Europop – Page 14

Nea – Some Say

“What.”

Tim: So, I could introduce this by saying that New is the stage name of previously writer-only Linnea Södahl, or that the song is about love that will never be reciprocated, but neither of those things is even vaguely important, relative to what actually happens in the song.

Tom: What.

Tim: So, that is one of the most bizarre things I’ve heard in a long while. Straight sampling: fine. Redoing in a different genre: sure, why not (unless you’re Calum Scott). Doing this to it: again, can be okay (and in fact I’ve feeling this has already happened earlier this year, but I’m damned if can remember the specifics). BUT, what ludicrous set of circumstances would make you think “ooh, Eiffel 65 wrote a melody that everyone associates with late 90s novelty eurodance and it was a big one-off hit, I should use on this ballad I’m writing”?

Tom: It is very, very strange. Maybe it’s targeted at Gen-Z kids who won’t know the original well but might know the melody? After all, that’s basically what Pitbull did with Feel This Moment, albeit in the other direction, and he mostly got away with it.

Tim: Well, mainly because that was just Pitbull being Pitbull, we expect stuff like that. The cynical part of me is wondering if she’s only decided to launch her singing career because every established artist she’s sent it to has given it a hard pass but she was certain it’s a winner; I’m sure as hell not certain it is.

Matthias Reim – Eiskalt

“It’s really interesting to hear this sort of dramatic, dark effect applied to what is, in the end, still schlager.”

Tom: We’ve talked about Matthias Reim before, Tim, and we seem to settle on the same thing each time: SCHLAGER BANGERS. What’s he got this time?

Tim: Well, throughout my years, Tom, I’ve heard hundreds, probably thousands, of songs that build through the verse and smash into the chorus. And yet, until today I don’t think I’ve ever heard one that could genuinely be described as having a sense of foreboding about it.

Tim: Those opening piano notes, straight out of some sinister ‘hide in the wardrobe, there’s someone creeping around with a knife’ scenarios.

Tom: I’m sure I’ve heard that somewhere before, but all my brain can come up with is Cutting Crew’s Died In Your Arms. It’s really interesting to hear this sort of dramatic, dark effect applied to what is, in the end, still schlager.

Tim: Those beats arrive, upping the tension further. His deep raspy voice with its distinctly serial killer vibe. That heart in the lyric video smashing into pieces. The drums build, he’s approaching the closet, you’re holding your breath, and suddenly WHAM, we break out into a truly fabulous eurodance chorus.

Tom: “Freezing”, in case it wasn’t obvious from context. You’re right though: all electric-guitar, power-chords and heavy percussion. He’s managed it again: BANGER.

Tim: We can breathe, no-one’s trying to murder us, we can have a heck of a time, either throwing our limbs around trying to approximate some sort of rhythm, or just watching that absolutely gorgeous lyric video. Either way, everything is good, and we’ve got our whole lives ahead of us to appreciate it.

Tom: This got more existential than usual. Cracking schlager song, though.

September feat. Birgitta Haukdal – Aðeins Nær Þér

“Here’s something pointlessly confusing for you.”

Tim: Here’s something pointlessly confusing for you: a Scandivinavian dance pop act called September that is entirely not the September who did Can’t Get Over and Cry For You and that lot.

Tom: That is a very, very odd choice of name. Did they not Google it?

Tim: This lot are Icelandic rather than Swedish, though, as you can probably guess from the song title, which in English means Only Near You.

Tim: Don’t know much about the context of that title, but hey – it’s primarily a tropical-sounding dance tune with occasional pop nods, so its probably not all that important.

Tom: And some decent string-section synths in there, too. But you’re right: standard tropical dance.

Tim: At least, it should be that. Because this would be so, so much improved if that Galantis-style post-chorus were allowed to take the lead more often. There’d be less of the slightly uninteresting verses, and many more dance beats that everyone can properly enjoy. Because damn, they’re good, and I’d love a whole song of that, although I’d allow the odd vocal here and there to keep the variety.

Tom: For most tracks that come through here, I’d agree with you: but here, I don’t, I think they’ve got the balance about right.

Tim: Basically, I want more of the good stuff and less of the boring stuff. Is that really too much to ask?

Lauv feat. Anne-Marie – ****, I’m Lonely

“This might be the most charming f-bomb I’ve ever heard in pop music.”

Tom: This might be the most charming f-bomb I’ve ever heard in pop music.

Tim: Oh that is nice, you’re right.

Tom: I think it’s the switch to quiet falsetto that makes it so charming. Every time Anne-Marie swears here, it sounds performative, deliberately designed to stand out and shock. But somehow, Lauv on his own manages to make the consonants sound so quiet and musical that it really fits the lyrics.

Tim: Yeah – it’s obviously rude, but comes across almost as an “I’m terribly sorry I have to use this word, but you see there’s really no other option left open to me”.

Tom: That said, the clean version, replacing the profanity with a single pinging synth, doesn’t sound that different to me.

Tim: Hmm, fair. It’s helpful that it’s there, really, because it’s an interesting highlight in a song I otherwise might skip past entirely, or certainly get bored with.

Tom: Anyway, then there’s the rest of the track: this is catchy, with the sort of minimalist production that can sound terrible if it’s not done really, really, well. Here, though? It works.

Tim: It really does.

Alphabeat – I Don’t Know What’s Cool Anymore

“OOH YES it’s like the Alphabet of a decade ago”

Tim: Tom, you said yesterday that everything seemed generic, and you couldn’t mind much to write about. Turns out the music gods paid attention, because: NEW ALPHABEAT!

Tom: Crikey, between that and Mika, it’s like my university years have come back.

Tim: First thirty seconds of that, I was “hmm, it’s okay for a second track, decent funky pop, I guess I can cope”, but then the CHORUS came along, and suddenly I’m “OOH YES it’s like the Alphabet of a decade ago”.

Tom: That chorus bassline reminds me a lot of Train from 2012, too. I’m not suggesting it’s a rip-off: it’s just another touchstone that puts this, well, as not being cool any more.

Tim: It’s fun, exciting pop, proving that either they truly don’t know what’s cool any more or that they just don’t care, because this ain’t mainstream music, with its gloomy synths and weird vocal samples and genericness. No. Instead, it’s happy, energetic, upbeat, joyous, celebratory, arms flailing in the air for that drum bit at the end, wonderful music.

Tom: I was going to specifically point out that drum fill! You’re right: it’s not the sort of thing we hear much these days.

Tim: I’ll be heading to Denmark to see them in November, and right now I’m more excited about that than ever.

ABREU – Sytyn

“The production on here is just great.”

Tim: Anna Abreu, who we’ve not featured for several years now, has rebranded, and re-genred: it’s time for a not-quite-too-late SUMMER BANGER. (Incidentally, the title doesn’t translate to ‘Satan’, as I was initially hoping, but instead to ‘Light Up’.)

Tom: That starts well, doesn’t it?

Tim: Bit of tropicality in there, a good amount of synthed up background vocals, and a hell of a lot of good dance beats. The production on here is just great.

Tom: The production is excellent throughout: whoever’s mixed this has spent a lot of time to bring out the best in those vocals in front of some quite complex instrumentation.

Tim: The bit that really made me think ‘yes, this is as it should be’ is the quick series of drums beats we hear halfway through and at the end of each verse (first at 0:13, then 0:23). It’s a small thing, and the song would still sound great if it wasn’t there – but it is, and it shows that a lot of thought has been put into this track, making it as good as it can be. And I think it succeeds.

Benjamin – Näytä Mulle Ne

“That chorus feels like it was designed for the audience at a talent contest to wave their arms back and forth to.”

Tim: When this starts, you might think you’re watching Top Gun, but I promise you you’re not. Instead, you’re listening to a song with a title translating to Show Me Them, where ‘them’ is all your little imperfections, because (genuine translation from what he’s said) “no-one wants to fall in love with Teflon”. True, I guess, because I can’t really see myself ever marrying a frying pan, but there’s probably a metaphor in there as well.

Tim: So as I hear it, what we’ve got here is a song with slightly irritating verses, which are largely made up for a rather lovely pop chorus.

Tom: That chorus feels like it was designed for the audience at a talent contest to wave their arms back and forth to. A very specific comment, there, I know, but am I wrong?

Tim: Not even slightly, and if we’re honest it quite possible was. We’ve also got the middle eight which mixes everything up a little, by which I really mean it gets chucked into a blender and turned on at full speed, because God knows what’s really happening there, but it sounds decent enough.

Tom: Odd vocal samples in there, too — and some strange choices of rhythm and percussion. But, yeah, okay, this is… this is… this is a song that exists. Sorry. Can’t get excited about it.

Tim: Goes back to a lovely normal for the closing chorus, though, and overall I’ll give this a distinctly positive rating. Can’t deny his look in the artwork does help with that, mind, but still. It’s nice.

Lena Philipsson – Du Ljuger

“Aaaagh, come on.”

Tim: The title translates to ‘You’re Lying’, and never before has a song given me so many moments of “aaaagh, come on”.

Tom: Music videos are vertical now. Right. Okay. That’s a thing. Pity they just put a phone on a cheap gimbal, and asked her to walk about a bit really, but never mind. ANYWAY. The music.

Tim: Now, don’t get me wrong: what is there in the song is really, really good. This does, in fact, have the potential to be one of my favourite songs of the year.

Tom: Really? I feel like “have the potential” is doing a lot of heavy lifting in there. You’re right that there are decent elements in the track…

Tim: BUT, there are so many bits that should be there, but aren’t. That moment at 1:02 that is crying out for a big dance breakdown. It kind of gets there after the second chorus, but it still doesn’t quite hit its full potential. And worst of all, that ending. Sure, an abrupt ending is okay, it’s happened before. But I don’t think I’ve ever heard one like this.

Tom: Yep. Everything about this feels a bit unfinished, in big and small ways.

Tim: You’re coming out of the middle eight, you have a quiet bit, BUT THEN YOU HAVE A LOUD CLOSING CHORUS. IT IS THE LAW OF POP MUSIC. DAMN YOU LENA, YOU BROKE THE LAW.

Saturday Flashback: Michelle – Es gibt dich

“A textbook example of a builder.”

Tim: I have no idea where I found this, but I was finally getting round to clearing up my 40+ Safari tabs when I re-found it, and I think it stands up.

Tom: This is the first time in a while that I’ve thought “wow, that’s a voice”. Those first lines, almost isolated, really show off her vocal quality.

Tim: It is, really, a textbook example of a builder. Middle eight aside, there isn’t a single component that isn’t a slightly increased version of what came before – hell, sometimes it increases midway through the verses.

Tom: It almost feels like the producers and engineers were having some fun with this one. I checked the waveform in an audio editor, and it literally increases in volume like someone’s steadily turning up a dial.

Tim: And when we come back from that middle eight, OH, I was absolutely not expecting it, but in hindsight it’s a perfect closing chorus. It’s a lovely song – nothing big or huge, but just really, really nice to listen to. And I like that in a song.

Cascada – Like The Way I Do

“This did manage to exceed my expectations.”

Tom: New Cascada!

Tim: Hooray!

Tom: It probably won’t be nearly as good as their famous tracks!

Tim: True!

Tom: That is… a lot of autotune on the verses. I’m not sure if it’s a stylistic choice or just an overapplied fix. But at least the choruses sound a bit cleaner.

Tim: Hmm, see, I’m not normally that great at hearing autotune, unless it’s cranked up to 2011, but, yeah, it does seem a bit excessive.

Tom: Still, this did manage to exceed my expectations. It’s a solid track: it’s never going to define an entire generation’s clubbing lifestyle, but then very few tracks do. This is a solid dance track from people who know how to make them.

Tim: True, can’t deny any of that. It was never going to be amazing as the earlier work – hell, it could never be – but it’s good enough.