesn't look more than 10 years old : she sings it well and plays live keyboards : oh how I would have loved to be able to play piano this way... I'm jealous !

The next Youtube sensation is called...

Omar Afuni
and he is from Kuwait
Remember his name : a star is in the making !

I was intending to post about Same Difference's second album this weekend as it was released last monday but I still haven't received my CD (Grrr!!) so I was just blogging around when I came to a post in a chatbox about a talented guy who needed to be giving a listening chance and gave a link for FREE download of his album. Even not knowing the style of music he did but curiousness took the best of me and had me following the link http://www.omarafuni.com and I came to a blog page where you can direct download a full amount of good electro pop in full 192 kb glory and listen to it soon after while reading the posts of his blog and biography or watching his youtube videos. I spent the rest of the evening there, totally spellbound by his talent !

The videos of his cover versions are incredible and from the oldest ones (Rihanna's Umbrella) to the latest (Lady Gaga's Born this way mashed up with Madonna's Express yourself/Jump) through the fabulous Katy Perry's Teenage dream/California gurls mashup or Ke$ha's Your love is my drug, Lady gaga's Bad romance and Christina Aguilera's singles, you hear and see the guy learned from his mistakes and now does the best : other recent highlights are Bruno Mars' Grenade and Cee-Lo's Forget you. When he initially sang and danced for the camera on his backing track then sang and played keyboards live while recording music & vid, he now records the lead vocals & vid and then mixes it with the backing track with additional vocals to a full professional result. His voice goes less vocalizing too and it's a good thing as its overuse was too much. Shall I add there he looks so much better with his hair cut short too ! ;)

So we now know he's a vocally talented guy who knows how to belt out a tune with his heart, and not only copies the original version of the song, and sure he knows how to play piano too 'cos all the music belongs to him too. And the 25 year old boy is good-looking, middle-east type with large shoulders (half-Jordanian, half-Lebanese with Turkish origins), tender brown eyes and a smile the groupies cannot resist. But this guys has even more talents : he sings but also writes and composes and plays and produces and mixes his own songs and he has released his first collection of 14 original songs on iTunes, Amazon and co worldwide. And all of this from his little bedroom and his spare time (he works full-time as civil engineer on construction sites 'cos like everybody he needs to pay the bills...). This guy is amazing ! How can he still not having been picked up in a real-TV music show a la X-Factor or Pop Idol and have already raised to the fame he deserved ?!

The country he lives in must not be the perfect place for a pop music fan & star in the making to break through for sure. And that's a real shame so please do like me : Give him a listening chance and if you like it, spread the world, help him get the chance to travel to the UK or US and make his music heard : record companies nowadays can sign an artist on the huge following he's got on the net. He sure looks older than Justin Bieber but he's cuter to me and he sounds a lot more talented and distinctive. His electro pop has slight arabian flavour (not too much of it, don't worry) and his voice is pure bliss, like honey for the ears. He makes it go high and low like he wants it or so it seems, and you get hypnotized by its warmness. He decided to become a singer when he was 8 and since then has grown and practiced a lot singing the artists he likes, George Michael, Mariah Carey, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera, but we see from his cover versions that the new dance/pop stars appeal to him too.

So now comes the real thing. I have listened to his album, Resurrected and need to post a full review for it like I usually does with international star. But Omar Afuni is one too ! If not how can he be featured on a french blog like mine ?

Resurrected starts with the first single he displayed to his fans through his blog and iTunes last November, Resurrect me, and it all all starts vocally with the chorus lines nearly a cappella before the electro music loops get in with symphonic arabian arrangements : "Resurrect me babe I'm fallin', resurrect me I'm a billion pieces. Resurrect me, save me, bring me back, back, back. I'm dead without you..." The song is catchy and gives a nice first flavour of what's to come : good electro pop with middle-east influences in the vocalizes and strings. At more than 5 minutes the track doesn't sound too long but it sure would be too long to get radio airplay. It needs a radio edit !

Where I can dance follows and should be the next single. There surely couldn't be a better choice 'cos this electro-fused upbeat anthem could make a bang in the clubs. The 3'30 original version makes me want to dance with my hands in the air on a crowdy dancefloor : warm, hot and sexy are the words that come to my mind to express how this club banger makes me feel. So you bet what a full extended version can do to a real dancefloor ! Some dance label out there in the US should pick this up and release it as a test : it would top the Circuit club charts.

Blind is next and was released as a preview to the album too. It is more of a mid-tempo with vocoderized backing vocals but the chorus lines stick to your head : "Love turned off the lights, turned off the lights. Love made me so blind, made me so blind..." The atmospheric break is nice and really gives more power to the final part of the song and chorus with its high-pitched ad lib vocals. But this song is not as catchy as the two previous ones for me.

With Get ova U Omar goes back into the electro club upbeat dance song with nice strings adding light to a dark and sexy overcharged atmosphere. I imagine his songs would sound perfect in the clubs and backrooms of the middle East where european and american tourists would go dancing and fooling around with locals. The repetition of the Get ova U words in the chorus is catchy and doesn't sound too much at all : I like it !

200 BPM has a strange title and chorus line but its effect is quite hypnotizing : All through the song, I was surprised to find me waiting for the next "Two, O, O, B, P, M" even though there is a real chorus too :) Not a single but a nice album track.

Puppet show's intro gives the mark and we know this one is a more arabian influenced R&B track with full-on urban effects like its Oh Oh refrain backing vocals. It is not my usual cup of tea but it doesn't make me skip to the next one as it is catchy enough to have me listen to it.

With Chaos (magnetic) Omar adds a harder edge to his electro sounds with some rock guitar riffs. His voice is filtered in bits and there are nice reverb/acid loops and echoed effects that all makes this new track another potential single choice. Its magnetism is certain.

Change of pace with the next song, Lavender love, where Omar is all emotional and romantic, using a beautiful piano melody to enlighten his warm and tender vocals. The first verse is the only one that is stripped to the piano/voice as more layers of piano, strings and other orchestral elements build up a warm wall of sound for the whole song until the final part where only slight piano notes and Omar's vocals end it like started. This song is so beautiful I listened to it a second time, touched to the heart by its beauty. As mad into dance/pop upbeat songs I am, I equally love piano-led acoustic ballads when they are touching and emotive and Lavender love is all that and would sound perfect on a Valentines' day compilation CD.

Omar continues with beautiful piano notes in the intro of Stupid (fly away) that sounds like another romantic (but more upbeat) ballad until an electro bridge follows the first chorus. But it goes back into the piano ballad for second verse and chorus. It is there after that the song evolves into a longer electro mixed piece that is a winning combinaison. The song gains in catchiness without losing its emotional depth. Another real good surprise with a chorus you find yourself singing along way after the song has ended !

Eviction sees the techno sounds come back, strangely it seems on a rock tempo while the verses play but the pre-chorus and then chorus makes it become an addictive retro but modern dance/jazz fusion pop anthem. Eviction must be a patchwork of Omar's influences and it remembers me of how Christina Aguilera sometimes sounds, in her Back To Basics era. I bet she would have loved to record this one for Bi-on-ic !

Hologram is another mixed bag, this time with arabian melody and electro/techno arrangements. At bits, I heard Daft Punk, sometimes it reminds me of Ofra Haza's Im n'in alu but as an ensemble, Omar sounds more like a modern Tarkan here. Despite its influences that don't really belong to the usual music I listen to, I didn't dislike this song as its repetitive chorus is very catchy and the dance elements stay stronger than the middle east influences.

Baby back's intro sounds like real drums giving the rhythm for an upbeat rock number, except Baby back is more of a catchy pop song that would have been perfect 100% organic-sounding without the electro synthé loops that disturb the chorus lines I think. A slightly remix polishing this little out of place acid sound would make this song a very addictive pop single. Is it me already gettin' used to it or have these loops been shut down a bit on the last choruses that sound a lot more better than the two firsts ? I need to replay this song after I'm done posting this review to check it out ;)

Delicate piano notes and atmospheric arrangements prepare ourselves for a new calm song and a warm and tender vocal performance by our talented guy. "Peel the layers of your soul for me (...) Show me your true colours" goes the chorus of Layers and it'd surely be a pleasure to be peeled off our clothes and everything hiding our truth by Omar Afuni. His voice is sexy and sultry, the beats are hot and forceful, the music overwhelming and caressing. I didn't see the 5'20 of the song coming to its end...

Reunited starts with a funky bass and electric rubbings that create a musical playfield for the doubts and search for himself this personal song shows. "Baby I was lost in a world where I couldn't recognize myself, I was someone else." I feel Omar Afuni has hidden one of his more personal lyrics at the end of the album because he wanted to include his thoughts but his will is beforehand to cheer people up with his music the same way as the music gives him the power to keep waking up every morning to go to work when all he wants to do is take his mic and sing for us a new Youtube video or play piano and create a brand new song for people like me to fall in love with...

Not to end on this deep feelings, Resurrected has a remix of Blind as conclusion and this Paradise Garage remix has a galoping joyful beat that gets you back on your feet to dance with your hands up in the air to the rhythm and the melody that makes the original mid-tempo R&B/pop song a full-on house anthem, like the name of the remix paid hommage to, mashing it up with the Motown hit You keep me hangin' on. His soulful rendition of the lyrics Kim Wilde popularized when he was only 1 year old fit perfectly with his original chorus and I can't help thinking it is a shame this album has already come to its end.

REPLAY

That natural conclusion is the only one you oughta come to if you give this album a chance !

If you want to know more about Omar Afuni, you have simply got to go to his site :

http://www.omarafuni.com/

All the lyrics to his songs are found there too : http://www.omarafuni.com/lyrics/

If you want to support him, go and buy his music via iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/omar-afuni/id404213609

And I think you have got to subscribe (free) to his Youtube channel so that you won't miss his next hit cover version : http://www.youtube.com/user/OmarAfuni

And if you like what you read/heard/saw, please SPREAD THE WORD !