#Swedish Album Chart

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

Backstreet Boys - I Want It That Way 1999

"I Want It That Way" is a song by American vocal group Backstreet Boys. It was released as the lead single from their third studio album, Millennium (1999). It was written by Swedish hitmakers Max Martin and Andreas Carlsson. Max Martin has written or co-written 26 Billboard Hot 100 number-one songs, most of which he has also produced or co-produced. He is the songwriter with the second-most number-one singles on the chart, behind only Paul McCartney (32) and tied with John Lennon (26 both). In addition, he currently holds the record for the most Hot 100 number-one songs as a producer, with 24 as of January 2024. Congrats! 🥳

"I Want It That Way" was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Song and Record of the Year. The music video received four MTV Video Music Awards nominations, winning Viewer's Choice. It became the group's first music video to surpass one billion views on YouTube in 2021.

"I Want It That Way" is the Backstreet Boys' signature song, and commercially it reached the number-one spot in more than 25 countries, including Austria, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Switzerland and the UK.

The song was famously used in the cold open of the Brooklyn Nine-Nine season 5 episode "DFW". Andy Samberg's character has a police lineup sing the song to help a victim identify a killer.

"I Want It That Way" received a total of 82% yes votes!

[ohcoffeedragon]

The cultural impact of KAJ on Swedish-Finnish relations

I wanted to highlight some positive things that I've observed around the KAJ-phenomenon (Swedish Eurovision entry 2025), while also clarifying a few things about the cultural context to those who aren't from the region - but my small overview got out of hand, so here is an essay-length cultural analysis (sorry about that and hats off to anyone who reads to the end!)

You can read the rest under the cut or on Reddit where there is also lots of interesting stuff in the comment section.

I'm interested in this topic because I'm part of the Swedish speaking minority in Finland, but also because I've lived in the Finnish speaking parts of Finland (Jyväskylä) and in Sweden (Malmö), so I've had a front-line seat to people from all of these communities making assumptions about each other and misunderstanding each other. 

Here are the three geopolitical aspects of the KAJ-phenomenon that I find particularly noteworthy and heartwarming:

1) Sweden is celebrating Finnish culture and it's changing the narrative in both countries 

The fact that a Finnish band is topping charts in Sweden with a song about an aspect of Finnish culture is a bigger deal than you might think, because Finnish culture has not traditionally been held in high esteem in Sweden.

There are some ancient reasons for this, related to the fact that Finland was under Swedish rule from the 13th century all the way up to 1809 with the power dynamics that this implies, but I think the most important reason is probably the wealth gap during much of the 20th century.

In the 1950-70s many Finns emigrated to Sweden for work. They were mostly known to be reliable hard workers, but new immigrants are never highly regarded and on top of that this was the same generation that was on the front lines during the war, with lots of trauma that nobody knew how to treat or diagnose at the time, leading to self-medication with alcohol, emotional detachment, violence and social problems. Being Finnish became associated with a number of negative stereotypes in Sweden (alcoholism, violence, social exclusion, poverty), to the point where children in many Sweden-Finnish families were bullied for being Finnish and people were encouraged to distance themselves from their Finnish heritage.

This is why the hype in Sweden around Bara Bada Bastu - a silly feelgood song about unconditionally loving a part of Finnish culture - is getting so much attention in Finland. Finnish people aren't used to Sweden being this enthusiastic about anything related to their country. Some people in Finland still expect Swedes to look down on them for being Finnish. "The happiest country in the world" should of course have sorted out their self-esteem issues by now (most people have), but sometimes these things can be slow to evolve. 

Finnish culture has actually been getting a lot of positive attention in Sweden for some time now. The love for KAJ is part of a cultural shift that has been going on for years. Some notable music examples are Käärijä doing well on Swedish charts, Swedish artist Markus Krunegård releasing an album in Finnish in 2023 (Nokia & Ericsson) and Swedish artist Miriam Bryant releasing several singles in Finnish in 2024 (Mustelmilla, Otan kii), as well as wildly popular Hooja throwing in some Finnish words in their Swedish lyrics. 

The fact that Melodifestivalen producer Karin Gunnarsson invited KAJ to the competition in the first place probably wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for this phenomenon already being a thing.

2) Finland is showing Sweden some love in return

There is a saying in Finland that goes "it doesn't matter who wins as long as Sweden loses" and yet here we are: Finnish people are singing along to a song in Swedish and many are actively rooting for Sweden to win Eurovision.

The fact that a song in Swedish is topping charts in Finland is very unusual. 

Finland is a bilingual country, with Finnish and Swedish both being official languages, so you might expect the music scene and the general population to be bilingual as well, but they are not. The percentages are 95% Finnish speakers and 5% Swedish speakers, meaning public life is basically 100% Finnish speaking. Swedish speakers have their own schools and radio channels and so on, but if they want to talk with the rest of the country they need to do so in Finnish.  

The same thing is true for the music scene. If you choose to sing in Swedish you have a potential audience of less than 300 000, if you switch to Finnish you have a potential audience of 5,5 million. There are several Fennoswedish artists who are very successful in Finland at the moment, the big names being Mirella and Averagekidluke, but they all sing in Finnish. You would have to be a specific kind of lovable goofball to choose your local Swedish dialect instead.

The Swedish language is also viewed negatively by many in Finland. This is an unfortunate consequence of mandatory Swedish lessons in schools, often nicknamed "pakkoruotsi" ("involuntary Swedish" or "forced Swedish"). The idea to teach everyone the basics of both national languages doesn't sound particularly far-fetched, but many people, especially in the East and North where there are no native Swedish speakers, dislike this requirement to the point where it might do more harm than good.

As for Sweden, the country is seen as a close and reliable friend, but the friendship is somewhat more complicated than it might seem on the surface. The Finnish banter with Sweden is friendly 99,9% of the time but the remaining 0,1% can be surprisingly dark, because it's rooted in feelings of humiliation and injustice that go quite deep.

This is why it made sense for KAJ to do Melfest instead of UMK, beyond the fact that Melfest reached out to them. Gaining a Swedish audience when singing in Swedish is a realistic goal. Gaining a Finnish-speaking audience when singing in Swedish is... not realistic - or so everyone assumed.

In other words: seeing Swedish people sing "yksi, kaksi, kolme, sauna!" in Finnish is surprising, but seeing Finnish-speakers go "bara bada bastu, bastu!" in Swedish is just as unexpected and somehow even more heartwarming, for me as a Fennoswede at least.

As far as I know it's the first time in history a Fennoswedish artist gets nationwide recognition with a song in Swedish. There is more warmth towards Sweden in Finland right now and more curiosity about the Swedish speaking minority than I think I've ever seen.

3) People are suddenly learning about the Swedish speaking minority in Finland 

KAJ getting all this attention is making a real difference in fighting ignorance (mostly in Sweden) and prejudice (mostly in Finland) about the Swedish speaking minority.

Some Swedish people still don't know we exist, which can be a little disheartening to Swedish speaking Finns who follow media in both countries and know everything about Sweden. Fennoswedes trade anecdotes about how Swedish people compliment them on their "really good Swedish" when they speak their native language or how well-meaning Swedes switch to English because they can't tell the difference between a dialect and a foreign accent. The most extreme anecdotes are about Swedish people saying "I had no idea Finnish was so easy to understand" when you talk to them in Swedish.�� 

In Finland people know we exist, but sometimes mistake us for a small and homogenous group of upper-class snobs - which is fine really, compared to what almost any other minority anywhere has to put up with, but it's also quite far from the truth, so getting some nuance added to the mix wouldn't hurt. Most Fennoswedes are just ordinary people and do not have mansions and old money (unfortunately for us!). Those old money families do exist, but they are not that many. 

The Fennoswedes you see in Finnish media tend to live in the Helsinki area and be perfectly bilingual, which isn't the case for all of us. KAJ is such a refreshing addition to the media landscape because they aren't part of this group: they are from the countryside, their Finnish is a little wonky, and you couldn't possibly accuse them of being upper class snobs.  

And finally, if you read this to the end: Thank you, I spent way too much time on this, so I really appreciate it! Here is your well-earned diploma on Finnish-Swedish relations: 📜👩🏼‍🎓

[mephistopheles2022]

SKELETÁ

GHOST have confirmed the release of their new album: SKELETÁ, the first all-new album from the GRAMMY®-winning Swedish rock icons since IMPERA, which topped the charts in 2022.

SKELETÁ will be unveiled on April 25 via Loma Vista Recordings. SKELETÁ’s imminent arrival is heralded by the first single ��Satanized” and its haunting new video that offers a first glimpse of GHOST’s new frontman, Papa V Perpetua.

Source: earone.com

[surra-de-bunda]

Army of Lovers [Camilla Henemark] photographed by Roger Tillberg at The Grammis (Swedish Music Awards) as they receive an award for "Best Group" (March 1990). Camilla Henemark was born in Stockholm, to a Nigerian father and a Swedish mother. She started her modeling career in her teens and later had her own modeling agency. Henemark started her career in music in 1985 by joining Alexander Bard in his Barbie project as Katanga. That project morphed into the group Army of Lovers, and soon La Camilla (as she is best known) became the face of the group. Army of Lovers is a Swedish dance-pop group which formed in 1987 and had a number of hits in Europe throughout the 1990s. Some of their biggest successes include the song "Crucified", which was a big hit in Europe, charting 31 weeks in the Eurochart and peaking at number 14 in 1992. It remains their best-known song internationally. Their second international hit, "Obsession", charted 32 weeks and peaked at number 29. Their total album sales were seven million copies worldwide. The name of the band alludes to the documentary film Army of Lovers or Revolt of the Perverts by German gay rights activist Rosa von Praunheim, the title of which in turn alludes to the Sacred Band of Thebes.

[black-arcana]

POWERWOLF Releases Cinematic Music Video For '1589' Single From 'Wake Up The Wicked' Album

POWERWOLF has released the long-awaited first single from its upcoming studio album, "Wake Up The Wicked", due out July 26, 2024 via Napalm Records. "1589" tells the story of Peter Stump, who lived near Cologne, Germany in the 16th century and is known today as the Werewolf Of Bedburg. After being defamed as a werewolf, the farmer confessed to several murders under torture and was cruelly executed on October 31, 1589. This morbid story has fascinated people all over the world ever since and has been picked up by National Geographic, among others.

For the video for "1589", POWERWOLF traveled to England to stage Stump's fate in the dark woods in a cinematic way. With carefully selected locations, countless actors and crew members, and impressive special effects, it marks the most elaborate music video production in the band's history to date — and thus offers a worthy first taste of what fans can expect with "Wake Up The Wicked".

"Wake Up The Wicked" — the highly anticipated follow-up to the extremely successful "Call Of The Wild" (2021) — will arrive just in time for the award-winning band's first-ever full North American tour, starting in August 2024, followed by their biggest European headline tour to date, the "Wolfsnächte 2024".

"Wake Up The Wicked" was once again produced by Joost Van Den Broek at Sandlane Recording Facilities and marks a new benchmark and undisputed career highlight for the band. The new album is hard, surprising and full of variety. While staying true to their established, loved sound, POWERWOLF go one step further and showcase a different facet of their deft musical and technical skills. This is evident, for example, on the outstanding single "1589", which is based on a true story from the 16th century.

20 years after their formation in 2004, POWERWOLF are expanding their repertoire with the highest quality and adding many future live hits to their extraordinary discography. "Wake Up The Wicked" is yet another statement cementing the status of the band as a leading force in the world of heavy metal

"Wake Up The Wicked" track listing:

01. Bless 'Em With The Blade 02. Sinners Of The Seven Seas 03. Kyrie Klitorem 04. Heretic Hunters 05. 1589 06. Viva Vulgata 07. Wake Up The Wicked 08. Joan Of Arc 09. Thunderpriest 10. We Don't Wanna Be No Saints 11. Vargamor

POWERWOLF are undoubtedly one of the most celebrated and successful heavy metal bands of the last decade. Multiple No. 1 album chart entries, gold and platinum records, huge sold-out arena shows, as well as headline slots at the biggest festivals have paved their way. In less than 20 years of band history, POWERWOLF has made it to the very highest league of heavy metal.

POWERWOLF has conquered countless stages at the world's biggest summer festivals, and their last "Wolfsnächte" headline tours (2019, 2022),as well as their aforementioned North American debut in early 2023, were almost completely sold out — resulting in a massive triumph. They have performed headlining sets at Wacken Open Air and Summer Breeze, as well as held premium slots at genre festival giants such as Hellfest, Graspop Metal Meeting, Masters Of Rock and many more, captivating enormous audiences. No other German metal band has been able to write a success story even remotely comparable in recent years.

Following their onslaught of North America, POWERWOLF will embark on their most impressive European tour yet in celebration of their highly anticipated 2024 studio album. Amid 16 shows in total, the tour will visit colossal venues in Munich, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Hamburg and Antwerp. POWERWOLF will be accompanied by Swedish heavy metal legends HAMMERFALL as special guests, with support from viral rising stars, dwarven metallers WIND ROSE.

The story of the frontrunners of today's German metal scene, POWERWOLF, began in 2004 and only knows one direction: ever upwards. Their trajectory may seem like something out of a fairytale, but it is the result of the band embodying the highest quality of heavy metal in the universe. Outstanding album production, bombastic live shows and a tireless drive for perfection on and behind the stage are what this exceptional band is known for around the world.

Over the course of their career, the band has not only fascinated metal fans, but has also won over international press and critics. Countless cover stories in the most important magazines, critics' awards such as the Metal Hammer Award, and effusive album and concert reviews underpin POWERWOLF's outstanding international status.

POWERWOLF is:

Attila Dorn - vocals Falk Maria Schlegel - organ Charles Greywolf - guitar Matthew Greywolf - guitar Roel van Helden - drums

Photo credit: VDPictures

[randomvarious]

Today's mix:

Mazzo Mixup by Billy Nasty 1996 Techno / Trance

Well, this is certainly a nice way to kick off the weekend, folks. The UK's Billy Nasty may not be the most recognizable name among dance enthusiasts the world over, but everyone really should be familiar with him, because, one, he's very skilled at his craft, and two, the entirety of the DJ mix enterprise as we currently know it today would literally be nothing without him. Billy wasn't the first person to actually record and release a DJ mix, but when viewing the DJ mix conceptually, as something more than just linking songs together without any breaks between them, he was the first person to ever craft one like it was his own damn album. Like, the idea of a mix having its own narrative, voice, and/or theme, and then being pressed to a consumable medium (vinyl, CD, cassette, etc.) all started with him in 1993, with the first volume of an aptly titled series called Journeys by DJ. So, just think about how massive of a facet the DJ mix has become as part of the music industry as a whole, and you'll realize just how important of a piece to this massive puzzle Billy Nasty really is.

However, while Billy was a house DJ for that first mix, this second solo commercial mix of his career from '96 evidently cements his transition to techno. Made for the Amsterdam-based nightclub label of Mazzo, as part of their own Mazzo Mixup series, this one sees him getting darkly murky and intense, as he also ventures his way to the outskirts of techno itself, where he sometimes finds it creatively hobnobbing with trance too.

Now, despite the fact that I tend to prefer dance music that transmits a bit of a lighter and happier vibe than what we have here, it's the inventiveness of a bunch of these selections that have me digging the brunt of this set regardless. Billy loses me with the penultimately peaking selection of Housetrap II's "Floating Capsule," in which there's a constant blaring siren synth that viscerally drives me away, but most of what precedes that one and the closer still leave me with plenty of appreciation for this mix as a whole.

Billy's own duo, Barb Wired, set the mood for the first 12-plus minutes with back-to-back offerings from their debut record, "One 4 the Road," and then we proceed to take a plunge into significantly darker and pressurized catacombs, with a total pumper like Belgian trio Gravital Force's "File003.tmp" serving as an example of one of those neat techno-trance bongers, as well as Lux-Trax's "Lucky Blackout" too. Plus, Swedish techno wizard Adam Beyer makes a nifty appearance here pretty early on in his own production career as well, with "Pump I," and Steve Mason's finisher, "Conception Vessel," splays out some chopped-up stabs with a certain amount of vocality to them, arranging a neat melody that sounds inspired by an approach that's akin to constructing an 80s freestyle track.

So, ultimately, and understandably, there's no way that Billy Nasty could've ever outdone the notoriety that was built around his own debut mix as a DJ, but that doesn't mean that any of his successive mixes were then necessarily lacking thereafter. Billy may have been the first person to release a commercial mix, but the reason he was selected to do so in the first place was because he's terrific at what he does, and this presentation of techno tunes here only solidifies the notion further. I don't really care what your own personal taste in techno might be—if you even have one—but as long as you can appreciate unique sounds, rhythms, and unique combinations of those sounds and rhythms, Billy picked out a whole bunch of 'em here for you to savor. This stuff is all pushing 30 and so much of it still impressively bangs 😤.

Listen to the full mix here.

Highlights:

Barb Wired - "One for the Road (Part 1)" Barb Wired - "One for the Road (Part 2)" Joel Mull - "The Big One" Secret Cinema - "Straightforward (Landlord Remix)" Eight Miles High - "Flow Chart" Gravital Force II - "File003.tmp" Adam Beyer - "Pump I" Empirion - "Narcotic Influence (Dave Clarke Remix)" District I - "Lobo" Lux-Trax Volume I - "Lucky Blackout" Steve Mason - "Conception Vessel"

[valkyries-things]

AGNETHA FÄLTSKOG // SINGER

“She is a Swedish singer, songwriter and a member of the pop group ABBA. She first achieved success in Sweden with the release of her 1968 self-titled debut album. She rose to international stardom in the 1970s as a member of ABBA, which is one of the best-selling music acts in history. She is the youngest member of ABBA. After the unofficial break-up of ABBA in December 1982, she renewed success later in the decade as a solo artist with three albums and a leading role in a movie. She returned in 2013 with A, her highest UK charting solo album to date. ABBA has since reformed, and Fältskog has resumed her previous role with the group.”

[retropopcult]

"Super Trouper" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA, and the title track from their 1980 studio album of the same name. Written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus and performed by their wives, Anni-Frid Lyngstad (lead vocals) and Agnetha Faltskog, it was originally titled "Blinka Lilla Stjärna" ("Twinkle Little Star" in Swedish). Before release the quartet decided to name the song Super Trouper, after a brand of spotlight used in large venues.

The single continued ABBA's run of international chart success, particularly in Europe. It become their ninth (and final) #1 in the UK and also topped the charts in Belgium, West Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands, and was a Top 10 hit in Austria, Finland, France, Norway, Spain and Switzerland. In the US, it peaked at #45 on the Billboard Hot 100 but did ultimately top the US Hot Dance chart during the summer of 1981.

[wheelscomedyandmore]

Happy Birthday to Ann-Margret who turns 83 today!

83-Year-Old Ann-Margret Refuses To Give Up Her Harley.

Ann-Margret has a long list of prestigious accolades, but she's just a biker at heart.

Photo: Ann-Margret cruising on a chopper in 1971

Ann-Margret Olsson (born April 28, 1941), credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer. She has won five Golden Globe Awards and been nominated for two Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and six Emmy Awards, winning in 2010 for a guest role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

She is known for her roles in Pocketful of Miracles (1961), State Fair (1962), Bye Bye Birdie (1963), Viva Las Vegas (1964), The Cincinnati Kid (1965), Carnal Knowledge (1971), The Train Robbers (1973), Tommy (1975), Magic (1978), The Villain (1979), The Return of the Soldier (1982), Who Will Love My Children? (1983), 52 Pick-Up (1986), Newsies (1992), Grumpy Old Men (1993), Grumpier Old Men (1995), Any Given Sunday (1999), Taxi (2004), The Break-Up (2006) and Going in Style (2017).

Her singing and acting careers span seven decades, starting in 1961. Initially, she was billed as a female version of Elvis Presley. She has a sultry, vibrant contralto voice. She had a Top 20 hit song in 1961 and a charting album in 1964, and she scored a disco hit in 1979. She recorded a critically acclaimed gospel album in 2001 and an album of Christmas songs in 2004. In April 2023, she released her first rock album, Born to be Wild.

[eurovision-revisited]

Eurovision 2004 - Number 61 - Lena Philipsson - "It Hurts"

Before 2004 Lena Philipsson, had already had her face on a stamp. Her enthusiasm for sewing and making her own clothes has been parodied on a Swedish comedy show. She had toured a show in which she became a female James Bond secret agent with her own musical theme. Let's say that Sweden was very well aware of her.

In the 1980s she participated in three consecutive Melfests - finishing second twice. After her third try failed to yield a Eurovision appearance, she'd moved on into pastures new and her career as a music and TV personality took over. She still found time to write songs, including Arvingarna's 1999 Melfest song Det svär jag på (I Swear It). There were many rumours during the 90s that she'd be returning to Melfest, but she never did.

It wasn't until 2004 when Det gör ont came along that she finally returned. Written by Thomas 'Orup' Eriksson, it drew Lena back to the competitive stage. Her performance won both the jury and the televote - there was no real challenger. That took her to Istanbul, a vibrantly pink dress and some accusations in Sweden that her performance was modelled on that of Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, suggestively dancing with a mic stand.

The English language version of the song, It Hurts, is outburst of heart ache to a peppy pop track. Lena doesn't look particularly like it hurts very much as she delivers a masterclass in owning a stage and hitting some big notes. She struts, seduces the camera and makes her pain seems some what enjoyable. All of this was enough to get her and Sweden into fifth place on the scoreboard in what is a strong year.

That wasn't the end of her association with Eurovision. In 2006 she hosted Melfest, causing a minor scandal as the nation's parents covered their children's ears during some of her bluer jokes. Afterwards there were more big albums and tours including one with Orup - the songwriter of It Hurts. She's an establish Swedish music and TV personality to his day with her most recent album ending up at the top of the Swedish itunes charts in 2020.

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

ABBA - Dancing Queen 1975

"Dancing Queen" is a song by the Swedish group ABBA, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Arrival (1976). It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson. Andersson and Ulvaeus also produced the song. It was a worldwide number 1 hit, topping the charts in more than a dozen countries including ABBA's native Sweden (where it spent 14 weeks at the top), Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, West Germany, the UK, Ireland, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, and Rhodesia. "Dancing Queen" also topped the charts in the US, ABBA's only number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was a Top 5 hit in Austria, Finland, France, and Switzerland. The song sold over three million copies. The track was the fourth biggest single of 1976 in the UK.

Musically, "Dancing Queen" is a Europop version of American disco music. As disco music dominated the US charts, the group decided to follow the trend, replicating Phil Spector's Wall of Sound arrangements. Andersson and Ulvaeus have cited George McCrae's "Rock Your Baby" as a source of inspiration for the style of the song. For their 1980 Spanish-language compilation-album Gracias Por La Música, ABBA recorded a Spanish version of "Dancing Queen", renamed "Reina Danzante", with Spanish lyrics provided by Buddy and Mary McCluskey. The track was retitled "La Reina Del Baile" when included on the compilation album ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos in the 1990s.

For the soundtrack of the 1994 Australian film Muriel's Wedding, songwriters Ulvaeus and Andersson allowed the use of "Dancing Queen" and other ABBA hits. "Dancing Queen" was among the ABBA songs included in Mamma Mia!, the jukebox musical first produced in 1999 and adapted into film in 2008, as well as the sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018).

"Dancing Queen" was chosen as #148 on the Recording Industry Association of America's Songs of the Century list. It was ranked #171 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2000, editors of Rolling Stone with MTV compiled a list of the best 100 pop songs; "Dancing Queen" placed 12th among songs of the 1970s. In 2023, it was ranked #2 on Billboard's list of The 500 Best Pop Songs. In June 2015, "Dancing Queen" was inducted into the Recording Academy's Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2022, "Dancing Queen" received a BMI Million-Air award, having been played 6 million times on radio in the US. Two years later, it was inducted into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry. The music video was directed by film director Lasse Hallström, and it had over 800 million views on Youtube as of December 2023.

"Dancing Queen" received a total of 93,4% yes votes! Previous ABBA polls: #361 "Waterloo".

[qnewsau]

The top 10 queer songs of 2024

New Post has been published on https://qnews.com.au/the-top-10-queer-songs-of-2024/

The top 10 queer songs of 2024

The team at Popchops has revealed which songs by queer artists were most listened to in 2024.  

December brings a litany of lists like the best movies of the year, sporting moments of 2024 and, of course, the best music. 

So we’re joining the fun and highlighting some of the biggest songs of the year by queer artists. 

Instead of choosing our top tracks or Spotify’s most listened, we’ve enlisted the help of Popchops.

Popchops is a DJ team that puts on parties across Australia with a very lively online community of over 2,000 members.

This group is predominantly queer and each month Popchop’s own Brad Elias puts together a monthly chart of the most listened-to songs by the community.

He has crunched the numbers and collated the list of the top 10 most loved tracks by queer artists exclusively for QNews.

Here are the top 10 in reverse order:

10. Reneé Rapp & Megan Thee Stallion – Not My Fault

The collaboration between the lesbian Broadway singer and bisexual rapper was for the musical movie remake of the iconic film Mean Girls. Although it was released in 2023 we’ll allow its inclusion because it was late December!

9. Tove Lo & SG Lewis – Heat

The Swedish pansexual singer joined forces with England’s SG Lewis for this dance banger. It’s had over 25 million streams with the accompanying video “an ode to queer dance floors around the world.” 

8. Nemo – The Code

Non-binary artist Nemo did a little better at Eurovision than Olly did – they won the whole thing for Switzerland! Nemo described the song as “the journey I started with the realisation that I am neither a man nor a woman.”

7. Olly Alexander (Years & Years) – Dizzy

Gay actor and singer-songwriter Olly Alexander entered Eurovision for the UK this year. His performance embraced his queer identity and left some viewers clutching their pearls. Although he finished 18th at the Contest, it still found a loyal following. 

6. Orville Peck – Midnight Ride (feat. Kylie Minogue & Diplo)

Everyone’s favourite gay cowboy was back in 2024 with this Kylie Minogue collab. The song has racked up 15 million streams and is nominated for The Crossover Song of 2024 at the People’s Choice Country Awards. 

5. Billie Eilish – LUNCH

Billie’s second song on the list is the lead single off her album Hit Me Hard and Soft. The lyrics leave little to the imagination with Billie singing “I could eat that girl for lunch, Yeah, she dances on my tongue, Tastes like she might be the one.” It reached no.2 in the UK and no.5 in Australia and the US. 

4. The Blessed Madonna & Kylie Minogue – Edge Of Saturday Night

Although Kylie is beloved by the queer community, this song doesn’t appear on this list because of her. American bisexual DJ The Blessed Madonna collaborated with our pop princess on this track. The song charted ok across Europe but is certainly beloved by both their fans and the inclusion on Kylie’s album Tension II doesn’t hurt!

3. Billie Eilish – BIRDS OF A FEATHER

The singer properly came out in late 2023 saying she didn’t realise fans didn’t know saying “Wasn’t it obvious?” Birds of a Feather was her biggest hit of 2024 with it going no.1 in Australia and no.2 in the US and UK. She performed it at the Closing Ceremony of the Olympics and it is nominated for Best Song and Record at the Grammy Awards. 

2. Kesha – JOYRIDE

The bisexual pop star gave the gays exactly what they wanted this year: hyperpop-dance-banger-accordian realness. It barely charted reaching no.88 in the UK but has been streamed almost 80 million times—a true cult classic. 

1. Chappell Roan – Good Luck, Babe!

2024 was a huge year for out lesbian singer Chappell Roan. Although her debut studio album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess came out in 2023, this stand-alone single made waves this year. It reached no.2 in the UK and no.4 in Australia and the US, and is nominated for Song and Record of the Year at the upcoming Grammy Awards.

You can join the Popchops group and help influence their charts by joining facebook.com/PopchopsHQ

Read next:

‘Wasn’t it obvious?’: Billie Eilish on her low-key coming out

Chappell Roan debuts lesbian country song on SNL

Orville Peck is GQ Australia’s inaugural International Musician of the Year

For the latest LGBTIQA+ Sister Girl and Brother Boy news, entertainment, community stories in Australia, visit qnews.com.au. Check out our latest magazines or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

[dustedmagazine]

Vilhelm Bromander — In This Forever Unfolding Moment (Thanatosis)

The descriptor “spiritual jazz” gets thrown around a lot these days. Not much of the stuff currently being made holds up to the large-band work of Don Cherry and Pharoah Sanders. The horns are too slick, the forms too prosaic and the efforts at incorporating contemporary elements just depressing. In This Forever Unfolding Moment, which has just been re-pressed by the Swedish label Thanatosis after the original 2023 edition went quickly out of print, is a study in how to do it right. Not only does it accurately trace the style’s requisite broad outlines, it has a rich relational and sonic depth patiently awaits discovery.

Bassist Vilhelm Bromander has been active on Sweden’s improvised and alternate tuning music scenes for about a decade. He’s played in lots of other folks’ bands, which will prove relevant in a bit, and he has led a few as well, but nothing like the Unfolding Orchestra. The 12-instrument ensemble’s complement is a veritable who’s who, encompassing current-generation free players such as tenor saxophonist Elin Forkelid and trombonist Mats Älekint, as well as veterans old enough to remember how a rotary dial phone feels under your fingertips, most notably bass clarinetist Christer Bothén, whom Don Cherry once sought out when he wanted to learn how to play the donso ngoni.  Saxophonist Martin Küchen is on hand to play a coarse, ecstatic alto solo, and violinist Katt Hernandez and pianist Alex Zethson offer provide idiomatically necessary textural plushness. This music covers a lot of ground, and all of its elements are in balance.

The Unfolding Orchestra is not just a band full of great players; it’s a band full of people who have histories with each other and Bromander, so that his prior explorations of South African and European post-bop jazz and free improvisation resonate throughout the stately, six-part horn charts and the roiling rhythmic undertow achieve by twinned drummers Anton Jonsson and Dennis Egberth. Druhpad singer Marianne Svašek, who has been Bromander’s tutor in the Indian vocal tradition, introduces the side-long title piece with an exquisitely centering passage for voice and tampura, which passes the torch to Emily Strandberg’s trumpet, which in turn ushers in the complete ensemble.

Bromander doesn’t step to the fore until the beginning of side two, when his solemnly plucked opening statement unlocks the album’s most turbulent moments on “Låt Våra Tårar Bli Våra Vapen” (“Let Our Tears Be Our Weapons”). The music’s intensity does not express energy for energy’s sake, but expresses the stormy point of an ultimately transcendental narrative. “Blommor Och Bröd” (“Flowers And Bread”) closes the album with an expression of serenity glimpsed, but not grasped. In This Forever Unfolding Moment doesn’t just get the sounds right; it projects the necessary spirit.

Bill Meyer

[scotianostra]

 Happy Birthday Scottish singersongwriter  KT Tunstall

Edinburgh born singer-songwriter KT Tunstall is one of Scotland's most successful musicians having sold over six million albums worldwide.

Kate “KT” Victoria Tunstall was born on this day 1975,  her birth mother was a  Hong Kong-born exotic dancer, who put her up for adoption her parents David and Rosemary Tunstall adopted her and raised her in St Andrews, she has always been aware that she was adopted. 

Strangely enough for a musician of her magnitude, KT Tunstall did not grow up in a musical household. Her parents’ only tape was a Tom Lehrer album on tape, leading Tunstall to discover the world of music entirely on her own , but it didn’t hold her back, KT was musical from an early age, learning to play piano, flute and guitar as a teenager.

KT moved to the USA, hungry for experiences and independence, she gained a scholarship to Kent School in Connecticut, New England. Whilst out there KT spent time on a hippy commune and formed her first band, The Happy Campers, she also spent a lot of time on busking in Burlington, Vermont.

After her time in the U.S she enrolled in a  music course at Royal Holloway College in London, before finally moving back to St Andrews, she joined a group of folk musicians from around the East Neuk  called The Fence Collective, which included the very talented Kenny Anderson aka King Creosote, in time she decided folk music was not for her and went on her way.

She began writing projects with Swedish songwriter/producer Martin Terefe and London-based Orcadian Jimmy Hogarth and London’s Tommy D. She started work on her debut album with her new band and legendary U2/New Order/Happy Monday’s producer Steve Osborne at the helm. ‘Eye to the Telescope’ saw her whittle down a massive catalogue of over 100 songs to just 12.

Luck played a part in her big break when due to another artist pulling out she appeared on  'Later With Jools Holland’ performing ‘Black Horse and the Cherry Tree’ it went on to become one of the most played songs of the summer. Her double platinum selling debut album 'Eye to the Telescope’ was nominated for the prestigious Mercury Prize. 

KT has now had 6 top 20 albums, the latest, Wax was in 2018, it reached number 6 in Scotland and 15 in the UK charts, her new album, Nut, is due out in September.

I remember her being interviewed on The Proclaimers, This is the Story documentary in 2017, where she chose their excellent song Scotland’s Story, commenting “Scotland’s Story just really struck me as quite a different song for them, that they were really saying something incredibly poignant and quite brave. It’s quite a critical song of the way that Scotland’s history is logged.

“Here we are in 2017 and it couldn’t be a more poignant, relevant song for what’s going on in the world and I just thought for right now, it’s an amazing song to sing.”

KT  has suffered hearing problems since 20n July 2021, she announced that she was having to pull out of her summer tour dates and permanently avoid lengthy runs of closely consecutive performances, citing issues with her right ear which were "exactly how the breakdown of my left ear began"  In July 2021, she announced that she was having to pull out of her summer tour dates and permanently avoid lengthy runs of closely consecutive performances, citing issues with her right ear which were "exactly how the breakdown of my left ear began"   Hearing problems have always been a worry to her; her brother  was profoundly deaf since

KT is touring just now, dates are all over the world, North America next month, then back home, she will n=be in Ireland, England and back in Scotland for the Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival.

The song is a duet of Caledonia with Alan Cumming.

[black-arcana]

POWERWOLF To Release New Studio Album, 'Wake Up The Wicked', In July

POWERWOLF will release a new studio album, "Wake Up The Wicked", on July 26, 2024 via Napalm Records.

"Wake Up The Wicked" — the highly anticipated follow-up to the extremely successful "Call Of The Wild" (2021) — will arrive just in time for the award-winning band's first-ever full North American tour, starting in August 2024, followed by their biggest European headline tour to date, the "Wolfsnächte 2024".

"Wake Up The Wicked" was once again produced by Joost Van Den Broek at Sandlane Recording Facilities and marks a new benchmark and undisputed career highlight for the band. The new album is hard, surprising and full of variety. While staying true to their established, loved sound, POWERWOLF go one step further and showcase a different facet of their deft musical and technical skills. This is evident, for example, on the outstanding single "1589", which is based on a true story from the 16th century.

20 years after their formation in 2004, POWERWOLF are expanding their repertoire with the highest quality and adding many future live hits to their extraordinary discography. "Wake Up The Wicked" is yet another statement cementing the status of the band as a leading force in the world of heavy metal

"Wake Up The Wicked" track listing:

01. Bless 'Em With The Blade 02. Sinners Of The Seven Seas 03. Kyrie Klitorem 04. Heretic Hunters 05. 1589 06. Viva Vulgata 07. Wake Up The Wicked 08. Joan Of Arc 09. Thunderpriest 10. We Don't Wanna Be No Saints 11. Vargamor

POWERWOLF are undoubtedly one of the most celebrated and successful heavy metal bands of the last decade. Multiple No. 1 album chart entries, gold and platinum records, huge sold-out arena shows, as well as headline slots at the biggest festivals have paved their way. In less than 20 years of band history, POWERWOLF has made it to the very highest league of heavy metal.

POWERWOLF has conquered countless stages at the world's biggest summer festivals, and their last "Wolfsnächte" headline tours (2019, 2022),as well as their aforementioned North American debut in early 2023, were almost completely sold out — resulting in a massive triumph. They have performed headlining sets at Wacken Open Air and Summer Breeze, as well as held premium slots at genre festival giants such as Hellfest, Graspop Metal Meeting, Masters Of Rock and many more, captivating enormous audiences. No other German metal band has been able to write a success story even remotely comparable in recent years.

Following their onslaught of North America, POWERWOLF will embark on their most impressive European tour yet in celebration of their highly anticipated 2024 studio album. Amid 16 shows in total, the tour will visit colossal venues in Munich, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Hamburg and Antwerp. POWERWOLF will be accompanied by Swedish heavy metal legends HAMMERFALL as special guests, with support from viral rising stars, dwarven metallers WIND ROSE.

The story of the frontrunners of today's German metal scene, POWERWOLF, began in 2004 and only knows one direction: ever upwards. Their trajectory may seem like something out of a fairytale, but it is the result of the band embodying the highest quality of heavy metal in the universe. Outstanding album production, bombastic live shows and a tireless drive for perfection on and behind the stage are what this exceptional band is known for around the world.

Over the course of their career, the band has not only fascinated metal fans, but has also won over international press and critics. Countless cover stories in the most important magazines, critics' awards such as the Metal Hammer Award, and effusive album and concert reviews underpin POWERWOLF's outstanding international status.

POWERWOLF is:

Attila Dorn - vocals Falk Maria Schlegel - organ Charles Greywolf - guitar Matthew Greywolf - guitar Roel van Helden - drums

Photo credit: VDPictures

[my-chaos-radio]

Release: January 7, 2002

Lyrics:

When moonlight crawls along the street

Chasing away the summer heat

Footsteps outside, somewhere below

The world revolves, I've let it go

We build our Church above the street

We practiced love between these sheets

The candy sweetness scent of you

It bathes my skin, I'm stained of you

And all I have to do is hold you

There's a racing within my heart

And I am barely touching you

Turn the lights down low

Take it off, let me show

My love for you insatiable

Turn me on, never stop

Wanna taste every drop

My love for you insatiable

The moonlight plays upon your skin

A kiss that lingers takes me in

I fall asleep inside of you

There are no words, there's only truth

Breathe in breathe out, there is no sound

We move together up and down

We levitate our bodies soar

Our feet don't even touch the floor

But nobody knows you like I do

'Cause the world may not understand

That I grow stronger in your hands

Turn the lights down low

Take it off, let me show

My love for you insatiable

Turn me on, never stop

Wanna taste every drop

My love for you insatiable

Turn the lights down low

Take it off, let me show

My love for you insatiable

Turn me on, never stop

Wanna taste every drop

My love for you insatiable

Turn the lights down low

Take it off, let me show

My love for you insatiable

Turn me on, never stop

Wanna taste every drop

My love for you insatiable

Baby, oh yeah

We never sleep, we're always holding hands

Kissing for hours talking and making plans

I feel like a better man, just being in the same room

We never sleep, there's just so much to do

So much to say can't close my eyes when I'm with you

Insatiable the way I'm loving you, oh baby, yeah

Turn the lights down low

Take it off, let me show

My love for you insatiable

Turn me on, never stop

Wanna taste every drop

My love for you insatiable

Turn the lights down low

Take it off, let me show

My love for you insatiable

Turn me on, never stop

Wanna taste every drop

My love for you insatiable, baby

Songwriter:

Oh baby, when I'm looking in your eyes

Insatiable, that we ain't loving you

Ohh, looking at you insatiable, insatiable

For you insatiable for you insatiable

Love for you insatiable

Love for you insatiable

Love for you insatiable

Love for you insatiable

Love for you insatiable...

Michael Woods / Jordan Willey

SongFacts:

"Insatiable" is the first solo single from Australian singer Darren Hayes, the former lead singer of Savage Garden. The song served as the lead single from his debut solo album Spin (2002). It was aired on American adult radio on January 7, 2002 and was released as a CD single in Australia the following week, on January 14. The song topped the New Zealand singles chart for the week of April 21, 2002, peaked at number three on the Australian and Danish singles charts, and peaked at number eight on the Swedish and British charts.

“Insatiable” is in the key of G minor and played at a tempo of 144 beats per minute.

The music video features Darren Hayes watching videos of an actress he is in love with. The video continues with Hayes showing how he grew out his hair and dyed it blonde, which is his natural hair color.

Hayes said in a HuffPost post in 2022 that while US label executives were initially excited about the song itself, after being shown a rough cut of the video, they feared Hayes seemed "too gay" for American audiences. and wanted to “rework” his song. Image “so as not to scare off the fans”.