CD Review: Brother Spellbinder “We Were Children Yesterday”

Some people say that music runs in the family. Since five of five members of my family have or had some sort of connection to music in some way, I can attest to that. And the same can be said for Alzara Getz, the woman behind the San Francisco-based Chamber Pop band known as Brother Spellbinder. Alzara’s music connection came by way of her father, Dave Getz, a drummer who played in the band Big Brother & The Holding Company, the same band that would back Janis Joplin up back when she was still alive. And while Dave Getz has been a drummer, his daughter Alzara Getz is the bandleader of the San Francisco ensemble known as Brother Spellbinder.

Brother Spellbinder is a musical collective made up of Alzara Getz on Uke, vocals, harmonica; Jamie Wilson on guitar, vocals; Steve La Porta on drums, percussion; Sean Griffin on Electric Guitar; Helena Tietze on Cello & Vocals; Steve Bollhoefer on violin, mandolin, vocals, tap dancing; Gabriel Beistline on Cello; and Dale Carlson on saxophone, flute, harmonica, pennywhistle. This band blends together so many different genres and musical influences that it’s slightly difficult to narrow down the band’s sound. However, you can find sounds such as Americana, Classical, Swing and some Eastern European influences. It is this musical blend that can be found on the band’s new seven-song EP can We Were Children Yesterday.  

We Were Children Yesterday from Brother Spellbinder begins with the track “Birds of a Feather”. The track begins with the sound of handclaps as they set up a beat for the track. It is the sound of Alzara Getz on Ukulele that begins the music. Soon, the song “Birds of a Feather” begins as it contains a slow, easy feel to the music with Folk influences, Rock influences and some Classical influences. The result is a track that mainly feels like a Folk-Rock track but with a dated feel to the music, taking it back in time to another time. The Classical feel from the strings truly brings out that Other-timely feel to the music. With the unique quality in the vocals from Getz, that Other-timely feel is even further reinforced.

As the next track of “Mandalay” begins, there is the sound of the mandolin and the aforementioned strings. With those instruments, the song feels very much orchestrated. The track is arranged in such a way to provoke a vision of a scene in a Hollywood movie. The vocals from Alzara Getz adds to that vision. The rather short track that lasts for less than two minutes could easily have found its way into a movie in the late forties/early fifties.

The first few moments of the track “Aching Eyes” once again provoke the vision of a movie soundtrack as the harmonica and acoustic guitar play out a tune very reminiscent of scores from Ennio Morricone of Spaghetti Western music fame. Soon, that music changes directions and what it is replaced with is a musical blend that features a strong Folk feel to the music with a light beat to it. The track features the violin from Steve Bollhoefer. That violin and Folk music mix creates a track with a strong Gypsy feel to the track. The track is also rather reminiscent of the Lounge music revival that took place back in the nineties where bands like Novelle Vague and Combustible Edison were creating music outside of the normal spectrum of Pop music at that time. “Aching Eyes” from Brother Spellbinder is a track that would have fit right in with music at that time.

With the next track, Brother Spellbinder creates a track that takes some of the flavor from “Aching Eyes” and mixes it with some influences from a band such as the Squirrel Nut Zippers. It is on the track called “Woman” that the music consists of a blend of Jazz, Folk and some Rock and Roll influence in the form of the electric guitar courtesy of Sean Griffin. The track features a strong Jazz backbone but also has a strong Rock and Roll feel to it at the same time. There even seems to be a slight hint of “Hell” from the Squirrel Nut Zippers in the track. The strong male and female vocals on the track add even more flavor to the track. “Woman” has perhaps the most unique feel to its music of any track on the We Were Children Yesterday release. The track changes directions many times during its playtime of less than three minutes.

While most of the We Were Children Yesterday release from Brother Spellbinder consists of original tunes, the band changes directions for one song. Brother Spellbinder slows thing down on the track “Red River Valley”. For those familiar with that title, this is the same song made popular by many different artists such as The Mills Brothers, Woody Guthrie, and many others. Brother Spellbinder takes their turn at the song. With the Old Timey feel that exists within the music of the band, “Red River Valley” seems ready-made for Brother Spellbinder. The band takes some Old-time Blues influence, adds some Swing influence and some Folk influence to create their version. The band’s version feels both dated and fresh at the same time. This version of the well-known song fits well with those versions that have already come before.

Brother Spellbinder brings their new EP of We Were Children Yesterday to a close with the track “20 Years Ago – The Full Version”. With this track, the band strips things down to just a simple guitar and Alzara Getz’s vocals. This creates a very personal moment on the EP as the listener gets rather up close because of the simplicity of the track. And while there is only the guitar and vocals on the track, the song does is far from dull. While Getz sings the verses of the track, the band joins in as they add just their vocals to the track. The addition of the band’s vocals adds depth to a track that would otherwise be rather sparse in nature. The easy feel and uncomplicated approach to the music makes “20 Years Ago – The Full Version” the perfect track to bring the album to a close.

As you make your way through the We Were Children Yesterday EP from Brother Spellbinder, you encounter many different musical approaches within the EP’s seven tracks. Some of the tracks have Folky approaches, some have stronger Rock-flavored approaches, and some are simply different. This is the type of release that is nice to find from time-to-time as it feels different from anything else out there. We Were Children Yesterday EP from Brother Spellbinder is strong from the very first song and needs to be heard straight through.   

For more information, check out Brother Spellbinder’s PR firm, Whiplash/ Whizkid Management by clicking on the logo.

To hear some of We Were Children Yesterday EP from Brother Spellbinder, check out the band’s current single of “Birds of a Feather“.

To check out the entire album, click on the link below.

CD Review: Hometown Marie “Wild Side”

The very definition of the musical genre called Americana is: “a genre of American music having roots in early folk and country music”. But every so often, someone from outside of America comes along who adds their flavor to the music. That outside influence from the likes of someone like New Zealander Keith Urban helps to keep the music fresh as that artist helps to push the boundaries of the music. You can now add yet another outsider influence to the Americana music genre as the band Hometown Marie is currently ripping up the Country charts over in their country of Sweden.

Sweden’s Hometown Marie takes the Americana genre and makes it their own. In fact, if you were not aware of just where the band comes from, you would swear they were just your average American Country band. The Swedish band consists of: Oskar Östman, Singer, songwriter, guitarist; Gabriel Carlsson, Bass, vocals; Simon Peterson, Drummer; and Accel  Ramberg, Lead guitarist. Together, the quartet has released one four-song EP in 2016 entitled Wild Side and two new singles that were added to the band’s musical output in 2018. 

Hometown Marie’s Wild Side EP begins with the track “Like We Used To”. Right from the very beginning, the track screams Top 40 Country radio as the track features a strong current Country music feeling. In fact, the song feels as if it was recorded down in Nashville with some of the best professionals in that town. “Like We Used To” features strong mandolin playing and plenty of Country twang. The mid-tempo pace of the track gives it an easy feeling as the song plays out. That tempo works well for the song as the lyrics describe a couple in the middle of a dance that takes them back in time to when they met each other. Being the first track off of the Wild Side EP, “Like We Used To” lets the listener know that the band is serious about creating music in the Country vein. 

The band picks things up a bit with the track “Yours Tonight”. With“Yours Tonight,” the band ventures into a sound where the band combines elements of Folk music with Country. The result is a slightly lighter feel to the music. But that lighter feel comes with a quicker tempo to the music and a slightly heavier groove than what was present on “Like We Used To”. The inclusion of the mandolin at the very beginning of the track helps to set the song in motion. It is that mandolin that truly brings the Folk influence in the song to the forefront. The quicker pace and stronger groove to the song creates a moment on the EP that would fit right in with anything on today’s Country music radio formats.

Just as fast as Hometown Marie changed the pace of the music with a faster tempo on “Yours Tonight,” the band tones things down again on the next track of“Run to You”. The tempo for that song is much slower but the track also comes with a very steady, yet strong beat provided by drummer Simon Peterson. The slow pace and steady beat of the song carry the track throughout its four-minute playtime with no changing of the pace or delivery of that beat. Along with the slow, steady beat from Simon Peterson that is present on the track,the rest of Hometown Marie adds to the track with instrumental deliveries that are rather sparse in nature. The limited amount of playing from the band members on the song help to create a track that rather simple in nature yet somehow also seems full-bodied at the same time.

The Wild Side EP from Hometown Marie comes to an end with the album’s title track. “Wild Side” is easily the hardest rockin’ track of the four songs that make up the 2016 release. The harder guitars and stronger beat on the track blend together to create a track that is perfect for fans of today’s Country music. And the mention of a “Hollywood Smile”in the lyrics adds even more of an “American” feel to the music, which just helps to put the band further into the Americana music genre. For those fans of today’s Country music, “Wild Side” is one track that will fill your need for Contemporary Country music.

While the four tracks that make up the Wild Side EP from Hometown Marie are solid, there is more to the band than just that EP. The band has just recently added two more tracks to their musical library. Those new tracks are “Stay The Night” and “Take Me Back”.

Right from the beginning of the track, “Stay the Night” from Hometown Marie hits the listener with a sound that places the Rock and Roll influence of the band atop the band’s Country influence. While both genres are solidly present in the song, the track contains more of a Rock and Roll influence than Country twang. The track also seems to also contain other influences to the music as well. For instance, the entire track is rather reminiscent of a song from the Scottish rock band Big Country from 1988 called “King of Emotion”. Whether there is a connection between that song and Hometown Marie remains to be seen. However, the resulting track by Hometown Marie would have fit on American radio airwaves back in the eighties just as easily as it would on today’s radio.

The second track that the band just recently released is called “Take Me Back”. The introduction to the track finds the band slowly leading into the track as the track builds. As the song builds, what is revealed is a song that contains a strong influence from eighties-era Rock and Roll with just a little Country twang. The lyrical content about a man asking for forgiveness has a universal appeal to it and the musical approach of the track combine to create a track that fans of Rock and Roll of the eighties and fans of today’s Country music will both enjoy.

Swedish band Hometown Marie may not have an album of music available, but the Wild Side EP and the band’s two newest singles of “Take Me Back” and “Stay the Night” provide the listener with six tracks of strong music with plenty of crossover appeal for those who enjoy Rock and Roll from the eighties and/or fans of Country music. Whichever side of the aisle you find yourself on, Hometown Marie creates music that appeals to a lot of people. 

To hear the music of Hometown Marie, check out the music video to the band’s newest single, “Stay the Night“.

You can find Hometown Marie and their music over on the band’s Spotify account.

  

CD Review: Matt Kjeldsen “Last Days”

Austin-based singer-songwriter Matt Kjeldsen spent the year 2015 releasing two albums of original music. Released together at the same time, the albums Consequence and Renaissance plus Clouds and Cages contained a total of twenty-two tracks. But in reality, those twenty-two tracks were just a small sample of the songs that Kjeldsen had written at that time.

The reason why twenty-two songs is only a small amount for Kjeldsen is because he makes his living as a composer who works on supplying instrumental music for music libraries where those songs can and may well eventually be used for something or other. The resulting concept ended up being numerous song ideas that eventually lead him to create full-blown songs. And many of those ideas ended up being extended into songs that became the two albums entitled Consequence and Renaissance plus Clouds and Cages.

Now, three years later, Matt Kjeldsen returns with another release. This time, the singer-songwriter has produced a five-song EP called Last Days.

Matt Kjeldsen’s Last Days EP begins with the track called “Closer to Texas”. To start his new release off, Kjeldsen creates a track with a definite Americana feel to it. While the track features a strong Folk feel to the music in the form of a guitar and mandolin, there is also a Country background to the music if the form of the addition of the banjo that gives the track a feel that falls somewhere between the two styles. Because of the dual feel, “Closer to Texas” would fall firmly into the Americana genre. To go along with the feel of the music, the lyrical content finds Kjeldsen singing about finding his way back to the woman he once fell in love with.

With the song “I Should Know Me Better than That by Now,” Matt Kjeldsen creates a track that falls into the Folk-Rock category. The first thing the listener will notice is the lighter feel of the music. The more laidback feel to the music results in a track that feels as if it would have felt right at home back in the seventies. The acoustic guitar drives the feel of the music which contains a similarly easy feel that the previous track had. The difference between the two songs is that “I Should Know Me Better than That by Now” would have fit right in the middle of an MOR (Middle of the Road) radio format back in the seventies. While the track does have a laidback approach, the song feels as if it would have easily been a successful track at the time.

Last Days from Matt Kjeldsen continues with the title track of the EP. With this track, Kjeldsen creates another laidback tune with a Folk flavor to it. The title track of “Last Days” brings back some of the Americana feel that came from “Closer to Texas” as there is more to the feel of the music than just Folk influence. While the majority of the music falls into Folk, the addition of strings also gives the song a bit of Classical music influence. While the previous two tracks contain the aforementioned laidback feeling, the addition of the strings makes “Last Days” the most laidback of the tracks thus far. The track comes complete with a storytelling feel to the lyrics as Kjeldsen tells of a civilization that fell apart because of bad choices. It’s actually hard not to see some parallels between that time in history and what is currently going on. That may very well be what Kjeldsen is trying to get across with this track.

The first three tracks on Matt Kjeldsen’s newest release contain a certain amount of feeling that connects the tracks together in a similar fashion. But with the fourth song on the EP called “What Once Was,” Kjeldsen changes things up. Gone is the Folk feeling. What replaces it in this track is a much stronger Rock and Roll approach. And in particular, the feel of the music and the delivery of the lyrics on the track bring to mind the music of Tom Petty. As opposed to some tracks from Petty, the track of “What Once Was” has a very current feel to it, as if Petty himself would have recorded it not that long ago.

The latest EP from Matt Kjeldsen called Last Days comes to a close with the track “Ghosts and Shadows”. With this final track, Kjeldsen creates the strongest, hardest-rocking track of the five songs that appear on the EP. Gone away is the feeling of Folk…anything. Instead, what Kjeldsen creates is a Rock and Roll track that contains a strong, driving feel to the music. The track contains a feeling that feels like a combination of late sixties Psychedelic Rock and Rock and Roll from the late eighties. The track also contains lyrics that seem to suggest a time not unlike the days of Halloween. The track’s lyrical content also suggests something of a darker nature, like a haunting or something like that. With that combination, “Ghosts and Shadows” stands out as perhaps the most unusual of the five tracks that make up the Last Days release.

While only five songs long, Last Days from Matt Kjeldsen seems to present two different sides to the singer-songwriter. The first three tracks show off the more Folky side of his personality while the final two tracks help to bring out his more rocking’ side. That division creates an EP with a split feeling in its music. That isn’t a bad thing, however. It just means that there different influences that feed Kjeldsen’s writing. As it is, the five-song EP is a good place to start if you are unfamiliar with the music from Matt Kjeldsen.

For more on Matt Kjeldsen and his music, check out his website called Matt’s Music Box.

For a taste of Kjeldsen’s music, check out the title track off of the Last Days release. 

To hear the Last Days EP, click on the album cover below:

Single Review: Scott Smith “I Will Love You/Spinning Around”

The Bay Area is where singer/songwriter Scott Smith creates his music. Smith’s music consists of many different elements of found in different genres of music. Smith takes Country, Blues and other genres and blends them together to form his version of Americana. With this style of music, Smith has already released one album entitled Sum of Life. That album was released back in 2016. Now, Smith returns with a two-song single to follow that release. The new music from Scott Smith consists of the tracks “I Will Love You” followed by the track “Spinning Around”. Scott Smith’s song of “I Will Love You” begins the two-song release. With this song, Smith blends together some Folk and a touch of Rock and Roll to create the song. The mostly Folk-flavored song contains a driving feel to the pace of the music that is courtesy of the banjo that helps to shape the Folk part of the track. And it is the Folk flavor of the music that stands the most when listening to the song. There is also a strong beat that accompanies the banjo on the track. That beat gives the song more of a Rock and Roll feel than Bluegrass feel. The combination of the different genres of music on the song once again re-enforces the reason as to why the music of Scott Smith would it is that his music falls into the Americana genre.  Sometimes when a single is released with two tracks, it is rather easy to tell which of the two songs the single is and which of the tracks was chosen to back the single up. This is clearly the case with the new single from Scott Smith. Between the two songs of “I Will Love You” and “Spinning Around,” it is sadly obvious as to which is which as “Spinning Around” fails to live up to the magic contained within “I Will Love You”. Going from one track to the next, is seems as if the lyrics for the track of “Spinning Around” were written with less effort on Smith’s part. The magic fades from one track to the next. That being said, while the lyrical content on the track is not as strong as on “I Will Love You,” “Spinning Around” does contain a stronger musical approach as Smith focuses on more Rock and Roll flavor and less Folk influence on the track. The “I Will Love You”/“Spinning Around” single from the Bay Area’s Scott Smith finds the singer-songwriter continuing to make use of many different musical elements to form his songs. And while the two tracks may not be as collectively strong as Smith’s Sum of Life release, the track of “I Will Love You”  is a song that finds the writer continuing to create music with an overall appealing feel to it.

To check out the music of Scott Smith, click HERE for the track of “I Will Love You”. 

For more information, check out Scott Smith’s PR firm of Whiplash PR & Management by clicking on the logo for the company. 

 

 

CD Review: Randy Steele “Moccasin Bender”

Randy Steele has spent time as part of the band Slim Pickens Bluegrass. But after a few years in that musical ensemble, he went out on his own while taking the style of music that the group had been known for with him. Now as a solo artist, Steele has begun making a name for himself taking that style of music and making it fit his own personality. That resulted in the 2017 album entitled Songs from the Suck, a title that had to do with the location where Steele was from, Suck Creek, Tennessee.

Having released one solo album and finding a fanbase that was positively receptive to his music, Randy Steele returns with a new EP of music. This release is entitled Moccasin Bender.  And just like his previous album, the title of this new collection of music comes with a reference to the area where Steele comes from. Moccasin Bend is both an archaeological site and national park located in Tennessee.

With a lot of Bluegrass/Country music being influenced by real life, it comes as no surprise that Randy Steele would create a song that came straight out of his life. The EP lead-off song “Mabbitt Springs” deals with Steele being thankful that his son beat cancer. For this track and its upbeat message, Steele creates a musical background that contains a completely full sound consisting of banjo, slide guitar, fiddle and drums. That full sound leads off the EP which switches to a much simpler feel on the very next track.

Moccasin Bender continues with the track “Adam and Rose”. The simple musical accompaniment of just the banjo creates a relatively simple Bluegrass track. Like the previous song, “Adam and Rose“ finds Randy Steele creating a track with a real-life feel to the lyrics of the song. “Adam and Rose” features lyrics about two young adults making their way in the world and coming upon life’s everyday difficulties. The music’s slow pace seems to be a perfect fit as the music acts like the perfect bed for the lyrics that spell out the story.

The new six-song EP from Randy Steele continues with the track “Big Talkin’ Woman”. With this track, Steele creates one of the most commercial moments on his release. The track features a full-bodied feel to the music including a slide-guitar solo in the body of the track. While the song easily has a throwback feel to the music, that retro feel would have fit in well with songs in the seventies/eighties. “Big Talkin’ Woman” from Randy Steele will give fans of Old-fashioned Country music something to truly enjoy.

With the next track, Randy Steele touches on a subject that is rather difficult: Drug Addiction. The track called “Age of Ben” features lyrics that act as a storyline as Steele tells the story of as boy who never really had a real chance at life. The main character in the song is born with a developmental problem that gets worse later in life. And having been given up for adoption, he never got to know his real mother. When all gets too difficult to deal with, “Ben” turns to opium which just makes things worse. Just like with the track “Adam and Rose” earlier in the release, “Age of Ben” comes complete with a rather simplistic feel to the music. But unlike the other track which featured the banjo, this track finds Steel creating the simple music of the track with the guitar. The guitar-only background to the track seems to add to the sadness contained within the lyrics.

While several of the tracks on this release find Randy Steele exploring his storytelling side, the track “Rummies” finds him creating a track that has a rather familiar feel to those who know artists such as Gordon Lightfoot. In fact, if it wasn’t for the fact that this song was written around To Have and Have Not, a novel written by Ernest Hemmingway, it would have been a good guess that Steele had used Lightfoot as an influence for the track; which he may have as far as the music of the song is concerned. “Rummies” shows off Steele’s ability to take a storyline and set it to music.

Randy Steele’s new six-song EP comes to a close with the track “Pretty Little Girl with a Blue Dress On”. The track closes the EP out with one of the simplest musical approaches. The lone banjo and Randy Steele’s vocals on the short track bring to mind something that could have come from someone like The Stanley Brothers or someone else that are easily just as well-known from the Bluegrass genre.

Randy Steele stepped out on his own with his first release entitled Songs from the Suck. Taking the next step with his second release, Steele proves that his songwriting skills are still just as sharp. With the track “Adam and Rose” which features a rather simple musical back ground, or “Rummies” that shows off his ability to take an idea and make it his own, the Moccasin Bender release proves to be a well-made second release from the Tennessee-based Randy Steele.

For more information, check out his PR firm, Whiplash PR. 

Moccasin Bender from Randy Steele is due to be released in the near future. Until then, check out Randy Steele’s live version of “Adam and Rose,” a track that will be on the Moccasin Bender release. 

 

CD Review: Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers “Psychopaths & Sycophants”

Throughout history, there have been issues that made people stand up and take notice. And some of those issues even resulted in the more vocal groups within the people to demand change. Times like the Vietnam era where America became embroiled within someone else’s fight led to people becoming rather vocal and taking stands against what they knew was wrong. We are currently living within yet another era where people are taking a stand against things that they believe are not right. And just like the Vietnam era, a lot of musicians are adding their voices to the fight. One singer-songwriter making his opinion known is Charlottesville, Virginia-based Keith Morris.  

Charlottesville, Virginia-based Keith Morris was largely influenced by many singer-songwriters who have made their voices heard over the years. One such person who had a large influence on Morris was Leonard Cohen. With how vocal Cohen had been during his lifetime, the songwriter would have had plenty to say about what is going on in the country today. But Cohen died before things like the election of Donald Trump happened. That event as well as several other newsworthy others would have been just right for Cohen to write about if he had lived just a little while longer. To make up for that, Keith Morris has created an entire album of songs that have their beginnings in real-life events that are now sending shockwaves through the nation. Originally entitled “Trump Songs for Leonard Cohen” (a title that was abandoned when Morris was told he could not use it), the new album from Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers is called Psychopaths and Sycophants.

The album of Psychopaths and Sycophants from Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers begins with the track “The Future”. This track was originally written and recorded by Leonard Cohen when he started looking at what the future may actually hold for mankind. Looking back at what the songwriter had written, the track’s lyrics seem rather haunting as a lot of what Cohen had predicted has taken place. But the track as recorded by the band gives the song a lot of energy as the Rock and Roll within the song contains a driving feel to the music. That driving feel gives the track more of an upbeat approach than the lyrics seem to contain.

Along with “The Future,” Morris and the band also do an interpretation of yet another Cohen composition entitled “In My Secret Life”. While the original version from Cohen was created around the sound of the guitar, the inclusion of the organ on the new version from Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers gives the track a slightly more upbeat feel. And the slightly quicker musical delivery also adds to that more upbeat feel. Add to that the Gospel Choir in the background and “In My Secret Life” brings the new release from the band to a close on a strong note.

In-between the two tracks originally written by Leonard Cohen, Psychopaths and Sycophants from Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers finds the singer-songwriter and his band approaching very controversial topics. The song “What Happened to Your Party” covers the topic of when people within a party get firmly behind a certain candidate for president (Trump) and those people leave their beliefs behind to follow blindly along. The song “Charlottesville by Name” finds Keith Morris creating a tune written in response to the hatred and violence that took place within a rally where several people were killed. And the track “The Narcissist” deals with a man who is too stuck on himself to see the big picture of what is going on around him. And of course, the title track of “Psychopaths and Sycophants” deals with all of the wrong people who are running things today. These tracks and others give Psychopaths and Sycophants its politically-charged feel.

While the subject matter contained within the nine songs that make up Psychopaths and Sycophants is very political, the musical side of the album finds Keith Morris and the rest of The Crooked Numbers creating music that is widely varied. Throughout the tracks on the album, the Folk, Rock, Gospel and other musical influences blend together to create an album that is as musical diverse as the political themes that run through the subject matter. That musical diversity proves that there is a lot more to Keith Morris than just the emotional side to the writer that drives his desire to take a stand; there’s also a musician side that helps to shape the way his songs sound.

 

Psychopaths and Sycophants from Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers has yet to be released. The album will be available in the very near future. Stay tuned to the website for Keith Morris & The Crooked Numbers to stay updated. But until the newest release from Morris and the band is available, check out the title track to the upcoming album.

For more information, check out the PR firm for the band, Whiplash PR.  

Single Review: C.K. Flach and the Rising Tide “Friends”

New York State-based singer-songwriter C.K. Flach continues to make a lot of noise, whether it’s playing drums for other people or it’s creating his own music. After releasing a solo album called Empty Mansions back about one year ago in 2017, the artist makes a return but this time, he brings along a few friends to help create the music. This time, Flach is joined by bassist Chris Brant, Danny Boudreau on violin and keys and his brother Wayne Flach on guitars. Together, the band known as C.K. and the Rising Tide are currently in the middle of creating their first album. However, the ensemble has released their first single off of the upcoming album as a way of promoting the release. The track is called “Friends”. Like the music that made up Flach’s 2017 album of Empty Mansions, “Friends” finds C.K. and the Rising Tide creating a track that falls into the Americana music genre. The track features a rather strong Country vibe to the music but also contains a strong Rock and Roll feel to go along with that Country approach. The Alt-Country feel of the track is matched up with a lyrical content with a rather strong political lean to it. The track’s lyrics deal with the fact that we humans, as a whole species, have different ways of looking at things. And while we may not agree with everything that everyone else has to say, we can, and should, find ways to survive with each other as we look for ways to live side-by-side instead of causing wars. With the current political climate of the nation being what it is, and with recent events in the country being cause for concern, the track’s message of unity through friendship is one we should all get behind. While the song “Friends” is only one track from C.K. and the Rising Tide, Flach’s 2017 solo release of Empty Mansions may be a good indicator of what is to come in the near future from the band.

To experience just a little of the new music from C.K. and the Rising Tide, check out the early release of the band’s song “Friends” by clicking on the link.   

For more information, check out the PR firm for C.K. and the Rising Tide, check out Whiplash PR. 

 

 

CD Review: Ezra Vancil “You”

While Dallas-based singer-songwriter Ezra Vancil has explored several different styles of music over his time in the music industry, his album of You finds the singer-songwriter exploring the Folk music aspect of his personality as well as other styles to help bring the tracks on the new album to life. Recently, Vancil took a deeper look within his own life and started writing songs with a very personal connection. But instead of writing the collection of songs from a first-person perspective, the resulting tracks on the release deal with his relationship with his wife and other aspects of love as his various relationships have seen ups, downs, highs and lows. With the eleven tracks that make up the release, Vancil makes use of his personal influences such as Cat Stevens, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, even women such as Emmylou Harris and Joni Mitchell, as well as several other artists. Together, those artists helped to influence the music of Ezra Vancil that appears on his new release called You.

The album You from Ezra Vancil begins with the track “Galveston”. While the track deals with Vincil’s divorce from his first wife, the music and feel of the track brings to mind another artist: Although known for the track “Convoy,” the songwriter C.W. McCall created tracks with this feel with the help of producer and owner of the record label American Gramophone, Chip Davis. Together, the duo of Davis and McCall would have created a track with this very feel, including the story-like approach to the lyrics of the song. That feeling of familiarity makes Vancil’s “Galveston” feel both fresh and retro at the same time and that gives the listener a good reason to continue on the musical journey set forth by Vancil.

Ezra Vancil’s new release continues with the track “Complicated Man”. The track starts off with a rather strong acoustic guitar approach that helps create a sound that will remind listeners of early recordings of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkle, especially those days when the duo went by the moniker of Tom and Jerry. The easy pace of the solo acoustic guitar at the beginning of the track starts the song off with a simple sound. Soon, more guitars and some percussion are added to the track to add a lot of texture to the music. Although texture is added to the track, Vancil keeps the song low-key rather than building up the energy level. The low-key approach of the song allows the songwriting of Vancil to come through without being buried with a ton of other musical elements.

You from Ezra Vancil continues with the album’s title track “Wild Girl”. While the previous tracks feature a slightly light feel to the music, the title track finds Vancil adds a lot of energy to the album while still keeping a light approach. The Folk-Rock track of “Wild Girl” features an acoustic guitar as the focal point of the music and other instrumentation to create an “unplugged” feeling to the song. The song even features strings in the background to add an orchestrated feel to the music. Even though it’s a little late, “Wild Girl” is the type of song that would have fit in with all of the electric-made-acoustic songs in the nineties that made up the “Unplugged” fad back then.

With the next track, Ezra Vancil takes the music of his release to the next level. While the track “Broken King” still contains a definite acoustic approach, the track contains a complete listing of instruments. Gone is the lone guitar as “Broken King” contains a complete band playing behind Vancil. The track’s instrumentation creates a Folk-Rock sound that is heavy on the Folk influence but still heavier on the Rock influence than the previous tracks on the release. And with the addition of female vocals, the track becomes a duet of sorts. Even though the song “Wild Girl” is easily the focal point of the release, “Broken King” is yet another track on the album that could (and should) receive a lot of airplay.

One of the most emotional tracks on the You release is the song “Don’t Push Me Away”. With the overarching theme of relationships running through the album, this track’s connection to that theme is more apparent than most of the other songs. The Lite Rock feel of the song and the use of the theme in the lyrics makes “Don’t Push Me Away” one of the most emotional songs on the You release.

Throughout the various tracks on the You album, Ezra Vancil explores many different styles of music. With the track “Polka Girl From Tennessee,” Vancil brings a little more Folk influence into his music. In fact, with the inclusion of the fiddle on the track, you can even say he added a little Country flavor to the release. The resulting track gives the listener a song that feels a lot more like Country music and nothing like Polka music as you might expect with the track’s title.

Speaking of Country music, with the track of “Settle Down Good,” Ezra Vancil and the rest of the musicians on the release create a track that contains a strong Country influence, creating a track that would easily be categorized as Alt-Country. With the musical mix on this track, Vancil and the band bring to mind the music of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, with more of as modern spin on the music.

The album You from Ezra Vancil finds the singer-songwriter creating the prefect singer-songwriter release as each track feels different from the others. And with each track, Vancil and band show off their versatility because of that variety in the tracks. Having come from a much different musical background than what is contained within the release, You from Ezra Vancil truly shows off his songwriting ability. And the emotional feeling that is contained within the tracks that make up the release add to that singer-songwriter feeling of the album.

The You release from Ezra Vancil has yet to be released. However, the album is currently up for pre-order on Vancil’s website. Click on the link for more information.

While the You release is still not available, check out an earlier version of the track “Galveston” which will be on the album when it comes out.

For more information, check out Ezra Vancil’s PR Firm, Whiplash PR. 

CD Review: The Söur Bruthers S/T

Growing up together helps to add a certain amount of familiarity to the way members in a band relate to each other. One band that is truly creating music with a definite “family” feel to their music is the band called The Söur Bruthers. And even though the members of the band grew up around each other, they all went their separate ways when joining up with previous musical projects. But those previous projects are what have helped to shape the music of The Söur Bruthers.

Chicago-based band The Söur Bruthers consist of band members: Tim Dlaregztif – Guitar/Vocals, Mike Argyrakis – Guitar Vocals, Bill Lloyd – Bass/Vocals and Tony Alunni – Drums/Drums. Each member of the group (or Bruther) drops their own last name when performing in the band and uses Sour as the band identity. Together, Tim, Mike, Bill and Tony Sour blend their various musical influences to create a sound in their band that can only be described as Americana because of the Retro-Pop, Blues, Hard Rock and Country vibes that flow through the songs of the group. What the band calls “SOURLICIOUS ROCK WITH A COUNTRY TWANG!” flows through the band’s debut self-titled EP.

“Sinkin’ Down” is the first track on the self-titled release from The Söur Bruthers. With this track, the band begins their EP with one of the hardest-hitting tracks. The Rock and Roll track contains a slight Country twang in the music. Moreover, the music of the band seems to recall the style of Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band. While the music is closer to Rock and Roll, the lyrics recall Country music a little more. The energy contained within the playing of the band on “Sinkin’ Down” made the choice for leading off the EP with the song a good one as the track hits and hits hard, giving the listener a good indication of what is to come.

In the short time that The Söur Bruthers have been a band, the group has already seen some positive reactions to the music. The band’s song “Better Days” was entered in the 2017 18^th Annual Great American Song Contest where it won the contest. “Better Days” contains a musical mix that actually closer to Southern Rock in the vein of a band like Molly Hatchet than it is to actual Country music. Because of the strong guitar-based foundation to the song, the track would belong more on an Album-Oriented Rock radio format rather than on a Country music format. The driving nature of the track’s music helps to create one of the more powerful moments on the release.

The six-song self-titled EP from The Söur Bruthers continues with the track “3A.M.” With this track, the band creates a sound that brings to mind another group, The Beat Farmers, as both bands have very similar blends of styles in their music, as well as the same sort of lyrical content in their words. The Country-Rock music in the song creates a track that would easily fit on any modern-day Country music format. “3A.M.” is easily one of the best tracks that make up the EP. The only thing is that the track should be a lot longer, as it currently doesn’t even hit the 3-minute mark.

The Söur Bruthers pick up the pace of the music on the next track of “Wash Me”. With this track, the band increases the energy level of their playing while stripping their sound of anything Country music-related. The resulting track finds the band creating a song that is straight-out Rock and Roll. Actually, the track would be easily categorized as being “Hard Rock”. That Hard Rock approach comes courtesy of powerful guitars that push the energy level of the song up a notch or two when compared to the band’s more Country-flavored tracks. “Wash Me” is one of the more energetic tracks on the band’s self-titled EP.

The self-titled EP from The Söur Bruthers comes to a close with the track “Release Me”. With the very first notes from the guitar and the piano on the track, it’s rather clear the track has an extremely commercial feel to the music. The track is mostly Rock and Roll with just a hint of Country to it. The song once again brings to mind acts like Bob Seger or other artists from the eighties as the song would easily fit in with the more rockin’ acts from the era. As the final track of the EP, “Release Me” hits hard from the first note and takes the release home on a very strong note.

With their new self-titled EP, Chicago’s The Söur Bruthers have created a release that makes good use of every musical influence that exists within the quartet. When the band wants to create a Country-flavored track, the result is a track that sounds very authentic and would be welcome on any Country radio format. And when the band goes in a more Rock and Roll direction, they create tracks that will satisfy any fan of the Rock and Roll genre. As you listen to the self-titled EP from this band of friends, it becomes very clear that long-time friends make the best bandmates as The Söur Bruthers are a very tight musical ensemble.

For a taste of the music from The Söur Bruthers, check out the band’s track “Better Days,” the song that helped the band win the 18^th Annual Great American Song Contest.

For more information, check out the band’s PR firm, Whiplash PR.

CD Review: C.K. Flach “Empty Mansions”

When listening to the music of New York State-based singer-songwriter C.K. Flach’s music, you can definitely hear the inner poet in him come out in his songs. The songs he writes have a very strong poetic feel to them as if they were simply poems set to music. As a matter of fact, to prove just how much of a poetic feel his writing style truly has, the artist even recorded one actual spoken piece and included it on his newly released album.

Along with the poetic style of C.K. Flach’s lyrics, he also creates his songs performing the majority of the musical parts himself, with only a few instances where friends and family help to flesh out the sound of the songs. The resulting poetic Americana musical style of C.K. Flach’s songs has made its way onto the musician’s 2017 album entitled Empty Mansions.

Empty Mansions from C.K. Flach begins with the track “Lazarus”. Proving that Flach’s poetic lyrical style can encompass any subject matter, “Lazarus” finds Flach making reference to a biblical character. The song about the character Lazarus being called forward in a church setting is set to a musical style that mixes some Folk elements with a few Rock and Roll ones. These elements create a track that features a slow, yet steady pace to match up with the somber lyrics. The acoustic guitar-driven track shows off some of Flach’s ability as a guitar player. The song’s slightly laidback approach allows the listener to ease their way into the new release from Flach.

The new release from C.K. Flach continues with the song “Boxcar Dreaming”. While the previous track was guitar-based, C.K. Flach creates this track with keyboards. With this track, Flach slows things down as he lightens the feel of the music. While “Lazarus” was an equal amount of Rock and Roll as well as Folk, “Boxcar Dreaming” features a lot more Folk influence. The resulting track would be perfect for a Soft Rock radio format.

One of the strongest tracks on the Empty Mansions album from C.K. Flach is the song “Tranquilized”. Ironically, with this song, Flach increases the energy level of the music ever so slightly instead of bringing it down as you would expect with a title like that. Although the track is still pretty laidback to the music, “Tranquilized” contains a driving feel to the guitar on the track. About halfway through, the track picks up the energy of the music.

The poetic side of C.K. Flach comes out on the track “The Officer”. In a nation where those who are hired to protect are sometimes just as dangerous as the ones we want to be protected from, some people have an unfavorable opinion of the police. The song of “The Officer” is a track that deals with a scenario of a person being pulled over and not treated well by the officer doing the pulling over. The sing-song delivery of the lyrics and the slightly bluesy music make the song feel like a beatnik poem.

The album continues with the title track. Throughout the release, C.K. Flach creates tracks that have a definite spiritual overtones to them. Along with the earlier track of “Lazarus,” “Empty Mansions” is one that features that approach. “Empty Mansions” finds Flach contemplating many things in life that make him question which direction to take in life. The piano and the strings in the background of the track combine to create a beautiful melody. As he sings, C.K. Flach sings about some of the sadder things that are happening in the world today. With this track, the lyrics contain one of the most somber moments on the albums.

Much like “Empty Mansions” before it, the track “Machine Gun” finds Flach a very political track. The guitar and harmonica that appear on the track bring to mind the spirit of Bob Dylan, although the style of the music on the track is very much C.K. Flach. The track finds Flach speaking to those who carry guns and bring harm to men, women and children alike. Like many of the Folk songs from the sixties, “Machine Gun” is a song that speaks to those who want to bring an end to the senseless violence both here and abroad.

Like the track “The Officer” from earlier in the album, the track “Firmament” once again finds C.K. Flach bringing out the poet in him. But unlike “The Officer” that features both spoken poetry and music, “Firmament” is strictly Flach as he reads his written words. The simple “voice only” track finds Flach closing out his new release with a powerful poem with a very strong message against oppression.

Throughout the ten tracks that make up Empty Mansions from C.K. Flach, the listener gets to experience a poet at work as he creates song-length vignettes that deal with all sorts of things from religion to politics to everything in between. And since the album changes musical directions throughout those ten tracks, there is plenty of variety to help form a truly unique release that stands out against most of today’s commercial albums.

To hear a little bit of the music from C.K. Flach, check out the title track for Empty Mansions.