KFLAN – underwater
The worst thing that pop stars could do is to tell their audience the truth about themselves. It was in the rule book, and every band manager starting in the 1950s delivered the same advice to their clients. “You’re playing a part! You’re not you!”
Still, there’s only so much that the pop world can take when everyone’s auditioning for the lead in some make-belief drama about being awesome and wanting to save the world. Eventually, people start demanding a little bit of … err… honesty.
KFLAN is leading a whole new series in which rock stars are painfully honest, and, occasionally, make you so sad that you want to cry. They are ready to admit that they don’t know more about global warming than the rest of us, that they don’t want to take out a loan ot buy an apartment and that the security problem of the world scares them.
But, of course, KFLAN is too clever to simply make this sound mournful and boring. “underwater” takes a different route and reveals itself as a shiny pop ballad. Forget to listen to the words, and you can get this to soundtrack your morning affirmations. On the other hand, listen closely and you’ll get someone singing who is just like you, scared and unsure of the future. At least, we’re all in the same boat!
Bulgarian Cartrader – Palace Gates
There aren’t enough gatekeepers, and certainly, not strong enough to keep them out. All eras of pop culture had their heroes. These were usually stereotypes, characters that could easily be written in and out of a story.
That was good news for all the producers and companies paying for the work. It meant, in theory, that when one hero could no longer be used, auditionees could be held to replace them. Pretty convenient, eh?
But pop music can come out of nowhere, and not even have to sound like pop music anymore. While it’s always a long shot, the fact that 99% of audiences learn about new music through the internet means that everyone has a shot.
Nobody can stop Bulgarian Cartrader right about now. And the story of making British-sounding pop while being a German citizen born to Bulgarian parents is a suitably interesting story that few have tired of. On “Palace Gates,” Bulgarian Cartrader spends the verse rapping like some 60s Dylan-esque figure, while the chorus about winning out against the odds rings like a British dance-pop piece. It’s nice to know that everyone’s got a fair chance nowadays.
