Dirrrty Pop

WE HAVE MOVED!

2009-03-08T23:32:00.002Z

Please click here to go to This Must Be... POP!

It is exactly the same blog, just a different name and a different colour.

See you there!

It's a small world after all

2009-03-08T14:31:00.004Z

Remember the band Tough Love I was recommending about a week ago? Well, it turns out that they're not entirely new to the music business. One of them is Toby Slater, lead singer of 90s indie boyband Catch! He was also one of the stars of the much-mocked (but actually quite ace) Romo movement. Hopefully Tough Love will do better than his fellow Catch member Wayne Murray's utterly brilliant, yet barely remembered, band The Honeymoon.

When the world leaves you feeling blue...

2009-03-08T11:29:00.004Z

We've had T.I. sampling O-Zone, Akon covering The Underdog Project, and everyone borrowing Darin and K-otic's songwriters (Red One and Toby Gad). If a year ago someone had told me this was going to happen, I would have joked, "oh yeah, and maybe Flo Rida will do a version of Blue by Eiffel 65!" Well... he actually has! The song is called Sugar and you can listen to it here. It even features Wynter Gordon, who released the brilliant Surveillance last year. Right Round is set to be no.1 in the UK this week, and Blue (Da Ba Dee) was no.1 back in 1999, so I think we can safely predict that Sugar will be a huge hit this summer. The Europop sound is perfect for summer, after all.

If there is anything I will remember 2009 for, it will be that it was very strange. You just don't know what will happen next! So far, as well as the above, we've had acts (like Erik Hassle and Adiam Dymott) coming from nowhere with the best new music I've heard in years, and even the 99% terrible UK rap/r&b scene has produced some brilliant songs. I really can't wait to see what happens next. Pop music has become exciting again, and I'm incredibly pleased!

Important Dirrrty Pop News

2009-03-07T14:13:00.002Z

When I chose the name of this blog, I didn't think much about it. I was always starting new online projects at that time in my life, and didn't expect to still be writing this blog 6 years later. Writing Dirrrty Pop has never stopped being enjoyable for me. If it ever does, then I'll give up, but unless I change considerably as a person, I can't see that happening. Therefore, I think it is important for the blog to have a name which I am proud of, and that I feel represents its content. There's nothing dirrrty about me or this blog - I love Same Difference, after all, and hate the Pussycat Dolls.

I thought for a long time about what to rename my blog. I consulted some friends and regular readers, and in the end decided the best name would be another one taken from the fantastic song, Pop by *N Sync, which inspired the title Dirrrty Pop. See it like S Club 7 renaming themselves S Club when the 7 in their name became inappropriate, but in this case, nothing is going to change except for the name. And that new name is going to be...

This Must Be... POP!

and the new blog address is going to be http://tmbpop.blogspot.com

I will make the move in a few days, when this message should have got to most of my readers, and I hope to be able to keep this blog address as well, so I can leave a note on it to redirect people. But just in case, if you have friends who you know read this blog, please let them know about the change of name and address. Also, please change any links you might have to this blog on your own website. I really appreciate everybody who visits the site, and who links to me. It's great to be part of the pop blogging community, and I definitely want that to continue.

If I had another chance tonight

2009-03-07T11:39:00.002Z

Tonight is the night when those who didn't quite make it through to the final of Melodifestivalen get another chance to do so. I can't remember anyone ever winning after having been on Andra Chansen (which literally means 'the second chance'), but of course it is important that the places go to deserving people i.e. BWO and Amy. Unfortunately I'm not too confident for BWO, but I think Amy has a good chance. She's also one of 4 acts who didn't go straight to Globen (where the final's held) but have been shortlisted by an international jury, and 1 of them will get a place in the final.

As seems to be the pattern with Melodifestivalen, the winners of Andra Chansen are picked in a pointlessly complex way, but I suppose it does add to the drama a bit. Basically, the 8 acts who are competing are separated into pairs, and the winner of each pair will then go on to compete with the winner of another pair, and the winners of that will go to Globen. I will make a prediction of what will happen, but it's quite difficult to get it right with so many choices to make:

Scotts vs. Sarah Dawn Finer -> Sarah
Lili & Susie vs. BWO -> Lili & Susie
Amy Diamond vs. Star Pilots -> Amy
Rigo vs. Caroline -> Neither, they're both rubbish (but probably Caroline)

Sarah vs. Lili & Susie -> Sarah
Amy vs. Caroline -> Amy (I really hope!)

Then there will be the International Jury, but they have made such random choices, I couldn't say who they'd go for. However, if Amy and Sarah do go through, that will only leave Caroline and Sofia to choose from, so I think it is probably quite inevitable that we will see Caroline in the final, unfortunately. Of course, it could easily go very differently, and it will be fun to see how well I have predicted, as I have in all the past rounds got it almost but not quite exactly right.

Who, me? Yeah, you! Couldn't be! Then who?

2009-03-04T17:37:00.003Z

I was so pleased to see Popjustice mentioning the super-ace Yeah Yous today, and even happier to see that they've finally got more than one song on their MySpace. I posted If I Could a while ago on Into The Groove when I first heard it and found it stuck in my head for the next week. They're extremely radio-friendly, basically doing what The Feeling set out to do, before they forgot and went boring. They're also a bit like Take That on their Mark Owen singles. There's not one thing original about The Yeah Yous, but they have a great, jolly vibe and I can't see why local radio, Radio 2, and maybe even Radio 1, wouldn't put the new single 15 Minutes on their A-list. All my friends who know nothing about music will love them, and hopefully they'll forget all about Scouting For Girls in the process. Hooray!

David Archuleta was gay and British in the 90s

2009-03-02T00:33:00.002Z

He also hasn't aged a bit. Well, according to this ace film anyway:

You can watch all 110 minutes of extreme AWWW-ness on YouTube.

Top of the Poptastic!

2009-03-01T12:47:00.002Z

The best singles of February. A rather long list = a rather good month!

1. Taylor Swift - Love Story (Digital Dog Radio Edit)
2. Erik Hassle - Hurtful
3. Pet Shop Boys - Love Etc.
4. Will Young – Let It Go
5. September – Can’t Get Over (UK release)
6. Tinchy Stryder ft. N-Dubz - Number One
7. Annie Lennox – Shining Light
8. Noisettes - Don't Upset The Rhythm
9. Velvet - Chemistry (UK release)
10. Swingfly - Singing That Melody (UK release)
11. The Saturdays - Just Can't Get Enough
12. Lady GaGa - Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)
13. Swingfly - Touch and Go
14. Velvet Inc. - Tricky
15. Bat For Lashes - Daniel
16. Miss Li - I Heard of a Girl
17. Enrique Iglesias ft. Ciara - Taking Back My Love
18. Basic Element - Touch You Right Now
19. Melody Club - Girls Don't Always Wanna Have Fun
20. VV Brown - Leave!
21. Velvet - The Queen
22. Defend Moscow - Manifesto
23. Liam and Me - Say It Out Loud
24. Lasse Lindh & Bandet - Jag Ska Slåss I Dina Kvarter!
25. West End Girls - Little Black Dress
26. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Zero
27. Marina & the Diamonds - Obsession
28. Lisa Lavie - Angel
29. Darin - See U At The Club
30. Marie Serneholt - Disconnect Me
31. Jonathan Fagerlund - Welcome To My Life
32. Nick Lachey - Patience
33. Nina Söderquist - Tick Tock
34. Cocknbullkid – I’m Not Sorry
35. Markoolio - Kärlekssång från mig
36. Jenny Wilson - The Wooden Chair
37. Platnum - Trippin'
38. Empire of the Sun - We are the People
39. Al, Marc & Sandy - Mike
40. Sweet Rush - Hot Sauce

The Return of Extreme Kevin Borg Appreciation Mania

2009-03-01T12:19:00.002Z

In case you're new to this blog, I will inform you: Kevin Borg won Idol 2008 in Sweden, and he is utterly adorable (like a Maltese David Archuleta) and highly poptastic. He's got a new single out, Street Lights, and the album, The Beginning, is out on Wednesday! Street Lights isn't very original, but he does a good job with it, and hopefully the album will be of at least this standard throughout. I am a little worried that it has been rushed out without a thought for staying true to Kevin's extreme poptasticness, but he can always make a better 2nd album (like Ola), and we have Alice's album to wait for as well, which is sure to be brilliant. You can listen to Street Lights here, and pre-order your copy of The Beginning here.

Melodi Club

2009-02-27T17:56:00.002Z

So, it's that time again... and the last one this year! There will of course be Andra Chansen next week and the final the week after, but this is the last Friday where we get 8 brand new Swedish pop songs. We'd better make the most of it!

Star Pilots - Higher
Although they make dance-pop, I find Star Pilots very boring and unoriginal. Their songs are very samey and could have been made anywhere in Europe - there's nothing special about them, unlike poptastic dance acts September, E-Type etc.. If Velvet can't succeed in Melodifestivalen, Star Pilots certainly won't either.

Sarah Dawn Finer - Moving On
She's a big name among MF fans after making her name with the very successful (and not bad for its type) I Remember Love, so she has a good chance of getting through. My mum loved I Remember Love and I think she'd like this too. However, it's much less memorable, so it'll depend on how good the full track is, and the competition.

Malena Ernman - La Voix
This is an odd one - an opera-disco-mum who's apparently an international superstar! I love the verses (similar to Bulletproof Heart from MF '04) but the operatic chorus ruins it for me. It's a shame, because a song that was like the verses the whole way through would have been one of my favourites of this year.

Thorleifs - Sweet Kissin' In The Moonlight
Another dansband, and just like Scotts they're singing a super-jolly Swedish-language song. They're an almost impressively ugly bunch, but they're good fun and sure to have lots of dedicated lady fans in the audience. I don't know how popular they are but they come from the golden age of dansbands, according to Wikipedia.

Agnes - Love Love Love
My most anticipated song this week, and I'm satisfied. After loving her last 2 singles, it doesn't sound as new and different (they were quite a change in style for Agnes), but still it's my favourite song of this week so far by a clear mile. I'm very confident that with her popularity she will sail through to Globen.

Susanne Alfvengren - Du är älskad där du går
I was dreading this one because she looks like a secondary school teacher or someone's nice but boring aunt, and I was correct to do so cos it's terribly boring. The MF site tells me it's a grower, but I'm not convinced. Apparently she is known for her shrill, annoying voice. Wow, really can't wait for her performance now...

Next 3 - Esta Noche
I didn't believe any of tonight's acts could be uglier than Thorleifs, but Next 3 really have outdone them. Their band name is rubbish too. It's a rap song with a Spanish vibe, despite being in Swedish, and an early Enrique-style chorus. It reminds me a bit of Obsession by Aventura mixed with Daddy Yankee i.e. very 2005.

Anna Sahlene & Maria Haukaas Storeng - Killing Me Tenderly
Maria did pretty well for Norway last year, although I didn't care for the song myself, and Anna did a fab entry for Estonia a few years ago, so this will be a strong bet for success. They've mixed the sound of Duffy with ABBA and I must say it works. A definite qualifier and stands a good chance of winning, I think!

So, my favourites are by far Agnes and Anna & Maria, and I think it's likely that both of those will go further, but there'll be a tough fight for the Globen places with Thorleifs, Sarah, and possibly Malena. I'm quite confident that those 5 will be the top 4, but so far every week I've only been almost right, so don't put any bets on until we know who's going to be the Owly/Rigo/H.E.A.T of this week.

The Next Big Thing?

2009-02-26T19:41:00.004Z

Erik Hassle
With Erik Hassle, it was love at first listen. OK, I only discovered him a few minutes ago, but I'm already obsessed. Some pop acts are just special and within seconds of the stunningly beautiful Hurtful I was certain that Erik belonged to that category. His other fantastic songs proved me correct. He's like an indie-chav Darin, singing soulful electro-pop with real feeling. He's also a massive slut if his rather rude new video's anything to go by - I couldn't keep count of all the different girls! He may or may not become a worldwide superstar, but Erik is undoubtedly set for huge hits in ever-sensible Sweden, and I'll be leading his fanclub as soon as I move back there in August. I think I'm in love!
Hit potential: 84% Poptasticness: 100%

Tough Love
If you like Patrick Wolf, listen up: Here's a whole band of Patricks, but poppier! There aren't many more appealing descriptions than that, surely. With 5 male members and one girl (although not the singer this time), comparisons have already been made to the Scissor Sisters, but really what they have in common with SS and Patrick is that they're something totally new and different, which makes them fascinating and exciting. Pop experiments can often end in disaster, but Tough Love have remembered that they are making pop music, and the end result is certainly poptastic. I love every one of the songs on their website, and it's hard to pick favourites, but I will recommend Bastard and Is That All There Is as great starting points. Today has been an utterly brilliant day for pop discoveries!
Hit potential: 75% Poptasticness: 94%

New Svenskpop on the Block

2009-02-25T18:56:00.002Z

West End Girls - Little Black Dress (Watch)
Tribute bands like A*Teens and West End Girls always have the problem of what to do once they've covered all the best/their favourite songs by the artist they are a tribute to. Luckily for the West End Girls, they had impressed the Pet Shop Boys so much that they suggested the girls cover a song they'd written for the short-lived PSBs musical, Closer to Heaven. It's cooler, more serious electro compared to their versions of the PSB hits, but it works well for them and results in a really unique sound. I don't know when their new album, supposedly titled Shoplifters, will be released, but the fact this one now has a video suggests the wait can't be too long.
85% Poptastic!

Miss Li - I Heard of a Girl (Listen)
I only got into Miss Li last year, but ever since I first heard one of her songs (it was Oh Boy, in fact), I absolutely loved her. Now she's about to release a new album, Dancing the Whole Way Home (out 1st April), and has posted the first single from it on her MySpace. It's a little less frenetic than much of her past work, but still bears Miss Li's unique style, and is a very lovely pop song. I'm definitely going to get her new album, and I really hope I will get to see her live at some point because I think she'd be utterly incredible.
94% Poptastic!

Swingfly - Touch and Go (Watch)
He's soon to release his brilliant Singing That Melody in the UK, but in Sweden Swingfly is already onto his next single, and rather brilliantly the lyrics continue the same story. There's a terrible twist - you know that number the girl he fancied sang to him approximately 100 times? It was wrong!!! Thank goodness for MySpace and Facebook, which reconnect them! Now no-one can say they aren't useful. I've listened to this so many times today it feels like I've known it for months, rather than hours. I suppose it helps that it's similar to his (and Teddybears') past work, but it's one of the catchiest choruses I've heard in ages. Great work, Mr Fly!
97% Poptastic!

Jenny Wilson - The Wooden Chair (Watch)
Also back with the first single from her new album is quirky singer song-writer Jenny Wilson. When this song came on my mp3 player today I thought it was Kelis at first, which is quite a strange comparison if you know who Jenny is, but the similarity was uncanny. It's a really interesting, atmospheric song, and the video's a perfect match for it. It never fails to amaze me what a wide variety of top quality pop music Sweden can produce. This is so different to September and Darin, but still ace in its own way. I think it will be very well-received by those who liked her last album, despite the different style.
77% Poptastic!

What's Up ft. Vendela Palmgren - Här är jag (Watch)
If this song sounds a bit familiar, it's because you're a secret fan of Camp Rock! Don't worry, I also quite liked it when I eventually caved in to watch it. Still hate the Jo Bros, though. For the rest of you, this is a Swedish cover of one of the Camp Rock songs. I recognised Vendela from her unreleased cover of Holiday by Venke Knutson, and her participation in Lilla MF, but What's Up were new to me. After years of having no boybands at all, Sweden now has 2, although I'm not confident What's Up will ever be as popular as EMD. Then again, EMD only have 2 good songs and 1 cute member, so they're in with a chance of catching up in terms of quality, if not in the popularity stakes.
45% Poptastic!

Pipettes Update

2009-02-24T16:42:00.003Z

First there was Rose, Becki and Julia. Then Julia decided she didn't want to be a popstar, and in came poptastic Gwenno to replace her. The band became a success, but after only one album, Becki and Rose also decided to leave the band. By this time, they had even outdone the Sugababes, with no original members remaining. Gwenno recruited 2 new members, her sister Annie and a girl called Anna... who left after a few months to be a songwriter. Now they have yet another new member, a fellow Welsh girl called Beth, and you can see the new line-up in all their acetastic jolliness in the new video-blog on their website, http://www.thepipettes.co.uk/ Let's hope this line-up will last long enough to release the brilliant new songs I heard at their gig last summer.

No words in the vernacular can describe this great event

2009-02-24T16:31:00.002Z

If you liked High School Musical, The American Mall, or even Camp Rock, you have to see the latest addition to the teenpop musical genre: Spectacular! It was shown on Nickelodeon USA last week and I presume it will be quite a while til we Brits get a chance to see it (especially for those without Sky, it will probably be never), but you need wait no longer - the whole thing is on YouTube! Here's part one:

If you enjoy it, click here for the rest of the film.

Cuckoo!!

2009-02-24T13:47:00.002Z

Marina & the Diamonds performed live on Dermot O'Leary's radio show last weekend, and did a brilliant cover of What You Waiting For by Gwen Stefani, as well as her own song Obsessions. Click here and skip to 16:30 to hear it. She's also set up a Twitter account - click here to follow her.

Beyoncé's replaced Kelly and Michelle...

2009-02-23T13:11:00.002Z

with Vanessa and Amanda:

A great move, I think you'll all agree!

New Pop on the Block

2009-02-22T17:42:00.001Z

Kelly Clarkson - I Do Not Hook Up (Listen)
If you thought that My Life Would Suck was just a retread of Kelly's past work, you'll certainly think the same of her next single, and this one doesn't even have any Swedish people involved in it! Even worse, guess who was involved? Only the one rock-pop singer I dislike more than Kelly... Katy Perry! Actually no, Pink is also more annoying than Kelly. The oh-ohs in the chorus are really catchy and I like the relentless speed of the song. I love songs that just don't stop for 3 and a half minutes. There's nothing wrong with it, and the chorus has good energy, but at the same time I don't feel at all compelled to listen to it again. We've heard this all before, haven't we?
77% Poptastic!

Velvet - Chemistry (Watch)
Thanks to September's success last year with Cry For You, Sweden's most similar act, Velvet, has been given the chance to release a single in the UK. Luckily one of her very best songs (one I posted on ITG immediately when I heard it in 2007) has been chosen as her UK debut, and now a video has been released. It's nothing very remarkable, but is certainly an improvement on the embarrassingly old-fashioned UK videos made for September. Why she needed new videos at all, I'll never know. It concerns me slightly that Velvet is being promoted by the same people who are working with U2 and Red Blooded Woman, but hopefully the great quality pop music will shine through. Now we just need Radio 1 to get on board, cos the inevitable Clubland TV hourly rotation will not be enough to get this song the notice it needs.
96% Poptastic!

Nick Lachey - Patience (Listen)
The ex-98 Degrees singer and presenter of the acetastic High School Musical: Get in the Picture is soon to release a new album, and after his last one had the most excellent lead single of What's Left of Me, I was looking forward to seeing what would be the first song released this time. Sadly we don't get a new Nick/Emanuel Kiriakou collaboration, as the song turns out to be a cover of Patience by Take That! It actually works really well as a Nick song. He makes it more BSBs than Take That. I like his version, but it's kind of sad that Take That won't get a chance to release Patience in America themselves. Then again, if it does well for Nick, it could be a good launching pad for our boys over there. If they want it, that is.
83% Poptastic!

Kate Deigman - It Was You (Watch)
I can't really see why, but the video for Kate's debut single is getting absolutely loads of plays on YouTube at the moment. Her claim to fame seems to be counting Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart and Gary Barlow among her fans (but Gary's mate Eliot Kennedy wrote the songs, so that's no surprise), but she totally lacks any claim to goodness. She's like the new Sandi Thom, singing in the style of Joss Stone. Can you think of a more terrifying proposition? I can't! Obviously she is getting all these hits from somewhere, perhaps the support of a tabloid or something like that, and there must be quite a bit of money behind her, because a blandathon like this would never just catch on of it's own accord. Perhaps it's one person watching the video on 123,575 computers at once?
32% Poptastic!

The Next Big Thing?

2009-02-22T16:58:00.000Z

Elouise
With the success of retro-pop female singers in the past few years, and the current 50th anniversary celebrations for Motown, it's no surprise that Elouise is going for a Motown sound with her music. She even samples the classic Marvelettes single, Needle in a Haystack on her song Since You've Been Gone. It's a lovely, jolly pop song, but it sounds more like Emma Bunton's last album (nb: not a bad thing!) than Duffy or Amy Winehouse. Her songs are certainly poptastic, and her live shows get great reviews, but I believe that the retro trend has been around long enough now that there are so many bandwagon-jumpers, only something spectacularly original and special will be successful. Elouise is not that, but she's good fun anyway. My favourite is Miracle Man, cos it sounds like Ace of Base!
Hit Potential: 27% Poptasticness: 87%

Liam and Me
This new American indie-rock act have made what is a very clever choice in this musical climate - they're releasing their most electro song (Say It Out Loud) as a single, and it's a pretty good one too. It does remind me a bit of Protocol, who were not particularly successful, but I loved them personally, and now that electro is in fashion, Liam and Me may have a bit more luck. With the crapness of The Killers new album (except for Human, of course), maybe Liam and Me can take their place. Their only problems are a) their ungrammatical name (not as bad as "The Yeah You's" though, eek!) and b) they're hilariously geeky and ordinary-looking. I think some of you (eg. those who like Melody Club) will love this group, and Say It Out Loud is a great single, but I wonder if it may be a one-off success. We'll see.
Hit Potential: 50% Poptasticness: 82%

Jessie J
This young British singer has had an excellent start to her career, although unfortuantely one she may not want to mention too much at the moment - despite being a total unknown, she supported Chris Brown on his recent European tour. The songs on her MySpace sound extremely professional, and will make great album tracks, but I'm still waiting to hear a brilliant debut single from her. Stand Up sounds just like Natasha Bedingfield, and is better than anything she's released since I Wanna Have Your Babies. Hello is another great track, the most poptastic one she's done - it reminds me of the Swedish singer Pauline, who I love. I still don't think it would be a hit, at least not as a debut single, so her future success all depends on whether her management find her something ace to record. It will probably be a while before anything's released, but I think we will definitely be seeing more of Jessie.
Hit Potential: 68% Poptasticness: 83%

Number One? I think so!

2009-02-21T21:46:00.003Z

In a wonderful case of 'anything the USA can do, we can do better', Tinchy Stryder and N-Dubz have made Kanye, Ne-Yo and Akon seem like total novices. If you'd told me a few months ago that I would be excited to hear of a collaboration between Tinchy and N-Dubz, I would certainly not have believed you. I loved the Tinchy/Taio single, but presumed the latter was fully responsible for its aceness, having a far superior track record. Then last month I found myself quite obsessed with the new N-Dubz song, Strong Again, which is the most poptastic thing to come out of UK r&b in quite some time. I also saw them being interviewed on Sound and found them quite entertaining and endearing.

My anticipation was justified as their new duet single, Number One, is brilliant! The section that Mr PJ posted a few days ago is the best bit, as the full track involves a bit too much rap for my liking, but a chorus like that can survive any amount of crap rapping surrounding it. The best bit is when Dappy and Tinchy take turns to say words, which sounds weird but it works. It is a Tinchy single overall, and sounds quite like Take Me Back. Tinchy and N-Dubz are two of the biggest names in UK r&b right now, and with a song like this, they are definitely going to win over lots of new fans. This is going to be HUGE, and deservedly so!

Lost in a Melody

2009-02-20T22:16:00.004Z

Time to review this week's Melodifestivalen entries. Yay! You can listen to them all here.

BWO - You're Not Alone
It is well known that I adore BWO, but with the exception of Will My Arms Be Strong Enough, I definitely favour their upbeat numbers to their ballads. They've done much better in MF with upbeat songs previously, so I'm not sure why they entered this. It's still very good, but I'd prefer another Lay Your Love On Me or Temple of Love.

Sofia - Alla
I thought this was terribly boring at first, but it develops into something rather enjoyable. Greek-Swedish Sofia Berntsson was previously in MF with a song called Hypnotized but I couldn't remember it at all until I checked YouTube. It was actually a great Helena Paparizou wannabe, so I look forward to hearing this in full.

Maja Gullstrand - Här för mig själv
Her babyish voice is pretty annoying, and the song is so quiet and uninvasive it's actually quite strange. I don't mind it, but I can't see this grabbing people's intention tomorrow night. I am quite intrigued, though, to see what Maja is like in person. Her voice doesn't seem to match her look at all.

Mikael Rickfors - Du vinner över mig!
Quite a jolly, energetic rock song by an older singer. It will be good if he sings it well, which I suppose he will as he's been a musician for many years. He was a member of The Hollies for 3 years as the lead singer, then went solo and was apparently successful, but I'd never heard of him, so I guess not that much!

E.M.D. - Baby Goodbye
It's amazing that Sweden never had a boyband until E.M.D. and still they're not a really great one. They've had some OK songs, nothing incredible, but perhaps their success means their next album will be better. This is more poptastic and less wimpy, almost *N Sync-ish. I think they'll definitely go to Globen.

Molly Sandén - Så vill stjärnorna
Molly has had a brush with Eurovision fame before, having represented Sweden in Junior Eurovision in 2006, where she came 3rd. She is 16, even younger than Amy Diamond (by 3 months), but this song won't appeal to many people of her age. It's a typical MF big ballad, nothing special but could be popular with older viewers.

Rigo & The Topaz Sound feat. Red Fox - I Got You
Rigo has had some hits in Sweden, and even featured the fabulous Pauline on one of his singles, but it's still not really my kind of music. I don't think this will be to many other people's taste either. It's very annoying actually. I really can't imagine this going though and will be shocked if it does.

Velvet - The Queen
Velvet's made several good singles, but only a few great ones. Déja Vu was her MF entry last year and failed to get through but was a big hit anyway. The lyrics are very simplistic here and I don't find it super-catchy like Chemistry or Fix Me. It may be better in full, but I loved Chemistry instantly, so it's already lagging.

So, a little bit underwhelmed this week compared to the last two, despite two of my favourite Swedish pop acts being among the contestants. Still, that does mean BWO have a very good chance of success, which is naturally important to me as a BWO-megafan. Hopefully some of the songs will click more when we see them live. My prediction is that EMD and BWO will go through to Globen, with Molly and Mikael going to Andra Chansen. However, I also think Velvet and Sofia have a chance of going through in Molly or Michael's place. Riga and Maja I think have no chance unless they really pull it out of the bag. You never know what may happen!

The DP Awards 2009!

2009-02-18T22:53:00.002Z

I realise I completely forgot to do this last year, but in the years before I always did my own version of the Brits, usually because I was so disgusted with the results. By now I am so used to that being the case, that tonight when Best Single was given to its deserving winner (at least out of those nominated), Girls Aloud, I was ecstatic. It was such a shock! Then again, ITV audience + ITV's new big star (Cheryl)... I suppose it does make sense. However, that was just one award, and every other, with the exception of the Lifetime Achievement and Critics Choice awards, went to people who would not deserve it if they were the last musical acts on Earth. Therefore, my awards are still very much warranted.

I have decided to give the awards only based on music released for the first time in 2008. That means if it had previously been released in another country, it's not eligible. However, if an act released brilliant singles in 2008 which had only been released as album tracks in previous years, then that's OK. That basically means Robyn and September are out, but Private are in. The main reason for this is to give acts other than the usual favourites a chance, and highlight those who made 2008 exciting, rather than those who make every year exciting. All acts will be judged only on what they released in 2008, so if you see someone at a surprisingly low number (e.g. Alphabeat, whose only brand new single was What Is Happening, September only Because I Love You) that is because whatever they put out as brand new releases in 2008 was not their best work. Anyway, let's get on with the show!

Best male:

1. Darin
2. Taio Cruz
3. David Archuleta
4. Ola
5. Gavin Degraw

Best female:

1. Lady Gaga
2. Agnes
3. Jordin Sparks
4. Amy Diamond
5. Rihanna

Best group:

1. BWO
2. Private
3. Girls Aloud
4. Hello Saferide
5. Alcazar

Ones to watch: (Those who had released nothing by the end of 2008 - reality show singles do not count)

1. Pixie
2. Kevin Borg
3. Alice Svensson
4. Kesha
5. Alexandra Burke

Best new act:

1. Lady Gaga
2. The Saturdays
3. David Archuleta
4. Carolina Liar
5. Yelle

Best UK act:

1. Girls Aloud
2. Same Difference
3. The Saturdays
4. Taio Cruz
5. Leona Lewis

Best European (non-UK) act:

1. BWO
2. Private
3. Darin
4. Agnes
5. Amy Diamond

Best non-European act:

1. Lady Gaga
2. David Archuleta
3. Jordin Sparks
4. Carolina Liar
5. Ladyhawke

Best film/TV pop thing:

1. High School Musical 3
2. Idol - Kevin Borg & Alice Svensson
3. David Archuleta
4. Britannia High
5. X Factor - Alexandra Burke & JLS

Best album:

1. Lady Gaga
2. Girls Aloud
3. Same Difference
4. Hello Saferide
5. Taio Cruz

Best r'n'b-pop single:

1. Lady Gaga ft. Colby O'Donis & Akon - Just Dance
2. David Archuleta - Crush
3. Jordin Sparks ft. Chris Brown - No Air
4. Darin ft. Kat DeLuna - Breathing Your Love
5. Leona Lewis - Better In Time

Best dance-pop single:

1. BWO - Lay Your Love On Me
2. Jordin Sparks - Tattoo (Jason Nevins Radio Edit)
3. Agnes Carlsson - On and On
4. Rihanna - Disturbia
5. Private - We Got Some Breaking Up To Do

Best indie-pop single:

1. Tilly And The Wall - Beat Control
2. Montt Mardié - Names Not Forgotten
3. Hello Saferide - Anna
4. Keane - Spiralling
5. Maia Hirasawa - The Worrying Kind

Ace Kesha News

2009-02-16T12:15:00.002Z

Remember Kesha, the girl who sings on Right Round by Flo Rida, making it sound like Infernal? I also posted one of her solo songs, Backstabber, on Into The Groove recently. Well, she's been signed to major label RCA in America, and will be working with the almighty legends Dr Luke and Max Martin on her debut album. I think this could turn out very well indeed.

My top 10 favourite pop star Twitterers!

2009-02-15T13:22:00.005Z

Here are the top 10 pop star Twitterers you have to follow right now!

1. Robyn
2. Hafdis Huld
3. Patrick Wolf
4. Lily Allen
5. Britney Spears
6. Dan Black
7. Little Boots
8. Manda Rin (Bis)
9. Jonna Lee
10. Peter Bjorn and John

Also worth a look, in alphabetical order:

Camera Obscura
Duke Special
Imogen Heap
Laura Kidd
MC Lars
Sky Larkin
Solange Knowles
The Cab

Here is my Twitter btw, click follow and we can be friends!

Your Swedeness is my weakness

2009-02-14T22:27:00.005Z

In my over-excitement about Melodifestivalen (well, it's not every day you get to see a pop moment like this) I started browsing for interviews with some of my favourite Swedish pop stars, and found some lovely things. First is this interview with Amy Diamond, which is in Swedish with English subtitles:

She's a few years younger than me, but I still want to be best friends with her. She seems so sweet and fun! Also I would like to point out this video of her covering Be Mine by Robyn, which she does brilliantly:

Another pop star who always seems super-lovely in interviews is Darin. Here's one he did recently which is in English and also features RedOne and Kat DeLuna:

So I shall have Amy as my best friend and Darin as my boyfriend (he's even around my age), and my poptastic life will be perfect!

He's gonna be the one

2009-02-14T20:43:00.003Z

Hooray! Måns Zelmerlöw made it through to the Melodifestivalen final with his excellent entry Hope and Glory. Amy Diamond and Lili & Susie went to Andra Chansen (the 2nd chance round - like being a wildcard on American Idol), with Amy also getting the vote of the International Jury, which gives her an extra chance of reaching the final. The only bad thing was that rock band H.E.A.T. are also going to be in the final, but after seeing their performance I fully expected it. The song was better than I'd realised (more Bon Jovi than Guns & Roses), the singer is quite a belter, and it stood out from the rest for being in such a different style.

I was surprised that Cookies & Beans didn't do better because I thought their performance was excellent too, and that was even before I realised that one of them was the singer of Release Me by Oh Laura, a huge recent hit. But it still wasn't enough. Markoolio put on a pretty good performance (he can sing!) but the joke of the song wasn't really good enough, and neither was the song itself. The Dima Bilan-esque ridiculous gimmick was quite funny, though - I advise you to look it up on YouTube later! Lasse Lindh was ace too, but I was not surprised by his failure to get through on such a tough week. I'm sure he had fun anyway, and perhaps gained some new fans from a different audience to his usual one.

International Video Challenge

2009-02-14T12:26:00.005Z

Representing the USA: Enrique Iglesias ft. Ciara - Taking Back My Love
Both RedOne and Enrique have made brilliant girl/boy duets before, so this one has a lot to live up to. I wouldn't say that it is as good as either Breathing Your Love or Not In Love, but still I rather like it. It's fairly similar to Breathing Your Love, but not as unusual or addictive, although the chorus is very catchy. I think it will definitely go on to be a really big hit (Enrique and Ciara are much, much bigger than Darin and Kat de Luna after all) and make RedOne the one to go to for great r&b production in the coming year.

Representing Sweden: Basic Element - Touch You Right Now
This is a pretty conventional 21st century Eurodance song, but it's one of the catchiest I've heard lately. For once, someone remembered to put in a hook! Basic Element were big in the 90s but have continued releasing music up to now. They've released 6 albums and 19 singles in Sweden, yet still they're utterly unknown in the UK and have never had a top 40 hit. I think this cheery, energetic song could break that trend, if it was given the chance. Those who like Danny Saucedo should certainly give it a listen. The singer may be rather ugly, but the song is much better than All On You. The only problem is the weird, mumbly rap.

Representing Greece: Sakis Rouvas - This Is Our Night
Sakis actually is representing Greece in a much bigger capacity than just on Dirrrty Pop - this is one of the songs competing to be Sakis' Greek Eurovision entry for 2009. I'm not terribly impressed with the recorded version, but I think it would be a lot better when performed live. I don't think it's a winner, but it would do well (his looks and past Eurovision success will help) and be fun to watch. With better production this could be much better, but even then, when compared to the quite similar songs of Måns Zelmerlöw it really would not be able to compete. However, it is the best '09 hopeful entry (outside of Sweden) I've heard yet - far superior to our awful song for starters!

Pick yourself up and try again

2009-02-14T11:29:00.003Z

One of the absolute best music blogs for recommendations is Crazed Hits, a site which mainly gives news of when US record labels have signed new acts, but also shares tips about new acts which are getting a lot of buzz. Usually I haven't heard of any of the acts on the site beforehand, so I was very surprised to see someone I was familiar with, but had totally forgotten, on the site yesterday: Ross Copperman!

He was one of the recommended unsigned acts, yet he has already been signed to RCA in the UK, and released an album and two singles. I love the way that his MySpace tells the story of his absolutely disasterous career in such a positive light:

"His first single 'All she wrote' hit an amazing 38 in the UK charts which is quite an achievement for a new artist. This release was soon followed by the release of 'Welcome to Reality' his debut album in UK. August saw 'Found You' released and hit the UK charts and Ross got on the road to support Mcfly which went extremely well. Now with an album and 2 singles released in UK under his belt and a handful of some of the most intimate and special gigs played, Ross has now gone back home to America to push his album release over there and to begin writing another. The road to success continues..."

In translation: His 2nd best song only reached 38, then his best song missed the chart completely. He toured with one of the UK's biggest acts, and still no-one cared. He did some gigs and nobody came. He decided to give up and go home.

I shouldn't be so negative, though - I actually really loved Found You and All She Wrote. They could have been great boyband singles, even though Ross was more of an adult contemporary act. McFly was a very odd choice of band to support. 13 year olds would have no interest in this kind of music. Regardless of how he was promoted, and although a lot of people would have loved his music, I understand why he wasn't successful. His songs are very mum-friendly, but even the mum market is heavily regulated by the cool police these days. Ross wasn't acoustic like Damien Rice or retro like Duffy. He just had good songs, but how do you market that if they're not trendy good songs? It's very difficult.

Now he's got several new songs and is getting some attention in America, but since Found You isn't on his MySpace at all and All She Wrote is right at the bottom, it seems unlikely he will be using them to gain success. Which is mad, considering all his other songs on MySpace are distinctly average. I will keep an eye out for him and hope that he does well (perhaps can even come back to the UK with his head held high) but I'm sad to say I'm not optimistic at the moment.

Singing that melodi

2009-02-13T20:56:00.003Z

This week's Melodifestivalen entries are now available to listen to on the official site. Here are my first impressions of each of them - click on the title to hear it for yourself.

Jennifer Brown - Never Been Here Before
Traditional Eurovision ballad, enjoyable but not very memorable. Jennifer has been around since the early 90s and I know her best for the song Weak, but apparently Tuesday Afternoon (from '98) was her biggest hit. She seems to have 'filled out' a bit since then.

Lili & Susie - Show Me Heaven
These sisters are Swedish pop legends, but haven't released anything in many years. Their new single is upbeat and poptastic, an Alcazar-type song to bring them into the present day. It's all very Eurovision, but not terribly original. Nonetheless, I think they stand a great chance of getting to the final.

Markoolio - Kärlekssång från mig
This pop comedian who sings in Swedish has released some ace singles in recent years. He has parodied schlager, Idol songs and Europop. Normally he raps and a girl singing, but here he is just singing. He is parodying a love song, and does it well as usual. He has many fans, but do those fans watch MF?

Amy Diamond - It's My Life
Her first MF entry (last year) was fantastic, and this one's written by The Bard himself! It sounds really good, apart from the way she sings "life", which is a bit grating at first. In every other way it is perfect, so I hope I will stop being annoyed by the chorus soon. My favourite so far, certainly.

H.E.A.T - 1000 miles
A rock pastiche but sadly more Guns & Roses than The Ark. It's not bad but certainly not good either. The writer is Martin Stenmarck's brother, who wrote Martin's hit 7milakliv, so that's all their credibility written off. What is the point in this kind of thing? Wouldn't rock fans rather hear real rock bands?

Lasse Lindh & Bandet - Jag Ska Slåss I Dina Kvarter!
He was unsuccessful last year, and he's already a popular indie star so I'm not sure why Lasse would try again. However, he is trying a bit harder this year and entered the best song he's ever done! It's very jolly and you can even bop along to it. His new band have obviously done him a lot of good.

Måns Zelmerlöw - Hope & Glory
Cara Mia is one of the best MF entries of recent times, so he has a lot to live up to... and he achieves it! This is my favourite of this year's MF so far. It's totally joyous and super-catchy, the best thing Måns has released since Cara Mia. I can't wait to hear it in full, and watch lovely Måns singing it!

Cookies n Beans - What If
With that weird name I expected a tacky novelty act, but instead got a 3-piece country girl band. They're like the Swedish Dixie Chicks, but a bit older. It's a really nice song and I think it could pick up quite a lot of votes from the older viewers. They have a chance for reaching the final, but I don't think to win.

In summary, my favourites are 1. Måns, 2. Amy, 3. Lili & Susie, 4. Lasse, and I think Måns and Lili & Susie will go to the final with Cookies n Beans and either Amy or Markoolio to Andra Chansen. It's a tough week actually. Of course it could all change depending on how they perform tomorrow night, and how the songs sound in full. I can't wait to find out!

New Pop on the Block

2009-02-12T20:17:00.000Z

The Saturdays - Just Can't Get Enough (Watch)
When I heard that they were going to cover this, I imagined it would be in a sultry electro-girl style, like the W.I.T. cover of Just What I Needed by The Cars. Instead, they've transformed the iconic track into bouncy, cheery pop song perfect for Comic Relief. Kids who don't know the original will especially love it. It's a very enjoyable cover (best bit is when it sounds like Rhythm of My Life by Gina G at 2:28), but I still have to take issue with the video. Is it really necessary for these pretty young girls to dress and act so slutty in it? With a fun pop track life this, it would be really nice to have a video where they're simply having a laugh together like a group of young girls would. It's going to be mostly young girls who like The Saturdays, and unless they are all lesbians they don't want to see their pop idols in hot pants and bras!
92% Poptastic!

Bat For Lashes - Daniel (Watch)
I liked, but didn't love, Bat For Lashes, until I saw her live. Then I immediately 'got' her and was instantly obsessed. There is something really interesting about her, meaning that (like only a few other acts) it doesn't matter to me that her songs aren't hook-laden poptastic creations. They have their own charm and can't be fairly measured against the pop acts I usually write about here - that's not to say she's better, just different. After being quite successful with her first album, Natasha is back with its follow-up. It's already leaked online, but I'm sticking with the lead single for the moment. Daniel isn't a great departure from her previous songs, but I think it's very lovely and with the addition of a backing beat it will appeal to Ladyhawke's fans. I think this album is going to do rather well.
90% Poptastic!

Pet Shop Boys - Love Etc (Watch)
Another act returning with the lead single from a new album, and another one I was extremely excited to hear. It took me until they released Flamboyant to realise that I love the PSBs, but I really got into them during their last album campaign, and so am looking forward to the new one, called Yes and out on March 23rd. Mr Popustice said in his review that Love Etc shouldn't be the lead single, so if there are much better songs on the album than this, then it is sure to be fantastic. Love Etc fits the PSBs formula, as it's a social commentary with fun lyrics, a catchy chorus and nice electro sounds. It's not a departure from their last album at all, but I didn't want it to be. I don't think I've ever given all the songs I'm reviewing 90-something %, but in this case it's definitely warranted.
95% Poptastic!

It's like 2006 all over again!

2009-02-09T19:58:00.002Z

This week marks the return of 2 brilliant female-fronted pop acts, Camera Obscura and The Sounds.

Camera Obscura have unveiled a new song, My Maudlin Career, which continues the sweet, dreamy indie-pop sound of their last album. It is the title track of their new album, and you can hear it on their website. It's unclear whether this will be the lead single, but if it's not I can't wait to hear what is!

As for The Sounds, we have a few more days to wait. They will perform a new song (again they haven't said whether it's a single) on the American TV show Last Call with Carson Daly on Thursday. The song is called No One Sleeps When I'm Awake, and it comes from the album Crossing The Rubicon, which will be released in May. They are touring with No Doubt in the USA and Fall Out Boy here... if only it were the other way around!

New Pop on the Block

2009-02-08T14:00:00.005Z

Jordyn Taylor - Accessory (Watch)
Jordyn is a teenage r'n'b singer from California, and her new single, Accessory, has earned a spot on the soundtrack of Confessions of a Shopaholic. From that fact you can pretty much guess its content. If this song was by a man about a woman, it would be considered terribly sexist, so is it acceptable the other way around? It can be seen as revenge for all the times that men have treated women this way, but it would really be better to just rise above it. Nonetheless, it's a fun, catchy song and one thing that I think is very important is to never take pop music too seriously. Judging it on musical merit alone, it's good but not amazing. The lyrical content is all that makes it stand out.
72% Poptastic!

Lights - February Air (Watch)
There was quite a squabble to sign this young lady, so I expected something special, and I was inevitably a bit disappointed. The super-ace video to February Air is the best thing about the project as a whole, but it is ruined by having Lights herself in it. I just hate her face! It's clear that she is a really annoying person. Her sound is electro-pop, but she comes from a rock background (hence the face), and the music is made to appeal to rock fans, therefore it is nothing like as good as electro-pop made for electro-pop fans. There is loads of this stuff around at the moment, for example the super-samey (although wonderfully named) Owl City and the almost-ace but decisively not Stereo Skyline. Everybody's trying to get in on the electro-pop trend, and it's making me bored of synthesisers... eek!!
77% Poptastic!

The Downtown Fiction - Your Voice (Listen)
Now here's a band who are keeping well away from precious genres such as electro-pop, and are all the better for it. It's not something I'd listen to obsessively, but it's always such a shock when a rock band makes something listenable, that they deserve credit for it. If you like poppy rock bands like The Click Five and All American Rejects, without the painful uber-American accents of most rock acts, tnen you should enjoy The Downtown Fiction. It just goes to show that rock music wouldn't be such an annoying genre if it wasn't dominated by such twerpy types. The Downtown Fiction look like alright guys from the facial expressions in their promo photos (that's the best way to tell), and Your Voice is a nice song. I'm not sure how far niceness will get them with the public, but for me it's a necessity.
80% Poptastic!

Lisa Lavie - Angel (Listen)
This song is quite similar in style to Natasha Bedingfield, but Lisa has a stronger, deeper voice, and the song is catchier than anything Natasha's done since her first album. The chorus hook is brilliant, and although her voice seems a bit harsh at first, it makes her stand out, and she is a great live singer (as this video demonstrates). The end result is kind of like Anastacia trying to be Natasha, which may send some people running scared, but actually I think it works. I'm not sure if the sound's a bit too rough to be a radio hit, but a lot of people who listen to radio-friendly music like Natasha and Anastacia would love it. It could be this year's Love Song if it was a bit lighter and fluffier - or maybe it will be anyway.
87% Poptastic!

DP Review: Lily Allen - It's Not Me It's You

2009-02-07T18:38:00.002Z

Lily has been seen pretty negatively since her initial period of success, and I've never been quite sure why. Yes, she is outspoken but I don't see what's wrong with that. I much prefer popstars with something to say for themselves to wimpy, repressed female singers like Leona Lewis. Lily's personality shows through in her lyrics and lifts what could be simply light, fluffy pop songs into unique, witty songs which represent our generation. Here's my brief track-by-track first impressions of her new album, which you can listen to in full on MySpace.

Everyone's At It
A new version of a song that's been around for a while. A great opener to the album. The subject is drugs, both recreational and prescription. Lily is frank as ever, but remembers to be poptastic at the same time.

The Fear
The one we all know. I was pleased to see its chart success - so far this year there have been no bad no.1s, which is fantastic.

Not Fair
Quite a rude one here as Lily complains about a boy who is not very generous in the bedroom. Gets quite country in parts. Love the jolly vibe although it's an odd counterpoint to the lyrics.

22
This catchy tune's protagonist is not 22 but actually 30, and considered 'past it'. It's somewhat depressing but has a happy ending, which Lily is surprised by.

I Could Say
One of the first songs she posted on MySpace from this album, and a lovely song it is too. I can see this doing well if it's the next single.

Back To The Start
This has a very fast chorus and will probably lend itself well to being remixed. It's not as catchy as the other songs, but enjoyable enough.

Never Gonna Happen
This one also doesn't chime with me as much as most of Lily's songs do. The accordion sounds are fun but the hook isn't very hooky.

Fuck You
Lily doesn't bother to hide her swear words in acronyms like Britney, but she doesn't need to as she's never pretended to be sweet and innocent. This is a fun song but wouldn't stand out without the expletives.

Who'd Have Known
A cute mid-tempo love song that even Lily admits is a rip-off of Shine by Take That, and it also makes me think of Better In Time by Leona. It's sweet but a bit ploddy.

Chinese
Similar in sound to The Fear, and I like the electro sounds in the background. Popstars are always saying 'I'm just normal, really', but with Lily it seems genuine. I do worry about the amount of Chinese takeaways she gets though - about 10 just in this one song!

Him
This is actually about Him i.e. God, and Lily's contemplations about politics and life today, which are amusing and sometimes quite poignant. I'm not so sure God would be a fan of Creedence Clearwater Revival, though: If he is really omniscient he would know that BWO and Alphabeat are the best!

He Wasn't There
A short, sweet ending to the album, which I thought was going to be a rant at her Chemical Brother ex, but it turns out to be about her dad, the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Let the melody festivities begin!

2009-02-06T17:31:00.002Z

Clips of the songs for this weekend's first round of Melodifestivalen are now available to listen to on the MF website. Of course, I must review them!

Emilia - You're My World
This is the best thing Emilia has ever done! A great start to the competition. You will probably remember Emilia Rydberg's Uk top 5 hit about 10 years ago, Big Big World. Since then she hasn't done much of note, but this song is really fun and catchy, so I wish her luck with it.

Shirley Clamp - Med hjärtat fyllt av ljus
A Melodifestivalen legend, Shirley is back for another try and sure to have a good chance at getting into the final. This is a bit of a wimpy ballad, so I don't like it as much as her schlager-poppy past entries such as Min Kärlek och Att Alska Dig, but I expect it will be popular with MF's older viewers.

Alcazar - Stay The Night
Alcazar are back in MF, with a song that sounds more like a mix of BWO and A*Teens than themselves. It's great of course, and I can't wait to see them perform it. In their previous line-up, Alcazar were one of MF's most popular acts, but it's been a while, so we'll see if they still are.

Nina Söderquist - Tick Tock
I'm not familiar with Nina, but this is quite fun and catchy for a rock song. I like it! Wikipedia tells me she won a TV series called West End Star (she got a role in Spamalot), so she is probably popular and able to sing live. She could surprise non-Swedish MF fans and do quite well.

Jonathan Fagerlund - Welcome To My Life
A sweet and jolly pop song, but the chorus is unimpressive. It's catchy and likeable but I doubt it'll make a big enough impact to get him to the final. Although he's pretty (and was in a band with Donal, an old online friend of mine), Jonathan isn't a big star, but this is his best song yet and could at least be a Rix FM hit.

Marie Serneholt - Disconnect Me
Yay, Marie is back! Her hair colour has changed, but her musical style hasn't. She's also deserving of all the envy in the world since she is dating MF hottie Måns Zelmerlöw. He is also entering again this year, so it will be interesting to see which of them has the most success. I think Måns, but we'll see!

Caroline af Ugglas - Snälla snälla
She's a bit boring, but her name means "Caroline of Owls", so I wish I liked her music more. There is nothing interesting here, so I'll move on...

Scotts - Jag Tror På Oss
This lot are a popular dansband, which Scandiphiles will know does not mean that they make dance music in the sense we Brits know it. This is a really nice, jolly Swedish song with a good vibe about it, that upbeat Swedish songs often have. I reckon this is going to do very well, but I don't think it'll win overall.

I also recommend that you go to the ESCToday YouTube channel, where you can see interviews with Shirley, Alcazar and a few others. Tomorrow is going to be excellent!

Dirrrty Pop Meets... Adiam Dymott!

2009-02-06T14:44:00.002Z

I did a little interview with Sweden's acest new popstar - here it is:

Your parents are Eritrean, but you grew up in Sweden. Do you think your African heritage influences your music?
Of course! Everything about me and everything around me influences my music.

What are your favourite and least favourite things about living in Stockholm?
My favourite thing about Stockholm is Cosmos, the studio we´ve been working in, and my family. And my least favourite thing is the cold.

Who are your personal favourite Swedish bands or singers?
Mapei, Mando Diao and Dundertåget.

Which artists, Swedish or otherwise, would you most like to work with in the future?
Right now, I like a Swedish group called Dundertåget.

Do you plan to release your music or tour in the UK in 2009?
I hope so. My husband´s family is from the UK so I would love to release something there.

What is going to be your second single after Miss You?
I´m still trying to get used to calling it a single... so I haven't decided yet!

You were making music for a long time before you got signed to Razzia Records, so what is your advice for anyone who is waiting for their own big break?
I guess hard work and try to surround yourself with serious people.

Thanks Adiam! Here's a recent performance of Miss You so you can see what all the fuss is about:

It's so exciting having a new pop superstar!

2009-02-05T00:46:00.002Z

And here is her new video!

I know some people are not keen on this as her 3rd single, but personally I'm happy because it pulls her in very much a pop direction. I don't want her 2nd album to sound like the Pussycat Dolls, just cos people haven't seen the other sides of her which are found on her album. This video represents how I see the song as well, a European summer holiday. The only thing is, I'm not sure if it will be as popular as Just Dance and Poker Face, but with those 2 being such surefire hits, it really doesn't matter what her 3rd single is. It will be a hit by default, so may as well be a good one!

Important Swedish news!

2009-02-04T23:39:00.003Z

1. Agnes is being launched in the UK with On and On! Even if it wasn't the 9th best song of 2008, I would still be mega-excited to have a song written and produced by Anders Hansson and featuring Martin Rolinski on choir duties on UK television. Hopefully Radio 1 will pick up on it and she will be the new September... but I won't count on them being that sensible, and unfortunately if they aren't I can't see her getting anywhere. Nonetheless, it's nice that the song is getting something of a chance.

2. Much more importantly, Melodifestivalen begins this Saturday!!! As I have already said a zillion times, this year is looking to be utterly amazing with an absolute dream line-up, so you must get over to http://svt.se/melodifestivalen on Saturday to watch the show, or at least listen to the songs. You know I won't be talking about much else in the weeks to come!

You're just too good to be true

2009-02-01T15:42:00.003Z

A new group has formed, and the line-up is quite amazing: Cathy Dennis, Mark Ronson, Greg Kurstin, Guy Chambers and Dr Luke!!!! I can't believe it's real - how did they all get together? The problem is, with several of the very top songwriters in the world all in one band, it is quite possible that their different styles will result in a confused, directionless sound, despite their immense individual talents. Nonetheless, it's an incredible line-up, and I can't wait to see how this develops. The name of the project is The Sex Cassettes, and I presume it is a band, but not much info is known yet. It may be that we will never hear of this again, but my source is pretty reliable, so I am very excited and will probably be Googling for more info every day until the project is officially announced.

Top of the Poptastic!

2009-01-31T17:45:00.002Z

Here are my favourite singles of January...

1. Private - Killer on the Dancefloor
2. Britney Spears - If U Seek Amy
3. Christina Milian - Us Against the World
4. Girls Aloud - The Loving Kind
5. Lily Allen - The Fear
6. N-Dubz - Strong Again
7. David Archuleta - A Little Too Not Over You
8. Flo Rida - Right Round
9. Tinchy Stryder ft. Taio Cruz - Take Me Back
10. Jada - American Cowboy
11. The Bird and the Bee - Love Letter To Japan
12. The Noisettes - Wild Young Hearts
13. Kid British - Lost In London (from Leave London EP)
14. Adiam Dymott - Miss you
15. Waldo's People - Lose Control
16. Pauline - Give Me A Call
17. They Live By Night - Ctrl+Alt+Del My Heart
18. Janet - Let Go
19. Velvet - Come Into The Night
20. John ME feat. Amanda Jenssen - Love Is My Drug
21. Ida Maria - Oh My God (UK release)
22. The New Sins - Feelings Have Changed
23. Danny - All On You
24. Corbin Bleu - Celebrate You
25. I Monster - A Sucker For Your Sound
26. The Saturdays - Issues
27. Jonna Lee - My High
28. Erin McCarley - Love, Save The Empty
29. Jupiter Rising - Falling Away
30. Alesha Dixon - Breathe Slow

International Video Challenge

2009-01-31T15:27:00.005Z

Representing Germany: Queensberry - I Can't Stop Feeling
As winners of the latest German version of Popstars, this time creating a girl group, there is plenty of buzz around them at the moment, but they're naturally going to need to release some great singles to make sure that their success continues. The most successful acts from Popstars in Germany have been girlbands, No Angels and Monrose, so the oddly-named Queensbury have a lot to live up to. I was impressed with their first single, the Gabriella Cilmi-esque No Smoke, although I already knew the song from when Eva Avila (Canadian Idol winner) released it. However, the new single is a ballad, and not a terribly interesting one. They look and sound very professional, but there's nothing distinctive about them as a group. Their album won't bring much excitement either, considering most of the songs (just like the latest No Angels CD) are covers - even Clea's Sprung is included, proving the point that Queensberry are no Girls Aloud.

Representing Sweden: Adiam Dymott - Miss you
Looking for a new female rock singer to get obsessed with? Try Adiam Dymott for size! Her energetically catchy new single Miss U sounds quite similar to The Donnas, but Adiam looks more like Estelle (a heavily tattooed version!), and is label-mates with Swedish indie-pop royalty Hello Saferide, along with They Live By Night, Firefox AK and Maia Hirasawa, which suggests she won't be straying too far into the jungle of rock'n'roll. She is also working closely with Thomas Rusiak, best known and loved (by me at least) for his appearance on the fantastic Hip-Hopper by Teddybears Sthlm. He plays guitar in her band and even sings a bit on the single. Listening to the songs on her MySpace, the best is Memory Loss, which actually sounds like Annika Norlin but with less simple production. That will be worth 5 globes if she releases it. Adiam is an artist with huge potential and I'm really excited to have discovered her. I can't wait to hear her album when it's out in March.

Representing the USA: Pink - Please Don't Leave Me
Every time Pink releases a new song written by Max Martin or Dr Luke (or both), I pray that she will have 'done an Avril' and suddenly become likeable, but after 2 whole albums worth of working with them, it still hasn't happened. Her personality even seeped into So What enough to turn what could have been a fun and innovative pop song into one of the most annoying hits of 2008. At times in the video she looks quite nice, then she ruins it by pulling a stupid face! It is quite an amusing video, though, and especially good for Valentines day and all the men-hating that it necessitates. The songs is a mid-tempo jaunty-but-sad number, but it's no match for About You Now, When It All Falls Apart or even Pink's own Who Knew. The best bits are the da-di-da backing vocals, but the chorus definitely needs an injection of catchiness in order to compete with Max's many amazing pop creations.

Got a question for Dr Pop?

2009-01-26T15:57:00.002Z

I am currently putting together a special new project... well, I say new, but actually it's a revival of an old one. My long-term readers will remember that I have previously put together 2 pop zines, called Poptastisk (Swedish for poptastic). Since it is one of my life aims (along with being head of Eurovision and joining BWO!) to start up my own pop magazine, regardless of how many people actually read it, I have decided to get on with it. No time like the present! There will be interviews with some super-groovy popstars (I'm planning a female electropop theme), and some fun features.

One of my ideas is a kind of letters page, where I will use my extreme knowledge of pop music to answer some queries from my readers. That's where you come in! Is there something you've always wanted to know? Perhaps you wonder what happened to a favourite act of yours, or want my opinion on a certain issue in pop. Maybe you want advice on something pop-related. Whatever it is, send in your questions to poptasticuk@hotmail.com and look out for my response in the magazine which will hopefully be available in the next few weeks.

Now I definitely need a new name for this blog

2009-01-26T14:41:00.002Z

A crappy new girlgroup have announced that they have created a new genre called Dirty Pop. Erm, excuse me, but you are forgetting that the almighty *N Sync invented that genre 8 YEARS AGO! Very new indeed.

I love Ola, but...

2009-01-24T18:07:00.004Z

his performance (click fler klipp on the left to see it) at Swedish award show Rockbjörnen ("the rock bear" - no, I don't know why it's called that!) the other day was terrible. He looks awful with that hairstyle, and his vocals were pitiful. If he didn't have one of Sweden's best production teams on his side, he'd be entirely inconsequential - as he was pre-Natalie. If you want to see some real Swedish talent, look for Lisa Miskovsky's performance.

New Pop on the Block

2009-01-24T17:19:00.002Z

Melody Club - Girls Don't Always Wanna Have Fun (Listen)
I started off quite underwhelmed by the new Melody Club single, but it has grown on me with more listens, as I hoped it would. It's still nowhere near their best material, but considering how brilliant Melody Club have been in the past, that's not a big criticism. The guitars and the vocals seem rockier than on their previous hits, which is naturally a step in the wrong direction in my poptastic books. The chorus is quite catchy, but I miss the sing-along synthpop of Baby, Electric, Take Me Away and all the rest. However, it could bring them new fans and they do make rock music better than 99% of actual rock bands. I'm still eagerly awaiting the new album, without a doubt.
93% Poptastic!

The Cab - Bounce (Listen)
This song has been around a few months already, but I mainly want to alert you to this band, and Bounce was their latest single. They may be a rock band, signed to a label run by one of Panic at the Disco, but the first band anyone with any sense will compare them to is *N Sync. What is most bizarre is that they seem to embrace this comparison wholeheartedly, regularly singing *N Sync songs at their concerts. Never before have I known an act to embrace a comparison to another band, particularly one that you'd expect the members to look down on, in such a way. In fact, for me it makes this band of medium quality much more interesting. Their problem is that all of their songs are quite good, but putting themself in comparison to *N Sync is in a way their downfall, cos they have never made anything as good. If they cut out the Fall Out Boy influences and went just for *N Sync style, I'd love them, but until then I'm not really on board.
72% Poptastic!

Amazing Pop Discovery #478723

2009-01-23T21:48:00.002Z

I was thinking today about the early 00s pop group, VS. They annoyed me at first, because V were around at the same time and I adored V, so I didn't want people to get them confused. However, I really liked their second single, Call U Sexy, and still listen to it today. I also took a liking to one of the members, who this morning I could only remember as 'the one with braided hair'. He was cute and always seemed like the nicest member. I wondered if any of them were still in the pop business, but realised that I couldn't remember what any of them looked like, except that one had braids and was good-looking.

So, this evening I decided to have a look at some of their videos, and it turns out I was right: one of them is still in the pop business, and in fact I must have a good star-spotting radar because it was my favourite, the braided hair guy. And guess who he is? Marvin from JLS! I'd always thought he looked a bit familiar but it was so vague I thought I'd imagined it. Anyway, here's the video for VS's best song, so you can share in my nostalgia trip:

I'm so excited and I just can't hide it!

2009-01-17T20:28:00.004Z

I wrote a post a couple of weeks ago lamenting the rubbishness of pop in 2008, but having thought about it more, I have decided that there are both positive and negative sides to the current situation. While I feel that there were not as many songs which we will consider classics in years to come (only Just Dance and No Air stand out particularly), there were absolutely loads of really good songs. Maybe not the ones I'd award a rating of over 95% poptasticness, but plenty that would get 85 or 90%.

Some great artists emerged in 2008, bringing with them great albums. I didn't discuss them much last year, because I sadly don't feel that many of my readers want to hear about this kind of music, but I loved the album by California Liar. If they make their next album without Max Martin's help, it could well be rubbish, but their debut was one of the most solid and annoyingly underrated of the year. Ladyhawke released a great album too, and acts like Girls Aloud and the Sugababes, who we are used to being fab, continued to be so. If they had been a new act, from whom I hadn't expected such greatness, I would probably be quite obsessed with them. These are only the people I can think of right now, so I'm sure I've forgotten loads. Anyway, what I really want to say here is that even though it wasn't as strong a year as the past few have been, that doesn't mean that music worth celebrating was not being released.

Another reason that I've felt negative lately is that the pop acts (particularly electro-pop) which other bloggers and critics, including those I normally agree with, are putting their hopes on for making 2009 poptastic... well, most of them just don't grab me at all. I don't like feeling like I'm trying to start a backlash against these new acts, many of whom clearly have absolutely the right aims and motives, before they've even really begun, but I can't pretend that I really care whether Frankmusik or Little Boots are successful. There, I said it! You can all delete me from your links and RSS readers now!

The one thing I always stick to with this blog is to be honest and follow my instincts, even when my opinions don't quite go with the flow. I would much rather be in love with these acts than nonplussed by them, but a musical connection is not something you can force. What I can do is find acts who I personally believe in and have high hopes for. In 2007, I adored Alphabeat, and in 2008 so did everyone else. Now I'm seeing the same happening with Lady GaGa. There aren't many better feelings than when you see something special in an act and your instincts are in time proven right. For that reason I am going to keep on searching for acts, or just songs, with that special something and sharing them here so that more people can have that brilliant feeling. In the meantime, here are my top 5 reasons to be excited about the next few months:

1. Melodifestivalen
This year's contest has the strongest line-up of singers and writers in years. The first round is 4 weeks today, with Shirley Klamp, Marie Serneholt AND Alcazar!!

2. New albums from Alcazar & Melody Club
These are two of my favourite acts of all time, so new albums from them will always be unbelievably exciting. I have absolute faith in both of them.

3. American Idol
2008 produced an adorable new popstar who went on to release one of the best singles of the year, and 2007's AI caused the existence of No Air AND Tattoo!

4. A1 Reunion
I have been informed that they will be doing some gigs in February, and if Ben does well on Big Brother they'll also get to release some singles. Brilliant!

5. New acts such as The Yeah Yous, Love Grenades & Janelle Monae
These are just the first 3 I thought of who I really want to hear more from or just see more of. Most of all I want people to see what I see in them.

Brighton's Got Talent

2009-01-17T15:40:00.002Z

I've discovered the new Amy Diamond! I just didn't expect it to be a 13 year old boy from Brighton. Today I was in town and there was a boy singing by the shopping centre. I thought he was really good, so I went to his MySpace when I got home. The first song, Great Escape, came on, and I was amused to find that the intro sounded rather Amy Diamond-esque, and then the chorus got going and it was even more Amy-esque than If You Seek Amy (well, maybe not, that does have her name in the title). It had the word 'domino' in it and everything! There are 2 other songs on his MySpace which are good too, but not quite as super-ace as Great Escape. He's released an album, which you can buy on Amazon if you like him and want to support someone just starting out. I'm sure we'll be seeing him on The X Factor in a few years, if it's still going by then.

Hilarious news about The Script

2009-01-15T23:41:00.004Z

Two of the members used to be in MyTown! I wonder if anyone remembers MyTown except for me? These days it sounds more like a social network than a boyband. This is what they used to look like:

This was one of their videos:

I'm sure they'd disagree, but I think it's miles better than their music now! Aww I miss boybands.

New Pop on the Block

2009-01-13T17:09:00.005Z

Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You (Listen)
This single has been greatly anticipated, which is good cos it's by Dr Luke, but not so good cos he gave it to Kelly Clarkson. After her ungrateful eschewing of all things ace and Swedish on her third album (obviously not realising they were the only reason she was successful), he really shouldn't have let her have use of his pop genius, but I suppose she is going to earn him a lot more money than a more pleasant but also less famous artist would, and he deserves to be mega-rich for all the brilliant pop he has given us over the years. When I listened to this for the first time I was waiting to see which of the other Dr Luke/Max Martin acts she was emulating, so I was surprised to find she hadn't gone down the Katy or Pink route. It's most similar to The Veronicas 1st album, but less playful and more foghornesque - neither of which is at all surprising with Kelly. It's not my favourite example of Max-Rock but it's much better than I Kissed A Girl or So What, and they were big hits, so this should be too.
90% Poptastic!

Private - Killer on the Dancefloor (Watch)
I thought Private must have finished releasing singles from this next album, as it has been ages since We Got Some Breaking Up To Do was out. It's nice to have a new video from them, though, and this is a great choice for a single (although every song on the album would be an acceptable single choice). I could even imagine it being a success in the UK, as similar songs have done well, and then they could use it as a launchpad for their even more poptastic songs. This is what Michael Jackson would be doing if he was still sane. In the video, the lyrics are taken literally and Thomas Troelsen (or a man with his hairstyle in a mask) is scarier than ever before - yes, even scarier than in the Crucify My Heart. I sometimes wonder if his scariness will impede future success, but then they are such an incredible pop act I feel like they just can't go unnoticed forever. Something must come of them at some point, surely?
98% Poptastic!

White Tie Affair - Candle (Sick and Tired) (Watch)
Lady GaGa is going on a US tour, and she is taking two support acts, but bizarrely they are both rock bands! One is Chester French, who are admittedly more pop than rock, and the other is this group, White Tie Affair. Their previous single, Mr Right, had a catchy hook but the singer's voice was just too much of typical, ear-hurting emo voice. Like many current acts, they sound a bit like Under the Influence of Giants but mixed with a highly unappealing act, in this case Fall Out Boy. None of them have got anywhere near the great heights of UTIOG, who have sadly gone to the pop afterlife. Candle begins really well, sounding like something LFO would have done, but then it gets into a proper rock song and loses all its charm. It has to be the most disappointing song I've heard in quite a while.
33% Poptastic! (for the nice first 1/3)

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 8

2009-01-12T22:06:00.002Z

Finally, we have reached the end of my A-Z! Although actually it's only an A-Y. Do you feel cheated?

The Sound of Arrows
The new... Le Sport
I, like many others in the pop blogging community, fell in love with this band just from watching a few seconds of their wonderful new video. The song is lovely anyway (although there are many better similar ones), but a super-ace video always makes a song seem extra special. It's just so joyous - it has unicorns (my favourite animal) and skipping and fireworks and all sorts of other acetastic things. The video has certainly gained them some notoriety, but now they've got to follow it up with lots of good songs if they want to become more than a one hit wonder. In Sweden, they have strong competition from acts such as Lo-Fi-Fnk, Pacific! and Montt Mardie, but none of those are really well known internationally, so they will seem more unique to newcomers to the Swedish electro-pop sound. Anyway, they're Swedish, they like unicorns, and they sound like the Pet Shop Boys mixed with Justice and I'm From Barcelona. The chances are undoubtedly high for future aceness.
Poptasticness: 76% Hit potential: 65%

VV Brown
The new... Vanessa Brown (well, you can't disagree!)
I loved VV Brown when she released her ace single Whipped under her full name of Vanessa Brown a few years ago. It was a song that seemed like it could be a huge hit, but nobody noticed, and I think (much like I fear will happen to Silhouettes if they release Surrender) that it was just not the right song to start off a career. Great for an established artist, but a bit too ambitious perhaps for a new one. It was so polished and perfect already that it just seemed unnatural, and I'm sure many people would have got the idea, like I did, that she was being presented to us on a plate as the next big thing, and people don't always go for that because it does make you feel manipulated. Crying Blood is much more like the kind of song that a new artist should release first, and I think it has a good chance of success, although I don't feel super-confident that she'll be the star of the year. I think she'll be a sort of middling success and we'll end the year wondering if she'll get to do another album. That's my prediction, anyway. Let's see if I'm right!
Poptasticness: 83% Hit potential: 55%

White Lies
The new... The Bravery
It's fantastic how few of the acts in this year's 'ones to watch' lists are traditional man bands with guitars and drums and all that rubbish. The only such act that's popped up particularly regularly is White Lies, and they're not too bad. Their new single is really good, actually. I first heard some hype around them last spring and took a liking to some of their MySpace songs, missed them at The Great Escape, and then forgot about them until recently. The hype was there, but the album wasn't, so they went off to record it and returned, probably not coincidentally, just in time to be everyone's easy pick for a one to watch this month. I haven't heard such an anthemic chorus in an indie-rock song in ages, and I remember now how brilliant and cathartic it can be to sing along with these songs. On the radio they were being compared to The Bravery in a derogatory way, but I absolute loved Honest Mistake, and Unconditional wasn't bad either, so I really don't mind having another Bravery around.
Poptasticness: 69% Hit potential: 88%

The Yeah Yous
The new... The Feeling
One of my most recent discoveries, and one of the acts I'm most looking forward to hearing more from in 2009. They're really, really obscure, but they have a major label deal and they may have only put one song up on their MySpace so far, but it's catchy enough to get stuck in my head most of the last week. They are a male duo, mid to late 20s at a guess from the small photos, and they're clearly aiming for the jolly retro man band genre created by The Feeling. I haven't been too impressed with The Feeling lately, and I used to love them, so it's great to have a new act doing something similar. Lets hope their aceness lasts a bit longer! Considering they are so unknown that I was actually the first person ever to listen to them on Last FM (I don't think I've ever given a band a Last FM profile before either), it's obviously not a safe bet, but I do think they have brilliant potential and I personally will support them all the way (as long as they don't go rubbish). It's so nice to find a new British band to support! It has been a while.
Poptasticness: 96% Hit potential: 37%

The end! It has been a long journey from A to Y, but enjoyable and very interesting for me, not just to get into some new music, but also to think about where music is going in 2009, and what kind of acts can fit into the pop industry as it is today. I always note patterns, and then a year later they'll be extinct, and that's what's exciting, although frustrating, about being invested in pop music as wholeheartedly as I am. You never know what is going to happen, and while there's often sadness when an act you love doesn't get the breaks they deserve, it's easy to console yourself with the next brilliant new artist. Even in times of low poptasticness, if you know where to look and have the energy to do it, you will find amazing new music. I haven't found my next Alphabeat or Lady GaGa yet, but maybe I've found a few Velvets or Those Dancing Days. Here's hoping!

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 7

2009-01-11T23:07:00.004Z

Rosanna Munter
The new... Linda Sundblad
Rosanna was one of the members of Play, a Swedish girlgroup who always annoyed me because they basically took singles by UK acts (Billie, Atomic Kitten and Liberty X) and released them in America, where the UK acts had not been successful. Thinking about it now, those songs were probably written by Swedish people anyway so it's not really worth holding a grudge. Therefore, I'm approaching Rosanna's music with an open mind... and it's pretty good! She is going for a more Robyn-ish style than conventional Swedish pop, and already has some nice songs on her MySpace. I like Game Boy the most but Heart Attack and Flashing Lights are ace too. I'm not sure if there's room for another artist so vocally similar to Robyn and Linda, but if we have to have a new artist who sounds like an old one, then I definitely don't mind it being Robyn or Linda. Let's just hope someone tells her to ditch the surname - she definitely won't get any UK success with that one!
Poptasticness: 83% Hit potential: 55%

Shontelle
The new... Christina Milian
Has Rihanna started a trend of clothes and accessories themed songs with US female r'n'b artists? First Umbrella, then Sneakers, and now T-Shirt! Fergie and the Pussycat Dolls are probably racing as we speak to be the first to bring out a song called Underwear, and the Bangles are undoubtedly plotting a comeback. But back to Shontelle: I became a fan of the song T-Shirt when I first heard it last August, but I forgot all about it until recently when it has become a hit in America and is getting attention over here too. If you like songs like Irreplaceable and Tattoo you'll definitely like T-Shirt as it's very clearly made in that template, but it's a great template to choose. The chorus could be stronger, but as a whole the song has a nice vibe and Shontelle comes across as a sweet young popstar. There's nothing revolutionary about the music Shontelle is making, but it's enjoyable nonetheless, and all of the songs on her MySpace are as good as T-Shirt.
Poptasticness: 79% Hit potential: 82%

Sky Larkin
The new... Howling Bells
One of my favourite indie-pop songs of last year was I Was A Teenage Handmodel by Sky Larkin, a lovely quirky song with a super-catchy ooh-ooh section. Their debut album, The Golden Spike, is about to be released, so we could well be at a turning point with this group. If all goes well and the album gets good reviews, as I have little doubt that it will, then they are likely to become one of the indie know-it-alls' must-love acts in the coming months. They're already quite popular in Europe, and since Handmodel hasn't actually been released as a single yet, I reckon it could be one of the underground hits of 2009. I wish them luck anyway, and hope to hear some more ace songs from them in the future, as Handmodel is the only one that really grabs me so far. The others on their MySpace are fairly good, but they just don't have that special something which Handmodel definitely does have.
Poptasticness: 68% Hit potential: 56%

Silhouettes
The new... The Honeyz
This new girl group are clearly very early in the makings, but they've already had a bit of press from Popjustice, and other pop blogs have caught on. Their style is a halfway point between the Sugababes and Amy Winehouse, a retro r'n'b girlgroup with strong vocals and classic-sounding songs. Surrender is a really good pop song, but it's not the kind of song to turn an unknown act into pop royalty. If the Sugababes released it, it would be a hit, but for a first single they'll need something really super-special, because talent alone is sadly not enough. Still, forgetting about selling records for a minute, I do like their sound a lot and I will be keeping an eye on their MySpace to hear what else they come up with. It's nice to have a new girlgroup where all of the members are good singers, and with influences such as The Ronettes and Darlene Love. Also, for those of you who miss 90s-style r'n'b or just were a fan of Eternal, definitely give Hold You Tonight a listen.
Poptasticness: 90% Hit potential: 57%

New Pop on the Block

2009-01-11T14:55:00.004Z

Erin McCarley - Blue Suitcase (Watch)
When I read that Erin was a "sultry singer-songwriter", I wasn't expecting much, but I keep hearing her name mentioned lately so I decided I must check her out. I'm glad I did, cos Blue Suitcase is really good. If I'd known of her earlier I certainly would have included her in my Next Big Thing feature. I'm not sure if this will definitely be the next single, but an acoustic performance video has been released. She's got a lovely voice, and lovely songs to match - nothing spectacular or innovative, but certainly the kind of thing that will catch on without any difficulty. I think she could definitely be the Sara Bareilles of 2009.
82% Poptastic!

Jupiter Rising - Falling Away (Listen)
Their 2007 single Electropop is one of the most underrated singles of the past few years. It's utterly brilliant. In March they will release a new album, and Falling Away is the lead single. I must say it's not quite as ace Electropop, but the chorus is good, and the parts sung by the girl singer are the definite highlights. I really like Jupiter Rising because they are a different set-up (girl singer and male rapper), and although their sound is a mix of r'n'b and electro-pop, they do it in a way that puts poptasticness first. If Taio Cruz and Luciana were a duo all the time, then they would be constantly compared to Jupiter Rising.
85% Poptastic!

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 6

2009-01-10T23:03:00.003Z

Mixi
The new... Fefe Dobson
Mixi is an interesting new act, because it's so hard to place her. Vocally she is similar to Amy Winehouse, but the rockier element to her music separates Mixi from the hoardes of Amy wannabes around at the moment. Her debut single I Miss Those Days (Ghost) is excellent - really catchy and sellable, but at the same time she represents something a bit different to what's already out there. I think the single could be a big hit in America (although I know she was on a rock reality show so I'm not sure if that will help or not), and possibly here too. However, she could also become one of those acts who, thanks to America's hugeness, has a big enough following to carry on as long as she likes, but never really troubles the top 10. She'll definitely strike a chord with teenage girls, but it's possible that she's a little too quirky for mainstream radio and not edgy enough for alternative stations, so finding a place for her in the market may be tough. Still, there is something special here, and I look forward to seeing what happens.
Poptasticness: 84% Hit potential: 45%

The New Sins
The new... Dead Disco
If you're tired already of Little Boots and La Roux, here's another female electro-pop act to get into, but this time it's a girl group. The electro girl group is quite a rare set-up. The only British ones springing to mind are Dead Disco (now extra-dead), the RGBs and Robots in Disguise, and none of them have been huge successes. However, I think The New Sins might fare a bit better. Their new single Feelings Have Changed is very very good, and they're building up a strong following already. Their look is really sophisticated and glamorous, the video is super-sleek and generally everything about them is very cool and 'now'. Could it even be too cool? That can alienate people sometimes. I think they're great anyway, both in sound and look, and I'm sure they will be worth keeping an eye on in the next few months.
Poptasticness: 79% Hit potential: 54%

Passion Pit
The new... Avalanches
There aren't many 'ones to watch' lists which haven't mentioned Passion Pit, and it's not surprising, as they're part of this (somewhat unexpected, I must admit) electro revival that everybody seems to heralding at the moment. It's exciting because I love electropop, and hopefully the trend will help some of the ace electro acts who I've been supporting for years already, but bands like Passion Pit, MGMT and Empire of the Sun don't really capture me in the same way as someone like Annie or Bertine Zetlitz or even Little Boots does. Then again, it's certainly preferable to another influx of unimaginative guitar acts. Passion Pit aren't too bad, but I won't be buying their album either. What I find quite telling about them is that their music is creative and fun compared to other man bands, but they look so boring in photos! At least Empire of the Sun and MGMT bother to keep up the charade of being genuinely groovy.
Poptasticness: 60% Hit potential: 82%

Pixie Lott
The new... Natasha Bedingfield
I've mentioned her so many times already, but I really do believe that Pixie could be one of the biggest UK stars by the end of 2009. However, if it doesn't work out there'll be some very angry record execs cos they've obviously been spending a lot of money on her. It will be interesting to see whether, when she does release her debut single, it is one of the songs she's put on MySpace already or a brand new one. This should let us know whether there is anything better than them on her album, or if her poptasticness peaked with Moma Do, Boys and Girls and The Fall. I think The Fall will definitely be a single at some point, because it's brilliant, but they need to hurry up and get on with her career or all her songs will seem dated by the time they get released! She's also getting older, and it will naturally seem more impressive if she can be marketed as a girl who would normally be still at school. Let's have the album in 2009, not 2029, please!
Poptasticness: 97% Hit potential: 88%

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 5

2009-01-09T22:29:00.004Z

Love Grenades
The new... Dragonette
I can't say I've discovered anyone yet in my search for the next big thing who made me stop and think "this could be my new favourite band", but I have found a few acts I'd at least like to hear an album by, and Love Grenades are one of them. They are female vocalist Liz Wright and guitarist Corey Hunter Gatherer (probably not his real name). They're friends with Sam Sparro, but don't worry: they've already got 4 more good songs than he's released. Tigers in the Fire does sound very much like a Lemar song, but the Lemar song in question is a zillion times better than any of his others, so that's not a bad thing at all. I can't see Love Grenades becoming big stars, even in these days of electro-pop madness, but I think Popjustice readers who loved acts like Dragonette and Stefy will be hugely impressed by Love Grenades.
Poptasticness: 90% Hit potential: 43%

Marina & the Diamonds
The new... Kate Bush
Although she is similar to acts I love such as Bat For Lashes and Florence and the Machine, and clearly influenced by the wonderful Kate Bush, I wasn't totally won over by Marina at first. However, listening again to Obsessions today, I think it's rather lovely. It's certainly in the top 10 of songs I've discovered during my search for the next big thing, and I think a lot of my readers will enjoy it as well. The video is quite interesting, although slow to get going, and makes Marina seem like she'd be a nice person. Mowgli's Road is a bit madder, but in a fun way. I feel like her quirkiness is much more genuine than La Roux, and I like that. She's on the label Neon Gold, who are working with several of the hot new acts of the moment, such as Passion Pit and the brilliant Gotye, who I really hope will re-release Learnalilgivinanlovin this year. As for Marina, I hope to be buying her album this year, and to see her at a festival would be ace too.
Poptasticness: 92% Hit potential: 54%

Metro Station
The new... Fall Out Boy
This band have confused me from the outset. At first I thought lead singer Trace was Miley Cyrus' younger brother, and therefore about 12, so I presumed the whole thing was a joke with no future a la Lil Chris. However, he turns out to be her older brother, age 19, and his band are a kind of American emo version of Busted. Unfortunately for Trace (and even more so for anyone who makes the mistake of watching their videos), he is terribly ugly. I did momentarily admire the symmetry of his moles, until I realised they were ridiculous facial piercings. They do have one catchy song (Shake It), but have decided instead to release the crap one (Control) first in the UK. I pray that Control will be such a flop that we won't hear anything more of them, but I fear that instead their knowledge that they have a good song to release next will make them persist with the UK campaign whether or not Control is successful. It's going to be a sad few months for those of us who remember when good looks were the main pre-requisite of joining a boyband.
Poptasticness: 34% Hit potential: 78%

The Micropops
The new... Alphabeat
Although The Micropops are Norwegian, they're more in keeping with the Swedish indie style, and the singer's voice often reminds me of Ola Salo from The Ark. They seem really sweet and jolly in their photos, and the music reflects that. I can't see them having any major international success, but as far as the next big indie-pop act from Scandinavia, they stand a good chance. Their adorable album cover will certainly encourage a few people to buy it - they look like so much fun! I think Moonlight is the best song they've done so far (the catchiest at least), but Vertigo is nice as well. Fans of Alphabeat and I'm From Barcelona should definitely give The Micropops a go. Håkon Njøten, the lead singer, came third on Idol in Norway the year that Kjartan won and Margaret Berger came second, so that shows he is not afraid of pop music, and hopefully will make lots of ace pop in the future.
Poptasticness: 78% Hit potential: 33%

Oops, oh my!

2009-01-09T17:23:00.003Z

I jumped on the bandwagon and set up an account on Twitter. You can see my updates in the top right corner, or click here to become a follower of me (I feel like I'm startng a cult now!) if you have a Twitter account. I'll probably add you back too, unless your tweets are really boring!

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 4

2009-01-08T23:09:00.002Z

Kid British
The new... Ordinary Boys
This Manchester band are not my usual cup of tea but I discovered that I rather like their song Lost In London when I heard it on the radio. They live up to their name by displaying a typically British attitude in their lyrics and interviews, but at the same time I think the singer sounds a lot like the guy from Under the Influence of Giants in the line "I'm just tryna find my way arouu-und" in Lost In London. I am sure that Kid British will soon be regarded in the same way as The Ordinary Boys, Hard Fi and similar British lad acts (the singer has already been seen in a white polo shirt), and Lost In London will undoubtedly be a hit at some point, so I'm going to have to enjoy it now as much as I can before it gets pinched away by those pesky young lads.
Poptasticness: 73% Hit potential: 82%

Lady GaGa
The new... Gwen Stefani
When I wrote this list, Lady GaGa was a nobody in the UK. She had not even had a Top 40 hit. Now, as I write this, Just Dance is on course to become this week's no.1 single! I couldn't be more proud - finally, the UK have got themselves a brain between them, and figured out that 2008's best single deserves to be a no.1, even if it is in 2009. It's a great start to the year, so I'm hoping it's a signal of what's to come. Making this list hasn't, admittedly, helped me discover all that many really great new pop acts, but perhaps what has happened with Lady GaGa will also happen to others of my favourite foreign acts, and they will at last take their deserved places atop the UK charts. Well, a bit of optimism to start the year never goes amiss, does it?
Poptasticness: 98% Hit potential: 100%

La Roux
The new... Bertine Zetlitz (well, if Little Boots is the British Annie)
When my mum saw the Quicksand video on TV the other day, she said "is that the new Doctor Who?" She can hardly be blamed for being confused - they both look like boys with silly haircuts after all. Watching Elly's video on BBC Sound of 2009 on Monday, I was quite disappointed. She seemed so cool and elegant in photos, but in reality she is really young and talks quite annoyingly, as well as appearing to have got her clothes from a dressing up box. I didn't totally hate her, but at the same time my perception of her definitely changed. She name-checked David Bowie in the video, and I can see that she's trying to be a quirky, unique popstar as he was, but unfortunately it doesn't appear genuine. She could just be one of my younger sister's friends (although she's actually almost my age) who'd taken a liking to 80s electro. Quicksand's a pretty good song, but the others on their MySpace are not particularly interesting. It's no surprise, though, when the other member of the duo is known for his work with Faithless and Kubb. Hmm, what credentials!
Poptasticness: 74% Hit potential: 77%

Little Boots
The new... Annie
This young lady has not yet been mentioned in the BBC's Sound of 2009 poll. We know she is in the top 15, and numbers 5 to 2 have been announced so far. Tomorrow the no.1 will be revealed, and considering the success of recent winners, we will then know for sure the fate of Miss Boots. When I first heard her brilliant song Meddle last summer, I planned to post it on Into The Groove, but I forgot, so I haven't pointed out yet how great it is. I'll do it now: It's great! I can definitely imagine it being a hit, and if Stuck On Repeat is all you've heard so far then give Meddle a listen cos it's far more poptastic. I haven't heard anything else as good from her yet, but she is working with Richard X on new material, so if his work with similar act Annie is anything to go by, we should have some ace pop music in store from Little Boots. Yay!
Poptasticness: 86% Hit potential: 88%

Excellent News!

2009-01-08T01:04:00.002Z

E-Type is signed to British label AATW (you can call them a 'chav' label all you like, they're doing so well they won't care) and True Believer, one of my top singles of 2007, will be released properly very soon. It's been on Clubland TV's playlist for ages but finally seems to be picking up speed. Fingers crossed it will 'do a Lady GaGa' and at last gain the success I know it can have. Another hit for Max Martin as well! I bet not many people wasting their £s on Pink and Katy Perry would believe that their songs were written by the guy behind True Believer. Wait... so Pink and Katy don't actually have any talent of their own? Who'd have thought it!

The other similarly great piece of news is that September's next single has finally been chosen, and thank the lord it is not some rubbish new song but Can't Get Over! I would have gone for either that or Satellites, so I'm pleased. Now she will have a great shot at being more than a one hit wonder - the new Cascada at least!

I heard about both September and E-Type's news from the Scandipop blog, which I recently began to read as I realised that in fact it was not some meanie stealing the pseudonym of Scandipop from the Popjustice boards in the olden days, but actually the good old Scandipop himself! It's a very informative blog, although a little too promotey at times, but I do think it's a shame that Swedish pop music blogs are so segregated these days. We have sites like Scandipop for the cheesy pop and dance and the Melodifestivalen info, and then there are those like It's A Trap providing news on all the indie-pop acts like Hello Saferide and Marit Bergman. While both kinds are great, I do miss the days of Sounds of Sweden where we could hear about the best of both sides of Svenskpop all in one place! It certainly does take much more effort to keep up these days.

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 3

2009-01-07T23:23:00.002Z

Florence and the Machine
The new... Bat For Lashes
She came third in the BBC Sound of 2009 poll, and it makes sense. Florence released a brilliant single last summer, and followed it up with another pretty good one a few months ago, but so far she hasn't quite had the hype to get her into the top ten. Now she's getting it, and no doubt success will be quickly coming her way. She is very similar to Bat For Lashes (although a bit more colourful) and it will be interesting to see, since Natasha is making her return to the music scene imminently, which of the two will be most successful. Is there room for two neo-Kate Bushes? And then there's Marina and the Diamonds as well... she's got no hope! Anyway, Florence is a lovely young girl and I will definitely be buying her album when it comes out.
Poptasticness: 88% Hit potential: 90%

Gary Go
The new... Ross Copperman (but without the good songs)
The problem with Gary Go is that he quite unavoidably BORING. He is a new singer-songwriter, but has already had experience writing for other acts. He was even part of the team who wrote the songs for Britannia High. Perhaps he was the reason for their failure! He looks geeky, but not in a cute or stylish way. He is the archetypal songwriter thinking his songwriting ability (which can't be that great - surely you would save some good songs for yourself?) entitles him to become a popstar, and he will soon find out that he is wrong. This music is not terrible, and far less annoying than acts like The Fratellis, Wombats and Scouting for Girls. It's possible that he could release one or two great songs as Ross Copperman managed (not that anyone noticed), but he hasn't done it yet.
Poptasticness: 40% Hit potential: 35%

Janelle Monáe
The new... Outkast
I've been following Janelle for quite a while now, and I really hope that she will break through in 2009. She has been mentioned on several 'ones to watch' lists, but I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't happen. I discovered her song Violet Stars Happy Hunting back in April and immedately posted it up on Into The Groove, but unfortunately she decided to release a different song as her next single, and subsequently I quite forgot about her. She's such an original popstar, totally different to the other r'n'b acts at the moment. She brings a pinch of soul which makes her sound like an authetic 60s star, and a poptastic electro slant, resulting in a unique style more innovative than any of her contemporaries: a superstar in waiting. Surely this will be recognised in time - she is too special to go unnoticed.
Poptasticness: 94% Hit potential: 72%

The Jessie Rose Trip
The new... Amy Winehouse
I don't know much about this act yet, and to predict them to be the next big thing would be quite a long shot. However, there's a really great vibe about their music and I think others will find it similarly appealing. They could be grouped with pop-soul acts like Duffy and Gabriella Cilmi, but (as much as I am loathe to support rocky sounds) the addition of a 'proper' band makes the music sound a bit more rough and real, which really works for them. The singer conveys a great, feisty attitude in her voice and lyrics. I don't know if there's potential for a really big success story here, but I'll definitely be following them with interest in the future. It's Just Soul could be a hit, and I reckon they'd have good airplay if they could get noticed a bit more, because the style would fit on Radio 1 and Radio 2, even maybe local radio.
Poptasticness: 81% Hit potential: 42%

The latest US hip-hopper to go Euro-pop

2009-01-07T13:20:00.001Z

It's Flo Rida! His new single is poppier than the music most actual pop acts are making these days. It's not bad either, better than the Akon, Ne-Yo, TI or Kanye attempts. The singer sounds like her out of Infernal! This has to be the most unexpected trend of the century, but if boring, ugly rap music is now going to be replaced with jolly jaunts like this, I'm all for it.

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 2

2009-01-06T18:18:00.003Z

Daniel Merriweather
The new... Gavin, Paolo and Jamie
This 26-year-old Australian has already had two big hits, so he'll certainly get some attention for his solo work, but he isn't necessarily guaranteed hits. He has to make good songs first. His new solo single, Change, is not too bad but personally I was more impressed by the soulful and melodic Cigarettes. It reminds me of two great singers, Jamie Lidell and Gavin Degraw, and one slightly less great, Paolo Nutini. In fact, Cigarettes is pretty much a progression from Gavin to Paolo to Jamie. Hopefully it will be his next single. Those who like The Script will enjoy Daniel's music, although his soulful sound feels a bit more genuine to me (even if he is Australian!).
Poptasticness: 78% Hit potential: 82%

Emmy the Great
The new... Laura Marling
She's not exactly a new act, but I think Emmy could make her breakthrough in the next few months, at least with the indie crowd. Her debut album, First Love, is released on the 2nd of February, and she also appears on one of the singles from the new Norman Cook project, The BPA (standing for Brighton Port Authority), although it's hard to tell what's going on with that at the moment. I loved her 2007 single Gabriel and the slightly Pipettes-esque recent release We Almost Had a Baby. Emmy has a lovely voice and some very nice songs, so I think her album will be quite successful.
Poptasticness: 86% Hit potential: 74%

Empire of the Sun
The new... Cut Copy/PNAO/Presets etc.
I was first intrigued by this group because one of them was from Nick Littlemore from PNAU, who made the brilliant Embrace featuring Ladyhawke. In fact, I just learned that Nick was in a band with Ladyhawke before as well. After years of producing only crap rock bands and unimpressive pop princesses, Australia is definitely the cool place for electro-indie these days. Cut Copy and The Presets have been popular for a few years, and now Empire of the Sun are getting mentions in every 'ones to watch' list. I do like their creative, colourful image, and the catchy new single is nice to listen to, but I don't find myself playing it again and again. It's inoffensive, but I wouldn't say it's special. Australia may be producing some popular electro acts, but Scandinavia continues to produce much better ones.
Poptasticness: 79% Hit potential: 84%

Fenech-Soler
The new... Hot Chip
This group were apparently one of the most talked about acts at last year's In The City festival in Manchester, so it seems they definitely have the potential to gain critical acclaim. Whether they can transform that into sales is another thing, particularly when there are so many other electro acts coming out at the moment. We're utterly inundated, and I wish I could be more enthusiastic. Much of my favourite music is in the electro-pop genre, but to be quite honest none of these new acts are good enough. Fenech-Soler could do well as they appear to be something of an electro boyband, but sadly they don't sound all that much like Phixx or even Avenue, and they're not actually all that good-looking either. They state Phoenix as an influence, and they are quite similar, but there's no Run or Everything is Everything yet.
Poptasticness: 53% Hit potential: 43%

Poptastic News Round-Up!

2009-01-06T14:39:00.003Z

1. Pixie has posted up the latest installment of her YouTube video diary, and it's a performance of a new song which sounds really good. It's called Hallucination and you can listen to it here. Pixie is definitely going to be big in 2009.

2. I just discovered that the new N-Dubz single is written by the same guy who did Broken Strings and the highly underrated World Filled With Love by Craig David. Although this is quite exciting because it means I have a new songwriter, Fraser T. Smith, to look out for new work from, but it's also a bit sad cos I was so impressed by such a cheap and tacky group coming up with such as great pop song. Oh well...

3. Velvet is soon to have a crack at the UK, and her management have chosen her single very wisely - it's Chemistry! This was the first song that made me think Velvet was a properly good popstar, as her first few singles were covers, and then I went back and listened again to Fix Me and realised it was also brilliant. Good luck Velvet!

4. Fans of Lady GaGa should have a listen to Swedish rapper Markoolio's new single, The Markoolio Anthem. You may find it interesting!

Popping the Question: Has pop gone poo?

2009-01-05T01:52:00.001Z

I am supposed to be writing an essay (8000 words to write over the holidays and so far I've done none. Eek!), but all of the posting on Dirrrty Pop I've done lately has got me thinking about the state of pop music today. Compiling my top 100, I felt that while in previous years I had many songs deserving to be no.1, this year it was difficult to decide if anything deserved it. I considered each of my top 5 songs as the no.1, thinking about how I'd feel when I look back in years to come at what I'd chosen as 2008's best pop song.

The fact that Just Dance still sounds brilliant 8 months after I first heard it is proof that it is the best song of the year, but I really didn't expect it to be the only real contender. I kept waiting for its competition to be released, and it never came. Every song in my top 100 is genuinely great, but consider 2007's top 3:

1. Rihanna ft. Jay-Z - Umbrella
2. Kleerup ft. Robyn - With Every Heartbeat
3. Alphabeat - 10,000 Nights of Thunder

Any of those would have beaten Lady GaGa, and the rest of the top 5 would have put up a fight as well. The whole top 10 is a list of absolute pop classics, and I think only Just Dance and No Air will be remembered as the pure pop classics of 2008.

So, now I've come to the conclusion that 2008 was not a great year for pop, let's look to 2009. What am I excited about? Well, I can't really think of anything. I'm glad that Lady GaGa is becoming successful, but we've had her album for ages so there's not much to look forward to with her. The Alcazar album will hopefully be ace, and this year's Melodifestivalen will certainly provide some fantastic pop, but that's just Sweden - they're always going to be making good stuff.

What about the rest of the world, namely the mega-markets of the UK and America? The only British act I'm excited about is The Pipettes, and I haven't even heard anything from them in ages. It was in June I saw them do their new songs, and not even a single has been released yet. Anna has apparently left so things aren't looking positive. As for America, I'm hoping for some more great r'n'b-pop after the recent vast improvements in this genre, but I can't think of any particular act who I'm looking forward to new music from.

There are of course plenty of pop bands who are being tipped for the top in 2009, but most of them are electro-pop acts and unfortunately none of them have quite got the poptasticness I'm looking for. Little Boots impressed me with Meddle, but nothing else I've heard by her is as catchy. Frankmusik may be popular, but his unusual sound will only be a fad, if that. La Roux is interesting, but again I feel like my attitude to her, and many of the other acts, will more closely reflect how I feel about Goldfrapp or Ladytron than Annie or Bertine Zetlitz. I suppose they are just not Norwegian enough. But more importantly, they are too cool, and their efforts to retain that coolness by not making all-out pop songs are preventing them from being any more than 'quite good'.

I want my faith in pop to be restored, and it will only take a few really amazing songs or albums to do it. If you know of any, please let me in on the secret!

Finally!

2009-01-04T19:42:00.002Z

The UK obsession with Lady GaGa, which I have been patiently awaiting for almost a year now, has begun. She shot right up the charts to no.3 this week, only selling less than Alexandra and Leona. Obviously the British public have been listening to me, since I chose the song as my top single of 2008 just the other day. Can she overtake them next week, or will Just Dance be one of those almost no.1s that was edged out by bad timing? I look forward to finding out.

New Pop on the Block

2009-01-04T12:59:00.003Z

N-Dubz - Strong Again (Watch)
It seems that N-Dubz have looked to the past for their new single, but bizarrely they only got as far as the early 00s and their time machine took them to Germany by accident. However, Strong Again is without doubt their most poptastic song yet. Well, it is actually their first poptastic song, but it's a great new direction for them if they want to win me over. I'm not sure if the fans who love their usual bassline style will be so impressed, although I doubt many of them are familiar with Sarah Connor, so they may just see it as a brave new direction... or selling out. I think it could be a hit, anyway. Perhaps they'll become the British Black Eyed Peas?
79% Poptastic!

Alcazar - Burning (Clip)
Yay! Alcazar are finally releasing the third single from their comeback album (and soon the album itself), and it's the best one by nu-Alcazar yet. The sound is a bit more BWO-esque than usual, with Andreas taking the lead throughout. There's nothing really new here but it's exactly what we expect of Alcazar and I can't see why any Alcazar fan could dislike it. Whether they still have the popularity in Sweden to reach no.1, as they often did as a 4-piece, we'll just have to wait and see. You can watch a bit of their first performance of Burning at GAY here, and enjoy the fabulous dance routine. It is apparently going to be an international single but I'm not sure if there's much room for a song like this in the UK charts, unfortunately, although it would be nice to see them back on TV.
95% Poptastic!

The Next Big Thing: an A to Z of 2009 - Part 1

2009-01-04T01:58:00.002Z

I always find it difficult to decide who to include in my yearly predictions list, as there are some acts who will obviously be huge, some very unlikely to be, but many more who could just as easily be megastars or total flops. Therefore I have decided to make a list of every act I can think of who either I think has a good chance of success, or others have been tipping for it, and give my verdict on every one of them. The list got rather long, so I'm going to give you 4 a day for the next week or so. Enjoy discovering some great new pop, and let's hope that only the ones who deserve it will be the success stories of 2009!

Alexandra Burke
The new... Leona Lewis
It's undoubtable that Alex will see success in 2009, but the real question is how much. She has the potential to be as big as Leona, and it would be brilliant to see two talented British girls ruling the charts worldwide, but it will only happen if she gets at least one song as good as Bleeding Love. Unfortunately, those are not very common at all, but Simon Cowell and pals can afford to buy whatever is the best r'n'b song written in 2009, and they MUST buy it. It is also important that she has a mixture of upbeat songs and ballads, to show how she is different to Leona. Fingers crossed for a song with RedOne!
Poptasticness: Depends what she does next! Hit potential: 96%

Alex Roots
The new... Ashlee Simpson
Another Alex, but I'll be incredibly shocked if this one does better than the Burke variety in 2009. Unfortunately it seems that she's not the sharpest tool in the box either, as she thinks that being the New Artist of the Day for The Guardian means she was actually in the paper. If she bothered to look up her own media coverage she'd know it's an online feature! Some of her songs are quite fun and catchy, but just not good enough in my opinion. The world doesn't need a British answer to Ashlee Simpson.
Poptasticness: 73% Hit potential: 34%

Boy Crisis
The new... Chromeo
I've known about this group for a while, and I must say they've grown on me since I watched their videos and got a better idea of what they're all about. They're friends of MGMT but mix their indie-electro sound with r'n'b rather than rock, although the two acts share a colourful and quirky style of dressing. I think Boy Crisis will be one of the big names on the hipster blogging scene this year, but I don't think they'll be topping the charts, although taking part in this year's Wonky Pop national tour might help them along, as well as a London show with Passion Pit and Black Kids in February. Personally I'm looking forward to seeing what their stage show is like when they come to my local indie-pop venue in March.
Poptasticness: 78% Hit potential: 46%

Dan Black
The new... Calvin Harris (but good!)
Joining Boy Crisis and Master Shortie on the Wonky Pop tour is Dan Black, another urban electro (this genre needs a name asap!) act who is getting lots of mentions on the trend-setting music blogs. I was already well-acquainted with him after years of being a fan of his band The Servant, who were British but for some reason only popular in France and Italy. Before he'd even released a single as a solo act, he was getting more attention than he ever had with the band, and as I know he has potential for writing great songs I believe he has a pretty good chance of success in the coming year. His super-ace videos should help him along as well, and he's not afraid of wearing leopard print and white jeans, so I'm thinking he's plenty extraverted enough to be a star.
Poptasticness: 87% Hit potential: 72%

Message to Nicola Ward

2009-01-03T20:17:00.000Z

Don't you think it's time to give up now? Andrew Lloyd Webber doesn't want you, and neither do we!

The Eurovision Excitement Begins Here!

2009-01-03T18:45:00.001Z

With the UK’s Eurovision selection show beginning tonight, I’ve been looking into who may be their competition. As I’ve mentioned, the Swedish finals are set to be utterly brilliant this year as many of my favourite acts are competing. Also of interest is Norway’s Melodi Grand Prix, which this year features the brilliant (and crazy) electro-rock-pop group Surferosa. They may never recreate the fantastic madness of their early album track German Socks, but with the poppiness necessary for a successful Eurovision entry, I think this could well be their best song yet. Another interesting entrant is Velvet, but apparently this is not our beloved Swedish dance-popper but a girl group trying to steal her name. Tone Damli Aaberge is another well known contestant (came 2nd in Idol 2005), so if she has a good song she's probably in with a good chance.

Other names I recognised on my Wikipedia travels were Waldo's People (Finland), Sakis Rouvas (Greece), Hadise (Turkey), System of a Down (Armenia) and France are promising another big name after the positive reception for Sébastien Tellier last year. If you're into betting I'd recommend putting a small one on Armenia, as they could easily 'do a Lordi' if SoaD are confirmed as their entrant. Although that has been done once already, they are much more famous than Lordi (with many ignorant fans who would like to mess up Eurovision) and Armenia usually gets lots of points from its neighbours anyway. Then again, their song will probably not be a pop song in disguise as Lordi's was, so they are unlikely to pick up many votes from people who actually like Eurovision and its typical musical styles. It should be an interesting year, anyway!

The 100 Most Poptastic Singles of 2008!

2009-01-03T14:49:00.002Z

1. Lady GaGa ft. Colby O'Donis & Akon - Just Dance
2. BWO - Lay Your Love On Me
3. David Archuleta - Crush
4. Alphabeat - Boyfriend
5. Jordin Sparks ft. Chris Brown - No Air
6. Jordin Sparks - Tattoo (Jason Nevins Radio Edit)
7. Amy Diamond - Thank You
8. Darin ft. Kat DeLuna - Breathing Your Love
9. Agnes Carlsson - On and On
10. Rihanna - Disturbia
11. Private - We Got Some Breaking Up To Do
12. Agnes Carlsson - Release Me
13. Taio Cruz - Come On Girl ft. Luciana
14. Hot Chip - Ready For The Floor
15. Britannia High - Watch This Space
16. Yelle - Je Veux Te Voir
17. Tilly And The Wall - Beat Control
18. Private - Crucify My Heart
19. Sam Sparro - Black and Gold
20. Ola - Love In Stereo
21. Montt Mardié - Names Not Forgotten
22. Hello Saferide - Anna
23. Keane - Spiralling
24. Jonas Oakland - Beat of my Heart
25. Doe Deere - One Touch
26. Carolina Liar - Show Me What I'm Looking For
27. Leona Lewis - Better In Time
28. BWO - The Bells of Freedom
29. Maia Hirasawa - The Worrying Kind (Live)
30. Alcazar - We Keep On Rockin'
31. Ladyhawke - Paris Is Burning
32. Gotye - Learnalilgivinanlovin
33. Carolina Liar - I'm Not Over
34. Same Difference - We R One
35. Girls Aloud - The Promise
36. Mitt Piano - Små Små Steg
37. Bodies Without Organs - Gomenasai
38. Gavin Degraw - In Love With A Girl
39. Britney Spears - Womanizer
40. September - Because I Love You
41. Mystery Jets - Two Doors Down
42. Katy Perry - Hot'N'Cold
43. Marit Larsen - If A Song Could Get Me You
44. The Saturdays - Up
45. Leona Lewis - Run
46. Madonna - Give It 2 Me
47. Those Dancing Days - Run Run
48. Velvet - Déjà Vu
49. Wynter Gordon - Surveillance
50. Brandy - Right Here (Departed)
51. Charlotte Perrelli - Hero
52. James Morrison ft. Nelly Furtado - Broken Strings
53. Those Dancing Days - Home Sweet Home
54. Alphabeat - What Is Happening
55. Erlend Bratland - Lost
56. West End Girls ft. Magnus Carlson - What Have I Done To Deserve This
57. Marit Bergman feat. Titiyo - 300 Slow Days in a Row
58. Linda Bengtzing - Hur Svårt Kan Det Va
59. Gisela - Casanova
60. BWO - Barcelona
61. Girls Aloud - Can't Speak French
62. Alcazar - Inhibitions
63. Delays - Hooray
64. Johan Krafman - Disarmed
65. MGMT - Time To Pretend
66. Amanda Jenssen - Do You Love Me
67. Kylie Minogue - The One
68. A Camp - Stronger Than Jesus
69. BoA - Eat You Up
70. Kleerup - 3am (feat. Marit Bergman)
71. Rihanna - Rehab
72. Florence and the Machine - Kiss With A Fist
73. Elize - Lovesick
74. One Republic - Stop and Stare
75. Jesse McCartney - How Do You Sleep
76. Alesha Dixon - The Boy Does Nothing
77. Swingfly - Singing That Melody
78. Avenue - Last Goodbye
79. Christina Aguilera - Keeps Getting Better
80. The Killers - Human
81. Collapsing Cities - Seriously
82. They Live By Night - Catching Up
83. Ola - Feelgood
84. Monrose - Strike The Match
85. Rosie and the Goldbug - War of the Roses (Because You Said So)
86. E.M.D - Jennie Let Me Love You
87. Walter Meego - Forever
88. Jimmy Wayne - Do You Believe Me Now
89. The Virgins - One Week Of Danger
90. Little Jackie - The World Should Revolve Around Me
91. Lenka - The Show
92. Velvet - Take My Body Close
93. Vanessa Hudgens - Sneaker Night
94. Black Kids - I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance
95. Madonna – Miles Away
96. Tone Mette - Call Before You Come
97. Jamie Lidell - Another Day
98. Taio Cruz - I Just Wanna Know
99. Born Crain - Tonight
100. dEUS - The Architect

Top of the Poptastic!

2009-01-03T14:40:00.001Z

The best 25 singles of December, plus a few I forgot to include early in the year:

1. Leona Lewis - Run
2. Johan Krafman - Disarmed
3. The Hives & Cyndi Lauper - A Christmas Duel
4. Jesse McCartney - How Do You Sleep
5. Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah
6. Sahara Hotnights - In Private
7. Marit Bergman - Were You Ever Really Mine
8. CSS - Rat Is Dead (Rage)
9. Kevin Borg - With Every Bit Of Me
10. Marit Larsen - I've Heard Your Love Songs
11. Jessica Mauboy - Burn
12. Britney Spears - Circus
13. Christian Walz - What's Your Name (sounds like Digital Love!)
14. Sugababes - No Can Do
15. The Tough Alliance - Neo Violence
16. Cascada - Faded
17. Elize - Hot Stuff
18. Brandy - Long Distance
19. Marit Bergman ft. Frida Hyvonen - Traveling Companion
20. Arash ft. Helena - Pure Love
21. Empire of the Sun - Walking on a Dream
22. La Roux - Quicksand
23. Markoolio - The Markoolio Anthem
24. The Fray - You Found Me
25. Lucy Walsh - Lullaby

And the no.1 most poptastic single of 2008 is...

2008-12-31T00:56:00.002Z

LADY GAGA FT. COLBY O'DONIS & AKON - JUST DANCE!

Released: 8th April
Trivia: Will this be a UK no.1 in 2009? I can't see it not reaching the top 5, but I've been wrong many times before. Or rather, the public has been wrong many times before!
Best bits: 1. Spin that record babe, da da doo-doo-mmm, just dance!
2. Go! Use your muscle, carve it out, work it, hustle
3. I love this record baby but I can't see straight anymore

The whole top 100 songs of 2008 will be posted soon!

2008-12-30T20:56:00.002Z

The 5th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Jordin Sparks ft. Chris Brown - No Air

Released: 11th February
Trivia: No Air has sold more than any other single by an American Idol act in the UK, over 200,000 units.
Best bits: 1. No ay-ah, no ay-ah etc.
2. Tell me how I'm supposed to breathe with no air, can't live, can't breathe with no air
3. Got me out here in the water so deep, tell me how you gon' breathe without me

The 4th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Alphabeat - Boyfriend

Released: 25th August
Trivia: Rather disgustingly, despite their great success in 2008, Alphabeat were recently dropped from their label in the UK. What complete idiocy!
Best bits: 1. This boy really drives you mad and you know that ain't bad, oh yeah, you'll love him till you die
2. Don't you touch my boyfriend, he's not your boyfriend, he's mine
3. My friends say I'm uncool, but I let love rule

The 3rd Most Poptastic Single of 2008

BWO - Lay Your Love On Me

Released: 12th March
Trivia: BWO will be returning for Melodifestivalen 2009. With them, plus Alcazar, Amy, Agnes, EMD, Anna Sahlene, Shirley Klamp, Marie Serneholt, Måns Zelmerlöw and so many more ace people, this could well be the best MF in years!
Best bits: 1. Lay your love, lay your love, loooove oooon meeee
2. We can dance all night with the bourgeoisie - oh-oh, oh-oh, lay your love on me
3. On and on from dusk til dawn, the party's going on, I guarantee

The 2nd Most Poptastic Single of 2008

David Archuleta - Crush

Released: 12th August
Trivia: His album has a cover of Desperate by Stanfour on it. As soon as I saw the title on the CD cover I knew it would be that song, and I was right! I haven't decided yet which version I prefer, though.
Best bits: 1. But I know this crush ain't goin' away-ay-ay-ay-ayy
2. You got me hypnotized, so mesmerized, and I've just got to knoooowww
3. Am I crazy or falling in love? Is it real or just another crush?

The 25 Most Poptastic Singles of 2008 - Part 4

2008-12-29T20:16:00.004Z

The 10th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Rihanna - Disturbia

Released: 1st September
Trivia: This song was originally written for Chris Brown. Thanks goodness he gave it to his far superior girlfriend!
Best bits: 1. Bum-bum-be-dum-bum-bum-be-dum-dum
2. I! feel! like! a monster!
3. It's too close for comfort, wuhoh!

The 9th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Agnes Carlsson - On and On

Released: 11th August
Trivia: I just found out that Martin Rolinski sings the backing vocals on this song! No wonder it's so good! It is unsurprising actually, since the song was written by Anders Hansson, who writes for BWO and Alcazar.
Best bits: 1. This is something MEANT TO LAST!
2. On and on, this love I feel for you goes on and on
3. You're gonna find, this heart of mine will stand the TEST OF TIME!

The 8th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Darin ft. Kat DeLuna - Breathing Your Love

Released: 22nd October
Trivia: His album finally arrived from CD Wow today, and I was excited to find that Girl Next Door isn't the only song that sounds like Just Dance. There's another one called Dance with some very familiar sound effects.
Best bits: 1. Breathing your love! love! love!
2. I wanna spend my nights and day between your arms
3. Baby yooouuuu

The 7th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Amy Diamond - Thank You

Released: 19th March
Trivia: Amy returns to Melodifestivalen for her second try in 2009 with a song called It's My Life... and guess who it's written by? Only Alexander Bard!!!
Best bits: 1. Can't waste my time so goodbye my baby, babyyyyyyy
2. Thank you for all that you've done for me, now I know what real love is supposed to be
3. Woah, I'm better off alone

The 6th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Jordin Sparks - Tattoo (Jason Nevins Radio Edit)

Released: 24th March and 20th October (re-release)
Trivia: The original version of Tattoo completely passed me by in 2007, but this remix is utterly brilliant, and the UK release of the original is, I have decided, enough to warrant this version's inclusion in my chart of the year.
Best bits: 1. Sorry! but! I have to move on and leave you behind
2. I will never regret you, still the memory of you marks everything I dooo-OHHHHH!
3. You're still a part of everything I do, you're on my heart just like a tattoo

Exciting pop TV news roundup

2008-12-29T15:55:00.003Z

American Idol starts on January 13th in America, and some interesting news has already leaked: One of this year's contestants is Joanna Pacitti! Last year I recognised Carly Smithson (ex-Hennessy) and whatshisface from Boyz & Girlz United from their previous careers, but neither of them had made such brilliant singles as Watch Me Shine or Let It Slide, both of which have appeared on Into The Groove in the past. I've heard that she had a Max Martin song on the album she would have released had Let It Slide done well, so hopefully that will leak in the next few months. Let me know if you find it!

Another pop TV show starting in January (the 3rd actually, next Saturday!) is Andrew Lloyd Webber's new series to find the next Eurovision entry for the UK. I am not expecting great ratings for it as I don't think people in this country have a good attitude to Eurovision or even to Europe, so it will probably be a flop, but hopefully it'll be fun to watch, and it's just nice to see the BBC at least trying to get people into Eurovision. I only hope Andrew's song for the winner isn't too awful, but considering he hasn't made one song I like yet in his whole career, I'm not terribly optimistic.

Before I begin my top 10...

2008-12-29T15:47:00.002Z

Here are some clues about what it might include:

5 acts are Scandinavian, the other 5 American. The UK has not fared well here!
1 act appears twice in the top 10.
6 acts made their name on TV talent shows, and one member of another act too.
7 singles are by acts who could be described as r'n'b.
The other 3 are nothing but pop.

The 25 Most Poptastic Singles of 2008 - Part 3

2008-12-28T22:35:00.004Z

The 15th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Britannia High - Watch This Space

Released: 23rd November
Trivia: The cast of Britannia High are supposed to be supporting Girls Aloud on their Out of Control tour. I wonder if that's still happening?
Best bits: 1. You bring your best, I'll be one step ahead, No tears will fall, you'll be falling instead
2. Hold up a mirror you should see yourself, you think you're so much better than everybody else
3. Youuuuu juuuust waaaaait!

The 14th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Hot Chip - Ready For The Floor

Released: 28th January
Trivia: This was apparently written for Kylie. I can't remember if that was true or just a rumour, but she certainly lost out anyway.
Best bits: 1. I’m hoping with chance, you might take this dance... you’re my number one guy
2. We are ready, we are ready for the floor
2. Stand carving up the wall, why don’t you open up at all? (well, that's what the lyrics site says they're singing - I always thought it was "Instead of crawling up the wall"!)

The 13th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Taio Cruz - Come On Girl ft. Luciana

Released: 3rd March
Trivia: Taio has even managed to make Tinchy Stryder's new single quite good, only by singing a bit of it. It's no Come On Girl, though. Look out for Taio's work with Leona and Justin in 2009.
Best bits: 1. You wanna take a bite? Come wet my appetite!
2. So let go, electro, take it nice and slow, c'mon boy, c'mon boy, c'mon boy!
3. Now I know that you want it, you've indicated, it's obvious I need to just make a decision

The 12th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Agnes Carlsson - Release Me

Released: 24th November
Trivia: This year, Agnes actually will make it to Melodifestivalen! She will perform in the fourth semi-final.
Best bits: 1. I could sleep by myself, I would burn me alive (fabulously over-dramatic!)
2. I don't know why I want you so, cos I don't need the heart break
3. I say release me cos I'm not able to convince myself that I'm better off without you

The 11th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Private - We Got Some Breaking Up To Do

Released: March
Trivia: Thomas Troelsen wrote another of this year's best new singles, Strike The Match by Monrose.
Best bits: 1. We got some breaking up to do!
2. Do you really want me? Or am I just another lover?
3. I could use another lover

The 25 Most Poptastic Singles of 2008 - Part 2

2008-12-27T00:46:00.001Z

The 20th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Ola - Love in Stereo

Released: 9th March
Trivia: Ola recently appeared on Sweden's Idol final as part of the brilliant medley I mentioned before, and looked unexpectedly unattractive. Sweden is full of cute boys so why make the average ones famous?
Best bits: 1. Give me love in stereo, give me more of the attraction, cos I'm dying for some more... woah-oh-ohoh!
2. You've got the best of me, you'll get the rest of what is left
3. All our senses come together when we get into the music, it's lifting us uuuuup!

The 19th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Sam Sparro - Black and Gold

Released: 7th April
Trivia: He was the best of the well-known acts I saw at this year's Great Escape Festival, except for Alphabeat.
Best bits: 1. The fish swam out of the ocean, and grew legs and they started walking
2. I wanna be next to you... black and gold, black and gold, black and gold
3. Cos if you're not really here, then the stars don't even matter

The 18th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Private - Crucify My Heart

Released: January
Trivia: The promised Private invasion of 2008 never happened in the UK, but it hasn't stopped me listening to their album more than any other this year.
Best bits: 1. OOH! You slice it and burn it... and then you crucify my hear-ar-art
2. You got it burnin', you got it burnin' up
3. Stop what you're doing to me!

The 17th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Tilly And The Wall - Beat Control

Released: 6th October
Trivia:
Best bits: 1. Let the beat control your body, you and me there’s no one watching, come on we can rock this party all night long believe me
2. There is nothing stopping you, there is nothing stopping me, so let that beat control your body baby
3. All the people gather round now (The beat! The beat! etc.)

The 16th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Yelle - Je Veux Te Voir

Released: 26th May
Trivia: I always forget about the meaning of this song, and now I've reminded myself by reading a translation I would quite like to forget again so I can enjoy it as it sounds, cute and jolly.
Best bits: 1. Je! veux! te! voir!
2. Tes posters de Lil Jon recouvrent ceux de Magic Johnson, ton corps est trop crunk pour assurer les dunks
3. On n'avait pas prevu de passer la soiree avec des rigolos

The 25 Most Poptastic Singles of 2008 - Part 1

2008-12-26T15:39:00.003Z

This year I was too busy at the start of December to post a track every single day, and I knew there'd be nothing to do (except write important essays, but who cares about that) between Christmas and New Year, so this year my top singles list is coming to you at the actual end of 2008. My no.1 will be revealed on the 31st. Apart from that, it's business as usual, and I recommend you look up any song you don't recognise because I promise you every one of them is excellent.

The 25th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Doe Deere - One Touch

Released: 5th May
Trivia: Doe Deere has a blog of her own, Doe Deere Blogazine, and even popped by here once to say thanks for the support.
Best bits: 1. I've done it all before, gave up my heart AND MO-ORE!
2. Oh darlin' OO-OOH baby baby, look into my eyes... stay! til the night is over
3. One little touch and I'm in pa-ra-dise

The 24th Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Jonas Oakland - Beat of my Heart

Released: 28th November
Trivia: Jonas has to be the least known act in my top 25, but he could have a huge hit with this song in his home country of Sweden. He does the BWO style much better than fellow wannabe Neo.
Best bits: 1. Don't try to stop me now-o-ow
2. I'll be OK, I'll find my own way, I'll leave a trail of dreams behind me
3. You will know where to go, letting go you will grow

The 23rd Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Keane - Spiralling

Released: 4th August
Trivia: Spiralling was the most broadcasted song in the whole world during its first week of release, and is Universal's fastest ever selling download. That's what happens when popular bands release really good songs. Other famous acts should take note!
Best bits: 1. We're tum-ber-ling down, we're spiralling
2. OHH!!
3. Did you wanna be a winner? etc. (very Pet Shop Boys this bit!)

The 22nd Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Hello Saferide - Anna

Released: 4th August
Trivia: The band name is pronounced Hello Safe-Ride, NOT Saffareedee as some strange people think!
Best bits: 1. Could have supported us when we retired, bought us a cottage near the countryside
2. She would have been a sweetheart but with punk rock manners
3. Well I'm real sorry Anna you never got to be, cos your daddy moved on and left me

The 21st Most Poptastic Single of 2008

Montt Mardié - Names Not Forgotten

Released: 8th September (well, that's the album date - not sure if the single was ever released in the end but it deserves inclusion nonetheless, as it's by far his best work)
Trivia: Like Doe Deere, Monty also has his own blog, where he reminisces about East 17 inbetween updates on his latest happenings.
Best bits: 1. On every young girl's wall, on every door, our names are not forgotten
2. Baby why-y are you writing this song? It will prove what you feared all along
3. What if I never learn? It's alright!

New Pop on the Block

2008-12-24T22:10:00.005Z

The Bird & the Bee - Love Letter to Japan (Watch)
Here's the first entry for Cutest Single of 2009. The Bird & the Bee will release their new album in January, and Greg Kurstin has definitely used his pop hook skills on the lead single, Love Letter to Japan. There's also an ace video with sweet Japanese kids addicted to playing Dance Dance Revolution. It's an exciting few months for Greg with the new Lily Allen album, which he produced, released in February. If her new songs are of the same standard as Love Letter to Japan, it's definitely going to be worth buying.
86% Poptastic!

The Noisettes - Wild Young Hearts (Watch)
I was looking back the other day at the acts I have previously suggested as Ones To Watch at the start of each year on Dirrrty Pop, and when I noticed The Noisettes were among them, I was amused and wondered where they'd got to. It was only a day later, when I was listening to BBC 6 Music (surprisingly good channel actually), that I found exactly what had happened to them: They've become ace! They were always a reasonably good band, but never made anything half as good as this new single. I won't say it's likely to be no.1 for weeks, but it could be a breakthrough for them, as I can even see Radio 2 playing it. It sounds like a cool and good version of Duffy, or a soulful Charlotte Hatherley. Basically it sounds like many things and also very new at the same time. Exciting!
89% Poptastic!

I wanna take songs right now now now

2008-12-24T00:44:00.006Z

In the wake of the amazing surprise news that Darin has reworked Just Dance for his new album (or perhaps Just Dance reworked Darin - if anyone knows please comment!), I decided to pursue another similar suspicion that I'd had. The new Akon single for the UK is Right Now (Na Na Na) and for anyone who either took a holiday in Southern or Eastern Europe about 5 years ago or is obsessed with the music of said countries, it will sound pretty familiar. I thought that Akon had just stolen right out from under the noses of The Underdog Project, but in fact it is a legitimate reworking of their hit Remember. The even stranger thing about it is that Remember is not even their best song. You'd think he could have listened to a few more on YouTube and realised the immense superiority of Summer Jam!

Then again, listening now it does sound worryingly like it could have been sung by Dane Bowers, but at least that proves once and for all that even the UK is years ahead of America musically. I have in fact noticed more and more male r'n'b acts opting for a European sound lately, such as Ne-Yo and Kanye West, although none of them have made anything great yet (Chris Brown got closest with Forever). It's clear that electro-r'n'b is the new big thing, but there's also been a definite move towards poppiness and actually bothering to make choruses catchy, the previous lack of which has always been the main problem with r'n'b music. I was listening to my top singles of 2008 the other day, trying to get them in order for my forthcoming end of the year chart, and I realised that most of the contenders for my no.1 favourite were r'n'b songs. With American Idol churning out some fantastic r'n'b-pop acts in Jordin Sparks and David Archuleta, plus 'the Rihanna effect' producing loads of fab new girl popstars, I'm definitely finding myself more into r'n'b than any other genre (apart from pop, if it counts) these days.

All the boys and the girls, they got it goin' on

2008-12-16T16:48:00.002Z

Did anyone see Britannia High: Behind the Scenes on Sunday? It was about how the series was cast, and Pixie Lott was on it! She didn't get a role because she couldn't act well enough, but as a popstar she is definitely my tip for the top in 2009. She's got a great voice and look, both being very commercial, she's only 17, and she is working with some of the world's best songwriters and producers such as Toby Gad, Kara DioGuardi, Rodney Jerkins, The Underdogs, Soulshock & Karlin, Rick Nowels and Cutfather & Joe. Already her MySpace has provided us with some of 2008's best non-single new songs, especially The Fall. Moma Do and Boys and Girls are also brilliant and very 'now' - they sound like the first 2 singles from the Sugababes' new album should have sounded.

As well as Pixie, there was a very quick glimpse of adorable Aston from JLS! Boyband fans can spot Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and James Bourne, and we got to see Sapphire Elia being as sparkly as her name. There's something special about that girl, and I hope something comes of her after Britannia High. With the apparently disappointing viewing figures, I am not optimistic that there will be another series, so I'm making the most of this one. It's definitely my favourite drama series of 2008. If you didn't see last week's episode (7th December) you must catch it while it's still online - the plot could basically be summarised "omg Adam Garcia is so hot and amazing!", a sentiment I agree with completely. The behind the scenes show will be continued next week, and I must say I'm just as excited about it as I am about the actual next episode!

Hallelujah!

2008-12-13T23:56:00.002Z

Justice was served, and my faith in the British public has been well and truly restored. Actually, I wonder if Leon's victory in part led to Eoghan's downfall? Perhaps those who voted for Leon felt stupid when they realised the true crapness the rest of us saw all along, and they didn't want to make the same mistake with Eoghan. I expected Alexandra to win, so I was most pleased about JLS being the runner-up, as it meant we didn't have to hear Eoghan singing Hallelujah, cos that would have been beyond upsetting. At the final 4 stage, I was just glad that half the contestants remaining were good, but never thought that those 2 would be the 2 in the final. It's so nice to be proven wrong!

Now we can think about Alexandra, and I'm really excited about her future career as a fantabulous popstar, but also hesitant to state for certain that she will be a megastar like Leona. I'm sure that Simon and his record company pals will try to launch her in the USA after the amazing success of Leona, and it won't be hard to market her as 'the new Leona'... but this will only work if she has a song as amazing as Bleeding Love. And that will only happen if Simon and pals use their little brains and pay someone brilliant (even Ryan Tedder again would be fine) to create one - or better yet, steal one off someone undeserving like Jesse McCartney! Alexandra deserves to be even bigger than Leona in my opinion, because a) she sings upbeat songs as well as ballads, and b) she has an actual personality and is a million times better for the representation of women than just-so-bloody-grateful Leona! So please can someone just make it happen? This is an opportunity NOT to be wasted.

Grattis Kevin, värdig vinnaren!

2008-12-13T18:19:00.002Z

Well, it's no surprise that I am very happy with the winner of Idol 2008, considering I adored both of the final 2. Kevin and Alice gave great performances last night, and the single Kevin will release suited them both well. I don't know if it's just because I love the performers of the song, but I do think it's better than past winner songs such as Right Here, Right Now and This Moment. Coming True is also good, but again it was performed by a favourite of mine, Darin.

Speaking of past Idol contestants, the best bit of last night's show, and undoubtedly the best thing on TV in any country during 2008 was the opening performance. It was a medley of the hit singles Idol has spawned, each sung by their original singers. This meant that Daniel Lindström, Ola Svensson (with strange hair), Magnus Fagervall, Sebastian Karlsson, Daniel Karlsson, Marie Picasso (with horrible hair), Sibel Recep, Erik Segerstedt, Danny Saucedo, Mattias Andréasson (3rd EMD member), Agnes Carlsson and Darin Zanyar were all on stage at the same time!! I have embedded it here for you to enjoy, and perhaps if you haven't heard of some of these brilliant acts before you can go and do some research:

Ny Svenskpop i kvarteret

2008-12-07T00:15:00.003Z

Agnes - Release Me
On first listen I thought this was good but not nearly as good as On and On. On second listen, I decided it was possibly the best new dance-pop song of the year! It's been stuck in my head ever since. I love how Agnes' songs combine the warbly r'n'b vocals with fantastic dance-pop sounds (very dramatic, fun ones here), making a common genre sound fresh and original. Agnes has sung some terribly rubbish songs in her time (Right Here, Right Now must be one of the most grating winner songs ever) but she's really stepped up on the new album and I definitely recommend it.
97% Poptastic!

Mitt Piano - Små små steg
Although there are a few Melodifestival entries which have to take the crown for my favourite ever songs in Swedish (Linda Bengtzing's entries especially), this is probably the best indie-pop song I've ever heard in Swedish. If a song can transcend language barriers, you know it's pretty amazing. The chorus line is repeated often and simple, which means it's still catchy even if you don't know its meaning (I'm taking only small, small steps). In fact, the best thing about this song is that I can understand almost all of it, and simultaneously bop around in my chair!
94% Poptastic!

Hello Saferide - X Telling Me About The Loss Of Something Dear, At Age 16
As you'll probably know, Hello Saferide are one of my top favourite indie-pop acts, and they've done some great videos in the past, but this is definitely the new high-point. The only problem is that the song on its own is a really interesting one with great lyrics, and this video, which doesn't relate to it at all as far as I can see, kind of detracts from that. Nonetheless, it shows how super-ace the members of Hello Saferide are as people, which always comes across in their live shows. I can't complain about a great band making a great song and a great video, can I?
85% Poptastic!

A Camp - Stronger Than Jesus
You might remember A Camp from a few years ago as the spin-off project by Nina from The Cardigans, only really known for their small hit in the UK, I Can Buy You. Instead of working on the next Cardigans album, Nina's been doing a new CD with her other band, and although I was annoyed to hear that (I didn't like I Can Buy You as much as her Cardigans singles), I'm really liking the lead single. With a very nice melody, catchy chorus, and thoughtful lyrics, it's actually easy enough to pretend it's the new Cardigans single, so I think I'll just do that. Yay, new Cardigans!
85% Poptastic!

A landmark day for pop TV!

2008-12-07T00:05:00.002Z

Here are the comments I wrote during tonight's X Factor:

Eoghan - Year 3000 - Wow, this is a great choice for him! The first of his performances I've enjoyed, and he actually sang well. He should have done stuff like this all the time, because he seemed like a 16 year old instead of a 46 year old. It was interesting that he said this was the kind of music he wanted to do, when he'd never done anything like it before. My favourite bit was when he realised he had the microphone upside down!

Diana - Girlfriend - Great that the 2 rubbish ones are on first tonight. This is a very odd choice for Diana, and considering I just saw Alice (my joint fave) sing it on Idol, I wasn't pleased! At least Alice knew the words. This song is for mean girls and Diana is too nicey-nice. It was like her usual act was just plonked in the middle of a performance which would have been great if someone with more oomph and attitude was doing it.

Alexandra - Don't Stop The Music - Yay, I love this song! Alex should be a British Rihanna. How stupid is Louis saying that for the first time we'll have a British Beyoncé or Whitney - has he forgotten Leona already??

JLS - Umbrella - No-one told me it was Rihanna week! A good song choice, though, as it was both slow and upbeat in one. They are so nice and professional and hard-working but I still feel that unless they win, they probably won't be a success. They may get to do an album, and if they're given good (i.e. Swedish) songwriters, they could potentially do well, but it's a small chance really.

Co-Op advert - They only got a Scottish guy to speak on this cos he rhymes "food" with "good", didn't they?

Same Difference advert - Yay! Yay! I love them! I'm gonna buy it tomorrow.

Eoghan - Does Your Mother Know - ABBA?? Nooooooo!!! Why does Simon keep giving him my favourite songs? As soon as they said ABBA I had this feeling of dread that he'd do this one, and I was right. So upsetting! I'm definitely not supporting Simon anymore. I'll have to become a fan of Paula Abdul. This is a song you absolutely need charisma for and he has none whatsoever!

Diana - White Flag - Well, at least she's not doing a song I like. It was no less terrible, though. She can't stay in tune for more than one note, and gets away with it by being "quirky". Eugh! Funny that Diana really wanted to sing this song - how can you market someone as cool and different when she likes such uncool, mainstream music herself?

Alexandra - Unbreak My Heart - I hate this song, but she sang it fantastically - no suprise there, though. She's such a nice and fun person too, it will be so wrong if she doesn't win. I think she'll definitely get to release an album as, even if she doesn't win, people will complain a lot and then she'll get signed.

JLS - I'm Already There - Oh grr, a wimpy ballad. Aston's desperation saddens me cos I don't know if they'll ever be as big as they want to be. It's not a famous song but it's very Westlife - in fact they've also covered it on TV and on an album. Louis Walsh officially has no original ideas! They sang well but it doesn't change the fact that this is the absolute opposite of what JLS are about, and they're too desperate to succeed to speak out against it.

Simon has won back my respect by saying that JLS and Alex are better than Eoghan. I would like them to win but then Louis would win so I'd rather it was Alex.

Results:

Il Divo - Mega-boring!! Even the silly bagpipes couldn't make it interesting. And what were they there for anyway? Amazing Grace isn't Scottish! I loved how Simon was pulling his bemused face throughout the song.

I was having a daydream and then suddenly JLS were through! It was nice that Alex looked happy for them. And she is through too! YIPPEEEE!!!! And Diana is out - exactly what I wanted! Of course Eoghan is still a big worry for next week, which I don't think Diana was, so in that way it's a shame (and also he deserved to go as punishment for the ABBA ruining), but I do hate Diana more. It was funny how Eoghan flopped like a teddy-bear when he got through, and his crying about Diana was utterly hilarious. I hope it won't win him sympathy votes! Actually it was rather sweet at the end when they all hugged her. In his tucked-in shirt, Eoghan looks like a mini Louis Walsh. I suppose there is one thing in his favour: he isn't actually Louis Walsh!

Hurra! Hurra! Hurra!

2008-12-06T19:40:00.002Z

Forget X Factor: It is now certain that no matter who wins Idol 2008, an incredible popstar has just been made. My two favourites, Kevin and Alice, are the final two! Here are some videos to show how amazing they both are:

Also, I'd like to point out that they were both in my picks to win back at the start of the series, showing that Swedes have very good taste indeed, i.e. the same as mine!

All I Want For Christmas...

2008-12-06T01:01:00.006Z

Here are some recommendations of CDs you should definitely be including in your list to Santa this year.

Funny how the British covers look so cheap and tacky compared to the others. Aren't we supposed to have a bigger music industry than Sweden or France?

Top of the Poptastic!

2008-12-03T17:38:00.002Z

The best singles of November:

1. Britannia High – Watch This Space
2. September - Because I Love You
3. Mitt Piano - Små Små Steg
4. Agnes Carlsson - Release Me
5. Jonas Oakland - Beat of my Heart
6. Same Difference - We R One
7. James Morrison ft. Nelly Furtado - Broken Strings
8. A Camp - Stronger Than Jesus
9. Anna Maria Espinosa - A Little Moonlight
10. Lady GaGa - Poker Face
11. Rose Elinor Dougall - Another Version of Pop Song
12. Ladyhawke - My Delirium
13. Chairlift - Bruises
14. Timo Räisänen - About You Know (yet, it is that one!)
15. Keane - Perfect Symmetry
16. Dan Black - Yours
17. Lenka - Trouble Is A Friend
18. Ellinor - Supergirl
19. Danny - Radio
20. Daniel Karlsson - Would You Believe
21. The BPA ft. Emmy The Great – Seattle
22. Steph Jones - Get Me Started
23. Lisa Miskovsky - Still Alive
24. Emma Essinger - Say Say Say
25. Anna Abreu - Silent Dispair

By the way, I've decided to do my top 25 singles of the year at the end of the year this time, so it'll be something to keep me occupied between Xmas and New Year. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten the tradition!

You don't really care for music, do you?

2008-11-24T22:08:00.003Z

I watch the X Factor religiously, discuss it endlessly with my friends, and often count down how many days it is until the next episode. However, they have done something that has upset and angered me so much, that if I find out it was (as I suspect) Simon Cowell who was responsible for this, I will actually hate him more than I hate Louis. And that is A LOT.

The problem is this: The winner's single for 2008 is going to be... Hallelujah. When they included this as one of the songs contestants could sing in boot camp, I had the scary thought that it might be a test to see if the public liked it enough for it to be chosen as Westlife's next single. The contestants, apart from Diana, are allegedly angry because she sang it during boot camp, so it seems like a set-up for her to win. This is bad enough, but since it seems unavoidable that she or Eoghan will win this year, it doesn't make much difference.

The problem really is that when Diana (or worse, Eoghan, who it won't suit at all) releases this song, it will become public property and absolutely ruined forever. I usually can't stand poncy 'music lovers' who get worked up about their favourite songs being covered by mainstream acts, but this is just unforgivable. The lyric I used to title this post is completely fitting - whoever chose this to be the winner's single doesn't care for music at all.

In fact they don't care for The X Factor either, because any one of the millions of people who, like me, love this song when performed by Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley or (my favourite) Rufus Wainwright, will feel just as sickened by even the thought of this impending cover version as I do. While it belongs to the genre of popular music, there is something about this particular song (like many others by Rufus, and probably the other two singers) which separates it from commercial, capitalist pop music. I love the crazy world of pop, but this special song does not belong in it, and using it to heartlessly rake in money is just horrible.

These are a few of my favourite things...

2008-11-22T23:35:00.004Z

1. When you search for Louis Walsh groups on Facebook, every single one on the first page is a hate group. I couldn't decide which to join out of "I HATE LOUIS WALSH", "louis walsh is a complete twat" and "LOUIS WALSH WOULDNT KNOW TALENT IF IT HIT HIM IN THE FACE!!!!!!" - in the end I chose the last one for a) its enthusiasm for the cause and b) this very accurate photo.

2. Same Difference were on X Factor tonight, and they were superbly fab... of course! Unfortunately no-one noticed cos everyone was falling over themselves for Mr Big Voice, but hopefully the children watching all asked their mummies to buy the album for them for Xmas. I did, anyway! (Although I may not be able to wait and end up buying it myself next Monday)

3. I was chatting to my mum in the ad break about Britney performing next week and how amazing it would be if there was a Britney Week, but it'll never happen... well, I was wrong! Next week IS Britney Week!!!! I never thought they'd do it, for the reason they never do anything good (why is there never a Madonna Week?) - most of these people just aren't capable of being proper popstars, who can sing and dance at the same time. Every theme they choose, they always ensure there's a way to avoid singing the poptastic songs. Take That Week was OK, cos they may be a pop band, but they sing mostly ballads. Only Alexandra did any proper dancing. But with Britney, I can't think of any song that is an obvious choice for any of the acts, and it will probably be a disaster, but for once they will not be able to blame the song (I'm still not over Simon criticising With Every Heartbeat - GRRR!!) because Britney will be present! I can't wait!

4. I also watched Idol (the Swedish one) this morning, and it is all going very well. There were 5 acts, so only two were safe from the bottom 3, and they were my favourites, Kevin and Alice. Maltese Eurovision wannabe Kevin is the only one who hasn't been in the bottom 3 at all, and I'm quite hopeful he can win now, which is great cos he's lovely and so pop-positive. Johan, who is very popular but terrible, has been in the bottom 3 a few weeks running, so he's no longer a threat. Swedes have great taste!

Dirrrty Pop Review: Britney Spears - Circus

2008-11-22T11:56:00.002Z

Womanizer
The one we all know. I always liked it but just saw it as a new improved version of Ooh Ooh Baby until I started hearing it on the radio or in shops, and every time I did it would be stuck in my head for the rest of the day. I went to a seminar the other day and all I could think of was "you! y-you are, you! y-you are, womanizer, womanizer, womanizer BABY!"

Circus
This features Lil Wayne, who I'd never realised has such an ugly rapping style. How is he so popular? Pop legend Dr Luke was involved with this one, but it's not one of his career high-points, and it won't be one of Britney's either if she goes ahead and releases it next. Then again, with Lil Wayne's popularity, it might go down well in America. Not sure it will here, though.

Out From Under
A pretty ballad, very pop and girly. I like it, but it's not as distinctive as past Britney ballads such as Everytime or Not A Girl. Still, it's better than all of those early Britney dreary ballad moments.

Kill The Lights
Produced by Danja and Jim Beanz, it's no surprise this sounds like a continuation of Blackout, a follow-up to Gimme More especially. The intro is great and it's lyrics are quite fun, but sonically it's nothing new for Britney.

Shattered Glass
Another Dr Luke creation, with the punchy catchiness he's known for, and plenty of silly sound effects. An unassuming electro-pop-r'n'b track I can imagine Monrose releasing.

If U Seek Amy
I knew straight away when I heard this that it was the Max Martin track of the album - it's super-catchy and extremely addictive, the most poptastic and the best song on Circus. Quite fittingly for the title, it sounds a lot like Amy Diamond, but I don't think she's going to be singing a song that purposefully sounds like an invitation for rude stuff any time soon. I'm not sure if it's Max's best work, as he himself has stated (better than Baby One More Time? Really?), but it's a brilliant pop song anyway.

Unusual You
A brooding electro-pop number, interesting but not a great sing-along. I can imagine this particularly appearing on Rachel Stevens' last album, but she had several similar ones which were better.

Blur
This was so boring I forgot I was listening to it and didn't notice for a minute or two when it actually finished. The only thing in its favour is that it's better than Blur!

Mmm Papi
I'd heard this one was a bit mad, but actually it's one of the more fun and unpretentious songs on the album, even if the chorus is a bit silly. It doesn't quite work and is a bit imitation-pop rather than the really good stuff, but it's enjoyable enough, and the talky bit is amusing.

Mannequin
The weird sound effects are back, but make this song (like much of Britney's recent work) seem like it's trying too hard to be weird and interesting pop, instead of just great pop. It's so important not to lose track of the main purpose of pop music i.e. to get stuck in your head and refuse to leave.

Lace and Leather
Another Dr Luke track, and quite a nice poppy one as well. It reminds me of Lene Nystrom actually, but then it's no It's Your Duty.

My Baby
This is actually about a very small child kind of baby and not the grown up kind, unless she has a boyfriend with tiny hands. I can't believe I'm so out of the loop I don't even know who Britney's dating, if anyone. It's a very sappy song, kind of sweet if you can tolerate this sort of thing, but nothing very exciting.

Best of the bonus tracks:

Quicksand
One of the Lady GaGa tracks, unfortunately none of which made it onto the album. This is weird and interesting but forefronts the poptasticness, which is what pop acts should always aim for. It's not as good as Lady GaGa's own best songs, but better than most of Circus.

Rock Me In
Nice electro-pop song written by the ace Greg Kurstin, very fast with talky verses, a great little bridge and a chorus that reminds me a lot of Moonbaby. Certainly the most Girls Aloud-ish of the new Britney songs.

Phonography
Catchy with nice bouncy background noises but sounds so much like she's singing "pornography" that it's a bit off-putting. Despite that I really like this one, it's very jolly and danceable. The bonus tracks are much more consistently poptastic than the actual album tracks!

Amnesia
Another great bonus track. Very fast-paced, really drawing you in as it builds up. Loads of ace bits in it, especially the chorus. Britney sings in an odd voice at times, picking up a bit of an accent that reminds me of Nelly Furtado. I wish this was on the album so it could be a single, cos it's a million times better than the proposed new single, Circus.

New Pop on the Block

2008-11-15T23:31:00.003Z

Same Difference - We R One (Watch)
Finally! The fantabulous Same Difference have released the video for their ace debut single We R One. It's all High School Musical-wannabe, but of all the things to copy, that's a pretty good choice. I don't see them becoming hugely successful, as its becoming a bit unoriginal now, what with Britannia High as well, but the fact that stuff like this is being produced again in the UK is just brilliant. I don't think their album will be a classic, but I'm looking forward to buying it anyway, just because I love what these two stand for.
91% Poptastic!

Jonas Oakland - Beat of my Heart (Listen)
New Swedish singer-songwriter Jonas isn't afraid to admit the BWO and Alcazar influences which are latent in his super-catchy debut single. Original or not, it's one of the best new singles I've heard recently. This could very easily pass for an actual BWO song as Jonas' voice is similar to Martin's, while the song's intro reminds me of Not a Sinner, Nor a Saint. It's not quite Temple of Love, but it's definitely better than Rhythm Drives Me Crazy, although that admittedly would have been much better without the unbearably annoying pronunciation of "cray-zeh"...
95% Poptastic!

:(

2008-11-09T02:10:00.002Z

He was a rubbish singer, but I am really going to miss gazing lovingly at Lars Eriksson on Idol every week. He was so pretty and lovely.

See! I have to go back to Sweden and get myself a new Svensk pojk asap. I will also post some other Idol buff hottie highlights, just for extra proof of my point:

OK, I give up - no-one but Lars compares to Christoffer Hiding.

War of the Idols

2008-11-02T12:20:00.003Z

At the moment, there are new songs by not 1, not 2, but 5 male Idol contestants in the Swedish charts. In fact, there is one from each year that Idol has existed! So let's see now, once and for all, which year was the best...

2004: Darin Zanyar - Breathing Your Love (ft. Kat DeLuna)
Although he only came second, Darin is the most successful artist to emerge from the Idol series in Sweden. Proving that Swedes have excellent taste, he's also my favourite. His new album will be his fourth, and after his past three have been increasingly at the forefront of pop music worldwide, I'm expecting a lot from it. With the first single, he's doing the electro-r'n'b Chris Brown and Ne-Yo have recently dabbled with, which is a good idea, since I've always seen him as the artist Chris Brown is afraid to be. Despite featuring one of r'n'b's lesser female acts (although she does have one almost-great song), he has made a single better than anything Chris or Ne-Yo has done. However much their poptasticness improves, Darin always seems to be a step ahead, and that's what makes him a fantastic, and criminally ignored artist.

2005: Sebastian Karlsson - My Getaway
Sebastian is another very popular Idol, but he's always been quite average compared to other Swedish popstars, in my opinion. His only real triumph was his Melodifestivalen entry, When the Night Comes Falling. This new single, the first from his third album, is clearly aiming to make him a more serious artist, which everyone who cringed at the phrase "my next album will have a more mature sound" in the Smash Hits/TOTP days will know is always a recipe for disastrous dullness. There is one amusing bit, though, when he seems to sing "I'll be strong, send in trolls" - not sure how that will help with whatever he's dealing with, but I suppose it's worth a try!

2006: Markus Fagervall - If You Don't Mean It
My Aussie readers will recognise this as Idol contestant Dean Geyer's first single - for the rest of you, this was first sung by Ty from Neighbours! Obviously it didn't go that well for him, if he ended up in a TV soap (albeit the best one), so lets hope Markus has a bit more luck. He gets played a lot on Rix FM, but despite being the only winner among the boys I'm talking about in this post, he's never done anything very memorable before. In fact, I can't name any of his past hits, although Wikipedia says Everything Changes was a number one. This is just as unmemorable, but it is a pleasant boybandy tune. I just can't stand Markus' face, and I don't see the point in a one-man-boyband who doesn't even have good looks on his side.

2007: Daniel Karlsson - Would You Believe
He was my favourite in Idol last year, so my expectations for his music were high, and I must say I'm a bit disappointed. The single does capture Daniel's personal style and sound, but it's just a bit lacking in sparkle. It's still superior to Markus or Sebastian's efforts, but with the very high standards of the Swedish pop industry, he needs to release something amazing in order to stand out, and I think people like Brolle and The Ark can do this kind of thing far better. I'm really pleased that he's releasing stuff, and I'll be excited to hear his album, but I'm sad that the first single's not the masterpiece I was expecting from Daniel. I'll just have to listen to his great version of You're The Voice instead. Then again, on second listen, this is growing on me a lot, so maybe I'll be obsessed with it by tomorrow and retracting all negative comments. It happens!

2008: Alexander Konstantoulas - I'm Sorry
Alexander is a bit of an Idol stalwart, having almost reached the finals twice, and this year after he once again failed to do so, someone decided to give him a chance and now he has released his very own single - more than what many of the actual finalists ever achieve! This song was written by Anders Johansson, one of the winners of Fame Factory (a pre-Idol Swedish talent contest), and it sounds just like you'd expect for one of his cast-offs i.e. very dull sub-Westlife rubbish. If this is what Alexander planned to release if he had done well in Idol 2008, then it's a huge relief that he didn't!

Top of the Poptastic!

2008-11-02T01:18:00.002Z

My favourite singles in October...

1. BWO - Gomenasai
2. Darin ft. Kat DeLuna - Breathing Your Love
3. Alphabeat – What Is Happening
4. Katy Perry – Hot N Cold
5. Blue Lagoon - Break My Stride
6. Madonna – Miles Away
7. Killers – Human
8. BoA - Eat You Up
9. The Virgins – One Week Of Danger
10. Will Young – Grace
11. Florence & The Machine – Dog Days
12. Gavin Degraw – Cheated On Me
13. Taio Cruz - I Just Wanna Know
14. Winding Stairs - Shadow Stripes
15. Leona Lewis – Forgive Me
16. Beyonce – If I Were A Boy
17. Per Gessle - Silly Really
18. Alesha Dixon - The Boy Does Nothing
19. Anna Ternheim - What Have I Done
20. Manda Rin - Guilty Pleasure
21. Chromeo - Momma's Boy
22. Sneaky Sound System - UFO
23. Keri Hilson - Return The Favour
24. Sam Taylor Wood – I’m In Love With A German Film Star
25. Lemar – If She Knew

Sneaky Covers Watch

2008-11-01T23:48:00.003Z

You probably know already that Same Difference have done a version of Marie Serneholt's I Need A House for their album, but now we can actually hear it, along with a few other album tracks on this YouTube montage. The songs sound very much like Steps (except I Need A House, which is barely distinguishable from Marie), and that's obviously a very dated sound now, but I love it anyway and can't wait to buy the CD.

An even less publicised cover (at least a Google for info on it led to nothing) is Boyzone's new single, which I recognised instantly as a song I wrote about having potential on here about a year ago - Tom Baxter's Better. It's lovely when Tom sings it, but with Boyzone it just turns into another of their mumsy ballads, and loses all appeal to me.

International Video Challenge

2008-10-29T17:04:00.004Z

Representing the UK: The Courteeners - That Kiss
The Courteeners are one of those bands whose name I know very well, but I couldn't have told you where they were from, what they looked like or what they sound like (apart from indie). Until now, when I heard a song with a great chorus on this week's epsode of 90210, and discovered that it was in fact The Courteeners! My research tells me they're from Manchester, and this song actually got to no.36 recently in our charts, so it shows how little I pay attention to that these days. I have been very dspleased with British indie music in the past year, with the only good stuff being the few major acts such as Keane and the Killers who've gone more poppy on their new singles, but this song has a bit more melody and class about it than Scouting For Girls and their terrible chums. I could even imagine it being by one of the Swedish indie-bloke acts. It's probably a one-off, but I'll be looking into their back-catalogue nonetheless.

Representing Japan: BoA - Eat You Up
It's always interesting for me to see how an act who is very well known in a non-English speaking country translates not just their music but their whole act for the English market. BoA, much like Utada Hikaru before her, has translated very well in terms of poptasticness, but there's not much about this song that distinguishes it as Japanese, not American or European. It could easily be Britney or even Robyn, and that's of course nothing to complain about, but I have a feeling it could rule out success for BoA. I really think that when acts are trying to make this kind of transition, they need to retain some of their original style and cultural distinction in order to stand out. Japan is a totally ace country, so she should be playing on that, not hiding it. Still, the song is fantastic, and I've been listening to it loads lately - a lot more than Womanizer actually!

Representing Poland: Blog 27 - F*ck U!
As a teenage girl duom Blog 27 were always balancing precariously between being utterly terrible and extremely excellent. Unfortunately, now that there is only one member (Tola) remaining, she seems to have fallen off the tightrope on the terrible side. Her styling has gone very emo, and while the music hasn't actually turned much rockier, she has given up on tune altogether. Blog 27 have always been a weird act, and I know that their songs in the past have taken a while to grow on me, but I can't imagine ever liking F*ck You or Cute (the previous single) as much as Hey Boy, Uh La La La or Turn You On To Music. It's a shame. Now I have to hope that the t.A.T.u album is good, or else I'll just be giving up on Eastern Europop altogether if this continues! The two stars are just for the crazy rap.

Representing the USA: Hilary Duff - Reach Out
When I first began watching this video, half of me thought it was a joke. The rapper seems like such a caricature with all his necklaces, and the people running about in their underwear is certainly not typical Hilary video material. Then there's the bit where Hilary's back is showing, and while I don't want to sound like a tabloid magazine, she does look oddly unskinny, and her outfit is terrible. And then there's the backing music... it's Beware of the Dog! Well, Personal Jesus anyway, but it's still been done already. There's just something about the video that seems so amateur, especially when she's trying to be sexy. The whole thing is just wrong wrong wrong! This is the last single to be released by Hilary on Hollywood Records, so I suppose they've just given up on her already and given her a 2p budget for this video. It is actually one of her better songs, but of course it's nothing on good old Jammy's version.

Dirrrty Pop Review: High School Musical 3

2008-10-28T23:18:00.001Z

Senior Year is the third in Disney's High School Musical series, yet the first to appear on the big screen. This means everything needs to be ten times as spectacular: the songs, the dancing, and most of all, the cheesiness... and although the first film will always be the classic, I think they succeed. Sharpay's outfits hit a new high of ridiculousness, if nothing else!

There is a progression from the past films, with some semblance of a plot, and even quite a sad part near the end. But don't worry - Troy and Gabriella still show no signs of being human, and there are plenty of songs which are clearly just excuses for Zac Efron's posing. He has one particularly amusing solo number called Scream, with angst levels not seen since the fifth Harry Potter book. Worryingly though, Zac's actually looking a bit less plastic and more handsome these days. Don't tell anyone I said that...

Something that never changes is Sharpay's continuous indecision between being hilariously fabulous and hideously annoying. This time around, she and her brother, Ryan, share my favourite of the musical numbers, while he gets a new love interest. I won't give away who it is, but let's just say these two won't run out of hats any time soon. Gabriella remains sickeningly sweet and defiantly dull, but otherwise my only complaint is regarding the pointless new characters, bizarrely including an English girl as Sharpay’s new assistant. The producers need to think again if they’re expected to be the stars of High School Musical 4.

Whatever you thought of the previous films, you'll think exactly the same of this one. If you loved them, you'll love this, but to enjoy it certainly does require a very high tolerance for shiny, smiley, stage school starlets, and the ability to lose all pretences of cool for 90 minutes. This is not Oscar-worthy, but it was never intended to be - accept it for what it is and you might just find a new feel-good favourite!

He's a hip-hopper, yes he is

2008-10-22T13:50:00.003+01:00

Just now listening to the new Sugababes album (rather good, but the last one was better), I had a realisation. I have no idea what Klas Åhlund looks like, so in my mind he is a rapping teddybear!

High School TV Series

2008-10-21T01:25:00.003+01:00

So, I was brave and watched the first episode of Britannia High. The prospects weren't good: It's on ITV, and the premise seemed very familiar. Anyone remember I Dream? Anyone remember what happened to S Club 8 after I Dream? Exactly. However, there's nothing I like more than a teen drama interspersed with singing and dancing and very big smiles, so I had to give it a chance. I'm glad I did, because I actually loved it! Here's why:

- It began with a super-poptastic opening sequence, as all the main characters performed the song Start of Something.

- There are many minor stars to spot, such as Marcquelle and Rana from DanceX, and Maxxie from Skins, who has silly hair and likes girls, while another guy confuses us all by looking just like Maxxie from Skins!

- There's a great soundtrack, from Beware of the Dog to Robyn's Who's That Girl.

- Jokes about Hairspray, S Club 7 and ABBA!

- The main female characters sing a brilliant duet (Watch This Space), and the song at the end is pretty good too (Best of Me).

- The songs are written by various boyband members, including Gary Barlow, Mark Owen, James Bourne and... Steve from BBMak!

- Adam Garcia is in it!

- ADAM GARCIA!!!! (He's not as cute these days, though)

Discoveries of the Week

2008-10-19T23:01:00.003+01:00

1. One of the writers of Girls by the Sugababes is Anna McDonald, the new Pipette who isn't Gwenno's sister!

2. If you sing Purple Rain in a Spanish accent, it sounds like "I only want to see you in the pot pourri"!

3. Is this the most genius (for its simplicity) money-making scheme ever?

4. The new All American Rejects single seems to have been inspired by LFO's Every Other Time, mixed with Jive Jones' Me, Myself & I. Rock-cheese at its very cringiest and best!

Wake me up when September gets a new song out

2008-10-16T23:08:00.003+01:00

Cry For You has been out for ages now and has been a deservedly huge hit, but still there is no official word on what will be the next single. However, I just read a very disturbing rumour, that it is going to be a brand new song. On one hand it is exciting to think of new material from Petra, but we must not forget the travesty of Infernal. Did they release Cheap Trick Kinda Girl? No. Did they release Fairytales? No. They didn't even release Keen On Disco, the follow-up to Paris To Berlin in Denmark. Instead they went with a random cover, followed by several mediocre songs that would never have been more than average album tracks if I'd had any say in the matter. So this is a call out to September: Don't ruin your career by trying to tailor yourself to the UK market, when you already have 3 albums worth of excellent pop music. The UK charts need you, don't let us down now!