GU2 Radio Award - VOTE NOW!

Big news! September 29th 2010 is the third annual Guildford Music Awards at Fahrenheit 55! An awards night dedicated to the excellent, exciting and very high quality artists that have passed through Guildford in the last year. Previous winners have been signed to major labels, supported big artists and it's definitely true that none of this would've happened without winning at the Guildford Music Awards.
 
Awards categories include Best Male, Best Female, Best Live Band and many others
 
For the second year we are very pleased to announce that the GU2 Radio Award will be a part of the awards. This is for the best local/upcoming artist that we've featured over the past year. On average we have two or three in per week and play many more so picking a nominees list is an absolute nightmare. As with last year, I am too much of a sissy to make the bold decision of picking the final winner so I am leaving it down to YOU (or a collection of) to pick the winner.
 
Again, you have six nominations. All very different from each other. To help you pick through them we've also picked a track for you to listen to, it's not necessarily our favourite one by them but it is a good one that is easily heard on their site. Have a listen to each of them and let us know who should win:
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The Dirty Disco - http://www.myspace.com/TheDirtyDiscoMusic
A spectacular mix of cyber-punk and pornographically catchy hooks. An exuberant live act known for its flamboyance, style and energy
Recommended Track: White Room (check out the video too)
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Alex Hall - http://alexhall.bandcamp.com/
Beautiful voiced young man who has only been brought to our attention relatively recently, but if you like singer songwriters then you just can't ignore someone like this.
Recommended Track: Carley
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Rory Ellis - http://www.myspace.com/RoryEllis
A giant Australian with a voice like a wise gin-drenched oak bear. A strong rootsy soul who drifts around the world playing to captive audiences wherever he plays, luckily for us that included Guildford back in May!
Recommended Track: Two Feathers
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The Stanley Blacks - http://www.myspace.com/TheStanleyBlacks
Cheeky indie band with a good mix between the garage and the stadium. A fun group of lads that are amassing an army in these parts.
Recommended Track: Caroline
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Kid Adrift - http://www.myspace.com/KidAdrift
I think I once read them described as sounding like a computer having sex with a microwave. I can't beat that. The best thing to come from Surrey Uni in years.
Recommended Track: Red, Green & Blue
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Dan Zappi - http://www.myspace.com/DanZappi
A dashing London songwriter that we found by accident. We fell in love with his storytelling songs with a dash of musical theatre and a twist of grit.
Recommended Track: Piccadilly People (The full version, not the radio edit.)
 
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Hope you enjoyed that! Now it's time to voice your choice!
 
To vote, email your TOP THREE artists in order to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
You have to pick three, you just do.
The winner will be announced on the night!
 
*If you want to attend the Guildford Music Awards then email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it expressing your wish. If you're quick enough we should have some guestlist space left.

GU2 does One Big Weekend!

I was part of the lucky group to be able to attend a Radio One Masterclass a couple of weeks ago which was based at One Big Weekend, all the way in Bangor, North Wales. Needless to say, the journey was long but completely worth it.

One of the main privileges of attending the masterclass was that we were also entitled to tickets for the big weekend itself. If you have ever applied and been unsuccessful, you will know what a big deal this is! We got to the festival site Saturday afternoon, in time to see the last few acts, including Lost prophets, MGMT and Alicia Keyes . The performance of the night for me, however, was Florence and the Machine, who was headlining the main stage. Her stage presence captivated the audience from the beginning, as she opened with her hit, The Dog Days are Over.  Other hits from her debut album Lungs followed, including Rabbit Heart, Drumming Song, and Cosmic Love . She also treated the audience to a mesmerising version of Halo by Beyonce and for the encore, was joined by Dizzee Rascal for a special performance of You’ve Got the Love, which they had previously performed together at the Brit Awards.

On Sunday , we were lucky enough to attend the whole day and saw some amazing acts including Paolo Nutini, Pixie Lott, Kids in Glass Houses, JLS, Rhianna and Pendulum. The performance of the day for me, was Paramore.  Though I wasn’t too familiar with most of their songs, the energy and enthusiasm the band put into the set made the show a must see. It was apparent what an amazing vocal talent Hayley Williams, the lead singer has, as well as good stage presence. They played several of the songs from their most recent album including Brick by Boring Brick and The Only Exception as well as Misery Business, one of their most iconic songs off the Riot! album.

Overall, the festival and masterclass made for an unforgettable weekend. My advice to any budding radio presenters/producers, or just anyone with a general radio interest, would be to come along next year for an amazing experience!

Eurovision Song Contest - The Final

Saturday night saw Germany win the 55th Eurovision Song Contest with a song by Lena Meyer Landrut called Satalite. She won with a margin of only 76 points (compared to last years runaway victory for Alexander Rybak with a margin of 169), and the rest of the top ten were all within just a few points of each other. The results of the top ten are as follows;

Germany - 246

Turkey - 170

Romania - 162

Denmark - 149

Azerbaijan - 145

Belgium - 143

Armenia - 141

Greece - 140

Georgia - 136

Ukraine - 108

As you can see, the shuffle of the top ten was incredibly tight, and for the first time in years the bookies favourite (Azerbaijan) didnt win, or even come in the top 3.

Tune into Sounds of Europe mondays at 9pm to hear more tracks from some of the artists that particiapted this year, as well as many other popular artists from across Europe.

Eurovision Song Contest - Semi Final 2

Last night saw the second Eurovision semi final. A very tense evening for us as this was the one with most of our favourites. There were of course a few disappointments, and some shock results (Sweden didn’t qualify for the final for the first time since 1976, not that they deserved to this year, the song was so dull), but it was all very entertaining anyway.

Qualifiers-

Armenia: One of the favourites to win now. It’s an ethno-pop song with a strikingly pretty singer but is ultimately forgettable and has a stage performance which is too fussy.

Israel: Now our other favourites are out, we’re backing the lovely Harel Skaat all the way. His powerful voice and simple performance make for an intense 3 minutes which will probably leave you with goosebumps. This is Azerbaijan’s main competition, and the fact that he’s performing second to last will also help.

Denmark: 80s flavour pop from a duo with a complete lack of chemistry. But don’t let that put you off; it’s a great song with a memorable chorus. This has been a favourite with the fans since it won the Danish National Final back in January.

Azerbaijan: This year’s winner so all the bookies and Eurovision websites would have you know. It’s all a bit too whiny for our liking though- a boring, predictable chorus, over-the-top performance and total lack of charm.

Ukraine: The qualifier nobody was expecting. Just watch it on Saturday and you’ll see why.

Romania: Coolest gimmick of the year has to be Romania’s double piano. The song is called Playing With Fire so there’s a lot of pyrotechnics. Watch out for Paula’s big high note towards the end which could shatter glass.

Ireland:  Basically a dull version of Norway’s entry without the pretty boy singer.

Cyprus: Shock qualifier! We’re very happy for Welshman Jon Lillygreen who didn’t really think he’d qualify either. Guitar pop similar to Belgium’s, but with a great group of backing singers who add another layer to the song.

Georgia: Pleasant little song marking Georgia’s return to form in the contest after a few bad years. Impressive vocal performance from Sofia under the circumstances (you’ll see).

Turkey: Can’t remember much apart from the robot and the strobe lighting. It’s OK but we don’t think rock should be allowed in Eurovision.

Commiserations to Switzerland, Bulgaria and Croatia who all performed brilliantly on the night. And to Lithuania. Apparently Eastern European men in sparkly hotpants is not what Europe wants these days. Also out of the running are Sweden, Slovenia and Holland.

Tomorrow from 5pm on GU2 Sounds of Europe will be hosting a special eurovision preview show where we'll be playing our favourites of the contest, both those that have got through (including the automatic qualifiers) and those that really should have gone through. We'll also be playing some of our favourites from the national finals that didnt even make it to the contest. After the show, you can watch the final in all its glory on BBC1 from 8pm.

Eurovision Song Contest - Semi Final 1

Tuesday saw the first semi final of the 2010 Eurovision song contest in Oslo. Widely agreed to be the weaker of the two semi's, there were still a lot of surprises. The 10 qualifiers, along with my thoughts, were (in no particular order);

Belgium: My favourites of this semi. A simple acoustic style song, with autobiographical lyrics. A refreshing song in a contest of gimmicks.

Iceland: Got the biggest cheer from the crowd. One of the few Schlager songs of this years contest.

Russia: The joke entry. Except most people don't realise. Which to the Russian's probably just makes it even funnier. I liked it, but it was a shock qualifier.

Bosnia & Herzegovia: Talking of shock qualifiers. Rock songs rarely do well at eurovision, so why this poor attempt got through is anyones guess.

Belarus: Only the second time Belarus have made it to the final. And well deserved (even if the gimmick was a love/hate divider). Another simple but classic song style.

Serbia: Quite an usual look this singer has gone for, and an usual style of song (to western ears at least), but insanely catching. Also quite a nice change for a country still relatively new to the contest.

Moldova: The opener of the contest, and apparently you cant go wrong with a dry-humping saxsophonist. Catchy, and I quite like it, but there probably were better one's that should have gone through in its place.

Albania: Another that doesnt deserve its place in the final. This is run of the mill, and rather dated, pop. With vocals and a melody that are equally mediocre. Dissapointing.

Greece: Eugh. Thats all.

Portugal: A pretty little ballad. Not very catchy, but pleasant enough at the time. Will probably get lost in the final though, unless its lucky enough to have a late placing.

And comiserations to those who didnt qualify: Estonia (very dissapointing, this was a great song), Malta (perhaps the gimmick was too much), FYR Macedonia (perhaps the semi naked girls were too much), Slovakia (perhaps the whole sherade was too much), Finland (shame, this was starting to grow on me), Poland (what a voice! Strangling your backing singers is definitely too much though), Latvia (again... eugh).

The second semi is live tonight from 8pm on BBC3. It promises to be an exciting and tense show.