This is Richard Thompson live in concert at Fetzer Vineyards, Hopland, CA, USA, back on June 22nd, 1997.
During the previous year (1996), Richard released the album 'You? Me? Us?' however only two tracks from that album were included in this concert, which in part demonstrates the powerful back catalogue he had built up over the years.
That album showcased his versatile abilities in both acoustic and electric formats, Thompson devoted one disc to each. The 'Nude' disc features pared down, poetically emotive arrangements, and the second disc, 'Voltage Enhanced', demonstrates his blistering electric guitar work with a full band.
Also in 1997 he worked with long-time friend and band member Danny Thompson (not related) and recorded a concept album 'Industry' that dealt with the decline of British industry. Featuring a variety of musical and vocal styles, Industry was the basis for a BBC documentary, which aired in UK in May of that year. Featuring compositions based on themes from the industrial revolution to Britain's faltering mining industry, the album was performed live, in its entirety, at only five locations in Britain. Despite the amount of time involved in that venture this concert does not include any material from that album.
However when we consider the many different ventures Richard has been involved with along with his solo career, it is not surprising that the two were separated, indeed check his set lists from tour to tour and the variety of material covered is quite astonishing.
Source: Soundboard (Sony PCM-F1 - record).
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@192kbps.
Genre: Folk rock, electric folk, acoustic, alternative rock, folk.
Set: Full set.
Set List:
01 intro by Emcee, Doug Green)
02 Turning Of The Tide
03 Bathsheba Smiles
04 From Galway To Graceland
05 I Feel So Good
06 The Ghost Of You Walks
07 Hamlet (Dog Eat Dog In Denmark)
08 Drifting Through The Days
09 1952 Vincent Black Lightning
10 Pharaoh
11 Don't Sit On My Jimmy Shands
12 Hide It Away
13 Wall Of Death
14 Razor Dance
15 Beeswing
16 I Misunderstood
17 Walking On A Wire
18 Two Left Feet
19 Waltzing's For Dreamers
20 Don't Roll Those Bloodshot Eyes At Me
This is Elvis Costello and the Rude Five during their tour rehearsals at the Arlington Theatre, Santa Barbara, California, USA back in May, 1991.
The notes that accompanied this recording state, 'this is said to be the last night of a week of tour rehearsals at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara, recorded just before the start of the "Mighty Like A Rose" tour in 1991 (which began May 25th in Santa Barbara)'.
If 1990 proved to be a fairly low key year for Elvis Costello, he definately made up for it in 1991 by recording two albums: "Mighty Like A Rose" and "Kojak Variety", although the tapes for the latter were put away for a rainy day (and didn’t see the light of that rainy day until 1995).
He then spent much of the rest of the year touring around the world with a combo dubbed "The Rude Five", even though only four of them (Marc Ribot, Jerry Scheff, Larry Knechtel and Pete Thomas) usually played live with Costello (the fifth member was Steven Soles). Marc Ribot was unable to make the dates for the Japanese and Australian shows at the end of the tour in September, and The Rude Five became The Rude Four, with Elvis Costello handling all the lead and rhythm guitar duties.
Source: Soundboard (DAT clone).
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@192kbps.
Genre: Punk rock, Pub rock, New Wave.
Set: Rehearsal.
Set List:
01 (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
02 Invasion Hit Parade
03 Watch Your Step
04 Georgie And Her Rival
05 Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head
06 Suit Of Lights
07 So Like Candy
08 Accidents Will Happen
09 You Bowed Down
10 Hidden Charms
11 All Grown Up
12 Couldn't Call It Unexpected No 4
13 The Other Side Of Summer
14 Strange
15 How To Be Dumb
16 Alison
17 Sweet Pear
18 Bama Lama Bama Loo
19 Playboy To A Man
20 Everybody's Crying Mercy
This is the Blind Boys of Alabama recorded live at Congress, Salzburg, Austria back on October 30th, 2009. The source was Austrian Radio OE1 who subsequently broadcast the concert on December 21st, 2009.
The Blind Boys of Alabama are a gospel and blues group from Alabama that first formed at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind at Talladega, Alabama in 1939. The three main vocalists of the group and their drummer and percussionist are all blind.
As of 2011 (and checking their current schedule into 2012), The Blind Boys of Alabama continue to tour nationally and internationally, with Jimmy Carter singing lead vocals. In 2006, Clarence Fountain, the group's former long-time lead vocalist and founding member limited his touring for health reasons. Founding member George Scott died on March 9th, 2005 at the age of 75. Another founding member, Johnny Fields, died on November 12th, 2009.
Releases by the group in recent years have been favorites at the Grammy Awards—they won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album four straight years between 2002 and 2005. The Blind Boys of Alabama were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2009, they were awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In April 2011, the band released Take The High Road in Australia and followed it with a headlining tour that included the East and West Coast Bluesfest and the Sydney Opera House. The CD, which was also released in the U.S. on May 3rd, features guest artists Willie Nelson, Vince Gill, Lee Ann Womack, Hank Williams, Jr., The Oak Ridge Boys, and Nashville heavyweight Jamey Johnson, who also co-produced the record.
Source: FM (cable radio).
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@320kbps.
Genre: Gospel, Blues.
Set: Broadcast set.
Set List:
01. Down By the Riverside
02. God Said It (That's Good Enough For Me)
03. People get ready
04. Spirit in the sky
05. Way Down In The Hole
06. Uncloudy day
07. There will be a light
08. Let's Make a Better World
09. Free at last
10. Amazing Grace
11. Look Where He Brought Me from
12. Higher Ground
Line-Up:
Jimmy Lee Carter: vocals
Bishop Billy Bowers: vocals
Ben Moore: vocals
Joey Williams: g, vocals
Tracy Pierce: bass
Peter Levin: organ
Eric 'Ricky' McKinnie: drums, vocals
Background: For those of you who follow folk on Twitter, you may well want to add Marissa Nadler to your selection. In recent weeks she has given away a number of songs from her 'Covers Volume II' album, in fact if you check over there now you may well still be in for a rather nice treat. Covers Volume II follows her critically acclaimed self titled full-length out now on her own Box of Cedar Records.
After releasing several albums with Kemado (and having one of her songs inspire the name for vinyl start-up Mexican Summer), Marissa Nadler ventured out independently for her critically acclaimed self-titled album, which has been featured on NPR "World Cafe: Next," NPR First Listen, Vogue, KEXP, Pitchfork 'Overlooked Records of 2011' with an 8.1 album review, and as one of SPIN's "5 Best New Artists for June 2011," among others.
Marissa Nadler released her first album, Ballads of Living and Dying, on Eclipse Records in 2004; her follow-up, The Saga of Mayflower May, was released in July 2005. Both albums have been long standing favorites at Beehive Candy and the positive reviews she has received over the last few years have in our opinion, been totally deserved. If you are new to Marissa then don't just take our word for recommending a listen - Her voice was described by the popular online music website Pitchfork Media as "a voice you would follow straight into Hades". In the Boston Globe, her voice and music is described: "She has a voice that, in mythological times, could have lured men to their deaths at sea, an intoxicating soprano drenched in gauzy reverb that hits bell-clear heights, lingers, and tapers off like rings of smoke. Hardly anyone considers Nadler a folk musician."
2011Candy Says: What can we add to the comments above, this is a haunting song that takes Bruce Springsteen's original into another dimension. Superb.
Background: Dutch soul-act Fuel Box is going to release their dark debut-album "I" on 14th December, worldwide.
Fuel Box combines old, bluesy soul, dark dub and modern hip-hop into catchy, psychedelic, soul pop songs. (Don't worry, this is not another retro-soul ripoff...). On December 14, 2011 the complete, 14 track album "I" (One) will be released worldwide.
Producer Joshua Boon composed and produced the songs, while soul singer Remy Britsemmer laid the vocals down as they took a few years during turbulent times recording in (bath)rooms of old and dilapidated houses. Occasionally, they received help from guest musicians, but the only other vocalist on the album is Holland's legendary old skool rapper Deams (Gang Starr family, early Urban Dance Squad, Zulu Nation). Deams recently released the "The Legacy" EP, by the way, featuring De La Soul, Chuck D, Ice-T, Jeru the Damaja & Big Daddy Kane.
Fuel Box made it to the selection of Soul & Jazz talent on national Radio 6 and received airplay on multiple programs. They were also rewarded with positive reviews, interviews and entries in several print magazines and websites and through music blogs worldwide. Tracks were also featured in Game Kings (Dutch MTV) and the national campaign VrijSOAVrij.
2011Candy Says: We featured the band back in May and having now had a chance to listen to the new album in full, we urge you to check these guys out. New music is alive and kicking!
Background: Forget everything you know about Scout. With All Those Relays, the band’s first album since 2003, Ashen Keilyn has deconstructed her band and put it back together piece-by-piece — new players, new producers and, most importantly, the best songs of Keilyn’s career. Scout’s new chapter finds Keilyn simultaneously at her most emotionally raw and her toughest yet, creating an album both empowering and vulnerable — and catchy as hell.
It all adds up to mean the breathless praise piled on her music from Billboard, SPIN, The New York Times and others rings true today. As the Village Voice wrote, “Ashen Keilyn is a star.”
Scout dropped its debut EP, Someplace Would Be Nice, in 1998 on Chrysalis; its breakthrough album, It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time, followed just two years later. On the strength of huge buzz from the album, Scout appeared on NBC’s “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” became an “Editor’s Choice” pick at Amazon.com, had tracks featured in films and TV, and toured with rock icons Sunny Day Real Estate.
After the 2003 follow-up The Soft Life, though, it was time to take a break. Keilyn began working with other musicians and recording with new producers, but one thing was apparent: Ashen Keilyn was the beating heart of Scout, no matter who rounded out the lineup.
With that freedom, Keilyn set out to create All Those Relays, inspired by music, film, and the idiosyncrasies of everyday life. Scout’s new music was created organically, each song born exactly when it was ready. Some ache with the melancholy of Cat Power. Some float like the folk of Azure Ray. But each track is anchored by her hushed voice. Keilyn took her time with this music, and her careful, relaxed writing makes for gorgeous, free-flowing songs.
2011Candy Says: A driving beat that at first seems at odds with the vocals simply connects into a great song.
Background: Performing their way down around the US at present, Yukon Blonde have be transforming their beards into waxed and groomed mustaches in support this year's Movember campaign.
Their recently released Fire//Water EP was produced by Colin Stewart (Black Mountain, Ladyhawk) the four song follow up to the quartet's Polaris and WCMA award nominated debut LP was written partially while on the road, and partially while off the road at a cottage in the Comox Valley (BC). The band recorded a total of 15 songs over the course of the summer, and the remaining 11 tracks will be featured on their sophomore LP in early 2012.
Yukon Blonde's career has so far been marked by their on-the-road ethic. Last fall they embarked on a 30+ date tour supporting Good Old War, as well as several headlining runs down each coast. This summer the young B.C. band played at Milwaukee Summerfest with Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros and the last year and a half has seen them rack up nonstop tour mileage both in North America, and Europe, including festivals such as SXSW, CMJ and Popkomm Festival in Berlin along the way. Make sure to check them out this fall as they wind through the entire country.
01 Dec - Ames, IA @ The Maintenance Shop *
02 Dec - Omaha, NE @ Slowdown Jr *
03 Dec - Kansas City, MO @ Riot Room *
04 Dec - Oklahoma city, OK @ The Conservatory *
06 Dec - Little Rock, AR @ Juanita's Cantina *
07 Dec - Dallas, TX @ Double Wide *
08 Dec - Houston, TX @ Fitz Downstairs *
09 Dec - Austin, TX @ Emo's Inside *
11 Dec - Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge *
13 Dec - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court *
14 Dec -Boise, ID @ Neurolox *
16 Dec - Spokane, WA @ A Club *
17 Dec - Seattle, WA @ Crocodile *
18 Dec - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir *
21 Dec - San Francisco, CA @ Brick & Mortar Music Hall *
22 Dec - San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar *
23 Dec - Los Angeles @ The Echo
29 Dec - New South Wales, Australia- Peats Ridge Festival Glenworth Valley
* All US shows after Nov 15 co-headline w/ The Fling.
2011Candy Says: Fine harmonies from this alt country/rock act that reminds me of C.S.N and Young with a lot more energy.
Background:The Handcuffs embody the spirit of rock music's uninhibited, sexy and overbearing appeal. Perfectly blending style and energy, they do not sound like anyone else, but at the same time they seem very familiar. They are influenced by everything good that sells and anything good that doesn't. Rock music is loud (not just in volume, but in its nature), pompous and fun and The Handcuffs embrace every reckless minute of it.
Chloe F. Orwell, the designated blonde of the duo, is the lead singer whose stage presence and vocal style oozes sex and scorches and rock and roll. She can slide from a corduroy growl to a shimmering silky sigh in a Detroit second.
Brad Elvis, the other half of The Handcuffs, is a black-haired, four-handed drummer whose manic-panic style paints a 747 jet rhythm to every Handcuffs tune. Brad is also the chief songwriter (although Orwell is known to have a song or two stashed in her boots) and one of the visionaries of the duo. Bam!
The Chicago-based pair originally teamed up when Elvis recruited Orwell as lead vocalist and contributing songwriter for his band Big Hello, which released three critically acclaimed CDs, played hundreds of shows and received airplay on college and commercial radio all over the globe. Their potent creative chemistry earned the duo praise from fans and critics alike for their musicianship and showmanship, plus accolades in the mainstream and alternative press throughout the world.
The Handcuffs evolved from Elvis and Orwell’s desire to explore a broad sonic territory while still believing in the power of a great radio hook. Their songs are fresh yet timeless, edgy yet accessible, skillfully crafted yet easily memorable. Their influences range from Bowie to Bacharach, P.J. Harvey to the Pixies, White Album to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs with some Ting Tings, T-Rex and Sparks tossed in for good measure. You could spend all day trying to name that tune, but by nighttime it would still be The Handcuffs.
The duo started out making boombox demos with Orwell on guitar or bass and Elvis often singing the lead vocals and keeping time on a cardboard box or whatever was handy. Proper studio sessions, with the help of additional guest instrumentalists, followed and The Handcuffs recorded more than three albums worth of material. Then came song placement in television shows and films, followed by a self-produced music video. With plans to release their debut CD, they finally decided to put a live band together.
To complete their line-up, the duo has welcomed three powerhouse musicians to help them deliver the rock including Emily Togni, a Tennessee-by-way-of-Arkansas native, Chicagoan Ellis Clark on guitar and former New Jersey girl Alison Hinderliter on keyboards.
2011Candy Says; Great driving riff and super vocals, the whole thing has a punky edge that really works.
Background: On December 13th, Chicago's Old Town School of Folk will release a vast collection of live recordings by the countless musicians who have played the venue over the last 50 plus years. The collection's 127 tracks will be sold digitally on iTunes and Amazon. Among others there are songs by Andrew Bird, Steve Earle, Toumani Diabate, Lila Downs and many more. The release represents the best in folk/roots music, past and present.
On a stack of DATs in a shoebox lay the history of American music. There were local legends and major icons, global musicians and indie rockers. Some captured beautifully from the board, some gleaned quietly from the dusty archives of a radio station, the recordings held wildly creative decades of sound from Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music, a roots-music touchstone for nearly 55 years. And no one had heard them.
Joan Baez and Donovan, Big Bill Broonzy and Ella Jenkins, Pete Seeger and Taj Mahal, Martin Carthy and Steve Earle, Doc Watson and Mahalia Jackson: It was a literal who’s-who of folk, gospel, country, bluegrass, blues, and world music, caught in hours of exciting performances. But someone had to put the pieces together—all 127 tracks worth—and someone had to clear all the rights with 85 different artists.
They succeeded, against odds that would have stopped others in their tracks. Live From The Old Town School (Old Town School Recordings; release: December 13, 2011) reveals not only the venerable institution’s storied start, but its role in the recent infusion of new energy into the roots music world, with everyone from Toumani Diabate and Oumou Sangare to Andrew Bird and Lila Downs.
This crucial collection of rare live gems is available for download from iTunes, Amazon, and CD Baby, with most of the proceeds going to benefit the School’s educational work with children and adults. And though very diverse, the tracks share a common quality.
“These are all performers who know how to communicate with the audience in a very personal way,” says Colby Maddox, librarian/archivist and teacher at the Old Town School, who spearheaded the project and attracted support for it from the Donnelley Foundation. “They don’t need that distance, that huge arena. They want to get down close and make people happy. And they are all coming from well-established traditions, all different, but all strong.”
2011Candy Says: Where do you begin? It's a massive collection of music's history and Andrew Bird was chosen at random simply because I did not know who to choose from this phenomenal collection
Featured: Andrew Bird - Tinys Tempo. Web: Official.
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Background:Ashtar Command's debut album, American Sunshine, is an evolved and involved labor of love from veteran musicians Chris Holmes and Brian Liesegang. It's an expansive and coherent album that defies being reduced to a single genre. Nick Drake could come to mind, as well as the Chemical Brothers. Spiritualized could be seen in there as well as The Beach Boys. There are songs of exquisite beauty and ones that unabashedly rock.
The duo were joined by guest vocalists Joshua Radin (whose debut album was produced by Holmes) on “Mark IV,” Alex Ebert of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros (“Save Me”), Har Mar Superstar (“That’s How It Is”) and Rachel Yamagata (“Blister of the Spotlight”). The dreamy “Rosa,” already in heavy rotation at Los Angeles’ KCRW, is one of two tracks featuring Priscilla Ahn, while Z Berg’s crystal clear vocals provide a stunning counterpoint to the throbbing groove on “Gravity.”
The group are well known for their song on Red Dead Redemption called "Deadman's Gun". Sci-fi fans may recall the concept of “Ashtar Command” that emerged in the 1950’s – an intergalactic U.N. with the mission of assisting the human race in a time of crisis. Think evolution by enlightenment, which makes the name a fitting metaphor for the band and what they're trying to accomplish.
2011Candy Says; A number of famous names mentioned above, yes this is one of those songs that for some reason makes it hard not to look for comparisons. Not that it copies anyone, it's just so good you want to liken them to some highly regarded band, I will add Bowie to the list!
Background:Beacon is Thomas Mullarney III and Jacob Gossett. Their “No Body EP” explores a combination of deep south bass music and ambient pop melodies, with R&B tinged vocals that accompany warm arpeggiated synthesizers.
The EP's atmosphere and narrative recall brooding spirituality in the wake of first love and the allure of the paranormal in teenage romance. Jacob and Thomas’s extensive work in the video production and set building worlds has given them the techniques to produce their own unique vision for the release of “No Body;” a cheap prom set where real and imaginary moments continually conjure up feelings of love, lust and all things in between.
2011Candy Says; A sparse sounding rhythmic intro that continues to build long after the beautiful vocals establish as a very special song.
Background: “Holmes is a singer-songwriter who pens the kind of melodic, unpretentious songs that scream for usage in film and TV. There’s a humor, wistfulness and universality that would compare with some of the best of Ben Folds or Beck.” - Los Angeles Times
Los-Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist and producer Holmes (the alias of Roy Shakked) today releases a full-length cover album aptly entitled Holmes: Covers on his label Groove Gravy Records. This marks the third full-length album under this moniker, following 2007’s Stop Go and 2009’s self-titled album, and precedes an album of more originals due in the Spring of 2012.
Holmes: Covers includes songs from all across the board—from Ice Cube to Elvis Presley and Genesis to Michael Jackson. Each song on the album has undergone a complete transformation, with Holmes arranging the songs to cast the lyrics in a new light. Narrowing his list of song choices from 100 down to 13, Holmes chose each for their lyrics. “Lyrically, every song on this album really speaks to me,” says Holmes. “All artists, with the exception of Macy Gray and Massive Attack, were ones I grew up on. The other two I just really dig.”
The first single of the album, a cover of Ice Cube’s “It Was a Good Day,” is as far from the original as can be. The music behind Holmes’ version is a song he wrote several years ago, but never found the lyrics to do it justice. “It’s always tricky approaching a hip hop track to cover,” muses Holmes. “It’s just an opening to being hokey, not to mention an invitation for abuse. I really like the way it came together. ‘Cube’s lyrics are ridiculously good.”
The album was tracked and mixed in Holmes’ home studio in Silverlake, CA. A handful of amazing musician friends contributed to Holmes: Covers, including Joel Shearer (Damien Rice, Alanis Morissette), Chris Bruce (M'chelle Ndegeocello, Sheryl Crow) Lawrence Katz (Bosstones), and Michael Jerome Moore (Blind Boys of Alabama, Better Than Ezra). Holmes thanks his lucky stars for good friends.
2011Candy Says: If there is a benchmark for how to reinterpret a song then this surely is it! And it really works, complete with the parental guidance lyrics..
Background:Rah Rah are a Canadian indie rock collective whose album Breaking Hearts was released to the U.S. a couple of weeks back along with a vinyl/digital remix album called Rahmixes.
The sextet are known for taking turns taking the lead, both in songwriting and while on stage, and constantly switching instruments and they've been compared to The New Pornographers, Stars, and Broken Social Scene.
Rah Rah's sophomore album, Breaking Hearts was recorded and mixed in Montreal by Kees Dekker (Plants & Animals) and was released on June 1, 2010 in Canada. It follows the widespread industry praise for 2008's debut album, Going Steady and reinforces the increasing visibility that has accompanied Rah Rah's relentless tour schedule. Rah Rah were crowned "Best new Canadian Band" and "Best New Alternative Band" by iTunes in 2009. The band has also been featured as iTunes Download of the Week and Starbucks Pick of the Week in Canada.
The proud prairie rockers sing of the seriousness of art, poetry, love, and politics, and contrast it with a stage full of confetti, pinatas, candy, and six friends loving life and having fun. But don't let their fresh faces, confetti cannons and constant sugar highs fool you, Rah rah are old souls. This young, six-member ensemble artully bridge sincerity with the absurd. Despite lyrics that touch on underwater sea creatures, stockbrokers, Saskatchewan (and now Montreal), and impressionist painters, their songs are built to break your heart. All this along with the melodic male/female vocals and diverse instrumentation (guitars, bass, drums, keys, violin, accordion, ukulele), ensures that a Rah Rah show will not disappoint.
2011Candy Says; I love this song, both the instruments used, the mix and the perfectly matching vocals. Music that crosses generations.
Background:Lissy Trullie is going to release the follow up to her debut EP Self-Taught Learner on March 6th (2012) via Downtown records. The new album is self-titled and was produced by John Hill (Santigold, M.I.A., Shakira) and David Sitek (TV On the Radios, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Liars).
Lissy Trullie, made in the L.A. studios of both Hill and Sitek, is coolly confident in feel, its mostly brisk punk foundation yielding to memorable pop choruses along the way, especially on “Big Heart” and the reggae-tinged “It’s Only You.” Trullie’s voice and presence is commanding throughout; with her elastic singing, she comes across at times like a modern-day Chrissie Hynde. But the artful precision of the arrangements belies the more spontaneous nature of the sessions, as Trullie reveals: “I think the benefit of working with John and Dave is that there was no mention of pressure, and they had zero rules. It was just free-form creativity, any wacky suggestion was taken, and that’s how the sound of the record happened. That style of working just suits me very well.”
And while the planning set her off down her road, it was the out-of-nowhere diversions that created the most exciting results. “We did track a lot of the band live, but when we did, it just happened; it was spontaneous. Our approach allowed for more accidents to happen that ended up being amazing. Dave is like a mad scientist – he has a house where his studio is located in one of the canyons and it’s a crazy wonderland. John was more the contained mad man – soft spoken, contemplative, and wildly talented. We had a real yin-yang situation going on.”
The more unorthodox the idea, the better, Trullie says: “We did a lot of vocals with different mics. John fell in love with this tape recorder microphone from the sixties and it’s on everything - -the drum kits, guitars, my vocals. He would hang it like a light from the ceiling. Its sound is kind of gnarly but amazing at the same time; it made the drums sound thin and dirty. We would layer that track over the proper drum track and it created an interesting texture, so we did that with the vocals as well. We tracked lots and lots of vocals; they had me in there every day.” There was an open door policy to go with their open minds: “Anyone who walked through the house somehow ended up playing on the record.” Special guests included Jaleel Bunton of TV On The Radio, XL Recordings artist Holly Miranda, and Florence + the Machine’s guitarist Robert Ackroyd.
"I write so I can find something new and hopefully keep growing," says Trullie. “This was the first time I got into a real studio with real producers and by the end of the recording process I wound up with what I wanted from the very start – to make music that has evolved.”
2011Candy Says: Yep another emerging artist to watch out for, and another song that grows and builds into something special.
Background: Following up their critically acclaimed debut, 2008’s A Mouthful, French-Finnish duo The Dø release their highly anticipated sophomore effort, Both Ways Open Jaws recently in the UK and in the US via Six Degrees Records. After a series of live sessions, two visually stunning videos and album teasers leading up to the release, The Dø are receiving recognition globally. The album is receiving rave reviews around the world and the band has made a lasting impression on international powerhouses like NME, Clash Music, Drowned in Sound, Digital Spy, The Fense Post, Italian Vogue and more. In regards to the new album, Colossal Pop claimed, "The darker groove of “The Wicked & the Blind” is another flash of brilliance that reminds me of what the Velvet Underground might have offered had they had a better ear for “the masses.” The gorgeous “Was it a Dream?” is another wonderful moment" and Baeble Music noted “Funky French/Finnish outfit provided one of 2010's more exhilarating debuts (A Mouthful), so it's safe to say we're excited to see what album number two has in store.”
French multi-instrumentalist Dan Levy and Finnish vocalist Olivia Merilahti met in 2005 while recording the soundtrack to a French movie and started writing songs together on the side. This side project took center stage when A Mouthful garnered praise from the likes of Pitchfork, and the band went on to play festivals and tour worldwide.
2011Candy Says; I have been a fan of The Do's since their debut, and this song see's them still developing and oozing energy and charm.
Background: Native New Yorker, Gina Zavalis, releases her first single, "In Your Eyes," off her debut self titled EP, Gina Zavalis. The album is now available for purchase on iTunes, as well as her website.
Gina Zavalis began her career as a young girl in Off Broadway shows, performing in several national tours and regional theatre productions. A lifelong passion for music combined with years of singing are what's behind the success of Gina Zavalis. "In my humble opinion Gina Zavalis is THE next great American voice. Her sheer talent and presence alone will win you over but just wait until you hear the girl sing...Remember I told you so when she is headlining the universe!" Remarked Joe Bonsall of the legendary Oak Ridge Boys.
Gina Zavalis' self-titled EP is filled with heartfelt lyrics, along with her intriguing sound and dynamic powerhouse vocals, showcasing her three plus octave range. LA Guitar Academy praises, "In her new song, 'In Your Eyes', Gina Zavalis' warm tone invites listeners to travel with her on the journey from despair to forgiveness. Her voice, plaintive at first, soars to brilliance as she captures the moment of transformation-a moment of pure freedom." The song is a snapshot of the transforming moment when the tangled chains of insecurity release into pure freedom. Introspective and brutally honest, Zavalis conveys the difficult emotion of giving in to the unknown.
2011Candy Says: On paper this should not be my thing. However the vocals are striking and the dominance of the piano (not being crushed by a full orchestra) makes this one fine song. Maybe I am finally growing up (time for another mid life crisis).
Background: From Paper Gardens Lovely Hearts Club we quote - Hours of listening to demo submissions eventually paid off when we opened The Great Afternoon's email to find that the banjo isn't just for making bluegrass tunes. Christina Ward has been rocking out on the banjo along side bassist Kris Knechel and Brian Huggins on drums for over a year now. Her soothing vocals carefully guide us through some of life's tougher realities while leaving a bit of hope for better days. Their first EP is not all doom and gloom as much as it is foot-tapping and and head bobbing thanks to a perfect blend of drum and bass lines with the unexpectedly soulful banjo picking.
The band has been playing a handful of shows around their hometown of New Jersey in support of their first EP "The Great Afternoon", which was released just a few months ago in August. Here's a stream of 'Science Fiction' but don't stop listening there, head to bandcamp or Facebook to stream the full album and maybe even make a purchase for just $7!
2011Candy says: I can see why Paper Garden spend ours listening to demo submissions, if this is the result of their labour. A great song and yes, yet another band to keep a watch out for.
This is Neil Young live in concert at Le Theatre de Plein Air, Colmar, France, back on Friday. August 15th, 2008.
This recording was circulated on a two silver disc CD bootleg entitled 'Big Moon Over Colmar' and released by bootleggers Crystal Cat Records (915-16).
The sound quality is superb and would pass for soundboard however, the audience noise between songs does suggest that the recording includes audience based microphones. Whatever the case this captures a really incredible gig with the inclusion of some remarkable songs from Neil Young's musical career.
In recent years Neil Young's work rate has not diminished as the following from All Music reminds us - In early 2005, Young was diagnosed with a potentially deadly brain aneurysm. Undergoing treatment didn't slow him down, however, as he continued to write and record his next project. The acoustically based Prairie Wind appeared in the fall, with the concert film Heart of Gold, based around the album and directed by Jonathan Demme, released in 2006. That year also saw the release of the controversial CD/DVD Living with War, a collection of protest songs against the war in Iraq that featured titles such as "Let's Impeach the President," "Shock and Awe," and "Lookin' for a Leader." Restless, prolific, and increasingly self-referential, Young issued Chrome Dreams II late in 2007 and the car-themed Fork in the Road in 2009. Later in 2009, Young finally released the first installment in his long-rumored Archives series, Archives, Vol. 1, a massive first volume that combined over ten CD and DVD discs in a single box. As he was prepping Archives, Vol. 2, Young entered the studio with producer Daniel Lanois and recorded Le Noise, which appeared in the fall of 2010. Young continued going through his archives with the release of A Treasure in 2011, a single-disc set of live tracks recorded during his 1984-1985 tour with the International Harvesters that featured five previously unreleased Young songs mixed in with older songs like "Flying on the Ground Is Wrong" and "Are You Ready for the Country?," all done in the classic Harvest style.
Source: Soundboard and/or audience matrix.
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@192kbps.
Genre: Rock, folk rock, country rock, experimental rock, hard rock
Set: Full set.
Set List:
CD One:
01 Intro
02 Love And Only Love
03 Hey Hey, My My (Into The Black)
04 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
05 Powderfinger
06 Spirit Road
07 Cortez The Killer
08 Cinnamon Girl
09 Oh Lonesome Me
10 Mother Earth
11 The Needle And The Damage Done
CD Two:
01 Unknown Legend
02 Wrecking Ball
03 Heart Of Gold
04 Old Man
05 Just Singing A Song
06 Sea Change
07 Sea Change
08 Cowgirl In The Sand
09 Rockin' In The Free World
10 A Day In The Life
11 Words
This is Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings live on Morning Becomes Eclectic, at the KCRW Studios, Santa Monica, CA back on the 28th June 2010. We feature the video version just below (just click on the video play button, that seems to be only partially visible in some browsers).
Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings are a funk/soul band. They are signed to Daptone Records, where the Dap-Kings are the house band. They are spearheads of a revivalist movement that aims to capture the essence of funk/soul music as it was at its height in the mid-1960s to mid-1970s. Part of the way this is achieved is to shun modern digital recording methods in favour of using traditional analogue recording equipment. The type of instruments used by the band may also be considered limited to those that would have been available up until the mid-'70s.
Beyond working with Sharon Jones (who remains their key focus - just check out this recording and you will see why!), The Dap-Kings have been hired as session musicians on a number of projects associated with New York based DJ/producer/recording artist Mark Ronson. Most notable of these is their extensive inclusion and somewhat unheralded contribution to Amy Winehouse's album Back to Black (2006). Six of the album's eleven tracks feature various members of the Dap-Kings with two notable hits from the album, "Rehab" and "You Know I'm No Good", extensively featuring the Dap-Kings. A further engineering credit goes to Gabriel Roth and several tracks recorded at Daptone Studios are mis-credited as "Dapking Studios". Again various members of the band feature on Ronson's second album, Version (2007), providing contributions on all but one of the album's fourteen tracks. The Dap-Kings then became the backing band used on Amy Winehouse's first U.S. tour.
Source (audio): FM broadcast.
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@320kbps.
Genre: Funk, Soul, R&B.
Set: Full set.
Set List:
01 - Intro
02 - If You Call
03 - She Ain't A Child No More
04 - Give It Back
05 - Interview
06 - Window Shopping
07 - I Learned The Hard Way
08 - Mama Don't Like My Man
09 - Dead Air
10 - Better Things
11 - Banter
12 - Money
Website: Official Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings HERE. KCRW HERE.
This is The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, live at The Roxy, Los Angeles, California, back on December 11th, 1975. This was the final gig from a three night residency at the venue and was broadcast on FM radio.
The Ozark Mountain Daredevils formed in 1972 in Springfield, Missouri, USA. They are most widely known for their singles "If You Wanna Get To Heaven" in 1974 and "Jackie Blue" in 1975.
The group's demo tape eventually caught the attention of A&M Records staff producer David Anderle, who was looking for an Eagles country rock type of band to place on the label. Anderle and the Eagles' first producer, Glyn Johns, flew to Missouri to catch one of the band's performances. But the band, nervous about Johns and Anderle being in the audience, did not play their best. Later on, Peterson invited the two men back to his place to hear the band give an unplugged performance by candlelight. This time Anderle and Johns were blown away and they were signed to A&M and sent to England to record their first record with Johns at the helm.
The first record, Ozark Mountain Daredevils (also referred to as "The Quilt Album"), was released in December 1973 and spawned the Top 30 hit "If You Wanna Get to Heaven" in the summer of 1974. The album introduced the band's unique mixture of rock, country, bluegrass and pop to the world and is still the favorite of many of the group's fans.
For the second album, It'll Shine When It Shines (October 1974), Johns and Anderle came to Missouri to record, utilizing a mobile recording truck set up outside of the band's rehearsal home. During the sessions, Johns overheard Larry Lee sitting at a piano playing and singing a song about a mysterious friend of his who sometimes dealt drugs on the side. Johns loved the melody and thought it could be a smash hit if the lyrics were altered to be about a girl and the drug references downplayed. Lee and Cash did as Johns asked and the song, "Jackie Blue," became the Daredevils' signature song and a huge hit (No. 3) in early 1975.
The Ozark's third release, The Car Over the Lake Album (Fall 1975), produced by Anderle alone, featured their old compatriot, Bill Jones, joining them to play and arrange their songs. He also toured with them in 1975-1976. A brand new live album by the Daredevils, a two-disc set featuring 21 tracks, including old favorites, rare songs and a couple of new ones, titled Alive & Wild, was made available in October 2011. This was taken from shows performed at Wildwood Springs Lodge in Steelville, Missouri in the fall of 2010.
Source: FM broadcast..
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@224kbps.
Genre: Southern rock, country rock.
Set: Full set.
Set List:
1. Absolute Zero
2. Walkin’ Down The Road
3. Black Sky
4. Chicken Train
5. Noah
6. Road To Glory
7. Out On The Sea
8. Jackie Blue
9. E.E. Lawson
10. Better Days
11. If You Wanna Get To Heaven
12. 15 Chihuahuas
13. Time Warp
14. Look Away
This is the Indigo Girls recorded live at Redrocks Amphitheater Morrison, CO in the USA, and broadcast on FM radio back on the 21st June 1994. The actual concert would appear to be from 1990 or 1991 in support of the Nomads Indians Saints which was their third studio album.
The Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. They started performing with the name “Indigo Girls” as students at Emory University, performing weekly at The Dugout, a bar in the Emory Village.
They released a self-produced, full-length record album in 1987 and contracted with a major record company in 1988. After releasing nine albums with major record labels from 1988 through 2007, they have now resumed self-producing albums with their own IG Recordings company.
The Indigo Girls have toured as a duo and with a band. In 1990, they toured with the Atlanta band, the Ellen James Society, backing them; they have also toured with side players, with one distinct group from 1991 to 1998 and a second from 1999 onwards.
Amy Ray and Emily Saliers do not ordinarily collaborate in writing songs. They tend to write separately and work out the arrangements together.
Source: FM radio broadcast.
Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@320kbps.
Genre: Folk Rock.
Set: Broadcast set.
Set List:
1. Secure Yourself
2. World Falls
3. Hammer And A Nail
4. Loves Recovery
5. Pushing The Needle Too Far
6. Crazy Game
7. No Way To Treat A Friend
8. Southland In The Spring Time
9. Watershed
10. The Ballad Of Squeeky Fromme
11. History Of Us
12. Land Of Cannan
Background:Marilyn Carino is a straight up Bensonhurst, Brooklyn Sicilian-American woman, born on the mean streets of The French Connection with a corner fish shop known as a killing floor for mafia hits. Her cousin was in the CIA, her grandmother split the scene to jet-set with the queen of Spain, and her father was a real life Mad Men-esque ad exec.
Marilyn Carino’s undeniable talent and full-throttle attitude have moved her through headline performances at the iconic Blue Note jazz club in NYC, playing and recording with Mike Mills of R.E.M. and Billy Talbot of Crazy Horse, recording her first album at Neil Young’s studio, and being hand-picked as a lyricist by legendary producers Sly and Robbie (Bob Dylan, Herbie Hancock, Grace Jones, Madonna). She has also gone beyond her records and live performances into the big bad world of television and film, with her songs “Hero of the World” and “Blown” prominently featured in the SyFy Channel series “Regenesis,” and other tracks used in the feature films "Slutty Summer," "Vampires in Venice," and "Going Down in LaLa Land."
Marilyn Carino is that rare artist who shocks but also grounds her listeners. Uncompromising, humanistic, and insightful, her music is about your life, just in a way you’ve yet to consider. “I keep trying to be brave, be totally myself. It’s sexy to care about art and excellence and the happiness of other people, and it’s important that my life and music encourage people to find those things in themselves.” She sincerely loves you all, but don’t get it twisted.
Featured Track: King Of The World. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: The vocals are powerful, the music is sharp, the passion sets the song apart. This song is a little like a movie soundtrack but don't be fooled there is a lot more to Marilyn, consider this just one dimension.
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Background: In anticipation of the Nov 8th release of their new album Welcome To Condale, Summer Camp have created a beautiful scrapbook/zine to go along with the album.
It's available on their own website right now and they've also set up a version of the zine on issuu.com.
Check more out at their own website HERE, or you take a look at the scrap book HERE.
Featured Track: Better Off Without You.
2011Candy Says: Great song, pure and simple, this is a great pop song.
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Background: The ghost stories, murder ballads, and grimoires on the new full length album “If Then Not When” by Louisville, KY’s King’s Daughters and Sons are haunting, spare and at times explosively unsettling; part William Faulkner, part Led Zeppelin. Informed by, but not beholden to the history of its members (Shipping News, Rachel’s, The For Carnation, Shannon Wright), their songs are singular, thoughtful and best heard on very large speakers.
The recording was made direct to 2 inch tape in 2008 and 2009 at The Funeral Home by Kevin Ratterman, engineer for California Guitar Trio, My Morning Jacket and Wax Fang. Mastering by Bob Weston, Chicago Mastering Service.
The band are Kyle Crabtree - drums; Todd Cook - bass; Rachel Grimes - piano, voice; Joe Manning - guitar, voice; Michael Heineman - guitar, voice.
The music of King’s Daughters & Sons is dense, thickly layered and emotional. It can be calculated and stark, overt and loud. The band is by no means redefining music made by guitars; rather, it is offering a new talking point to the discussion. These songs live somewhere between post-rock tinkling and road music. Manning’s twangy growl blends with Heineman’s smooth tenor and Grimes’ alto to construct sublime, creative harmonies, while the oft-fingerpicked guitars tangle atop a march of drums and bass. It is a grand and dramatic soundtrack with well-placed pauses and explosions that demand patience and grace among its players, and attentiveness of its listeners.
Featured Track: Volunteer. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Reminds us of at least a dozen great bands of the last 10 or 20 years. Distinct music for those who like their art done in style and with a hint of uniqueness thrown in for good measure.
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Background: Building on a mutual affection for all things dissonant and atonal, Mutiny Mutiny crafts noisy art rock that mines sonic territory previously explored by bands like Unwound, Sonic Youth, Jawbox, Slint and Mission of Burma. Constellation, the debut album from the Seattle-based trio brings together angular chaos and gorgeous noise in 11 songs that meld the band’s diverse musical backgrounds with a good dose of homage to the bands that they love. Since forming in late 2009, they have shared bills around Seattle with bands like Screaming Females, forgetters, Title Tracks and others.
Mutiny Mutiny’s songs are crafted from an assortment of textures, combining delicate, brooding melodies with pleasantly punishing explosions of musical clatter. Guitarist Jason Dean’s jagged riffs and bright, feathery passages dance around bassist Jenn Schmidt’s driving melodic rhythms, inspired by her background as a classically-trained cellist. Drummer Marc Mazique completes the mix by shifting between rock-steady beats, jittery rhythmic pulses, and light percussion punctuated with accentual flourishes. Vocal duties ranging from gritty snarls to delicate harmonies are shared by all three members.
Featured Track: The Damage Is Done. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Ensuring that visitors to Beehive Candy don't nod off when checking out the new music selection we have Mutiny Mutiny. No nonsense music for lovers of no nonsense music. Superb chorus as well.
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Background: Ed Hale and the Transcendence - All Your Heroes Become Villains is certainly titled appropriately for the times we live in. Like a shadow of today's chaotic world, "The Villains album," due out November 15th on the Dying Van Gogh Record label, is dark, moody and heavy, and yet every now and then it glimmers with hope and those catchy ear-candy melodies that fans of the band have come to love and expect.The collective, which reached up to 12 members during the recording process of their latest, weaves together their trademark post-modern rock meets Brit pop -- creating an unforgettable aural soundscape that is larger than life and will leave you humming.
It has been a fruitful time for members of the tight-knit collective: during this period the band self-released the digitally exclusive rarities collection The City of Lost Children while each member released a solo album. Hale recorded Ballad On Third Avenue, lead guitarist Fernando Perdomo formed the prog-pop group Dreaming In Stereo, and bassist Roger Houdaille released an album by the side group he formed called Ex Norwegian (also releasing their follow-up album, Sketch, on November 15th). Hale and the band worked for over a year, bringing in other musicians when needed as varied as a gospel singer, a second drummer, a Los Angeles DJ, and various horn players. The result is a mashup of sounds but highly cohesive as an album still recognizable as having "that Transcendence sound." Haunting melodies, bold sonic experimentation and Hale's richly layered and impassioned vocals all come together to create a highly memorable and moving listening experience. Sounding more like a rock musical or a concept album, the songs both musically and lyrically tie into one another seamlessly in one cohesively bold brash and powerful listen more akin to Pink Floyd or David Bowie's Diamond Dogs.
Featured Track: Blind Eye. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Read the above promo stuff to get Ed Hale and band in context, then engulf yourself in the fact that their is an incredible amount of new ideas on hand, that makes the band 'a tad special'.
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Background:Eight Bit Tiger is an electronic dance duo from Chicago composed of the Widman brothers, Erik and Kent, and is the new side project to the brothers’ indie rock outfit Love in October. The experiment began 15 years ago when the brothers started playing music together in a bedroom in northern Sweden and has mutated into a radioactive sonic isotope.
The music is influenced by 70s funk and 80s synth-pop, taking notes from artists like Michael Jackson, while borrowing the pop sensibility of Peter, Bjorn, and John, and mixing in the dance element of bands like Daft Punk. There is also the distinct vintage pop vibe of acts like Prince, New Order, and Blondie that harkens to a different sonic era.
“There’s so much music out there that is depressing, so we wanted to make something that makes you feel good when you listen to it. That’s what the world needs right now,” says vocalist Erik Widman.
Their debut album Parallel Synchronized Randomness was primarily recorded in Eight Bit Tiger’s tiny Chicago apartment, with some additional tracking done in Toronto, ON at Chemical Sound Studio. The brothers took the approach of treating themselves as an old record, sampling themselves, creating bass and guitar loops, and overall trying to recreate the sound of decades past. The loops are glued together with rich layers of synthesizer and pumping drums, creating a unique sound that spans decades of styles.
In their live act, the Widman brothers are joined by Chris Pagnani on the drums. Eight Bit Tiger will be performing shows throughout the Midwest and East Coast in support of their new album this fall.
Featured Track: Numbers. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Takes us back to the eighties, whilst reminded us that good dance/electronic/pop music can be as timeless as any other genre if done to this standard.
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Background: Vancouver’s Said the Whale recently announced the release of the first new music since 2009’s acclaimed full-length, Islands Disappear. On November 8, Hidden Pony Records will release the New Brighton EP, a 4-track digital EP, across North America.
The band recorded the EP this summer in addition to the album recording sessions at Blue Wave and Vertical Studios in Vancouver with longtime producer, Tom Dobrzanski. The new album, yet untitled, is being mixed by Jack Joseph Puig, a multiple Grammy Award winner who has worked with U2, Weezer and No Doubt and the official album release date has been set for release on March 6, 2012. On October 18, the first New Brighton EP track, "Lines," was released exclusively through Said the Whale’s website. The rest of the New Brighton EP tracks will follow, available digitally as of November 8th.
Featured Track: Little Bird. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Simple advice, if you are new to the Said The Whale, dig a little deeper, if you are a fan then buy the EP as the featured track needs all three other songs. Seriously, if this song gets your attention, we reckon you will love this band.
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Background: Starting November 29th the energetic and spunky duo Loves It! will begin their tour to around 50 different cities. The group who will be touring to promote their up and coming album YAY! which will be released on December 6th, combines the genres of folk, country, Americana, and Indie Pop to create their unique sound.
With Vaughn Walters on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Jenny Parrott on guitar, mandolin, fiddle, and vocals, their tour is sure to gain lots of attention. Although neither members are strangers to the life of touring, both having played hundreds of shows a year with their other bands, this is their first major tour as Loves It!. "We show up, meet everyone who works there, and set up and talk a bit with whoever is there. We stand up, and sing our hearts out. It's the most wonderful thing, and I always have moments where I feel blessed and privileged to have music as my job." As talented multi-instrumentalists, both Walters and Parrott were in-demand players in Austin's wide-open music scene, but their personal and musical bond slowly drew them closer. They started writing together about a year ago, and the songs they composed became the foundation of their self-produced album YAY!
"We made the album at home," Parrott says. "Vaughn was set to record with another band, but the sessions kept getting canceled. So we rented some fancy mics and started on our own record. Vaughn has always been interested in recording and engineering and he took to it like an Austin musician takes to breakfast tacos. We made the album in a week, while I busy playing shows with another band and doing pre-production for an album for yet another band. It was a busy and wonderful time."
Walters and Parrott met in their adopted hometown of Austin, Texas five years ago. Walters is originally from West Virginia and grew up listening to folk, punk and honky tonk country music. Parrott comes from New Haven, Connecticut where she fell in love with soul, swing and gospel music. "We were best friends and then we fell into the big hole of love," Parrott explains. "We're both touring musicians and we were doing 150 or 200 shows a year on opposite schedules, and we decided to see where we could go doing our own thing. Vaughn's a great singer and songwriter and easy to work with, so I thought our own band would be the ticket to fun and musical fulfillment.
Although they've only been playing as Loves It! for a year, the duo is already winning fans with their exuberant presence, sparkling harmonies and ingenious song craft. "We're looking forward to jumping on the Loves It! train full time," Parrott says. "Living in Austin has made it possible to be touring musicians, a dream that may never have gotten off the ground had we lived in a less positive, less musical town. And the breakfast tacos are the blood of life."
Featured Track: My So Called Life. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Keep it simple if you have the charm and talent these folk's have. Damn fine music, so catch up with them if you get the chance, either live or recorded.
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Background: Recorded on vintage equipment in the heart of Sydney, Fallon Cush shares some words of wisdom, as they release their second single, "Sleeping Giant", off their self-titled album.
In "Sleeping Giant", singer and chief songwriter Steve Smith borrows from the fables we heard growing up in this modern day cautionary tale. Hindsight is always 20/20, and it seems to be the case for Smith. As the song progresses, he warns listeners to be careful what they wish for, as things are not always what they appear to be. It's clear that Smith had to learn from his own mistakes of a failed relationship himself, but he also asserts that he's not dwelling on those mistakes or living on regrets, another piece of advice he has for his listeners. The song itself, led by his warm acoustic guitar, and accompanied by Scott Alpin's soft touch on the piano, gives it all the makings of a classic pop tune. A few more words of wisdom? Don't miss Fallon Cush's second single off their upcoming self-titled album, due out November 1.
There is so much to love about Fallon Cush. And the results, nifty and polished though they may be, only hint at where this amalgam could go.
-Something Else! Reviews - Nick DeRiso
For fans of good old fashioned pop-rock, Fallon Cush will warm the cockles of your heart and give all music lovers genuine hope for the future.
-Power of Pop
Smith has a cadence similar to Tom Petty and/or Mike Viola and the album displays an easy-going pop jangle on most songs... A very rewarding and mesmerizing listen.
-Powerpopaholic
Featured Track: Sleeping Giant. Web: MySpace.
2011Candy Says: Fallon Cush do music as if they have been around for ever. We are hearing some Bob Dylan influences on this song, take that as an endorsement, we don't give out Bob awards that often!
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Background: Residing in Porto, Portugal A Beta Movement recently evolved into a trio with the addition of vocalist Marcela Freitas. Her voice mirrors the salty, shore-town vibes from which it resonates. In a similar vein as Marissa Nadler but with a sweeter finish, to which guitarist Pedro Cordeiro and his rustier cadence provide a gentle complement. A Beta Movement creates atmospheric pop with a steady pulse, as though these sounds floated across the Atlantic upon a lackadaisical breeze.
A Beta Movement began with the shared goal of fusing sound and the visual experience, an annotation on human perception. Citing Max Wertheimer's famous 1912 Experimental Studies on the Seeing of Motion as a formative influence of their sound, and band name, A Beta Movement seeks to create a sense of space through perceived physically sensual encounters. "Colour Mixing System" is a flourishing, tumbling track that blossoms and withers like a leaky metamorphosis. Hypnotic with just a touch of melancholy, the track is splashed with handclaps and vibrant instrumentals, reminding us that A Beta Movement will stay true to the visual element that was their primary inspiration.
Featured Track: Colour Mixing System. Web: MySpace.
2011Candy Says: Our initial reaction was 'love the vocals and harmonies'. Played it a couple of more times and discovered some seriously good rhythms as well.
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Background: The Sound: Comasoft is a pop rock band with a fuzzy keyboard fascination. Catchy hook choruses, anchored with melodic instrumentation and vocal harmonies, combine with dancey rhythms to create a bouncing sing-along party. Popular rock structure, combined with pulsing retro keyboard riffs, create a dance rock feel that still has the changes and builds of a pop rock song. The songs deal with themes like the nervous anticipation of a new love, paranoia and the recklessness of youth.
The Band: Comasoft started as Jay Ramirez, a Michigan native who moved to Chicago to form a band. Dan Evans and Jay began writing songs together soon after meeting in 2007. Chris Polinski joined after the band he was in played a show with Comasoft. Jay has played the drums since childhood and tracks most of the drums himself. Dan and Chris both play bass, guitar and keyboards, so the writing process is a culmination of ideas and parts played by whomever happens to be holding whatever instrument at any given time. Comasoft isn't just a band of talented musicians, they are best friends hoping to win over the world one listener at a time.
The Record: Burn to Shine is a 6 song EP featuring the single 10Volt. The video for the single was released in September of 2011. Each song is crafted with catchy vocal hooks and driving riffs. Powerful bridges lead to grand outtro choruses and endings.
The Mission: Comasoft hopes to reach as many people as possible with their music. they are looking to team up with the right label to push forward to new heights.
Featured Track: 10 Volt. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Powerful music, contrasting vocals and a energetic pulse throughout. Seems a little retro however for some reason it has clicked with the Beehive, probably because it is so cleanly mixed and to the point.
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Background: October 11th marked the debut of super-hip-chill band, Sola Rosa’s debut of “Get It Together,” in North America. Eager fans have been waiting for release at the edge of their seats.
Since the start of the 2000s, Andrew Spraggon’s first formative releases as Sola Rosa has built him a growing reputation for his deft synthesis of styles and quiet disregard for the niceties of genre boundaries. Blending a sensational mix of hip hop, reggae, jazz, latin, soul and funk, Sola Rosa will take you on a musical journey like no other.
Already big names like Baeble and Popmatters have jumped on the Sola Rosa bandwagon and premiered the group’s U.S. debut single and video for “Turn Around,” featuring singer Iva Lamkum, that will stop you dead in your tracks. Filled with funky drumbeats, sultry and smooth vocals, and brilliant bass and horns, this track is sure to get you out of your seat and dancing around the club. The song blends a mixture of musical elements and genres, creating the perfect cocktail of melodic ecstasy. Something that is not easy to accomplish, but Sola Rosa does it perfectly. The rest of the album is just as amazing. Each track fills the room and takes you on a musical journey.
Andrew Spraggon brings his most ambitious project to date to the table, just in time for you to make your Year End Lists. With long time collaborators Matt Short (bass), Ben White (guitar), and Will Scott (drums), the group is joined by Spikey Tee (Jah Wobble, Mr. Scruff, Bomb the Bass), MC Serocee , Bajka and Iva Lamkum.
Featured Track: Turn Around. Web: Official.
2011Candy Says: Musically this is just superb, the vocals extend the wonderful vibe and someone has sprinkled the required amount of 'fairy dust' to make the whole thing marvelous music...
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Background:Mirador is the music project of twenty-something Philadelphia resident Kyle Robinson. Kyle spent the majority of his youth planning for a career in the visual arts, and though he has since shifted his focus to music, this background is still very much apparent. Listening to Mirador is as much about what you see with your mind's eye as what you hear with your ears.
Combining the limitless instrumental palate of electronic music (soft synths and samplers) with live guitar, synth, effects pedals and percussion, Mirador build intricate worlds of sound for the listener to explore. Escapist in the best way, the music uses ambient textures and samples to conjure dense and surreal soundscapes, while using melodic themes and varied instrumentation to tell a story or take you on a journey. Another reference point could be a key line spoken by Bill Pullman in David Lynch's Lost Highway: “I like to remember things my own way. How I remembered them, not necessarily the way they happened.” The music of Mirador works in much the same way, seeking to capture in sound the sprawling, intangible essence or feeling of a time or place, in all its ineffable power and potency.
Featured Track: Dance Of The Lantern People. Web: Bandcamp.
2011Candy Says: We finish this latest new music round up with Mirador. And why not as we like to end things on a high.
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