You are released - The Agnes Discography Rate (Finished)
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londonrain
Staff member
she/her
Is it finally time to stop killing the extras?
Said a film producer, at some point, presumably.
The answer is...
...Yes.
If I Could Build My Whole World Around You (Agnes & Erik Hassle)
Average: 5.03
High scores: 8 x 2 (@Txetxu, @danmharrow), 7.5 x 1 (@KamikazeHeart)
Low scores: 0.5 x 1 (@Lost Boy). 2 x 2 (@DJHazey, @Verandi)
Chart positions: N/A
Shock of shocks as it is Dance Love Pop that takes the first hit. Well, kind of. If I Could Build My Whole World Around You was not included on the original release of the album. As far as I can tell, it was only included on the UK release. I don't have a UK copy so I have no idea what this was officially credited as.
Let's talk about Erik Hassle then. Erik is the same age as Agnes, and both were signed to Roxy when Dance Love Pop was released, although curiously, not for his UK releases. It's strange to me as it seems they were on different record labels at the time, so why only release this on the UK version? I digress.
The Guardian described him as a new, younger Robbie from Take That, in a typical Guardian article - check out the part where they say 'we assume this is the single, but we can't bothered to check'.
So as you can probably tell, he failed to break the UK, or Sweden (one #2 album, one #11 single), Denmark or anywhere really. However, he was an uncredited vocalist and a credited writer on Icona Pop's Emergency, so we can post that up in here.
If I was feeling cruel, I could always post the Kikki Danielsson version from Så Mycket Bättre, but am I really that evil?
Whoops.
If I seem dismissive of him, it's because I am. Quite simply, nothing he's ever done has appealed to me, and he's partially responsible for this:
@Music Industry stop making shitty acoustic versions of Robyn Carlsson songs challenge.
If I Could Build My Whole World Around You is a cover of a Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell song, written by some Motown writers and originally released in 1967. It's a song that I am not familiar with at all, so I shall just post it here and hope that nobody notices what I have just said.
As you can see, I wasn't terribly impressed, but was anyone else? Did they tell us?
@berserkboi Told us this:
"Nope! Couldn’t even get through it in full, that man’s voice and arrangement isn’t for me!" - 4.9. Don't think he was a massive fan.
@londonrain is familiar with the original. Ask him questions if you have any:
"This is a perfectly serviceable cover that sounds very underproduced compared to the rest of the album. That’s what happens when you slap an acoustic live performance onto a dance album, I guess." - 6.0
@iheartpoptarts makes a prediction:
"This is gonna hurt the album average, isn’t it?" - 5.0 Spoiler: yes.
@abael sits on a Swiss level of neutrality:
"It’s cute, nothing wrong with it. Does nothing for me though." - 6.0
@DJHazey is scathing once more:
"Oh no, this guy's voice is like the epitome of anti-Hazey and Agnes won't save it because the style of the song is terrible anyway." - 2.0
But let's end with something a little nicer from @danmharrow:
"I love this song, and Erik on it makes it even better. My friend won us tickets to see Erik support Mika at an iTunes London concert way back when, and we skipped Mika’s performance to track down EH and ask him about entering MF, which was a clear and confused why we would even ask no. iTunes published live recordings of some of the tracks, so you hear him say ‘I see that flag’ as he reacted to the Swedish flag we were waving madly, dancing away while surrounded by bored teenagers who’d never heard of him." - 8.0
Said a film producer, at some point, presumably.
The answer is...
...Yes.
If I Could Build My Whole World Around You (Agnes & Erik Hassle)
Average: 5.03
High scores: 8 x 2 (@Txetxu, @danmharrow), 7.5 x 1 (@KamikazeHeart)
Low scores: 0.5 x 1 (@Lost Boy). 2 x 2 (@DJHazey, @Verandi)
Chart positions: N/A
Shock of shocks as it is Dance Love Pop that takes the first hit. Well, kind of. If I Could Build My Whole World Around You was not included on the original release of the album. As far as I can tell, it was only included on the UK release. I don't have a UK copy so I have no idea what this was officially credited as.
Let's talk about Erik Hassle then. Erik is the same age as Agnes, and both were signed to Roxy when Dance Love Pop was released, although curiously, not for his UK releases. It's strange to me as it seems they were on different record labels at the time, so why only release this on the UK version? I digress.
The Guardian described him as a new, younger Robbie from Take That, in a typical Guardian article - check out the part where they say 'we assume this is the single, but we can't bothered to check'.
So as you can probably tell, he failed to break the UK, or Sweden (one #2 album, one #11 single), Denmark or anywhere really. However, he was an uncredited vocalist and a credited writer on Icona Pop's Emergency, so we can post that up in here.
If I was feeling cruel, I could always post the Kikki Danielsson version from Så Mycket Bättre, but am I really that evil?
Whoops.
If I seem dismissive of him, it's because I am. Quite simply, nothing he's ever done has appealed to me, and he's partially responsible for this:
@Music Industry stop making shitty acoustic versions of Robyn Carlsson songs challenge.
If I Could Build My Whole World Around You is a cover of a Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell song, written by some Motown writers and originally released in 1967. It's a song that I am not familiar with at all, so I shall just post it here and hope that nobody notices what I have just said.
As you can see, I wasn't terribly impressed, but was anyone else? Did they tell us?
@berserkboi Told us this:
"Nope! Couldn’t even get through it in full, that man’s voice and arrangement isn’t for me!" - 4.9. Don't think he was a massive fan.
@londonrain is familiar with the original. Ask him questions if you have any:
"This is a perfectly serviceable cover that sounds very underproduced compared to the rest of the album. That’s what happens when you slap an acoustic live performance onto a dance album, I guess." - 6.0
@iheartpoptarts makes a prediction:
"This is gonna hurt the album average, isn’t it?" - 5.0 Spoiler: yes.
@abael sits on a Swiss level of neutrality:
"It’s cute, nothing wrong with it. Does nothing for me though." - 6.0
@DJHazey is scathing once more:
"Oh no, this guy's voice is like the epitome of anti-Hazey and Agnes won't save it because the style of the song is terrible anyway." - 2.0
But let's end with something a little nicer from @danmharrow:
"I love this song, and Erik on it makes it even better. My friend won us tickets to see Erik support Mika at an iTunes London concert way back when, and we skipped Mika’s performance to track down EH and ask him about entering MF, which was a clear and confused why we would even ask no. iTunes published live recordings of some of the tracks, so you hear him say ‘I see that flag’ as he reacted to the Swedish flag we were waving madly, dancing away while surrounded by bored teenagers who’d never heard of him." - 8.0
He/Him
Finally my lowest score goes! The rest is now likely to hurt...
londonrain
Staff member
Yeah, the original is much better. This cover is... fine.
Erik is so much better than this, though. He has actual proper pop songs:
He also had a collaboration with Tinashe:
Erik is so much better than this, though. He has actual proper pop songs:
He also had a collaboration with Tinashe:
Marvin Gaye & Tammi Tarrell created some of my favorite songs of all time, and this is one of them.
It's a pointless cover, but such a good song it's hard to ruin it really.
It's a pointless cover, but such a good song it's hard to ruin it really.
he/him
Fortunately for one of Erik’s better songs, we were able to upgrade (aka get a Popstars girl-group to cover it):
And he also co-wrote this!
And he also co-wrote this!
she/her
I don't know. I only watched it once.
he/him
More more more!
Somewhere Down The Road
Average score: 5.04
High score: 10 x 1 (@CasuallyCrazed)
Low score: 0 x 1 (@Hurricane Drunk)
And Stronger is the next album to lose its first contender, as we dismiss Agnes’ cover of Barry Manilow’s 1981 US top 40 hit.
The song was co-written by Cynthia Weil, who also was the co-writer for such classic songs as The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” and Dolly Parton’s “Here You Come Again,” while Tom Snow also co-wrote Selena’s “Dreaming Of You” and Deniece Williams’ “Let’s Hear It For The Boy.” So, pedigree and such.
Agnes’ version was produced by Quiz and Larossi, the Swedish duo who would later go on to write and produce for such acts as The Saturdays, Alexandra Burke, and of course, the iconic Melodi Grand Prix 2013 runner-up entry, “Bombo” by Adelén:
Studio version because hot damn was the live version an affront to the ears.
@abael (3) needs a caffeine boost stat: “Sappy, spiritless and sleep-inducing.”
His name is @DJHazey (4) and he has something to say: “If people want to pile on a cover song, here’s the one to do it to. I didn’t know it was a cover myself until I saw that on the wiki page I’m viewing while I rate. To me it was just a boring piano ballad.”
And now please enjoy the following clip as you read the final comments on this entry:
Because we had some real groupthink going on here.
@londonrain (6): “Which Disney film is this from?”
@berserkboi (7.8): “Grand and lush instrumental, but the approach/delivery is a little too Disney for me to consider a keeper…”
@danmharrow (2.5): “Disney nah”
@iheartpoptarts (5): “If this didn’t sound straight out of a Disney movie I’d probably be less generous.”
Personally I’m partial to Sleeping Beauty, but that’s probably only like 32% due to Prince Philip being the ultimate Disney prince AND I WILL THROW HANDS OVER THIS IF NEED BE.
Somewhere Down The Road
Average score: 5.04
High score: 10 x 1 (@CasuallyCrazed)
Low score: 0 x 1 (@Hurricane Drunk)
And Stronger is the next album to lose its first contender, as we dismiss Agnes’ cover of Barry Manilow’s 1981 US top 40 hit.
The song was co-written by Cynthia Weil, who also was the co-writer for such classic songs as The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” and Dolly Parton’s “Here You Come Again,” while Tom Snow also co-wrote Selena’s “Dreaming Of You” and Deniece Williams’ “Let’s Hear It For The Boy.” So, pedigree and such.
Agnes’ version was produced by Quiz and Larossi, the Swedish duo who would later go on to write and produce for such acts as The Saturdays, Alexandra Burke, and of course, the iconic Melodi Grand Prix 2013 runner-up entry, “Bombo” by Adelén:
Studio version because hot damn was the live version an affront to the ears.
@abael (3) needs a caffeine boost stat: “Sappy, spiritless and sleep-inducing.”
His name is @DJHazey (4) and he has something to say: “If people want to pile on a cover song, here’s the one to do it to. I didn’t know it was a cover myself until I saw that on the wiki page I’m viewing while I rate. To me it was just a boring piano ballad.”
And now please enjoy the following clip as you read the final comments on this entry:
Because we had some real groupthink going on here.
@londonrain (6): “Which Disney film is this from?”
@berserkboi (7.8): “Grand and lush instrumental, but the approach/delivery is a little too Disney for me to consider a keeper…”
@danmharrow (2.5): “Disney nah”
@iheartpoptarts (5): “If this didn’t sound straight out of a Disney movie I’d probably be less generous.”
Personally I’m partial to Sleeping Beauty, but that’s probably only like 32% due to Prince Philip being the ultimate Disney prince AND I WILL THROW HANDS OVER THIS IF NEED BE.
Charley
Staff member
Personally I’m partial to Sleeping Beauty, but that’s probably only like 32% due to Prince Philip being the ultimate Disney prince AND I WILL THROW HANDS OVER THIS IF NEED BE.
#thingsthataretrue
he/him
YES! Erik's first album was man pop perfection. I still liked the stuff he put out after that, but he was trying to be edgy. Love Me To Pieces is another great one.
ALSO Never heard that girl band cover of Hurtful before :D it's very 'girl band eliminated on X factor Week 1'
she/her
I'm half asleep and for a second I thought you guys were comparing real-life Prince Philip to a Disney prince and I was like, um.
(maybe like in the 1940s or something)
(maybe like in the 1940s or something)
Prince Adam is probably my #1 but yes I can appreciate this take too.
he/him
londonrain
Staff member
It wouldn't happen to be a certain Namie Amuro classic, would it?
he/him
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