Category: FEATURES

Feature stories and artist interviews

LONGEVITY: THEY DON’T TAKE IT FOR GRANTED

It seems everybody and their mama (literally, at times) wants to be in the music business. Everybody wants to sing, play an instrument, dance, you name it. Whether it be American Idol or America’s Next Best Dance Crew, reality show this and reality show that, there’s one thing in common that everybody wants — stardom.

DEPUI OFFERS MP3 “HERE WE GO”

Depui is the band that makes you feel the woodenfloor underneath your feet. The leadsinger Depui has showed and played in diffrent countries with various feedback. He was loved in the states, banned from Ireland and lifted up high in Thailand. Their music is inspired by Tom York/Tom Waits.

JESSICA 6 RELEASE “WHITE HORSE” MP3

New York City’s Jessica 6 creates soul music in its purest form, no matter the tempo. Their debut album, See the Light, moves from pulsating electronic sheen to uncompromisingly rugged R&B, and back again.

ICE BLACK BIRDS FREE MP3 OF SINGLE “22:22”

Forthcoming third single ‘22:22’ is, in short, a tune. However, Ice Black Birds’ talents lie not just in catchy hooks and danceable beats (though they have both in spades) but in the dirty guttural guitar riffs and screamed bluesy vocals. It’s reminiscent of early Kings of Leon when the music was raw, fresh and dripping…

FEBRUARY 2011 SONICBIDS “ARTISTS 2 WATCH”

Welcome to another amazing month of music from the incredible musicians that make up the Sonicbids.com community. We have chose a select group of amazing musicians that will be speaking directly to the Skope readers. As always we encourage readers to dig deeper and check out their EPK’s.

TODD LOVE BALL JR EXPOSES HIS PERSONAL NAKED TRUTH

Another Friday is upon us and I could not be happier. Bring on the cold & the snow, nothing can ruin my good mood. My next guest is so much more than just a musician. Todd Love Ball Jr aka TLB is a man that knows who he is and is not afraid to let…

YOUNG GALAXY GO ANIMATED IN NEW VIDEO

Young Galaxy have just released a brilliant, animated video to accompany the song ‘We Have Everything’ taken from their new album Shapeshifting. The video was created by Montreal-based visual artist Sinbad Richardson.   Download the MP3 here. Shapeshifting will be released in Canada on February 8th on Paper Bag Records.

WAYNE WONDER “IF I EVER” VIDEO

Grammy nominated Reggae/ R&B singer Wayne Wonder does it again with a new single. He recently released his, Singso Records, single titled “If I Ever” in Nov. 2010. He returned with the intentions to give his fans what they’ve been missing and that’s exactly what he accomplished.

NOW, NOW OFFER “GIANTS” MP3

Minneapolis, MN trio Now, Now have been thoroughly enjoying their early 2011 tour dates as they make their way from the west coast through the south. Their current run of dates, which now extends through the end of March, are in support of their recently released EP Neighbors.

HOMAGE TO THE MOTHERLAND

Sometimes you’re writing an artist biopic; and you wind up getting a history lesson. As was the case when I spoke to Piotr Miroslav, lead singer and guitarist for Blisko Pola. Turns out the name of the group translated means “close to the pole.” And apparently (as I have never been) Poland gets its name…

DAVID GUETTA & RIHANNA NEW VIDEO

Grammy-award-winning DJ/Producer/Artist David Guetta’s brand new Jonas Akerlund (Madonna, Lady GaGa, Pink) directed   video for his latest single “Who’s That Chick?” featuring Rihanna premiered on Guetta’s YouTube today.   “Who’s That Chick?” which just hit #1 on the Billboard Club Chart is the latest smash from Guetta to hit the airwaves and is currently…

DIRTBALL RELEASES VIDEO FOR “LONG ROAD”

The king of rapid fire rhyme, Dirtball has released a new video for the track “Long Road” from   his upcoming new solo album “Nervous System” online. “Nervous System” will hit stores on March 1st, 2011 through Suburban Noize Records.

NOT EASILY INTIMIDATED

If you heard that 6 or 7 people got fired within a month’s time, would you be intimidated about landing that job position? Not Andrew Dawson.

ANDREAS THE GREEK

From Thessaloniki, Greece comes Andreas, a multi talented composer of instrumental music who uses synthesizers and accoustic instruments. He is a huge fan of Yanni and has created a website dedicated to him. Andreas unique style is a reflection of the depth and intellect of this worldly man.

STOLI HEADS TO MELANIE EDWARDS LAB TO EXPERIMENT WITH MUSIC

Before we get started today I must let our loyal readers know that Stoli is heading down south for two weeks to escape this crazy winter weather and gain musical inspiration. Before I left I wanted to leave you with a musician from NYC that is not only talented but is very much doing her…

PLANK RELEASES NEW MP3 “SO WICKED”

With raw, powerful songs you can really hold on to, PLANK creates a heavy downbeat musical world with catchy hooks and melody. A band that would rather start the trend than follow it, these five guys found their way to each other to create a buzz sound, pure and gimmick free. Now the objective is…

STOLI CAN’T KEEP UP WITH AYANA JOHN

I will tell you one thing, its a winter wonderland where I am. All you can see is snow. I am not complaining but its is cold out here! So that being said, I had to have an artist that would bring the heat. It is my pleasure to introduce coming from Barbados is the…

JIMMY RAE CHECKS ALL V.I.T.A.L.S. ON NOEL VINSON

Noel Vinson is his name, but V.I.T.A.L. Emcee is his alter ego who aims to conquer the hip-hop world.   V.I.T.A.L. is a rapper, songwriter, artist and activist from Long Beach, California who looks to revitalize music and even life itself.   He sums it all up very nicely here: “Noel Vinson thinks and speaks,…

KRADDY OFFERS MP3 TO ANNOUNCE LABYRINTH TOUR

Kraddy announced his 2011 Winter tour in promotion of his latest EP release, Labyrinth. Fresh off recent appearances with Pretty Lights and a sold-out CD release party that packed L.A.’s infamous Low End Theory nightclub to fire brigade levels, listen for the Kraddy “Led Zeppelin 3000” sound at clubs and festivals through North America in…

‘THE VERY BEST OF THE RAT PACK’ LISTENING PARTY

Iconic entertainers Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.–the Rat Pack, a sheer force of nature on stage and film that defined suave masculine brio in the early 1960s. To commemorate this legendary act, Reprise Records will release an essential collection: THE VERY BEST OF THE RAT PACK on January 25.

STOLI THINKS WE COULD ALL USE SOME CIRCLE OF SANITY NOW

Before we get started today I just want to share a moment to honor those that were killed & injured in Tuscon, AZ on Saturday. It does not matter whether you are conservative or liberal, black or white, whatever you are please try to find a better way than violence on innocent people. Now lets…

COLLIE BUDDZ IS BACK WITH FREE EP & VIDEO

Collie Buddz announces January 18th 2011 as the release date for his highly anticipated EP “Playback.”   The single and music video, “Holiday” sets the tone for the first official Collie Buddz release since his critically acclaimed self-titled debut which hit the top 100 on the Billboard charts in 2007.  

RAT WAKES RED OFFERS “ALWAYS” MP3

Rat Wakes Red is in a constant state of mourning and wonder   and 2010 brings “Acres”. The new LP is   an elegy to the dead and awakening which is very fitting since singer and multi-instrumentalist James Raftery happened to star in the 1993 cult-film Night Owl as a murderous vampire.

SHARON BURCH & FREDDIE THE FROG NURTURE CHILDREN THRU MUSIC

As a parent and a music fanatic I was very excited to bring on my next guest. Music is an amazing form of expression. It can do everything from putting you in a good mood to getting you up and dancing. Did you know that music can also help children develop intelectually? My next guest…

MIDDLE BROTHER OFFERS “ME ME ME” MP3

Partisan Records is excited to offer the first song from the highly anticipated debut album from Middle Brother. Middle Brother is Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes, John McCauley of Deer Tick and Matthew Vasquez of Delta Spirit, and the song is called “Me Me Me.”

A.M.P. RECRUITS RICK ROSS FOR NEW SINGLE / MP3

A.M.P., Rick Ross and Steven Day Guy jumped in the lab together to bring this track to life. “What U Expect” is out now on A.M.P.’s project Streets Need Me and is produced by Epidemic Music production team, Dope Boyz. More is to come from A.M.P. and the entire Fetti Records family.

JANUARY 2011 SONICBIDS “ARTISTS 2 WATCH”

Welcome to another amazing month of music from the incredible musicians that make up the Sonicbids.com community. We have chose a select group of amazing musicians that will be speaking directly to the Skope readers. As always we encourage readers to dig deeper and check out their EPK’s.

COLE JONIQUE RELEASES NEW SINGLE MP3 “WHEN”

Influenced by the likes of Billie Holiday, Sade, Mary J. Blige, Luther Vandross, Patti Labelle and Maxwell, her songs like those who influence her take you on an emotional roller coaster ride.   A ride of ups and downs twists and turns and starts and stops with vocal creativity.

SIMS RELEASES “BURN IT DOWN” VIDEO

Sims, a Minnesota native and member of Minneapolis rap collective Doomtree (P.O.S., Dessa, Lazerbeak, Paper Tiger, Cecil Otter, and Mike Mictlan), is set to drop his second full length album Bad Time Zoo on February 15, 2011.

“I’M WAITING” FOR SKOPE READERS TO HEAR FRANK PALANGI

This is an exciting feature to help kick off 2011. I heard my next guest’s single “I’m Waiting” on Skope Radio for the first time last year and since then I knew I had to have him on. It is with great excitement that I bring on Frank Palangi. Frank is from upstate NY and…

RANDOM STABBINGS & ARTLESS CRITIQUE, JANUARY 2011

Goose, Symrise (K7 Records) Being that this Belgian electro-rock quartet’s 2006 debut album Bring It On had plenty-enough comparisons to Depeche Mode, it’s a mystery why they decided to force-feed themselves Speak & Spell every morning on the commute to the sessions for this album.   But then again, like everything else from everyone else…