music

Spotlight!: r e l

/ James Fenney

r e l

This budding young alternative pop singer/songwriter is already making waves in her native Los Angeles. Her heartfelt and edgy “evoca-pop” carries a deeper message and a greater diversity which by all counts sounds like the future of what pop music should sound like. Tracks like the haphazard ‘Factory’ which deals with conformity in modern society and ‘Growing Pains’ which talks about facing change and overcoming insecurity carry exactly the kind of message that the world needs right now. With her narratives draped over a backdrop of electronica and subtle R&B, r e l has a wisdom and self assuredness of someone far older and more experienced. She may have a long way still to go but the future is bright for this rising star and if she keeps things up for her upcoming debut album then it’s surely only a matter of time before she’s topping the charts.

Fans of Lorde, Halsey, Grimes and Rationale should check her out on SoundCloud

Copyright Chaos

/ James Fenney

copyright

There is a new blight on the music industry that is working to besmirch the name of hardworking artists. There is a growing number of groundless copyright cases in recent years that have done their best to steal millions based off of simple musical coincidences. Cases have been raised against the likes of Sam Smith, Led Zeppelin and Ed Sheeran of so called copyright infringement based on very little evidence. There have been songs all throughout history that have had similarities, coincidence or otherwise: ZZ Top’s ‘La Grange’ riff is just a sped up ‘Spirit in the Sky’, Vanilla Ice stole the bass line for ‘Ice Ice Baby’ from Queen’s ‘Under Pressure’, The Phantom of the Opera theme was stolen from an excerpt of Pink Floyd’s ‘Echoes’ and almost all blues songs can trace their origins to Robert Johnson. Usually such similarities went unnoticed, but these days people are eager to exploit the slightest few notes in common. It’s a trend that needs to die out sooner rather than later, and to do so all you have to do is follow these three steps: Continue reading →

The Voice star killed at Florida concert

/ James Fenney

christina grimmie

YouTube star and former finalist on the US version of The Voice Christina Grimmie was killed following a performance in Orlando, Florida. Grimmie was shot by a gunman whilst she was signing autographs and later died of her wounds in hospital. The armed attacker apparently travelled to Orlando solely to commit the crime and died from a self inflicted gunshot wound after being heroically tackled by the singer’s brother. The ordeal has come as a horrible shock to the many fans of the talented young singer and our thoughts are with her friends and family at this terrible time.

Must Own Albums: Weird and Wonderful part 2

/ James Fenney

kate bushKate Bush – The Kick Inside

Long before all the rest Kate Bush was the queen of crazy. Her ambitious music, incredible high notes and her wild live performances have made her one of the best selling artists in history. She started her career with a bang with her debut single and biggest hit ‘Wuthering Heights’ earning her the title of the first female artist to reach the UK number 1 with a self-written song.

prince-purple-rainPrince – Purple Rain

Plenty has been said about Prince just lately since his tragic death. He was an inspirational musical pioneer and innovator. Purple Rain, the soundtrack to his film debut and widely considered his best work, sums up his eclectic style, incredible vocal range and instrumental prowess. From the hard rock of ‘Lets Go Crazy’, the funky ‘I Would Die 4 U’, the hypnotic synthpop of ‘When Doves Cry’ and of course the guitar masterclass on the title track.

bjork-postBjork – Post

This Icelandic art-pop icon is the unquestionably the definition of weird. Whilst not to everyone’s taste there’s no denying her talent and influence. Post followed the trend set by her debut of introducing electronica and club music into mainstream pop. Never one to do the expected it also contains a cover of jazz classic ‘It’s Oh So Quiet’ which went on to become the definitive version as well as her biggest hit.

Electric-Light-OrchestraELO – The Electric Light Orchestra

Out of the ashes of The Move grew what would become one of Britain’s best loved bands. Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne were the creative force behind the band and aimed to combine mainstream pop with classical music. Their debut spawned their first hit in ‘10538 Overture’ but sadly it would turn out to be the only album to contain founding member Roy Wood as he later went on to form Wizzard.

ABBA reunite for first performance in 30 years

/ James Fenney

abba reunion

The four members of ABBA, Agnetha Falkstog, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstadon, performed live together for the first time in over 30 years. The impromptu rendition of their 1980 hit ‘Me and I’ took place at a private gala celebrating the group’s 50th anniversary. Following their refusal to perform together for their 2010 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame many fans believed that the four of them would never perform together again. Footage of the performance hasn’t yet surfaced.

 

Top Tracks: Nicky Davey – Oxygen

/ James Fenney

Soulful duo Nick Green and Dave Rosser have certainly made a good first impression with the lead single from their upcoming debut album XXX. The slow and sensual R&B of ‘Oxygen’ has an irresistible appeal. The silky smooth soul and the layered electronics come together to create something both soothing and passionate. Depending on your mood it works perfectly as both ambient easy listening and for something a bit more hot-blooded and impassioned. These L.A. lads have a track that is immaculately produced and have emerged into the limelight with a hit in the making. If it’s single is anything to go by then this double act’s debut is definitely something to look forward to.