Hva' Har Du Pakket Ind? by DiskoFil-A hilarious Danish Cover of Infernal's From Paris To Berlin that is btter than the original. Who'd have thought it! DiskoFil are a pop outfit that follows the bible of Deuce, Steps and Six. This is a good thing. They actually outdress/outcamp Scissor Sisters & The Army Of Lovers which you might of thought was actually impossible. But not for this bunch of Danish popstars. Check out the shoes! See the video of their cover of Divines You Think Your A Man here.
I Wanna Go Back by S.O.A.P-In this months Attitude BabyDaddy stipulates that he loves disco that that is "always melancholy". Furthermore he reveals that a classic song should be "about a longing for something" and I feel I Wanna Go Back fills those requirements for its message of is quite heartbreaking. However the melody, while quite dramatic, is positive so the singer must have a happy ending. Think Steps One For Sorrow or Last Thing On My Mind.
Show Your Love by Me&My-Like Soap, Me&My consisted of sisters and produced some great poptastic albums. Show Your Love sounds like a cross between Deuce and Spice Girls. This band are huge in Japan and paved the way for Aqua & My&My's break out hit Dub-I-Dub offen gets confused with Aqua. Show Your Love comes from their self-titled debut album. Btw...they were originally called SuperSister and released a number of hit albums in Denmark during the 1990's. Thankfully they are preparing to release their 4th album soonish. Don't they look ultra cute with their bunny ears?
So Many Men by Me&My-A stunning cover of the gay classic by Miquel Brown. This version reminds me of Britney's Breathe On Me with a little hint of that rift from Kylie's Confide In Me. It came from their second album, also titled So Many Men, released only in Japan. As you will see their promo video for this was totally sexual with lots of male bottoms, rubbing and flesh. See the video here(I warn you, you might need a shower afterwards)
Golden Sun by Asle-Okay this a must if your going to Ibeefah this summer. Its been a huge toon for ages in all the rather sharp clubs in London and is making waves in the US now. Threatens to be this years Call On Me when it gets yet another re-release.
MTV by Noir-This is absolutely stunning. Its all about MTV and everything wrong about pop music. Mentions Kelly Osbourne, the Justin/Janet fiasco and retains some brilliant guitar disco electro stanzas I've not heard since the 1980s. Verges on the side of Dance but makes me go all fruity yet political which is very rare for a pop song. Again another Danish song that is making waves in the US.
One Night In Bangkok by C21. The three boys formed in 1998 & are huge in Asia. Not only are they the biggest Danish boyband but they can now claim to be the biggest band from Denmark. Not heard of them? Thats because they havent bothered with the UK. This song was originally banned in Thailand but in 2003 it became one of the largest selling songs ever released there. I like it because it is the only song in history to mention the geographical areas of Iceland with Hastings.
Average Joe by Y Not-This is so cute. Includes the classic lyric "She's playing hard to get like her shit doesnt stink". Think Amy Diamond meets Eminem. Y-Not has had recent success in the US billboard charts and i think, as the picture below shows, his body helps a bit. The video for this is ultra sweet & based around the movie-musical Grease if it was set in green Southern Ireland. See the video here. I secretly wish Justin Timberlake had gone in this direction...
Mine Øjne De Skal Se by Lis Sorenson. Lis is the Danish Carola. This has one of the best chorus ever invented but you'll have to wait for it. Very 1980's. Very fabulous. Very Xenomania/Girls Aloud/Their first album. Has some of the most sublime yet subtle keyboards and electric strings ever fomented on a pop song.
Den Jeg Elsker, Elsker Jeg by Hanna-This is a poptastic cover but still it did really well in the clubs as well as the Danish Pop charts. Lovers of PurePop could like this. Its very bubblegum and we at DontStopThePop love it.
Holiday by S.O.A.P-Not included on any of their albums, S.O.A.P released this for no apparent reason but it manages to er actually outshine the original. Something I thought was scientifically impossible but the Danish sisters actually make sure you forget about Madonna and remember only them. This is a bit rare so enjoy.
Its Over by Tiggy-You might this think is some typical Europop trash-splash but it quickly riddles out of its stereotypical path & turns into something far more emotional. Dark even. Tiggy, aka Charlotte Vigil, released her first album FairyTales in 1997 which is where Its Over comes from. She released another album-pictured-two years later which became a huge hit in Japan that sounds somewhat like a cross between the Vengaboys and September.
Some of our Favourite Danish Acts Remembered just in case you missed them:
WordPlay by Malou-A summer playlist must. You can actually get their albums on the Itunes music store if your from the UK.
Impossible by Anna David-Could be sung by Carola or Lena or Shirley. Very Eurovision.
PopStar(single mix) by Jon-Excellent mix of Popstar.
From Sweden to Denmark
A time ago DontStopthePop covered music from lands such as India, Ghana and Sweden. But for the past few months its documentated pop music originating from Denmark & this exploration has come to its natural end. We've never resorted to Eurovision winners nor have we gone for Aqua. We havent even covered huge credible Danish acts like Junior Senior or SafriDuo but we highly recommend their poptastic albums which you can buy at places like Amazon & CdOn.
Instead, I hope we've illustrated that Danskpop has produced some of the best music that Europe has had to offer in recent years. From Anna David, Malou, Infernal, Mish Mash, Jon, S.O.A.P, Christine Milton & Swan Lee you could argue that the Danish have quite aurally eclipsed their mighty Swedish neighbours at the music thing. The two countries have always been rivals when it comes to music and with ABBA it seems on a highly superficial level Sweden always came out smelling of roses. But by 2000 something happened, Danish acts were absolutely everywhere & the win of Eurovision by Denmark reflected the change.
However chart success in international seas does not essentially equate to quality and Sweden still retains that specific crown. Danish pop musicians are, with the exception of the highly creative Malou, great at tracing international current trends and replicating mainly Anglo-American sounds with amazing success. Theres is a skill of absorption of strands of pop music trope and knitting these together to produce commercially viable sounds that radio will adore rather than disown.
If the Danes are great at pop amelioration Swedish musicians are pop innovators and acts such as Robyn, TheKnife, Arash, Christian Falk, Stonebridge, Velvet and PayTV all prove that point. Whether each of those Swedish pop acts will ever achieve the chart history of Aqua, Camille(in the US) and recently Infernal is unlikely. But with a pending release of Robyn in the UK the tide might change & her return to international markets wets us all with anticipation. For now though if you see an Scandanavian act in your domestic charts it will most likely be from Denmark & its always good to celebrate that fact.
One should conclude that despite their differences-which if you look through their history is quite bloody-both Denmark and Sweden have produced some of the best pop music of the past twenty years. It shapes our trends (see Malou), gives us British a moment of disco relief (see Carola or Caracola) & saves the careers of waning pop stars (see Jamelia and her cover of Superstar). Have a look at Christine Miltons video of Superstar which sees her spinning around on a record player, in a hoodie AND weird Kylie-esq choreography all of which makes Christine the legend she is today.
This journey has quite been literally to expose the sublime dialectic of music success and artistic creativity juxtaposed in the countries of Sweden and Denmark that actually works. But, more significantly to celebrate Denmarks huge contribution to pop world. There is no getting around the fact that these two countries are at the forefront of all things pop and we're so thankful to their assorted record companies, producers, artists, songwriters and radio stations for not giving up on poptastic pop tunes no matter how electro or bubblegum they be.
Music selection by Ella. Article by Robpop.
THE DANSKPOP CLIMAX!!!!! HAD YOUR MONDAY DISKOFIL?
MISH MASH The Disco Routine-Demo
If Kylie did a duet with the Scissor Sisters you'd get The Disco Routine...
I've had 2 hours sleep and am about to go to my local for a bloody mary and a good fry-up but before that I thought I'd update ya'll.
Last night, while dancing round my handbag at some trashpalace in a East London scumlounge filled with chavtastic poppets high on Tina and men who like disco I was confronted with hugs by an ex of my brother who was a total fashion queen back in Copenhagen-and thus a horrible bitch-but last night was a beautiful vision of a man. And thus...
What became my usual friday funk down at the local suddenly evolved into an bender that office girls like me only do when under the influence of gak or some hot fuck promised by the time the Wham record gets played. But, alas, I was a good girl and with no Wham I bounced off of the energies of circles of people I'd share my inner most secrets and call forever friends but never see ever again.
So, anyways I met this guy from a new band. But this nothing special really when yours truly lives in Hoxton where every other body seems to be a troubled artist whose read too much of those damn French philosophers or in a band where the unification of tight jeans and cocaine is believed to be the height of fashion. Which it isnt, trust me...
So this guy knew a guy who knew a girl who knows a drag queen who knows a Danish band called Mish Mash. I, then in my wonderful drunk self, was taken to this guys place which had tons of interesting cds including this one which I put in my bag and begun singing I Eat Cannibals by the girlband Toto Cuelo as my excuse to leave. Obviously...
And here is Mash Mash's EXCELLENT pop saturday serenade entitled The Disco Routine. Not only does it have a great name but licks all of the juice produced by Kylie's Can't Get You Out Of My Head.
Words: Kylie, Everything I Know, Scissor Sisters, I Feel Love, Mirrorball, The Kinks, London circa 1970's, Germany circa 1980s, East London, Ubercool, Demo's, beautiful people
In other news I have a bonus that I intend spending on a holiday to the Maldives some time later today. Also, please support the girls and boys, including some of my friends, at Crusaids Walk for Life thingy at Hyde Park tomorrow. Come, give them some money and have a dance at the shebang afterwards around 7. Previous walkees have been myself, Dannii Minogue and Sir Ian McKellen. I would do it this year but I got an issue with my knee-caps.
As were on the subject of Dannii Minogue its ever so nice to see that s/he's finally done something Kylie hasnt done before by having a sex change gone wrong. People I give you Manny Minogue:
Ps: The next update will be the LAST danish act we do under the guise of DontStopthePop's quilt of Danskpop. Sob...
THE CHRISTINE MILTON CELEBRATION POST!
As DSTP!'s celebration of Danish pop music comes to an end we thought it would be tragically flawed if we failed to celebrate the legend of Danish Christine Milton.
Her album Friday was one of THE best pop albums of 2004. Written and produced by the same people behind Robyn's 3rd album Dont Stop The Music, each track contained brilliant whiggle-that-ass sounds with So Addictive, Superstar and Addict all competing for the best pop record of the year award. It also includes a super kitchy+camp cover of If You Leave Me Now which I ABSOLUTELY ADORE! If you take one song from this thread please let it be Addict! Its Kylie, Alexis Strum, Scissor Sisters...its just fabulous!
So much so Superstar was given to Jamelia to save her career and thus preventing Christine Milton using the song in Europe recalling Parlophone's previous freezing out of other Scandanavian acts in favour of their own. Christine & Pandora(of Sweden) certainly deserve, at least, a drink or two on Jamelia and Kylie. But then again thats just the music industry. Maybe one day some other artist will make use of the unreleased Pop! album or even better cover Supersisters Coffee.
So to the music!
So Addictive-Spanish Fly Radio Edit-We adore the original. But I prefer this shoulder shakin' vocal remix purely cos it makes you want to get all dirrty with some boy just back from Ibiza. Its nearly my favourite Christine Milton track if it wasnt for.......
Addict-Our favourite from the album. Think Alexis Strum's unreleased demo album or Kylie's electropop best. A must on any mp3 player. Very electro, very 1980's, very Darren Hayes Popular, and very poptastic!
SuperStar-So you might know the Jamelia version that literally gave the British singer her current career...Check out the original lyrics.
All Night(Back On The Inside)-This is basically Superstar Mark II. In fact its the melody of Superstar just with different lyrics. Loving the slutty "I dont dance like a virgin" and "I'll do it the morning light" declarations.
Whiketywak(I Ain't Coming Back)-The Nightclub Single Mix-Sounds a bit like the mixes of Robyn's first album single's. Includes a very dated rap. Pop music by numbers but included here for your delight.
SuperStar-Metstarr Radio Edit-Disco heaven mix of Superstar. Totally vanilla
Shine On-Extended Version-A great single and a great song. This is the rare extended version. Not anything to do with the Alcazar song. Has some great little beeps. Retro rnb heaven...
Head In the Clouds-This doesnt essentially start off well but evolves into a cute summer luv boy luv girl track. Includes the brilliant lyric "got me all google-eyed".
Buy the album
Words: Kylie, Alexis Strum, Jamelia, covers, popstars, originality, Danishpop, Remee, Ghost
----
BTW: Its very hot in London. We got front row tickets for Kylie next year. We love the new Scissor Sisters single. We love the Caracola album especially Sommernatt. Robert is reading Levianthan by Thomas Hobbs. I am reading We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver. Stevie is gaying it up in Greece and probably too busy in the sand dunes to read.
NELLIE ETTISON What About The Music
If you put together Elize with Dannii Minogue you'll find yourself listening to Nellie Ettison. Nellie Ettison has been listening to Dannii's Neon Nights and taken the Australians pop challenge with great gusto which is rather great considering Minogue gave up on that route favouring club instrumentals over and above her own synth stylings.
Nellie is a huge electropop icon in Denmark and has even worked with the legend that is Bent Fabric and Artificial Funk. The latters collaboration produced Together which has been ripping up the dance charts in the US, UK and Sweden. We can't wait for the Nellie album which should be out in the dying months of summer.
What About the Music fuses Dannii's Neon Nights, Fisherspooner and even has a bit of classic Wham! A must on Danish compilation playlist and great for a disco friday night out with ya girlfriends.
Words: Dannii, Neon Nights, Electro, Star Wars, Fisherspooner, Elize, 1980's, Funk, Chaka!
SOFIE CLAUSEN Suburbia
West End Girls played London last night. Friends who went tell me that it was fun, very silly and camp as tits. But when you put together 2 Swedes & Pet Shop Boys this is to be expected. Anything other would be abnormal. However, when I heard of West End Girls and their reason for being last year or so I recalled the Danish Sofie Clausen who has been doing Pet Shop Boys covers amongst others for some time. In fact, you can thank Sofie for switching on the light bulb in the heads of the West End Girls...
West End Girls copying a copycat?! Who'd have thought it! Moreover, a Swede following in the footsteps of a Dane?! Never! Well here it is! Sofie is the Danish West End Girl...
Now the Sofie "original" is, how do i put this, camp with a Q! Sofie's version somehow manages to take the sheer fabulousness of the Pet Shop Boys classic beyond all normative standards and into a realm of total gayness. For this, we thank Sofie muchly! For Sofies next album Sofie has her sights on the Scissor Sisters discography.....
I couldnt find a pic of Sofie so I naturally used a pic of our queen.
Words: Pet Shop Boys, West End Girl, disco, gay hinterlands, magical memories, town halls, dreams
SANNIE CARLSON Was A Time
Aka Whigfield! Don't jump to her debut single when you think of her name for she has produced some of the best pop music without you guys probably knowing so. Everyone knows about her Saturday Night heritage but did you realise that all of the Benny Benassi stuff shooting up the dance charts features her on vocals or writing credits? Did you also know that MOST of the IN-Grid album, including Mama Mia, was co-produced/written by Sannie!?
Was A Time is too slick for its boots and has the audacity to reconstruct Kylie's Can't Get You Out Of My Head. While at first Whigfield was the shame of Denmark Was A Time restored our faith in her ability to record one the best pop songs that belongs in ANY good Ipod playlist.
Words: In-Grid, Benny Benassi, One Hit Wonder, Pandora, Rogue Traders
EYEQ I'm Not Anybodys Girl
A few days ago we featured the Danish girlband EyeQ who were the product of the TV show Popstars. Jessica over at PopTastic requested this little ditty which DSTP is most happy to oblige. I'm Not Anybody's Girl comes from EyeQ's second LP Be Okay which you can purchase here
So, most might recall this song because it was covered by the poptastic American singer Kaci for the "straight to DVD" flick A View From The Top. It also became the title for the Kaci album clearly ensuring that it a Kaci track and not anyone else's.*
Basically, Danish act covered covertly by another act is a "methodology" that we've seen before. Take Jamelia's Superstar, which actually wasnt her song but a Christine Milton classic long before Parlophone grabbed it for their, then, flopping act. Now, when you think of Superstar you think of Jamelia because the record company did their best to make it "hers". The same can be said for Natalia Imbruglia's Torn which was originally by a Norwegan singer, Kylie's On A Night Like This and Kaci's I'm Not Anybodys Girl. We will be covering Christine Milton this week so be prepared!
*Ella, in a unusual act of treason, prefers the American cover over her fellow Danish sisters' original.
Words: Popstar, Request, PopTastic, Originality, Kaci!
JON Popstar!-Poptastic Single Mix
This weekend we're going POPtastic overdrive! We will present to you an excellent and ultra cute version of Jon's cover of Sita's Robyn penned track Popstar, satisfy an EyeQ request and dance with a Danish superstar in the form of Whigfield!
But back to our first daliance with Danske pop this weekend
Popstar(The Pop Mix) is ALREADY poptastic but they've made this version all 80's like. Reminds me of Kylie's Love At First Sight crossed with theme from Grange Hill! I think that this versioni of the song is the best out there and a must have in any Itunes!
Please please please enjoy! Buy the album ultra cheap here!
FACT: The album contains a beautiful ballad with Jessica Folker, material written by Soren Rasted of Aqua, backing vocals by Lene of Aqua and more tracks written by Cutfather/Joe, Robyn(of Sweden) and Remee(of Denmark)
FACT: We. Have. A. Huge. Crush. On. Jon!
Words: Grange Hill, Kylie, Love At First Sight...
MISH MASH with LOIS Speechless
"Proof that Scandipop is in a discopop league of its own"
If there was a World Cup of not football but poptastic pop toons both Denmark and Sweden would ALWAYS end up in the finals. Not only do their producers/writers shape the way Anglo-American acts sound, but artists from these two countries continue to amaze me aurally. The climax at the end is over and above that of a orgasm! Dance bitch dance!
Ministry Of Sound called Speechless a record with more "bounce that Beyonce" but please don't take their word for verbatum! Speechless is one of the best dance/pop records ever to come out of Europe let alone Denmark!
Mish Mash consist of Kasper Winding, a classically trained musical prodigy hailing from Denmark and Lois Norbye who hails from Copenhagen, with a background that takes in ballet dancing and performing as a singer and actress in Denmark.
The version above is quite rare and more disco than the radio edit or single version.
As you will see in the video they are greatly influenced by Kylie even down to the many goldpants. Here is the original pop mix which is different to the single version used in the video.
Following in the footsteps of fellow Danes Malou, their Swedish sisters in crime Pay-TV and the British copycats Goldfrapp Mish Mash are ready to drop one of the best electropop albums of all time. We've heard 3 tracks from it and all we can say is...amazing.
Words: bouncing, poptastic, saturday night, strings, amazing video, amazing vocals, discoteka
Upcoming: more brilliant Danish pop! More EyeQ, more Jon and something really quite special in the form of Denmarks blonde fruit cake!
EYEQ Let The Record Spin
When in France just don't dance...
When ya think of Danish girlbands you might think of Soap and thats about it. But EyeQ produced two brilliant albums in the 00's. They've toured with Jon Norgaard who features directly below and sold quite alot in native Denmark. Nowadays, for some reason they've completely vanished! Theres no website catering for their fans and even the cdon leaves you dry. There is very little information about the Danish Girls Aloud /No Angels yet I will try and rack my mind for you guys!
EyeQ were the product of the Danish series of Popstars back in 2001. They consisted of Louise Lolle, Julie Jungvig Næslund, Sofie Hviid and Trine Randbo Jepsen. The girls gave us two albums Be Okay and Let It Spin.
They played instruments, discussed Sartre and looked great in high heels but after the second album didnt do as well the first Sofie did a Kym Marsh leaving the others in lurch with a record Sofie had forced them to do. Be Okay, the second album, was quite a leap from the poptastic Let It Spin and as this was before Kelly Clarkson's breakout LP, the fans had issues with the overuse of guitars. The direction of Be Okay had been primarily constructed by Sofie and I love what she tried to do. A female Busted with little Motown footnotes she thought but alas the fans hated it.
Another factor that caused the demise of EyeQ was again laid at the feet of Sofie..or rather some other part of Sofie! Need we say more:
However rather than 'work' the new sound or ignore the trash tabloids, the band faultered probably rather due to the shock of the gigantic flop. The departure of their key players really didnt help and the girls called it day. EyeQ we salute ya!
FACT: Original singers of Kaci's hit single I'm Not Anybody's Girl!
FACT: Despite the rocky impression of the second album its just as poptastic as the first!
Words: Popstars, fabulous lyrics
FREYA Yellow Ladybird
The purest summer of pop experience...
Now for something really special. Freya comes Tonder in Denmark and has produced three brilliant Lp's with my favourite being her debut Tea With The Queen. She's huge in Japan but has had some singles UK which didnt do that well at all but irregardless I love her.
Her vocal delivery is really quite interesting. There's no one out there like Freya and she'll warm you up when its cold or cool you down when the sun comes out.
Words: summer, unique, Japan, Sparkler, oddball lyrics
