Fridae

Free Download: Skye "What's Wrong With Me" (Nouvelle Vague Remix)

You might remember Skye as the voice of Morcheeba on albums like "Big Calm" that sold over 5 million copies worldwide. Last year, Skye released her first solo album "Mind How You Go" in Europe. The album turned out to be a very personal affair that featuring a lot of Skye's own songwriting.

First single taken from the album is "What's Wrong With Me" that Skye wrote together with Patrick Leonard who is mostly know for his work with Madonna. After being part of Moracheeba for so long, Leonard showed Skye a whole new way of writing music. "I didn’t know you could write like that," she says. "I was saying [to Pat] where’s the chorus? But he simply said it didn’t need one. It was strange but enlightening. A whole change of style for me" she recalls in a press statement.

Check out a guilt-free MP3 download of a remix French musical collective Nouvelle Vague produced of "What's Wrong With Me." There is nothing, nada, niets wrong with this Latin-flavored track that shows off Skye's subtle, soothing vocals that If you have a moment, also check out the video for the single that is based on the sci-fi classic "Bladerunner." (Click here to download Skye's "Mind How You Go" on iTunes.)



Download Skye "What's Worng With Me" (Nouvelle Vague Rmx) [MP3]

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Hot New Talent Alert: Roz Bell
If Justin Timberlake and Sting could have a baby his name would be Roz Bell, my first hot tip for 2007. With his infectious "rock 'n soul" sound and good looks to boot, Bell is the perfect package to storm the pop charts this year. His album "The First Sunbeams" will be released in March in Canada. No U.S. release date has been scheduled at this time. But this urban troubadour is signed to Universal so with a bit of luck he can be heard around the globe before you know it.

Hailing from Toronto, Bell started his songwriting career when he was ten years old. Initially, he wanted to be an MC, but he was later turned on by by the sweet pop and rock 'n roll from people like Bruce Springsteen, Hall & Oates and Bill Whither. "My whole goal is to sit in my bedroom and write my own 'Lean On Me,'" he says in a press release. With the help of producers James Robertson, Jeff Blue and mixer Neal Pogue, he finally has a chance to make a mark of his own with his debut album "The First Sunbeams."

Listen to Bell's lush pop tune "Papercut" that is a song that poignantly describes how men and women can differ. "The track is about a woman overreacting to something. Something the man sees as being as harmless and small as a papercut. But the man fears he might be losing her this time and is trying to change her mind," Bell tells Arjanwrites.com. "Musically, it's a throwback to Hall and Oates and that 80's "big chorus", R&B-influences pop/rock."

Stream Roz Bell "Papercut"

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Bloc Party's Kele Okoreke Comes Out of the Closet
Andy reports today about the coming out of Bloc Party singer Kele Okoreke. In a candid interview with the Guardian, Okoreke explains that he is ready to publicly discuss his sexuality now that it directly relates to the music on Bloc Party's upcoming new album "A Weekend In The City."

"I think I'm going to have to [talk about it]. With the first album I didn't think it was essential to the experience. I didn't want to have to talk about it in a tabloid way," Okoreke says. "It wasn't there in the songs, so why did people need to know? But yeah, there are songs on this record that do feel like they're about desire, longing. So yeah, I am gonna talk about that."

I have interviewed plenty of artists who prefer not to talk about their sexuality and like to have their music speak for themselves. In a world that still lacks alternative gay role models, I have nothing but respect for Okoreke to share something so personal with the rest of the world.

"To speak to young people in their impressionable formative years �" and say something that could help them make sense of their lives. Lessen the sense of alienation and isolation that they might have. I think that's something that definitely... I'd be proud of," Okoreke concludes.