Ellie Goulding is about to re-release her debut longplayer, "Lights", with seven additional tracks. The expanded elpee, re-titled "Bright Lights", will be promoted by a new single, a cover of Elton John's first hit, "Your Song". Here's the full tracklisting for the album.
"Bright Lights"
1. Guns And Horses 2. Starry Eyed 3. This Love (Will Be Your Downfall) 4. Under The Sheets 5. The Writer 6. Every Time You Go 7. Wish I Stayed 8. Your Biggest Mistake 9. I'll Hold My Breath 10. Salt Skin 11. Lights 12. Human 13. Little Dreams 14. Home 15. Animal 16. Believe Me 17. Your Song
And Ms. Goulding decided to lense a video for the new single. It looks very earthy crunchy. Fields, sunshine, flowing locks of golden hair. It's as if she might turn to the camera at any moment and share her favorite brand of shampoo with us, her close, personal friends.
Ellie is pulling a Fyfe, the new term which refers to covering a classic song and sticking it in a television commercial. All of this nonsense started earlier this year when they used Fyfe Dangerfield's rendition of Billy Joel's "She's Always A Woman". So, why not plunder a signature tune from another ivory tinkling singer/songwriter?
Here's the John Lewis advert with Ellie's warbling of "Your Song" placed loving over the top of it.
Heartwarming. N'est-ce pas, mes chattons? Not sure what this is going to do for her career. But she will certainly benefit from a the higher profile it will give her. Can't say it will translate into more success for her beyond that.
My cynical side knows it's an industry cash in. My practical side knows Ellie needs to do something like this in order to "build her brand". We shall wait and see what happens. This pop malarkey is a funny game.
Marina And The Diamonds are gunning for five singles from their/her debut album, "The Family Jewels", as "Shampaign" has been marked for the plucking.
It has already started making it's way onto playlists across Europe. That's dedication, kittens! Refreshing to see in these dismal days of the music "biz".
It's amazing considering Lady Marina has only managed one top 20 hit with "Hollywood". "Shampaign" could have easily been the first single.
IMHO, "Mowgli's Road" was thrown away as a teaser single much in the way "Under The Sheets" was for Ellie Goulding. Those songs clearly outshine much of the rest of the material on their respective longplayers. That's really saying something since both elpees are full of potential singles.
It remains to be seen if Marina's latest will improve upon the dizzying heights of the #38 placing reached by previous single, "Oh No!".
Let the "Shampaign" campaign begin! Oh, the genius of it.
This week, Ellie Goulding releases "The Writer", the third single from her current longplayer, "Lights".
It's lush! The song really shows her depth as a songwriter. One of the highlights from her debut longplayer. As far as I'm concerned, they pissed away the best track from her elpee as a "buzz" track. "Under The Sheets" should've been the centerpiece of the promotional campaign. Zutalors!
"Lights" is another in a long line of recent albums that just haven't stuck with the public. It's a worrying trend. This topic has come up among numerous friends and acquaintances in the musoratti, lately. Is it the economy? Too many things to spend leisure cash on other forms of entertainment? Is the music "biz" so effed up that they don't have a handle on the promotion of music in the new paradigm? Are the labels just staffed with clueless interns? Is "everybody" downloading their music illegally? All of the above? Questions for the ages, kittens.
Anyway, the lovely lass has lensed a video for her current single. Let's take a peek.
One question... What's with all the lip gloss? Ellie looks like she's been eating a pork chop. Srsly, gurl! Tone that shizzy down. This ain't the 80s, babe. Or is it?
There's a lot riding on the release of "Lights", the debut longplayer from fresh-faced, Brit warbler, Ellie Goulding. It's possibly one of the best pop albums of the year if one takes into account all the tracks that have been floating about over the last twelve months.
Some have made the cut. Others, like "Fighter Plane", the b-side of the limited edition 7" single of "Under The Sheets" released on the Neon Gold label, have been kicked to the curb for the time being.
The sleeve for "Lights" is a bit obvious, IMHO. Lovely photo. Nicely retouched. Very stylized. It reminds me of a fashion ad.
Here's the full, official tracklisting.
1. Guns And Horses 2. Starry Eyed 3. This Love (Will Be Your Downfall) 4. Under The Sheets 5. The Writer 6. Every Time You Go 7. Wish I Stayed 8. Your Biggest Mistake 9. I'll Hold My Breath 10. Salt Skin
By now, we're used to different bonus tracks across various, online, digital storefronts. So far, only the song, "Lights", has been revealed as an extra goody if you purchase the full length album on iTunes. Fire up the torrents!
And here's the complementary sleeve for lead single, "Starry Eyed". Another light show, another page from a swanky, ski wear fashion catalog. I sense a little photo slimming, too. It's very Paula Abdul circa "Promise Of A New Day". Does the label think she's a little too thick in the waistline for the general public? I think she's a natural beauty who doesn't really need that kind of retouching.
The physical CD single for "Starry Eyed" will feature three versions of the song including the epic Russ Chimes remix. Smart move!
The frigid climes of January. The barren wasteland of winter is the perfect metaphor for the sparse release schedule between the run up to Christmas and the new year releases that start showing up in the beginning of February. It's also the time when people start ramping up expectations for new artists and bands.
This year's top tingle is Ellie Goulding. She is the one to watch. She's currently shooting the music video for her forthcoming single, "Starry Eyed", a gorgeous, lushy produced, electronic number. So here is the lovely lass with an update from the secret location where she is lensing the clip.
Her laugh is incredibly infectious. You really get the sense that she's having a wonderful time throughout the entire process as she's being heralded as the "next big thing" and "savior of the music biz".
However, I can't help but think "Under The Sheets" is a stronger song to lead with the "campaign" for "Lights", her debut longplayer. An early listen to "This Love (Will Be Your Downfall)", which seems to have a gloriously towering and ebullient chorus, feels like it might have been a better start, as well. Maybe the label is going for the more muso, less immediate song first in order to avoid any sense of Ellie coming across twee.
So far, the material I've heard has all the makings of a stunning launch into the pop stratosphere. There is something slightly folky about the songs but they've been dressed up in a bright, sparkly jumper which give the tunes their pop sheen.
Hopefully, the hype won't suffocate the artist or the album. In these days of the 24/7 news cycle, it's often impossible to jump on or off the treadmill without damaging consequences. It's far too easy to have interest in a new artist peak as their album hits the streets. The column inches and blog entries dedicated to Paloma Faith's debut nearly dried up the moment the album was released. The entire campaign for Frankmusik's major label debut is a textbook example of blowing one's wad too soon. People move on more quickly these days.
Worlds collide and inspire words. In these days of blogging, that's how the keystrokes commence from time to time. I will have bits and bobs strewn across my desk. I want to express my excitement for them. Then time marches on, yellow stickies left like withering flowers on the vine.
Then a bolt from the blue. Sometimes the obvious ties them all together. A forest for the trees moment brought into sharp clarity. Often, many bloggers will write about the same thing. Some want the scoop. Others are happy to show their adulation. It's when these two camps meet that the desire to write about a topic either goes cold on me or it fires me up. Thankfully, the latter has happened.
Over the last year or so, Neon Gold, an independent label based in NYC, has been quietly releasing little packets of joy in the shape of pop infused, vinyl nuggets. Last night, I had a discussion with Stephen Sears who writes XO's Middle Eight and has waxed enthusiastcally about Neon Gold on numerous occasions. We enjoyed a gorgeous cup of hot chocolate at Le Pain Quotidien in DC and, as usual, solved the myriad problems that continue to cripple the beleaguered music biz. But our chat about Neon Gold pushed me further to lay praise on them from my corner of the blogosphere.
At the end of the day, it really comes down to the music. Something that sticks to the ribs. A solid story. Building a following. Acts did it in the 80s with MTV. Now, with the advent of world made smaller by the information superhighway and music made available fresh out of the oven without the advent of a middle man, who would have thought a small, independent label releasing tunes on a decidedly old school configuration, could be the breeding ground for promising, new talent?
Neon Gold has done the near impossible. And I realized they are responsible for three of my favorite singles of the year. I haven't had the chance to write about them until now, especially with so much attention paid to them recently. As I mentioned at the launch of my blog, I'm not jumping on bandwagons. I don't pretend to be fashionable. I write about music I like. Sometimes that music overlaps with popular opinion. In turn, I have brought my fave Neon Gold discoveries to other like minded musos. Just like the classic shampoo ad, I've told two friends.....
First up is Marina And The Diamonds. Her second Neon Gold single, "Mowgli's Road", replete with shades of Siouxsie And The Banshees and Kate Bush, is far and away her breakthrough track. A quirky, galloping, piano driven number which is much different from the lush balladry of her first single, "I Am Not A Robot".
And if my ears do not deceive me, I think Marina has been listening to Madness. Give "It Must Be Love", "Embarrassment" and "Ghost Train" a spin and see if you hear what I do.
Neon Gold have sold out of the original, vinyl edition of the single and Marina has been signed to Atlantic which take over promotion of it and her career from this point forward. She's destined for a bountiful new year when her debut album, "Family Jewels", is unveiled in February. By the way, Marina And The Diamonds is a "her" not a "them" as it is the stage name of Welsh songstress Marina Diamandis and not a group of musicians. Just thought I'd clear that up for you.
Next up is a little earworm by Ellie Goulding called "Under The Sheets". Again, "Hounds Of Love" era Kate Bush are the order of the day blended with splashes of Dubstar and the charming tones of KirstyMacColl. This one has been on constant repeat on my iPod.
Ellie has a folky sound to her voice and is paired with a nearly epic, electronic backdrop which is quite unlike anything else out there at the moment. Although she sits comfortable on the bench beside La Roux and Little Boots, she has a richer and more organic sound than the current crop of electronic ladies.
After one single with Neon Gold, Ellie has been picked up by Polydor and is currently putting the finishing touches on her debut longplayer with the deft hand of producer, Starsmith. She has also recorded one song with hip fave, Frankmusik, who is toiling away in the studio with Dallas Austin on his next album.
My first blush or romance with Neon Gold was the cinematic electronic wash of The Sound Of Arrows, the Swedish duo of Stefan Storm and OskarGullstrand, whose single, "Into The Clouds", was brought to my attention through my repeated visits to Popjustice, where they peel off all the pop that's fit to print.
Their widescreen, 80s, pop production brings to mind everything from pulsating drive of New Order to the plaintive vocals of PSB's Neil Tennant with a sprinkling of Saint Etienne's more rhythm driven moments and the European soundscapes of Ultravox. I can't help feel that "In The Clouds" has a faint whiff of Limahl's "Never Ending Story".
As long as Neon Gold uphold their manifesto of delivering quality music with beautiful artwork by artists that have the potential to breakthrough to a broader audience while maintaining an air of individuality and creating a close coterie of fans, music will continue to thrive in these dark days of a crumbling business in desperate need of resuscitation and rebirth.
Now, after a thick, frothy fingerbowl of hot chocolate and some inspired, pop chat, I can removed three, tattered, yellow stickies from my desk.
Music lover. Songwriter. Producer. DJ. Director. Record collector. Marketing maven. Brand builder. Strategic planner. Web warrior. Entrepreneur. International man of mystery.
