Are You Happy, the latest cut from AV Super Sunshine, is a robust effort that is able to refresh the rock of the 1960s and 1970s while inserting a bit of 1990s grunge and modern music into the mix. The back and forth with the lead and females vocals adds further complexity to the mix. Similarly, the instrumentation and supersonic vocals are able to coalesce into a toe-tapping track that…
On Ecstatic Baby, Yeasayer is able to call bnack to the alternative pop of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Hints of Jesus Jones and Fine Young Cannibals can be heard here. A brilliant falsetto is matched through sci-fi synths and splashy drums. There is a vibrancy to Yeasayer’s latest that will keep listeners focused on the composition. As the band enters the last minute of Ecstatic Baby, the track…
URL: https://satellitesofmontreal.com/ A lot of artists are going old school with their music videos this summer and utilizing everything from DIY-style camcorder photography to stop-motion animation and other 80s-fashioned aesthetical looks, but there’s something quite unique about the four minute visual spectacle that Satellītes has made for us in the new music video for “Love & Disaster,” the title track of the debut album from Jasmine Bleile’s emerging solo venture.…
In their brand new single “Blinded by the Sun,” rockers Relic Kings expose an intimate, raw lyrical nerve without showing the slightest bit of hesitation, and though it’s only one example of the unfiltered poeticism to behold on their debut album of the same name, it likely has the most crossover appeal to listeners of different tastes and backgrounds. Relic Kings have a dynamically experimental sound, but while it borrows…
Acclaimed Austin-based, New England-born singer/songwriter Robert LaRoche is back this season with a brooding new EP in A Thousand Shades. Comprised of six relaxing, mostly carefree summer songs, A Thousand Shades lives up to its title and delivers a kaleidoscopic smorgasbord of color, texture and tonality in tracks like the gorgeous “Seeds of Doubt,” rocking “Jet Blue” and polished pop tune “The Dream is Gone.” LaRoche is at the top of his game…
It isn’t often that a synthesizer dishes out the sort of endearing melodicism that we normally associate almost exclusively with string instruments in western pop music, but that’s exactly what audiences can expect to discover in the charming “Darling Anna,” from 2.O.F.’s The Machine EP. Through their boisterous and evocative harmonization with the lead vocal, we get a mood to match the story that the lyrics are telling us, with the end…
Just one year shy of their 20th anniversary as a band, and eight albums into it, The Dollyrots have just turned in their best effort yet. The 14-track Daydream Explosion, their first for Stevie Van Zandt’s Wicked Cool Records label, is simply pop punk perfection. From the spikey, fast guitars, the gorgeous female/male tradeoff vocals, machine gun drumming, and bratty defiant lyrics, there’s a feeling that The Dollyrots have been building up…
Tribute albums are almost always a mixed bag. And this second volume of Harry Nilsson songs is no exception. The covers run the gamut from incredible (Cheap Trick covering “Ambush” and Adam Matta’s beatbox accompaniment on “Driving Along”) to the quirky (Valley Queen’s peculiar version of “I Guess The Lord Must Be in New York City” and Belle-Skinner’s ukulele-backed “Open Your Window”) to the simply uninspired (Invisible Familiar’s trippy take…
FENIX URL: http://www.djfenix.com/ The synthesizer has been a staple in electronica since the earliest days of the genre, but Fenix & SM1LO manipulate it through a uniquely surreal lens that I really didn’t expect to hear in their new album, Where We Begin. Where We Begin is a miniature musical library centering on its title track and thirteen diversely appointed mixes, studio edits and remixes that capture different elements within…
To mark the Soundgarden’s 35th anniversary, A&M and UMe are putting out a slew of re-releases by band, including classic albums in limited edition colored vinyl. So now seems like an ideal time to revisit their best-selling and arguable flawless fourth album Superunknown. Initially put out in 1994, at the crest of the grunge movement, Soundgarden – one of the pioneers of the Seattle sound and a band that had already been…
Funny Little Situation is the lead-off track from Hoozbah’s new release, Do Better. The track calls back to the alt-rock of the 1990s with nods to acts like The Dandy Warhols and Pulp. A lush production is present here, allowing the assertive guitars and Depeche Mode-infused vocals to shine separately or on their own. Slip n Slide shifts things up with a bit of blues a bit of rock, and…
On Survive, Black Lion is able to lay down some intense bars with a haunting backing beat. Punchy lyrics and smart wordplay unite with something that could easily have came out of early Kanye or J. Dilla production. The pair of features here (Testament & Ray Robinson) are able to add a little variety. Whether it be the R&B-tinged vocals or a flow that builds upon the work of mid…
On Incredibly Beautiful, Drew Chale is able to insert a tremendously impacting set of vocals upon a dreamy instrumentation. The synth and voice intertwine quite nicely here, with enough happening in the background for fans to continue to find new twists and turns five or ten plays in. There are nods here to the 1980s new wave movement as well as the mid to late-1990s emo genre. By blending together…
On Lie To Yourself, Dinzy is able to build up a hooky rock sound with a supersonic, charismatic set of vocals. The combined one-two punch of vox and guitars/drums are enough to tattoo the melodies of Lie To Yourself deep into the hearts and minds of listeners. I feel that Dinzy separates herself from the rest of up and coming rockers in that she is able to successfully bring in…
You don’t have to be fluent in Spanish to appreciate the depth of emotionality in Integriti Reeves’ surreal single “Eu Vim Da Bahia,” as its plethora of expressive melodies communicate everything that listeners need to know in this three minute Latin jazz wonder. Like the other songs found on her debut EP Stairway to the Stars, “Eu Vim Da Bahia” sees Reeves experimenting with different styles and sounds, blending influences…
Blues guitar is an instant mood-setter in any song, and for anyone who ever needed some proof supporting this fact, Matthew John’s “Let’s Begin Again” is a superb example of what fine-tuned, forlorn fretwork can do for an otherwise simple pop ballad. John slows down the swing of his strings for “Shine for Me,” but reminds us of the value in a slender arrangement of electric melancholy in his song…
More than three decades in the making, Heal, the debut record from A Picture Made, though ridiculously long overdue, manages to have been worth the wait. The Midwest kids (though long past being kids) came together in the 1980s and managed to open for some of the best college rock bands at the time, from The Call and The Connells to The Replacements. It’s not clear if it was a…
There’s not much grey area to Ellis Paul’s music: You either like the modern day folkie’s music or you don’t. And if you do happen to fall into former category, chances are you love it. Like John Prine and Gary Clark before him, minus the country/Americana influences, Paul is first and foremost a lyricist, telling a story with each and every song he puts out. The Storyteller’s Suitcase, Paul’s 20th…
The title track to Lukas Nelson’s fifth album pretty much sums up the focus of the record; people are generally good, so let’s focus on being kind to each other. And yes, it’s the type of sentiment that gets one branded a snowflake in 2019, but damn it’s good advice. And it sounds even better coming out in Nelson’s lazy, comforting drawl, backed by one of the best bands going…
Ela has earned a promising following since relocating from San Francisco to the state capital of Texas and musical hub Austin. She calls upon an assortment of influences in her music, but the lineage for her latest single “Light It Up” is pretty clear cut. This well crafted dance/edm track has a near orchestrated flair – it doesn’t show its cards all at once but, instead, rises from the group…