The Saturdays - 30 Days

June 05, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments

The Saturdays have been circling the UK for ages now. They are a five-piece band consisting of Mollie King, Una Healy, Vanessa White, Rochelle Wiseman (now known as Rochelle Humes) and Frankie Sandford. The latter two were both members of S Club Juniors / S Club 8. They have never had a number one, of the 4 four years they have been releasing singles, they never reached the top spot. I thought this song might have had a chance, but guess not. Will they ever get that highest charting position? I think with the right song at the right time, they'll get there.

"30 Days" was written by Steve Mac (who keeps appearing on my blog) and Autumn Rowe (who wrote "Swagger Jagger" amongst other songs). This song set out as a hit, and it looked like it would get a high charting position. On mid-weeks it said it would get to number two, however the song failed to stay up there and by Sunday dropped down to number seven. The song is about counting down the days until you meet the person you really like. And this has been made into a good relatable music video.

The music video is set around speed dating in a cafe. I find it hilarious some of the faces they pull, such as Mollie when she walks in, her shocked face is so funny. I also like the way how some of the girls fend off the guys, such as Una showing her baby bump, and Rochelle showing her engagement ring.

The second half of the music video is where they all get up and start dancing, some of the weird dance moves makes me laugh out loud, but my favourite is when the guy with the brown jacket is dancing and Frankie looks at the camera and makes a weird facial expression as if saying "what is he doing?", makes me laugh every time.

But what makes this video average? Well I don't think there is enough time shown on each girl, I think we see more of Mollie and Frankie more than the other 3, Una and Rochelle look like they have the same hair colour, so they seem easy to mix up, and we don't see much of Vanessa either. But that is all I have to fault it. Obviously they cut out Una as much as possible as her baby bump was showing, and she didn't want it to be seen much.

Overall a great song, that deserved to have got higher in the UK chart. It's accompanying music video is great, but it's missing the wow spark, there's just not enough to make it amazing. Their next single "You Don't Care" is planned to be released in August, and has already received rave reviews. They plan to release it as their first single in America, and it looks like it's going to be their biggest selling single to date. (As of 2013 "You Don't Care" has been cancelled and The Saturdays released "What About Us" instead, this song may just be on their soon to be released album).

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Nickelback - Lullaby

June 04, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments



Nickelback has made my blog for the second time, but they should be on here more! Tink09 will be happy as she is obsessed with them. But what has the lead singer done with his hair? I preferred it blonde and long! I saw this video a couple of months back, thought wow I love this song, so I waited to see who it was and you should've seen the face I pulled, I was totally surprised at who it was. Nickelback is comprised of 4 members who are Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger and Daniel Adair. They have been around for ages, but only got credibility in the UK when "How You Remind Me", and then I didn't hear from them until "Rockstar" and that was it, they will be in the UK limelight until the day they die.

"Lullaby" was written by Chad Kroeger as was expected. He has an amazing voice, that I know straight away on the radio, clearly his change of appearance made me unsure of who he was on the music channels. The song is actually about suicide, which is a common problem in the world, especially amongst teenagers/young adults. I hate how the UK, and maybe other countries, just brush it under the carpet, and pretend it's not there. I love it how people rebel and try to make people see that it is happening and that we should try and do something about it, Nickelback is clearly one of these artists, but also another artist called Pink, also tries to make things known.

This music video, is a difficult one. I hadn't actually watched it all the way through so wasn't aware of what happens in the first few scenes. And it actually gave me chills, and there was tears in my eyes. Someone could have warned me! I was sitting hear slightly listening to the Jubilee concert, and totally intent on watching this video, and then I got cold and tears started coming out my eyes. Thank God no one else were about.

This video is both a narrative and performance piece, it's the typical video you expect from Nickelback, and will definitely go amongst their classics. It's about a couple, and the woman is heavily pregnant, but after giving birth, she dies, leaving the guy to take up the responsibilities and bring up the baby by himself. He is thinking of adoption, but when his phone falls out of his pocket revealing a video of the baby's mother talking, and he shows the video to the baby, and it's the thing that makes him confident he could bring up the baby on his own.

Apparently there is a pure performance piece music video that is also shown on the UK music channels, that misses out the narrative altogether, which I feel is totally wrong, this narrative is what makes this video superb, and I cannot fault it.

Overall a great song and a great music video that brought me to tears. Nickelback has stopped promoting in the UK, and are relying on the music channels and the radio stations, but that isn't enough nowadays, and I just hope Nickelback manages to stay afloat, and start promoting in the UK, otherwise we're going to have to say bye to them.

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New Release: Aiden Grimshaw - Is This Love

June 04, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments

Aiden Grimshaw becomes my New Release, I am in love with this song, I never really liked him when he was on the seventh series of The X Factor UK, I thought he was nervous and not confident enough, I also thought he wasn't ready. But it may have just been down to the songs, there's no songs out there that sounds like this one, he has definitely found his niche, and I cannot wait to hear more from him. There were many artists to have embarked on a musical career, these are: Matt Cardle (winner), Rebecca Ferguson (second), One Direction (third), Cher Lloyd (fourth), Mary Byrne (fifth), Katie Waissell (seventh), Paije Richardson (eighth), Aiden Grimshaw (ninth), Belle Amie (eleventh), Storm Lee (fourteenth) and Nicolò Festa (sixteenth).

"Is This Love" was written by Aiden Grimshaw, Jarrad Rogers and Joel Pott (frontman of Athlete). You can tell Aiden wrote this song with help, as there are no other songs out there quite like this one, and that is what makes it so amazing, and is the main reason why I love it so much! I always get this song confused with "If This Is Love" by The Saturdays, as they both have similar names, and I always start singing The Saturdays' song before this one plays on YouTube.

This music video is a big narrative piece, but how can you not enjoy watching it. Aiden Grimshaw appears as an extra in this video, and I always have to look out for him every time I see this on the music channels. I have yet to hear this song on the radio, let's hope that people download it and it gets a high charting position so more radio stations have to play it.

There is a big story with this one, obviously he is doing drugs, and he is definitely on a downward spiral, with drinking and smoking as well. Life seriously isn't going his way, I love the little surprising scenes in this, and there's a lot going on.

Overall it's a great song that is different to what is out there at the moment. It's accompanying music video represents the song perfectly, but I would have liked to have seen more of Aiden Grimshaw about and it just feels like this music video is missing some sort of spark.

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Eurovision 2012 Winner: Sweden Entry: Loreen - Euphoria

June 03, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments

Loreen, real name Lorine Talhaoui, won the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan. And she is definitely a worthy winner. She has scored quite a few number ones with this song across Europe, and I have to admit it is such a great song. But I also hope that she doesn't disappear like many winners before her. They tend to release one song worldwide and they chart pretty high, and then they only release in their country and it's kind of a disappointment as we all voted you to win. Could Loreen change all that and stay current in the whole of Europe? She is promoting by doing interviews here there and everywhere, so it's a possibility. She came 4th in the first series of Idol (Sweden), the Swedish version of Pop Idol. And won Sweden's national selection for Eurovision called Melodifestivalen which is one of the biggest competitions in Sweden. And has since got a lot of success from her singles that she released in Sweden.

"Euphoria" was written by Thomas G:Son (I wonder where we've heard that name before, he helped write "Quédate Conmigo") and Peter Boström. Sweden deserved this song, I was surprised they didn't win last year with Eric Saade. But Loreen is going to be a superstar, and this song is amazing, but surprisingly Peter Boström also wrote Tooji's song, which came last in the Eurovision 2012. So it's definitely all upon the song and how it is sung.

This music video is a performance piece, on what she did for Sweden's selection into the Eurovision. It is a great song, but is it the best music video? It's difficult for me to like a performance piece, but has this one got the qualities?

I think not. I'm sorry, but she's there all by herself singing, I like the fact that she is moving about the stage and using choreography she has been given, or she made up herself, but it isn't that good. I love it when the guy comes along and they have a dance fight, which is pretty interesting to watch.

I love the snow machines, I want them myself. And that is all I have to comment on the music video. It doesn't blow me away, but it doesn't make me hate it either. The only thing I can say is that it doesn't link in well with the song, and I was expecting something a bit better. Anyhow here's my rating.

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Hungary Entry: Compact Disco - Sound Of Our Hearts

June 03, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments

Compact Disco may not have been the obvious choice, and maybe it was something extremely different for Eurovision, but sometimes different is what wins. Look at the year Lordi won. I blame the fact that this was performed second, it was forgotten after a few other songs, hence the disappointing 24th, however they did better than the UK. Compact Disco is comprised of 4 members who are: Behnam Lotfi, Gábor Pál, Attila Sándor and Csaba Walkó. I'm sure I've heard of them before, and after further research, they have attempted to hit the UK with their songs, but with not a lot of luck. I hope this band finds it's breakthrough as they clearly deserve it. Maybe Eurovision was their shot, but it didn't work for them either. Let's hope they don't give up.

"Sound of Our Hearts" single cover is amazing, I love how they've incorporated Europe into the design. The song was written by the band and it's about taking care of one another. The music video links in perfectly, and I love how it's done. This song is definitely one of my favourites, but I had to listen to it again to make sure, I think I forgot what it sounded like until today, and I was surprised it didn't do better, however I don't think I was the only one to has forgotten the song.

The music video is narrative, however it works well with the song, and I don't really know how anyone can dislike it. It's also a perfect representation of the whole world, not just Hungary, and that we do need to care for one another a lot more.

I like how there are two different people, one is high-profiled and complains about everything, the other is a humble homeless man, that's just trying to get through life. you feel really sorry for the homeless man, whereas the person with all the money should quit complaining, there is others out there who are going through worse.

I like how it's been edited as they are both doing the same things, only in totally different ways, such as at the start one goes to the sink and washes himself, whereas the other has to trek all the way to the river to wash. And what about food, one has to ask and eventually look in the bin whereas the one with all the money, is complaining about what he has got. It's a great representation of people today, and it just gets me mad, everyone takes things for granted without realising it, I know I do, but this makes me understand that there are others out there who are just not as lucky as I am, and I feel really bad for them.

Overall I love the message of this song along with it's video, it's portrayal is amazing and I hope people will see this and understand it. I'm trying to find bad things about this but I just cannot find one. There may be better Eurovision music videos out there from 2012, as I haven't seen them all I'm not sure, but this has definitely become my favourite, you can't beat a true representation of the world, and attempt to make a difference. This should have done better in the Eurovision at Baku, Azerbaijan.

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Ireland Entry: Jedward - Waterline

June 02, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments

Jedward, Jedward, Jedward. You all knew this one was on it's way. I am definitely a fan of them (but secretly). They have appeared on my blog many times before, and here's yet another one. They were on The X Factor (UK), and came sixth. This was their second time performing for Ireland on Eurovision, they performed "Lipstick" in the Eurovision 2011, and they came eighth with that song. This song has charted in a few countries, but will it chart in the UK? We gave them 10 points, although I think we should've given them more. This was definitely a typical Eurovision song, and it failed to meet expectations, and I was surprised.

"Waterline" was written by Nick Jarl and Sharon Vaughn. It is the first time an act from Ireland has represented them at Eurovision. This song is a progression from "Lipstick", I also think it sounds like they've grown up, going for a more mature sound, and trying to reach out to more people than just kids. Unfortunately they only received 46 points and came 19th overall. Proving that it's all down to the song and the way it's sung and it's not a political contest as everyone is shouting and raving about.

This music video isn't exactly the best. I kind of dislike these sort of videos, they're more a mix up of clips that aren't quite edited well together. On the other hand they have done it nicely allowing kids to copy the dancing amongst various other things. But is this it, is there anything interesting about this?

I'm not sure, but I can already see this being a short review. It's definitely more of a performance piece, there's some footage from them singing live in the national selection for Ireland, and then some bits are from them performing in front of a green screen. And then there's shots of fans and them going on television. But that's it, and this is really lacking something. Also you aren't quite sure when it will be cut into a different scene, and it's quite hard to follow.

Having said that the song is very catchy and the music video is a little on the disappointing side, however they do cartwheels one handed, I can't do that! They are great entertainers, I remember seeing them on tour when I went to see the X Factor Tour and they flew over the top of us, doing flips in the air. I can't fault them on their entertainment, and that water feature during the contest in Baku, Azerbaijan was amazing. But this definitely will not be the last we hear of them.

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Cyprus Entry: Ivi Adamou - La La Love

June 01, 2012 Critic Jonni 0 Comments

Ivi Adamou is only 18 and was born in 1993 (the same year I was born), this shocked me, she looks like she's in he mid-twenties, so if she's just 18 and can sing like that, I'm in awe of her. She looks a lot like Anne Hathaway. I really hope she does well all across Europe, especially in the UK, I would love to hear more songs by her. She took part in The X Factor (Greece) and came 6th. She then entered the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan, where she came a disappointing 16th, she should've definitely placed higher. The UK didn't award any points to this song, although I did vote for her. After keeping an eye on the UK iTunes top 100 chart, it looked like this might chart on Sunday, but who knows, we'll have to wait and see.

The song was written by Alex Papaconstantinou (who has written a number of songs, including 3 songs for Eurovision), Björn Djupström, Alexandra Zakka and Viktor Svensson. Cyprus chose Ivi through internal selection, but she offered 3 songs and it was a mix of jury votes and public votes on which song would go through. It has already charted in a few places, and I hope Ivi Adamou appear on our screens more frequently, this song should've been a hit at Eurovision and a hit throughout Europe, and it is making it's mark. I just hope this isn't the last we see of Ivi Adamou.

I love this music video, this is clearly the best one from all the Eurovision acts, as far as I'm aware of, however there could be better ones that I haven't seen yet. It links in perfectly with the song, and it's both a narrative and performance piece, that you can't help but love. Everyone should be aware of the storyline, but in case you can't quite identify it or you have a memory loss, it's Snow White.

In Snow White, love is what prevails, and that is all she is waiting for, while she is asleep. And that is exactly what wakes her up, her Prince Charming comes along and kisses her. Again this is a bit of an adaption, as most Snow White stories are, hence the fact that there are two Snow White films that have recently been released.

I like how this one doesn't have dwarfs. But what are these people? Fairies? Angels? I'm not sure, but I think they are much better than Dwarfs hence the fact that Snow White is nice and kind, that is why she's dressed in white, along with the Fairies. Also I'm sure I've seen Prince Charming somewhere before, is he a well-known actor or something?

Overall this is a perfect music video, with quite a horrifying witch, that is very scary, but in a good-humour way. I like so much about this music video, and I haven't got a bad thing to say about it. The song is amazingly catchy too, and I'm sure it's going to be stuck in my head all day. So here's the worthy stars!

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