rescuing musical virtue in distress.
Perhaps, now more than at any other time in recent history, people are looking for a ray of hope, a long lost, sliver-lining, a glimmer of light breaking through the dark clouds which seem to be gathering at an ever increasing pace. Okay, we shouldn’t look to musicians to provide the solutions, that isn’t their... Continue Reading →
It has to be the sign of a good song that so many people wish to cover it. But perhaps it says even more about the song-writing if that song is robust enough to stand up to constant reinvention, that other artists are able to take the core elements and re-mix, re-invent, re-imagine and come... Continue Reading →
Music has always provided the perfect mechanism for an artist to get things off their chests, a way to exorcise demons and negative thoughts and as a way of connecting with others who might find themselves in similar situations. You Know Me Better does all these things and more. Not only that, it does it... Continue Reading →
It is safe to say that Ridin is as much a song infused with BASE's Lebanese roots as it is with by the influences of his current Los Angeles base. It certainly has all the hallmarks of music made for the US market but amongst its western grooves and four-four dance rhythms there is also... Continue Reading →
There has always been a sweet spot to be found between the exoticism of African music and the more direct nature of western musical approaches and that is exactly where you find KoKou Kah and his latest release Best Friend. Infused with some deep rooted grooves and dexterous bass lines, Best Friend is also light... Continue Reading →
There has, for obvious reasons, been a wave of artists making music reflecting the times of late. After all it is in times of adversity when the most interesting music is made. Rock 'n' Roll, Punk, Hip-Hop, Rave…all music born out of heady combinations of frustration, disenfranchisement, rebellion, a desire for cultural or political change... Continue Reading →
Africali make music which is the equivalent of cutting a sonic gemstone. Hold it up and it throws out all manner of different colours and patterns depending on how the light catches it. The same can be said of Daughters of The Sun. Turn it one way and pick up on Afro-rock rhythms and heady,... Continue Reading →
If he as trying to create nothing other than a wonderfully chilled, dance-infused, mellow vibes, pop song, Olivier Herràn the man behind Dreams of Orion would have succeeded with room to spare. But the fact that he has claimed that the music has a higher purpose means that perhaps the music needs to tick certain... Continue Reading →
The strange and beguiling spoken word intro to the wonderfully named Made in Snoring pretty much sets out the mission statement for the man behind the Rural Manifesto. Over odd, meandering and slowly building electronic ripples he underlines the much held view that, compared to the city, everything that takes place in the countryside is... Continue Reading →
Imagine if dance music was more than the sum of its parts? More than the infectious rhythms and the solid, martial beats, more than the euphoric highs and the falling lows that help carve the dynamics from solid sound, more than just the stylish accompanying videos…and this has a particularly stylish accompanying video…more than the... Continue Reading →
I guess if you wanted any further proof that the world is a small place and that cultural influences and musical inspirations are free to tumble around and cross-pollinate at will, creating new, unique, hybrid sonic forms, then 3P1C H1D3R is it. Pshyche is a wonderful mix of sounds and styles, genres and geography, a... Continue Reading →
Sometimes you just need music which hits all the right spots, something fun and funky, something that washes over you and enters your body by some sort of groove-based osmosis rather than requiring you to put too much effort in. And when you are in that sort of mood then you can turn to Nikavo.... Continue Reading →
This latest song from Xalser takes pop along some interesting sonic pathways. It starts off in fairly familiar territory, a chilled, soulful, R&B groove built of sultry tones and casual beats, doing exactly what you might expect it to. And then about a minute in it mutates into a wonderful, futuristic, alternative-dance hybrid. Although dance... Continue Reading →
I guess the reason that so many people, especially in the pop and dance worlds, are referencing 80’s sounds, even if they don’t always realise it, is because that was a more pioneering time. Today, making music can be as simple as downloading samples, using technology to bend even the most lack lustre vocals into... Continue Reading →
There is something interesting about the language barrier. Whereas music, especially that aimed at the modern mainstream audience, relies heavily on the direct communication of the lyrics to engage with the listener, take that connection away and you force people to engage with the music in purely emotional terms. That is what makes Nadie Se... Continue Reading →
Just because you can’t pronounce a song's title doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy it. Just as, my limited knowledge of the Ukrainian language (I know the words thank you and…beer, obviously) doesn’t mean that I can’t get lost in it’s vocal charms. What is life without a little mystery? And what’s life without a... Continue Reading →
If you are going to do pop you might as well tick all the boxes, pop done half heartedly is a waste of everyones time. Those boxes include things like, infectiousness, addictive grooves, danceable beats, euphoric lyrics and a sense of adventurousness, abandonment and escapism. Kamryn Marie makes music which visits all of these stations... Continue Reading →
There is certainly something about Katrina Stuart’s brand of R&B driven, clubland pop that sets her apart for those around her. It isn’t so much the sounds that she uses or the type of song she is writing, for those aspects, whilst still cleverly wrought, stay within the generic norms for someone with an eye... Continue Reading →
Just because the vote doesn’t go your way doesn’t mean that you have to stop making the argument and at least the return of Boris Johnson, a resounding return at that, means that Cabinet of Millionaires will have no shortage of subject matter to work with. Not that they were ever stuck for things to... Continue Reading →
Collisions between the classical and contemporary music world have always gone on and to varying degrees of success. I guess where one is the realm of discipline and exactitude the other is more often the home of feeling and improvisational jamming. Getting the two to work together probably relies on being able to switch mindsets... Continue Reading →
Not all music is made to satisfy the more everyday urges. Yes, we all like an uplifting tune whilst we get ready to go out on a Friday night, a catchy singalong on the jukebox at the bar or a rousing anthem to help us let off steam but as musical iceberg analogies go, that... Continue Reading →
For a middle-aged geezer like me, the music made by ensemble (I would describe them as a band but a band is generally made up of musicians armed with an instrument, The Moods are more like ‘music makers’ incorporating producers and poets, as well as musicians) seems miles from the stuff I have in my... Continue Reading →
After recently tipping our enquiring toe into the sonic waters of X House Music, we sat down with main man Cory Peterson to find out what is going on within the brand name and where it all heads next. DAA : X House Music seems to combine a lot of roles, a showcase platform, a... Continue Reading →
Unless you’re a fan of reggae you possibly wouldn’t be aware that reggae has spent the last few decades stretching away from the stereotypical ‘chung-chung’ guitar and has found it’s feet in other genres and sub genres that has not only enhanced the music but also widened the possibilities that the music can move into.... Continue Reading →
We all need a bit of reassurance from time to time and that is exactly the message which lies at the heart of Worry, a new release from TopAge and J Bold. The world is a difficult place and we all occasionally fall but as a race we are resilient, we get up, we dust... Continue Reading →
Dance music doesn’t necessarily have to be about fast beats and hard grooves but it does have to have a certain infectiousness, contagion, an addictive quality to make it actually tick all the right boxes for the dance posse. And this is the fine line that the wonderfully named I'm Smoking Legal walks on Lifted, a song... Continue Reading →
We get used to music being a call back, a reference or a tip of the hat to past musical styles but there is nothing here that suggests anything other than music made both in the here and now and staring confidently into the future. Musically it is the perfect mix of the coolest, understated... Continue Reading →
Q: The Infinite Soldier concept has come a long way since you first thought of it, so tell me how it got started. It is strange to think that what started out as a dream and vision at a late morning party is going to end up changing the world, one word, one thought and... Continue Reading →
Dance music comes in many forms, from the high octane clubland anthems to the chilled after hours wind down sounds and from the banal and throw away to the more engaging and thoughtful. Just Like that is certainly to be found in the more thoughtful, chilled region on that particular music map. Yes, it sits... Continue Reading →
If there is one thing that spills out of this latest offering from Infinite Soldier it is euphoria. Even before you engage full with what is going on in the track, before you absorb the music on a deeper level, before you examine the lyrics or the music’s raison d’etre you, the listener, find yourself... Continue Reading →