Walzerkönig

Years of blogging about the Austrian music scene prepared me for this: I was recently part of a jury consisting of The Gap journalists who, in the first lockdown weekend, voted on the 100 most important pop songs from Austria. And then I wrote about one fifth of them. It was so much fun, plus it got me through the first days of Corona Ausnahmezustand. Read it here if you’re interested!

Maybe it’s the autumny video, but this song gives me spring feelings. I can absolutely imagine this grungy-in-a-laid-back-way track on my spring playlist, walking through a park and humming along to the elegantly simple line “I just wanna be the one in your dreams”. I just wish the chorus was... bigger. More fulfilling or more daring. Not so much like a lover that butters you up and then abruptly ghosts you.

I’m not kidding, that is some serious suit game right there. What a fun video. The song has some very catchy bits too. Sanja Cin currently lives in Manchester, but used to live in Vienna.

Conveniently, that leaves more time to find new heroes and listen to their music, like Crush. Win-win!

Rambo Rambo Rambo are playing live next on January 24th, 2020 at Kik Ried. Their album Stories of the Ueberwelt is out now on Ramboozle Records. 

Happy holidays. 

The rise of Dives coincided with the hibernation of Walzerkönig, which is why – gasp – I have never so far featured any of the band’s bops (and there are many). It’s a mistake that must be immediately rectified, because Dives are easily the best Austrian band of the year 2019.

I definitely wasn’t planning on listening to this song. It was described to me in an email as “Mundart / Psychedelic Rock” and that just made me want to barf. But, you’ve got to give credit where credit is due: This combination works surprisingly well. And in a sea of uninspired Dialektbands of recent years, Amanda have a USP that makes me respect them more than I thought was possible for an all-male band with a woman’s name as their band name.

It is so reassuring to be reminded that even if you’re having a “challenging” year, in the grand scheme of things, it really doesn’t matter at all. And you really are just stardust. And you’re part of something so big it’s impossible to grasp. Like all sublime works of art, this song puts things in perspective and leaves you elated at the same time.

Here’s a good opportunity to revisit good old wienXtra Jugendinfo: the MIT Musik-Informations-Tage are happening again. Entry is free! I was invited to talk about social media in the world of music. There will be plenty of space for your questions. Come through!

I interviewed Mira Lu Kovacs of Schmieds Puls and 5K HD and Yasmin Hafedh of Yasmo & die Klangkantine for WUK Magazine (in German).

I was thrilled when I heard of the idea of a space nation. Now, not so much anymore. Watch as Full Frontal with Samantha Bee dives deep into the oligarch turned space royal who founded Asgardia. Of course his followers are 85% men. 🤦‍♀️

I saw Sigrid during the Europavox festival in Clermont-Ferrand, France this June. She played on the medium stage, but gave off major Ariana Grande vibes, down to the extra long ponytail. Schedules wasn’t even released yet, but, true to the line “I think you’re a hit”, it was the instant hit of her set.

Releasing one summer hit after the other, Leyya have gone from melancholic to cheeky, and I dig this development, although this isn’t the Spice Girls cover I hoped it would be.

This is such a bop I will overlook the shameless plugging of the singer’s own jewellery line. Also, I’ve been waiting for the return of perms for ages. Let’s make them happen again, pleeeease.