W.A.V. is a new EP from Silas Luster, a filmmaker and hip hop artist based in Provincetown, Massachusetts. The album was produced by @TmacTheDJ and recorded locally. Silas is a member of a creative collective known as “The BuLife,” which claims to value honesty and transparency.

W.A.V. is pretty solid musically. The eerie, synth driven backing beats provide a heightened tension for the songs. Silas has a crisp delivery and impecacble timing. While other rappers “spit rhymes,” Silas Luster delivers them clearly and melodically. His voice can be subtly emotive and dynamic as well. This isn’t a guy who yells and postures into the microphone, and yet still you can tell he means business.

One of the best songs on this EP is What’s Love? It’s a flawless spoken word poem with only light “waves” in the background. Other notable tracks are 2004 (it was a great year for me actually) and Moldamensions. Moldamensions the backing music for which sounds like something you’d hear in an episode of Tales From the Darkside. Anyway, W.A.V. is an impressive little release, and you should probably check it out for yourself.

For more info:

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/w-a-v/1458083136

Youtube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lNo12hShoemGKHGgwjsrJA8BNU0ABJZws

Cannot Listen is a new single from rapper/filmmaker The Don Kap. Though it is done in the style of a “diss track,” the song fuctions as a more general diss toward fake friends rather than targeting a fellow rapper or specific person. It was however, inspired by The Don Kap’s ending of a 25-year friendship with someone he finally determined to be a fake friend.

Cannot Listen is very direct and straightforward. The Don Kap lays it all out there in a simple equation “No love = insecurity = jealousy = fake.” When I saw the title “Cannot Listen” I assumed it would be in reference to a friend who was unwilling to listen. In actuality, The Don Kap uses it to refer to himself. He “cannot listen to you” because he “ain’t got time for fakes.” He recognizes that false friends are time wasters. Even genuine friendships can be taxing and time consuming enough, but when you discover the friendship was nothing but a house of cards, you start thinking about all the time you’ve lost that you will never get back. This kind of refreshing lyrical clarity pervades thoughout the song.

The Don Kap’s delivery skills are decent, and his voice has a commanding presence, holding its own during the parts of the song where backing music is minimal. He also has a laid back charisma about him without displaying a lot of flash or excess. Cannot Listen is actually quite catchy and continues to grow on you after a few listens. The accompanying music video for this song is well produced and features some terrific shots of the city of Tel Aviv.

For more info:

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thedonkap
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/19Dx2TZbHTDc6OTjVVei7o

Midnight Oil is a new full length album from artist Jonah Kue. With its ethereal and ambient backing, I would describe the musical style here as “dreampop.” Occasionally there are some elements of hip hop and light rapping. Jonah’s voice is soothing in tone but energetic enough so that it won’t put you to sleep. The hip hop interludes are well placed and neatly intertwine with the rest of the music adding another dimenstion to the songs at just the right time and transitioning out smoothly.

In fact, the word “smooth” is a great way to describe this album from start to finish. Everything flows cleanly througout, with Jonah’s laid back, contemplative lyrical delivery providing a poignant and enjoyable listening experience. The Dance Floor in particular is a track which has an excellent beat. It’s like elevator music you can dance to. Jonah is a pretty talented singer, and this is one of those genres where you definitely can’t fake that sort of thing. The song Brendan is the catchiest and from a marketing perspective probably has the most pop appeal. It just packs a little more punch and grabs you more than some of the other songs.

For more info:

https://song.link/album/i/1456388338

Again is a new EP from Keren Botaro, a Tel Aviv born artist who currently lives in the US. I expected this to be a rather standard “pop” release, but it turned out to be much more impressive and interesting than anything I anticipated. Keren’s (and her fellow performers’) eclectic range of rock influences and keen sense of style are on full display here.

Botaro may photograph like a pop star, but the music blends elements of psychedelia, lounge, blues and even mod. The awesome Farfisa sounds incorporated into these songs are the stuff of a combo organ fetishist’s dreams. Everything just sounds so authentic. If I heard this album on the radio, I would genuinely think these songs had been recorded in 1968. These people really have nailed the vintage tone and classic rock essence flawlessly. The guitars are awesome and made me feel like I was listening to a Jefferson Airplane record in an old coffee house. I highly recommend watchng the videos for these tracks because they really do a great job of conveying the ambiance.

Keren’s vocals certainly keep up their end of the bargain as well. Her voice is excellent, and stylistically she’s like a rock’n’roll version of a lounge singer. She projects passionately and belts out the songs with confidence and emotion. Her voice is full and combines with her dynamic visual stage presence to really make a performative statement. Really, not enough can be said about what a fine vocalist Keren Botaro is. Style, substance and technical singing ability, most singers tend to find ways to compensate for whichever one they lack, but she actually excels in all three categories.

The first two tracks Fire and Free Bird are guitar driven and the most hard hitting (rock wise,) while Drops in the Rain and Again are more mellow paced and indie pop, kind of like The Velvet Underground and Nico if I had to make a comparison. All in all, this is a powerful little EP that punches well above its weight musically. I don’t even have any criticisms or nitpicks of it, but I will say that I’m jealous when I watch the video and see the room full of amazing vintage musical gear these guys have at their disposal.

For more info:

Website: https://kerenbotaro.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KerenBotaro/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kerenbotaro/