N°86 FAKE BLOOD - MARS

A long time ago ET wanted to go back home to his planet. I don't know if it was on Mars or anywhere else but Martians are also extra terrestrials so that's where Fake Blood ties in.

Fake Blood is the name for British producer and DJ Theo Keating. He does also perform under the nickname 'Touché' and is part of the hip hop collective named The Wiseguys.

Keating is best known for his 2009 hit 'I Think I Like It' but for my own reasons I've chosen the single Mars.

Many deejays produce records and albums of their own but so far Keating didn't. Maybe it's because he's having more than one project under his wings? Who knows you might here from these as well.

Time to party !!!

N°85 NANA MOUSKOURI - GOING HOME

Fleet Foxes were singing about Mykonos and that’s a Greek island so I thought I’d go searching in the history of Greek singers and came up with THE Greek singer all times: Nana Mouskouri. Nana, as I may call her, is born in 1934 on Crete, another Greek isle but she grew up in the capital of Greece. At the age of 78 it is logical she doesn’t perform anymore yet again she quit only recently in 2008 after her last tour. She was 74 then . There was only one single concert given since 2008. A 50-year career celebration concert in Berlin.

Nana is a multilinguist and she recorded almost 1500 songs in different languages. Some of her original songs she re-recorded in different languages for release in their respective countries. All together she has recorded about 175 albums. Not all of them unique since many of them were also recorded in the natives tongue of the country of release. I’ve chosen an English song for the simple reason that I already have the newxt few links in mind. (for the next link just think of someone who was desperate to go home in 1982)

One of the songs you oughta know Nana from is Ennio Morricone’s composed ‘Once Upon A time In The West’ since she’s the singer accompanying the song. Nana has always been wanted for duets as well since her voice leant easily for it. She sung with Charles Aznavour, Cliff Richard, Julio Iglesias, Will Tura, Olivia Newton John, … I’m forgetting many. She also performed a few times on Eurovision Song Contests.

At a later stage in her music career she became politically motivated. It all started with a mandate as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 1993. For this cause she gave a few fund raising concerts and donate the profits to UNICEF for charity work. A Year later Nana got elected for the European Parliament where she’d be seated for almost five years.

Allright, time to listen to one of the biggest ladies in the music buisiness ever.

N°84 FLEET FOXES - MYKONOS

Fleet Foxes are a five man strong  Seattle based band bringing a mix of indie and folkrock to their public. Originally the band’s name would be Pineapple but in competition with another already existing local band with the same name they changes their name into The Fleet Foxes. This later became Fleet Foxes.

A first EP was produced and released by in 2006/2007 and the band got picked up quickly by the Seattle music scene. Fleet Foxes existed then by the grace of Robin Peckhold (singer, songwriter) and Skyler Skjelset (lead guitar) who met at school. The also created a myspace page on the internet and their talent was spotted by many music lovers throughout the world. No single was released  at that point so their only succes was to be seen online and still in the local circuit. Early 2008 they’d sing for the Warner Music studios. Creating their first successes by sharing their music online, Fleet Foxes frontmant Robin Peckhold still doesn’t hold a grudgde against illegal file sharing. A second EP was recorded by the name of Sun Giant and the band started planning to go on tour. Christian Wargo and Jay Tillman joined the band on their first tour. 

Both EP’s ware joined together into a first album also by the name Fleet Foxes. Release date: June 2008. Big reviews followed and they got picked up by the European scene when they ware asked to tour around different festivals. Their popularity grew higher in Europe than in the States.

More songs were written and last year both their second full album with the title Helplessness Blues and a live EP called The Shrine/An Argument were released. Both of them are beauties in their genre.

I’ve chosen the song Mylonos since I already have the next link in mind. Apart from an easy link it’s their biggest succes on Belgian radio. So far that is because I’m sure you’ll here them again soon in the charts. For those who don’t know the link with Gorki: Luc De Vos, Gorki’s leadsinger is translated in English as Luke The Fox. Need I say more?

N°83 GORKI - MIA

Gorki with frontman Luc De Vos is a legendary Belgian rockband who released some of the best Belgian rocksongs in Dutch ever.  Amongst these songs Mia is one of the many often to be found in the top ten of all time music lists on different radio stations in Belgium. A few years Mia even beat Nirvana’s  Teen Spirit for the number one spot. Apart from this song there’s also Lieve Kleine Piranha (Sweet Little Piranha), Anja and Punk Is Dood (Punk Is Dead). This last one was chosen by the fans as best Gorki song ever.

Luc De Vos is the lead guitar player and lead singer. He’s got a huge no nonsense attitude with a meaning about everything when appearing on television. There’s also Luc Heynaerts, Bert Huysentruyt on drums, Thomas Vanelslander and Erik Van Biesen on bass. These guys perform on studio albums and at live gigs but Luc De Vos adapted the bands name in 1993 for his own after a split with the original founders.

Gorki in Russian means bitter and they exist since 1990 when they arrived third in the Humo’s Rockrally competition. A year later their first hit was released with the single Anja which can be found on their debut album ‘Gorky’. Mia can also be found on that same debut album but the funny thing is that Mia actually was a b-side record backing he single ‘Soms Vraagt Een Mens Zich Af’ (Sometime A Man Wonders). The original Gorky album was re-released in 2006.

Gorki, as a band, took a little time out in 2005 to celebrate their fifteenth anniversary nut they came back even stronger scoring a number 1 hit with the single Joeri. The videoclip, showing a stripper, for this song caused some controversy since they made two different versions. One showing more than the other. Gorki themselves call them either the day or night videclip. In almost 22 years time they produced ten studio albums and on the last one called Research And Development you’ll find a song with the title ‘Grote Stoute Orka’ (Big Bad Orka) referring to one of their debut singles, the earlier mentioned ‘Lieve Kleine Piranha’ (Sweet Little Piranha).

It’s obvious that Mia is the link with the previous performance. Now scroll back up and start listening!

N°82 M.I.A. - PAPER PLANES

M.I.A. stands for the multi-artist Mathangi Arulpragasam. This London based artist isn’t just a singer songwriter but apart from that she’s a model, producer, photographer, filmmaker, painter and fashion designer. Multi talented she is for sure.

Although she started off as a filmmaker but quickly changed her focus on electronic, alternative music bringing her first album in 2004. It was called Arular (after her father) and was a little succes in Scandinavia, Belgium, Japan and the USA. It combines a few different styles and had problems being released in most countries because of the use of different samples. That is also why the UK release differs from the US release. The album contains her first two singles ‘Sunshowers’ and ‘Galang’ which were released earlier.

Her best known song, which I’ve posted here, is ‘Paper Planes’ and can be found on her 2007 album ‘Kala’. This album was named after her mothers first name. Paper Planes became a world wide hit and M.I.A. became a superstar. She released one more album in 2009 and a brand new one should follow this summer.Two albums which evolve a bit more than the first two since you’ll find her music much more layered than earlier in her career. On the 2009 album  at least that is.

M.I.A. also causes controversy. She has her roots in Sri Lanka through her father and both are activists agains the Sri Lankian regime blocking the rights of Tamil people. On a regular base she’s fighting with different media while she struggles for equal rights for all races. She stads up against certain political views and performing during half time in this year’s superbowl she caused trouble when showing her middlefinger instead of singing the lyrics ‘shit’in the song. A word the american television would bleep away for sure. M.I.A.’s reaction to censorship. She’s also a frequent user of multimedia such as Twitter, You Tube, … to discuss her different views on the world.

She’s won quite a few awards in the music industry but she’s was also nominated in “The worlds 100 most interesting people” in 2007 and “The top 100 most influential people” in 2009. M.I.A. is not just an artist; she’s much much more.

The song Paper Planes was created when recording her second album in the USA and it should relate to what immigrants in the USA are put through trying to get in the country. She also had that problem getting in the country for recording her album because she had visa problems. Problems she didn't understand since she had no intention in 'flying an aeroplane into a large building'. (aero)Planes are also the missing link with the Jefferson song.

Have fun listening.

N°81 JEFFERSON AIRPLANE - WHITE RABBIT

From Grunge to psychedelic rock. Must be possible in the biggest link on the internet. Jefferson Airplane was a rockband founded in 1965 and they lasted for about 8 years which means they 'split' even before I was born but in that period of time they managed to create no less than 10 albums. Starting with the clearly stating 'Jefferson Airplane Takes Off' until the 'Thirthy Seconds Over Winterland' album.

The song chosen appears on their second album 'Surrealistic Pillow' which meant their big break through in 1967. The song is all about mixing the Alice In Wonderland movie with the effects of LSD. It's a bit crazy I guess just like their music. They also played at the famous Woodstock festival early in the morning and they opened with the words "Now you'll hear some morning maniac music". It is said that this performance was one of the highlights of the festival, even at an unfriendly early hour.

I did say 'split' before in my blog since they didn't actually quit in 1973. Two of the Jefferson Airplane members continued under the name Jeffersen Starship (later just Starship) bringing three new albums.

Later in 1987 they would once more come together in the original format bringing one last album to the fans and saying goodbye with one final tour.

Now here's White Rabbit for you:

P.S. The link is white -> Previous song by Nirvana was released on the album Bleach and when something is bleached it's whitened -> White rabbit ... there's the link !

N°80 NIRVANA - ABOUT A GIRL

The band Nirvana existed since their formation by Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic in 1987 untill the death of Kurt Cobain in 1994. I don’t think I need to tell the complete story about his death but for those few people who never ever ever heared of that man: He committed suicide. Shot himself in the head in his house in Seattle. This happened a week after he escaped a rehab clinic after he collapsed earlier in Italy on their European tour. Cobain suffered a serious heroin and alcohol addiction.

Grunge is what their sound describes and Nirvana are still to be seen as the godfathers of grunge metal. Grunge can best be described as metal, punk, indie and noise.

Late 1987 drummer Aaron Burckhard joined Nirvana and this would be the final setup when recording the first demo tapes. Nirvana would try different drummers in the first few years. Burckhard was replaced in 1988 by Dale Crover, Dave Foster and Chad Channing and in 1990 again Dale Crover and Dan Peters participated either on the first albumBleach (1989) or on tour. The big break through would follow that same year after Dave Grohl took over the drum sticks and this would become the final setup untill Cobains death. 

Bleach didn’t give Nirvana the superstar stauts Cobain obtained but when listening to it now it has some great songs. Off course Nevermind (1991) is their biggest album and one can’t forget the MTV Unplugged session (1994) in which the three boys stripped their songs bare naked. Beautifull. The unplugged album was posthume released after Cobains death earlier that year. Novoselic and Grohl first doubted the release of the Unplugged album but then decided it would be a great tribute to Kurts music.

Nirvana stopped immediately after Cobains death but that didn’t stop Dave Grohl from being successfull as you know him as Foo Fighters singer and frontman and drummer with Them Crooked Vultures. Novoselic also continues bringing music with Sweet 75 and Flipper. He also played as a guest on a few Foo Fighters albums.
 

I’ve chosen About A Girl from their debut Bleach since it’s a pretty damn good song by a pretty damn good band. And if you don’t like this version you should try the Unplugged one.

Enjoy listening.

N°79 MICHEL DELPECH - POUR UN FLIRT

Jean-Michel Delpech, born in 1946 is a French chansonnier who belongs in the great French music history side by side with performers such as Patrick Bruel, Gilbert Bécaud, Gérard Lenorman, Serge Gainsbourg, Mylène Farmer or Charles Aznavour. I’m even forgetting some probably. Sorry about that form y French readers. For his stage name he dropped Jean in his first name and named himself simple Michel Delpech. Apart from being a singer he’s also a talented actor and writer.

His musical career was influenced through high school by the previous named artists Charles Aznavour and Gilbert Bécaud as Michel started a little band with some friends to cover their well known chanson hits. He’d continue his studies at a Paris conservatorium only to score his first song in 1963 at the age of 26. His first single was called Anatole. In 1967 he’s being asked to do the warm-up for Jacques Brel and he’s touring as Mireille Matthieu’s supporting act in the USA and the former Russian republic. They also do a few shows around Europe but in that tour he’s not always the main supporting act.

He also start to compose songs and these become hits as well. Everyone knows the song Wight is Wight by Sandie Shaw. Well Michel Delpech wrote it. He’s an active singer until the late seventies and in 1971 he’d have his biggest hit with Pour Un Flirt. Pour Un Flirt ties in the link since it’s also about flirting. Delpech breaks up with his composer Roland Vincent and instead of performing he starts to work as a song composer and writer himself. Apart from a little comeback in 1983 with Animeaux, Animeaux and the album Loin d’Ici he doesn’t create much for himself. 

Les vois du Brésil, his 1992 album is again written and produced by his old friend Roland Vincent and it appears tob e a pretty succesfull album in France. After this album Michel Delpech says goodbye to performing for 5 long years but suddenly he starts writing again and he’s releasing at an average of 1 album a year between 1997 and 2007. 

He’s always been very open about his personal life. Michel is assumed to be having troubles dealing with his early successes and his divorce in  the seventies from his first wife. He’s suffering with suicidal tendencies and depression at that time. He’d write about this period of his life in his autobiografie L'homme Qui Avait Bâti Sa Vie Sur Le Sable. Later in the eighties he’ll find happiness in love when marrying his second wife and adopting her daughter. Together with his second wife he’d write a novel in 2000 titled De Cendres et de Braises.

Now enjoy his biggest hit and the next one I can tell will be a singer who actually committed suicide. So many to choose from so who will it be? Keep checking the blog to know !