It’s a rather poignant and relevant topic in today’s world – the age of Instagram and image-led success – perhaps songs and art of this nature will help remind us all of the real value in life, and the qualities and beauties that we can indeed hold on to.
Music
Jason Bembry’s voice on this latest release melts the heart in an instant. You Should Have Known is a classically warm, organic ballad with a slightly jazz and soul infused aura. It’s a song that grows from mildly familiar to unexpectedly brilliant by the half way point, and things continue to embrace the listener right through to the end.
Both tracks are superbly performed, written with care, and produced to a quality that allows you to really turn up the speakers and let go of the world for a while.
As the first few moments of music start to pour through, it’s clear that this is a beautifully unique, creative, melodic and mighty piece of writing and performance – the sort that follows its own rules to great effect.
Norway’s SIENNÁ returns this year with a post-six-minute offering that is the ambient and conceptual What Matters. The song takes its time to work through the various ideas within – this appears as a necessary artistic process for the songwriter, rather than a simple attempt to gather an audience and entertain.
It’s an accessible concept, one that many listeners will be able to relate to, and the way the music has balanced a somewhat melancholy, heartbroken truth with an uplifting and energizing soundscape is beautifully addictive.
It hits hard, but it takes its time to do so. K-Son offers confidence and style, as well as superb musicality. A rare and impressive combination.
Emily Taylor Adams leads with heart-melting vocals on this beautifully vulnerable and loving new single Leave The Light On.
Stephen Dusenberry takes listeners through a multilayered, retro-funk arena of optimism on this release Fools Gold. The track offers the fullness of a live jazz and funk band, along with a notably electronic aura that fuses with that raw musicality in an energizing way.
Chicago-based artist and songwriter Daniel Cronson offers a smooth and soulful approach to music and performance in his own right, this latest release though sees him collaborate for what seems like a match made in heaven.
There’s been a notably squeaky clean finish to much of the mainstream world’s indie-rock offerings in recent years. The grit and uninhibited passion of times past seemed to be lost in the haze a little – enter the aptly named Hazy Days, with their raucous and unquestionably real rock sound; the sort that makes the classic and contemporary fans alike crave a live show from the moment those drums come crashing into the room.
FREEDOLO’s collaborative release Front is a track that fuses beautifully the acoustic soulfulness of a guitar riff with some quickly addictive RnB melodies and a stylish trap beat.