Lopez Blogs

The week in review:

• Watched ~ Season 2 of Pushing Daisies. God I miss that show. I must really start to let it go...
• Read ~ finished the first Timeriders book by Alex Scarrow. Tres bon. New series I shall have to follow. Started the third Percy Jackson book. Yes, I'm an "independent reader" section guy this week...
• Starbucks ~ copious amounts. I did shame myself a little bit by asking for a pink fairycake when i meant strawberry covered cup cake. Potato Potarto (who says potarto?!) Still can't beat a White Caffe Mocha...
• Latest obsessions ~ all tv related shamefully. Dancing on Ice is back. Tower Prep on Cartoon Network has been a most pleasing viewing (hello Drew Van Acker!). Pretty Little Liars is back (hello Ian Harding!)
• Listening ~ aside from new Britney and the chart below (lots of new entries), I've been immersed in soothing calming ballads this week. Done well, a good ballad can be a heartwrenching or soul settling tune. I've already written about some of my faves (Carpenters, I Need To Be In Love (above); Rumer, Some Lovers; Viktoria Tolstoy, When All Is Said & Done) - here are two more that are just radiant and lovely...

Didrik Solli-Tangen ~ Compass: I've become ever so slightly smitten with the seemingly very charming Mr Solli-Tangen ever since he performed the heck out of power ballad extraordinaire, My Heart Is Yours, at Eurovision. Whereas that tune was all bombast and grandiose, this reveals a more stripped back, vulnerable side of Didrik and absolutely works a treat. Built around an ever so elegant piano melody that literally floats around Didrik's most gorgeous vocals, the addition of some subtle strings gives it a timeless feel. It really is a beautiful song to behold. It's all wonderfully sincere with production that is just right - the song is tempered to just the right degree and although Didrik could really blast this he holds back just the right amount. Do check out his delightful debut album Guilty Pleasures and follow his webpage - he's a blogging fiend :) Just lovely.

Deborah Gibson ~ Tsunami: Doing an album of Japanese pop covers probably wasn't the most logical move for Ms Gibson but it's one that has worked out rather well. Her lead off single, I Love You, was a sumptuous string led affair and this track - like the Didrik song above - is stripped back to let the beauty of the melody, sentiment and vocal shine forth. What works well about the song is that although it is a cover version, it stands alongside many of Deborah's previous self penned ballads such as One Hand One Heart and With All My Heart. The acoustic guitar adds a bit of layer and depth to the proceedings but it's the simplistic nature of the song and it's lovey dovey lyrics that are the real draw here. Plus, I really like the way the instrumentation ebbs and flows, crescendoing and falling as if to match the lyrics of the song that detail the wave of emotions love brings. Again, just lovely. Good to have her back. Now release "Rise" please :)

Top 21 songs of the week:

21 ~ Westlife, Beautiful Tonight (NE)
20 ~ James Blunt, Too Far Gone (NE)
19 ~ Daniel Boys, To Make You Feel My Love
18 ~ Brandon Flowers, Broken Hearts & Jilted Lovers
17 ~ Maroon 5, Never Gonna Leave This Bed
16 ~ Le Kid, We Should Go Home Together
15 ~ JLS, Eyes Wide Shut (VID)
14 ~ Shayne Ward, Obsession
13 ~ Scissor Sisters, Whole New Way
12 ~ Gravitonas, You Break Me Up
11 ~ Darin, Drowning
10 ~ Britney, Hold It Against Me (NE)
09 ~ Take That, Kidz (NE)
08 ~ Jessie J, Do It Like A Dude
07 ~ Elouise, You'll Never Walk Alone
06 ~ Avril Lavigne, What The Hell
05 ~ Matt Cardle, When We Collide
04 ~ Tove Styrke, White Light Moment
03 ~ Rochella Danishei, Michelle
02 ~ One Direction, Forever Young
01 ~ Same Difference, Karma Karma (2 weeks)

I do love autumn. New tv shows start proliferating the US schedules, hoping for more than a few weeks of air time before they are unceremoniously yanked forever (Hellcats, please last!); returning faves hope to wow the world once again and return to their place as the one to beat; there's a whole new range of clothes in the stores that will keep your arms & necks warm (though won't be anywhere as amazing-ridiculous as arm warmers); and of course all in the world of pop ready their new material to capitalise on the lucrative Christmas market. Here are a few of the more recent forays into early autumn single release, building up to the big pre-Christmas album push :)

• Jonas Oakland ~ Point Of Not Return: Yes, of course I was briefly disappointed that this wasn't a cover of the Expose classic. But after the glorious pop majesticles of Every Beat of My Heart, I was pretty sure Jonas wouldn't let me down. And he hasn't. A foxy new haircut and a funky new tune are more than pleasing - it's a solid synth-heavy, dance-pop tune with a chorus that is perhaps more of Ace of Base levels of aceness than the current ace of base single. Some nice handclaps and pounding, echoey bass in the middle 8 build up to a frenzied final chorus. It's all about taking that final tentative step into something risky and unknown and Jonas delivers an edgier vocal than on the more euphoric BOMH. It's always nice to know that artists perform to the song rather than just being automotons in the recording studio and I'm excited for a full album of sheer, unadulterated pop goodness from lovely Jonas...
• Jesse McCartney ~ Shake: Hurrah! Jesse is back. He's always hovvered around the periphery of being a huge popstar despite having some brilliant pop tunes. This is perhaps a slightly generic attempt to break into a wider market, but the song has enough charm that it's entirely forgiveable - plus I love phone calls within songs, so I'm all over this pulsating, r'n'b tinged little nugget of goodness. Not sure about the use of "shorty/shawtie" in the song, mainly because I have no idea what it means :( I'm so not down with the kids (I still think it's hip to be square). I'm really enjoying the tune though and find the chorus nigh on impossible to "shake" from my head...

• Didrik Solli-Tangen ~ Best Kept Secret: Didrik did incredibly well in Eurovision with his powerful, soaring ballad My Heart Is Yours (still the perfect type of song for this year's X Factor winner or a brilliant Westlife comeback). For his first single post competition, he's gone down a more languid, laid back route, but it's no less lovely a tune. It's a somewhat jazz tinged, horn laden tune that has the most gloriously inviting middle 8 (you just want to sing along, grab the one you love and shimmy) and the layered vocals at the end continue the communal feeling of the song. Bloody brilliant - think Matt Dusk or Michael Buble; this infectious tune should be bobbing around your head (and hopefully the charts) for weeks...
• Bjorn Johan Muri ~ Once Upon A Time: The "Yes Man" is back and since that soaring moment of musical genius, he hasn't really scaled the heights with his subsequent release - the pleasant but somewhat safe Circles. This definitely isn't in Yes Man territory, but the more I listen to it the more I'm drawn into it's 80s inspired groove. I quite like that the song title mainly features in the verses rather than the chorus and while I could have done without the unnecessary addition of the rapper, I'm really enjoying Bjorn's voice, the female backing and a track that grows on you with each listen (much like brandon's crossfire). The album is out next week. YAY!

Coming tomorrow - weekly roundup (boyband special)...

What an entirely pleasant weekend it has been. This is clearly a nice change from me moaning about how busy/tired/moody I am, so grab it with both hands and run with it I say. Something called Aphrodite has brightened the world this weekend (it's the spiritual successor to Light Years and a general love letter to pop), and everything else good seems to a glow a little brighter because of it - Scissor Sisters live, a nice Starbucks, Shrek Forever After at the Imax (so pricey!), Chinese meal with the Ace Gang, No-van being evicted on Big Brother (Scabby and K-evil next please), the last Doctor Who episode before Christmas (wrapped up a good year nicely - something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue = silly genius!) and now a nice lazy Sunday. Plus of course the giddy thrill of the lovely Kylie duetting with the Scissters on my current fave from their Night Work album at Glastonbury (above). Even just watching the video and hearing the crowd roar at about 35 seconds gives me huge goosebumps. It's a giddy, glorious pop treat. Heaven.

Magnifico new pop for the remainder of your weekend:

• Didrik Solli-Tangen ~ My Heart Is Yours: I've been meaning to write about this for forever and a day (or at least since Eurovision). Basically Simon Cowell can stop looking for either the next X Factor winner's song or a brillo massive Westlife single because the exquisitely charming Didrik has delivered an elegant, crescendo-ing moment of pop regalness that continues to grow into it's massive and spine tingling finale. Utterly glorious, and lovely Didrik has a rather entertaining blog where he documents nearly every moment of his life with pics and diary entries. Oh and if the above is a bit too pomp and circumstance for you, there are some brilliant dance mixes floating around too...
• Tom Stereo ~ Number One: It's thanks to Scandipop that I've picked up on the latest boy-pop obsession from Sweden. His latest single is a pulsating disco affair that brings the sunshine from outside into wherever you are. Great catchy chorus reminiscent of the great S/A/W days of music, but with a more up to date sound. And if that wasn't pleasing enough, there is a fun key change to spice things up for the final couple of chorus renditions. Brillo and can't wait to hear more...Plus any video montage that starts off as hornily as the above link does it a-ok with me :)
• Ollie Wride ~ Headrush: This one is thanks to Poster Girl who it is entirely fair to say, has become a tad obsessed with young Ollie. There is definitely something about his music that straddles glam rock, electro-synth, the theatricality of the best McFly songs (think Transylvania) and yet is still firmly rooted in pop sensibilities. And that vocal - something really special could come from this guy; at around 2 minutes into Headrush he delivers a gorgeous, flawless vocal which just sends shivers. He certainly knows how to deliver catchy tunes, but there is something more about him that places him above your average generic boy-pop star. Check out his video for an incessantly addictive tune called Pop Music below - it's raw and unrefined and yet...I can't quite put my finger on it, but I just feel amazing things are coming from Ollie Wride :)

Top 21 singles of the week:

Well, like Kylie wasn't going to remain at number one with all the Aphrodite love going on... :P Maroon 5 get their umpteenth top 5 hit with Misery and Darin debuts at 8 with sparklingly lovely Can't Stop This Love. He looks rather dapper in the clip below too so be sure to enjoy that :P And the little Magic Numbers enter at 13 - definitely a grower this one. I love it more and more with each listen...

21 ~ Bjorn Johan Muri, Circles
20 ~ Lovestoned, Thursdays
19 ~ Gravitonas, Kites
18 ~ Adam Tyler, Friction
17 ~ Gabriella Cilmi, Hearts Don't Lie
16 ~ Kelly Rowland, Commander
15 ~ JLS, The Club Is Alive
14 ~ Bright LightX2, A New Word To Say
13 ~ Magic Numbers, Pulse (NE)
12 ~ The Bang Bang Club, Chemistry
11 ~ LeKid, Mercy
10 ~ Scissor Sisters, Fire With Fire
09 ~ Dirty Disco, White Room
08 ~ Darin, Can't Stop This Love (NE/VID)
07 ~ Chanee & N'Evergreen, In A Moment Like This
06 ~ Brandon Flowers, Crossfire
05 ~ Maroon 5, Misery (NE)
04 ~ Simon Curtis, Beat Drop
03 ~ Same Difference, Shine On Forever
02 ~ Eric Saade, It's Gonna Rain
01 ~ Kylie Minogue, All The Lovers (7 weeks)

Coming Monday ~ a full breakdown of the new Adam Tyler - Friction video :)