here they are:
"Connected By Love" by Jack White: The eerie synths that open the latest song from the famed White Stripes frontman don't exactly define this song. About 15 seconds into the song, those instruments get supplanted by Jack's soulful delivery, both vocally and instrumentally. The chorus almost seems gospel influenced, and it uses female backing vocals that wouldn't sound too out of place in an actual gospel song. The organ solo in the song further accentuates its spiritual fervor. I have said before that music is like a religion to me. "Connected By Love" makes me feel like I'm in a church listening to a choir and soaking in each note and the overall passionate message of the song!
"Dream" by Bishop Briggs: In the summer of 2016, Bishop Briggs (then known simply by her first name) won over the alt and adult alt charts with "River", a song that combined soulful, impassioned vocal delivery, folk-rock guitar instrumentation, electronica ambience, and stomp-and-holler rhythms into a neat little musical package. On "Dream", Bishop uses this same combination of elements and manages to win over her target audience once again! Perhaps the biggest attraction, though, for "Dream", is in its lyrics. Bishop bares her heart and soul with lyrics like, "I wanna wake up where your love is, 'cause your love is always waking mine", and "I wanna break down where your heart gets so torn it's breaking mine". Bishop could be speaking to a lover, a close friend, or a higher power, but it's up to the listener to decide which suits them the best, ultimately. Such is the beauty and impact of music!
"Feels Like Lightning" by Josh Ritter: From the clippety-clop rhythm in the opening, you know that folk-rocker Josh Ritter wants to make "Feels Like Lightning", well, feel like lightning! The song's unique, memorable rhythm feels like a horse trampling through a field at lightning speed. Though horses aren't mentioned anywhere in the lyrics, there is quite a bit of nature related imagery in the song nonetheless. Wind, cherry blossoms, bluebirds, and fields are among the many choice words Josh uses to evoke the mood of being surrounded by scenery that is at once vibrant and pastoral. So let your heart run free and stir up some excitement whenever you listen to this one!
"Taste" by Rhye: It's rare these days for an electronic song to be so poignant and emotionally bare, but this is what Rhye excels at. They seemed destined for one-hit-wonder status in spring 2013 with their intimate and aptly titled song, "Open", but "Taste" has proven me wrong. "Taste" has a bit more energy than "Open" did, but still manages to have a calming, ethereal atmosphere nonetheless. The words "I'll lick your wounds. I'll lay you down" are repeated during certain sections of the song, illustrating the song's intent of comfort and reassurance to the individual who happens to be listening to it. Just as they did with "Open", Rhye have once again managed to succeed at making music perfect for wanting to escape into a world full of billowy clouds!
"You Worry Me" by Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats: Nathaniel and his spunky, blues-y, R & B revival group don't worry ME, that's for sure! As with most of their material, this song makes me wanna get up and dance! Along with Jack White's latest song, "You Worry Me" is one of the most heavily anticipated new songs of the week, and it's not hard to see why! Though the song might not have the fiery, no-frills attitude of their breakthrough song, "S.O.B.", "You Worry Me" has still managed to win me over and remind me of why I like this group so much! Though the song is written in a minor key (a first for the group, as far as their better known songs are concerned), it still feels more like a major key song for its sheer exuberance and fervor. Well, what are ya waitin' for?! Let's boogie down!!
Showing posts with label Rhye. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rhye. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
New songs for May 8th, 2013
here they are:
“On the Road” by Houndmouth: Bearing the same title as beat poet Jack Kerouac’s most famous novel seems like it would entail quite a bit, except “On the Road”, the song, has nothing to do with “On the Road” (the novel). The song “On the Road” is about, well, being on the road. That is, it’s about traveling, and the blues-country-rock flavored sound of “On the Road” seems to fit perfectly with the theme of the song. Another possible theme of the song is anonymity (the chorus of the song states, “I’m goin’ down, and nobody’s gonna know me”). The main point of “On the Road”, though, is that it’s basically just a feel good, traveling down the highway kind of song, and there’s nothin’ wrong with that!
“Open” by Rhye: Not since the days of groups like Frou Frou and Zero 7 (which has now been about ten years ago, as hard as that might be to believe!), has there been such a sensual, authentic smooth jazz sound in indie-pop music! Imogen Heap and Sia have nothing, vocally, on Robin Hannibal’s Sade-goes-Danish approach to singing (don’t worry she’s not a scary person, despite how her last name might sound!) Another comparison that can be made between Rhye and groups like Frou Frou and Zero 7 is that all of those groups are duos, consisting of a female lead singer and a male “backup” member, but one thing that separates Rhye from such musical acts is that they are a multi-heritage group (Robin is Danish, and Mike Milosh is Canadian). If you’ve ever wondered what the non-mainstream adolescent crowd considers to be good “make-out music”, look no further than Rhye, and their song, “Open”. You’ll be amazed!!
“Purple, Yellow, Red, and Blue” by Portugal. The Man: Having a name like “Portugal. The Man” is weird enough, and now they have a song that sounds like the name of a children’s book?! Go figure!! Most of the songs that PTM did before “Purple, Yellow, Red, and Blue” had more of a soul inflected nature in their sound, but now, it seems as though one of the most oddly named bands in indie rock want to go for more of a quirky electronic sound that ends up sounding like a cross between The Postal Service and Gnarls Barkley. Not exactly a direction I would have predicted for Portugal. The Man, but then again, this IS a song from a CD that’s being produced by Brian “Danger Mouse” Burton, so that could explain the electronic influence. Also, what’s with the “I just wanna be evil” part of the latter half of the song?! It just sounds so random!! Then again, what’s NOT random about a song whose title consists only of four colors?!
“Sad Angel” by Fleetwood Mac: If groups like The Goo Goo Dolls and Counting Crows did the songs on “Rumours” instead of Fleetwood Mac, it would probably sound like “Sad Angel”, the first collaborative effort from Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham in almost ten years!! It is essentially a folk-rock song, but a folk-rock song that really rocks, at least rhythmically! Lyrically, “Sad Angel” is also a winner, even its opening lyrics (“My eyes were consumed by the silence in the room/Your dreams would not wake from the words that we break”) indicate this. “Sad Angel” is no “Landslide”, but I imagine it could have enough of an impact to rein in a whole new generation of Fleetwood Mac fans!! This song really pulls at the heartstrings, so I highly recommend it to the more sensitive musicians out there!!
“Saint of Impossible Causes” by Joseph Arthur: Joseph Arthur, who has graced us with such unforgettable, bittersweet indie-folk songs like “In the Sun” and “Honey and the Moon”, sounds as though he took a time machine back to 1967 to India with Ravi Shankar and George Harrison for his latest song, “Saint of Impossible Causes”. Like most of George Harrison’s material, “Saint of Impossible Causes” features both acoustic guitar and sitar as central instruments (though it doesn’t feature any twangy slide guitar solos – sorry if I disappointed any George Harrison fans with that statement!) The song also echoes the spiritual themes that would often be found in the quiet Beatle’s material (although what else would you expect in a song with the word “saint” in the title?!) Joseph repeatedly states that he needs the “saints” of various professions and tasks to satisfy him in his quest for everlasting solitude, but he never explains who exactly these “saints” are. Such is the mystery of life, though, a mystery that is preserved with a cosmic sense of love and kindness in “Saint of Impossible Causes”.
“Things Will Change” by Treetop Flyers: “Chewin’ on a piece of grass, walkin’ down the roa-oh-oad. Say there, how long are you gonna…?” Oh whoops, wrong song!! This song could quite easily be likened to a version of America’s “Ventura Highway” for the indie rock generation, though! Even the vocals of Treetop Flyers’ lead singer sound like that of America’s Gerry Beckley. Although, with a band name like “Treetop Flyers”, the ‘70s soft rock influence should pretty much be expected (“Treetop Flyer” was the name of a song by Stephen Stills). So the next time you’re wondering what the “A Horse With No Name” guys are doing at events like Coachella, just know, you’re probably just hearing Treetop Flyers without even knowing it!
“On the Road” by Houndmouth: Bearing the same title as beat poet Jack Kerouac’s most famous novel seems like it would entail quite a bit, except “On the Road”, the song, has nothing to do with “On the Road” (the novel). The song “On the Road” is about, well, being on the road. That is, it’s about traveling, and the blues-country-rock flavored sound of “On the Road” seems to fit perfectly with the theme of the song. Another possible theme of the song is anonymity (the chorus of the song states, “I’m goin’ down, and nobody’s gonna know me”). The main point of “On the Road”, though, is that it’s basically just a feel good, traveling down the highway kind of song, and there’s nothin’ wrong with that!
“Open” by Rhye: Not since the days of groups like Frou Frou and Zero 7 (which has now been about ten years ago, as hard as that might be to believe!), has there been such a sensual, authentic smooth jazz sound in indie-pop music! Imogen Heap and Sia have nothing, vocally, on Robin Hannibal’s Sade-goes-Danish approach to singing (don’t worry she’s not a scary person, despite how her last name might sound!) Another comparison that can be made between Rhye and groups like Frou Frou and Zero 7 is that all of those groups are duos, consisting of a female lead singer and a male “backup” member, but one thing that separates Rhye from such musical acts is that they are a multi-heritage group (Robin is Danish, and Mike Milosh is Canadian). If you’ve ever wondered what the non-mainstream adolescent crowd considers to be good “make-out music”, look no further than Rhye, and their song, “Open”. You’ll be amazed!!
“Purple, Yellow, Red, and Blue” by Portugal. The Man: Having a name like “Portugal. The Man” is weird enough, and now they have a song that sounds like the name of a children’s book?! Go figure!! Most of the songs that PTM did before “Purple, Yellow, Red, and Blue” had more of a soul inflected nature in their sound, but now, it seems as though one of the most oddly named bands in indie rock want to go for more of a quirky electronic sound that ends up sounding like a cross between The Postal Service and Gnarls Barkley. Not exactly a direction I would have predicted for Portugal. The Man, but then again, this IS a song from a CD that’s being produced by Brian “Danger Mouse” Burton, so that could explain the electronic influence. Also, what’s with the “I just wanna be evil” part of the latter half of the song?! It just sounds so random!! Then again, what’s NOT random about a song whose title consists only of four colors?!
“Sad Angel” by Fleetwood Mac: If groups like The Goo Goo Dolls and Counting Crows did the songs on “Rumours” instead of Fleetwood Mac, it would probably sound like “Sad Angel”, the first collaborative effort from Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham in almost ten years!! It is essentially a folk-rock song, but a folk-rock song that really rocks, at least rhythmically! Lyrically, “Sad Angel” is also a winner, even its opening lyrics (“My eyes were consumed by the silence in the room/Your dreams would not wake from the words that we break”) indicate this. “Sad Angel” is no “Landslide”, but I imagine it could have enough of an impact to rein in a whole new generation of Fleetwood Mac fans!! This song really pulls at the heartstrings, so I highly recommend it to the more sensitive musicians out there!!
“Saint of Impossible Causes” by Joseph Arthur: Joseph Arthur, who has graced us with such unforgettable, bittersweet indie-folk songs like “In the Sun” and “Honey and the Moon”, sounds as though he took a time machine back to 1967 to India with Ravi Shankar and George Harrison for his latest song, “Saint of Impossible Causes”. Like most of George Harrison’s material, “Saint of Impossible Causes” features both acoustic guitar and sitar as central instruments (though it doesn’t feature any twangy slide guitar solos – sorry if I disappointed any George Harrison fans with that statement!) The song also echoes the spiritual themes that would often be found in the quiet Beatle’s material (although what else would you expect in a song with the word “saint” in the title?!) Joseph repeatedly states that he needs the “saints” of various professions and tasks to satisfy him in his quest for everlasting solitude, but he never explains who exactly these “saints” are. Such is the mystery of life, though, a mystery that is preserved with a cosmic sense of love and kindness in “Saint of Impossible Causes”.
“Things Will Change” by Treetop Flyers: “Chewin’ on a piece of grass, walkin’ down the roa-oh-oad. Say there, how long are you gonna…?” Oh whoops, wrong song!! This song could quite easily be likened to a version of America’s “Ventura Highway” for the indie rock generation, though! Even the vocals of Treetop Flyers’ lead singer sound like that of America’s Gerry Beckley. Although, with a band name like “Treetop Flyers”, the ‘70s soft rock influence should pretty much be expected (“Treetop Flyer” was the name of a song by Stephen Stills). So the next time you’re wondering what the “A Horse With No Name” guys are doing at events like Coachella, just know, you’re probably just hearing Treetop Flyers without even knowing it!
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