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…
“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…
Bang Bang Bang has a funky vibe and a tremendous narrative that firmly puts it in the theme of folk and early narrative rap styles. The instrumental side of things leans well into the soul and R&B styles of the early 1970s; Ames’s vocals are able to hammer home a cogent narrative in the space of just a few minutes with this opening composition. The Liveness EP continues with a…
Today, we are speaking to Saint Mars. Can you give us a little background information about yourself? How did you get into music? Tryzdin: I got into music at a young age, I started singing when I was 2 years old. Singing really helps me calm myself and really discover who I am as a person… without music I would be lost. Music runs in both sides of my family…
On Death For Sale, The Elected Officials are able to create some breakneck skate-punk that ties together The Circle Jerks and The Exploited into one furious mess. Taut guitars, intense drums, and a chugging bass line tattoo the song’s melodies deep into the minds of listeners. There’s enough variety here with the kicking-in of the bass line (1:30) and shifting guitar riffs (1:45) to add a further boost to the…
On Fasho, Riley is able to create a hooky style that blends late-oughts styles (e.g. Soulja Boi, T-Pain) with a bit of the mumble rap style. A brooding, emotive backing beat establishes a clear soundscape upon which Riley’s bars can shine. There’s a crossover appeal present to Fasho; bits of autotuned lyrics will get butts out on the dance floor. The presence of V$ Asad’s own unique style on Fasho…
Gone are the fiddles, the mandolins and the banjo, that have come to define Trampled By Turtles trademark sound, but Dave Simonett’s strong stark vocals are still front and center on this, his first proper solo album under his own name. The music is a mix of mostly somber Americana and folk and is in the same vein as the material Simonett put out under the Dead Man Winter name.…
The fourth track, “Homme Run,” off The Ballroom Thieves latest Unlovely is a beautifully succinct, deftly written call out to how far we have yet to go in terms of equality. Even the Democratic party in 2020, the political group that has been preaching gender equality ad nauseum, is offering a choice between two 70-something white males as the group’s leader. Two steps forward one step back. Wrapped into Calin…
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…
of Montreal have just released a pair of singles. On Get God’s Attention By Being An Atheist, oM are able to create a bouncy indie-rock effort that looks back to the 1990s for inspiration. With a hopeful, catchy set of vocals that tie together Weezer and They Might Be Giants, the wall of sound that issues forth after the chorus will have fans tapping their toes. Polyaneurism is a fascinating…
Stranger Love has L.A. Bliss refresh the 1980s sound of performers like Debbie Gibson and Tiffany. The backing track for her latest single links together sizzling guitar work with a warm, earthy synth line. Upon this melange of approach are Bliss’s soaring vocals. Stranger Love is an effort that will bury itself deep into the minds and hearts of listeners; there’s an honest sound that is cultivated through the entirety…
The bulk of Sam Doores self-titled solo debut may have been recorded in Berlin and Nashville, but he certainly didn’t leave behind his native New Orleans influences while he crossed the globe. The 13-track record may be Southern roots at its core, but it’s covered in swampy organ, laid back R&B and tinges of gospel and psychedelic music. Best known for his time in Hurray for the Riff Raff…
Something More is the initial track on Jenny Dee’s Dancing from a Distance. Haunting guitars establish the single’s backdrop while hints of electronic sequencing provide a delicious organic/computer-generated dichotomy. The resulting effort will stick with listeners long after the song ceases to play, ensuring that listeners will eagerly devour what’s to follow. House That We Built is an airy effort that calls back to the singer-songwriter styled of The Carpenters,…
Few artists are able to generate maintained interest in a song that is six or seven minutes, so we were a bit interested when Galliano Sommavilla announced that he had just released a forty-two minute composition. The aptly named “one song” has considerable narrative qualities to it. Led initially by classical / new age-infused piano lines, the track ultimately moves through a number of distinct styles and approaches as one…
Saint Mars is an act that blends a legendary musician (Massive Attack’s Angelo Bruschini) with an up and coming performer (Ohio’s own Tryzdin). With their trio of singles, Saint Mars seek to put their imprint upon popular music. Help is a fascinating track that calls back to The Offspring’s Gone Away, mid-oughts U2, and even back further to acts like Midnight Oil. There is an alternative/rock approach taken by Saint…
Kickback is the latest single (and EP) by NIK:11. The track immediately hits listeners with an intense drum beat that gradually opens up into a Miami-infused sort of groove. There are nods here to performers as wide-ranging as Gigi D’Agostino and Benny Benassi. When the vocals kick in, the song takes a whole different path with a bit mid-1990s Madonna that can be heard here as well as a passing…
Better Day, the latest release from DownTown Mystic, contains a number of tracks that further expand the range of approaches and styles that the band can draw from. The Wish comes forth with a one-two vocal/guitar dynamic and a hopeful set of vocals. While the song draws from the 1970s rock of acts like The Eagles and John Denver, there’s a bit of Dave Grohl’s supersonic vocal approach scattered through…
Cover Your Eyes has a very timeless sound to its opening, with a bit of 1970s easy listening baked into the guitars. Forier’s vocals are emotive, passionate, and establish a closeness with listeners that few voices can achieve. The dynamic between the guitars and vocals are solid enough during the single’s first minute, but the later inclusions (synths and bass) provide an allure that is hard to deny. Cover Your…
Lifeline is a pop track that could easily be released in the late-1990s / early-2000s. The hopeful vocals, light guitar work, and booming sequenced beat are tremendously reverent of this tried and true style. Thompson’s vocals are hopeful and true; where they come forth here as soft, they provide a smoothing of the boldness of the backing beat. Together, these vocals and instrumentation combine to make for an effort that…
John Paciga and Lexi Peppas are able to create a timeless track that could easily work in the 1970s as it does today. There’s a robust production that allows for the rising and falling of John’s pianos; the paired vocals feel honest and earnestly sung. No One Else is the perfect sort of track for a couple that truly, madly, and deeply loves one another. By imbuing this composition with…