“Too Bad” is a flavorful new single off Elle Casazza’s new album, “Proof.” The vid has a terrific aesthetic and it exudes a late 80’s – early 90s summertime vibe (if you don’t understand what that means…I guess you just had to be there.) This is exemplified not only by the fashion, effects and color usage of the video but also bouncy, playful nature of the song itself. Unlike many musicians that are merely obnoxious fame seekers pushing overproduced yet empty music, Elle comes off as a true artist. Great songwriting, great voice. In a just world this would be a Top 40 single for the summer of ’17.
https://www.facebook.com/ellecasazza/ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/proof/id1182431649
KALO describes their music as “pure, heartfelt rock ‘n’ roll with just a tease of blues and roots.” I would agree with all of that, and I would add their music is in fact very good as well. Their new song “Wild Change” lives up to their previous releases like Dear John. “Wild Change” is just brimming with professionalism while managing to retain its authenticity. Singer/songwriter/guitarist Bat-Or Kalo sings with passion and plays with precision. I found the guitar work to be especially impressive. Back inthe day I used to work for a mail order company that sold parts for musical instruments. People would always call and ask how they could get that “great bluesy tone” out of their amps. Well, KALO has managed to do just that. It helps that they are all solid and well-trained musicians. This is just an all around professional outfit, and it shows in their music. “Wild Change” is a top of the line release.
Zerugy is a German rapper who is set to release a brand new EP in October 2017. He describes his music as doubletime rap with hard trapbeats, and his primary influences are old school hip hop artists. Visually, his distinguishing feature is that he rocks an illuminati bandana with runes on. The subject matter in his Zerugy’s songs tend to revolve around misunderstood youth and people who act poorly in relationships. Stay tuned for his new EP, which we will most likely be reviewing here when it’s released.
Morty Shallman’s “Pop Fiction” is sort of a blend of spoke word storytelling, light rap and pop music. What differentiate it from other similarly esoteric and indie avante garde projects is that it’s incredibly well produced. Typically this kind of jam would be lo-fi, recorded by some guy with a turtleneck and a tape recorder, but Morty went all out on production and his songs are meticulously constructed. In addition to being highly creative, “Pop Fiction” also energetic, fun and poppy. It never comes off as dreary, creepy or self-indulgent. There’s some real potential here for Shallman to break out.
Manhattan based singer/songwriter Aprilann’s latest release is “Crown and the Girls.” It’s striking how well-produced it is (credit Artie Skye of Skyelabs in NY.) The chorus is catchy and repetitive in that “department store pop music” kind of way that gets the song stuck in your head for days. I could easily see this becoming a hit pop song. Aprilann is a terrific young singer and has more genuine vocal talent than many pop stars (who are often hired merely for looks and dancing ability.) She will have a good future in this genre if she continues to surround herself with the right people in a competitive field.
The video for “Gold,” an intriguing, dream-like track by “First Blush,” looks almost like it could be short David Lynch or Cronenberg film. Just seeing the First Blush logo/color scheme, I assumed this would probably be a straightforward vaporwave song. It isn’t though. It’s more of an arthouse, blended synthpop style jam with influences ranging from The Who to The Flaming Lips. Jam probably isn’t the best word to describe this music, as the song and video evoke more of a captivatingly brooding atmosphere than a Technotronic “Get up get busy!” dance party. Creative and unpredictable, “Gold” retains your interest while remaining musically coherent throughout. Charles Sekel, the man behind First Blush, also has some great skills on piano. So kudos to him for taking the time use his talents to experiment and create interesting material. “Gold” is reportedly the second single for First Blush’s debut LP, Monologic (which is scheduled to be out July 14th.)
Indie-pop outfit “Planets” has a single out called “Reflections” which will also appear on their upcoming EP, Colors Alive. It’s somewhat rare for an indie pop band to pull out all the stops as far as production, but I have to say that the video for “Reflections” is incredibly well done, both in terms of production values and artistic direction. It features rising young starlet Elyse Dufour from The Walking Dead in the lead, she somehow manages to give a memorable visual performance despite not having to utter a word. No complaints about the music either. Planets’ singer Rae Anna Beauford has one of those voices that seems like it was genetically tailored specifically for the indie genre. It was an extremely wise decision for the other members (Matthew Morgan, Christian Haberkern and Tim Morgan) to bring her on board. She adds a dynamic which elevates the song’s emotional aesthetic, even though the music itself was already good on it’s own. It just rounds everything off nicely. “Reflections” is the kind of indie pop song that cool people would still like even if it became the radio hit it has the potential to be.
Singer-songwriter Reid Lee describes his latest track “Arrowheads” as “soulful and sweet Americana with a country heart.” It definitely comes across as a blended style derived from a variety of influences. The song really showcases his vocal ability and I found his pleasant and voice contributes to the calming, reassuring ambiance of the music. “Arrowheads” transitions from minimalist verses to epic chorus, and Reid’s emotive presence carries the song steadily throughout. This is very high quality stuff here, and Lee’s musical training at UCLA’s music school really paid off. Reid’s target audience will be thoroughly moved emotionally by this music, and more people deserve a chance to hear it.
The Judex, a rock n’ roll band out of Philadelphia, has just released a double A-Side single. It’s their only release so far, but it’s apparent after listening to it that these guys are focused on quality. My first thought while listening to the track “Witchface,” was that this music reminds me a lot of the kind of punk rock that you’d hear in 80s horror movies like Return of the Living Dead. The recording has that polished, 1980’s analog engineer professionalism that you just don’t hear anymore. It’s the sound of musical and recording pros that know what they’re doing. Mark Plati did a fantastic job mixing/mastering this and capturing the ambiance the band was going for perfectly. There are no corners being cut here.
The guitar work on here is incredible and the singer can really sing. You can’t really fake it with this kind of music. One of the reasons a lot of the bands from the 70’s and 80’s resented the grunge and “alternative” music of the 90’s was because a lot of the bands were not very good technically. For example, when I was a kid, people would often have debates over “who was the better guitar player” or “who is the better drummer” in popular punk or metal bands. In the 90s though, people never cared or talked about that stuff anymore. They just talked about personality or “meaning.” The Judex marks a return to the tradition of well crafted songwriting and superb technical execution in indie rock’n’roll. They have a new EP coming out in August. I recommend you check it out, because they are legit.
