Monthly Archives: July 2015

“Take Your Time” by Ben Mauro
6
Jul

Singer, guitarist and songwriter, Ben Mauro, just finished a major European tour with pop-funk icon Lionel Richie. It was a two month tour of sold out arenas across Europe. Mauro’s extraordinary musical skills and dynamic stage presence has been the reason that he has remained a core member of Lionel Richie’s band for over fifteen years.

On December 6, 2014 Mauro released his debut, self-titled solo album. The album was recorded with an all-star cast of musicians including Oscar Seaton (from Lionel Richie) and George Benson on drums, Monet Owens (from Boz Scaggs) and Lenny Kravitz on background vocals, Ramon Yslas (from Stevie Nicks) and Carlos Santana on percussion, and Grammy award-winner producer/mixer Ted Greenberg. Mauro is already getting a reputation as an exciting solo performer. His album has an upbeat California vibe with influences from Jack Johnson, Van Morrison and Bruce Springsteen.

On every trip to Syracuse, Mauro visits students at his old high school (West Genesee High School) and college (Onondaga Community College) where he studied classical guitar. He gives them advice on how to have longevity in the music business and teaches them the basics of music theory, while also learning about playing music instruments like drums, you can click here for more info about this. In 2014 he started the Ben Mauro Endowment for Music Education at West Genesee. He wants every kid to have every advantage to be able to play if that is his or her passion. Mauro grew up playing the clubs of Syracuse then eventually moved to NYC where he landed the gig with Lionel Richie. He now lives in Los Angeles, California.

“Take Your Time” by Ben Mauro

Ben Mauro

Image and mp3 courtesy of Nicole Acosta of LaFamos PR & Branding

“Do What You Wanna Do” by Jef Joslin
5
Jul

Los Angeles, California, eclectic-pop artist Jef Joslin just released his catchy single, “Do What You Wanna Do.” The melodious and inspirational track is a toe-tapping call for listeners to follow their dreams and be the best possible version of themselves.

With a deep love for helping others, Joslin has always aimed his artistic career with a humanitarian angle. Co-founding the charity organization, LoveTrade, formed to aid the less fortunate, Joslin is a sincerely altruistic artist. Born to a family of entertainers and performers, Joslin has been singing his entire life. He started playing piano at age four and added guitar at age ten. In addition, the multi-instrumentalist also plays bass and drums. Since studying audio engineering and music production at Middle Tennessee State University, Joslin has been pursuing his musical endeavors, including running his own independent label IAMWe Records.

“Do What You Wanna Do” by Jef Joslin

Jef Joslin

Image and mp3 courtesy of Amanda Blide of LaFamos PR & Branding

“Lost At Sea” by Matthew Morgan
5
Jul

Folk troubadour, Matthew Morgan, pulls from Nick Drake as much as Neil Young. His tenor voice floats above delicate arrangements, but its warm, soulful character gives the feeling of great depth. He is a storyteller and a multi-instrumentalist. He crafts his songs playing the guitar, piano, organ, harmonica, and a variety of other stringed instruments.

A lifelong Midwesterner, Morgan grew up in Ohio in a musical family — his mother is an award-winning vocal and piano coach, his grandfather a professional saxophone player from the big band era. At the age of seven, he began singing solos in church and he has been pursuing the stage ever since. Morgan studied opera and classical voice at Capital University Conservatory of Music, followed by a stint studying musical theater at Kent State University, since musical concerts are popular these days and many people assist to these events and even get tickets as the hadestown tickets online, to enjoy one of these concerts.

Solo success led to the formation of a proper band, Matthew Morgan and the Lost Brigade. The group’s 2012 effort, Found, was nominated for three Indie Music Channel awards. Two years ago, Morgan parted ways with The Lost Brigade and recorded a new solo EP with producer Nate Lockwood. While The Lost Brigade’s sound was indebted to contemporary indie rockers like Wilco and the Decemberists, the upcoming Empathy for Inanimate Objects EP calls to mind the happier moments of Elliott Smith or the open-ended ponderings of Tom Brosseau.

Have a listen via Bandcamp or Soundcloud. The album was engineered and mixed by Nate Lockwood.

“Lost At Sea” by Matthew Morgan

Empathy for Inanimate Objects Album Art

Image and mp3 courtesy of Matt Bacon, Artist Liaison at Independent Music Promotions

“I’ve Got You” by Troy Doherty
5
Jul

Accomplished actor, singer-songwriter, musician, parkour/freerunner and avid student, Troy Doherty released the EP Citizen Arrest back in October 2014. Doherty writes the songs, is the lead vocalist, and plays acoustic guitar and piano. Felicia Barton (American Idol runner up) is the backup vocalist. Joe King (lead guitarist of The Fray) plays lead guitar. All other collaborators are well known Nashville musical talents.

Since the age of ten, Doherty has also held a theatre career. He began in the New York, New Jersey area in the production of Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver! His other roles include Scut Farcus in the pre-Broadway world premiere of A Christmas Story, The Secret Garden musical, 13 The Musical, The Wedding Singer and most recently as Beethoven in Dog Sees God: Confession of a Teenage Blockhead.

Doherty is also a member of Tempest FreeRunning Academy in SoCal where he perfects his parkour and freerunning training. He has been a traucer for the past 4 years and was honored to participate in the first Parkour/Freerunning Olympics 2013 in SoCal.

The track “I’ve Got You” is a wonderfully crafted pop song — an anthem about never giving up and always believing in yourself. Doherty is offering an mp3 download of the song for free on Soundcloud.

“I’ve Got You” by Troy Doherty

Troy Doherty

Image and mp3 courtesy of Sera Roadnight of M T Press

“Quiet Fire” by Ella Squirrell
4
Jul

Folk singer-songwriter, Ella Squirrell, grew up surrounded by creativity in the beautiful town of Bridport in Dorset. She has recently spent six months living and working in London, and has returned to Dorset with a wealth of experience.

Squirrell picked up her first instrument aged 10. She copied folk songs on an Irish penny whistle, before moving on to the guitar when she was 11. Her dad is a professional musician, playing mandolin in a trio folk band. Her mom, a poet, taught Squirrell to be brave with words, combining senses and placing the listener in the atmosphere and experience of the writer.

Song-writing is a cathartic process for Squirrell. She sees it as the best outlet for strong emotions, whether she is feeling down or feeling really happy. Allowing herself to be honest in her song-writing is the key to her creativity. Squirrell hopes to add the piano to her instrumental repertoire, which already includes the guitar and the drums. For now, she continues to write songs by playing her guitar, humming the melody, and singing along. Have a listen below to “Quiet Fire” from Squirrell’s Loop EP released via Gospel Oak Records on May 18.

This Fourth of July weekend, Squirrell will be playing the Big Mix Music Festival in Lyme Regis, Dorset.

[audio:Quiet Fire.mp3|titles=Quiet Fire|artists=Ella Squirrell]
“Quiet Fire” by Ella Squirrell

Ella Squirrell

Image and mp3 courtesy of Andrea Lynch of Blue Soap Music PR and Plugging

“We Used to Live” by Steve Benjamins
4
Jul

Otherworldly and downtempo indie-pop artist, Steve Benjamins, released his new EP Sightlines on May 15. Like all of his EPs, Benjamins plays almost all of the instruments on the album (piano, guitar, synths, drums, bass) and is the sole-songwriter.

With the gentle ebb and flow from his truly organic music, there is a very raw sense of humanity in Benjamins’ work. He is an artist that Indie Shuffle described as “A little bit like Justin Vernon and Michael Stipe.”

The Toronto-based singer-songwriter has also been compared to Bon Iver, Patrick Watson, James Vincent McMorrow, Mutual Benefit and Sufjan Stevens.

[audio:We Used to Live.mp3|titles=We Used to Live|artists=Steve Benjamins]
“We Used to Live” by Steve Benjamins

Single We Used To Live (resized)

Image and mp3 courtesy of Matt Bacon, Artist Liaison, Independent Music Promotions

“Champagne” by Haioka (remix of Lunar Twin)
2
Jul

Appealing to both indie-alternative and synth-pop electronica sensibilities, the intriguing Dream-Wave duo Lunar Twin has created some beautiful deep and dark original tracks.

An international bouquet of re-mixers have re-imagined the track “Champagne” according to their own worldview. Ummagma and Mushrooms Project maintain the original indie alternative vibe in their remixes. Statickman offers up some synthpop bliss, while Woolfy and Go Satta offer the dance ticket. Japan’s celebrated Red Bull artist, Haioka, presents an epic chillout splendour. Finally, Romin takes us into a dark underbelly of downtempo.

The band’s self-titled debut EP was released via Emerald & Doreen Recordings on June 5. Tracks are available for streaming or purchase via Soundcloud and Bandcamp.

[audio:Champagne (Haioka Remix).mp3|titles=Champagne (Haioka Remix)|artists=Haioka Remix of Lunar Twin]
“Champagne” by Haioka (remix of Lunar Twin)

Album Art

Image and mp3 courtesy of Shauna McLarnon of Shameless Promotion PR