Lopez Blogs

It's been a weekend of ups and downs - ups included getting a rather cute new car (arrives in 2 weeks), the excellent last but one Doctor Who episode and a rather delicious slice of cheesecake. Downs include more bloody hayfever, more bloody football and starbucks going up by ten whole shiny pennies. The audacity. The nerve. The unmitigated gall! However, the most lovely thing to happen this weekend was the royal wedding in Sweden. Not only did it achieve the fairytale feel of which all weddings should be measured by (i.e. this), but all of Sweden's pop majesty came out singing some ok, some good and some glorious songs for the event. Which is why I adore Sweden - they put on a massive disney-esque wedding and pop gets the royal seal of approval. Amazes. Above is a rather syrupy yet lovely ballad from Agnes "Release Me" Carlsson and Björn Skifs that wouldn't be out of place at the end of some animated Disney feature, while below are two of my favourites aural tributes to the marriage of Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel Westling. Mazel tov! Romance rules :)

A Right Royal Romance:

• Darin ~ Can't Stop Love: While everyone impatiently awaits the *actual* new Darin single, Love Killer, this rather glorious mid-tempo gem quietly snuck it's way onto Swedish i-tunes this weekend. And thank heavens it did. It's bloody lovely. It's got this shuffling hand clap beat with a delicate piano trinket of notes playing over and it all builds up into this bombastic chorus of crashing drums and a powerful vocal from Darin. Lovely lyrics too - "can't stop, can't stop this love/no matter what they say/I love you". Quite divine. Love Killer is going to have to go some way to beat this, as this is just a joyous follow up to the also excellent You're Out Of My Life. It's only a clip above, but Darin looks most handsome and the sky backdrop is just beautiful.(Also see postergirl; scandipop; swedish stereo)...
• Salem Al Fakir ~ All Day Love: A genuinely touching devotional song driven by a strong piano melody has shown as softer side to the quirky Salem's range. Or so you would think - it's got a really great integration of sounds mixed in. There are the softer sounds of the piano verses, with tinkling bells and occasional flute - then the chorus expresses the passion of the lyrics with some jaunty horns and an off kilter feel to it. It could have been a big old mess - having a tender boyband ballad start then an E Street Band chorus, but it works brilliantly. You can download the song for free here if you are quick by just typing in your email address and the word salem! Go!

Top 21 Songs of the Week:

And what could be more romantic than having Kylie's All The Lovers at number one for a sixth week?! Let's watch a live performance with her towering masses of cuddles and kisses. It's like a strangely more innocent version of all the debauchery that went on in the season 2 finale of True Blood (ps season 3 - off to a great start!) I suspect she may get challenged for the top next week by Darin, Magic Numbers or THE RETURN OF MY BELOVED MAROON 5!!

21 ~ Bjorn Johan Muri, Circles (NE)
20 ~ Sergey Lazarev, Alarm
19 ~ Eric Saade, Manboy
18 ~ Adam Tyler, Friction
17 ~ Donkeyboy, Sometimes
16 ~ BrightLightx2, A New Word To Say
15 ~ JLS, The Club Is Alive
14 ~ Lovestoned, Thursdays
13 ~ LeKid, Mercy Mercy
12 ~ Bang Bang Club, Chemistry
11 ~ Dirty Disco, White Room
10 ~ Brandon Flowers, Crossfire
09 ~ Gravitonas, Kites
08 ~ Scissor Sisters, Fire With Fire
07 ~ Gabriella Cilmi, Hearts Don't Lie
06 ~ Kelly Rowland, Commander
05 ~ Chanee & N'evergreen, In A Moment Like This
04 ~ Simon Curtis, Beat Drop
03 ~ Same Difference, Shine On Forever
02 ~ Eric Saade, It's Gonna Rain
01 ~ Kylie, All The Lovers (6 weeks)

Coming this week: Maroon 5! Moto Boy! Pipettes! The Like!