OMG!!!

Chelsi have a new song out,and well,I don't really like it :/

It's called Mladshaya Sestryonka (Young...something),I think it may be a cover but I might be wrong.Here's a video anyway,complete with photos of Kirkorov and Dmitry Medvedev looking like a holiday camp entertainer.As if Roman's screeching wasn't scary enough...



Think I need a bit of Krilya after that.

You told me my darling,without me you're nothing

Russian stuff aside,there's been 3 big obsessions in my life so far.The Cossacks, ESC and The Rasmus.

I urge you to hurry over to Tales From Turku to check out their new fabulous song.I love it,and I think you should too :) It's from the new album Black Roses,which has apparantly just been released in Scandinavia and Germany.Thankfully,Living In a World Without You isn't like the stuff I heard from the last album (Hide From the Sun),it's more kind of somewhere between Into and Dead Letters.The verses are pretty funky actually- it doesn't really sound like Lauri at all.But then you get to the chorus and you recognise his unique voice straight away (actually,he still reminds me a bit of the guy from Europe of Final Countdown fame).I love the contrast between the quick,punchy verses and the anthemic chorus- Lauri has quite a plaintive edge to his voice when he's in full flow I think,which often gives a new dimension to his songs.

This isn't the first time TR have done an I'm-over-you song- in lyrical terms,this new one is quite similar to Since You've Been Gone,which was only a B side (to First Day of My Life),but is one of my favourite TR songs all the same.If you listen to it,you might see what I meant in the paragraph above...

Living in a World Without You also reminds me quite a bit of Chill (the second single from 4th album Into),with the fast verses and sweeping chorus.There's a more complex bridge in LIAWWY,but on the whole,I think they're quite similar.I must post the video,it's one of their better ones- filmed on tour in Scandinavia,and back in the day when blond hair suited Lauri...



I'm quite excited to hear more of this new album anyway,although given the pretty rubbish quality of CD shops in Kiel,I'm going to have to travel a bit to find it.

Expect more about Finland's best musical export ever quite soon- I've experienced a bit of a Rasmus Renaissance in the last few months :)

A note about music in Germany

On Thursday morning I found myself stuck on an Autobahn somewhere between Kiel and Husum.We were literally stuck in the same place for a good 25 minutes.It was all overcast and horrible,and all there was to do was watch the cows in the field to the right of us mating.And to make it all worse,the Lighthouse Family were on the radio.It was one of the most grim moments of my life.

Now back in the day about 5 years ago,I used to love listening to NDR2 online.But now it's my local station,I try to avoid it at all costs.It took 2 hours to get to Husum,and in that time I heard one German song.Quite a new one admittedly,and I quite like it.But Die Ärzte excepted,what they played was either a)at least 20 years out of date or b) Coldplay.And it's not just NDR either- it seems everything I hear everywhere I go is awful.If I hear Coldplay or Gabriella Cilmi one more time,I may just have to get the next flight home.

I'm just starting to despair a little bit- there are some great current German bands and singers: Revolverheld,Karpatenhund,Philipp Poisel...Even Tokio Hotel have their moments I suppose.So NDR- ditch the 80s power ballads and play them!

You can play this piece of brilliance too if you like...



Oh,and by the way- what the bloody hell is going on with Sitemeter these days?My computer can't cope with the new,pointless version apparantly so I'm going to have to look around for an alternative.I'm so sick of websites making ridiculous new changes when there was absolutely nothing wrong with the original version!Grr!

No news week

Been far too busy this week to hunt for any new music or music news- but I did come across this,and am very excited about the prospect.But as Keira rightly pointed out- would there be room for any music what with all his inevitable demands and costume changes?Still,all we need now is for someone just as brilliant to actually sing for Russia.Dima B won't do it again,Dima K doesn't want to do it this year,and Sergey doesn't even like Eurovision.So you know what that means...For God's sake Russia,force Chelsi to do it!

I'm slowly getting closure,I guess it's really over

It's only been a week,but being here has had 2 noticeable effects on me: a) I think in a weird mix of German and English a lot of the time and b) Something weird's happening with my taste in music.I mentioned Karpatenhund last time (still loving Zusammen Verschwinden),and now there's this...



Daughtry are American (I normally hate American music) and there's far too much guitar for my normal liking.But I heard Over You this afternoon whilst shopping for tat in Wicky,a tat shop on Holstenstrasse,and thought "wow what an amazingly well-written,catchy chorus" (or rather in my current brain state- something like "Dieses Lied ist so catchy and well geschrieben,oder?").Then again I might have just been overexcited about hearing something other than sodding Coldplay for once...

Pandemonium...

...is what BWO are releasing in Britain.How exciting!Apparantly the next single from it will be Will My Arms Be Strong Enough.Not one of the best songs I don't think.If Lay Your Love On Me,which is an absolutely brilliant song,only got to No.69, I doubt WMABSE will get any higher in the charts.
Anyway,let's watch the fabulous Bells of Freedom- the first song off of Pandemonium.Is it just me,or does Martin look particularly cute in this video?



I love the Swedes.If only Queer Idol was a real programme...

I want you to miss me before you forget me

My one and only lovely German friend has been practically my only source of entertainment and new music since I've been here,despite being a whole 80km away.Now normally the songs he sends me are a bit hit and miss,but this one is einfach toll!.Karpatenhund are from Köln and by rights I shouldn't really like them seeing as they are a) a bit indie and b) fronted by a girl.I'm loving Zusammen Verschwinden (Disappear Together) though- it's funky,it's catchy and I love the lyrics,both in terms of content and rhymes...