CD and DVD reviews
URL: https://www.safeashouses.ca/ A modest guitar picking reverberates into the dark ethers surrounding it. A second guitar’s strum interrupts its homespun harmony, only adding to the textures of expression that this wordless opening salvo of instrumentation is delivering at the start of “Lucky Lucky,” Safe as Houses’ new single. The melody blankets us in a warmth…
Ranzel X Kendrick sounds a little like Diamond David Lee Roth of Van Halen, in his gentler moments. Only this isn’t a heavy metal lead singer taking a volume break. Instead, it is the way Kendrick always likes to do it. He describes himself as “just a country son,” and this song details a good…
Lyia Meta sings straight from the heart on the powerful “All My Love”. With a swirling gorgeous style, Lyia Meta offers a soulful fiery sound. Everything about the song opts for a powerful emotionally wrought approach to storytelling. A lush approach informs Erik-Peter Mortensen’s “Dragon Song (feat. Sarah Moulton Faux)”. Growing ever more potent the…
URL: https://drakejensen.ca/ You definitely hear Drake Jensen’s rock influences in the first single “Talk Me Down” from his fifth studio album Sideshow. The track boasts a full bodied and boisterous sound without ever coming off melodramatic and, given the desperation of its lyric, this is no small achievement. Jensen has built a substantial amount of his reputation…
Simmering out of the silence, a synthesizer crashes through the speakers like a cathartic tidal wave and oozes with epic tonality. The rhythm is gentle, but the music that it is framing is anything but timid. We’re in the clutches of Scarlett Deva’s new single “In da Couch,” which might have a somewhat comical title…
Charlie Christmas may be a new name to you. It reads like a holiday TV special character name, doesn’t it? However, Chuck Crisafulli may ring a bell. Crisafulli is a published music journalist, who has written books about Elvis Presley and the Doors, as well as articles for many national music magazines. Nevertheless, Charlie Christmas…
Charlie Christmas’ “Happy Day” is a, well, happy sounding song. It’s built upon a slightly jangling electric guitar part. Christmas’ vocal sounds like it’s under water in places. The chorus is simple. “It’s a happy day/Everything’s okay/It’s a happy day.” This song is not to be confused with “Oh Happy Day,” the gospel rave-up the…
A true sense of Americana filters through Frank Trousdell’s “Bushline Sniper” proving him to be a deeply compelling storyteller. Everything about the song has a perfect kind of raw grit and soul. From the twang of the guitar to the ornate fiddle work that filters through, the piece possesses such authenticity. Layer upon layer of…
SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2fnV6seL0Y3klLT1gR7Qa2 In a lumbering pitter-patter that echoes a vibrant bass strutting its stuff in the foreground, the neatly arranged drums in Little Bird’s “gHost” are intent on capturing the lion’s share of our affections in the Charleston, South Carolina band’s latest single, but they face some serious competition from an angelic vocal and a…
With a true sense of majesty, Gregorio Garza Jr crafts an impressive cinematic tour-de-force with the colossal “War of Ages”. Everything about it goes for an unspoken classical narrative. Full of incredible flourishes and such gorgeous color the entirety of the album simply teems with an undue amount of life. Instrumentally dense the pieces have…
A bass comes creeping from the shadows and suddenly breaks open the floodgates on a heavenly harmony from none other than Szandra Mayer. There’s a reticence in her voice that sounds a lot like heartache. The melody that she’s straddling is ominous but spiked with a dash of hope inside of the clashing synthesizer and…
Heathcote Hill’s “Save The Ones You Love” begins with a melancholy, piano-driven groove. Lyrically, the song starts by questioning the validity of dreams. Then on the chorus, it advises: “It’s a wicked world/Save the ones you love.” Both musically and lyrically, this is an overtly emotional recording. Sure, it’s unlikely this is some sort of…
Woodfish’s “Damn Thing” is one funky slice of music. The trio’s nucleus is comprised of brothers Steve Kalorin, who plays bass, and Dominic Kalorin, the act’s drummer. “Damn Thing” is, if nothing else, a jam. You may want to think of it has a Tower of Power track, albeit without the horns. Rock music is…
A luxurious sound wafts from the silky-smooth style of Emex’s “Hello” (ft. YCee). Truly lush, the piece draws from the softest impulses of R&B, electro, and pop. Completely immersive the whole track simply washes over the listener. Vocals opt for a gentle, tender approach serving as the heart and soul of the piece. From these…
URL: https://themindisthemap.com/buy-the-book/ The library of self-help or self-improvement literature available to readers is enormous. This popular and profitable non-fiction genre has spawned countless sensations over the course of publishing history, particularly in the 20th century, though not every entry in the catalog left a lasting mark on the culture; sometimes wildly popular books enjoy a limited…
A huge amount of energy flows through the hard-edged Pop Hip-Hop style of Farrah Frostt’s “Not In The Mood”. The song is produced by Sam Sneed (formerly Death Row Records) who produced Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, and others. The slick video is Directed by Rock Davis (DJ Khaled and P. Diddy), Itchy…
Heathcote Hill’s Save The Ones You Love album arrives at a time when frothy pop music rules the world. Radiohead didn’t headline the famed Coachella Music Festival, but Ariana Grande did. This is not to put Grande down. However, Grande makes music for fluttering teenage girl hearts, not for fully grown adults. Tragedy for Grande’s…
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/victorpedroofficial Out of dark and mysterious silence, a fragile melody driven equally by a synthesizer and a sexy vocal harmony emerges and imparts a chilling glow with every note that it emits. There’s something coming for us just over the horizon, and whatever it is, it means business. “You know I miss ya,” the…
Surreal melodies and beats that don’t back down are just a couple of the ingredients that Heather Fay tosses into the melting pot of tonality that is her new single “The One,” a three and a half minute pop jam that will get stuck in your head even when you’re not intending for it to.…
URL: https://www.charliemariemusic.com/ Like a wispy spring breeze, a soft and tender vocal from Charlie Marie slips out of our stereos and into the airspace alongside a mischievous string picking. “Just because you wear a Stetson, and you say you were made in Texas, doesn’t mean that you’re country and western,” she croons, her words dripping…
Surrealism has been finding its way into pop music on a more consistent basis since 2015, and we find its fingerprints all over Kingdom of Birds’ Glitz extended play without having to look very hard. Cornerstones of the band’s latest release include the single “Goodbye” (and its spacy music video), the grinding post-punk track “Dotted…
Golden sound, brilliant intensity, sheer romance – the thrill of the Italian tenor voice is back on From Now On, the ninth album of tenor Jonathan Cilia Faro, to be distributed by BFD / Sony Orchard on April 26. A fiery passion flows through the whole of Jonathan Cilia Faro’s impeccable “From Now On”. Effortlessly…
Hardcore punk five-piece from Detroit containing ex-members of Tommy Gunn and current members of The Purps, Aggro Or Die and Saint Ridley. Influenced by 7 Seconds, AFI, Bad Religion, Minor Threat, Comeback Kid, Rise Against, and Sick of it All. Come Out Fighting embody the hardcore punk rock ethos with their intense riotous work. Speed…
New York-based indie rockers Earthquake Lights take listeners on an introspective journey with their new single “So Far No Luck”. The band members met in the music department at Hofstra University and developed their sound playing local gigs in and around New York City. As evident in their songs, their literacy extends far into the…
Seconds into “Light Up,” the latest irresistible jam by the Nigerian artist Demola, an instrument not usually associated with Afrobeat enters the mix: a classically-inspired violin. The rhythm track is a sun-baked, buoyant bounce, and the violin part is a cool forest breeze. They shouldn’t work perfectly together, but somehow, they do. That’s exactly the…
Finding September hold nothing back with the fiery passion of “History”. Done with the utmost of style, Finding September incorporates elements of punk, alt rock, and pop into a coherent cohesive whole. By far the true driver of the sound comes from the powerful vocals which possess a commanding presence. Reminiscent of similar pop punk…
Fabpz the Freelancer recently performed at an Open Mic Live in New York City. Fabpz has always been one of the top artistes to watch with the help of his X-Calade Promotionz label ensuring that his music gets as much publicity as possible. Fapbz is an underground Hip Hop artiste that has released many mixtapes…
The song “Complicated” is built upon a – surprise, surprise – relatively simple arrangement. Even singing about complications can get, well, complicated. The song begins with a funky, keyboard groove. Quickly, jazzy saxophone and tinkly piano come in. The first verse complains about people’s busy lives. This couple just wants to plan a simple dinner…
Black and white drumming adorns a full-color bassline as we wander through the first couple of bars in “Mile High Lady,” the new single from The Hugs, and it’s soon met with a funky little guitar part as well. The percussion is a little robotic, but it’s creating a strong framework that will be filled…
This is now the third review I’ve done for this talented duo from Georgetown, TX and I know Tough On Fridays won’t let me down because they have yet to disappoint me. The latest single, “Summer”, is perfect timing with plants & flowers blooming and that sweet, summertime breeze right around the corner! Tough On…
Sarantos explores a painful personal subject with tremendous grace on the sunny “Bankruptcy”. Over the course of the piece Sarantos utilizes an arrangement that at times feels nearly tropical. By opting for such a gentle take the whole of the track goes for something graceful. His inviting voice offers reassurance that indeed no one is…
Blistering blues guitar welcomes us into Project Grand Slam’s new LP PGS 7 on a high note, only to break away in a flurry of jazz jamming in “Yeah Yeah,” the album’s opening track. Ziarra Washington doesn’t waste a second in seducing us with her vocal charms, and sax man Mario Castro peppers her harmonies…
This is a book that’s critically important right now. While it is unlikely scores and scores will pick it up and use as it a call to arms for promoting its ideas, it nonetheless adds an intelligent and deeply concerned voice to the ongoing discussion about the worsening state of human endeavor and how we…
The Magnetic South dispenses a unique blend of instrumental psychedelia and neo-progressive enigmas influenced by postmodernity in their exciting debut album, Sea Level, and the seven songs that it brings to the table. In the title track, “My Sun,” “Sunrise and Gravity” and the mountain-moving “Porcelain Branches,” the band pushes the sonic envelope as far…
Strands of feedback and acrylic white noise come slipping through the cracks of silence like transmissions from outer space as we descend upon “Take It to the Breakdown,” the opening track of Stars in Toledo’s eponymous debut album, which was first released last April. A funky guitar riff finds its way into the fold and…
Christa Deánā’s “Shine” begins gently, like a CeCe Winans gospel track. Deánā is also a Christian singer, but her songs also incorporate a lot of modern production touches. What follows is an inspiring song, which also sounds contemporary and relevant. “Shine” revs up with a call-and-response build, before incorporating a choir-like vocal chorus. These elements…
Woven Green is the name Jim and Ashley Cash have given their musical partnership. This pairing goes much deeper than just music, however. The couple met at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA, where they were both working toward degrees in Cultural Anthropology. They eventually started their own private music instruction business. Additionally, they spend…
URL: https://www.caseyahern.com/ California country is given the celebration it deserves in Casey Ahern’s brand new EP He Was Summer, which was released last year to critical acclaim and has already got audiences demanding more from the fledging singer/songwriter. Casey Ahern’s devotion to the Golden State sound is realized in full color on He Was Summer, arriving to…
They wowed us with such sizzlers as Railbirds, Broken Chord and Lo Fi Dreams, and now in their latest record West Towards South, Jeffrey Halford & the Healers are back and banging out their best music in years. A concept album by design, West Towards South features a litany of majestic melodies in ten tracks that pack a mighty punch when played…
Diamond Lake’s “Light On” begins with a charging electric guitar riff. This riff then gives way to an equally driving bass part. The single is taken from the Brooklyn band’s EP Changes and is a passionately constructed piece of rock & roll. The chorus includes the line, “Leave the light on.” Before you start picturing…
