The artist known as Fairhead is from Stockholm, Sweden. The artist started off as a singer/songwriter many years ago. Fairheads’ main instrument is guitar, but they also play bass. They have a “nice singing voice” but prefer to keep things quiet as Fairhead, as their self-titled debut is all instrumental. The artist recently started creating beats and grooves and has very eclectic tastes in music. The EP was recorded in Stockholm using Garageband and features a mix of instrumental, lo-fi and downtempo beats.
The overall feeling behind the tracks is warm, laidback feels with subtle details, distinct rhythms and grooves. As Fairhead puts it, “sunshine, water and urban bokeh through the windshield.” As a songwriter, the writing and recording process is straightforward; anything can kick it off - a song title, a conceptual idea or a rhythm. So, listeners, sit back and chill for a few moments. The opening track “Honky Strutter” starts off with an upbeat electro-pop beat, with steady electronic drums, an enjoyable piano melody and soothing bass tones. This one sort of had an ambient, soundscape quality about it. “’Round the Corner” begins with a vintage sounding piano and a pre-recorded vocal track – “I love it – beautiful” – repeating. This tune has a definite lo-fi, trip hop vibe to it – something you might find on You Tube that is trending these days. But to these ears, this song is written better and arranged way better. Some of the lo-fi stuff on You Tube repeats too often and get boring quick. I like the next track “Oceanside” because of its mix of new and old styles. There is some jazz to it, soul and soft rock sensibilities that I really liked. I wish this track went on longer. Moving on is “Summer Breeze” (no, not a cover track of the Seals & Crofts major hit from the ‘70s, although that would have been interesting to see how it would turn out). Instead, this song is an original mix of lo-fi tempos, heavy bass thumps, futuristic sounding synths and a repeating vocal track that says, “it’s you that laid him down / basking in the sun” – at least I think that’s what is being said. The highlight here were the extra funky lead guitar riffs towards the end. The last track is called “We Leave You to Contemplate.” This number has a sultry, down tempo vibe going on, and it also happens to be the shortest track on the EP. You may have to listen to it a few times to get a better grasp on what’s going on. This EP is just a short sample for those who enjoy laidback lo-fi and instrumental downtempo, accompanies by warm bass tones, electronic beats and soothing synths. There’s a lot going on in these short songs. Hopefully, Fairhead will elaborate more in the coming months ahead.
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Over the last ten years The love asylum have been the songwriters, singer and keyboard player for The Grenadiers a band playing ‘60s inspired modern indie music. Recently the members Kevin and David have returned to their roots and reignited their passion for ’80s music. This has resulted in The love Asylums debut album Electronica.
They mention their main ’80s influences are Soft Cell, Yazoo, Erasure and ABC although there are plenty of others as well. I could definitely pick up on that without having read it and I think fans of those bands will as well. The first is “Losing my mind.” You are greeted with a 4/4 beat, bass and arpeggiated synths. The ’80s vibes are apparent right off the bat and once the verse hits as well it’s even more evident. Like a lot of songs from this era the hook pops. The first song is solid but even better was the second song “Here she comes.” This song reminded me of the band INXS that I absolutely loved when I was a kid. The songs has a sense of mystery and adventure to it. I really liked how smooth the vocals sounded against the guitar work. “I won't let you go” is more of a ballad in a lot of ways. Something about this song brought me back to middle school. In particular I was thinking about an awkward middle school. It’s a bit saccharine and sentimental. “Don’t go hating yourself” is not only great advice but also one of the highlights on the album. The song has a classic octave funky bass progression you heard all the time in this genre. There’s a good amount of energy but it also sounds really smooth because of the vocals and pads. I loved the groove on “Start” which keeps the energy kinetic but also smooth like on “Don’t go hating yourself.” They keep the hits and grooves coming with “Moon Dancing” and “Call Me.” I have to admit “Kiss of the vampire” made me laugh. It’s a cool song but I couldn't help but think of the scene in Forgetting Sarah Marshall when Jason Segal is doing his Vampire play. The closer “Time” is a bit of an anomaly. This was one of my favorite songs but had much more of a ’50s type quality to the music. The vocals were fantastic on this song. I’m not sure it fit in the album but I liked it. To state the obvious I think fans of ’80s synth pop will love this. The band is talented and this was a fun album from beginning to end.
Looser is a Philly-based, sometimes band/sometimes solo project fronted by Tino Aquilino. Apparently the ideas for this project started to come together while he was playing in Control Top and Sun Hat. In 2018 Aquilino released a single entitled “Envy Sea” and a couple of years later released an EP entitled Sour Power.
In the mid to late ’90s I was a teenager in high school consuming a lot of indie rock. Those were magnificent times for music. You had bands like Pavement, Yo La Tengo, Weezer and many others. The four songs on Sour Power fit in with that genre and decade. Up first is “Mine” and it is one of the highlights. It’s closer to a band like Pavement between the execution, chord patterns and production. Stephen Malkmus would approve. Fuzzy guitar gels with a 4/4 beat, a steady bass and very catchy vocals. There weren’t many surprises, good or bad but just a solid song. “Cemetery Lane” sounded like it was a homage to the band Weezer - the production, guitar tone and even vocal delivery. I double checked to make sure this wasn’t a B-side from the band I was unaware of. This song sounds closely related to their work from The Blue Album or Pinkerton. “Off the Wave” was a solid song. It’s aggressive and wild. The aesthetic here comes closer to a band like No Age that had some prominence about a decade ago. Distortion flails about and the vocals are well delivered. The drumming was pretty tight as well. There are also a good amount of changes making it a fun song. The last song “TONIGHT” is more a blend of Americana in the spirit of The Replacements with perhaps a smidge from a band like The Flaming Lips. The production was solid for a DIY effort. Although as an engineer myself there was too much build up on the lower mid range especially around 150hz and 350hz. For starters I would have cut some of those frequencies to open up the mid and upper range frequencies. This was a solid effort overall and fans of the aforementioned bands should appreciate this release. Take a listen.
Daniel Kent (guitar/vocals), Kris Olk (guitar/vocals/bass), Neil Adams (drums/harmonica/mandolin) and Wade Anderson (vocals/bass/guitar) are Saint Suburbia. The band is based in Minneapolis and the members live in St. Paul and the suburbs hence the name of the band. They recently released Road To Nowthen which is a full-length LP.
The band has a sound that is reminiscent of the suburbs to be honest. In almost every suburb in the midwest they have summer and fall festivals. You have probably been to one before. The funnel cakes, some fireworks and usually a couple bands playing as well. Well the band has a sound that I’ve heard plenty of times at festivals throughout my four decades on the planet. They have a classic Americana rock sound that isn’t unlike Tom Petty, John Mellencamp and many others. The songs are digestible, upbeat and fairly dance worthy in a rock sort of way. They start the album with “Don’t Knock It” and suffice it to say if you like the sound of this song keep listening. “Here I Sit” and “Cheers” are fine songs. There are no real surprises but the songs are well delivered. Crunchy guitar riffs, warm vocals and solid production. Of course you need a warm ballad on this kind of album and they do that with the song “Prodigal Son.” One of my personal favorites was “Austin City Limits.” If you can get the family to put down their beer and funnel cakes, this song will get them out of the chairs to dance with others over the July 4th holiday weekend. As the album progressed I thought there were a number of highlights including “My Cherie Amour,” “Pay Phone” and “Money Talks.” The band wears their influences on their sleeves and anyone into good old Americana classic rock should pick up on them with ease. That’s not a bad thing. The band isn’t reinventing the wheel but instead formulating a well written original with a proven rock structure that people have loved for decades. Take a listen.
Keith LuBrant is a guitar instrumentalist from Philadelphia. Starting out in bars and clubs around New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware, he began creating music tracks for film and TV, racking up thousands of credits on network and cable TV as well as feature films. His newest rock instrumental album is called Sometimes There Are No Words on Guitar One Records.
Musically, LuBrant has various influences including Paul Gilbert, Bruce Bouillet, Steves Vai and Howe, and Nuno Bettencourt. For these tracks, LuBrant is joined by longtime partner John LeComte (bass) and Will Regnier (drums). LuBrant states: “I wanted to create a love letter to the guitarists that helped shape my playing into what it has become today. The most important thing that this album has is melody. It was a blast to do, and the final result is something in which I take great pride.” The guitars and bass were recorded at LuBrant's studio The Underground Lair with Pro Tools 12. Due to Covid, bass and drums were recorded remotely. Mastering was by Matt Harris. When great guitarists make albums, in general you know what to expect: one killer solo after another, hopefully in a variety of genres to keep things interesting. LuBrant starts the proceedings with a totally solo, Eddie Van Halen-Steve Vai fingertip extravaganza fittingly titled “Welcome to the Show.” This leads directly into “The Right Track” which is a fast rock boogie with a busy, unstoppable lead guitar line occasionally overdubbed with harmonies or added riffs. The sound is thick, crunchy and irresistible. “Swagger Street” continues this template while stretching out with a bit more “swagger” featuring another great chorus melody for multiple guitars. “Fact Or Fiction” changes things up with a funk feel. Here’s a good time to note the excellent interplay between LuBrant and drummer Will Regnier, which becomes really obvious in the little spaces LuBrant leaves open. This song has a few interesting post-production touches as well. By this point in the album the guitars are rarely at less than orchestral levels of overdubbing. “Keef’s Boogie” is built on an extremely fast (big surprise there!) descending note motif over which LuBrant rocks relentlessly. I was expecting a possible tribute to Keith Richards but I guess the song refers to LuBrant himself. Structurally it’s a bit closer to Van Halen crossed with prog rock. Some of the unison harmonic leads are absolutely breathtaking. “Cracks In The Kingdom” dials back the fuzz for a shorter, chamber music-style construct that Steve Howe might have dabbled in. It’s a short break, as the fuzz tone kicks back in for the heavy metal “Army of Six” featuring a tricky main riff worth of Metallica. This is one track that really goes through some thrilling changes, though I’d be hard pressed to find one in this collection that doesn’t! There’s even a funky wah wah finale. “Young Again” dials the volume back for a jazzy, contemplative stretch on a quieter, chiming guitar setting, followed by a more straightforward pass of lead guitar. “Ace of Acadia” returns to LuBrant’s signature riff-heavy style with multiple guitars, some of which have an Allman Brothers flavor (but way faster!). “Work Up To It” is another of the quieter-style tracks, which are becoming some of my favorites. There’s a basic melody that the background guitars carry, while LuBrant follows on lead, aping the melody while adding impossible-sounding variations as he goes along. Yet another jaw-dropping three minutes! “Isolation” closes the album with a melancholic theme that’s both quiet and epic at the same time. When you run into an awesome guitarist, most of the time you just want to stand back and let them wail. However, their music is often repetitive and designed to show off. LuBrant shows off just by existing, but his melodies are every bit as good as his shredding. An amazing talent!
Washington, DC-based Steve Shook and Fernando Sotelo have each played in many bands, but hadn’t worked together. They took advantage of 2020’s pandemic to finally collaborate, forming the duo Shadysides. The band was inspired by their regular trips to Pittsburgh, PA; Yinzers will appreciate the band’s name (and shout-outs to various neighborhood spots) on The Good Life, their debut release.
Shook and Sotelo cite power-pop and rock n’ roll as their influences and are trying to create a “classic indie pop/rock sound without sounding retro.” The opener “Why Not Us?” throws us right into the deep end of that pool, with a fusillade of drums and a guitar lick that could have been lifted from the ‘80s classic “When You Were Mine.” That opener encapsulates the disc well: the backing tracks sound pretty good, but the rest of the parts are inconsistent. With the rhythm guitars providing a chorused wash, the guitar solos get a bit lost in the mix. Those leads need a stronger, differentiated tone to cut through. The songwriting is up-and-down as well. The lyrics often feature lazy rhymes (“looking to make their night / spoiling for a fight”) or come off as sophomoric (“she’s my speed / a good time with her is guaranteed”), and the vocal melodies aren’t always catchy enough to carry them off. The low point is the pre-chorus of “She’s My Speed,” which is stuck in melody purgatory: either the lyrics need to be spoken, or the melody needs to be catchy. Instead, it’s just awkward. The Good Life does have its solid parts. “Saturday” brings in some punk elements (and a flanger) to the band’s indie-pop ethos, and the spoken-word verses work well. When they chant, “we drank from the soul of the city,” the lyrics live up to the quality of the music. “Getting To Know You”--the best track on the album–recalls vintage Cheap Trick with its fuzzy guitar honk. If they’d used a live drummer instead of a machine, it would really pop. The final track “Skies of Pittsburgh” is their slower-tempo paean to the City of Bridges. The piano counterpoint and acoustic-guitar solo were a nice accompaniment to their pub-crawl travelogue. Shadysides finish The Good Life on a major-chord vocal stack, turning their eyes to the sky. With a bit more songwriting effort, and a little production help, there’s a fun future for this pop duo.
Mark Crouch Experience is the brainchild of Mark Crouch who describes himself as a closet musician. Crouch has been playing guitar for over fifty years and recruited Jeff Masiongale (guitars) and Kevin Kuklies (drums) for their release Through The Portal. They mention “Through the Portal is a collection of original songs meant to take you on a ride to many places and stimulate a variety of emotions. Discover what it is like to take a trip Through the Portal. You might be surprised by what you will discover.”
The album for the most part combines elements of progressive and psychedelic rock. I felt like the aesthetic throughout the album was veered towards late ’60s and ’70s style production. The first song is entitled “Lunar Eclipse” and during the verse I was getting major Pink Floyd type vibes between the delayed guitar and bass and drum patterns. The song does however infuse some harder sections. There are times where it feels like they are on the verge of metal. “905: The Portal” is a song that is a little under ten minutes. It’s a loose song with a repeating arpeggiated synth. The song feels improvised as if the players are dancing around certain aspects of the song. Some sections introduce fuzz, there are echo effects and much more with this soundscape. “No Cards” starts with jangly guitar chords, some hi-hat action and some atmospheric swells. It’s a song that starts to mold together as it progresses. The grooves get more intense as if they are reaching a boiling point which they do. “Anesthesia” has a number of great grooves as well. I loved the steady and buoyant bass line which lets the lead guitar sizzle, “One-Eyed Space Rooster'' has its moments as well and flirts with things like double bass drums and just sounds huge at points. “A Beautiful Quiet” is a very appropriate name for the song. Last up is “The Rive” which sparkles with crystalized elements that made me feel I was in a majestic cave. I thought this was a solid album from beginning to end. Fans of classic, psychedelic and prog rock should appreciate this the most.
Steve Matney is a writer, musician, software developer and dad from Northern Utah. His latest release, Sorry E.P. contains songs he wrote all the way back in 2005.
The first song “Sorry” revolves around acoustic guitar and vocals. It starts with a couple slowly strummed chords as the vocals seep in to fill in the space. Matney quickly changes his strumming to something more upbeat which effectively changes the mood of the song. I liked the juxtaposition in emotion. The title summarizes what the song is about. Matney does apologize but he does keep it fairly broad. On the next song “Unexpected” Matney switches instruments. On this song Matney utilizes a warm electric piano. It’s a ballad of sorts. Matney keeps the song simple with minor and major chords coming from the electric piano. The dynamics are almost entirely filled in by the vocals. Matney does a great job with the vocal performance on this song. The emotion gets more intense at moments and really sort of belts it out while lamenting. At the tail end of the song a distant sounding guitar comes into the mix. I actually wasn’t expecting that but it was a nice surprise. Last up is “Solid Ground” and this song also revolves around electric piano and other instruments like bass, guitar and drums. The vocals are delivered in a different way. At first the performance is fairly intimate but when the other instruments enter the scope of the song broadens. There are cascading vocal harmonies. Additionally, the song has a brief breakdown a little after the half way mark and really starts the rock out. The EP was lo-fi and there are some good and not so good aspects to this. I thought the lo-fi quality worked well on the first two songs but the mix on the last song needed a little more separation and fidelity. The production aside I thought this was a solid release. Matney is a talented songwriter and I hope to hear more of his music in the not too distant future.
KAYBLE is the solo project of Ben Kay, former frontman of Kaleido Bay. Kay saw an opportunity in a solo career to experiment and expand the true potential of his songwriting while utilizing previous experience of fronting a band that has played shows all-round the Southwest, amassing a lot of fans and listeners. Kay studied at the largest set of music colleges in the world at BIMM Bristol, and intends KAYBLE to be a name that sticks around with his second recently released single entitled “Thorns In A Glass House.” He mentions the release “explores themes of both unrequited love and dealing with addiction, from the non-addicted perspective.”
The song starts with sparse piano and a manipulated vocals effect. It grabs your attention. Soon enough the piano comes in with the lead. There’s also some rumbling beneath the piano which sounds like a radio signal. Heavy synth bass then comes in with an electronic beat. I was getting Radiohead vibes here and there from the lamenting type of moans. The hook is really strong with prominent vocals melodies that are memorable. I also thought the breakdown was well implemented. The song simmers down with elements. If you listen closely with a nice pair of headphones there is another universe under the piano and vocals. Kay essentially uses these elements as a build to get back into the hook. There is one last section that needs to be talked about and that’s around the three-minute mark. It sounds very thematic and the vocals are treated in a way that makes them sound otherworldly. The song locks onto the hook one more time before ending. Kay packs one song with a lot of elements that somehow they don’t feel overfilled. I have to give props to the mixing engineer for this. On top of that the song feels accessible. If this is any indication of what will be on an EP or album I can’t wait.
Irish immigrants Colm Donnelly and Liam Mulholland met in Vancouver, Canada, back in 2018 and began doing covers together as 'mop and beard' playing pubs in downtown. Soon they began to throw around a few originals from Donnelly onto their set and Mulholland began writing as well. This eventually led to a partnership in writing music together, Eventually the pair added Jory Fernstrom on bass and Craig Hahessy on drums. Bute Street's debut EP Superficial Times was released in 2018 and was followed up by 2019's Sunny Days, Hazy Nights. Bute Street’s third release entitled Eclectic Taste is their first full-length album.
It was produced and mixed by Dan Ponich of Park Sound Studios and mastered by Stuart McKillop from Rain City Recordings. The album is a massive step up in quality to the band’s previous EPs, but the group sees those early EPs as valuable learning curves. The album was given its title because of the knowing, self-deprecating line from the song “Murder Wonderwall” but it was also chosen as the title because the band felt it summed up the album. The album is a mixed bag with influences from early rock n’ roll to 70s punk, to 90s Brit pop and even American and Irish folk. The band remarks the album has energy, humor, wit and catchiness and they have been told that some songs sound retro but, they’re ok with that. The opening “Instant Gratification” is direct in its lyrics and edgy with its dark, raw moodiness – something between Oasis and The Stone Roses. “Gonna Get Shot” has got a fantastic drum/guitar intro and a danceable/punk vibe going on – this was a fun song to listen to. Next up is “Murder Wonderwall” and I wonder if this is tip of the hat to Oasis’ massive hit. Anyway, apart from sounds of ‘90s Brit pop, I was also hearing The Kinks and perhaps a little Donovan on this one. “Step Up” is a song about getting back in touch with your baby again, as in, your child. It’s a short and sweet tune with vocal, acoustic and little keys added. “Quarantine Blues” is what you might expect it would be about. Lyrically, this one’s quite humorous – “Just to let the children know / Daddy’s buried in the patio / Because mamma went loco.” It also has great classic rock n’ roll appeal. “Monday Morning” features a funked-up drumbeat, low bass line and lots of “screw the man/anti-social” rock n’ roll attitude. On the chorus part the band switches into a faster punk beat, giving this tune a lot of fun energy. “Bright Lights” offers listeners a taste of traditional folk Irish music. Fans of The Pogues, The Dubliners and Flogging Molly should like this tune. “B.O.T.S.” has an alt-indie rock sound, meshing pop punk, alternative and pop. This tune reminded me so much of The Replacements, with its sentimental charm and pop melody, so of course being from Minnesota, this track was a favorite. Moving onto “Hairline” is a song just about that – a hairline – but one that is receding. A sure sign that as the lyrics put it – “time is slowly creeping in.” Aside from any humor, the band gets serious – “Does anybody know what to do in their own show / They say the grass is greener, but I don’t know how it grows.” Yep, that about sums it up. Musically, the band’s style is pure, straightforward rock n’ roll. I would say a mix of Rolling Stones, early Alice Cooper, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop. The band changes tempo and rocks out harder about midway, which made for a dynamic, energized song. On a quieter note, “Depending on You” features acoustic, mellow bass tones, piano and beautiful singing. The lyrics are so tender and real and plays tribute to the women with whom “I couldn’t live my life alone” because “I’m depending on you.” “Love is Cruel” has got a great rocking beat and features catchy guitar hooks. This one reminds me of so many bands and was enjoyable to listen to. “Keep Us Fighting” is a good example of an old-fashioned protest song. Stylistically, this tune reminded me of some of the bands from the ‘60s that wrote protest songs, Buffalo Springfield comes to mind. But musically, the band sounds more like The Clash or other bands from late ‘70s/early ‘80s who were known for their nostalgic early rock n’ roll vibe. “Karma’s Revenge” gives the listener another example of Irish folk music. Donnelly and Mulholland’s vocal harmonies are fantastic here! The gorgeous violins, the thumping bass drum all add to the sadness of the lyrics, telling a tale of unrequited love – “a ship in the night that had to sail.” One of the longer songs featured on the album is “Tomcat.” This one features harmonica and a steady rock beat. Lyrically, the words remind the songwriter that he’s always been a tomcat – “drawn to the darker shades of life.” The last tune opens with the sound of cracking open a cold one and someone sipping a drink down. “Beer, Gear and Atmosphere” is a fun, and funny sing-along number. The band claims “the meaning of life so unclear” so I might as well “say cheers with my peers.” Don’t worry about Monday, “don’t be blue like Poppa Smurf” rather “make some memories that have some worth” and “appreciate the time you spend” – because “we don’t have much time on this earth.” Sounds like a drinking song I can get behind. All things considered, Bute Street’s Eclectic Taste offers a taste of just about everything – new rock, old rock, a little punk and a little Irish folk. I was hearing a lot of influences – Iggy and the Stooges, Misfits, George Thorogood and The Destroyers, just to name a few. Sounds pretty eclectic to me so take a listen.
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