CD and DVD reviews
Who doesn’t like poppy singer-songwriter music? I’d bet all hands go up in the air. I mean, while bluesy singer-songwriter, which by the way kind of emerges in the late 60’s and 70’s with the arrival of Bob Dylan, Cat Stevens, Elton John and Billy Joel, represented a close and personal artistic snapshot from the…
Some might say the best singers are born. They are letting their voice go from early in life in choirs, music classes, and around the home as a prelude to future careers. Ryal, onetime singer for Strip Darling, is one of those singers. Raised in Colorado and the San Diego area, Ryal participated in Christian-themed…
DeDe’s “The Fairy Tale Song” is a song that bursts at the seams with optimism. With a comforting sense of purpose DeDe references a wide variety of different fairy tales applying them to the inevitable ascent into adulthood. How one’s own life goals changes as they grow older is the focal point of the song.…
Vince Grant’s darkly titled “My Depression Is Always Trying to Kill Me” is music for cloudy days. The songs explore the loneliness that comes with depression and how isolating it can be. Lyrically the songs express a yearning for others. With a dreamy sound that seems to rise above the ground like fog the work…
Rock Masters Band needs no warm up. They start right at maximum volume and maximum onslaught. With “Diamonds” they prove exactly how much energy they have. For the flipside, on “Hit The City” they opt for a casual summery groove. Put together they are able to show off their considerable range. Although the two songs…
Well…I mean all I’m saying is you just go ahead and TRY to find me music that sounds more like pyramids on Mars than Pyramids On Mars do! I’m also fully willing to admit I’ve never really heard the sounds of ANY pyramid before…or seen one for that matter…but I’ve got an overactive imagination that…
Software author, former candidate for the United States Senate, published self-help author. These are a few of the many pies thirty-one year old Jonathan Bannon Maher has his fingers deep in, but it doesn’t indicate a lack of focus. Instead. Maher is a multi-faceted thinker and artist, a quasi-Renaissance man in distinctly un-Renaissance world. A…
Many might think that the days of bands with a big sound, bringing different sorts of music together into a bigger picture, are past. Southern-bred CBDB, however, proves that there’s life yet in music like this. In a desperate age where no one is making the money they used to, too many bands ape successful…
Artur U & the New City Limits play moody rock for cloudy days. Their work explores the same sonic palette as so many now gone bands from the mid-2000s. Emotional, melodic, and downright beautiful at times they manage to find the joy within their self-imposed limitations, opting for small gestures to create big pictures. Very…
Lazy J & The Dirty Shuffle is a rollicking good time. This is rock n’ roll at its absolute best. With a clear humid Southern feel these are songs packed full of heart and soul. Lyrically the songs focus on universal themes, from relationships to religion. How these songs are built differs: from the straight-up…
Patrick J. Fiore is a male Acoustic-Pop based artist from Pennsylvania. This might just be the perfect locale to explore the refined pop realm of musical expression. His latest album “Small Wooden Room” is a witty-truthful collection of melodic rock that reveals all the a-typical conventions of Acoustic Pop and Singer-Songwriter Folk thus creating a…
What´s the first thing that cross through your mind when you hear, read or see the word ¨ill¨ – definitely not something nice. That´s because different to maybe ¨Sick¨ (which now some young people use to refer to something that´s either really cool or awesome), ¨Ill¨ still stands for something bad. However, once you listen…
Moors and McCumber have been around a long time, and I’ve never liked them much but this is at least a step in a better direction. The singer/songwriter approach brings a more easy listening sound, similar to Steve Earle and others. The strings on this release “Pandemonium” are also of noteworthy quality as well. They…
Here are a catchy couple of tunes! I’ll fully admit that I had to look up Liz Graham right away to find out where the music was exactly coming from, and perhaps what her own background might be. As it turns out, she’s from a place called Nyack, New York…which is far away from where…
The Great Game is one of those rare bands that does it all and does it well. With a madness to them that at times recalls Mr. Bungle’s unhinged spirit, their chops are considerable. Hard rock, jazz, reggae and more the music flows with such passion. Lyrically the songs are cryptic. Melodically they are aware…
Anyone remember Starship? Come on…you do so and you rockers out there secretly loved pumping your fists to the big-beat anthems of love and empowerment they created. Something very similar happening here decades later here in our present-day with Micheal Castaldo’s spiritual new song “Everything Happens For A Reason.” Coming up for release officially in…
I’ll admit it. When it comes to music, I am a bit of a dinosaur. Rap and hip-hop hit the mainstream when I was in my thirties when I had a professional career, wife and kids. Honestly, I didn’t pay it much attention. I was recently sent, was is billed as a hip- hop song,…
It’s been an excellent day in the studio here. Started it off interviewing the fantastically-talented Kristia Di Gregorio and now here I get to continue on this wicked start with even more great music coming through my speakers courtesy of Lovesucker. This new self-titled EP has a high-level of sound-fusion and successful combinations that show…
Some good indie-rock put forth here from Don Puglisi. Clearly a seasoned musician that’s got experience and a rich understanding of how to create captivating tapestries of rock that transform themselves and expand into beautiful melodies, solos and overall performances. In those very first opening moments of “Ricochet Girl” you can hear already that this…
They don’t make them like Lee Williams and that is a damned shame. Listening to “The Pit and the Pendulum” is like listening to a transmission from an earlier era in rock, one that remembered where it came from. With blues infused into its very soul the song feels incredibly tactile. Everything about the song…
As a 9-year Army vet, Christine knows a thing or two about serving her country proud but music also runs thick through her blood. Standing in the front lines as a 5-Star Music General, Ms. Martucci is firing off her 4th CD titled ‘Angels of War’. Prepare to surrender to the powerful sound Christine brings…
Denny Diamond & The Jewels is majestic on “Diamond Mountain EP”. The sound is large and all-encompassing. Passionate delivery defines the EP as it unfurls at a languid pace letting the small flourishes of sound bloom into bright bursts. Remarkably colorful in terms of texture and lyrical content these are songs that soar ever higher.…
Matthew Azrieli’s “Chloe” is pop music at its most affectionate. His voice is endearing and calm. The arrangements are immaculate with everything in its right place. A timeless sound defines the album with upbeat melodies and reassuring lyrics. Put together, all of this creates the kind of mood a listener can stretch out into, finding…
The Afro Nick has an effortless cool to it. With a feeling reminiscent of The Strokes at their absolute apex, The Afro Nick delves into a number of wonderful genres. By tapping into a raw classic rock sound the songs are pared down to the absolute basics. Vocals are direct and prominently displayed throughout the…
“Never in Agreement” begs to be played loud. Attik Door comes in swinging with a flailing drums, an endless supply of hooks and vocals that soar above it all. Brash, bold, this is rock to a perfect tee. Everything about it from the catchiness to the sense of unity among all the songs. For those…
Novakaine debuted at Artomatic, DC 2012 as a progressive ensemble performing in the genres of Rock and Blues with hints of Punk and Reggae. The four piece band of experienced musicians come from many different musical and cultural backgrounds. Bringing a combination of these genres gives Novakaine a huge advantage in the industry. Their sound…
R&B is probably one of the most difficult genres to sing, because you have to have the “it” factor to make it. Nobody really knows what that is, but when you hear it, you’ll know. There is always a lot of soul and heart in R&B and I could definitely see that Catrina Parker had…
Brannue Life lacks nice drops and good bass that is commonly most enjoyed in EDM style songs, without the key drops it anticipation build up. While they’re still fun to listen to I would say they did not make the best EDM song in the world. They don’t lack potential though. If Brannue were to…
When one thinks of a party anthem, what does one think of? Do they think of the biggest EDM artist at the time? Maybe the biggest pop artist who has the catchiest lyrics that make you want to get up and dance? I’m sure most people would agree that to have a party song, it…
The ‘Sarah’ in the title refers to famous jazz singer Sarah Vaughan from the 1940’s-ish era, and also points to solo-artist Delilah’s pure love for her music & sound. With this EP, Delilah Sings Sarah + 1 cover of another renowned artist, Nat King Cole, in a set of four songs that display a real…
Paul Kloschinsky is a Folk Rock Singer Songwriter from Delta, BC, Canada. He won the 2007 MusicAid Award for Best Canadian Songwriter for my original song Wearin’ Blue. He just released my first album, Woodlands, February 24, 2009 on Prism/Universal in Canada. Paul Kloschinsky was born in Saskatchewan in 1963. He attended the University of…
Emily Vance is of a breed that’s overly common nowadays. She’s a seventeen year-old, delightfully pretty country singer-songwriter with a pop-acoustic vibe. Think Taylor Swift. Her new EP is ‘Finding My Way,’ a four track outing. How does she handle the spotlight, though? Is it original and creative, or contrived and overdone? In this space…
Mark Maze’s “Uncomfortable Truths” are shooting stars of pop perfection. Elegantly crafted these are songs that unfold gradually and gigantically. Nothing but anthems these are the kinds of songs people have no choice but to sing along to for they are about universal truths. Love, anxiousness, rejection, determination, these are the key component of each…
You be hard press to find something negative to say about Sasha’s Bloc. They’ve honed their old school jazz and swing sound to a fine art, and deliver it perfectly in their new album. Founded three years ago by Alexander Gershman, the bassist, the band combines a wide range of musicians who are all intensely…
I am an avid rock music lover, for a really long while I labeled myself as a ¨Rocker¨ as the one and only genre I will really be mostly into and the other type of music, well, let´s just say I barely paid attention to them – of course, as I grew up and started…
832’s “The RAP-ture” is a moody album that emerges from the darkness into the light. Throughout the album the tempos move through at a slow and deliberate pace. Vocal delivery matches the overall sense of darkness that permeates most of the album. Religious imagery finds itself embedded within the lyrics, the idea of eternal damnation…
Gibrish is off and running with their latest single that features 3 tracks people will definitely be talking about! This Swedish-based band incorporates an array of different musical elements & styles from folk, rock, blues, jazz and pop to fusion, world music, alternative country and soul. Gibrish has got you covered on all levels as…
Evan’s “New Folk” shows the future of folk music. With an excellent mixture of both Evan’s intimate voice with the full warmth brought on by his band, “New Folk” excels at the emotive. Songs are remarkably catchy. Rhythms roll by as gentle breezes. His strong voice is the centerpiece of the album weaving the many…
Dave Plaehn’s “Radio Sister” is music that soothes the soul. Incredibly lush the arrangements are tasteful and restrained. The playfulness of the band is apparent, the glistening keyboards, the tight rhythms, and the clean guitars. Lyrically the songs are full of hope. Stylistically Dave Plaehn covers a wide range from Steely Dan inspired blues to…
Dear Criminals work with the gritty sounds of life. Effortlessly combining moody electronics and longing vocals the pieces have maintain a delicate balance. On one hand the songs possess a true sense of humanity akin to the hushed tones of the most intimate folk. The minimal electronics are tastefully deployed throughout the album. At times…
