Red Room (#568)

Hi,

oops, I'm just a little late.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy:

• Kerli : New album alert. "Shadow Works" sounds good, but it could have used a few more bangers, if you ask me.
• Broods : New album alert. "Don't Feed The Pop Monster" fails to deliver. :(
• Busted : New album alert. "Half Way There" should make fans happy. I think that "Radio" grew on me a bit.
• BLVTH : Semi-hype context. This artist is part of this year's Immergut festival lineup, and a friend recommended checking out the BLVTH song "Pusher". I guess I still need some time to get my head around his music.

Most played artists:

• H.E.R. : Award context. After her Grammy win I felt the need to check out her self-titled album and the latest EP "I Used To Know Her: Part 2". Tbh I only liked a few songs.
• ONE OK ROCK : Personal hype context. I just bought a concert ticket. (Next fan level.)
• Dan + Shay : Award context. After seeing them perform on the Grammy stage, I was curious about their music. It is okay.
• Ladytron : New album alert. Their self-titled record got a few nice comments, but tbh it didn't really convince me.   

Most played tracks:

• ONE OK ROCK - Stand Out Fit In : Do we have a hit here? If you ask me, yes. This should be in the charts... but, meh... 

News?

█ And the Oscars went to... Ludwig Göransson for his Black Panther score and (of course) "Shallow" (performed by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper).
█ It might not be an Oscar, but much credit should go to the production team of Offset's "Red Room" video. It totally fits the serious theme of the song. I did not expect such a deep track.
█ John Legend's new single "Preach" may come with good intentions, but I think the video puts in too much pathos.
█ Guess who fully dived into music now. Alex Holtti, who was quite popular on YouTube and Vine back then. His new single is called "Bad Boy".
█ Have you ever heard of Avantasia? It's some kind of metal project. Anyway, their new album "Moonglow" is now at number one. Avril's new record "Head Above Water" went to number three in the German album charts.

New in the German charts:

[01] KC Rebell - DNA (feat. Summer Cem & Capital Bra) : I wonder, how much Mr Bra gets paid for a feature like this. Anyway, it's blhip-hop ruling again. :-/
[02] Shirin David - Gib Ihm : Yes, I agree with everyone saying that she's trying to copy Nicki Minaj. And though she might have a successfull year 2019, I will wait for the next releases and then maybe make up my mind.
[04] Pietro Lombardi - Nur ein Tanz : Yuck, have mercy with all the lost souls, who support such crap.

BIBA (#567)

Hi,

I had just another crazy week... but let me focus on the music part.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy:

• Chaka Khan : New album alert. "Hello Happiness" only comes with seven tracks, but I think this is a solid comeback. Unfortunately the song "Like Sugar" could not be topped.
• Drake : New re-release alert. "So Far Gone" seems to have been a previous EP from 2009, but this new digital release has a lot more songs on it. Especially a feature of Lykke Li made me curious.
• White Lies : I'm already looking forward to the concert next month.

Most played artists:

• ONE OK ROCK : New album alert. As it was announced somewhere the new record "Eye Of The Storm" has some more pop vibes. And I think most of it sounds good.
• Jan Blomqvist : Concert context. The artist is touring with a band now. I took my chance to see him live. And it's really fun to see the new light effects plus backdrops.
• Kacey Musgraves : Award hype. After her Grammy wins I was curious about her latest album. I can really recommend "Golden Hour" to anyone, who wants to give Country a chance.
• Avril Lavigne : New album alert. Tbh I expected not much from "Head Above Water" - thanks to the pre-single. And not even a Nicki Minaj feature can excite me. So it went just the way I was afraid of - a big disappointment.

Most played tracks:

• ONE OK ROCK - Stand Out Fit In : I think this might be the "catchiest" tune of the new album. It will definitely be on my next best of list.

News?

█ Bryan Adams made a duet with... Jennifer Lopez!? What an odd team-up. The song "That's How Strong Our Love Is" seems to beg for attention.
█ Speaking of unusual collaborations - Marshmello's new single with Pritam and Shirley Setia not only has a colorful Bollywood influenced music video, it also comes with a guest appearance by Shah Rukh Khan.
█ Looks like 6ix9ine will come out of prison earlier than expected. But it also could mean trouble for him, because he allegedly has made some enemies.
█ I can't remember the last time Kool Savas had a number 1 album - but hey, with "KKS" he did it (again?).

New in the German charts:

[01] Eno - Ferrari (feat. Mero) : Well, I think it's about time to investigate this era of cheap/short hip-hop tracks going viral this way. At a certain point they seem to sound the same. And compared to other big markets (UK and USA) we seem to have a new number one every week. How is that working?
[03] Azet & Zuna - Hallo Hallo : Oh, another one of those gangster lifestyle tracks. :-/ (Catchy tune though.) 
[08] Ariana Grande - Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored : Meh. Tbh I don't really get her new sound. Bring back the Max Martin productions. ^^
[10] KitschKrieg - 5 Minuten (feat. Cro, AnnenMayKantereit & Trettmann) : Considering all the feature power, this one feels like a failure. And I have my doubts that the song will make it to the top of the charts.  

Uranium Heart (#566)

Hi,

right now I'm on vacation, so this turns out to be another quick entry.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy:

• Jungstötter : New album alert. "Love Is"
• Madonna : Fan times.
• Roosevelt : Fan times.
• Normandie : Fan times. And there also some upcoming concerts in Germany.

Most played artists:

• White Lies : New album alert. "FIVE" with his 9 tracks is good enough to make me want to go to a concert... (to be continued)
• Highasakite : New album alert. "Uranium Heart" sounds good, but I was hoping for a few more uptempo songs.
• Ariana Grandy : New album alert. "thank u, next" is definitely not my cup of tea. She may have one or two catchy songs on it and that's that.
• Beirut : New album alert. "Gallipoli" is okay.
• Big Wild : New album alert. "Superdream" did not leave the best impression.

Most played tracks:

[nothing to highlight here]

News?

█ The 61st Grammy Awards took place in Los Angeles and the show was very good in terms of music diversity. Alicia Keys did a great hosting job. Performance highlights include Janelle Monáe and H.E.R.. And there was quite some buzz about Cardi B winning the award for best rap album.
█ Within Temptation's new album "Resist" topps the German album charts - followed by some artist named Kurdo.

New in the German charts:

[02] Loredana & Mozzik - Romeo & Juliet : Well, I guess this one is hip-hop-related.
[07] Calvin Harris & Rag'n'Bone - Giant : OK, that's quite an achievement in its 4th week. But I'm not really a fan of that song.

Homemade Rocket (#565)

Hi,

maybe I should really consider switching to a "Music Tuesday"... but anyway, I'm back from a short trip to London, which also gave me some music inspiration. And I already managed to listen to new music. But what else happened?

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy:

• Raz Simone : New album alert. "Still Love" starts off like a good R&B album. So I was really surprised to learn that this artist is more from the hip-hop corner of music.
• Arbeitsgruppe Zukunft : New album alert. Plus promotion context. So "Das nächste große Ding" features some nice tracks with humor. But I wouldn't call it my cup of tea.
• Pöbel MC : Promotion context. Guys,  just wait for the release of his "Pöbel Sports Tape". It is amazing!
• Chase Atlantic : New release alert. I've listened to their "Don't Try This" EP and I probably won't do that again soon. (Sorry.)
• We Are Scientists : Concert context. Their latest album "Megaplex" made me planning to attend their Rostock concert.
• BTS : Fan times. :)

Most played artists:

• Waving The Guns : Promotion context. Don't be jealous, but I already could listen to all songs from "Das muss eine Demokratie aushalten können". And I think that fans should be pleased. I also found some favorite songs already.
• LGoony : New album alert. I was hoping for more great tracks on "Lightcore", but so far only "Zeit" convinced me.
• Rainbow Danger Club : New album alert. By coincident I found this band and their album cover artwork made me curious. "Treehouse Empire" is a good indie record with a very nice opening track called "Homemade Rocket".

Most played tracks:

[nothing to highlight here]

News?

█ So there was another Super Bowl, which means the internet was buzzing about the halftime show. This year Maroon 5 took the stage with surprisingly much live effects. I think Adam Levine gave his best. I'm not sure about their feature guests Travis Scott and Big Boi. So if you ask me, in the end this show was just slightly more entertaining than JT last year.
█ Nicki Minaj has released a new music video from her current album "Queen". As one should expect, "Hard White" looks expensive. And it seems to make you keep your eyes on the visuals. I'm not sure, if you can concentrate on the lyrics much. But regarding the beats I had to think of "Chun-Li".
█ Tokio Hotel announced a new (world) tour (some weeks ago) and now we got a new single. "Melancholic Paradise", which is also the title of the tour, makes me wonder, if the band is about to change its style once more. Remembering the 80s pop vibe of the last two albums, I wouldn't mind such a move.
█ Is Jesse McCartney relevant anymore? And what was his greatest success? Anyway... he is back with "Wasted", which comes with a nice music video, that has a retro soap opera vibe. (But tbh he looks old in it...)
█ Lizzo covered the Bee Gees classic "Stayin' Alive" for the soundtrack of the upcoming film "Happy Death Day 2U". And if you think this song should not be touched, you might be surprised as I was, because this new version comes with a lot of funk vibes. :)
█ ONE OK ROCK will release their new album "Eye Of The Storm" next week, so why not drop a new music video. "Wasted Nights" might give you this reminiscent mood while thinking of your wild days.
█ The German album charts are currently ruled by Dendemann's "Da nich für", followed by the Backstreet Boys ("DNA") and Bring Me The Horizon ("amo"). I call this a good week.

New in the German charts:

[01] Capital Bra - Prinzessa : Welcome back on the top, sir. JK. After splitting with his label boss Bushido, he now releases his YouTube stuff on his channel "Joker bra". This new track... sounds softer than previous releases, but Idc because the lyrics are just weak. His next album "CB6" will come out on April 26.
[05] Shirin David - Orbit : Hm, it might not be Krasavice level, but it ain't so much better. Tbh it could be worse. Meh...
[10] Sido - Tausend Tattoos : In its 14th week this song makes it back to the top ten. Yikes. It wasn't cool when it came out, and to me it is still not a good track. :/