By Geoffrey Rowland

 

Ben Haenow was a warm favourite to win the eleventh series of British television’s X Factor since wowing the four judges with his audition performance. Show creator Simon Cowell even expressed surprise that the 29-year-old Croydon-born van driver did not already have a record deal.

His victory not only secured Ben’s recording contract but gave him the usual X Factor winner’s Christmas number one on the UK singles chart. His cover of OneRepublic’s Something I Need had a combined sales and streams figure of more than 214,000 making it the second-fastest-selling single of 2014 behind only Band Aid 30’s Do They Know It’s Christmas?

“I think you can safely say I’ve had a pretty good week,” Ben smiled. “There was no guaranteed Christmas chart topper this year for whoever won X Factor. For me to have beaten the big names who were in the race is absolutely incredible.

“The great thing though is how much money has been raised for the charity Together for Short Lives. This organisation helps children with life-threatening and life-limiting conditions. I’m delighted to have them receive the proceeds from my song.”

OneRepublic’s original version was nowhere near as successful. Released in August, 2013, as the fourth single taken from their Native album, it failed to make the Billboard Hot 100 and reached just number 78 in Britain. But Something I Need was used as the theme song for the DreamWorks Animation movie, Mr Peabody and Sherman, which led to better chart performances elsewhere.

“I love the track,” Ben remarked. “We don’t get to choose the winner’s song. Simon (Cowell) selects the song which is then performed by the finalists and released as the winner’s debut single. I don’t know if my performance was really better than (runner-up) Fleur (East) but I’m thrilled that so many viewers voted for me.”

Fleur’s semi-final performance of Mark Ronson’s Uptown Funk, which she reprised during the final, had proved so popular that some bookmakers edged her ahead of Ben in the betting. But voting figures made public after the final revealed Ben as the winner of every viewer’s vote from week four onwards.

“It’s great to have had so much support. I wish I’d known though. I might have felt at least a little more confident and my performances may not have been quite so nerve-wracking. Even when it was just Fleur and I as the last two contestants, I still didn’t think I had any chance of winning.”

Although he has sung in bands since the age of 15, Simon Cowell suggested Ben’s lack of belief in his own ability had previously prevented him from becoming a star.

“I don’t know about that but maybe some of my self-confidence issues date back to childhood. My parents split up when I was four and I suffered really bad bouts of depression when I was just into my teens. These things have obviously affected me but I don’t know to what extent.”

Any self-doubt Ben may still retain must surely have been expunged by his X Factor triumph. But what can we expect to hear from him in the future?

“At the moment, I’m so busy promoting Something I Need and just enjoying being the X Factor winner. I know about some of the performances lined up for me during 2015 and I’ll obviously be making an album but I’ve not even thought about the type of songs I’d like to record.

“The one thing I am conscious about is the supposed jinx on X Factor winners. So many artists who do well but don’t actually win have gone on to become much more successful than the winners.

“I’m sure Fleur will be massively popular so I’ll have my work cut out to match her. But I really hope I can reward everyone’s faith in me by becoming a genuine pop star rather than a one-hit-wonder.”

 

IN BRIEF

Madonna

 

Madonna has felt obliged to release six songs from her forthcoming new album, Rebel Heart.

Demos of these and other new tracks were leaked online. Apart from being angered by the leak, Madonna did not want her fans to believe what they heard was the finished version of each song.

“I was hoping to release the first single, Living For Love, on Valentine’s Day,” Madonna stated. “The album would have followed a few weeks later. But the leaked demos have changed my plan. I would prefer my fans to hear the completed versions rather than the incomplete demos so I’ve released the first six songs to digital retailers and streaming services.”

Living For Love is posted at www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbeTpLVlyZQ The other five tracks, Unapologetic Bitch, Devil Pray, Ghosttown, Illuminati and Bitch I’m Madonna, can also be found on YouTube.

 

Imagine Dragons

 

Unlike Madonna, Imagine Dragons are giving fans a controlled taste from their forthcoming sophomore album, Smoke + Mirrors.

Lead single, I Bet My Life, was released in October. The official video can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ht80uzIhNs

Gold has now been issued as the second single. It is a very personal song for frontman Dan Reynolds.

“After we finished the last tour, I decided to head out to the west coast to reflect on and write about the things that had happened during the previous two years. I had the idea for Gold while I was sitting by the Pacific Ocean and was whistling into my laptop when a wave crashed ashore. You can hear it if you listen closely. I’m taken back to that beautiful spot on that beautiful day whenever I hear the song.”

See if you can detect the crashing wave by listening to Gold at www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2EIjONNjIU

 

Martin Smith, Paul Nelson
and Sarah Bird

 

The use of their song, Bright City, in a video advertising the Christmas attractions of London’s West End has brought Martin Smith, Paul Nelson and Sarah Bird to the attention of a much wider audience.

The ad has also been held responsible for boosting visitor numbers over the course of the festive season. An estimated 40 million people did at least some of their shopping in the West End with retail sales expected to rise by around seven per cent.

Anyone who would like to view the ad and hear the song can do so at www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvOmMO3V5Wo

Bright City can be heard and downloaded for free at (no www.) newlagu.com/file-182446747/bright-city-martin-smith-paul-nelson-sarah-bird.html

 

LO’99 / Royksopp

 

Dance music insiders are tipping Australian producer LO’99 to become a big name in 2015. He is making news now with his critically acclaimed remix of Royksopp’s Sordid Affair.

The original song is widely acknowledged as the standout track on the Norwegian electronic duo’s recently released fifth studio album, The Inevitable End. The title is appropriate as Svein Berge and Torbjorn Brundtland say it will be their final LP.

Although there is a plethora of their music at (no www.) soundcloud.com/royksopp, Sordid Affair is not posted here. It can be heard at www.stereogum.com/1711104/royksopp-sordid-affair/mp3s/

LO’99’s deep house remix is also not posted on his SoundCloud page. However, it can be heard and downloaded at (no www.) el-nation.com/track/21025

If you enjoy LO’99’s remix, much more of his work is available to hear at (no www.) soundcloud.com/lo99

Many of the tracks are offered as free downloads.