Tag: Carina Dahl

Carina Dahl – It Gets Better

“They almost (but only almost) feel a tad forced.”

Tim: The title might give you the impression that this is a somewhat chirpy song. That is appropriate, because it really is.

Tim: This song is lovely, in particular the bouncy strings that are especially noticeable in the middle eight, and of course the chorus lyrics that are so in your face that they almost (but only almost) feel a tad forced.

Tom: Adding a percussion hit on every syllable is, indeed, forcing it a bit – but it does work. I’m less sure about that “better, better, better” repeat — I don’t think it’s quite as catchy as the producers seem to insist it is.

Tim: Perhaps not as catchy, but I still like it. The one thing that disappoints me, which you might be able to guess, is that there’s no key change back from the middle eight, because as far as I’m concerned it would be a delightful cherry on top of an already good cake, but a cake with a distinctly cherry-sized hole in it.

Tom: Good point: it’s positively begging for one there.

Tim: ​Few notes on the video: quite a waste of wine there, you’re really going to ruin those trainers and that’s one hell of a lot of chilli peppers. But mostly, just imagine that with a key change: “Feels like WAKING UP!” God, that’d be good.

Carina Dahl – If That’s The Only Way

“I was feeling a bit glum before I pushed play on this.”

Tim: I was feeling a bit glum before I pushed play on this – tired, just heard a string of duff tracks, not really excited – but then during the pre-chorus a smile appeared on my face, and then just kept growing.

Tim: Marks for the video barely approach positive numbers, what with the the typos in the lyrics and what is basically just an iTunes visualiser for the background, but I couldn’t care less about that. Because man, what a tune that is, with Big Strings thrown in by the bucketload.

Tom: It sounds like the love child of Coldplay’s Viva La Vida and the Saturdays’ Higher. That’s not an insult — those are both cracking tracks to be inspired by.

Tim: There’s not much to it, really, and it’s almost simplistic – as pop music, it doesn’t seem to care about meaningful depth, or inspiring emotions.

Instead, it’s there to be heard, to infect brains, and to be played very loud indeed. And preferably sung very loudly along with. Like so: OH. OH-OH. MAYBE YOU SHOULD PLAY ME ON YOUR STEREO. IF THAT’S THE ONLY WAY THAT I CAN LET YOU KNOW, I WOULD SING MY HEART ON ON THE RADIO. OH-OH-OH-OH.

Tom: Thanks for that, Tim. I actually heard that in a sort of discordant voice in my head.

Tim: And at least that way we don’t need to watch that video.

Carina Dahl – NLTO (Not Like The Others)

A largely inoffensive piece of pop

Tim: No idea what the point of the acronym is, since the title also includes the expansion of it, but never mind. Prepare for an utterly gratuitous profanity in the pre-chorus.

Tim: And that is a bit weird, actually, because the rest of NLTO (Not Like The Others) is so family-friendly, entirely standard pop that you’d expect from any current female act. Slightly reminiscent of the ‘shhh’ in the first Little Mix single – not there to do anything except be a bit “ooh, how rude!”

Tom: Considering that the association I had in my head was Sesame Street’s “One Of These Things Is Not Like The Others”, that was a bit surprising.

Tim: That aside, though, NLTO (Not Like The Others) is a largely inoffensive piece of pop, and I think one of very few singles that manages to sit perfectly on the fence between banger and ballad.

Tom: Yep. It’s difficult to sit on that fence: cracking piano intro, decent melody, and just the right amount of – to use a vague word – ‘oomph’.

Tim: Indeed, but this manages it – the vocals could all be underpinned by a gentle piano piece if so intended, but without much effort the energy in the backing could be cranked up to floorfiller status easily enough. Not many songs can do that, so top marks to NLTO (Not Like The Others).

Tom: I. (Indeed.)