Friday 31 July 2009

Basshunter "The Perfect Holiday... ?"

Basshunter "The Perfect Holiday... ?" Sun Online Exclusive!



The Sun Online get the exclusive trailer to Basshunter's new video for the single "Every Morning", which they placed on the Music and Bizarre Homepages!

"BASSHUNTER has given his fans exactly what they want - another dose of AYLAR.
The zaney Swede cast the raunchy model in several of his previous videos, but she was noticeably lacking in his last.
We've got our hands on a taster of new single Every Morning which sees the couple frolicking on a beach.

Basshunter, real name Jonas Altberg, said: "We've been in Majorca shooting the new video.

"It's very exciting not only to be continuing the story from the first album, but also to be releasing my brand new single from my brand new album. I can't wait.

"This video gives you a sneaky peek into what the full video is going to be about and what happens to me and Aylar.

"Come back to The Sun online in a couple of weeks and see the full video exclusively."

Every Morning is released on September 21.

Album Bass Generation hits shelves on September 28.

Click here to see the feature on The Sun Online

Cicada "One Beat Away" Live at the iTunes Festival

Here's Cicada performing "One Beat Away" from their new album "Roulette" at the iTunes Festival recently, supporting David Guetta and Kelly Rowland;

Wednesday 29 July 2009

Popjustice Example Album Feature



Popjustice's huge feature on the forthcoming Example album!

"Your attention please : the new Example album is rather good"

A couple of years ago a rapping chap by the name of Example released a half ropey/half quite good album on Mike Skinner's Beats label. It all sort of went a bit tits up but in the time since it going tits up Example has:

1. Written some pop songs.

2. Signed a new deal with Data (ie Ministry).

3. Been recording near London with Metrophonic, under the stewardship of legendary 'tunesmith' Brian Rawling. A man called Brian who was partly responsible for 'Believe' for Cher, you say? A recording studio in the countryside just outside London, you say? A team of writers and producers working on music for a succession of artists, you say? 'It will never work.'

Anyway what's happened as a result of all this isn't exactly an about turn on what Example was up to before - the last album had Kylie and The Carpenters in it, for a start - but it's a more focused pop sound with sensibilities that are a) underground b) overground c) Wombling-free. As well as working with the Rawling brigade Example's also been working with people like Pascal Gabriel, Chase & Status and Calvin Harris. Multi-producer albums often have a slightly messy and uptight feel about them; this one flows and makes sense and, having had the chance to live with some of these tracks for a few months now, we can report that some of them are VERY GOOD INDEED."

This is not the full feature - read it on Popjustice here, and hear 5 snippets of the album!

Tuesday 28 July 2009

Example Popjustice Song Of The Day

Example's new single "Watch The Sun Come Up" is Popjustice's Song Of The Day!

"This has all the hallmarks of a massive hit record.

1. Big tune 2. Sounds like East 17 3. Job done

We've been a little bit obsessed with this track since we first heard it a few months ago - it's an elegant, modern love song which works as a brilliant signpost for Example's unexpected but rather brilliant pop reinvention. There's a great extended mix (hear it on YouTube) if you've got five and a half minutes to spare"

Click here to see and hear the feature on Popjustice

Friday 24 July 2009

Booty Luv on The Sun Online Homepage!



You'll Luv new Booty girls tune

BOOTY LUV are back with another hit to rival the infectious Some Kinda Rush.
The dance duo lapped up the VIP treatment in a luxury hotel for the Say It video. The stylish suite looks like something straight out of HUGH HEFNER's mansion.

And their roulette skills would fit right in at a decadent Las Vegas casino. Nadia Shepherd and Cherise Roberts, formerly of BIG BROVAZ, also flash plenty of flesh by stripping down to their swimsuits.

See the full feature on The Sun Online here

Thursday 23 July 2009

Telegraph 5 out of 5 for Gurrumul's Queen Elizabeth Hall Show




"'World music' is such a catch all phrase, it can act like a suffocating blanket thrown over the most varied sonic terrain on the planet, damping down the uniqueness of indigenous music. But every now and then a singular voice manages to float up and really make itself heard around the world, usually because it blends esoteric style with rich tone, virtuoso control and something a little bit more, a quality of intrinsic humanity that stirs recognition no matter what the listeners’ cultural background.

Geoffrey Gurrumal Yunupingu has such a voice. A blind 39-year-old Aboriginal from the tiny Australian island of Elcho who sings in the obscure Yolngu language, Gurrumal (as he is known) has had one of the breakout world albums of the year, and it is down to a voice that resonates emotion. In Western parlance you would say Gurrumal has soul.

He cuts a strange figure as he is led out onto the stage at the Queen Elizabeth Hall by his producer and musical director Michael Hohnen, a wry, white Australian double bass player. Blind since birth, Gurrumal moves with the jerkiness of a marrionette and stares out into the audience with a kind of uncompromising selfness, no dark glasses, no showmanship, no pretension.

He sits on a stool, plays simple plucked guitar (left handed and upside down), and sings his own uncomplicated compositions, songs rich with a spirit of yearning and consolation. The sound he makes is extraordinary."

Read the full review on the Daily Telegraph site here

Buy the album "Gurrumul" on Amazon here

Booty Luv on Popjustice Homepage!


Work experience robot Dumper visited Booty Luv on the video shoot for their new single "Say It"

"booty luv chocolate fountain 2 girls 1 robot hot pics xxx

It is about two hundred billion years since Booty Luv's quite good comeback single 'Say It' debuted on Popjustice and they've only just got around to shooting the video. This sort of laissez faire approach is symptomatic of everything that's wrong with this country. God help us if there's a war. Half the country will be getting blown to bits, and somewhere in a studio someone will be taking a photograph of Dumper, the Popjustice work experience robot, 'just chiling' by what we assume is some sort of plastic 'ice' sculpture."

Click here to read the full feature on Popjustice!

Tuesday 21 July 2009

Chicane Poppiholla Reviewed on BBC Chart Blog

"torm clouds are gathering, there's tension in the air. Gangs of dour indie kids are gathering at bus stops and libraries, and an ominous muttering hum is tugging at the attention of unsuspecting music fans, up and down the country. People are uneasy, they can sense the metallic tang of danger in the air, and yet they are not sure where it comes from.

Seasoned forecasters are predicting that this, while not as severe as Hurricane Jeff - which swept over the musical landscape just before Christmas - is going to be a class 2 botherance front, and will result in a flood of blogging, tuts and impassioned self-righteousness.

Batten down the hatches, people, this could get messy...


Here's what the fuss is all about. There's a well-loved indie song called 'Hoppipolla' by Sigur Ros. It's one of those huge, landscapey, skyscrapey sort of songs, perfect as a soundtrack to sports or nature footage on TV, or a documentary about a man climbing a mountain. It's like a mystical, ethereal, slightly-musacky-but-still-brilliant version of Blur's 'The Universal', translated into a language which does not exist.

Now, a dance act called Chicane - yes, the people who made Bryan Adams sound like a robot - have remade the song, with an eye on getting clubbers to love it just as much as the indie fans and TV people do. But in order to make it club-friendly, they've had to change bits, lop off that epic drum beat and replace it with a ticky machine and handclaps.

This has clearly caused complications, and they've had no choice but to perform a full band-ectomy, and put in some pacemaker synths instead. The only trouble is, friends and relatives no longer recognise this new cyborg creation as the song they once loved, and they are understandably upset.

So, has it been worth the trouble? Well, yes and no. It depends where you're coming from. Dance music often pinches good ideas from the rock and pop sectors, and even hardened rocksnobs must admit that, if you were to hear this in a club situation, it's gonna feel less like a personal insult and more like an infiltration of the mainstream. Rocksnobs like that idea.

On the other hand, it's a bit hamfisted as a listening experience, and really doesn't do the original any favours. All we really have left is the spiralling piano motif, and there was always more to 'Hoppipolla' to just the one idea.

So, if you can, best let this storm just wash over you for now, and reinforce your foundations ready for this year's X Factor. Be safe!"

See the full feature on BBC Chart Blog here

Monday 13 July 2009

Digital Spy Interview Booty Luv

"Here at DS we won't hear a bad word said against Booty Luv. They turned Tweet's 'Boogie 2 Nite' and Luther Vandross's 'Shine' into floor-fillers, proved they could pen their own dance anthem with 'Some Kinda Rush', and their debut album was as crammed with bangers as the Tesco meat counter. As they prepare to release 'Say It', their first single in 18 months, we hooked up with Nadia and Cherise for a much-needed catch-up.

What have you been up to since 'Some Kinda Rush' came out at the end of 2007?
Nadia: "Time's just gone so quick because we've been in the studio recording and doing lots of gigs."
Cherise: "We've basically spent this whole time writing, recording and performing, but we did manage to take a two-week holiday in the middle."
Nadia: "It was only seven days actually - we're hard-working girls!"

Is the album finished?
Cherise: "Yes! Well, it's very nearly there."
Nadia: "There's always little bits to do to make it just right, but the album is more or less ready to go."

How's it different from your debut?
Nadia: "There's definitely more creativity from myself and Cherise because the whole album's original this time. We've not done any covers. For the first album we worked with one main producer, whereas we've worked with several different producers this time and they've given us an edgier style."
Cherise: "It's still got that feelgood Booty Luv vibe to it, but we've just kind of stepped it up a notch."

Which new producers have you been working with?
Cherise: "We've worked with Fraser T. Smith, the guy who did Tinchy Stryder's 'Take Me Back' and 'Number One'. We did a song with him called 'One Dance' that we think is really cool. We also worked with Michelle Escoffery who used to do bits with Artful Dodger back in the day. She's an amazing writer and we fire off her really well."

To read the FULL interview on Digital Spy, click here

Sean Paul's "So Fine" Featured On MySpace

Sean Paul's video for the new single "So Fine" is featured on the MySpace Music Homepage this week!

Chicane Poppiholla Reviewed on Digital Spy

"Cast your mind back over the summer dance anthems of the past decade and a not insignificant number of them belong to Chicane. With the likes of 'Saltwater', 'Offshore' and Bryan Adams collaboration 'Don't Give Up' still being pumped out at chill-out bars across Ibiza, it might come as a surprise that Nick Bracegirdle - the man behind the Chicane decks - is still resisting early retirement. In fact, he's got another summer dance anthem up his sleeve.

As its title suggests, 'Poppiholla' is essentially a reswizzled version of Sigur Rós's 'Hoppipolla'. The original is an ambient and ethereal little number popular with nature documentary fans, but Chicane has added trancey beats and the hint of a crescendo to please, if you will, those who like a spoonful of sugar with their coffee. It's a simple but effective reworking, but one that's hard to get too excited about. Still, it should ensure that the name Chicane remains a steadfast fixture on any sun worshipper's playlist."

Click here to read the review on Digital Spy

Tuesday 7 July 2009

War Child "I Got Soul" Young Soul Rebels



A plethora of the hottest young British acts came together to form the Young Soul Rebels. As a super-group, they recorded I Got Soul, a new, re-written version of the stirring Killers track All These Things That I've Done, on Monday July 6 in a London Studio.

Artist involved included;
Pixie Lott
N-Dubz
Tinchy Stryder
Frankmusik
V.V. Brown
Kid British
Chipmunk
Mpho
McLean
Ironik
Domino Go
Bashy
Egypt

The track, based around the hook line I Got Soul, But Im Not A Soldier, will undoubtedly become an anthem among the young this summer, and will throw the spotlight on the vital work War Child does with ex-child soldiers and those who suffer from the tragic effects of war around the world.

Without doubt a defining moment for the UKs music scene, which is currently ablaze with world class talent, the song is the perfect way to educate British youth on the plight of thousands of children across the globe. UK urban and soul music has never been bigger; the artists involved here have featured on four number one singles already this year.

I Got Soul, to be released in August, will be produced under the expert stewardship of Fraser T Smith (who has already achieved phenomenal success with Tinchy Stryer and James Morrison this year.)

To help spread the word, slogan bearing T-Shirts for the single release have been designed by über cool fashion designer Henry Holland, famed for his alternative fashion and work with supermodel Agyness Deyn. Radio One/1Xtras Ras Kwame will also be on hand at the recording, Twittering the latest from the studio.

The Young Soul Rebels project was ignited just hours after the close of the Brit Awards in February, at the War Child after-party. The biggest pop acts in the world; Coldplay, U2 and Take That joined The Killers on stage for a celebratory chorus, chanting I got soul, but Im not a solider to an audience of just 2,000.The next day, Bono told Radio One: That chant, Ive got soul, but Im not a soldier, has a whole new meaning when there is a War Child banner behind your head

War Child is an international childrens charity working in some of the worlds most dangerous war zones including Iraq, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. It has an already impressive and proud history of brilliant projects in music. The amazing support of artists including U2, Paul McCartney, Oasis, David Bowie and the Killers, has enabled War Child to carry out its vital work in the worlds most brutal war zones. 300,000 children are currently involved in wars around the world as soldiers, cooks, porters, spies and sex slaves. War Child and its music projects work to do something about this.

As Sir Paul McCartney comments:
Imagine an army - if you can call it that - made up mostly of kids aged 13 or even younger. They face atrocities so bad that you can just about comprehend them but your brain cannot cope with them emotionally. This is happening all over the world right now.
War Child help rescue children from fighting in these brutal wars. Rescuing a lot of these kids and reuniting them with their parents. Basically, they try to give these kids a chance of having a childhood like you and I are familiar with.

http://www.Igotsoul.co.uk
http://www.warchild.org.uk

Monday 6 July 2009

Pocket TV : Flipping Burgers With Sean Paul

When Pocket TV met Sean Paul at a swish record company BBQ..

Chicane Popjustice Song Of The Day (Again!)

"Chicane's v good Sigur Ros cover 'Poppiholla' is part of an EP that also features former Popjustice Song Of The Day 'House Arrest' (with hindsight that wasn't very good) and a version of Paul Young's 'Come Back And Stay' (?!?) but it's 'Poppiholla' that you'll find is the lead track and for that reason this absolutey terrible video has been commissioned"

Read the full posting on Popjustice here

Sunday 5 July 2009

Chicane Featured On Arjan Writes



"Over the years, Chicane have proven that they know how to serve up quality dance tracks that either have a soothing chill-out quality ("Saltwater") or hit-worthy pop sensibilities ("Don't Give Up" with Bryan Adams).

The group's new single "Poppiholla" does a little bit of both. It combines electronica and trance with an epic melody that plays so well on European radio. There's no doubt that "Poppiholla" will be another chart smash for Chicane overseas. The single will be released in the U.K. on July 13.

Check out the brand-new video for the single that comes with a little twist towards the end."

Click here to see the feature on Arjan Writes

Chicane Featured On Kiss FM Blog

"Chicane are back with a brand new video and they’ve just announced a date at the Forum in London on December 12th."

Chicane Added To Digital Spy

Dance star Chicane releases 'Poppiholla' - his cover of Sigur Rós's 'Hoppipolla' - on July 13. Here is the video: