Punk rock has no shortage of super groups and side projects. The big question, after one of these projects surface, is whether it will be an ongoing occurrence (like Me First and the Gimme Gimmes) or a one-off moment in time (like Rumbleseat, the fantastic acoustic folk side project featuring members of Hot Water Music that only put out one full length). Looks like Broken Gold decided to keep…
Boswell immediately inspire listeners with their title track to Beryllium. The track comes forth with a blend of alternative and indie styling, touching upon Portishead, Bjork, and Radiohead. The band’s instrumental arrangements on this introductory track are very well thought-out, providing listeners with something meaty while providing ample support for Melanie’s vocals. No, Miser! looks back to sixties rock and psychedelic, as the constituent elements of the band craft a…
/ 2014 Self / 6 Tracks / http://www.eluusif.com / https://www.facebook.com/Eluusif / http://soundcloud.com/eluusif Hair Like Skrillex is destined to be a single; the track never takes a breath as it takes listeners on a ride and dumps them abruptly into the next effort, Justin Bieber Is An Android. Justin Bieber Is An Android is a slower, more trance-laded effort that is able to keep the sharpness of the dubstep style while…
I Need A Man has vocals from Lael Summer that blend together equal amounts of Donna Summer and Meredith Brooks. The soul / funk groove is the perfect backdrop for Summer’s vocals which will impress with their sultry fire and impressive range. Too Much has the same laid-back approach of mid-seventies Santana or James Brown; the raw power of Summer’s vocals bubble just underneath the calm and controlled exterior that…
Drown in Blue is a track that touches upon the work of Joan Jett and The X-Ray Spex. The track needs little more than guitars, drums, and a sizzling set of vocals. The bounce between front-forward rock and hooky pop-laced rock makes this into a must-listen. With this high amount of energy, Mase is able to move to the titular effort, Half-Life. Half-Life has a slower and more electronic-infused approach.…
Miss Lola Overture provides a solid introduction to the Presidential LoveFest EP, allowing listeners in less than a minute to understand where The Van Burens will ultimately go with this release. Tricky Dick will provide listeners with some background about Richard Nixon’s illegal activities (the break-in at the Watergate Hotel). The track builds off of the sounds and styles of the sixties and seventies, blending together rock and funk…
Frederik Abas, decade long denizen of the dance scene, brings a fresh new track out to the eagerly awaiting public in his Powerhouse Music debut, Amsterdamski. Referred to as the “peak-time dance floor destroyer,” Amsterdamski is undoubtedly one of the few dance songs that have the ability to engage listeners throughout the entire song with heavy bass and electronic yet still maintain a a definitive and catchy tune. As resident…
PT Walkley may just be the missing link between Rufus Wainwright, the thoughtful jazz-inspired, sophisticated troubadour, and The Kinks, god’s gift to lovers of pop hooks and sing-along melodies everywhere. The fact that he pulls all of this off with an above-it-all indie vibe (despite still being able to shill for everyone from McDonalds to GE in TV ads) is all the more impressive. His latest, Shoulders,…
How do you know your core audience is hipsters? You record a song with Aubrey Plaza. The Parks & Recreation actress, and fantasy of skinny-jeaned beardos from Williamsburg to Bushwick, “plays” alto sax on “Bona Fide” the second track on Ben Cassorla’s debut EP.
What Now is an R&B track that would easily make it onto radio rotation for stations that would focus on Rihanna or Mariah Carey efforts. The production of What Now is stellar, allowing the instrumentation to pop even as Gemini Wired’s vocals are able to paint a stark and inspiring picture. The track ends with some hard rap bars that straddle the line between Nicki Minaj and Lil Kim. The…
Come Again opens up in a warm fashion, and slides into a cool and collected bit of funky, soulful rock. The shuffling beat of the track succeeds because of the smart instrumentation and insistent vocals encountered; the instrumental interlude keeps things fresh and inspires listeners to move onto Everybody Loves an event. Everybody Loves an event has Lyrd provide considerable amounts of narration, bringing listeners along for the ride. The…
I Just Want To Dance starts out with fiery horns; Greig’s inimitable vocals kick in shortly after. The track is able to take parts of the fifties, eighties, nineties, and today; Greig has frenetic energy through all three minutes of this cut; hints of the New Jack Swing era of R’n’B and the swinging lounge sounds of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin represent major influences to Greig on I Just…
Once you get past how instantly enjoyable Hayley Reardon’s new EP is, your hit by the stunning news that this singer/guitarist is only 17 years-old. Her voice and lyrics (with the exception of the cover of Taj Mahal’s “Fishin’ Blues,” all the songs here are penned by Reardon) are far stronger than anything you’d expect from a teenager and bring to mind everyone from Mary Chapin Carpenter to fellow Bostonian…
The titular track to Mr. Bones is led by a story that would hang with the most memorable of country and western stars of the fifties and sixties. Doug MacDonald keeps things utterly vibrant and infuses this timeless style with a bold style and an inimitable set of pipes. Honk Your Horn is a standout track on Mr. Bones, showcasing a delightful dynamic between the different elements of the…
A Fresh Bottle & A Brand New Day contains a number of distinct compositions that stand up to repeat listens. Norfolk County Jail is a track that touches upon a wide array of styles, moving effortless through punk, folk, and alt-country, as Sunshine Riot is able to immediately impress listeners. Natural Causes is a soft and sedate sound that gradually picks up steam. The guitar and bass dynamic that is…
The term “Norsecore” has been thrown around on the internet for a while and generally refers to bands that ripped off the second-wave Norwegian bands in every possible way from riffs to aesthetics to an extreme over-reliance on blast beats.
Calling to mind everyone from the B-52’s to the dB’s, Athens, GA-based Casper & The Cookies have always revealed in catchy, jerky synth pop that you can’t help but sing along to (quirky choruses be damned!). On Dingbats, their eighth release (their sixth or so with the band full band, The Cookies), the group is still uncompromisingly odd and just as fun as when they first surfaced. Their latest is…
The typical words I would associate with black metal of all kinds do not seem to fit when I attempt to describe Dodsferd’s 9th studio album, ‘The parasitic survival of the human race’. A mix of sturdy riffing, clearly defined instrumentation and somehow structured vocal timings, make, truly gripping, exciting and sincerely different from anything I have heard before. Dodsferd have somehow managed to create a rebellious, ‘fuck you’ sounding…
The Blasterjaxx boys have been taking the music world by storm, leaving the likes of Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga in the dust. Owing to their huge success world-wide, Blasterjaxx pops out two new remixes of their new hit chart-topper Faith: the Lady Bee Remix as well as the Bassanova & Dirty Herz Remix. Shaping two distinct yet eerily similar tunes, Blasterjaxx brings in influences from trap, EDM, as well…
Stop Making Sense and Start Making Success is an introspective and deftly-designed composition that provides listeners with a complete introduction to Lasse Passage; the dense arrangements will take a number of listens before they yield every secret that Lasse Passage has placed into the effort. The darkly emotive arrangements that are present on tracks like Tanker Om Morningen are simply unparalleled. Hints of early oughts Deep Elm emotive rock can…