Monthly Archives: April 2013

“Sunday School Dress” by Super Water Sympathy
28
Apr

Shreveport, Louisiana-based Super Water Sympathy released their full-length, Hydrogen Child, on April 23, 2013 on Portland, Oregon-based indie In Music We Trust Records. As part of their album’s launch celebration, the band debuted songs from Hydrogen Child at this year’s SxSW Music Conference in Austin, Texas.

This album is the next chapter in the development of the band’s self-made genre, Water Pop. It is a twelve-track synthesis of classic symphonic ambience with modern rock ’n’ roll anthems.

Formed in 2010, the group consisting of brothers Billy and Clyde Hargrove (bass and guitar, respectively), Ryan Robinson (drums), Jason Mills (keys), and Ansley Hughes (vocals) clicked from the start, sharing a similar vision for the band’s sound.

“There is a definite cohesiveness insofar as the arrangement and lyricism,” says guitarist Clyde Hargrove. “We honed in on a few songs from Vesper Belle [2011 self-released debut album] that we thought were most representative of the musical direction we are going, and used those as a benchmark for the tone of the album. Vesper Belle is much more eclectic in style and Hydrogen Child is more of a concept album.”

The concept being transformation whether through love, death, or rebirth.

[audio:Sunday School Dress.mp3|titles=Sunday School Dress|artists=Super Water Sympathy]
“Sunday School Dress” by Super Water Sympathy

Super Water Sympathy

Image and mp3 courtesy of ALEX STEININGER of In Music We Trust Records

“The Letter” by Natania
23
Apr

LA-based singer-songwriter, Natania, is a great mixture of Lenka, Ingrid Michaelson, and Sara Bareilles. Natania found her niche as a writer and regularly interprets the inner cogs of love and loss. Her translations echo common emotions we’re all familiar with, thus making the listening experience that much more personal.

Her new tear-jerker “The Letter” is a retrospective break-up song. The song is being released on its own, on the heels of the release of her debut EP, Hope & Heartbreak.

Check out the official video for “The Letter” here.

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“The Letter” by Natania

mp3 courtesy of Caroline of LaFamos PR & Branding

Natania

Image courtesy of Natania’s official site media link

“The Spell” by Foreign Talks
21
Apr

On April 16, 2013, Portland, Oregon-based Expunged Records released the debut, self-titled full-length from Portland’s own Foreign Talks, a four-piece indie-pop band.

Their unique brand of indie-pop is created by blending fast-paced lyricism, four-part vocal harmonies, and syncopated, hook-driven guitar riffs. Some may compare them to the likes of Bombay Bicycle Club and Local Natives. Comprised of ten songs, Foreign Talks combines Marcus Fischer’s (vocals, guitar) raw vocal timbre and razor-like cadence with a contrasting unique and powerful falsetto from his brother, Madison Fischer (vocals).

Watch the video for the single, “The Spell” on YouTube.

Foreign Talks Cover

Image and YouTube courtesy of Alex Steininger of In Music We Trust

“Luminous” by Alice & The Glass Lake
21
Apr

Wisconsin native, Alice Lake, brings her deeply personal new project to life with the stunning and beautiful, Alice & The Glass Lake. Alice & the Glass Lake’s debut effortlessly captures that dream world feel with a cinematically full sound of lush instrumentation and layers of vocals.

The first single “Luminous” is both dynamic and intimate, full of a rushing-river-like kinetic energy. Though ethereal in its delivery, the song is built upon power and movement. Incorporating the use of call-and-response vocals and expertly crafted layers, Alice creates an intricate melodic journey with the simple use of her voice.

Check out the first single from The Evolution EP out May 28th, 2013, “Luminous.”

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“Luminous” by Alice & The Glass Lake

Alice & The Glass Lake

Image and mp3 courtesy of Sera Roadnight of M T Press via SoundCloud and Alice Lake’s blog

“Sky And Dark Night” by Monks of Mellonwah
21
Apr

James from Independent Music Promotions (I.M.P) has shared a new advance release EP from Sydney-based four-piece alt-indie rock band, Monks of Mellonwah. In the form of one composition, this release is a departure point for the band; darker and more experimental than previous EP efforts, Stars Are Out and Neurogenesis.

The Monk’s latest release, the Sky And Dark Night Trilogy can be heard and purchased here.

This latest offering is emotionally charged and showcases the band’s new direction. To Joe de la Hoyde (lead guitar), Sky And Dark Night “…is the journey from the beginning of our battles to their fruitless ends; the ups and downs, the triumphs and the failures. It is the undying hope that maybe somewhere along the way, we might find ourselves.”

Monks of Mellonwah have been featured before on MusicArtiste.

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“Sky And Dark Night” by Monks of Mellonwah

CD Cover - Sky and the Dark Night

Image and mp3’s courtesy of James Moore, Promoter for Monks of Mellonwah via Independent Music Promotions

“Can’t Love Me” by Alisa Boniello
20
Apr

Singer-Songwriter, Alisa Boniello, co-wrote her single, “Can’t Love Me,” with noted songwriter and producer Ron Haney (Alicia Keys, Drake). The song chronicles a relationship that goes south. Boniello and Haney have been busy writing and recording several songs for a potential EP release later in 2013.

Boniello, who was raised in the town of Somers in Westchester County, NY, started taking classical piano lessons at age 5, and was singing in locally produced musicals by 12. In college she fused her years of training as a classical pianist with singing, and graduated with a BA degree in Classical Voice.

[audio:Can’t Love Me.mp3|titles=Can’t Love Me|artists=Alisa Boniello]
“Can’t Love Me” by Alisa Boniello

mp3 courtesy of Karen Labuca and Chip Schutzman of Miles High Productions

Alisa Boniello

Image courtesy of Buzznet

“Never Want To Go Home” by Casey Turner
20
Apr

Armed with his Ukulele, Casey Turner offers an uplifting sense of calm and relaxation into this chaotic world. Built on a steady beach vibe, his debut LP, No Stress Express, invites its audience to put their feet in the warm sand of the pop music landscape and take a moment to allow their worries to melt away in the sun.

Casey was led to his laid back mindset after his stressful journey as an engineer and a bonafied Rocket Scientist who developed hydrogen fuel cell systems for major vehicle manufacturers, dabbled with renewable energy patents, and worked at the Kennedy Space Center for NASA (who has broadcasted his music aboard their space station). Casey’s ability to put his talented analytical mind to rest and sink into the laid back San Diego Beach lifestyle, which permeates his music, is the wonderful outcome of him leaving all that behind.

Get your free download of his lead-off singe, “Never Want To Go Home,” here.

[audio:Never Want To Go Home.mp3|titles=Never Want To Go Home|artists=Casey Turner]
“Never Want To Go Home” by Casey Turner

Casey Turner

Image and mp3 courtesy of Jennifer & Samuel of Working Brilliantly

“DayDreaming” by Abi Ann
20
Apr

Los Angeles, CA Singer-songwriter, Abi Ann, recently released her single “DayDreaming” on iTunes.

Hailing from Midland, TX, Ann’s musical journey started 15 years ago in a family connected by the common love for music. When Ann was just a toddler her mother would often play The Beatles instrumentals for her until she fell asleep. Ann aspires to follow suit of her musical influences and recently started honing her guitar talent.

“DayDreaming” by Abi Ann

[audio:DayDreaming.mp3|titles=DayDreaming|artists=Abi Ann]

Press release courtesy of Nicole Acosta of LaFamos PR & Branding; mp3 found on iTunes.

Abi Ann Hoffman

Image courtesy of Abi Ann’s official site

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“King of Nothing” by Bob Pressner
20
Apr

Hailing from White Plains, NY, musician-at-heart, Bob Pressner, breathes raw emotion and honesty into his new album King of Nothing. Bob touches on subjects like love, spirituality and retrospection with relatable lyrics and a velvety tone.

Refining his skills since the age of 15, even studying with the famed 1950’s beat poet Allen Ginsberg, Pressner took a leap of faith to pursue a music career and soon had his first album Hard Driving Rain, followed by Riding the Wave, Summer in Illusion Land, Me and the Kid from Santa Cruz, and Honor Among Thieves. In addition, Pressner was a featured artist on the album A Musical Tribute to the Olympics, which was a commemorative compilation featured at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Delivering an exciting mix of head-bopping songs and tear-jerking ballads, Pressner displays charm and grace on his latest effort, King of Nothing.

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“King of Nothing” by Bob Pressner

mp3 courtesy of Amanda Blide of LaFamos PR & Branding

Bob Pressner

Image courtesy of MUSIC.HASH

“Waking Hours” by Goodman
20
Apr

Michael Goodman is a musician/multi-instrumentalist based in NYC-via-Providence-via-NYC again. His music recalls the chord progressions of the radio hits of the ’50s and ’60s and long-forgotten power-pop bands of the late ’70s.

“Night Person” kicks us off in a fitful burst of hooks, but hints at the meditative melancholy that permeates the new record, What We Want. As much as this album positively overflows with soaring melodies and hooks that permanently settle between your heartstrings, it is also soundtrack for those long, deeply restless nights. “Waking Hours” is some of Goodman’s finest songwriting to date, a strikingly subtle ballad; the instrumentation is perfectly understated, and the harmonies, doused in reverb, are almost painfully lovely.

Like those of some of the best young songwriters, Goodman’s lyrics are peppered with recurring imagery: flowers and fever, sleeping (but mainly lack thereof) and waking, early mornings and late nights plagued by uncertainty. He captures the ends of relationships and the beginnings of others through the eyes of the sleepless nights that bookend them.

This is pop music for nervous young people, tossing and turning because we don’t know just what we want.

[audio:Waking Hours.mp3|titles=Waking Hours|artists=Goodman]
“Waking Hours” by Goodman

Goodman

Image courtesy of Goodman’s SoundCloud