Bongo Boy TV presents The Bongo Boy Rock n’ Roll TV show series– Episode 05 Season 13 – Eclipse, Fly and Honey – (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

The drive behind The Bongo Boy Rock n Roll TV Show is simple—seductively so. But isn’t that always the way? The most straightforward ideas are often the most effective.

Tens of thousands of new songs and albums are released every week, and hundreds of record companies, large and small, are vying for your attention. Social media means that bands can present their sonic wares directly before you, regardless of genre or geography, in a way they never could in an earlier age.

So, how do you know which songs to check out? Who has the time to wade through this avalanche of sound to find their new favourite artists or their next earworm of a song? Thankfully, The Bongo Boy Rock n Roll TV Show has the answer. Through the music and videos they studiously curate via their show, they get straight to the point and present the viewer with a shortlist ready to check out at ease…just press play. They do the work so that you don’t have to.

The Bongo Boy Rock n Roll TV Show has been a feature of National TV in prime time on terrestrial TV channels for over ten years. Each episode brings a wealth of new music, hopping genre, geography, sound, and style as it makes its selections. Since airing, this show has been in heavy rotation nationwide on more than 72 TV channels in the USA and Bongo Boy TV ROKU Channel.

Things kick off with Poland’s Halina Garl, who give us a song that sits between the classic realms of the golden age of the soul diva and the modern pop world. It is fair to say that it isn’t often that you come across a voice that reminds you of the legendary Eartha Kitt, but that was the first thing that jumped out at me when I first played Denial.

Simonne Draper, whose fantastic album Accordiana recently found its way to my review pile, offers an interesting change of pace and style. As a student and celebrant of classical guitar, her Eclipse is a wonderfully subtle and sophisticated piece, blending her deft and dexterous playing with the subtle sweeps of a classical-infused background.

Blow_Flyy, who follows, is not so subtle, but that’s the point, his lyrics to Blood N Honey landing on the listener like a rapid-fire word salvo, deft and dexterous onslaughts of language but, in their own hard-edged, from-the-street, fashion every bit as sophisticated, in its own way, and intricate as what has immediately preceded it.

The sonic switches keep coming, and Eugenie Jones’s task is to take the listener by the hand and transport them back into an earlier time, one of late-night blues bars and sonic sophistication (there’s that word again) of understatement and elegance. This she does with I Could Get Lost In Your Eyes, a scintillating jazz-soul delivery, her dulcet tones dancing across the sound of twinkling piano and muted trumpet and space…lots of lavish and lovely space, something that too few artists take full advantage of.

Clark Ford again hooks up with Underground Treehouse for a slice of modern pop. It is not only contemporary in its sound but also in its take on the independent woman declaration, updating the delivery with totally of-the-moment references. Unconditional is one of those songs that is simultaneously about giving your all to someone but also knowing where the line is.

Massimiliano Paternò gives us I Want To Fly In To The Sky, a song that wanders between pop paths and more traditional folk sounds. A simple melodic construct drives the song and sentiment forward, while a meandering and melodic bass line and a spiralling violin create marvellous musical subtexts. The result, a song with increasing levels of complexity and ornateness the deeper you dive.

Things end in an unusual and eclectic place, even considering the scope and adventurousness we associate with Bongo Boy’s musical missives. Steve Andrews raps us out with Mother Nature Rap, a poignant and timely song that sounds like a hip-hop version of The Clash’s Guns of Brixton, and I mean that in the best and most complimentary of ways.

As always, Bongo Boy has it covered: a seductive selection from across the spectrum of new music is being released now. If you can’t find your next favourite artist somewhere in this bundle, you are either uptight, set in your ways or genuinely insane! It’s as simple as that.