Category: Music Reviews

Posted on: June 11, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

OLYA Utopia CD Review

Misli opens up OLYA’s Utopia album, and it comes forth with an early eighties sound that gradually fleshes itself out to a Lady Gaga / Katy Perry sort of vibe. The crispness of the instrumental compositions here separate Misli from other pop fare, ensuring that listeners can spin the track a number of times before hearing every inclusion and dynamic established in the introductory three minutes.

Posted on: June 10, 2015 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard – Django And Jimmie (CD)

Willie and Merle are no strangers to sharing the recording studio. There was the 1983 Outlaw Country classic Poncho & Lefty, the decent follow up, 1987’s Seashores of Old Mexico and the duo brought in Ray Price for 2007’s Last of the Breed. But Django And Jimmy, (named after the duo’s heroes Django Reinhardt and Jimmie Rodgers) is the twosome’s strongest album since that first, fortuitous record.

Posted on: June 9, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Cliff and Ivy – In Your Hands (New Blood)

Alaska’s Cliff and Ivy have just released a music video for their single, “In Your Hands (New Blood)”. The track itself builds off of the goth music of the late eighties and nineties (45 Grave, Sisters of Mercy, Switchblade Serenade) and succeeds based on the sheer energy and multi-faceted approach that the band takes. In Your Hands (New Blood) will require multiple listens to break free the multiple vocals, drums /…

Posted on: June 9, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

John Preston Your War is Over EP Review

Your War is Over is an impassioned track that showcases the vocal and instrumental ability of John Preston. The track is able to capture the spirit of John Mayer, the Goo Goo Dolls, and Fuel while having an intensity to each lyric that is hard to beat. The narrative created here provides light to a phenomenon that has largely went unreported by the national media – allowing current and former soldiers the…

Posted on: June 9, 2015 Posted by: Caitlin Comments: 0

Never Shout Never Announce 8/7 Release of Black Cat

Never Shout Never, aka Christofer Drew and his fellow bandmates,will release their brand new, highly-anticipated studio album, entitled Black Cat, on August 7th via Warner Bros. Records. The album will be available for pre-order starting today, June 9th. The first single from the album “Hey! We OK,” will be available as an instant download for those who pre-order. 

Posted on: June 5, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Audiobender Reverb CD Review

Audiobender’s Reverb begins with Alright With Me. This introductory track showcases Audiobender as an act that is tremendously influenced by the rock of the seventies and eighties. This means that listeners can pull out hints of Rush, Bad Company, and Whitesnake with this opening salvo. Where many bands are more than happy to exist in a certain time period over the courses of their careers, the tracks that Audiobender include…

Posted on: June 5, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Ben Mauro Take Your Time Single Review

Ben Mauro has released Take Your Time, a hopeful pop-rock track that will capture listeners’ hearts with little more than a soaring set of vocals, guitars, and percussion. The positive track takes up island rhythms with the singer-songwriter style of Jason Mraz and John Maher.

Posted on: June 5, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Post Paradise Ordinary Single Review

Ordinary will hit listeners with Post Paradise adopting hints of Hoobastank and Fall Out Boy with a harder rock edge. The harmonies that Post Paradise create on their Ordinary will eagerly be devoured by fans of rock radio fare, but there is considerable depth to this track. The different elements – vocals, drums, guitars – all are doing their own thing.

Posted on: June 5, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

no:carrier Ghosts of the West CD Review

The Boys of Summer is transformed into a much darker, more industrial-heavy take on the Den Henley original. There is a much different take on this effort that allows no:carrier ample space to make the effort their own. Taken alongside California (originally from Belinda Carlisle), The Boys of Summer are able to introduce the act to a wide audience while the act’s talent allows them to create something wholly new.…

Posted on: June 5, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Jef Joslin Do What You Wanna Do Single Review

Jef Joslin has just released his latest single, Do What You Wanna Do . This soulful track looks back at the Detroit sound of the 1960s while keeping things contemporaneous and fresh. Hints of Aloe Blacc and Bruno Mars can be heard as Joslin establishes a unique sound with this effort.

Posted on: June 4, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 1

The Unravelling Revolt Single Review

Revolt is the new single from Calgary’s The Unravelling. The song builds upon the rich musical tradition of Marilyn Manson and Nine Inch Nails; the angry intensity of this industrial-rock act takes up the standards of Ministry and Atari Teenage Riot. The vocals are equal part Jonathan Davis and Chester Bennington, while the arrangements present in Revolt take on an epic feeling.

Posted on: June 4, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Jared Deck 17 Miles Single Review

Jared Deck has just released his latest single, 17 Miles. The track builds off of the work of Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp, imbuing the effort with effervescent spirit and instrumentation that is on-point. The sizzling guitar work tie together pop, rock, and country music into an effort that will be bouncing around listeners’ ears long after the track has ceased.

Posted on: June 4, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Rick Elliot Why Single Review

Rick Elliot’s Why is a track that covers considerable ground, with hints of Travis Tritt, Jimmy Buffett, and even Willie Nelson present in Elliot’s rich vocals. The production of Why allows each element – Rick’s vocal tenor, guitars, drums, and bass – to shine separately and as a cohesive effort.

Posted on: June 4, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 1

Only On Tuesdays Break Free Single Review

Break Free is the latest single from Los Angeles’ Only On Tuesdays and it represents one of the most dynamic efforts we have heard. The interplay between the instrumentation and the vocals pops with each tempo shift the band enacts, while the narrative quality of the track provides considerable depth.

Posted on: June 3, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

The Alpine Camp | Parents / $400 Millionaire

The Alpine Camp is an act that has made a soulful, funky, folksy track that is urban, backwoods, and catchy as all hell in Parents. The act defies definition, with the distinctive vocals in Parents highlighted by a guitar and drum duality that makes the track pop.

Posted on: June 3, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Antigone Rising Whiskey and Wine Vol. II Review

Game Charger is the first track on Antigone Rising’s Whiskey and Wine Vol. II and it immediately will draw listeners in with Antigone Rising’s alluring form of country and pop music. There are hooky vocals, strong instrumentation and a melody that will tattoo itself onto the minds and hearts of listeners.

Posted on: June 3, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Foam Ropes S/T CD Review

Truth in Fables is an emotive rock track in the vein of Train and The Wallflowers; there is an instrumental complexity here that belies the radio-friendly sound of the act. Potion Me Well is intense, churning and links hard-rock with intense vocals; Foam Ropes are able to have the brightness of a Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco spun into their own unique style.

Posted on: June 1, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 1

S.J. Tucker Stolen Season Review

Black Swan Blues is a sultry track that works from a bluesy, soulful backdrop that is pushed into high gear with a call and response chorus. Sultry Summer Night looks back into the era of Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez, spinning their style into a bold new space with a piano line right out of mid-20th century Harlem.

Posted on: May 30, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

MrE Prodigal Son Returns EP

The Prodigal Son Returns EP is a five-song collection that provides listeners with a brief introduction into the inimitable style of Bronx’s own MrE. The two tracks – Prodigal Son and Prodigal Progenies – comprise the efforts on this EP. Unlike a number of different singles, the different iterations of each of the tracks represent different takes on a theme, rather than songs that have been tweaked slightly. This means…

Posted on: May 30, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 1

Royal Holland Volume Two: Flamingo CD Review

The Grave is a powerful introduction to Cincinnati’s Royal Holland’s latest effort, Volume Two: Flamingo. There are hints of Radiohead, Bright Eyes, and even the dust-swept singer-songwriters of era past. What results with this introductory salvo is something that is immersive, compelling, and will have listeners sitting on the edges of their seats until the titular track on Flamingo begins. The funkier sound of Flamingo showcases a duality to Royal…