10 Not-Famous Great Songs For The Morning

Listening to music while going to work or to school is something vital, but, as you agree, there are some songs that lift your spirit up more than others, so, let's say happy songs for the morning, to help you to face the terrible day that is coming.
There are a lot of great examples, famous happy pop songs, but I picked 10 non-famous songs to be a different selection.
And, what I mean for "not-famous songs", are songs that are not hit singles or worldwide success.
So, take a quick listen to these songs that lift me up in the morning:

1 - Suede - Sound Of The Streets
Well, I am a fanatic, so I had to start with Suede. So, for a sunny morning, when you are walking in the streets of your own city, nothing better than incorporate Sadie, a girl that knows the sound of the streets of London. Amazing b-side from the Coming Up era with one of the best Oakes' solos ever.


2 - Johnny Marr - The Crack Up
Found this one recently. A song from Marr's debut solo album, The Messenger. Something typical for the ex-Smiths musician, fast guitar riffs, and a "bad-ass" way of singing the chorus, something like if you were walking with long steps without giving a shit to anybody else around you.


3- The Horrors - Primary Colors
This is the song that gives the title of their second LP, the first to be acclaimed worldwide.  Fast song, with a fantastic guitar intro. When I start to listen to it I just want to move my arms all around like a monkey. Simply great!


4 - Patrick Duff - Wake Up Richard
This song was my alarm clock for a long time. So happy, simple and pure. The first lines of the song are "Wake up Richard, it's your birthday, let's go dancing, there's a place I know where the bright lights are always shinning we'll go flying over Tokyo". Isn't that amazing? Just live your life happy and be free!


5 - George Harrison - If Not For You
George's version of Bob Dylan's track is so sunny and beautiful that just brings peaceful and lovely thoughts to your mind. A classic!


6 - John Lennon - Crippled Inside
The most upbeated song from the "Imagine" album. The intro and the slide guitar really gives a joyful feeling to the entire song. Also, the piano solo is incredibly funny.


7 - The Whip - Keep Or Delete
The opening track of their second album, this is more a electronic song, and the most different from this list. What really gives me energy in this song is the way it grows and grows during the 4 minutes. As it flows, it gets more and more intense and complexed.


8 - Violent Femmes - Dance Motherfucker Dance
Well, I guess the titles says it all. Pure energy.


9 - Morrissey - America Is Not The World
Although this could be a sad song, I think that the way Morrissey sings it, almost without interruptions, and the connection with the acoustic and electric guitar, really makes it a sunny song, with good vibrations. One of my favourite Moz's songs


10 - Devendra Banhart - Carmensita
Ok, this is the only song on the list that is actually a single, but I think is not a worldwide hit, as Devendra Banhart is not a very very popular artist (unfortunately). But, listening to this song, it is so funny, positive, free and sunny that it had so be here. Pure happiness! And you can even find Natalie Portman on the video

Cat Empire Live At Hard Club

Last Friday I went to see The Cat Empire live at Hard Club in Porto.
The Hard Club is some kind of a small alternative place where you can find at the same time great concerts as well as "all night long" parties. So, it was the perfect place to see a band like the Australian one.
The atmosphere was great, it wasn't full but it was with enough people.
And the band really made a connection with the crowd (as they always do). They played all their famous songs, some of the new album and gave a lot of outstanding improvisation moments. Really, the time when the 3 wind instruments were competing was just just just incredible.
Best moments for me were How To Explain, Brighter Than Gold, Still Young, The Chariot and obviously, the mythical Wine Song. I made a fault, and went to see the setlist of their last concerts, which didn't include The Wine Song, so, I really wasn't expecting it, which was even greater when they played it.
The concert was long, intense and incredible enjoyable, you could stay the 2 hours just dancing and dancing. They do really look (and probably are) a bunch of really nice and happy guys that are enjoying each moment as we are.
I just bought the ticket on the same afternoon of the concert, and I wouldn't forgive myself if I didn't go. Won't miss them next time and it's one of those concert that, even if you don't know the band very well, you'll enjoy it to death! If you doubt my words go and check a live performance of them on YouTube!

Bowie's Back Again!

The legendary David Bowie will return with a new album called "Blackstar".
The album will be launched on the 8 of January, the same day of his 69th anniversary, and will contain 7 tracks separated in 45 minutes.
The lead single will have the name title as the album and will be released on the 19 of November. According with The Times, it's a 10-minute song.
More news to follow soon!
There's a preview available here!

Berlin

Another post of a "new" not world-wide famous artist.
Mark Fernyhough is a musician and photographer, who passed the last years in the company of great artists. One of them, was Suede, he was the support act of them in some shows.
And you can understand why, his tunes are very "Suedey" for sure.
Take a listen to Mark's fantastic debut single Berlin.
Really curious to listen something more of him.

Agent "Orange" Side Grinder

I discovered a new band (for me) through a fantastic Portuguese local radio program called "Sem Regras" (Withouth Rules). Actually, I did discovered 3 amazing bands on only one broadcast, which was incredible.

One of them was Agent Side Grinder, a Swedish electro/industrial band.

Their new single "This Is Us" was passing and I enjoyed it so much that later I listened to their whole new album "Alkimia".

The album consists of 8 great songs, most of them with more or less the same direction and, by coincidence, the song that guided me to them, is the one that is less fitted to the album in my opinion. 

"This Is Us" is a pop/rock electric single, that kinda reminds me of Joy Division or Bauhaus. The song is great, with a wonderful and catchy chorus and amazing keyboard riffs, maybe my favourite.

However, when I listened to the other songs, another band came to my mind, one of my all-time favourite acts, Depeche Mode. I know it's unfair to compare bands, but this case was special, because the English band really looks like a older brother of the Swede.

Kristoffer Grip's (the singer) voice has a very similar tone to Dave Gahan from the 80's and the instrumental section also has a big connection. Some keyboard riffs could easily fit in some of DM's songs from A Broken Frame or Construction Time Again. Also, Agent Side Grinder use a lot of sound samples. Take a close listen to "Giant Falls" (that middle section) and "For The Young" and, if you are a Mode's fan, you'll understand what I'm saying. Basically, imagine that Depeche Mode had frozen in the 80's, before their turned more guitar-orientated (so, before Violator), and they would unfroze today in the XXI century. I think they would be similar to ASG.

I don't you to keep the idea that Agent Side Grinder is a copy of Depeche Mode or too much 80's oriented, they are not, and I can't really say that, because I only know their new album. To reduce a great album to a Gore/Gahan article would be truly unfair (but that's my bad, I'm a big big DM fan). And, I can admit, they do have a much powerful and cooler bass on their recording.

Alkimia is a short and powerful record, dark and mystic, that can keep your attention with its variety of sounds and good quality song-writing. Take a listen to them, I'm sure you'll enjoy. Personal favourites are "Into The Wild", "This Is Us" and "For The Young".

Also, the video for "This Is Us" is beautiful.

Suede To Release Their Best Yet?

Suede are going to release their brand new album "Night Thoughts" on the 22 of January.
The album will be accompanied by a full film directed by Roger Sargent.
As we can see, it will be an innovative release, something that Suede have never done in the past.
The first single Outsiders is already available on iTunes and can be listen on YouTube.

Until now, I listened, and re-listened to 6 songs: Outsiders (studio version), I Don't Know How To Reach You, Can't Giver Her What She Wants, Tightrope, What I'm Trying To Tell You and Pale Snow (all of them live)

These songs are creating in me, very high expectations, so high that I'm starting to think that Suede can be in the process of releasing their best album so far!
My favourite album is Coming Up, and then we have the "fans-favourite" Dog Man Star but, I think that, for what we saw, Night Thoughts has the potential to overcome them.
Bloodsports was a perfect come back, but as Brett Anderson said, it was a little bit squeezed into 10 three-minute songs, not giving them the space to explore deeper the songs. This space may have emerged now.

The single, Outsiders, is brilliant, the chorus is so beautiful, reminds me of glorious Coming Up days, we have a solo, a instrumental outro, Brett's voice is ageing very well and his falsetto sounds like it was 20 years ago.
What's I'm Trying To Tell You is in the same style as Outsiders, great fast rock track, with an amazing guitar riff during the verses.
Pale Snow is very introspective, Can't Giver Her What She Wants is very dramatic (which is great) and Tightrope sounds brilliant, although I'm expecting a much more complex and full studio version in contrast with the acoustic performances that it had live.

And then, the main song that is creating in me this feeling is I Don't Know How To Reach You. I was lucky enough to be part of the audience when it was first played.
The performance of it during the Glastonbury Festival is enormous. The lyrics are beautiful, the guitar riff after the chorus is magical, the melody is dramatic and emotional and there's an ending coda on the end of the song with powerful guitars and screams. And I'm hoping that the studio version will be even better.

I can't wait for the release of the album, until then, I'll listen this tracks and wait for the concert on London's Roundhouse in November which I'll be attending!

A Song From Norway

Susanne Sundfør first cough my attention when she provided the vocals for a song by Röyksopp called "Running To The Sea" (and they also played together Ice Machine by Depeche Mode, maybe that was, in fact, the reason why I saw them together in first place). The song is great, with a melancholic dance vibe. Susanne's voice is spectacular, something really attracts me to her voice, obviously she sings very good, but there's something in her timbre quite spectacular, maybe it's the way she flies very easily from the low to the high tones.

So, I started to search a little bit about her. Her first singles didn't entered to my head so easily as Running To The Sea did (although her single "White Foxes" is a great great moment) but, I recently listened to the album "Ten Love Songs", released this year. And it is fantastic!
Her vocals are really amazing, what a voice really, and her pop / electronic songs really flow easily into your mind. Personal favourites for now are "Accelerate" and "Memorial" (a ten minutes epic song) but the rest of the songs are very good. I would describe "Slowly" as a lost song from the early catalogue of Depeche Mode, adapted to 2015.

Well, I wouldn't say it is a revolutionary record, something that you really need to listen right now, but it is, without any doubt, a very fresh and modern record. Lyrically is normal, simple, as the album's title says they are love poems. But again, I really like her voice.
It has a really good connection with 80's electronic music and today's pop and rock music.

And she is from Norway! Sometimes I get a little bit upset about British media, always the same artists, always Blur, Oasis and the mega famous american popstars, so it's great to open the horizons a little bit and try music from other European countries.

Luminous

Lately I was listening to the new, or last, Horrors' album.
I'm a fan of them, Primary Colours and Skying are amazing pieces of art.
Although, now, I'm not a big big fan of Luminous. I like the sound, very futuristic and personal but, in my view they lost something from the previous ones.
Faris Badwan's voice is not that as raspy as it used to be, now it's a lot more "sweeter", more poppy, and that's a big disadvantage, because part of the band's identity was his voice and his way of singing.
The synthesisers are awesome as always but the guitar is lacking a little bit, the riffs, you can't find things like "Do You Remember" here.
The best moment of Luminous is the lead single, "I See You". It's a great track. "So Now You Know" is also a great moment, "Jealous Sun" is super interesting and "Change Your Mind" it's a nice ballad. But I can't find a big connection with "Frist Day Of Spring", "In And Out Of Sight" or "Mine And Yours". Compare this album's final track "Sleepwalk" with "Ocean's Burning" from Skying and you'll see why I'm telling this.
I had the same problem with the previous albums, it took time for me to really enjoying them, so, maybe I'll change opinion soon but, I don't think it is as good as the expectation created.
Anyway, The Horrors are amazing and Luminous is great, but not as great as I expected.
Great bands always give you great expectations.

This Week I'll Be Listening To...

The two (new for me) albums that I'll add to the playlist for listening while walking on the streets during the next week.

I'm thinking of getting a routine of every week listen to a modern record and to a classic album that I don't know so well. Let's start now.

Blur Doing The "Bowie"?

I'm suspicious to talk about. When David Bowie released "Where Are We Now?" back in 2013 it was, for me, the best and most surprising moment in music history. That moment, that no one knew that Bowie was still active and when people though (or were sure) that he was retired, he, suddenly, released one of the best songs ever. Ever.
Of course, this surprise effect had a brilliant commercial performance.

Well, today, Blur released their new single when no one was also expecting. It was known that the band recorded something in 2013, but last year Damon Albarn said that they didn't have time for the new album and that, maybe, the songs would never be released.
So, I think Blur tried to have a little bit the Bowie effect. But, it didn't worked so much. First of all, some newspaper discovered it before the announcement and, in my opinion, the new song "Go Out", although it is really "Blurish" it isn't that that amazing. And of course, because Blur are not Bowie, and Bowie is Bowie, incomparable to anyone else.

Obviously people will say that they just released a song didn't try to use Bowie's idea but there are some coincidences. Actually, when the band asked how does the new album sound they replied something like Bowie's Berlin Trilogy (I'm sorry but, again, that, David's period is also incomparable) and the way they are pre-ordering the album is exactly the way Bowie did, buy today the new album and you'll get the new song single now. For sure record companies tactics but it is funny to see how things connect.

Good news that Blur are back, I really like them, and it is a good way to release a new song and to announce a new album. So David Bowie must say.

Suede Will Receive NME's Godlike Genius Award 2015

Suede are set to receive the NME's Godlike Genius Award 2015.
The band will be recognized for their contribute and influence to modern pop music next week during the NME awards and will also perform in the event.
Read HERE a brand new interview by the band where they comment this new achievement.
Meanwhile, remember one of their old (but always fresh) hit singles.

Happy Birthday Elvis And Bowie!

Today is some kind of a legendary day.
Two of the most influential artists of all time were born on the 8th of January.
One of them is already dead: Elvis Presley would do 80 years if he was still alive.
The other is the one and only David Bowie, a personal favourite of mine and one of the most talked artists in this blog.
To celebrate listen to some of their songs.
Happy Birthday for both of them!

Recording In Progress

The British singer PJ Harvey will record her next album in front of an audience. 

The album will be recorded in London's Somerset house and will be called "Recording in Progress". Flood and John Parish are in charge of the production.

The recording room will be a space in the gallery, surrounded by a one-way glass that allows people from the outside to see the band working.

This will be Harvey's first album since the amazing "Let England Shake" that won a Mercury Music Prize.

The tickets for the exhibition (or recording) are already sold out.