Showing posts with label Biffco. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Biffco. Show all posts

Monday, May 10, 2010

That Armin Song (remember Not Giving Up On Love)

This may seem a little stalkerish...BUT

19 minutes ago
you're going to love Not Giving Up... it's fantastic! Armin is great. you'll hear it soon...

17 minutes ago
@SophieEB Brilliant song! x (biffco's response)

11 minutes ago
@biffco thanks. how you? there is a new and improved mix of it now. got that wistful thing in there that i always love in pop.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Magic is on Fascination's playlist

Magic is on Fascination's official playlist. That could possibly mean that it's on Sophie's forthcoming album. So i guess we have all twelve tracks figured out then.
Thanks to Dan for the update
Amazon (and eBay) have listed Sophia Loren as the b-side to Bittersweet. But, it hasn't been officially confirmed yet.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bittersweet-Sophie-Ellis-Bextor/dp/B003ER20O0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1270223833&sr=8-1
Thanks to Fran for the update

Friday, March 19, 2010

Bittersweet - The review

Put together Blue Monday '88 (by New Order), Strangelove (by Depeche Mode), Sweet Dreams (by Eurythmics), One Word (by Kelly Osbourne) and The One (by Kylie Minogue), mix those with Sophie's bittersweet vocals and what you get is...well..."Bittersweet"

Bittersweet, which is first single from her fourth album recently titled Straight To The Heart, is produced by the Freemasons & Biffco and co written with them and Hannah Robinson. The nearly-9-minutes long orgasmic mix by the Freemasons, which leaked a couple of days ago, boasted of the Eurythmics meets Depeche Mode "oh-holy-shit-mother-of-all-riffs" all through the mix, with hints of New Order on drum snares. Everyone raved about how good the mix was and how it blew them away, but little did they know that there was more to come... The Radio Edit of the song which recently hit youtube surpasses the Freemasons Extended Mix in almost every way possible. Almost, yes.

The arresting riff, which got a usual clubber to go "oh fuck hell yeah" at it's premiere, is safely hidden under the verses of the Radio Edit? Why they chose to overshadow that is a mystery to me. But the Radio Edit is far more beefy - in that it has lots of lush strings and synth, and layers of sounds that completely make up for the lack of the riff. But wait, there's more. The 80's style disco anthem, drawing influences from some of the recent hits by K. Minogue and K. Osbourne, oozes elegance and melody in a gentle yet strong manner. The lyrics and the delivery are perfect, as usual, with Sophie experimenting her part-silk-cushion-part-scorched-lizard vocals - elongated words, high pitched "ooohs", meandering melody, whispers (oh my god!)...and just when you think you have heard it all, the feline siren comes back mewing "so here i am". DigitalSpy rightly calls this moment as three seconds of pure pop loveliness. Indeed!

If you haven't already wet your pants, then try this, but i warn you - you may get insanely addicted!
Bittersweet (Radio Edit) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WvGElFmZYI
Bittersweet (Freemasons Extended Mix) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiOqkkv8tT4
Bittersweet (Jodie Harsh Remix) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kT_O6c-EDDE

Sophierazzi gives a thumbs up to the Freemasons and Biffco, and salutes Sophie, the rightful pop Goddess.
Bittersweet (Radio Edit)- 10(0000)/10
Bittersweet (Freemasons Extended Mix) - 9.9999999/10
Bittersweet (Jodie Harsh Mix) - 7/10

P.S. - People, please don't forget she also has a single with Junior Caldera which is out; the video will premeire soon. Keep your eyes peeled. Love, Kx.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Digital Spy gave Sophie a really good review

The new Sophie Ellis-Bextor single landed in our inbox this morning and since then, according to iTunes play count, we've listened to it precisely 16 times. We always pick pleasure over pain, so you can take that as a testament to the track's quality.

It's called 'Bittersweet' and it's a co-production between Biff Stannard, who previously worked with Soph on 'New York City Lights', and the Freemasons, with whom she hooked up last year for 'Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)'. The latter's the Bextor track with which 'Bittersweet' shares the most DNA, though the pair are more second cousins who see each other at Christmas and significant family birthdays than brother and sister.

Right, time for the nitty-gritty. 'Bittersweet' is a big spangly club banger with a pleasing whiff of the '80s to it and a chorus that's both uplifting and wistful. "I know I shouldn't go but something makes me crave the heat, your love is bittersweet," she sings on that chorus, "The fire in your touch I always find so hard to beat, your love is bittersweet..." After both "bittersweets" there are extra snippets of Sophie vocal buried just beneath the surface of the mix - "woah-woah-woah, so here I am" - and each one is three seconds of pure pop loveliness.

Time for a final thought? Oh go on then. Well, this is a cracking comeback single from an artist we've long been a fan of here at DS and always enjoy pestering at awards shows. It's not out until May, and God (scratch that), GaGa knows what's going to happen between now and then, but, if you ask us, Mademoiselle E-B's given herself every chance of bagging an eighth top ten hit with this one.

Friday, February 26, 2010

So.. erm.. to sum up

All the information that we have received till now:

1. Sophie recorded with a billion producers (again). We know of 25-30 song titles through ASCAP. But only 12 are going to land up on the album (according to Sophie), which she recently named "Make A Scene". If we pray hard enough and if God is a generous fellow, then we may get two bonus tracks and a load of b-sides. The release strategy, as of now, is two singles followed by the album. And if my memory doesn't fail me, Sophie mentioned sometime in the past that there would be 3 singles from this album.

2. Bittersweet which is scheduled to be the FIRST single from the album is a monstermotherfucker of a track. The Bex-monster will be filming the video for it shortly, and it will hit the radio after that. The CD single will be released on the 2nd of May. We're still unsure what they're going to do with Heartbreak. The video for Bittersweet will be shot in London, with Chris Sweeny again (the same guy who did that goegeous video Heartbreak). A live recording of the Freemasons mix of Bittersweet is available on youtube, thanks to a generous PopJustice reader.

3. The danciest song on the album is a track about a stalker (big surprise!) who irritates Sophie over the phone. ASCAP registers a song-title called "Dial My Number" (with Liam Howe) which, i suppose is the track we're talking about. There was a title called "Hang Up" which came from an inside source, which is most probably just a big rumour. As are the other titles - Still Mixed Up and Carnival.

4. There was a demo CD in circulation in the Fascination office which included these tracks - Synchronised, Starlight, Dial My Number, Off & On, Heartbreak, Under Your Touch and Sophia Loren. Some, if not all, of these tracks might end up on the album. Synchronised was added to Fascination's office playlist back when the song title was just discovered. Calvin Harris had hinted once that he was working on a new mix for "Off & On". We're not sure if there is going to be a new mix of the song, or if his other song "Calling It Love" will end up on the album instead. Sophie performed Starlight at the iTunes festival. The track is produced by Richard X, who has also contributed another song called "Magic". Richard X seems to think that Magic will end up on Sophie's album, thats what i gather from BlackMelody. Richard X, along with Hannah Robinson contributed another song called "Immune To Love", which might not end up on the album.

5. There is a song called "Revolution" which a music journalist (JP) posted on the offical SEB forums. In his words. "'Revolution' has to be a single, I cannot write in words how much I love this track".

6. Sophie had mentioned Ed Harcourt a couple of times in the past. Ed collaborated with Sophie and Dimitri, contributing 3 songs, according to ASCAP. Sophie also said on a radio interview that she worked with Betty Boo for the album, but no song title has popped up, yet, crediting Betty Boo.

7. Sophie has worked with the famous Armin Van Buuren on a very trance-y song called "Not Giving Up On Love" which is penned with the Nervo sisters. The Nervo sisters contributed another song called "We Got A Chance", according to ASCAP. Sophie recently confirmed the Armin track to be a part of the album.

8. "Sophia Loren", a track produced by Christopher Rojas and co-written with Cathy Dennis was initially planned to be the lead single of the album last January, when Sophie was still pregnant with Kit. The song was featured on a Rimmel advert which is now being played in the US as well. The chorus of the song can be heard on the advert, and a 2 minute snippet of the song can be heard on the making of ad. Christopher Rojas contributed another song called "Lose Myself" according to ASCAP.

9. Sophie's official website announced that Sophie was going to work with Greg Kurstin (again) and Andreas Kleerup on new songs. So far, no songtitles have popped up anywhere crediting them. Sophie has worked with Kurstin in the past on her hit single "Catch You".

10. Sophie has worked with some of the biggest names in the pop industry. Here are the list of collaborators - Freemasons, Calvin Harris, Richard X, Joe (Metronomy), Liam Howe (Sneaker Pimps), Biffco, Dimitri, Hannah Robinson, Armin Van Buuren, Christopher Rojas, Jim Elliott (Kish Mauve), Fred Ball, Greg Kurstin, Andreas Kleerup, Johnny Douglas, Cathy Dennis, Ina Wrolsden, Miriam and Olivia Nervo, Ed Harcourt, Betty Boo and more (that whole Bloodshy & Avant thing is, most probably, just a rumour).

11. This is a thorough list of songs recorded for the album. We're not sure which ones are going to make it to the final cut - Cut Through The Heart, Don't Let Me Go, Sleepwalking, Love Deluxe, For Love, Not Giving Up On Love, Calling It Love, Dial My Number, Give Into Love, Magic, Bittersweet, Lose Myself, My Priority, Off & On, Only For This Moment, Sophia Loren, Sorry Now, Starlight, Supersexy, Synchronised, Scene, Under Your Touch, Whispers On The Street, Wicked Game, Immune To Love, We Got A Chance, Heartbreak Make Me A Dancer, Easier Said Than Done, Get Right, Hype, Kitten On The Keys, Revolution.

Monday, February 1, 2010

what could be more torture...

...not having a Sophie song that is supposed to be 'absolutely-fantastically-stupendously-marvellous' or being teased about it.. hmmm.
(i like being teased though)

BiffCo tweeted:
"" One touch and there's a rush of Electricity. So wont you show me all there is to know? " S.E.B. 2010"

Steve Anderson (yes, the guy who remixes Kylie's songs for her tour) said:
"Perks of being old friends with a Freemason - @SophieEB's "Bittersweet" is an absolute MONSTER!! HUGE RIFF ALERT!!! - amazing amazing"

Biff replied:
"Fabelhoff! You approval means a lot xxx"

and Steve said:
"with Sophie, Marina and Hurts you are on FIRE my friend!"

excited? I know i am... can't wait for the (gonna burn this) goddamn (house right down) song to hit the radio. C'mon Sophie.... hurry it up!

Friday, January 29, 2010

the hype continues...Bittersweet

I'm going to copy-paste a post i found on PopJustice. I got a little excited, jumped around a little bit, but i'm going to keep calm until i hear a snippet of the song.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

and then she tweeted.....

"the new single's about when you can't resist something that you know is bad for you. a guilty pleasure. like watching celebrity big brother."
Lol. I find the comparison quite hilarious. So it's a song about guilty pleasures. I'm glad its not another heartbreak on the dancefloor.

"out early april, heading to radio early february"
oh. I was hoping for January, but i'm still quite excited. February is not far away.

"the new single is called Bittersweet. it's written with those lovely Freemason's again (and lovely biff and lovely hannah too.)"
Freemasons/Biff/Hannah/Sophie. Wow. Its like nothing can go wrong. But i suspect this was more of a Fascination move. Heartbreak did well and stayed for a long time, so why not use the same formula and spice it up. Oh well, i'm still on board. I hope it is as "massive" as Fascination deemed it to be. *fingers crossed*

Monday, January 4, 2010

Your Love Is Bittersweet

I think Sophie has officially begun the teasing! And i'm loving it. Sophie and Biffco teased us today tweeting what seems to be the entire title of the new song, or maybe a part of the chorus
"Your love is bittersweet".
I'm so excited that i'm going to jump around first *jumps around*
..
..
..
*back at the computer*
This suspense is killing me, but i really like how everything is coming out bit by bit. Maybe we'll have some solid news next week!
Tell us something more Sophie, please!

Friday, November 20, 2009

album nearly finished...

On Nov 3rd, Sophie tweeted saying: "album writing all done now. just final vocals and mixing. woo! have to pick my final album tracks then january it all goes public..." and "done another lovely song with the freemasons, biff and hannah. i am a lucky gal!" Unfortunately though, she caught a cold and she couldn't sing. But recently, Sophie tweeted this
"
Celebrated finishing off v good new song by whole vacherin cheese just for me and R with red wine. Was yum but feel bit gross today."
and
"
another day, another song sung! album nearly finished yay yay yay."

The good thing is she is back in the studio and the album is finally being recorded and completed. Its all out in January, according to Sophie. So fingers crossed we get a great (electro-pop dance) album. The campaign is supposed to be really bizarre but we're in for a treat.

Here is a list of known songs (updated), who knows what will end up on the album:
  1. Love Deluxe (Ellis-Bextor/Harry James/Wilcox Simon)
  2. For Love (Douglas John Henry/Ellis-Bextor/Poole Karen Ann)
  3. Not Giving Up On Love (Buuren Armin/Ellis-Bextor/Nervo Miriam/Nervo Olivia Margaret)
  4. Calling It Love (Cathy Dennis/Sophie Ellis-Bextor/Richard Wiles)
  5. Dial My Number (Hang Up) (Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Liam Howe, Hannah Robinson)
  6. Give Into Love (Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Liam Howe, Hannah Robinson)
  7. Magic (Richard X/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  8. Lose Myself (Christopher Rojas/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  9. My Priority (Lamont Dazier/Sophie Ellis-Bextor/John Stack Graham/Daniel Woodcock)
  10. Off And On (Cathy Dennis/Roisin Murphy/Calvin Harris)
  11. Only For This Moment (Alexander Perls/Cohen Wayne/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  12. Sophia Loren (Christopher Rojas/Cathy Dennis/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  13. Sorry Now (Christopher Mohr/Cohen Wayne/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  14. Starlight (Richard X/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  15. Supersexy (Jim Elliott, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Gabriel, Hannah Robinson)
  16. Synchronized (Ina Wroldsen/Sophie Ellis-Bextor/Fred Ball)
  17. Make A Scene (Metronomy/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  18. Under Your Touch (Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Liam Howe, Hannah Robinson)
  19. Whispers On The Street (Jim Elliott, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Gabriel, Hannah Robinson)
  20. Wicked Game (David Lipsey/Jeremy Shaw/Sophie Ellis-Bextor)
  21. Immune To Love (Sophie Ellis-Bextor/Hannah Robinson/Richard X)
  22. We Got A Chance (Ellis-Bextor/Nervo Miriam/Nervo Olivia/Rowbottom Matthew Paul)
  23. Heartbreak Make Me A Dancer (Ellis-Bextor/Freemasons)

and the songs which are not going to be on the album (confirmed by an inside source)
Carnival
In The Name Of Lust
Moving Cities
Music Took My Man
Still Mixed Up

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