#30 Daniel Zueras, "No quiero enamorarme"

Note that the actual music video is NSFW, so I've embedded a performance below (only the first half of the video is this song); should you want to watch the music video, you can do so here.



Hoy no quiero enamorarme
sólo estar pegado a ti
como el viento con el aire
dando lo mejor de ti y de mí

This is a perfect pop song. I love it. So why isn't it higher? I have no idea--could just as easily be #1, depending on...well, the day, I guess, or anything.

Sounding like something straight out of the '90's, "No quiero enamorarme" ("I Don't Want To Fall In Love") was the debut single of Operación Triunfo (the Spanish precursor to Fame Academy and its various incarnations) contestant Daniel Zueras. And it completely baffles me. For the longest time, I was convinced some big names had to be behind it, just selling off songs probably written in English to performers in other countries, but no, it was apparently written by David Santisteban and Marco Dettoni, who, from the other songs I've heard of theirs (which are admittedly not many), have never even done really anything near this good. It's like they woke up one morning and were just like, "you know, it's time to write a great pop song"--and they did. Was it written for Daniel and he's just a particularly inspiring muse? Were they visited in a dream by the pop gods and had the melody bestowed upon? I have no idea. I do know, though, that this song is perfect bouncy poppy pop (maybe with a little dance influence thrown in), way too much fun, and super-catchy. The song may not be about innocent intentions, but the video takes that to a whole new level; I'm not sure if the logic behind it was something like "well, this song won't win Daniel any cred or edge, so let's do something racy and 'controversial' in the video!" or just "let's get some headlines for something" (given the flood of OT contestants in the market now), but regardless, the song playing during it is too good to miss out on.

Find it on: Siempre sale el sol

Big thanks to Don't Stop The Pop for introducing me to the song!

When the solid ground is shaking

I promise this isn't the start of an obsession and loads of posts, but having finally heard all of Jon's second album, I wanted to sneak in one last thing about him and write about it. As before, all credit for the introduction goes to DSTP. In brief, Jon is a Danish singer who won Popstars. There's also a documentary about him that's just recently been released; it looks really interesting and I'd definitely buy it if it ever comes out in a version in English or with English subtitles (I think the DVD, due out this summer, has English subtitles, though I'm not sure).

Hurry Up Live--this song is in a style of music never likely to cause explosions of excitement in most pop-loving places but one that I absolutely adore. I've been craving "boy pop" lately and, though Enrique Iglesias's new song helped with that (as have some singers on other blogs--more on that in a moment), Jon's second album perfectly fulfills that requirement. In this case, "boy pop" may be a bit of a misleading term--don't picture a singer who sounds like an actual boy (like, say, Corbin Bleu)--but I've not yet come up with a better term. The music has a very rich warm sound to it--you know the whole "slip into your favorite sweater, make a cup of hot chocolate, and curl up in front of the fireplace" concept? Or the idea of comfort food? Well, Today Is A Good Day (To Fall In Love) (yes, cheesy title, I know) is exactly like that in music form. Don't let that make you think it's all whispery or ballad-y, though--it's uplifting in a non-aggressive way. Comfortable and comforting and never saccharine or treacly--it's far too warm to come off as sugary. The dark chocolate of the music world.

You can buy Jon's second album, Today Is A Good Day (To Fall In Love), go here (physical) or visit iTunes, where you'll have to search for song names or the album title--the album won't come up if you search for "Jon." For example, it can be found on the U.S. iTunes here. I very much recommend picking up at least some of the songs on it--in particular, his cover of Sita's "Popstar" (I love the added verse), "Why Can't This Be Love," and "Who U Gonna Run To"--I could probably go on, but those are good songs to start with.

Speaking of "boy pop," there are some great examples in the blogworld at the moment. Check out Daniel Zueras at Don't Stop The Pop--very cute-sounding Spanish pop with a video and lyrics that bely that cuteness. A Kind Of Love In has great pop by Swiss/Italian singer Paolo Meneguzzi. Look out for "Ti Amo Ti Odio" and "Vero Falso" in particular. I'm definitely buying some albums by him as soon as I have more money again!

Next up: possibly Espen Lind, but I'm not sure if I'm ready yet.