Tuesdays Genre Mix: The Pacers - Victoria Celestine - Absinthe Rose

The Pacers - Losing Touch.

Background - The Pacers draw their influences from the sixties Psych/Garage scene, mixing it up with their own unique ideas to create unforgettable and  energetic live performances in the same vein as The Stooges and The Stones, with a healthy dose of freak out psychedelia.

The band formed in the late summer of 2013 when Alexander Friedl and guitarist Harry Stam met under what they describe as "mysterious circumstances". With a shared interest in all things 60's and a desire to escape the monotony of everyday life, they duo picked up their guitars and began writing songs. 

A former band mate of Harry, bass player Jay Creswell, was next to join The Pacers, closely followed by drummer Jamie Yuan. With the line up complete, the band set about making a name for themselves on the underground music scene, playing a string of venues primarily in north and east London which have earned them a loyal and ever increasing fan base. 'Losing Touch' is their debut single.

The Band: Alex Friedl - Vocals, Guitar, Harry Stam - Lead Guitar, Jay Creswell - Bass, Jamie Yuan - Drums.

A modern twist on what was the music of my youth (yep - that old), 'Losing Touch' is an excellent introduction, genuinely leaving me wanting to hear, a whole lot more by this band. A must listen and a reminder that there is much to mine from past musical styles, and opportunities to put your own slant on things.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victoria Celestine - As We Grow Old.

Background - Coming off the success of her second single, “Something More,” innovative and avant-garde artist Victoria Celestine has released her anticipated third single, “As We Grow Old”.  The sultry and energetic track is the latest off of Victoria Celestine’s upcoming debut EP (due for release within the next year). The first single off of the EP, “Wasted Tears” was released in June 2015 with accompanying music video. With the pop synth rhythms reviving their way back into popular music, Victoria is a stand out new artist bringing 80’s style to her video similar to the likes of Walk the Moon’s “Shut Up and Dance.”

Not to be overlooked as another cheeky pop artist Victoria Celestine is truly the odd one out.  Having spent her early years growing up on two ends of the world, France and in San Antonio, Texas, music became Victoria’s fluent language. With piano as a first instrument, she expanded her horizons by picking up the guitar as a teenager once moving back to the US and has never looked back. Combined with the talent of song writing, she is a unique force to be reckoned with.

Coming across Victoria at an open mic in down town San Antonio, Gordon Raphael (producer of The Strokes, Regina Spektor and more) invited her to have her first studio experience recording her first seven songs acoustically.  Harnessing her song writing capabilities, Victoria has placed in the International Song writing Competition four years in a row.  She was also a nominee in the International Acoustic Music Awards and has charted on the iTunes Charts. Look for these three songs that she produced with Blake Harnage (of Versa) when she was only 17, on an EP next year.

Bright and breezy synth pop, plus Victoria's vocals seemingly just right for this style of music. The production is light with neither the soundtrack or the vocals, disturbing the other, highly enjoyable.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Absinthe Rose - Stories Of Our Youth, (From the album 'Black Earth').

Biography - Absinthe Rose is a Boston based Folk band consisting of singer songwriter Kimbo Rose on acoustic guitar and vocals and a core rhythm section of well-seasoned Boston area music veterans. The band mixes different styles of music including Folk, Americana, Gypsy Jazz, Blues, Punk and whatever else they feel like into a original and diverse sound! Regular touring and a tight live performance mixed with a strong DIY ethic and both personal and political subject matter has quickly gained the band notoriety in the underground DIY music scene! 

The musical brainchild of singer songwriter Kimbo Rose and was originally formed in 2008 as a solo acoustic project based out of the Medford and Ashland Oregon area. In 2009 Kimbo Rose relocated to Boston MA and self-released her debut CD entitled Digging Ditches & Escaping Holes on her newly formed DIY record label she named Screech Owl Records. This was a ten-track solo acoustic album of material she had been playing for years in Oregon and recorded in Boston. In the spring of 2010 Kimbo Rose partnered up with Bill on Bass, Josh on Banjo, Nick on Electric Guitar and Rich on Drums and the band as you know it today was born! 

They recorded their debut EP with the full band entitled “Consistency Through Scepticism And Awareness” in the fall of 2010 and began playing out around the Boston area! Soon after the band embarked on their first extensive West Coast US tour in the spring of 2011 and hasn't stopped since. In the winter of 2012 they recorded their full-length album entitled The More That We Learn, The More We Learn That We’re Wrong which was released in the spring of 2013! Since then Absinthe Rose have toured the US and played regularly throughout the North East and East Coast! 

The band entered the studio in the spring on 2015 and began recording their new full length album entitled Black Earth which was self-released on the bands own label in September of 2015! This record turned out to be their most dynamic and eclectic album to date showing the bands true diversity and Kimbo's full range of lyrical and musical influences! The band is presently making plans for a full US and European Tour in 2016! The rest is 'herstory' yet to be written!

Arguably The Pogues were the first folk/punk band, albeit with a mixture of Irish traditional numbers, along with their own original songs. Absinthe Rose take on a variety of genres, that create a bigger melting pot, and they do it very well. The featured track is the only one I could find that can be shared, the album version may be a better mix, and what an album! Full of energy, attitude and angst, Absinthe Rose deliver a powerful mixture of songs, that demand yours and my attention.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alternative Take: Chris Savor - Super Duper - Hayden Calnin - M.I.L. - Mikaela Davis

Chris Savor - TTMO (Can't Lose You).

Words from Chris - After 6 years in New York, I finally made the move back to London. And here is my first UK-dance inspired track after being back home. - It's time to move on, but you still feel the same and you can't let go.  And you thought you would have a steady love by now... "Life's confusing, all the things I was meant to have by now". I wrote this as I finally decided to move back home, alone. I don't know if it's the right decision or why I keep moving, "maybe I'm just choosing situations with expiration's". But the only way is to follow your heart and keep going, so the track ends with, "It's about time we move, It's about time we moved on". TTMO has an emotional message, but a dance sound. Maybe it's about that time your tears glistened in the disco lights.

'Time To Move On' is a fine reflection on Chris Savor's ability to go beyond the conventional, and explore 'dance music' as a vehicle to carry a story, and personal emotional thoughts and feelings. A seven track EP is due in late October and sounds extremely promising.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Super Duper - Finale Ft. Ruelle.

The promo tells us - Vitalic Noise is excited to release Sessions Volume 1 from our latest label signing Super Duper from Nashville, TN. Exploring the crossover of electronic and instrumental hip hop, Super Duper have been compared acts like Hudson Mohawke and TNGHT. Hilly Dilly writes, "Super’s production is huge-sounding, glossy, and one that’s a perfect balance between giving an amount of space and breathing room between arrangements, and making your spine tingle." The EP also features huge vocal contributions from Remmi, Patrick Baker and Jung Youth.

'Finale' builds both in terms of layers of sound and musical direction. Ruelle adds to the whole thing as it expands into something of a three minute epic piece.

 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hayden Calnin - White Night (Thrupence Remix).

Background words - From early beginnings as a triple j ‘next crop’ artist, Hayden Calnin has been an artist refusing to adhere to convention and genre. On his first two EPs, he explored the realms of everything from folk through to downbeat electronic, melting together powerful melodies with understated production, leading to US sync placements on the likes of Suits, Parenthood and Teen Wolf, festival slots at Falls Festival and NYE on the Hill and supports with the likes of Missy Higgins, Matt Corby, Tom Odell and The Antlers. Most recently Calnin has inked deals with internationally renowned booking agency The Agency Group for the US and UK/Europe. 

Since his last EP, Calnin has found inspiration from current electronic artists such as M83 whilst delving more deeply into early childhood influences from his parents’ collection such as Fleetwood Mac and Counting Crows which has led him to revisit his first love—the guitar. Premiering on UK’s CLASH Magazine, ‘White Night’ is a spectacular melting of where he’s been and where he’s going as an artist, remaining faithful to that ‘late night’ vibe, while bringing forward his melodic side and pairing it with the dynamics of a full live band. Co-produced with Tim Carr (Matt Corby, The Herd, Muscles), the single now has a stunning and delicate remix from Melbourne’s Thrupence.

The remix is sensibly understated, allowing the quality of the original to still stand out, whilst adding just enough, to make a worthy difference, to a compelling song.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

M.I.L. (Made In London) - Human Life.

Everything you need to know and a whole lot more - M.I.L. (Made in London) is the dance alter ego of producer Paul Munns who was born in London, Waterloo. The product of a Korean war veteran, black cab driver and cleaning supervisor, Paul grew up with varied musical influences like The Rat Pack, Greg Edwards, Shalamar, EWT and Lynx. Paul is now based in the sleepy Norfolk village of Southery where there is a zero music scene but plenty of serenity for him be creative. 

Paul is a self taught multi-instrumentalist especially loving the Breedlove acoustic and Maudio keyboards and he began writing original chords and lyrics in his teens heavily motivated by legends like Dylan, Marley & Weller. Paul also works in screenwriting and directing with the release of an original movie he wrote titled "Love Me Still" and the production of a documentary for the NHS he directed about stroke survivors with Dysarthria and Aphasia. Paul has written a myriad of tracks in different genres from rock through to classical and pop work and has obtained publishing deals with both Factory Music and Sony Music. 

Paul has worked with a number of industry professionals including "Chris Taylor" the bassist with Herbie Hancock and Ringo Starr and current Producer for "Amaral" in Spain. Extensive sessions at his Bluebarn Studios in Cambridgeshire culminated in his blossoming talent for music production and multi-instrument experimentation and he now runs  "The Ferry Bank Sound Hub" studio. 

M.I.L. is Paul's latest project within dance music which has enabled him to bring his inner city up-bringing into his current dance project "Arrival 5" described in his own words as "Five beings arrive on earth and relay back what life is like in the form of music and dance". The debut single "Arrival 5" and the follow up release "Human Life" are heavily influenced by The Prodigy, Faithless & Soul 2 Soul with early electro influences such as Roxanne and Afrika Bam-baataa thrown in to current EDM/Trance/Dance/House genres. 

Paul has received airplay on many Internet Radio stations as well as having BBC National Radio airplay with his EDM track "Moonshine". Paul feels lucky to merge both his music and film experience to create his own music videos and he is currently putting the finishing touches on his debut album release based on the above alien concept.  He also plans an original Drum and Bass line-up with many guest vocalists. The self penned and produced new single "Human Life" was recorded at The Ferry Bank Sound Hub" and will be released worldwide on 9 October 2015.

Bags of energy and a pulsating rhythm that seemingly dances with the various levels of percussion. So much going on and yet every part has it's place, in this incredible track.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mikaela Davis - When The White Horse Takes Me Away (Joywave Remix).

Background - Brooklyn-based musician Mikaela Davis has revealed the Joywave Remix of her track 'When The White Horse Takes Me Away," The track was released as a single on September 25th at all digital music services.

As a classically trained harpist having studied under Grace Wong of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Mikaela Davis has applied her unique philharmonic training to the world of indie rock/pop music. She spent four years with the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra before enrolling at the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam. During her time at Potsdam, Mikaela entered a battle of the bands competition and to her surprise ended up winning! That was the point when she decided that maybe this new direction could work.

Mikaela has independently released two previous albums, 2012’s self-titled LP and 2014’s Fortune Teller EP. Joined by Alex Coté (drums, percussion), Cian McCarthy (guitar, sitar, keys), and Shane McCarthy (bass), Mikaela plays harp and sings lead vocal. This current run of dates also includes Mikaela’s first appearance at Austin’s iconic Austin City Limits Music Festival this October. See all upcoming dates below.

*w/Lauren Shera
*^Supporting Joywave

9/29 - Vienna, VA at Jammin Java
9/30 - Asheville, NC at The Altamont Theatre*
10/1 - Nashville, TN at The Basement*
10/3 - Austin, TX at Austin City Limits Festival
10/6 - St. Louis, MO at Off Broadway*
10/7 - Chicago, IL at Schubas*
10/8 - Indianapolis, IN at THE HI-FI*
10/9 - Cleveland, OH at Beachland Tavern
10/10 - Rochester, NY at Anthology*^
10/15 - Philadelphia, PA at Boot & Saddle*^
10/16 - Allston, MA at Brighton Music Hall*^
10/17 - Albany, NY at The Hollow

Where to begin. A very talented artist, a fine original song, captivating vocals and a remix that takes the whole mix so much further.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Natural Traditional & Crafted: Crooked Weather - Nathan Flint

Crooked Weather - Control Your Blues.

Background - Based in East Yorkshire, England, Crooked Weather play earthy, unruly and original folk songs. The sound is lead by carefully crafted lyrics delivered by the haunting harmonies of Holly and Will.

The music on 'Long Garden' echoes the ethos of folk songsmiths before them with imagery of escape, adventure, companionship and inner searching but told from a different heart.

“Crooked Weather come from the same fertile ground which gave the world David Crosby’s immortal 'If I Could Only Remember My Name'. They are indie meets World music meets traditional British folk. Think a contemporary Incredible String Band with a 21st century mindset.”
Sid Griffin, The Coal Porters/Bob Dylan Biographer.

From the superb 'Long Garden' album, the featured track 'Control Your Blues' is a fine insight into the band and their music. The music has a natural and genuine feel to it, unspoiled by the increasingly artificial environments that surround us, it is, in my opinion, a work of art. Website (here).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nathan Flint - I Will Succeed.

Background - Nathan Flint is a solo Singer/Songwriter playing in the genre of Acoustic Folk. Nathan was born and has grown up on the the South Coast of NSW in the coastal/rural town of Wollongong. 

Nathan Began his music career at the age of 5, learning violin under the Suzuki Method. At the age of 14 Nathan started learning guitar where he joined a rock band with mates and took on the position of lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Nathan continued to play along the genre of rock throughout his high school years but also found an interest for Theatre and Musical Theatre. Nathan followed this passion and studied Musical Theatre at the Australian Institute of Music, Surry Hills, Sydney. Nathan performed the role of Tobias in The Australian Institute of Music’s production of Sweeney Todd, He also played small film roles on The Discovery Channel, in TV series such as “Behind Mansion Walls” and “Deadly Women“. 

Nathan has found a passion in the style of folk and has been busy developing himself as an artist playing a huge amount of gigs at Pubs, Clubs, Cafes and functions all of which have been directing him as an artist over the past 10 years. He has recently finished his debut album Stay Here where he composed all of the songs, and played every instrument on the album including Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Violin, Piano, Drums and Percussion.

Beautifully stripped back music, reliant totally on a mixture of story telling, comfortable vocals and a trusty guitar. 'I Will Succeed' is a fascinating introduction to Nathan, making the album a  'must hear' for my ears.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Prepare To Dance Or Leap: Paint The Muse - Home Lives

Paint The Muse - Free People.

And we quote - The Los Angeles-based Alt-Dance duo, Paint The Muse, formed in 2015 and is comprised of vocalists, Elizabeth Russo - originally from the Bay Area, and Seattl-ite, Ash Wintergrass. Their dynamic first single, "Free People", on Harbour Records, encapsulates the feel-good vibes of the Summer with a cool indie-pop flavor. Its positive message and youthful energy cue this up as a dance anthem for the summer.

A nice upbeat song that demands movement from your body, however unwilling a dancer you may be. Oh to be young again...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Home Lives - Cool Waves Young Blood.

Background provided - Home Lives is the lo-fi venture of New Yorkers Mike Horgan and Brittany Cohen. Working with a number of talented heads in the NY music scene, the pair have a distinctive naïveté which is what makes them so captivating as a musical project.

Founding member Mike Horgan began Home Lives out of his desire to create hooky tunes about brazenly personal topics like childhood, love, post-college Millennial life and the human condition. They’re also very good at throwing the occasional pop culture reference in here and there as well.

Brittany Cohen is the one that makes it a duo where she adds vocals and keyboards to the mix almost effortlessly. Since their conception they’ve experimented with a range of styles which they inject into their indie rock like 50’s doo-wop, 60’s pop rock and garage rock, 80’s post-punk and synthpop, and some 90’s shoegaze and jangle pop.

The album, Cool Waves, Young Blood was recorded with Chris Daly at Salvation Recording Co. in New Paltz, NY. Daly has recently recorded artists such as Porches., Frankie Cosmos, Quarterbacks, Diet Cig and PWR BTTM. The album was mastered by Jamal Ruhe at West West Side Music. Ruhe has recently mastered albums by artists such as Titus Andronicus, Built to Spill, and Swans. Noah Bowman, drummer of Diet Cig, plays drums on the entire Home Lives EP.

A powerful in your face start leads into an equally potent song. An indie rock song leaning towards a natural garage sound that would have the bands neighbours banging on the wall. You leap rather than dance to this one.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------