Inside Nokia Music

Should you happen to see Gabriella Cilmi leaping buildings in a single bound, clad in tight blue leggings and sporting a fetching red cape, don’t be alarmed. “This is my superhero record,” the Australian singer-songwriter says of her upcoming album, Ten, with a hint of laughter. “One track is called Invisible Girl and another one’s called Superman, which is quite smooth and sexy… Another track, Defender, is all about going into battle to protect people that you love. I am a bit of a guard dog like that, so if anyone messes with my friends or family then I get a bit mad.” It’s a departure for Cilmi who, following the success of Lessons To Be Learned, could have conveniently been pigeon-holed as yet another white, female Jazz and R’n’B singer. Ten, Cilmi tells us, is “not quite what you’d expect. It’s definitely more electronic than my previous album, which sounded quite retro and fifties.”

The themes of empowerment and musical diversity percolate through the entire album. “I didn’t just want to make Lessons To Be Learned Part 2, that would be a little too easy and probably a bit boring,” reasons Cilmi, who talks with the sort of self-assurance you need when you’ve signed a recording contract aged just 13. Now 18, she’s keen to show that she’s not going to conform to anyone’s expectations but her own. “I had so many different possibilities for this album and have toyed with lots of different ideas. One was to do a New Orleans piano album, but I sat in front of my piano and realised my playing isn’t quite up to the standard of Dr. John or Professor Longhair.” The artists Cilmi references – two of the most celebrated Louisiana Jazz pianists – aren’t part of the average teenager’s CD collection, but they highlight her eclectic tastes and influences. Ultimately it was Donna Summer, the seventies disco diva, who set Cilmi on her way to Ten. “One of my mates gave me I Remember Yesterday and it kind of rocked my world and inspired me, so I started listening to Giorgio Moroder, who did Flashdance and worked with Blondie when they went disco, and other things like Amy Stewart and Gloria Gaynor with I Will Survive. Powerful women on a mission.”

Now Ten is in the bag – it’s released in the UK on 22^nd March – has Cilmi settled on this new sound? “Oh no, probably not,” she responds with enthusiasm. “I have a zillion ideas and don’t know which road to go down. I love all different types of music, so I’m always looking at new things to try out. I would like to make a country record one day but don’t tell my label that,” she adds jokingly. The only constant that Cilmi will admit to, is making music that people can relate to. “I remember this video of Cat Stevens playing Father And Son. The video is him sitting in a corridor playing and I remember watching it and thinking that this is why I want to make music, music that people can feel.” Returning to her musical tastes, Cilmi admits to enjoying everything from the Macarena (“because they say ‘Gabriella’ in it”) and Shaggy (at the mention of whom she bursts into song, giving a quick medley of his hits) to Curtis Mayfield and Led Zeppelin. The latter’s House Of The Holy is a particular favourite. “I am a massive Led Zeppelin fan and there’s something for everyone [on that album], with a bit of everything on it, even some Reggae. I love the variety of it.” Asked if she’s heard Them Crooked Vultures (a collaboration between Led Zep’s bassist and keyboard player John Paul Jones, Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl and Queens Of The Stone Age Josh Homme), Cilmi says she’s only heard one track. “My brother’s into it, so I will have to go home and listen to it. I did like Robert Plant’s collaboration with Alison Krauss, it sounded really good.” There’s a pause. “I got to meet Robert Plant backstage at the O2 and made the biggest fool out of myself,” Cilmi says, unable to stop herself. “I was in the queue for food and he was in front of me, so I tapped him on the back and the only thing I could think of asking him was, ‘Are you having the pie or the salmon?’, it was the most embarrassing moment of my life.”

It’s refreshing to hear that Cilmi’s managed to keep her feet on the ground, despite the global success she’s enjoyed so early on in her career, and the number of superstar artists she’s come across in her rise to stardom. “I played in front of Ronnie Wood when I played Jools Holland. When I played Sweet About Me he was tapping his foot along with it.” Cilmi gives the impression that she doesn’t take what’s happened for granted and still gets massive enjoyment from the journey she’s found herself on. “I felt super-special playing the main stage of Glastonbury, it was the best thing in the world,” she explains. “When I got up on stage in front of all of those people, it was amazing.” She readily owns up to still getting nerves prior to performing, despite doing live shows for the last five years. “I used to get really nervous and had to do meditation classes to calm myself down, but now I find that the best way to deal with it is to use my nerves as a fuel tank, to just throw myself into it.”

Cilmi is equally open about the fact that she doesn’t know quite where she’ll be, musically, tomorrow, next month or next year. It’s a trait she finds appealing in others, too. “I would love to collaborate with Danger Mouse,” the innovative producer behind The Beatles/Jay-Z mashup, The Grey Album, Gnarls Barkley and, most recently, Broken Bells, among others. “He is so versatile from all of the different artists that he has worked with. I would love him to produce one of my albums,” wishes Cilmi. “Also I would love to work with Justin Timberlake. It’s really interesting to see how he has evolved out of NSYNC to what he is doing now. He would be a good guy to take home to meet your mum. But probably not the type of guy I would take home,” she adds slyly. “I love his music. For a pop artist he is just the king, has some great melodies and when he’s on stage you just can’t take your eyes off him. Yeah, I would definitely love to work with him.” It’s this mix of youthful honesty, unadulterated talent and willingness to acknowledge and expand her musical roots that make Cilmi so compelling. So much so, that you can’t help hoping that she gets her wish.

You can download Gabriella’s single ’On A Mission’ from Nokia Music Store – if you’ve got  ‘Comes With Music’ , it’s completely free! Her new album, ‘Ten’ is out on 22nd March.

Shortly after posting about Polysics in my most anticipated albums of 2009, the band put out a newsletter stating that Keyboard player Kayo would be leaving to “experience life outside the band”. The decision was apparently made a long time ago as it was stated in the newsletter that “Kayo made it a basic policy to not leave the band haphazardly. Even after the decision to graduate was made, she still participated in the recording of two albums as well as many live performances, some which took place abroad”.

Kayo, in my opinion, and that of several other fans I’m sure, is an integral dynamic of the band’s live performances. Standing still for most of the performance, she get’s the biggest response from the audience as the kooky one responsible for all the robotic vocoder gibberish and the sporadic pom-pom shaking outbursts.

Kayo “graduates” from Polysics following the show at the Budokan to take place on March 14, 2010, If you have a chance to catch them before this tragic and emotional day, do not hesitate as the band are understandably going on hiatus and I fear will never be the same again.

I Couldn’t find any crazy pom-pom footage, but here’s a Polysics performance that will give you glimpse into what we’re about to lose.

You’ll be sorely missed, Kayo Polysics.

Polysics are available to download from the Nokia Music Store and is completely free to ‘Comes With Music’ subscribers.

Having just featured a little piece on X factor, I thought I share some, um… thoughts

So I’m not a fan of X factor in the grand scheme of things but I’ll admit I do indulge in the audition phase for the sole purpose of observing the psychological behaviour of the competition hopefuls, and for the opportunity to see the overly confident yet completely delusional have their dreams come crashing back down to Earth, a little sinister I know, but it makes for great television.

Beyond this, I do also enjoy trying to pick the winner in the early stages of the game based on the group or individuals presence and personality, and to be fair, of all the seasons gone by, these have been easy choices straight of the bat, as a bit of clever video editing and focus on individuals tends to subconsciously influence us all.

Now considering X Factor, of all the winners to date there’s an obvious recurring theme, Steve Brookstein, Shayne Ward, Leona Lewis, Leon Jackson, Alexandra Burke, Joe McElderry, of which only 1 has managed a successful career (the jury’s still out on the last 2). For the most part this could be attributed to the lack of nurturing beyond the show buck stop, but I believe there’s more to it than that…

What ever happened to good old fashioned stage names for solo performers?… nothing, anyone smart enough is still using them, Lady Gaga… Stefani Germanotta couldn’t break into the industry until she invented a suprficial character, one that I’m still convinced she’ll kill-off to reveal herself as the performer she’s always wanted to be. Or how about Rihanna… as talented as she is, I doubt she’d have had the success she’s enjoyed if she was performing as Robyn Fenty, there’s power and influence in a name, I know this, you know this, the industry knows this, and even Homer Simpson knew this when he changed his name to Max Power, so why, year after year do they churn out the same formulaic photo shoot (you know, the one in the tunnel with the extraction fan in the background) and with the name/surname format? It’s almost as if it’s only about the viewers recognising the X Factor brand… but then I guess maybe the contestants are to blame for not bringing any originality to the show, perhaps they need to start bringing a name rather than just playing desperate putty for the molding.

Steve Brookstein, Shayne Ward, Leona Lewis, Leon Jackson, Alexandra Burke, and Joe McElderry, Rihanna, and Lady Gaga are all available to download from the Nokia Music Store and are completely free to ‘Comes With Music’ subscribers.

Catching my attention this week has been one of those annoyingly clever viral campaigns. Three videos posted on YouTube over the last month, by a curious creature going by the name of ‘Iamamiwhoami’ have had a staggering 366, 797 views, so at least  I’m not the only one who has noticed.

For me, not normally one to be intrigued by stuff like this, there are a few reasons why this has caught my eye. First up, I genuinely do like what’s going on in these clips – the images: a mud caked skinny blonde licking trees, a haunting singing whale mouth, sexual sap, and a live birth; the sounds: minimalistic electronic bleeps, dirty bass lines, and futuristic obscured vocals; and the production:  professional, slick and  captivating. Secondly, the guessing game as to which artist it is has seemingly sparked global interest and lively debate.

There’s also a sneaky combination of coded titles (which are sending people into a decoding frenzy) and the strategic, staggered posting of the clips.  Very clever Mr Marketing Man, bravo!

The most guessed artist is Christina Aguilera, and I hope to God that this is correct. I really want Christina, the little pop princess of yesteryear to return with her new album and become a bona fide ‘credible’ artist. These clips seem to ooze style, substance and a darker, more mature sound than I ever would’ve thought Christina was capable of. It’s like when you see a monkey smoking a cigarette, it just shouldn’t happen and so when it does, you are then utterly compelled to watch. Aguilera simply shouldn’t be doing this. But there are many hints out there to suggest she is. She’s collaborated with Sia, Le Tigre, Goldfrapp and Ladytron for her new album and has said in a recent interview “My new [album] is just about the future – my son in my life, motivating me to want to play and have fun …Things that maybe I’ve been afraid to do in the past, to allow myself to go to a place of ‘less singing’. I’m more vulnerable and stronger at the same time.”

Other ‘could it be’ artists doing the rounds include Nine Inch Nails, also planning a 2010 new release, Lady Gaga ‘cos she’s just like weird and that ( ditto The Knife and Bjork), Goldfrapp due to all the owl imagery and the fact Alison Goldfrapp’s album is also due for release soon. Even those pesky little hippy dudes MGMT have been included in the guessing game.

You know what though, this could turn out to be one of the best ever ad campaigns for say, a treatment for fungal infections of the feet, or a weekend away at Centre Parcs, and if it does, then wont the whole of the blogosphere feel rather silly indeed?! Keep your eyes peeled for the next installment (I can’t wait!) and in the meantime, here they are in all their gooey glory:

Who do you think it is? Answers on a postcard please.

To say things are going well for Justin Bieber would be the biggest understatement of 2010 so far. His debut album, My World, has gone platinum in Canada and the US. He is the only artist in US Billboard history to have four songs from a debut album chart in the Top 40 of the Hot 100 before the album’s release. When My World was released, it debuted at number one on the Canadian albums chart. It’s an impressive start to anyone’s career, but what’s truly impressive is that he’s only 15.

I managed to catch up with him in the middle of his huge promotional tour of the UK, full of TV appearances, interviews and shows. It seems I can’t even turn on the TV or pick up a magazine without seeing an interview or feature on him. It’s certainly been hectic for Justin. “This week I’ve been too busy to listen to music,” he says pragmatically. “I’ve been everywhere. I’ve been all over the UK, I’ve just been to Manchester and Glasgow and I performed at Wembley arena. Today I’m on my way to Bedford to meet some girls and sing some songs.”

It’s a life at odds with his beginnings. Justin has spent most of his life in Ontario, Canada, and according to his MySpace page, below the poverty line. However modest his upbringing, though, he was fortunate enough to be introduced to music as soon as he could pick up an instrument. “I started music roughly at 2. My mum played at little guitar and sang, my dad played guitar and sang a little bit too and played piano.”

After entering a local singing competition in Canada, he posted the footage online just for family and friends. “My parents are always encouraging me,” Justin remembers. “I posted some videos on YouTube and a lot of people started viewing it. Then I got found by a manager named Scooter Braun who flew me to Atlanta where I got to meet Usher. Then I was flown to meet Justin Timberlake a week later and they both wanted to sign me.”

“I ended up signing with Usher over at Island Def Jam and I put out My World in America and Canada.” Not only did Usher sign Justin to Island/Def Jam, he also makes an appearance in Justin’s video for One Time and lends his vocals to First Dance. The album is the kind of R&B Pop you would associate with Usher, which is nothing new for Justin – the cover versions in his early YouTube footage are almost exclusively R&B. Even then his voice was impressive and reminiscent of childhood footage of Justin Timberlake and other child prodigies. It comes as no surprise when Justin admits that “I listen a lot to Michael Jackson… It would have been cool to meet him but it was sad he had to go so early. The Thriller album was really good.”

Justin’s eyes are fixed firmly on the future, though. “I’d like to work with Beyoncé, I think that’d be fun. And maybe Little Wayne,” he adds. Given his track record, we wouldn’t bet against him.

Justin’s debut album, My World, is available to download at Nokia Music Store.  Please open this link in IE.

Good marketing has become business critical in the world of music today. That’s why tonnes of money is poured into making music videos, but this doesn’t necessarily make them good. In most cases you will find the scantily clad artist in question aggressively gyrating in your face, in a dangerously flashy room, whilst an onlooking horde of baggy-clothed groupies egg them on. You don’t need a million pounds to make an awe-inspiring video, an interesting and original concept will do. OK Go got it right in 2006 with the video for Here It Goes Again, which is a continuous single take of the band performing an elaborate dance routine on treadmills. This video was responsible for the song’s top 40 chart success in both the US & the UK. To date it has received over 49 million views on YouTube and was awarded a Grammy for the Best Short Form Music Video in 2007.

Now OK Go have set the bar, will they attempt to match their own success with another awe-inspiring video? Yes…

Here’s the video for the new single This Too Shall Pass:

I enjoy a good music video when it’s done properly; here are 5 great videos I have recently rediscovered:

Oren Lavie – Her Morning Elegance

Jape – Floating

Björk – All Is Full of Love

The Avalanches – Frontier Psychiatrist

Fujiya & Miyagi – Ankle Injuries

So while I was fast asleep this week as a result of an overly excessive holiday season I missed an opportunity to post an article on the leaked snippet of a collaboration between Lenny Kravitz and Michael Jackson, probably a good thing since Sony Record folk appear to have completely spun-out about the leak prompting Lenny to post this video yesterday to “set the record straight”…

… personally I don’t see the issue with an incomplete leak that isn’t the final mix, it’s created quite a frenzy that should now hopefully encourage a speedy commercial release. Any Kravitz fans who missed the snippet may be as excited as I am about the track featuring the heart-rate monitor sample from the song If You Can’t Say No.

The leaked snippet also seems to have prompted several other (what appears to be) user-generated mixes… this one’s pretty sick!… I’ve observed samples from the MJ tracks Jam and Scream.

Complete album discographies for Michael Jackson and Lenny Kravitz are available to download from the Nokia Music Store and are completely free to ‘Comes With Music’ subscribers.

Part 9

Absolute POLYSICS

POLYSICS are a Japanese New-Wave-Punk-Pop-Devo-inspired 4 piece, heavy at times and with a live show to boot! I discovered them back in 2005 with the release of POLYSICS OR DIE!!!!, a compilation album for the Western market comprised of choice-pickings and re-recordings of songs from the bands several previous Japan-only releases. What followed would border on obsession for me as I’d go on to watching them perform 7 times and would come to occupy my time with trying to track down the Japanese releases without having to pay the ridiculously over-priced logistical costs of importing them.

So when a friend popped over to Japan on holiday to coincide with the release of Absolute POLYSICS I was beside myself with joy and seized the opportunity to snag this Japan-only release, and in special edition non the less… and this is why this little obscurity made my 10 most anticipated albums of 2009 list.

So how did it live up to my expectations?

Well to be completely honest, I’ve only given it a spin a couple times so am yet to decide.

Stand out tracks so far:

Cleaning, it’s about the closest thing I’ve heard them do to one of my über-favourites Code4.

Seen them live this year:

If they toured the UK this year you can bet your life I’d have a few more belt notches in my live count!… 1 of the 2 best live bands I’ve ever seen!

Here’s a video for POLYSICS most commercially successful single to date.

Selected POLYSICS albums are available to download in certain countries from the Nokia Music Store and is completely free to ‘Comes With Music’ subscribers.

Part 5:

Arctic Monkeys – Humbug

So about now this blog’s Arctic Monkeys tag cloud is about to burst, creating a flash flood that could well sweep the competition out to sea. Following the impact Favourite Worst Nightmare and indeed the band as a whole had on me, Humbug falls within my top 3 most anticipated albums of the year. The trouble is the other 2 were within weeks of this release bringing to mind the modern urban proverb “you wait and wait for a bus and then 2 come along at once” only it’s 3 buses and I can’t choose which one to take to get me there quicker.

Upon learning of Josh Homme producing Humbug and reading that the band wanted more Brianstorm like tracks, I knew we were in for something that might alienate the Whatever People Say I Am That’s What I’m Not era fans and so wasn’t surprised to find this was indeed the case to a degree… and for those I am sad!… because I still hear the same old Arctic Monkeys now as I did then, only (as I commented on someone else’s review) Humbug is like the audio negative of the band’s earlier work with the undertones coming to the foreground while the beautiful colourings are suppressed below.

Stand out moments on the album: Potion Approaching and Pretty Visitors (it’s all about the toms man!)

Arctic Monkeys are exactly the reason we must encourage our children to make music from a young age (or whatever they want really), when they’re newly self aware and their sentience isn’t marred by the imposed limitations of adulthood, it’s this I believe that has given us a band of such depth and the early wisdom some may overlook.

Seen them live this year?:

Humbug ‘Launch Party’: 26 Aug @ Brixton Academy with support by Them Crooked Vultures, watched Dave Grohl drum an entire set at close range and I still left that gig obsessed with Matt Helders.

Check out other Arctic Monkeys posts from earlier in the year

Humbug is available to download from The Nokia Music Store and is completely free to ‘Comes With Music’ subscribers.

Part 2

Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz!

With claims of a Donna Summer – I Feel Love era influence it was pretty difficult not to be intrigued by how It’s Blitz! might turn out, with is polished production I feel it still delivers without losing sight of the band’s raw garage rock roots.

Zero and Head’s Will Roll led the proclaimed Disco Garage Rock element of the album (the former of which my other half damn near murdered by excessive play-count) but for the most part It’s Blitz! had significantly more sentimental tracks than previous albums.

Adopting the 10 track album revival that’s been quite popular this year, it’s still a collection essential, particularly the Deluxe Download Edition featuring studio recorded acoustic renditions of Soft Shock, Skeletons, Hysteric and Little Shadow as well as bonus track Faces.

Though the intro briefly resembles MGMT’s Time To Pretend… Stand out track on the album for me is Dull Life.

The cover art is arguably this years best too!

Seen them live this year:

Hell yeah… yeah yeah! 26th April @ Shepherds Bush Empire.

It’s Blitz! As well as a comprehensive Yeah Yeah Yeahs back-catalogue is available to download from The Nokia Music Store and is completely free to ‘Comes With Music’ subscribers.