Blue Wonderful (#407)

Hi,
last week was a busy one for me. But hey, I managed to read a few comic books. Plus new music. And boy, did I do some good research...

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy: (even without pictures)

• Crack Ignaz & Wandl : Research context. There are some great reviews of that album "Geld Leben". So I'm still busy figuring out what the buzz is about.
• Junior Boys : Promotion alert. Their new album is called "Big Black Coat". After what I've heard, I'm not that convinced.
• The Killers : Actually it was because of the Killerpilze, that I got to revisit some Killers materiel from "Battle Born". Tbh. I still can't make up my mind, how good I find this album.
• Lissie : Promotion alert. "Don't You Give Up On Me" walks the thin line between honest singer-songwriter stuff and mainstream pop. So far I can live with that.

Most played artists:

• LGoony & Crack Ignaz : New album alert. Well, actually they call it mixtape. "Aurora" might start not that extraordinary, but during the second half of the album you might be surprised about some mellow (dreamy) songs.
• RÜFÜS : New album alert. I've listened to "Bloom" twice, because I really liked the first pre-single "Like An Animal". Great tunes.
• Coasts : New album alert. Unfortunately I can say after a first listening session that no track is as strong as "Modern Love". :/

Most played tracks:

• Killerpilze - Hymne (Single Version) : Yes, it's ultra catchy radio pop. But somehow it works for me. :)
• LGoony & Crack Ignaz - Moonwalk : This is one of those dreamy/mellow songs from "Aurora". I guess it does not feature both artists on vocals. But who cares? (It's a free mixtape.)

News?
█ Elton John's new video "Blue Wonderful" shows the beauty of the everyday life of a small town with a dancing/levitating couple. Good work.
█ DMA's have a new video called "Delete", which may not look that elaborate. But the song compensates the fact. Their debut album "Hills End" will be released on February 26.
█ The Pet Shop Boys finally announced that their new album "Super" will come out on April 1. Their first released track "Inner Sanctum" sounds okay, but I am more excited about their new single "The Pop Kids".

New in the German charts:
[01] EFF - Stimme : Oh, that was quick (for Matt Simons). Well, let's see, if this one stays on top. ^^
[01] Lukas Graham - 7 Years : Cool. I like this song. This should be a future number 1, because it seems more from the heart than other tracks among the top ten.

Lazarus (#406)

Hi,
last week not only included my first cinema visit of the year ("The Danish Girl"), but also my first concert of the year. Unfortunately I didn't manage to listen to all the new tracks by Waving The Guns. But still, this act should not be missed. And also the support by Pöbel MC was great.
But now back to usual stuff...

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy: (even without pictures)

• David Bowie : I guess this should be no surprise to anyone...
• Paola & Chiara : Hm, I might have forgotten about this... but "Television" still is my favorite album by those singers.
• Sheryl Crow : Ah, those good ol' days of "C'Mon, C'Mon". What an album! I hope that she will come up with something as good as this one.

Most played artists:

• LGoony : In preparation for an upcoming concert I went through his latest mixtape from 2015. Although I might have lost my interest here and there while listening to "Grape Tape", I am still willing to see him live on stage.
• Anderson .Paak : New album alert. So far I hardly heard much from it. But I intend to. Tbc...
• Conrad Sewell : New EP alert. I had to do a little research to find out where I've seen this name before. He was featured on a Kygo track. And his EP "All I Know" not only features that track ("Firestone") in an acoustic version, it is also a good collection of songs in general.

Most played tracks:

• Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls : Jubilation context. Last week marked the 30th anniversary of this song topping the UK charts. And as you may recognize from the album cover compilation image, I really dig the slightly more modern version from their live album "Pandemonium". 
• Daughter - To Belong : New album alert. I just rushed quickly through "Not To Disappear" - only to find a track I would call a little gem. I especially like the last minute. :)

News?
█ Oh, I almost missed David Bowie's last video "Lazarus", which comes off quite artsy. And I like the shorter (radio) version of the song. (The album track runs about 6 minutes.)
█ Kanye West announced new music for every Friday before his new album "Swish" drops on February 11.
█ The Oscar nominations ditched Ellie Goulding's "Love Me Like You Do" for The Weeknd's "Earned It" (both from "Fifty Shades Of Grey"). Yay. But as far as the trend of the Golden Globes shows, Sam Smith's "The Writing's On The Wall" will probably win.
█ Speaking of nominations. The BRITs 2016 have a nomination list as well now. Not only Adele could win 4 awards on February 24, so could also James Bay... and also Years & Years.
█ Mac Miller's new video "Weekend" dropped a few days ago. Feature guest Miguel also appears. Although the song doesn't seem to me like an instant catchy tune, I like the fact that both artists seem to have worked together on this track.
█ "Genghis Khan" is the title of Miike Snow's newest video, which looks like a James Bond musical with an amusing plot twist. Unfortunately the song feels a bit weak.
█ Oh, I didn't know that Coldplay already released a second video from "A Head Full Of Dreams". "Birds" is a good choice, but the video looks too random to be convincing.

New in the German charts:
[01] Matt Simons - Catch & Release (Deepend Remix) : Oh, did not see that coming. Okay, congrats to the first new number one track of the year. (But who is Matt Simons?)
[11] DJ Ötzi & Nik P. - Geboren um dich zu lieben : Whaaa... please don't let this be a future number one track. :( This crap could not be more intentionally created for a certain target audience. What a shame. (The fact that this duet version also is just a cover doesn't matter to me.)

Hello World (#405)

Hi,
if I am correct, I made through more than 3 new albums last week. So I guess I'm still hungry for new music. And maybe I've already found my first gems of the year.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy: (even without pictures)

• Prince : OK, his "HITnRUN - Phase Two" is not as good as the start. The most shocking thing for me was the re-worked version of "Screwdriver", because it did not need that treatment. :/
• Jakob Bruckner : I found his album "Abfahrtszeit" at the radio office. I liked the artwork, so I gave it a try. It reminded me of RHODES a little bit. Unfortunately you can easily get annoyed of his voice, if you're not in the right mood. :|
• EL VY : Hm, I can't really remember listening to their album last week.
• Florence + The Machine : I'm not sure yet, but it looks like the 2015 album will become my favorite of this act. Great drama!
• David Bowie : New album alert. "Blackstar" may only consist of 7 songs, but those are quite big. I am pretty sure this is a grower for most people. So give it a try.
• Simon Curtis : New album alert. What a cheap move is "Super 8-Bit Heart"? Did Simon really need to remix his quite good electro pop album from back in the day, when he looked young? Even worse is the fact, that he took all explicit bits out. A shame.

Most played artists:

• Alexandre Desplat :Music research context. For a film broadcast I went through some new soundtracks and scores. And this one is very nice - and now that I've just seen the film "The Danish Girl", I can say that it fits.
• Shearwater : Promo alert. Although this band had quite a few albums in their 15+ years, it's actually a first for me. But guess what, not only can I already recommend "Jet Plane And Oxbow", I also managed to somehow put their pre-single "Quiet Americans" on the hot rotation of the local radio station. :D
• Madeline Juno : Promo alert. She will soon release her second album "Salvation", for which she wen full pop. Let the Ellie Goulding comparisons come! :P

Most played tracks:

• Aloe Blacc : Hello World : Music research context. This singer had his birthday last week, so I looked into his latest singles. And guess what - this one is actually very nice.

News?
█ The rumors about Guns N' Roses playing at Coachella festival have been confirmed. But I think "let's wait and see".
█ In case you missed it. David Bowie passed away. What a sad thing for a new year in music to start. :(
█ Still no new Roxette album in sight. But the Swedish group will release a documentary in early March. It's called "The Roxette Diaries - The Private Home Videos 1987-1995". This allone might not sound that amazing, but we're talking about "A Jonas Åkerlund film" here. :)
█ For their new video/single Fall Out Boy teamed up with Demi Lovato. And they obviously liked *NSync's "It's Gonna Be Me" a lot, because that video gets referenced a bit. Not to mention 1 or 2 cameos. Anyway... the song is crap. How can they market this as rock?
█ Lady Gaga has now a Golden Globe (for acting). And the "Best Song" award went to Sam Smith's horrible Bond song "The Writing's On The Wall".

New in the German charts:
nothing, except the fact, that Shawn Mendes is now on #4. Say what?

Stitches (#404)

Hi,
a new year has just begun... and I am already in a hurry.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy: (even without pictures)

• Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds : Year's end context. Right before my very own résumé of 2015, I tried to finish a thing or two... like listening to the entire "Chasing Yesterday" album. It was long overdue.
• Craig Armstrong :Quiet times at work. A perfect score for that.
• Katie Melua :Quiet times at work.
• Frankmusik : Flashback times. I went through my favorite tracks of "By Nicole".

Most played artists:

• Madonna : Hm, what is it with my relationship to her "Rebel Heart" album? I can't make up my mind. A few song definitely grew on me. But there are also the big disappointments.
• Florence + The Machine : Year's end context. Wow, how could I miss this so long. "How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful" really should not be missed. I enjoyed almost every track.
• Nothing But Thieves : Year's end context. I revisited their debut album and "Graveyard Whistling" made it into my "best of" playlist. :)

Most played tracks:

• Florence + The Machine - Queen Of Peace : Oh, what a song. The trumpet tune is really powerful.

News?
█ Guns N' Roses might have a live comeback - just in time for the Coachella festival. And there may be a few more stadiums concerts in North America during summer.
█ Taylor Swift surprised fans with a new video ... and yes, "Out Of The Woods" is pure pop goodness in visuals and sounds.
█ Natalie Cole passed away... right before New Year's Eve.

New in the German charts:
[09] Shawn Mendes - Stitches : Oh, did not see that coming. Another artist for the strongest target group - impressionable teenagers. Imagine him being obese... and think about how much looks mean to you, when it comes to pop music. :P

2015 - my year in music

Happy New Year!

I'll try to make it quick...

Most scrobbled artists

I'm surprised to see Alanis as part of my top ten. An no Corrs?



Most scrobbled songs

Steve Aoki? Really?

Most scrobbled albums

 Madonna's "Rebel Heart" rules twice :P

Queen Of Peace (#403)

Hi,
sorry, I'm late. Christmas was okay. I often feel tired these days.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy: (even without pictures)

• The Weeknd : Playlist research context / fan times. :P
• Vaults : I revisited some new discoveries of 2015. And Vaults are part of it.
• Nicki Minaj : Playlist research context

Most played artists:

• Lana Del Rey : Her "Honeymoon" album
• P!nk : Flashback times. "Try This" is not just an album title. It's a call. :P
• Paola & Chiara : Flashback times, again. 

Most played tracks:

• Carrie Underwood - Heartbeat : There is no denying - even though this is actually not a strong song, it has become one of my tracks of 2015. 
• Madonna - Iconic (feat. Chance The Rapper & Mike Tyson) : Playlist context. For a special radio programme I was looking for at least one song from Madonna's "Rebel Heart" album. Of course, my first choice would be the title track, which can only be found among the bonus tracks. But since I really dislike the final version and there hasn't been an official release of the Avicii version, I had to change plans. This song kind of grew on me, since I saw videos of her opening the Rebel Heart Tour with it. And tbh the fact that Chance The Rapper is featured also helped.

News?
█ I finally watched the "Queen Of Peace" video by Florence + The Machine. What a dramatic double feature with "Long And Lost". It's a shame that it took me so long to figure out.
█ Motörhead lost their head. Singer Lemmy died at age 70.

New in the German charts:
[10] Justin Bieber - Love Yourself : Another top ten song for the Biebz? Hm, is it just because Ed Sheeran was involved? Or is it because of lonely Christmas times? Idk.
[11] Jamie-Lee Kriewitz - Ghost : Oh, another casting show winner. And the lyrics have a Hobbit reference? Also her voice sounds surprisingly soft - I'm tempted to say weak. Really disappointing.

UGH! (#402)

Hi,
so... just 10 days of 2015 left. I think it was a good year in music. I'm already prepairing my personal best of. It might differ from my scrobble stats, because I also hear a lot of music when I'm not at a computer.
Anyway... let's see how Christmas times may have influenced my current stats.

Last week in covers:

Noteworthy: (even without pictures)

• Prince : New album alert. The songs on "HITnRUN Phase Two" that I've checked out so far sound promising. Will there be another "Mr Nelson"? :P
• Daft Punk : Yep, soundtrack times with "TRON Legacy". If only the film would be as good as the music, which was produced for it.
• Lana Del Rey : With a slight delay I'm beginning to like her album "Honeymoon".

Most played artists:

• Austin Mahone : New al.. uh, mixtape alert. "This Is Not The Album" can be found online and has an amount of over 20 songs (plus remixes). But why do we need to wait for the album?
• Troye Sivan : I'm still not tired of telling anyone how good his debut album "Blue Neighbourhood" is. Try it.
• James Morrison : His latest album "Higher Than Here" might be not that new anymore... but finally I've listened to it.

Most played tracks:

• Coasts - Modern Love : I blame that Indie radio programme to let me get to know beautiful songs right at the end of the year. But, seriously, this band has good stuff to offer any Indie fan. 
• The Mispers - Weekend : Ooh, goodness. This amazing tune got me hooked instantly. Please, give me more, Mispers.
• Chris Brown - Zero : New album alert. So while Breezy's new record "Royalty" was released, I was struggling whether or not to play that song on the radio. I mean, what can I do? It's catchy. But then again, I chose not to give an artist like that more airplay than he already has. :P

News?
█ 5 Seconds of Summer's new video "Jet Black Heart" seems like a true fan service. And it's nice to see them tackle a more serious vibe here.
█ The 1975 released a new pre-single for their upcoming 2nd album "I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It" (out in February 2016). And the video for "UGH!" once again comes off quite sensual and colorful.

New in the German charts:
[08] Major Lazer - Light It Up (feat. Nyla & Fuse ODG) [Remix] : Hm, nice track. reminds me of summer. And it avoids overusing trendy sounds.
[09] EFF - Stimme : Idk. As if someone tried to combine some clichés for a hit song. Generic "listen to your inner voice" lyrics meet uninspired synth melodies. I really don't know. :/