Author: Kim Muncie

Posted on: June 9, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

“I Carry On” by Francine Homey

There aren’t many independent players in Canada that have the kind of buzz that Francine Honey has going for her right now – and justifiably so. Honey has been on a whirlwind ride through the last three years, and in 2020, she’s taking all of her professional knowledge and hammering out one of her best performances yet in “I Carry On.” “I Carry On” is being released as a double…

Posted on: June 3, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Vakili’s new song “Facial Recognition Technology”

To say that April has been an exceptionally good month for indie musicians and their fans just might be too big an understatement to make. With new releases coming from across the underground spectrum, it can be difficult to keep up with the true cream of the crop – but among those I’ve personally reviewed lately, Lily Vakili Band definitely shines above the rest. Vakili’s new song, “Facial Recognition Technology,”…

Posted on: May 29, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 1

“Fly With You” by Lailien and Ruby Perl

“Fly With You” an experimental dance -pop track from Canadian poet/mind bender Lailien feat. vocalist Ruby Perl. Out now via his sophomore album, TA-DA!, “Fly With You” surpasses any expectations the listener might have for songs with the word ‘fly’ in its title. Lailien, the offbeat recording name of Toronto’s Brad Shubat, seals the gaps between pop/electro fusion and a bevy of remarkable tones and beats. Lyrically, “Fly With You”…

Posted on: May 29, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Tom Tikka and the Missing Hubcaps drop Three Song EP

Tom Tikka and the Missing Hubcaps come out of their corner swinging on the three song EP Working Class Voodoo with the title song “Working Class Voodoo”. The rock leanings of this track are pushed in just the right way; it isn’t Tikka’s style to bulldoze listeners with a guitar blitzkrieg. Nuance is the word of the day here. Tikka and his band achieve a specific stylistic approach early on in this…

Posted on: May 27, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Walker’s Cay releases 2 new Singles

Making that quintessential rookie release stick with fans is definitely no easy feat, but for Canadian hard rock band Walker’s Cay, they’re making it look pretty simple this May. Taking the world by storm via their first two singles, “Tell Me” and “Why Oh Why,” Toronto’s Walker’s Cay do more than introduce us to their sound in these songs – they lob a piece of their artistic identity in our…

Posted on: May 22, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

R U IN by (HEARTOUR) Jason Young

Jason Young wears many hats. He is bandleader of The Ruse, a project who opened for global powerhouse Muse on three separate world tours, but he has another long standing project called Heartour and its fifth release R U IN in may be his finest musical achievement yet. The Connecticut born singer, composer, and musician turned back to Heartour after placing The Ruse on hiatus and the resulting ten songs should solidify…

Posted on: May 7, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Izzie’s Caravan’s Leo’s Guitar

Few genres in the pop music lexicon have been as consistently popular as the blues have since its inception. No matter what seems to be going on in the world around us, there’s always a good blues song out there to suit the mood at the moment, and in Izzie’s Caravan’s Leo’s Guitar, there are four such songs ready and waiting for fans to appreciate. Leo’s Guitar is a barebones blues-rock record that…

Posted on: May 7, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Rising Star Ilyah is turning Heads

At first, the driving beat in “Habibi” is skewed with a reticence that suggests bittersweet emotion finally coming to the surface in the midst of vicious exchange between lovers. It doesn’t take very long for this reticence to fall under the weight of the pulsating bassline in the foreground in this latest single from Ilyah, eventually resulting in one of the smoothest rhythmic ebbtides of the new decade to date.…

Posted on: May 7, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

New York City’s Project Grand Slam releases 12 Track Album

Innovative and instantly connecting with the listener, the 12 songs on the new album Eastside Sessions bridge the gap between jazz, rock and even Latin-flavored music. Proving once again that big sound gets big results, the veteran group, Project Grand Slam, have been doing this since 2007 and show no signs of stopping. New York City’s Project Grand Slam have thrilled audiences far and wide. While we’re at the disadvantage…

Posted on: April 29, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Lori Myren-Manbeck (CEO of Inclusivi-tee) affecting global change through her imaginative efforts

When we personalize our efforts to engage the world, the positive impact we create is powerful. Anyone can hold up a sign, march shoulder to shoulder with others in the name of a particular cause, or reel off a bevy of slogans and adages we believe illustrate solidarity with an issue. This observation does not denigrate such efforts. Being an informed member of our global community is laudable. Pouring our…

Posted on: April 22, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Animalism LP by People Years

At times droning in the background like a stream that will meet no end, in others as well-defined by jazzy complexities as it is a violent muscularity, the grooves that power songs like “Fall in Love,” “Commonly Known” and “You Don’t Do Nature,” are as potent a force as any other you’ll find when listening to People Years’ debut album Animalism this April. A good beat is often the cornerstone of any…

Posted on: April 21, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 1

“Sunday Driver” by Casey Ahern

In her latest single, titled “Sunday Driver,” Casey Ahern continues to shine from behind the microphone with her unique fusion of pop pleasantness and humble country harmonization, with her voice unsurprisingly taking center stage amidst a colorful musical backdrop. Ahern approaches her verses with a gentle energy in this track, lending agency to the words with a style of execution that takes as much from traditional Americana as it does…

Posted on: April 11, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

“Liama” by Markoff-Lazzara-Franzetti

“Liama” is the first single to be released from the forthcoming Romances in Blue. The song comes from instrumental duo, Steve Markoff and Patricia Lazzara. An almost hymnal listening experience, the music glides back and forth between lightness and flowing energy. The meaning behind the name “determined guardian” gives further indication that this song is a devout champion to upholding the wonderous sounds from both the flute and piano. Markoff…

Posted on: April 2, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Dear Engineer (EP) by Chords of Eve

In their new extended play Dear Engineer, Chords of Eve blend together the surrealism of contemporary electronica and the self-awareness of vintage alternative rock in equal doses, and despite the acrylic nature of the textures their experimentations produce, the resulting tracklist we find in this record is unquestionably one of the more spellbinding that I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing this spring. Structured atop colorful grooves that play out with strong…

Posted on: April 2, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Mike Rickard offers up LP “Out Loud”

Against the backdrop of a haunting electric guitar’s gentle melody, Mike Rickard begins to unfurl a string of lyrics in “Six Queer Kids” that sounds less like the opening verses of a pop song and more like a narrative that is all too real and relatable in our modern world. Homelessness, isolation, depression and mortality are all on the table for the gay youth who serve as this stunning single’s…

Posted on: March 28, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Luis Mojica, How a Stranger Is Made

At once spellbinding in its decadent layering of string play and elegant keys yet wholly menacing in its underlying tone, it doesn’t take very long for “City Friends,” one of the eleven songs comprising the new album from Luis Mojica, How a Stranger Is Made, to enrapture most anyone who comes within earshot of its mightily evocative harmonies. As you’ll discover on your own when browsing through the tracklist of How a…

Posted on: March 27, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Diane Patterson releases new Single

“Somewhere There’s a Song Still Singing” reminds us in 2020 that traditional folk music still holds the power to leave listeners spellbound. It helps that Diane Patterson never treats the form too reverentially, like a butterfly trapped under glass, but instead injects her compositional skills with a level of melodic excellence certain to connect with both casual music fans and folk devotees. She has built a wide ranging discography over…

Posted on: March 17, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Tonne releases EP

Opening in a haze of new wave-reminiscent bass and drum surrealism, “The Great Game” doesn’t waste a second in wrapping its haunting hook around us beyond the point of escape, and not dissimilar to the other three songs it shares a tracklist with in the new record Bridey Murphy from Tonne, its flirtatiousness with alternative rock song structuring isn’t limited to cosmetic frills alone. In Bridey Murphy, noisy melodies and punkish lyrical themes…

Posted on: March 11, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Jonathan Emile is making his mark!

Indie reggae artist Jonathan Emile has been quietly building up quite the solid reputation in the last few years, cutting a handful of sleeper hits in the mid-2010s that included a collaboration with arguably the most important rapper of the last decade in Kendrick Lamar (2015’s “Heaven Help Dem”), and now in 2020, he’s back with some of his best content to see widespread release so far in Spaces-in-Between. Made-up of…

Posted on: March 9, 2020 Posted by: Kim Muncie Comments: 0

Oakland psychedelic rockers Whiskerman release Album

In their fourth studio album, titled Kingdom Illusion, Oakland psychedelic rockers Whiskerman offer up what is arguably their most progressive and involved effort yet while staying true to the aesthetical foundations that gave them their start, and while its eight songs – which collectively run about 44 minutes in total – don’t necessarily break the mold when it comes to modern psych concepts, they’re easily some of the most captivating indie…