In Sightlines, his third EP in two years, Steve Benjamins provides listeners with an otherworldly, airy type of indie pop. The Torontonian’s dynamic vocals are very much like James Blunts’ – his style varies from the downtempo pop typically associated to the crooner to the dance/house of Calvin Harris or David Guetta. The six tracks… Read More Music Review: Steve Benjamins – ‘Sightlines’ EP
The zzips’ album, 20 Years Late, was, well, some 20 years in the making. While the accolades had started coming in when this U.K.-based band began working together, a studio flood and other significant obstacles brought everything to a halt in 2000. But the zzips are back and releasing next month their first studio album,… Read More Music Review: zzips – ‘20 Years Late’
The Los Angeles folk pop/Americana band The Furious Seasons released its fourth album last month, entitled My Love Is Strong. The broad emotional reach of its 13 tracks is built on catchy melodies, thoughtfully built harmonies, and storyline lyrics that engage listeners from the get-go. While certain influences come through clearly—the most obvious one being… Read More Music Review: The Furious Seasons – ‘My Love Is Strong’
The nine tracks on Kings of the Brushwood Thicket’s debut album, The Lies You Leave Behind, more or less follow the laid-back style of “He Was a Man”, the release’s first single. They are all stripped down to an almost bare minimum without sacrificing the richness of the final sound. The album, released earlier this… Read More Music Review: Kings of the Brushwood Thicket – ‘The Lies You Leave Behind’
“Liberator”—that’s what the album’s title, Eleutherios, means in Greek. I’m not quite sure what Nic Nassuet had in mind with this title, but it could be that he is trying to both liberate himself from the restraints imposed by today’s music standards, while at the same time free himself from various demons and ghosts that… Read More Music Review: Nic Nassuet – ‘Eleutherios’
Electropop/indie/pop artist Mpathy (real name Mikael Hirsch), hailing from Boston, is also aptly enough, a scientist. He describes his songwriting process as similar to the way he plans his experiments. Songs first come swirling into his consciousness amidst a flurry of notes and sounds, forcing him to eventually develop a procedure through which he moves… Read More Music Review: Mpathy – ‘The Golden Boy’ EP
A mixture of rhythmic, throbbing swagger and softly breathed harmonies, The Morning Birds’ single, “Jimmy Dean”, makes for a good addition on any lounge/guest’s playlist. Band members Jennifer Thorington (vocals, bass, keyboards), Samuel Markus (vocals, guitar), and Stephen Newman (drums, backup vocals) mix together Sixties-style psychedelic folk rock with the more modern sounds of electronic… Read More Music Review: The Morning Birds – “Jimmy Dean” Single
Swedish band Slim Loris is set to release its third studio album, Love and Fear, later this month. Band members Mattias Cederstam (vocals, bass), Robert Barrefelt (guitars), Leon Lindström (backing vocals, guitars), and Jonas Ellenberg (drums) manage to fuse together quite a hodgepodge of sounds on it: 1960s British invasion influence, melancholy, peppiness, pop flavours,… Read More Music Review: Slim Loris – ‘Love and Fear’
It is said that the AG Drive Soundtrack—which features the composer of the Angry Birds theme song (Ari Pulkkinen) as well as other world-famous video game musicians with a background in the Finnish EDM demo scene—is industry changing. Fans of simple video game music might have a soft spot for this soundtrack, which was released… Read More Music Review: Various Artists – ‘AG Drive Soundtrack’
Lafayette, Louisiana’s Secondborn started as an alternative rock, post hardcore, punk recording project in 2013. Members Daniel Pinner (vocals), Patrick Trumps (guitar), Stefan Hawkins (guitar), Tim Benson (guitars, synth, vocals), Alex Daigle (bass), and Lee Gauthreaux (drums, percussion), tired of playing by the music industry’s rules, decided to put together an honest representation of what… Read More Music Review: Secondborn – ‘Symbols’ EP