If somebody's going to make it, then the somebody oughta be you

As KulPop wrote about earlier, a-ha have a new single, "Foot Of The Mountain," out. If you like Norwegian pop-rock groups not afraid to incorporate electronic elements and '80s influences into their periodically soaring songs, though, you might also want to check out DonkeyBoy and Nixon.

I wrote about Nixon's "Tiffany" several times last year and I've yet to hear anything from the group that rivals that perfect debut single. The lead single for their new album, "Fireflies" (listen on MySpace, buy on iTunes internationally), doesn't change that and doesn't use those electronic elements quite as much as I'd like, doesn't ever fully take off--or maybe it flirts with soaring at the expense of a grounded melody. It's good, though.



Shortly after writing about Nixon for the first time last year, Chris recommended DonkeyBoy, a less-than-ideally-named fellow Norwegian group, and their song "Broke My Eyes," which I don't think I wrote about but should have. It's taken DonkeyBoy a year since then to get out their debut single, but it was worth the wait. I'm not sure how, but "Ambitions" (listen on MySpace, buy digitally internationally here) that single, has taken off on Norwegian iTunes. I meant to recommend it ages ago, but kept not having the time. Luckily, though, as usual, Nick of #1 Hits doesn't let anythig slip through the cracks and featured it. "Ambitions" is a bit less pop-rock, a bit more electro, and features distinctive, often higher vocals, but most importantly, a great mid-tempo '80s-touched melody. If you only check out one of these two songs, make it this one.

On a not at all related note, Norwegian pop-R&B singer Elisabeth Carew, who you might remember from her American-sounding "Destructive" from last year, finally has another single out. It's called "Even If The Rain" (listen to a clip on MySpace) and, though not revolutionary, has a nice electro-pulse backing and sweet mid-tempo pop&B melody. It's available on iTunes internationally, along with b-side "Thunder."

#58 Nixon, "Tiffany"

What do I have to prove to you, Tiffany?
You were the one who said to me let me be

I love it when bands come out of nowhere to make something brilliant. By "nowhere," I'm not referring to Norway, the birthplace of the band Nixon, which has more than its share of good artists, but rather that a group previously unheard of and unbuzzed about could suddenly release upon the world a debut single like this slice of delicious synth-using pop-rock, one of the year's most underrated (or undeservedly unknown) songs. The synths here aren't Van Halen-style nor omnipresent Veto Silver style--more just dabbed on top to make the song sparkle while the lead single flirts with doing the flowing melody in a big sweeping vocal style without ever going all the way. Shake off most of the musical melancholy that characterizes a lot of Norwegian music and add a revving beat under the chorus and some presumably French whispered female vocals, and somehow it all becomes almost epic without ever becoming properly loud. On "Tiffany," Nixon makes creating great music sound effortless--what more could you ask for from a debut single?

Find it on: Überpop