Category Archives: Music

Music defines my world.

The Thanksgiving Rock Block: The Midnight Youth, Golden State & The Ruse

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I am a sucker for rock n’ roll of all kinds…but one of my biggest weaknesses is Brit rock, or faux Brit rock, as some may call it.  I blame Lee Garrett, really, for introducing me to The Stereophonics a decade ago and making me fall in love… and ever since then, it’s just been an obsession.

I’ve been craving screaming guitar, thrumming bass and pounding drums like a pregnant woman wants pickles lately.  Luckily, I’ve got the cure.  Three cures, actually.  And not a one of ’em British.

To help rock you through your long Thanksgiving weekend, let me introduce you to:  The Midnight Youth, hailing from New Zealand; and two long-time go-tos for blistering rock, both out of California, The Golden State & The Ruse.

You’re welcome.  Happy Turkey Rock.

THE MIDNIGHT YOUTH | Web | Facebook | Twitter
Recently, a New Zealand band I follow on Twitter mentioned The Midnight Youth and how they were releasing a new album soon; said they couldn’t wait for it.  Can’t explain what it was about that tweet that made me click on the link, but I did.  And I tripped into the rock n’ roll wonderland of The Midnight Youth.  After watching their French Girl video, I knew I had to have more.  A week later, their World Comes Calling album was released, and it has literally been on repeat ever since.  I am hypnotized by lead singer Jeremy Redmore’s clean, soaring vocals that are reminiscent of the best 70s rock bands.  If that didn’t win me over, the incredible, beatastic smashing drums and cymbals of Aidan Bartlett would have. This is 2011’s answer to arena rock. The whole album is tremendous, but I am especially in love with “Listen” and the title track – nicely captured in the video below.  Seriously, you need to own this record, people. It is baffling to me that we are not promoting music like this in the U.S.

 

GOLDEN STATE | Web | Facebook | Twitter
Oh, Golden State.  A stumbled upon this brit-esque band a few years back when I was looking for a track to round out one of my mix CDs.  I’ve been following them ever since.  Lead singer James Grundler started in a band called Paloalto that broke up in 2004, and Golden State got together soon after.  They’ve released two full lengths, including their latest album Division, and a number of EPs (some that you can’t get any more), been featured music on “Deadliest Catch” in several seasons (particularly poignant was the use of their song “All Roads Lead Home” during the scenes during and following Captain Phil’s death).  Again, win me over with vocals, woo me with guitar shredding and heartpounding rhythms… These boys have it.  Today, they released their video for “World on Fire” and it just makes me love ’em more.  Graceful, beautiful rock n’ roll.

 

THE RUSE | Web | Facebook | Twitter

The Ruse's Rebellion dropped today...and it's fab!

Years ago, The Ruse came and played at The Evening Muse in Charlotte.  I was instantly sold on them; the influence from Brit and Euro bands like U2 is fairly obvious, but their writing was what won me over.  Absolutely gorgeous lyrics, and we all know I’m a lyrics girl.   Then came their 2008 release Midnight in the City, which made #1 on my Top Ten list… And, might I add, spawned an iTunes free single of the week with “Beautiful Is Gone.” Last year’s Love, Sex, Confusion just added to my minor obsession, especially after the creative video for “I Can’t Stop” came out. They’re simply one of the best unknown rock bands in the U.S.   So I was pretty excited to download their new EP, Rebellion, today… And I’m pleased as punch with it!  This little five song EP is scaled back a bit from their previous records…less “wall of sound,” quieter guitars, softer edges, lots of melodic “whoas” and “ohs”…but it really showcases the songwriting and the individual band members contributions to the music.  My favorite track right now is the hardest rocker on the album, “In Defense of the Rebellion” (quite appropriate given the political climate/Occupy movement going on right now), but I’m also quickly falling in love with “Ten Thousand Years.”  Epic love story, really, and I’m one of those sappy romantic types.  At under $5, you can definitely afford to drop $5 of your Black Friday spending money on this as a gift to yourself!

Hot Young Things: Air Dubai

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In last week’s Sunday Funday Playlist, I mentioned Air Dubai, a group of hot young things from Denver, Colorado who are turning my musical ears around with their fresh take on hip-hop.  Yes, I do listen to things other than singer-songwriters!

Mixing hip-hop with jazz, R&B, and their own funkadelic style, the seven-piece just released a devilish little new EP called Day Escape, just over a year after putting out their full-length album Wonder Age. Guess you can’t keep a band on the rise down!

And an escape is exactly what this new EP is.  The toe-tapping, head-bobbing, booty-shaking, trippy little six-song journey is the perfect cure for your daylight savings blahs.  It’s sonic overload in the best possible way.  Keyboards, trumpets, guitars, drums, claps, insanely ear-wormy rhymes and beats layered on top of gorgeous little melodies… And if the musicality doesn’t grab you, take a good listen to the lyrics: these kids are confident in who they are and the message they’re putting out there.  And they’re doing it well.  Live life to its fullest.  Love.  And have a damn good time doing it.

My favorite track is the young band on the road anthem, “Summer Solstice,” but I’m also deeply in love with the lyrics of “Magazines” (the line “If I return to you a broken thing, then lay me down, down…” just floors me) and the Kool and the Gang-esque 70s awesomeness of “Lights Down.”  And they prove their depth with songs like “Crashing Down,” a self-reflective ditty that contemplates the future of music and the staying power of a band.

Check out this video of the kids doing a little in-apartment performance of “Magazines” from the new EP.  Then go pick it up for $4.99 at iTunes or put money into the band’s pocket by buying it on their Bandcamp page.

More Air Dubai:  Facebook | Twitter

The Sunday Funday Playlist – October 30, 2011

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Oh, my.  I missed a week last week…Was recovering from my whirlwind 3-city Alpha Rev – Carbon Leaf tour, and just was too pooped to write.  I’m still a little tuckered out, so I’ll get right to this week’s playlist…

1.  Simple Grace – The Ruse

My favorite little L.A. rockers, The Ruse, churned out a gorgeous little acoustic-y number two weeks ago and it’s been my numero uno play since.  Love it.  The boys show their musical versatility with this change up from their usual guitar-heavy rock n’ roll.  It also reveals they’ve got a romantic side.

2.  The Wrong and the Right Now – Colourslide

One of my favorite North Carolina (by way of Florida) bands is Colourslide.  Last week, the fellas re-released their album Everybody’s Right About Everybody Else with two new bonus tracks…and this is one of them.  It captures the classic Colourslide sound in a gorgeous way.

3.  Soul & Body – Air Dubai

Colorado has so much great music brewing right now that it’s kind of ridiculous, but none more promising than Denver’s Air Dubai.  If you want a fresh, exciting new sound, you’ve got to check these kids out…It’s like they are channeling old school Jamiroquai meshed with jazz and modern day hip hop.  They released a new EP this week called Day Escape, and it is just that…a perfect little musical get away, filled with tales of being young, in love, and in a band.  My favorite track from the EP is actually “Summer Solstice,” but this is the only one available on SoundCloud.  Either way, it’s a little trip into the light fantastic…but check out the whole EP on their Bandcamp page.

4.  I Love Lamp – RdGldGrn

Gotta give my girl Allison at RadioPotato a shout out (and by extension, The Wounded Jukebox) for turning me onto this song.  What an addictive little track!  I have been dancing around my cube, car, living room, kitchen, and just about every place else for the past week to this song…Click on the lil’ arrow above to download this ditty for yourself.

5.  French Girl – Midnight Youth (click on image to watch video on Stuff.co.nz)

Hello, New Zealand. Another NZ band that I follow on Twitter, Mercury Crowe, tweeted about this band last week and I checked them out on a whim.  Apparently, Midnight Youth has been around for some time…my only question is, WHY THE HELL AM I JUST FINDING OUT ABOUT THEM?  Holy in love.  I apologize that you’re going to have to click to watch this video on another page, but it’s not embeddable anywhere. I watched this video and was an instant fan, and have been listening to their last album, The Brave Don’t Run, for the last week and anxiously waiting for tomorrow to download this song when it becomes available in the States.

The Sunday Funday Playlist – October 17, 2011

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A week of battling some icky sickness has left me with not a whole lot of motivation to write.  So I apologize for the brevity of this week’s list … do not take it as any commentary on the quality of the music. 🙂

1.  Heartbeat – The Fray

I’m a big fan of these guys; they might be big time rock stars, but that doesn’t stop me from loving their distinctive writing style and their pop sensibility.  Loving this, their new single that was released this week.

2. Atlantic City (Springsteen Cover) – Benjamin Francis Leftwich

I have fallen madly in love with this Brit songwriter’s soft, lilting trill … so when I saw he had a FREE covers EP up for download, I snatched it up.  And imagine my joy when I saw one of my favorite Springsteen songs there.  While BFL’s version retains the eerie sadness of Springsteen’s, his voice definitely makes the song something new.  Totally digging it.

3.  Black Sky (Alpha Rev cover) – Carbon Leaf
As if they know that I’m completely freaking out about my three-day mini tour this week, Alpha Rev and Carbon Leaf have been exchanging video covers of each others’ songs this week.  This one is pretty phenomenal and (see my post from earlier this week) is available for free download and benefits Texas Wildfire Relief.

4.  Human Nature (Michael Jackson cover) – Gareth Asher

Gareth came through town this week and seeing him perform always puts a smile on my face.  Gareth has such a love for life and a passion for his craft, and when you pair those two things with his incredible voice, there’s nothing better.  He covered this Michael Jackson classic on Thursday night, and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head.  This is a live version from his Eddie’s Attic show on his birthday.

5.  Little Black Dress – Honor By August
A lovely little pop-candy gem from my favorite DC boys.  Pick up the studio version for free over at Noisetrade right now.  Until it’s available on SoundCloud, here’s the video from the first time they played the song live at Iota … proud to say I was there for the debut!

Carbon Leaf Strikes Back for Texas

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What do you get when two of your top 10 favorite bands go on tour and start a YouTube video battle covering each other’s songs? Well, besides a happy Krissie, you get a challenge to help a much needed cause.

After Alpha Rev covered Carbon Leaf’s “Let Your Troubles Roll By,” Carbon Leaf decided to strike back and post a video of them covering Alpha Rev’s “Black Sky.” (video below)

If you’ve been living in the dark, Texas had a severe drought this summer and the excessively dry conditions sparked raging wildfires around the state.  Alpha Rev lent their song “Black Sky” to a couple of causes promoting wildfire relief funds.

And here’s where Carbon Leaf ups the cool factor: They are giving away their cover of the song for free and encouraging fans to make donations to one of two Texas wildfire relief funds if they download the song.

That’s seriously amazing.  So I downloaded the song and donated $5 to the Texas Wildfire Relief Fund (you can also give to Pass the Hat for Texas) I don’t live in Texas.  But, some of my best friends and best bands do and I love the city of Austin like it’s my home.  Not only that, but if North Carolina were to go up in flames, I’d like to think that others around the country would support the firefighters here as they battled to save land, people and property. I challenge all of my friends, fellow music junkies, Carbon Leaf or Alpha Rev fans to make a donation to one of these causes.  A) Because its the right thing to do and B) Because these artists are insanely cool for using their time and talents to bring attention to the cause.

Then go support these incredible artists on tour.