If you’re able to get past the jarring cosmetics of the new music video for Staunch Moderates’ “Bill Maher,” the inventiveness of the entire concept becomes really too rich with detail to dismiss as amateurish. Indeed, the strangeness of the monster, DJ, and underlying political commentary in “Bill Maher” is …
Read More »Single Review: “Keys to ya Heart” Denzell Terrell
It isn’t often that the instrumental faceting in an R&B attracts as much focus as the lead singer does on their own, but then again, it isn’t very often that a track like “Keys to ya Heart” by Denzell Terrell hits record store shelves. With ebullience in his vocal and …
Read More »Single Review: Sin For Saints “Death Eater”
Blood, guts, and ominous danger interwoven with sexual manipulation fill our screen in the music video for Sin for Saints’ “Death Eater,” and if you’re listening to the lyrics and correlating their moodiness with the symbolism of the visuals in this video, you’re bound to appreciate the poetic depth of …
Read More »Single Review: Beeware “It Is”
Casually strolling out of the darkness with a confident groove that only gets more seductive as we listen on, Beeware’s “It Is” doesn’t give us the opportunity to reject its advances – it comes in for the kill right off the bat. There’s a faint trip-hop component to the intro …
Read More »Single Review: Harper Starling “Cannot Tell A Lie”
Harper Starling can’t sleep another moment in “Cannot Tell a Lie;” her mind is a circus of thought, the pacing of the beat behind her is absolutely nauseating, and the harmony of the instruments is rather anxiety-fueled. There’s just no peace to behold in “Cannot Tell a Lie,” but rather …
Read More »Single Review: Cat Ridgeway “Sweet Like Candy”
Cat Ridgeway’s “Sweet Like Candy” starts off with a lazy little sway that deceptively sends the audience into a false sense of security before ripping the carpet out from under our feet and inspiring anyone with rhythm to start dancing. Though her voice is reason enough to give any of …
Read More »Single Review: Uncommon Nasa “Brooklyn Soup”
Slowly unfolding from the silence like a clandestine threat we don’t acknowledge until it’s too late to do anything about it, “Brooklyn Soup” has a stealthy ominousness to its intro that is unmistakable and instantly likable. Even before Uncommon Nasa starts to rap, it’s clear that we’re listening to something …
Read More »Single Review: “Sick As Our Secrets” Makes My Blood Dance
Anybody can throw together some distorted riffs and larger-than-life drums and call it a modern metal track, but to embody the soul of heavy music, you’ve got to start with the drums and end with the lead vocal in terms of detailed execution. Makes My Blood Dance is a band …
Read More »Single Review: The Tono Jones Revelry “The Little Drummer Boy”
Rhythm is absolutely everything in the new single “The Little Drummer Boy” from The Tono Jones Revelry, and as much as the notion of such a classic Christmas song being driven by grooves rather than a harmony bothered me to begin with, listening to this track has made me reconsider …
Read More »Single Review: Ingrid Michaelson & Zooey Deschanel “Merry Christmas, Happy New Year”
There’s really nothing quite like a good Christmas tune to get the holiday season started right, and in their new duet “Merry Christmas, Happy New Year,” Ingrid Michaelson and Zooey Deschanel kindle the yuletide spirit with a panache you don’t find often enough in pop music anymore. Rather than approaching …
Read More »Single Review: Laura Davies “Do You Feel?”
The synth screams ever so subtly in Laura Davies’ enrapturing “Do You Feel?,” but next to the slinking bassline and percussive thrust in the background, I don’t think it has a chance of owning our focus in this track or its companion video. Davies’ voice is a striking addition to …
Read More »Single Review: Harper Starling “Snow Cone Christmas”
Harper Starling isn’t giving us the same old same old in her new single “Snow Cone Christmas;” if you’re coming into this Christmas song expecting to hear recycled harmonies and a hook that’s made the rounds from one holiday season to the next, you’re going to be roundly disappointed by …
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