Cascada - Blink

This is the lead single from the German group's fifth album due out later this year. This single is a cover of a song released several years back by U.V.U.K. The production on this one is a lot more contemporary than the original. It's a good balance between the hard Eurodance sound they started with and the more recent Electro one they have been doing for the last few years. Natalie's vocals are much stronger, doing the song justice. There are several remixes on the single which are in a similar vein as the original, however, the original remains the best one.

-Watch the music video here (YouTube)

Grade: A

Nick Skitz - You Got The Love

After the massive international success of Tim Berg's "Seek Bromance" and Rihanna & Calvin Harris' "We Found Love", there have been a number of new songs in that same vein. This however is more than just another imitation as it goes above and beyond those tracks. The vocals are impeccable.

There are some additional mixes by Basslouder, Maison & Dragen, Royaal & Audiophreakz, and Starkillers. The Basslouder mix is a thumping one in a Jump Up Trance style (think mid 2000s Cascada). The emotional aspect of the song gets lost on this one. The Maison & Dragen and Royaal & Audiophreakz mixes are very similar. They are basically tougher versions of the original. The Starkillers one is the most aggressive of the bunch. Overall, the original and Maison & Dragen mixes are the best.

-Listen to clips and purchase the single here (Beatport)

Grade: A

Cascada - San Francisco

After the underperformance of "Night Nurse", Cascada is back with a new single entitled "San Francisco." A cute ode to the city by the bay, the catchy song calls to mind last year's Summer smash "California Gurls" by Katy Perry in select portions. That isn't necessarily a bad thing as that was a cute, fun song. The original version has not been released yet, however, remixes by Cahill, Wideboys, and Frisco have been. Cahill's is their usual commercial house mix. This one especially has the "California Gurls" feel. The Wideboys harden things a bit with their bassline driven mix. Frisco's mix is in the hard jump-up style of Cascada's first two albums. All three are quite good, but the Cahill mix is the best of the bunch. Their 4th album entitled Original Me is due for an early Summer release.

Grade: A-

Cascada - Night Nurse

This is reportedly the new single off of their fourth album. Lyrically, "Night Nurse" uses nearly every nursing-related cliche. Production-wise, this song sounds like a mishmash of Lady Gaga's first few singles, particularly "Just Dance" and "Poker Face", as did much of their last album. The addition of a male rapper doing shoutouts throughout the song doesn't help much. Natalie Horler's vocals sound good though. Overall, the song is just okay and leaves much to be desired.

Listen to the song here (YouTube)

Grade: B

Cascada - Dangerous

This is the followup to their UK number one hit "Evacuate The Dancefloor." After a departure from the hard jumpstyle sound that had been characteristic of their earlier singles and albums, "Dangerous" is in that very style. Despite the similar production, this song is fun and a little different from the usual. Given that there will be plenty of remixes, fans will be able to find at least one mix that will work for them. This song is really screaming for a Dance/Rock mix. This is to be released in September in the UK.

For the U.S., "Evacuate The Dancefloor" is just beginning to take off and the album of the same name will be released very soon.

Watch the music video here (YouTube)

Grade: B+

Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor

This is the lead single off of their still untitled third album. This song was premiered last week on UK radio. This song marks a departure in sound for the trio. Gone is the hard trance, jump-style production that was a hallmark of their last two albums. "Evacuate The Dancefloor" is a lot more Pop/R&B/Electro-ish. It immediately calls to mind some of what Lady GaGa has been doing lately. This change in direction is a good thing. It helps show that Cascada is capable of doing other styles. Vocalist Natalie sounds perfectly at home on this production. The addition of a rapper does harken back to those 'he raps, she sings' songs of the 90's, but it works on this song.

Watch the video here (YouTube)

Grade: A

Cascada - Perfect Day

This is the third U.S. single off of their album of the same name which was released last year. For the most part, the album version is in their indelible energetic Trance/Jump Up style. It's pretty good. The beginning part with the light Pop/Rock sound was good. It would have been nice if the whole track had been like that. Perhaps that Rock Mix on the single will be something like that. But the real gem is the remix by Digital Dog. It takes some of the edge off and really highlights Natalie's great vocals.

The physical release of the CD maxi single will happen on March 3.

Grade: A-

Cascada - Faded

This is the second U.S. single off of Perfect Day. After the moderate mainstream success of "What Hurts The Most", "Faded" is also a cover. This is a cover of song by Australian singer Kate DeAraugo. While the Kate version was an uptempo, this one is really uptempo. It's done in standard Cascada fashion, however, for this particular song, that style lends itself quite well. Natalie Horler's vocals are really great and do tremendous justice to the original.

In addition to the original, there are plenty of remixes. Dave Ramone, The Wideboys, Lior Magal and Giuseppe D do the mixes this time. The first three mixers provide Housey mixes that give the song a more Dance/Pop feel. Those are a bit Electro/House-ish as well. Giuseppe D's is a bit more Electro/Eurodance. A pretty good package overall.

The digital single was released last week. A CD maxi will be released on August 26.

Grade: A-

Cascada - What Hurts The Most

While the Rascal Flatts version of this song continues to garner plenty of airplay on Country and AC stations, this one never truly crossed over to Pop. German Dance act Cascada has covered "What Hurts The Most" as a Dance track nearly a year after remixer Lenny Bertoldo and singer Lyle did. It did fairly well on the Dance Radio chart. Their version was a fixture on the in-store playlist at the Abercrombie & Fitch clothing stores earlier this year.

Vocalist Natalie Horler does a great job on this one, as usual. The "jump up" production style that has been characterist of most previous Cascada releases is here too, but it gives the track the "oomph" it needs. There are plenty of remixes on both the import and domestic releases. The milder mixes by Fugitive (on the UK release) and Spencer & Hill (on the U.S. and several other ones) are quite enjoyable. They are not quite as in-your-face and are a bit more subdued. Both are quite lovely. Yanou's Candlelight version is also very well-done too. The U.S. iTunes release contains all of those mixes. There's something for everyone. Check out the video.

Grade: A-