Couch Jackets’ “Don’t Think Just Breathe” is a very dense and detailed effort. This means that at any moment during the band’s new single, there are a number of threads that a listener can focus on. For example, there is a dreamy sort of pop that the guitars and vocals further, while hints of psychedelic, 1960s pop, and psychedelic can all be picked out. Complex time signature and a penchant…
Mary Bue’s “The Shit I Left In Duluth” is a favorite for us this month, as the track is able to refresh the alternative rock of the 1980s and 1990s. There are nods here to The Replacements, The Breeders, and Blondie. Dreamy vocals are matched perfectly with confident guitar riffs and a ropy, intense bass line. The narrative of Mary Bue will have listeners focusing on in, while subsequent listens will…
MkX’s “One Sided Love” is a track that draws upon the rich pop vocal tradition of performers like Justin Timberlake and Niall Horan while working in hints of 5 Seconds of Summer and Jason Derulo. The backing beat that represents the canvas upon which MkX can shine is utilitarian, rising and falling in opposition to the vocals. Taken together, these elements make One Sided Love a hooky effort that fans…
Gitty’s Karaoke is an exquisite track replete with a soulful backing beat and smooth females laid down by Rose Gold. The addition of Trinidad James to the track is fun as his flow straddles the illuminated styles of the 1990s with a current and contemporary sound. Where much has been made of the electrofunk of performers like Chromeo, I think the blending of passionate vocals with intricate guitar works represents…
Wai Lana’s “Colors” is a track that builds upon the pop genre of the early 1980s. A bouncy beat and sunny sound works perfectly with the soft vocals of Wai Lana. A secondary (male) set of vox ensures that the track stays fresh from its initial note to concluding second. A bit of horns are interspersed through Colors that match perfectly through a bold bass and booming drums. With so…
S.J. Armstrong’s “Some Restful Day” is a piece of dreamy atmospheric indie rock that will stick with listeners long after the single ceases to play. There is a very deliberate approach that is taken during the song that gradually builds to something intense. Wholly engrossing from the onset, it is not a surprise that the track’s four-plus minute run time goes by quickly. Coming forth with a new tack on…
Les Stroud’s cover of “Big Yellow Taxi” is punctuated with a soulful blend of harmonica and country-tinged guitar work. The passion and charisma laid down by Stroud here is unparalleled. A crystal-clear production ensures that each constituent element is able to shine alone or in tandem with the rest of the contributing elements on Big Yellow Taxi. The brooding instrumentation that plays in the backdrop stands in for the unquenchable…
Kyla Imani’s “Sitting Up In My Room” is a track that has roots in the powerful R&B singer style of the 1990s. The arrangement playing in the background pulls a bit from trap and EDM style, making for a fun new effort that will have listeners sitting on the edges of their seats. The presence of Jay Critch in Sitting Up In My Room keeps things vibrant while spinning the…
The Dead Daisies’s new single “Dead and Gone” may just be the hardest effort that we have heard from the band. The act is able to build upon the hair metal tradition with nods to Joe Perry (Aerosmith) and Motorhead. Sizzling guitar lines at points build upon AC/DC and Slash, while there is a raw passion to the vocals that would make this an easy inclusion on any hard rock…
Big Sam’s Funky Nation’s “Pokechop” is a track that is dripping with the spirit of the blues, mid-1970s, drill, and hip-hop styles. This varied approach is able to cull together the styles of the last fifty years into something that will tattoo itself deep into the minds and hearts of listeners. With nods to DJ Jimi and a bit of Flashlight interspersed throughout Pokechop, the unique flair of the act…
Jackie Greene’s “Crazy Comes Easy” is a soulful, easy going track that contains a fulfilling backing instrumentation. Greene’s vocals come out of the Black Crowes tradition, while the bass and guitar dynamic is utterly timeless. We’re particular fans of the 1:45-2:15 section which allows the instrumental side of things ample time to shine. The two distinct parts of Crazy Comes Easy combine to provide fans with a solid introduction to…
Featuring the talents of The Howling Tongues in tow, Beau + Luci’s new release Live from Aggie Theatre is a powerful audio document testifying to the strong literary qualities, spirit, and bluesy atmospherics at the tandem’s disposal. Their highly individual brand of Americana/roots music has enchanted national audiences, but their performance from Aggie Theatre brings the duo and their musical style “back home”, so to speak, and plays well for an appreciative…
Over the years, the music documentary genre has become fairly predictable. There’s the childhood background story, the rise and ultimate fall of the musician or band (usually a result of drugs, inter-band squabbles or changing musical trends), followed by the relaunch after years of soul searching, all told though interviews with those close to the band. VH1 set up the template years ago with Behind the Music and a whole…
Margo Timmins is one of just a handful of singers, alongside Nick Cave, PJ Harvey and the late Leonard Cohen, who consistently manage to take vulnerability and emotional rawness and translate it into powerfully moving records time and time again. “All That Reckoning,” the Canadian band’s latest, is certainly no exception.
Steve Wheeler’s EP release Terminal Velocity marks a divergent point for this talented composer when he affords himself the opportunity to step away from his “day job” as a media composer for major network sporting events and video games in favor of a more personal project. The instrumental EP is brief, only three songs and running less than ten minutes, but Wheeler’s writing makes the sort of impact music tailored to accentuate…
I had a really eye opening experience recently, and it was at the last place where I would ever expect to learn something new about my job, and really, myself. I was in an antique store, and for the first time in my entire life of shopping in antiques stores on the west coast, I didn’t see a single record player. Not one. No vinyl either. This surprised me, as…
Canadian Tia McGraff, originally from the region surrounding Toronto, first met her musical partner and eventual husband Tommy Parham in Nashville and the couple have been recording and playing live together for many years. Parham is her chief collaborator, as well, on McGraff’s well received studio recordings and recent years have seen the tandem land their music on important radio shows like BBC 2’s Bob Harris Country and earn them…
Jesus, who knew it would take a band of 20-somethings to perfectly, organically resurface the vibe of ‘70s rock – from the swagger of the Stones to the swamp funk of Leon Russell – for the modern era.
There are few feelings that are as tumultuous and difficult to process as heartbreak. We are never sadder and at our most defenselessly defeated as we are when we’ve lost love, and knowing that we’re not alone out there can make all the difference in the world when it comes to getting through the storm of emotions we have to endure. Reaching out through the darkness with a bursting light…
The influence of ambient music has been quite visible thus far in genres as wide ranging as hip-hop, rock n’ roll, radio pop and R&B this year, and I think I’m finally beginning to understand the reasons why. When I was listening to indie pop singer/songwriter Cole’s new single “If I’m Really” the other day, something occurred to me. Back in the mid-80s, right around the time that the roots…