Inside Nokia Music

Nebraskan hipsters/political activists got a rare treat the other week as short-lived Saddle Creek supergroup Desaparecidos reunited for a one off show with Cursive and Bright Eyes in Omaha. The gig was put on to raise awareness and support for the ACLU’s fight against a proposed bill similar to the controversial anti-illegal-immigration law in Arizona.

“Well, I should talk, I’m just the same
Buy my records down at the corporate chain
I tell myself I shouldn’t be ashamed, but I am” – Hole In One

A live Desaparecidos’ performance is an event rarer than a full planetary alignment since the band only existed for a couple of years (2001/’02) before being abandoned, having attracted more attention than was expected or wanted. And why such a short, bright burst? Because Desaparecidos is the socio-political punk side-project of Conor Oberst. Yes, king of the navel-gazing emos made a record where instead of getting sad and introspective about things… he got mad! And loud.

Desaparecidos’ single album (Read Music, Speak Spanish) is a searing tirade against the urban sprawling, mass consuming, brand name sponsored state of America at the turn of the century under the Bush administration. The name Desaparecidos literally translates as ‘The Disappeared’ , a reference to the practice known as such where citizens are abducted and interred or even murdered by a governing body which never admits to doing so. Mmmm relevance.

Cut to today and as usual it’s a case of one step forward and two back as America blurs the boundaries of civil liberty; (re)granting same sex couples the right to marriage in one state, whilst another mandates that anyone suspected of being an illegal immigrant must produce documentation to prove otherwise upon demand. It seems there’s still plenty for Oberst and co. to get worked up about; and so they join a growing number of musicians boycotting playing in the state of Arizona in protest of the new law and the 16 other states now considering similar laws.

“All those golden fields, lovely empty space 
They’re building drug stores now until none remains” – Greater Omaha

The Nokia Music Store has the Desaparecidos’ track ‘Man and Wife, The Latter (Damaged Goods)‘ and if you’ve got Comes With Music download it for free and save your money for more Starbucks!

Preconceptions are a funny thing. When the ever-considerate Shazza got word that I’d be interviewing Kele Okereke, she emailed over a quote from an interview he did with the San Francisco Chronicle a couple of years ago that made him out to be a difficult customer. Thanks. Then, in the same week that I’m due to give Okereke a call and see what’s up with his soon to be released solo album, he’s all over the front of NME and labelled the most fearless person in music. Great.

So, when I phone at the allotted time only to discover I’ve interrupted his lunch, I’m not feeling terribly optimistic. But within minutes it becomes clear that Kele Oekereke is in fact softly-spoken, given to bouts of introspection and seemingly anything but the arrogant rock star that some journalists have painted him as. ‘I’m not fearless,’ he explains, ‘I just don’t take anything too seriously.’ Asking him if whether what the press say about him and his work matters, he’s eager to explain himself better. ‘I shouldn’t have said that really. I take my job very seriously but, you know, I’m only striving to be honest and to do what is right and make something I’m passionate about.’ Unprompted, he goes on to address the idea that he’s somehow abrasive. ‘I’m not trying to be difficult, contrary, or rub people up the wrong way. I’m just trying to do something I enjoy. When people hear the record or when they see me perform, it’s coming from a genuine place.’ Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t hate football.

That might come as a surprise to some of you, but it’s true. It’s a fun game. I’m not especially good at it, but I genuinely enjoy playing it. Actually, I am surprisingly good at keepie-ups. I can do them with no real effort. Just keep the ball in the air? Simple. It’s only when you introduce other people into the mix that I fall apart. And that’s where my problem with football begins. People.
Football, in and of itself, is a harmless, benign thing. But professional footballers are, to a man, the most awful people who have ever walked the Earth. Preening, smug, overpaid thugs who would just as soon launch a violent attack on you, as they would sexually assault your girlfriend. Look at John Terry. The man is a walking photo-fit picture of every bully you ever went to school with. His eyes make me nervous. They’re tiny and filled with nothing the but cold, black hatred of the damned. And the worrying thing is that people – good people, rational people, intelligent people – tend to become a little bit more like John Terry when they watch football. You can see their IQs dropping as the whistle blows. They huddle together in packs, snarling aggressive, xenophobic epithets and – most damningly – start shouting at TV screens, apparently utterly unaware that the people on the screens can’t actually hear what they’re saying.
Now, I realise this is not exactly revelatory stuff. You’ve probably heard similar bleatings from a million whey-faced, sports-shy non-men in your time. Fine. I’m not trying to be controversial here. I’m simply trying to make you understand why the World Cup leaves me utterly unmoved.

Read the rest of this entry »

A new addition to the Nokia XSeries family comes today with the announcement of the new Nokia X5. Colourfully expressive, musically charged and built with ease of use in mind for social networking & messaging on the move. In a world gone mad for touchscreen phones, the Nokia X5 thinks outside the box and offers a full sliding QWERTY keyboard for those who desire traditional keypads, as well as unique design without compromising on social networking features – Be there, be square!

Social features?

Access to Social Networking sites Facebook, Twitter, Hi5 and Myspace are all covered, all your favourite IM accounts supported, and the ability to log in to multiple email accounts makes it fun and easy to stay connected on the move.

As part of the ongoing XSeries standard, your favourite contacts can be accessed from the home screen, and now includes the new Message Box feature – Just shake the phone to reveal the number of unread messages!

Tell me about the music!

Excellent sound quality? – Check!

Loud speakers? – Check!

Easy access to the device’s music collection? – Check!

Space for all my music? – 2GB memory card for up to 1000 tracks. Upgradable to 32GB

What about special features? – Of course!… Spin your X5 during music playback to select a track at random with the new ‘Surprise Me” application (Your head should be filling up with party game ideas right about now!) and ‘Dance Fabulous’ which lets you use your own music on the device to play the game and create dance moves.

The Nokia X5 will also be available in a ‘Comes With Music’ edition in selected markets – TBA

That’s great, but what about self expression?

We all know that in the decade of the twenty-teens it’s all about the bold and the overstated, and so the Nokia x5 will be available in Pink, Azure, Graphite Black, Yellow Green, and Purple with an estimated retail price of €165 before taxes and subsidies.

For more details check out the Nokia X5 Data Sheet

The Nokia X5 is available soon in the Southeast Asian Peninsula, Eurasia and Latin America

What would you do with a year’s supply of free music downloads? Would you go for some old school favourites like Elvis or Elton John? Would you explore new genres or just download the latest album from your favourite artists?

Well here’s your chance. We’re looking for 20 heavyweight music lovers from the following countries (UK, Singapore, Sweden, Italy, Finland, Russia, Germany and the Netherlands) to participate in the Nokia Comes With Music ‘Bootcamp’ and help us learn about how people discover new music.

If you are seriously passionate about music and want to get a new Nokia X6 plus a whole year of absolutely free music downloads then apply now.

Music fans that buy a Nokia X6 Comes With Music device can download all the music they want from the Nokia Music Store/Ovi Music – for free. They can take it with them wherever they go, listen to it wherever they are, add more tracks whenever they want and keep it all, forever!

So we’re looking for 20 lucky people to try Nokia Comes With Music and tell us all about what they think of the service and the great new music they’re discovering. If you want to be in with the chance to participate then follow these simple steps:

• Make friends with Gaz our Nokia Music community manager on Facebook

• Leave a comment on this blog with your name, and answer the following 3 questions:

• What kind of music are you into?

• How much music do you think you can download and listen to in 30 days?

• Tell us why you want to take part in the ‘Bootcamp’

• Tell us which country you’re applying for?

If you are the lucky winner we will send you a shiny new Nokia X6 device + Comes With Music subscription. 

All we ask in return is that during the 30 days any time you discover and download a new album or track, you update your status on facebook and tell your friends about your Comes with Music discovery (you will have to do this at least twice a day for the 30 day period).

At the end of the 30 days, the device is yours to keep and you can continue discovering great music and download over 6 millions tracks from the Nokia Music store*.

We’ll also review your feedback, as we’re constantly looking for ways in which we can improve the Comes With Music service.

Simple right?

What are you waiting for? Come on, leave us a comment, answer the questions and cross your fingers – you are only a few steps away from absolutely unlimited music downloads for 12 months.

*(Nokia Comes With Music is compatible with PCs only)

Terms and Conditions

So, the UK general election is finally upon us. And, what with this being the closest-run contest in twenty years, it has had the politicians beating a path to our very front doors, desperate to prove – against all evidence to the contrary – that they are really just like us.

The focus groups and image consultants have clearly had a field day in the run-up to this election. Just look at the main three contenders when they’re out and about, talking to the public. The ties inevitably come off, the sleeves get rolled up and the pointlessly over-effusive hand gestures would make an epileptic weather girl blush. They desperately want to look normal. They desperately want to look cool. The only problem is, they clearly don’t know what ‘normal’ or ‘cool’ is, having all been raised in diamond-encrusted castles by posh swans. So they let other equally ill-informed people tell them what to do, which always makes them look wildly out of touch with the people they’re meant to be connecting with. I wouldn’t be entirely shocked if my doorbell rang today and I answered it to find David Cameron, dressed up like Keanu Reeves out of the Matrix films, smoking a fag and rapping the main points of his party’s manifesto to a backing track of M.I.A.’s ‘Paper Planes’. That’s how bad it’s got.

The thing is, this is one of the most important elections my generation has seen. I grew up under the Conservatives, then came of age under Labour and it’s always been a clear-cut choice up until now. It was never so much a question of who you wanted in power, more a question of who you didn’t want. But now, with the three main parties being so close in opinion polls and with the televised debates bringing their policies and personalities into sharper focus, it’s the first election that many people of my age have had to really think about. Our actions this week will have major repercussions for years to come. If we choose wisely, we stand a chance of being a truly progressive nation and maybe, just maybe, being happy. But, if we choose wrongly, it will be decades before we can right ourselves again. It’s a genuinely frightening prospect. And, in all honesty, it’s almost too much to think about. Which is why, this week, I’m going to be mainly talking about saxophones.

Read the rest of this entry »

With unapologetic glee, as with all Jim Moray gigs, I realised that I’ve nearly reached my 10th gig of his and it was just as enjoyable as the ones preceeding it. Folk artist Jim Moray is not only a very talented musician but he’s so humble and unassuming about his skill. Future Inns as a venue is a strange one as it’s part of a hotel so as one of my companions pointed out it does feel a bit like a cruise ship but nevertheless the acoustics were surprisingly well suited to Jim’s soaring vocals.

The audience was treated to a set of solo piano and guitar numbers spanning all three of Moray’s albums and a couple of new songs. Despite the fact that poor Jim had only just recovered from losing his voice the week before this was only apparent when he had to cough a couple of time, but the strain on his vocals could only be heard on the very high parts and the enthusiasm he expressed in his performance was unbridled.

A particular highlight was new song ‘Jenny of the Moor’ a hypnotic ballad which I later learned from talking to the the man himself after the gig, was to be a duet on the new album. Other standout songs were, personal favourite, ‘Lord Bateman’, Nic Jones penned song, ‘Billy Don’t You Weep For Me’ and ‘Lord Willoughby’. It was also nice that when performing his penultimate song, ‘Two Sisters’, he brought a touch of the sampling and mixing that you hear on the recordings.

The sheer love and passion that Mr Moray holds for folk music is clear as inbetween songs he stopped to talk about the origins of the songs and their content. The subject matter of folk is pretty bleak at times, very few songs go by without a ghostly apparition, a murder or the parting of lovers by war or death, but often because the melody is so jaunty it is easy to get swept along in the moment.

Each and everytime I have attended one of Mr Moray’s gigs I have never been disappointed. He is so talented and is definitely worth checking out if you ever get the chance.

Can’t wait for the new album now! In the meantime please enjoy Jim’s most controversial track ‘Lucy Wan’ from his album ‘Low Culture’ an ancient ballad of rape, incest and murder. Somehow it works, Jim Moray’s sweet angelic tones jarring with grime artist Bubbz’s modern take on the tale.

You can download Jim’s material at Nokia Music Store. If you’re a Comes With Music member you can get his music for free!

Here at Nokia, we know how to recognise a good tune, and that’s why we chose Alan Pownall’s “Chasing Time” to feature in this vid for the N900 back in October 2009.

Look how ahead of our time we were!

Fast-forward to April 2010, the recently released track has been lauded as an essential for the perfect summer soundtrack, with the likes of Fearne Cotton making it it her record of the week and media pundits queuing out the door for a bit of the Pownall action.

And quite right too; his infectious folk-pop melodies and catchy hooks are none other than addictive (in a good way of course), putting him at the heart of the burgeoning London folk scene he shares with fellow artists Mumford and Sons, Laura Marling, and Noah and the Whale.

If you’re not already familiar with him yet, here are a few factoids that might interest you:

- In 2008, Alan approached Adele and asked her to check out his myspace address. To his surprise, she did and promptly asked him to support her on tour, which he did.
- He’s played gigs with Paloma Faith, Florence and the Machine, Jack Penate, Kid Harpoon, and Mr. Hudson, to name but a few.
- He used to live with Jay Jay Pistolet, and 2 members of Mumford and Sons (fellow folk gods who had great success last year with their album “Sigh No More”).
- Tob Hobden of Noah and the Whale plays the fiddle on Pownall’s forthcoming album.

Right now, Alan’s supporting Angus and Julia Stone on the UK leg of their tour, but he kindly took some time out to provide us with some crucial answers to some crucial questions.

Thanks Alan, you’re the best, x

Alan’s debut album “True Love Stories” is due for release in July
Q. From previously supporting acts and watching them get some good mainstream recognition, it now seems that 2010 is your year to make it big. Does this add more pressure to your performances?
A. No, I don’t really think about what other people are doing. I just try and concentrate on being the best I can be. I’m constantly inspired by the people making music around me, but they do their thing well and I’ll try and do mine. Read the rest of this entry »

Futility is rife.

Have a look around you, right now – I guarantee that there are at least three things occurring in your immediate surroundings that are utterly and irredeemably futile. We live in a world full of worthless activity. And let’s not kid ourselves that it’s a new phenomenon, either. People have always been driven to do utterly pointless things. That’s why mountain climbers exist. And people who buy anti-aging cream.
Personally, I’ve always considered the ‘concept album’ to be one of the most pointless and futile endeavours mankind has ever poured his limited ability into. I guess it’s because I don’t really understand the principle behind them. As far as I’m concerned, all albums should have a concept – a loose set of musical or lyrical ideas running through the songs that brings them together, forming something greater than the sum of its parts. Without this binding thread, all you’ve got is a collection of unrelated songs. That’s not an album. That’s a bad mixtape.

One of the issues I have with the whole idea of concept albums is that, more often than not, it turns out that the “concept” is either unbelievably vague, or not actually a concept at all. Take two of the most famous examples: The Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of The Moon”.

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If you haven’t yet heard the name Alex Gardner, don’t worry. . .you soon will. With coveted support slots for the likes of Paolo Nutini, Mika and Paloma Faith already firmly under his belt, this 18 year old from Edinburgh is on a fast track to success.

If you were to ask most 18 year olds about their musical heroes, they probably wouldn’t be able to name any artists that were around before 1980, but Alex reels off a veritable who’s who of old-school legends such as Frank Sinatra, Marvin Gaye and Bob Marley. Marvin Gaye stands out for him at the moment, but he laughs, “If you ask me again tomorrow, I’ll say something completely different. My mp3 player has a bit of everything on it – from Mos Def and Kanye to Sinatra”

Born into a musical family, he says he never felt any pressure to be a musician. “I just always had music around me as a kid. I’m a 90s child, but I had all these different influences from different ages floating around and that kind of rubs off on you”.

As far as inspiring contemporary acts go, his response is immediate, “Miike Snow”, he says with no hesitation, “they are just amazing. I’d love to go on tour with them.”

His rapid rise is in no small part thanks to Brian Higgins, director of Xenomania, the songwriting and production team behind a multitude of hit songs from Cher, Pet Shop Boys and the vast majority of Girls Aloud’s output.

It was only a year an a half ago that Alex went on a failed audition to join a band in London. “It was weird”, he remembers, “I looked around and I was ten years younger than anyone else. They all had haircuts and these real fashionable clothes. I turned up in jeans and a tshirt. I didn’t get it”. Despite not being asked to join the unnamed band, the audition was a turning point in Alex’s career. “A couple of days later, I got a call saying that I didn’t get in the band, but that a guy named Brian Higgins had been there and wanted to see me again”.

Eighteen short months later and Alex is signed to Higgin’s Xenomania label and is nearing completion of his debut album. Despite the fact that Xenomania have a proven track record for writing hits, he says he’s not interested in just being handed a fully-formed song to perform. “Obviously, I know how amazing Xenomania are at what they do, and what a priviledge it is for me to be able work with them, but one thing I insisted upon at the beginning was being a co-writer on this album. I know I’m only 18, but I still have a story to tell. Some of the songs on the album use recycled lyrics from songs I wrote when I was 13.”

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