Alexa Friedman’s Meant to Be is a track that fills me with hope. Friedman puts her own indelible mark on the single with a voice that captures the low and high ends equally well. The track takes a bold new direction at the three-minute mark; this shift differentiates itself from the rest of Meant To Be and ensures that when Alexa’s vocals kick back in, they are given a whole…
Myles Marcus’ “Crazy” is a touching track that builds up momentum nicely from its first note. The track is able to work equally well in the pop and EDM traditions. With a gradually increasing tempo, Crazy ensures that fans will be sitting on the edges of their seats. Marcus’ vocals are supersonic and are able to both impart a certain sort of emotional intensity while contributing well to the overall…
Five Drexler’s “Smokers Section (Where It At)” is a catchy rap track. The rapid-fire delivery of Five Drexler’s flow is highlighted by a backing beat that draws upon the mid-2000s NYC scene, Hypnotize Minds, and trap producers.
Shane Palko’s Staring Out The Window is a telling piece of indie rock. Emotive guitar work, wide-reaching strings and a dreamy set of vocals join together to immediately draw in listeners. The narrative presented to fans during Staring out The Window is engrossing, matching well the richness of the instrumentation. Pegged at the four-minute mark, Palko’s latest single feels much larger – there’s a depth to this cut that few…
Oro’s latest single Escape features China Fox; a powerful arrangement rises and swells to keep listeners on the edges of their seats, while fans will be impressed with the sheer vocal range that is achieved by Fox. Taken together, what one will hear in Escape is an effort that touches upon EDM, pop, and singer-songwriter styles. It is this eclectic sound that distinguishes Oro from the rest of the performers…
Today, we were excited to hear a holiday single, “We’re Going Caroling” from two timeless comedians – Dick Van Dyke and Jane Lynch. The duo is able to craft a track that will work equally well no matter whether one loves the standards from the 1960s, 1980s, or today.
Laust Sonne’s ode to the holiday seasoning, X-mas Morning adds just enough in the way of festiveness to keep fans focused on in to the tremendous instrumentation and earnest sound crafted by the performers. We’re in love with the vocals – they are so smooth and proper – while the sweeping instrumentation is something that will stick with listeners long after the effort ceases to play.
Beaux Cheveux’s “Free Love” is an interesting composition that effortlessly move through electronic, indie rock, and slinky nineties alternative music. The track’s alluring vocals match well with a crunchy election section and a sizzling guitar line that is interlaced through the cut. Free Love is funky, engrossing, and will keep fans interested from the first note all the way until the final gasp from Beaux Cheveux. While Free Love exceeds…
Imaní Scott’s “Throwing Glitter” is a fun and funky R&B track that brings in hints of EDM music to make for a wholly different track that what is typically present on radio rotation.
Collins and Streiss’ Free is a powerful rock track that builds off of the AOR / rock sound of acts like Foreigner, Queen, and Journey. There are a number of distinct sections to Free that listeners will have to unfold on subsequent listens. With rising and falling actions, Collins and Streiss ensure that fans will be on the edges of their seats. A powerful narrative quality ties everything together with…
Peter Adole’s My God You Good is a hopeful sort of track that is built off of a bouncy instrumentation that unites electronic and vocal elements. The track will find fans in anyone that likes Akon, Omi, Nico & Vinz, or T-Pain. The faith espoused in My God You Good will firm up the beliefs of anyone that may be a bit down.
Idealism’s Virgo Alive is a funky, jazzy track that builds off of the work of the early nineties for inspiration. The sultry sound of the track is perfect for slow dancing, while the percussion and synths are able to highlight the dual vocals that go back and forth.
Stars and Chandeliers is the latest album from Steve McCormick. Say a Prayer for New York City, the album’s first track, does well to approximate the city. There are sizzling horns, a rapid tempo, and a tremendous amount of narrative that is inserted within this instrumental composition. Say the Word is a touching and deep effort, with McCormick’s vocals pulling double duty. More than just providing lyrical content, Steve’s softly-stated…
U-N-T craft a contemplative and introspective sort of rock with their new single, Je M’enfuis. The guitar work is reminiscent of 1980s rock, while there are vocals that will resound loudly with listeners long after the track ceases to play. Taken together, this polished cut is able to cover a lot of ground; listeners will be able to find something that they appreciate here.
David Arn’s latest single Not Amused refreshes the singer-songwriter and rock styles of the 1970s to a more current and contemporary sound. The guitar work builds off of the work of The Eagles and ELO, while there are hints of Neil Young and Jackson Browne that the vocals touch upon. A solid production ensures that each element for Not Amused both adds to the overall sound of the single while…
Billy Idol is the latest ‘80s musical icon to get the vinyl re-release treatment and on reexamination it’s clear that Idol deserved every accolade he earned during that musically schizophrenic decade.
It’s almost a cliché at this point; Gabriel Starwood, a man-machine hybrid with a disco ball for a head from planet Vitrus, starts a band in Philly, pulling together like-minded androids and turns out a solid debut (2012’s Transmission). But here’s where it veers off that well-trodden pseudo human band Behind the Music episode. Five years later, Starwood is back with a fantastically-creative 6-song EP, proving despite the goofy origin story, they actually…
RaR have just released their new single, Darkness. This high-energy EDM track features the vocals of Elizabeth Robinson. Together, the instrumental and voca sides unite to make something that will tattoo its melodies deep into the hearts and psyches of listeners.
While Sire Records was focused on bringing punk and New Wave to the masses in the late ‘70s, signing everyone from the Dead Boys and Ramones to the Talking Heads and Pretenders, label chief Seymour Stein still had his eye on other genres.
The timing of Martin Popoff’s latest AC/DC book comes at a rough time for fans of Australia’s greatest hard rock export.