Top quality production here from Aiym Almas, an alternative pop artist from Kazakhstan. A good way to describe her sound is that it has elements of pop but without any of the cheapness or characteristiz sleazy vibe. Aiym has an incredible voice, which carries the songs in such a way that one would listen to them even if there were no other instruments. Her third single, “You Must Be True” has kind of a mysterious quality to it as it slowly builds to the main message. My favorite of her songs is “The Other Side,” which is like a blast of energy when the song kicks into high gear/dance party mode with the payoff.
Blue Moon Harem(a band featuring members of a popular 90’s band from Boston called ‘Requiem’) has just finished their third studio album. It’s titled “Deep Into Blue.” It is extremely well put together and has kind of an alternative pop feel to it. Listening to these tracks made me nostalgic for times when good music was still played on the radio. The arrangements and production quality are top notch, but not in the overproduced, overprocessed, effects ridden way most music is today. This comes across as a very professional album, made by people who take their craft seriously and have spent decades working on it.
The vocals by Jonathan Bix particularly stand out as terrific. He has an excellent range and wisely doesn’t drown out the sound with a lot of unnecessary effects and filters. A good example of this is on the track “Lucky,” which was my personal favorite.
I recommend checking out their website and social media sites for updates on their new album.
Lizzy Small, a young up and coming pop star that you may recognize from her supporting role in the recent film “Spare Parts,” had a popular song out called “Gravity.” The first thing I noticed about it is that Elizabeth really does have a great voice. Lots of times these pop jams are comically overloaded with auto tune and pitch correction, but in Lizzy’s case the producer wisely left her voice (mostly) alone other than a few subtle effects here and there, and one can tell she’s a good natural singer. “Gravity” is a catchy song, and the part when the chorus kicks in you can visualize it being a club hit.
As a pop song, Gravity manages to achieve its appeal while taking the high road. The highly professional and well edited video comes across as a refreshingly innocent romance tale. It doesn’t utilize anything sleazy or cheap to get a reaction. It doesn’t rely on any of the shock value or preachiness we’ve come to expect in this genre of music. In fact, there is nothing cheap or shoddy about this production.
The same goes for her recently released track, “Always Be There,” which has a slightly more hypnotic feel to it as opposed to a club track. It reminds me of the sort of song a girl would listen to on a late night long drive home or afternoon road trip out of the city. It’s fitting that a captivatingly romantic song like this was released for Valentine’s Day. The echoey chorus can get stuck in your head pretty quickly after a couple of listens, and it’s no surprise the song currently has nearly 3 million plays on Soundcloud already.
Lizzy manages to achieve a respectable sound without appearing as though she’s “trying too hard.” From watching her videos and interviews, I get the impression that if anything, she is a tireless worker who takes care to consider every detail and genuinely takes her craft seriously. Either that or she just surrounds herself with good people and has terrific innate marketing skills.
Be on the lookout for more exciting stuff from Lizzy. I have a feeling these tracks will be just the beginning. Don’t be surprised if she makes it to the next level, and she does…remember you heard it here first.
Was floored by this incredible song from Dan Mclean Jr. If this track is any indication of the level of quality for his upcoming album, then I predict it will be extremely well received. He’s an incredibly gifted singer, a real pro. Also, unlike many other performers in this genre, Mclean has a great sense of aesthetic and an avant garde style, as is evident by watching the video for “I’ve Seen Love,” which features an assortment of classic tv clips, put together in an artistic fashion.
Rich Newly is a rapper from Fontana, CA. His songs have kind of a mellow classic 90’s California style. The beats and samples bring to minds old school analog stuff like Tribe Called Quest. Rich’s song with the best aesthetic in my opinion is probably “Run It.” It’s catchy. The flow is smooth, and the jam has a killer intro.
Indie singer, songwriter “STV” has another new album out called SOS on Hembot Records. It’s every bit as good as the last one which I reviewed sometime ago. STV describes himself as a multi-instrumentalist, and that’s definitely evident here. SOS features arange of different synth and guitar sounds throughout the 9 tracks. STV’s music seems to skillfully combine elements of chillwave with a sort of dark, brooding indie alternative style. The impressive vocals and complex lyrics both help to illustrate STV’s storytelling ability.
Based in western Connecticut, Catalina Shortwave spends a lot of time in the New England woods, and it shows in their music’s refreshingly organic tone. With their new album “Radio Voodoo – Songs From the Dark End of the Soul,” you get the idea right away with the opening jam, “Your Old Letters.” This is just good old fashioned, homegrown rock n’ roll.
The best way to describe their sound is that it would not seem out of place on the soundtrack to any mid to late 80s horror movie(think “The Wraith” with Charlie Sheen.) That is of course, a good thing. Connecticut and New England bands tend to trend toward indie or hipster aesthetic. Catalina Shortwave give off more of a veteran, musician vibe. The vocals stand out in particular. The singer, David Rizzo, can really sing. I’m talking Iron Maiden quality here singing here. You won’t find a bunch of autotune or pitch correction on these recordings. The guitars have the perfect amount of distortion and have achieved that tube-warmth tone every audiophile is on a quixotic quest for.
My favorite track on the album is Darkstar, an action packed track which perfectly encapsulates this style of music.
David Serero has performed in concerts all over the world, as well as appeared in over 100 films, film tv shows and film shorts. He is known for being the youngest French opera singer to debut in the U.S. when he was 26. A French actor and musician with impressive musical and theater resume, he recently released a new album in December titled, “All My Love is For You.”
His background in musical theater and shows is evident in his songs, which are an eclectic mix of Broadway, World Music, Jazz, and Adult Contemporary pop. You can almost feel the stage presence through the music, with Serero’s larger than life vocals at the helm. It all has kind of Tom Jones quality to it. Even reminiscent of big band styled Sinatra(with a slight French accent.) In fact, I could easily picture Serero being a resident performer and one of the popular hotel casinos in Vegas. Considering he has already performed in more than 800 concerts and venues around the world, it may have already happened.
The songs are romantic and all about love, but even the “unrequited” ones don’t come across as overly melancholy or depressing. My favorite track on the album is the title track, “All My Love is For You,” as it’s a little more epic and up tempo than some of the slower, more brooding songs.
Serero draws from a wealth of experience and manages to create an adult contemporary, pop rock album that shines. A dedicated performer, I have no doubt that his career will continue to grow.
What if you took 90’s style pop punk vocals and attitude and combined them with modern EDM grooves? That’s kind of the vibe I get when listening to Belle Vex’s latest album, “15 Minutes of Fame.” His singing takes on a rebellious tone and the cadence is reminiscent of punk genres. That’s somewhat unique for EDM, which is more known for abstract, and vague “niceness.” Despite the attitude the pace of the music is energetic and upbeat.
The production quality on Vex’s songs is as good or better than anything on the radio. This makes sense given that several of his tracks have charted nationally. Especially refreshing is what a great singer Vex is. Most modern song vocals are heavily processed and autotuned to the point of drowning out anything organic from the sound. Belle’s voice on these recordings has only subtle and minimal effects.
Belle was born in New Bedford, MA and learned to play the cello as a child. His musical talent is evident in his music as an adult. Give him a listen for yourself.
