I can almost promise that you haven’t heard anything in 2022 that sounds like this. ViennaCC’s “Cook For Me” is sort of mad scientist electro pop with a dollop of rock dynamics driving the train. The Austrian born and based songwriter, musician, and performer behind this new single has, at least, an effective idea of how to get listener’s attention. Delivering an unexpected (and not entirely sincere) ode to the pleasures of male/female domesticity with a Germanic accent and generous, yet never overcooked, vocal effects is a far cry from pop music’s standard fare. Marrying it with some relentless pre-programmed…
Author: Cleopatra Patel
“Snakebite” is the latest single by NorCal rockers, Julian Brooks and Paris King. Not exactly Simon and Garfunkel or Belle and Sebastian, Brooks and King are forging their own path, and reimagining the notion of a musical duo. It’s not entirely clear who contributes what from a compositional standpoint, but both are defining figures in their recent effort. The Red Bull fueled, “Snakebite,” starts at around a 100 and stays there for the entirety of the track. You might even accuse the drums of being a bit too busy, but it ultimately suits the song’s jittery texture. FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/tellmelp/ Not…
I’ve become acquainted with the work of flutists Patricia Lazzara and Steve Markoff over the last year. Having heard their two previous albums as well as the first single from their pending third album, I can say they are one of the finest instrumental projects working today. Concert flutist Patricia Lazzara has received a handful of awards for her playing, among them winning the National Flute Association Convention Performers Competition as well as snagging 3 first place finishes in the Artists International Competition, among others. Markoff, over the course of public performances and the duo’s first two albums, has earned…
The Brian Shapiro Band’s second full-length collection It’s Amazing consolidates and builds off the success of the outfit’s debut All That We See. To some listeners familiar with the first effort, it may even seem as if Shapiro’s songwriting doubles down on the first album’s iconoclastic self-expression. Despite coming together during the pandemic, the Shapiro Band’s songwriting landscape is insulated from the scourge. Shapiro isn’t a topical songwriter. Instead, It’s Amazing’s songs explore inner landscapes and boasts impressive skills at characterization. The latter quality contents itself with rendering certain “types” clear for listeners, but it’s effective, nonetheless. There’s definitely an art rock component…
We are happy to spend some time today with the talented artist Michael B. Whit. Thank you for taking time to talk with us. We have listened to “40 Acres” and love what you are doing and bringing to country music. How did you decide this as your next release? Y’all are very welcome, anytime. Honored to talk with y’all, and I’m thrilled that y’all are digging “40AD.” I was just in the studio having fun when this idea came to me to experiment with mixing a little Prince with a little Jason Aldean, and before you know it, 40 Acres Down…
Film & TV Sync Superstar Nick Phoenix work on movie trailers has soundtracked the worlds of ‘Star Trek’, ‘The Avengers,’ ‘Batman’, ‘Harry Potter,’ and more. Now, he’s returning to his first love – Rock ’N’ Roll – with the release of new album ‘Wide World’, which features members of Death Cab For Cutie and John Mayer’s band. Phoenix’s music production company with partner Thomas Bergersen, Two Steps From Hell, has been producing all manner of film trailers and sporting events since the early 2000s: music to accompany the biggest imagery imaginable. Nick explains how it got into Film Music: “When I came to…
Virtuoso bassist, bandleader, and vocalist Robert Miller and his band Project Grand Slam have long since established themselves as one of the foremost bands in the modern music scene. The band’s work crosses multiple genres. Miller and his cohorts tackle rock, covers, originals, fusion, and other styles with convincing zeal. The band’s latest single “I’m Falling Off of the World” from their album The Shakespeare Concert highlights the unit’s talents as a live act and the production captures the varied range of their musical skills. The track kicks off at a brisk but clear clip. Project Grand Slam achieves impressive distinction between…
Mama Proud is the heartwarming and soothing new album from Annette Adler. Blending the magic of Folk music with classic Americana Mama Proud is an album that will get you moving and memories stirring. Adler has always found a way to keep music in her life no matter what point she’s been at in her path. Born and raised in Los Angeles Adler used to be a professional wedding singer before working at Capitol/EMI Records. After her sons were born Adler switched gears and became a music educator. Mama Proud uses soft and sunny melodies to reflect on the lessons…
I’m sitting here listening to “Too Late Again” for the umpteenth time. Normally I wouldn’t be giving this much gravitas to a new single – after all there are only so many hours in the day and new singles hit YouTube or Spotify on a daily basis. The new single from sisters Trisha and Thara is stunningly simple – clean and unbusied compared to other pop singles. It’s clearness, though, shouldn’t be mistaken for boring. Rumbling just beneath the surface is a dynamic groove that is poised to make the teens one of music’s brightest voices. “Too Late Again” is smooth…
With “All My Love” and “Tomorrow Never Comes,” Morten Nygaard established a certain following that doesn’t happen from quality songwriting or even decent performing on their own. When he sings these two singles, he gives us an opening into his soul that is hard to replicate when you don’t have the caliber of talent he does, but in his latest single “Trespassing,” he breaks away into another layer of artistry that is somewhat darker and more brooding than I was originally anticipating. It’s an exciting and dangerous style to adopt, but one I believe a lot of people are going…
Modern blues as a genre and concept feels less tangible with every passing day; in 2022, the blurred lines of any genre delving into rock instrumentation generally get slapped with the broad descriptor of “alternative” and the powers that be at radio stations, etc., call it a day and move on. For modern bands to champion the sounds less explored in the mainstream, it takes some gusto and a whole lot of talent: thankfully, San Francisco natives Wreckless Strangers seem up to the task and have been delivering knockout tunes unimpeded by mainstream labels for over six years. Their latest…
The beat is big and insistent in the title cut from Brooke Josephson’s new EP Showin’ Up, but while its thrust is intimidating in comparison to what I’ve been catching up with among the other players in her scene lately, it’s only lighting the fuse in this white-hot track. Josephson’s vocal is pure and melodic, but her delivery is aggressive and more attentive to the textural backdrop than it ever has been previously. The gallop of the groove is enough to leave anyone within earshot in a trance, but as the jittery rhythm of “Rainbow” replaces it a short three minutes…
Atlanta’s Jordan Asher Armstrong’s rebranding as The Great Lands steers the singer/songwriter in a Neil Young/Bob Dylan-inspired direction. Open ears, however, will hear strands and smatterings of other voices as well. The Great Lands is far from a tribute act or imitation, however, and the proof is where it should be. In the songs. 1400 Piedmont, the first of two EP releases due to become widely available over the next few months, attests to this. Armstrong’s instincts are honed to such an extent that he steers a venerable, and in some people’s opinion long ago exhausted, vehicle such as guitar rock…
Ronnue established his brand as one of the more reliable in the Northwest underground not too long ago after a string of popular hits on the indie circuit, and in his new role as producer for up and comer Lisa G. Allen, his legacy of detail-oriented craftsmanship only gets stronger. Allen is a formidable vocalist who demands a more rigid beat structure behind her to get a full-bodied harmony together in her new single “Big Momma,” but while the concept for the track is a bit stock in comparison to what you might find coming off the cloud scene at…
There are scores of singer/songwriters making headlines with provocative material at the moment, but of those who have come up on my radar this spring, few have intrigued me as much as Pete Miller does with his debut single “A Light out There.” Among the qualities that this single boasts are a black and white arrangement, soaring harmonies, and a textural expression that is often missing from some of the more intricately-crafted folk music out right now. To me, Miller seems like a successor to the singer/songwriters of the ‘60s, with a slightly edgier twist to his compositional technique. “A…