Euro Music Talk

Time flew by. I have survived MTV Europe Awards 2007 that happened today at Olympiahalle in Munich Germany. It didn’t hurt. But I don’t recognise the “new sound of Europe” in Estonia’s The Bedwetters. They competed against Turkey’s Yakup, my favourite bet, and Romania’s Firma.

They are young. But they lack innovation. The saving grace might be that their sound don’t differ from the same bands crowding the radio stations today craving for the fans who favour this kind of sound.

“Everything is possible when you believe in yourself!” Shouted their lead singer Joosep Järvesaar as he and his group finished performing their first single “A Dramatic Letter to Conscience.” It was dramatic indeed complete with his stunning grimaces amidst the jubilating audience. The unsigned Bedwetters won a local band contest this year and was awarded to film their own video. They are scheduled to release their debut album in 2008. The band describes their musical influence from pop to rock.

So who are the winners and the losers? Who brought home the stinky cheese and the MTV trophy?

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Eros Ramazzotti is back.

Armed with a new double album titled “e2,” the Italo rock singer highlights his duet with Latin singer Ricky Martin. The album, which could be a math equation, stands for Eros’ name and the number 2 meaning the double album. The singer just turned 44 yesterday. “Non siamo soli” (We Are Not Alone) also serves as the first single.

The music video might portray lots of gyrating women and Latin American singer Ricky swinging his butt but this isn’t about love and seduction. It is actually a song about global awareness and how to save what’s left of it. Apart from its original Italian version, a Spanish version is also released for the benefit of the singers’ Spanish-speaking audience. Eros has also cultivated fandom on the other side of the Atlantic.

“I thought about global problems. Things like how to make the world a better place,” he told Woman, a Viennese women’s magazine, early this month.

“And if you have a child you tend to worry about the future.” He continued.

This is not the first time he collaborated with other musicians. A year ago he and Anastacia took the European charts by storm with the song “I Belong to You (Il Ritmo Della Passione).” It was part of Anastacia’s greatest hits, “Pieces of Dream.” The two played lovers on the video but that was it.

The singer, who was born in Rome, Italy, whose fans are mostly women hasn’t hooked up with anyone after the singer’s painful marriage.

He used to be married with Swiss-born model/actress/singer Michelle Hunziker, 30, from 1998 to 2002. They have an 11-year-old daughter Aurora.

The fairy-tale union ended in 2002 and legal battles have followed.

His fans might welcome the idea of a single Eros but the singer is playing safe at this moment.

“I am not going out with anyone, because it’s difficult… There are many opportunities but these are very superficial ones. Love is so irrational and it’s not so easy (to start all over again) after you had given everything to a relationship.”

He celebrates his 20-year career in the music business.

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Eros Ramazzotti, Ricky Martin, Anastacia, Michelle Hunziker

The beer-luvers have said it all and gone home. The Oktoberfest 2007 unfolded yesterday but it set brand-new records and amusing surprises.

This year, Munich in Germany might have received less visitors but my, they consumed more liters of beer!

Of all the 6,2 millions of visitors, 300.000 didn’t show up compared to 2006. Nevertheless the beer consumption was more than everybody expected.

No wonder the fair stall owners were satisfied: the people were thirsty.

German-speaking local musical heroes of course dominated the music/entertainment scene like the Austrian folk rapper DJ Ötzi, whose catchy “Hey Baby” became No. 1 in Britain and Australia years ago. His song “Ein Stern der Deinen Namen trägt” (A star that your name carries) landed No. 1 before “Lasso-Song” from Olaf Henning.

But the big surprise went to newcomers Kaiser Chiefs. The English rock band from Leeds whose hit “Ruby” off their second album “Yours Truly, Angry Mob” was clearly the drunken crowd’s favourite.

Kaiser Chiefs, you have arrived!

Hear your song being played on German TV, celebrated at the most famous Bacchanalia in the face of the planet Earth.

A short backgrounder, the original Oktoberfest is a three-week festival held each year in Bavaria, Munich, starting from September till October.

It first happened in the year of 1810 in honor of the Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig’s (Ludwig I) marriage to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. It began on October 12, 1810 and ended on October 17th with a horse race. In the following years, the celebrations were repeated and, later, the festival was prolonged and moved forward into September.

To accommodate Germany’s reunification in 1989 the schedule was modified so it will go on or touch the October 3rd (German Unity Day).

The festival is held on an area called the Theresienwiese (Wiese being meadows in German and Theresia is either Theresa or Therese). The Germans call it “d’ Wiesn” for short. Beer plays a central role in the fair, with every festival beginning with a keg of beer tapped by the mayor of Munich who declares “O’zapft is!” (Bavarian: “It’s tapped!”).

According to the facts and figures, only local Bavarian breweries are allowed to serve this beer in a Bierzelt, a beer tent which is large enough for thousands.

Not only they consume beer but also the visitors consume large quantities of food, such as sausage (Wurst), hendl (chicken), käsespätzle (cheese noodles), and sauerkraut, along with such Bavarian delicacies as roast ox tails and pretzel.

The average visitors might not wear the traditional clothing but men and women of prominence and other enthusiasts either wear a lederhosen (for the males) or Dirndl (for the women). Paris Hilton showed up in 2006 adorning her own rendition of golden modern Dirndl while happily proclaiming that she loves German beer in front of the amused crowd.

This year the Bavarian mayor Christian Ude said that everything was in order. Even the Red Cross and the police reported that the fair was mainly positive this year. It didn’t leave huge accidents but minor ones. Around 7.363 visitors had to be treated, 504 cases lesser than last year. Though last Saturday, the police had to interfere when at least 100 people were arrested.

Other cities around the world also hold their own Oktoberfest. Next year, it will happen again on September 20 till October 5.

To know more about the fair and the region of Munich, check this out.

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Oktoberfest, Kaiser Chiefs, Ruby, DJ Ötzi, Christian Ude, Paris Hilton, dirndl, lederhosen, Olaf Henning

I have sworn off MTV a long time ago. I don’t watch it now for the sake of watching it. It started as a harbinger that mutated itself into one of the reasons you’ve hated television.

Unlike when I was 12 where my day wasn’t complete without having to tune it to MTV. Well, it has proved to be a wise decision.

After its successful reception from the Europeans it launched in 1994 an award show that should be relegated to Europeans. Well, judging by the sound of it. Instead what happened is just another award-giving body to promote American mainstream music. The regional categories wherein several European musicians are nominated seemed to be an afterthought.

Surprisingly I am not the only one who has this opinion.

This year’s Europe Music Awards, which will happen on November 1 at the Olympiahalle in Munich, Germany, is another dismal offering of the video channel not to showcase or celebrate what is truly happening in the European music scene.

Not because the emcee is an American. But the only Central European acts that have managed to be admitted to major categories are the German teenager boys from Tokio Hotel for Best Inter Act and the French electronic duo Justice while the rest are Americans and a few UK acts.

Justice is well-known for its reworking of Simian’s “Never Be Alone.”

Maybe, it is wrong to ask MTV for more substance. In the first place, they’ve been known not to supply the audience with an alternative.

For the complete list, check out Wikipedia.

MTV Europe Music Awards 2007, Tokio Hotel, Justice, Simian

Austropop should live on. But in the eyes of the Austrian radios, there’s not much to offer so what’s the big deal?

More and more imported music is in and it comes from the United States.

Statistics show that Austrian musicians don’t get enough airplay in their own country in spite of the many “cultural contracts” they have from the Austrian main broadcasting company, the ORF, which pretty owns many TV and radio stations here.

The ORF works like a monopoly until it loosened up its grip a few years ago. But despite the many attempts of private individuals to establish their own stations, ORF still gets the higher ratings and audience number. That’s why it makes sense that many local musicians are looking up to ORF to promote their work.

ORF’s pop radio station Ö3 in particular plays less and less Austropoppers. Compared to its sister station, the indie/alternative FM4, still regularly promotes domestic musicians or German-speaking bands/musicians. Still, the news isn’t flowery.

And no, present darling Christina Stürmer can’t save it too.

While the portion of Austropop amounted to 1997 still 23.3 per cent, the Austrian ratio sank to .06 to 14.3 per cent … As of 2005 and 2006 the portion of Austropop sank from 6.2 per cent to 4,97 per cent.

“An obvious discrimination,” said the trade unionist and musician Peter Paul Skrepek.

Not only the the musicians complain of the radios it is rare that their songs used as jingles or background music. One politician from Graz suggested that all radio stations should allot 40 per cent of the airplay to the local artists.

Perhaps the lounge pop Saint Privat is the exemption. A couple of the band’s singles are used as musical accompaniment–from Austrian women’s magazine to coffee.

The band’s music appeals to non-Austrians as well. And no, they don’t sing a lot of times in English. In fact, singer Valerie Sadjik croons often in French. But they have style and they don’t use the tied-and-tried formula unlike other musicians who refuse to explore beyond their limits.

Sample “Tous les Jours” from Saint Privat.

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Saint Privat, Austropop, Christina Stürmer, Valerie Sadjik, ORF

As of September 27th, six Europeans occupied slots from the European Top 10 ranking. James Blunt, as we all know, is the crooner behind one of the most unnerving singles of the 21st century, “You’re Beautiful.” The British singer-songwriter is back with a new album called “All the Lost Souls.” Prepare to be annoyed! Big-haired Amy Winehouse is still kicking despite garnering bad news and her downward spiral.
Spanish-French Manu Chao has come up with his fourth album “La Radiolina.” For some reasons, a posthumous album, “Pavarotti Forever,” is released to pay tribute to Luciano Pavarotti, who died last month due to cancer. It contains the best of his performances that is showcased in one album–popular opera arias and duets, sacred songs, and Neapolitan favourites.” It will be released only on October 9 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.com.
The most successful Finnish love metal band HIM (or His Infernal Majesty) followed up “Dark Light” with “Venus Doom.” Newcomer Mika, of Syrian-Lebanese decent, has feel-good singles “Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)” and “Relax, Take It Easy” that are steadily climbing up the charts.

The rest of the albums below…

1. James Blunt “All The Lost Souls” - Atlantic/Custard
2. Mark Knopfler “Kill To Get Crimson” - Mercury
3. 50 Cent “Curtis” - Aftermath/G-Unit/Interscope
4. Amy Winehouse “Back To Black” - Island
5. Manu Chao “La Radiolina” - Because
6. Kanye “West Graduation” - Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam
7. HIM “Venus Doom” - Sire
8. Luciano Pavarotti “Pavarotti Forever” - Universal
9. Mika “Life In Cartoon Motion” - Casablanca/Island (Brits, Euro)
10. Rihanna “Good Girl Gone Bad” - SRP/Def Jam

A couple of interesting news in 451 Press:

Indie Chatter shares the artists who will accompany you when the world gets too nasty

It’s National Popcorn Poppin’ Month via Current Events

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European top 10 albums, James Blunt, HIM, Mika, Amy Winehouse, Luciano Pavarotti, Manu Chao

Usually music festivals happen during summer but not so often. If you happen to be somewhere between Vienna, Austria and Reykjavík, Iceland, starting from this month till the middle of October you might want to check out Kulttour Rocks Vienna and Iceland Airwaves 2007.

Kulttour features Austria’s shooting pop/rock star Christina Stürmer, who is the current darling of Austropop, will be there along with Germany’s Nevada Pop and Sorgente. Sugababes from United Kingdom is the highlight tonight at 5:30 p.m.

While Iceland Airwaves 2007 takes place starting October 17 every year till the 21st. GusGus will be one of the featured bands.

Kulttour, Iceland Airwaves, Sugababes, Christina Stürmer, Sorgente, Nevada Pop, GusGus

Ahhh, to be young and to have lots of fans.

For more than two years, the kids of Tokio Hotel are driving every female teenager and prepubescent girls in Europe on fire. I cannot say I don’t like them. But I admire their ability to to play music and their determination to reach the zenith of fame.

Luck? Talent? The band, which comprises of identical twins Bill (vocals) and Tom Kaulitz (lead guitars), George Listing (bass) and Gustav Shäfer (drums), is steadily climbing on top of the charts and garnering more fan base.

So far, they released three albums in German and one album in English (”Scream”) and has won several awards notably in Germany. Everyone expects them to get awards in the upcoming MTV Europe Awards.

The German rock boy band is from the urban city of Magdeburg, somewhere on the eastern part of the country. They were initially named Devilish in 2001 but changed it to Tokio Hotel their new manager. The boys said to have loved Tokio, the German version of the Japanese capital, and have stayed for several times in a hotel during touring. Hence, Tokio Hotel.

The first time I saw a clip of their first single, “Durch den Monsun” (Monsoon), I was pretty sure that the vocalist was a female. I learned later that the androgynous Gothic-looking singer was a boy. Bill is the most popular member of the group. And lately, he was the subject of a, shall we say, nasty rumour.

There’s nothing wrong with being a homosexual. But if many female adoring fans are ready to give their body to Bill, it would be a mistake to come out of the closet at this stage. Supposedly that was the thought of his band’s record label. The French gossip magazine, Voici, the equivalent of Star, reported that on September 1 Bill wrote a blog entry after a series of heavy partying on the night of his 18th birthday that he likes boys and he would be in league of the Greek philosophers Aristotle, Plato and Socrates.

Fans in every corner of Europe regarded this as trash and so speculations easily vanish. Still, in a world of black and white, it would be nice if Bill is straight and his appearance is to taunt the establishment, which by the way likes him very much.

The band launched its first English album in United Kingdom titled “Scream” in June. And if it would be successful, get ready United States for Tokio Hotel.

Tokio Hotel, Bill Kaulitz, gay, schwul

I salute you for coming here and taking a look at my new venture to discuss about what’s happening in the other side of Atlantic. This is where you get your other Old Europe’s fix and the New Europe as well.

That means you will find me mentioning some German bands, blabbering about a French lyric or two or even ranting some fresh new band from the east. Europe is not only haven for classical music, but a host of new ideas.

You hear the trendy bands from the United Kingdom that shaping the map of music scene. But it is seldom you find an exotic band from Europe break through in the Billboard’s Top 40.

So prepare yourself. This will take a long bumpy yet (hopefully) informative and entertaining ride. For you and for me…