CD Review: The Good Morning Nags “Hard Hope”

Six-piece NYC based ensemble The Good Morning Nags dates back almost a decade as they formed back in 2010. Today’s version of the band consists of Tim Hassler (fiddle, vocals), Ben Quinn (mandolin, guitar, harmonium, and vocals), Titus Tompkins (percussion, mandolin, vocals) and Britt Reagan (guitar, dulcimer, vocals) as well as Mark Spitznagel (banjo, vocals) and Pete O’Neill (bass, vocals). This ensemble of musicians takes their various musical influences and creates a style that revolves around a Folk-Rock/Country-Rock style of music. Having already released a seven-song self-titled EP back in 2017, the band recently returned with a new album of music. That 2019 album is entitled Hard Hope.

The Good Morning Nags begin their new album of Hard Hope with the song called “Heels and Dynamite”. The song begins with the acoustic guitar creating what can only be described as a Folk-Rock style before the rest of the instrumentation joins in. The Bluegrass influence on the track comes from the inclusion of the banjo and mandolin. As the track progresses, a fiddle, bass and light percussion is added. Before long, the Bluegrass/ Folk-Rock approach on the track is complete. “Heels and Dynamite” from The Good Morning Nags takes the feel of Bluegrass music and gives it a more modern feel to it.

Hard Hope continues with the song “Birmingham”. The track begins with the sound of a vehicle turning over and coming to life. That approach actually works as the song is about traveling as the lyrics deal with getting behind the wheel and going on a road trip. In this instance, the song is about going down to Birmingham, just as the song title suggests. “Birmingham” from The Good Morning Nags is a track that does a fine job of blending together the Old Timey feel of Bluegrass music with a driving feel to the tempo that comes from a more Rock and Roll-type musical approach. Fans of modern-day Folk-Rock/Country-Rock musical blends will instantly fall in love with the feel of the song. And with the inclusion of the clapping near the middle of the track and the rather funky feel to the ending, “Birmingham” has a lot of different elements to combine for a song that is fun to listen to.

The Good Morning Nags continue the new album of Hard Hope with “No Damn Good”. While the track “Birmingham” blends together Bluegrass with a blend of Country, Rock and Folk, “No Damn Good” features a sound that is rather different in sound than the other track but is just as varied in its musical makeup. The Bluegrass base that was found on “Birmingham” is joined on “No Damn Good” by a Creole style of music. The result is a track that contains a strong accordion presence to go along with a Country-style approach. The track brings to mind the style of someone like the “Louisiana Man” himself, Doug Kershaw. “No Damn Good” features a lyrical content that is rather self-deprecating but the strong, driving feel of the track’s pace allows the listener to enjoy the song without truly feeling sorry for the singer. The more Creole approach on this track is a nice contrast to the Folk-Rock/Country-Rock style of music found on “Birmingham”.

It is with the title track that the release continues. “Hard Hope” is a track that features a stronger Folk approach to the music. But with the inclusion of a strong beat at the beginning of the song adding a touch of Rock and Roll vibe to the track, the song brings to mind the same type of musical approach that one might find with bands like Mumford and Sons or the group Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes. With its Folk/Rock blend, “Hard Hope” could easily qualify as Indie Folk. The gang-style vocals of the entire band in the background of the refrain on the track adds a rather interesting element to the song, which seems to draw the listener further into the music. The title track off of the Hard Hope album ends up being one of the strongest moments on the album.

“Little Taste of Home” is a track that blends together an Old-Timey feel to Country music with a taste of Folk music. The inclusion of the banjo, fiddle and other Country music instruments on this track place the song squarely within the Country genre. What results is a track that would feel right at home among songs of the sixties but could also have possibly been found within earlier eras of music. “Little Taste of Home” is one of the songs on the release that would satisfy fans of almost any era of Country music, no matter how old those music fans are.

While the track “Little Taste of Home” has a timeless feel to its music, the song “Crazy” is a much different story. Having nothing to do with the classic Patsy Cline track of the same title, “Crazy” from The Good Morning Nags is a blend of Country music and Folk with a touch of Acoustic Rock thrown in. The light approach of the music creates a song that could be classified as “Indie Folk”, placing it within the same category as Mumford and Sons or The Lumineers. Although there already are the tracks from Patsy Cline and Gnarls Barkley that make use of the title, “Crazy” from The Good Morning Nags creates yet another track with that title that could easily find its way onto radio, whether on Public Radio formats or within Adult Contemporary radio.

Although most of the tracks that make up this album fall into the Folk/Country category, songs like the aforementioned title track of “Hard Hope” offer something more for the listener that helps push the music of The Good Morning Nags out of being considered strictly Country or Folk. The same thing can be said for the song “Rumble Road”. This track finds the band once again drawing from the Folk/Rock category. But this track seems to have a bit of influence from the British Rock band Gomez, who incorporate instruments like the banjo into their Alternative Rock music. Like Gomez, The Good Morning Nags incorporate a little Alternative Rock influence into the song “Rumble Road” to give the track a bit of an edge to the music. This makes “Rumble Road” a track that stands out among the dozen tracks that make up the Hard Hope release.

Having released their self-titled EP in 2017, the 2019 Hard Hope album from The Good Morning Nags finds the band building upon that earlier release. This is a solid album of music that actually outshines the earlier release, which indicates that the band is growing as a unit.

To hear the music of The Good Morning Nags, check out the band’s video to the song “Birmingham”. 

CD Review: Logan Vath “Lost on Leaving”

Like every ex-military personnel, Nebraska native (and current resident of Norfolk, Virginia) Logan Vath is now living the second part of his life. Vath is a singer-songwriter who has changed to that path in life after spending time in the military where he did four years serving as an Aerographer’s Mate, preparing soldiers for whatever weather conditions they may encounter. And now, not that long ago, Logan Vath joined up with the group known as Operation: Encore, an organization that helps former military personnel realize their full potential through training. Operation: Encore then helps those individuals (which includes people such as Vath) with many different opportunities which includes networking to truly begin living their dreams as real musicians.

After leaving the military, it was the musical heritage of Logan Vath’s family that reached out to him (his grandfather having been a gig musician who died before Vath was even born). The guitar left to Vath by his grandfather would inspire him to explore the world of music. And as a singer-songwriter, Logan Vath has put that musical background and inherited guitar to good use. Vath’s discography includes 2013’s Better Man or Ghost and 2016’s In the Presence of the Kingdom. Vath’s music has also been featured on the second compilation album of Operation: Encore artists called Monuments, where you can find track entitled “Once Was”.

Logan Vath is currently promoting his newest release, a five-song EP called Lost on Leaving. For this new EP, singer and guitarist Logan Vath is joined by Matt Hoffman & Andrew Montgomery on Keys and Organ, Nolan Thies on Bass, and Daniel Mendez on Percussion & Guitar. Together as a group, the musicians help to bring Vath’s latest release to life. The various songs included on this five-song release feature a good amount of Rock and Roll, some Folk-Rock and other influences. The songs contained within this release also contain a very intimate feel as Vath takes the listener on a very personal journey through the thoughts running through his head. Nowhere is that more evident than on the very first track.    

The 2018 release of Lost on Leaving from Logan Vath begins with the track “Enough Good”. The beginning track of the release features a strong Rock and Roll approach to the music with a driving feel to the drums as well as strong guitars. That musical approach gives the song a rather timeless feel as it could have come from the eighties, nineties, even today. With the lyrics to the song, Vath seems to be exploring the concept of trying to survive while living with your inner demons. The final words of the chorus seem to say it all: “Pretend I’m better now than I have ever been”. 

On the very next track, Vath slows the pace of the music down as the release continues with the song “Guard”. With that slower pace, the song’s lyrical content appears to continue the same train of thought that was present in the previous track as Vath explains that he wants to throw his cares away and try to regain a little freedom from the worry that consumes him. The listener experiences some of the emotional side of the lyrics on the track as those words are matched up well with a gentleness in the music that creates a Soft Rock/Adult Contemporary approach.

Lost on Leaving continues with the track “Winter”. Much like the previous two tracks, “Winter” once again finds Logan Vath turning inward for self-examination of his feelings and thoughts. The lyrics of the song find Vath feeling out of place even in the places where he belongs. The sadness and lonely feeling of Vath truly comes through in this track as he sings of being okay once the winter season comes to an end. The sadness contained within this track is only intensified by a slow pace as well as a light, easy feel to the music.

Logan Vath’s latest release continues with the song “Dover”. While it contains a similarly easy feel to the music, the music on this track ends up being closer to Indie Rock rather than Soft Rock and/or Adult Contemporary. The lyrical content about experiencing life in the city as the rain falls down feels as if it had been influenced by the likes of Bob Dylan and/or Tom Waits. Vath’s words seem to tell a story, very much like poetry set to music as he sings of awaiting the inevitable, as if he knows something bad is about to take place. While “Dover” contains a slightly dark feel to it, it also contains one of the most commercial musical approaches on the five-song EP.  

The Lost on Leaving EP from Logan Vath comes to a close with the song called “I’ve Been Told”. And like much of the EP, the final track of the release contains a slow pace to the music as well as a laidback feel to that music. That laidback feel to the music once again seems to add even more sadness to the track’s already somber lyrics about trying to find some sort of feeling of home when you are constantly on the move. The laidback feel to the track courtesy of the slow pace in the music helps to gently bring the Lost on Leaving EP to a close.   

Logan Vath’s Lost on Leaving EP is a very personal release. The five songs on it find the singer-songwriter looking at the world that surrounds him and questioning what it is all about while also doing a lot of reflecting on his inner feelings. The five songs on Lost on Leaving may not add up to an overly energetic release, but they do end up creating a solid grouping of tracks that feel truly interwoven because of their common theme of personal reflection.  

(For more reading about Operation Encore, check out the review for the first album, the second release of Monuments, the first review for Rachel Harvey Hill, the review for Andrew Wiscombe, the review of Steve D. Wilson, the review for The Real Doug Lane, the review for Stephen Covell, the review for Unknown Rider, and the review for Jerry Maniscalco by clicking on the links that are highlighted.)  

Single Review: White Owl Red “Working Class Heroes”

Based outside of San Francisco, singer/songwriter Josef McManus creates a style of music that uses plenty of Folk influence to flavor his songs. Of course, with San Francisco’s history with that music, it comes as no surprise that McManus would end up picking up that influence in his writing. And because of that, some of the songs that McManus creates are rather deeply steeped in political meaning. To bring his music to life, Josef McManus performs and records under the moniker of White Owl Red. Having already created quite a bit of noise with the success of his previous albums, especially 2019’s Existential Frontiers which is still making noise in the music industry, McManus is currently working on the follow-up to that release. And to give his audience (both new and established alike) a taste of the upcoming album, McManus (as White Owl Red) has released the track “Working Class Heroes” as a way to promote the new release. With “Working Class Heroes,” a title that refers to the title of John Lennon’s song called “Working Class Hero,” McManus’ political side comes through loud and strong. And although “Working Class Heroes” from White Owl Red finds Josef McManus creating a song around the idea of the men and women who help keep America strong and moving, the song is more about the facts of the situation and not so much about preaching. While there have been plenty of positive moments in the history of the American worker, there have been moments that proved to be challenges to those workers. The lyrics of “Working Class Heroes” speak of the pride and determination of those men and women trying to work around those challenges to try and make a living for themselves. The music to the track itself blends together Folk music and some Rock and Roll influence to create a track that contains a driving feel to the music while still being laidback. What results is a track that brings to mind a combination of Bob Dylan-like lyrics with music inspired by the likes of John Mellencamp or Bruce Springsteen, an artist himself who has written songs with rather strong messages within their lyrics. “Working Class Heroes” keeps the momentum of White Owl Red’s last release Existential Frontiers going and gives the listener just a glimpse of what it to come. Stay tuned for more Josef McManus and his band called White Owl Red in the near future.

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

Check out the song of “Working Class Heroes” from White Owl Red.

You can also find the “Working Class Heroes” single from White Owl Red on spotify.

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: Jesh Yancey & The High Hopes “Maybe It’s The Drugs”

Jesh Yancey is a singer-songwriter who makes his home in Denver, Colorado. Yancey spent the early years of his adult life in the Navy and the former military man is now spending his time in the music industry as a musician and songwriter. As that musician and songwriter, Jesh Yancey already has one album under his belt and is now creating more music with his band. Upright bassist Lizz Hough, drummer Ryan Van Dyke and harmonica player Jef Funk join the singer-songwriter to create the band known as Jesh Yancey and The High Hopes, a moniker that lends itself rather well to some of the songs that are currently being performed by the band and which are now available on the band’s second and current release entitled Maybe It’s the Drugs an EP which contains some Country vibes, some Folk vibes, some Rock and Roll vibes, and even some Cajun influence. The songwriter and his band refer to this style as PsycheDeltaFolk.

Maybe It’s the Drugs begins with the song “When in Rome”. The listener gets an immediate glimpse at just what the band means by PsycheDeltaFolk. The band’s music on the track blends together a stronger Country vibe with some Folk influence and some Cajun influence by way of the accordion. The slow-paced, easy feel to the track creates a song that brings to mind some of the Country music of the seventies while mixing in some influence from a musician like Doug Kershaw who has been known for his Cajun-influenced music. The lyrics to the track deal find Yancey explaining that his actions were a result of simply trying to fit in, even if it wasn’t the best idea.

After the Cajun-flavored “When in Rome,” the feel of the music changes dramatically. With the song “Ridin’ High,” the band abandons the Cajun feel of the music for a much stronger Blues approach. The main Blues influence on the track of “Ridin’ High” is matched up with some Folk-Rock to help fill out the track’s sound. This gives the song a nice easy groove that allows the song to flow along smoothly. On the track, Jesh Yancey and The High Hopes create a track that features a jamband feel: each of the members of the group take turns giving small solos on their various instruments and that helps to show off the talents of each musicians in the group.

The feel of the music changes once again on the very next song entitled “In a Pinch”. While the first song of the release called “When In Rome” contained a Country/Folk/Cajun blend, “In a Pinch” contains a much simpler musical approach as the track contains a straight Country music sound. The track reminds the listener of what Country music used to feel like in the late seventies and/or early eighties, before the Rock and Roll influence seemed to overtake the heart of the music. For those looking for a song with a classic Country music feel, “In a Pinch” is the track for you.

Jesh Yancey and The High Hopes continue their new EP with the song “My Little Soul and Me”. And like with the tracks that came before it, this song changes the feel of the EP yet again. With this track, Yancey and the rest of the group create a track that seems to draw a large amount of inspiration from singer-songwriter and Rock Hall Member Tom Waits. Like with much of Tom Waits’ material, “My Little Soul and Me” contains a lyrical approach where the lyrics create a story. The story unfolding is a man explaining that he has given away his soul. Lyrics like “I Gave It to a Black Haired Girl, Her Name Was Destiny. Said It Wasn’t Worth Too Much So She Gave It Back to Me” truly bring to mind the writing style of Waits. While the song contains some of the darkest lyrics on the release, “My Little Soul and Me” is one of the strongest moments on the EP.

Maybe It’s the Drugs from Jesh Yancey and The High Hopes comes to a close with the title track of the release. While the entire EP features the four musicians of Yancey, Hough, Van Dyke and Funk, “Maybe It’s the Drugs” truly brings out the ensemble feel to the band. The track not only features all of the members, but all of the members join in on the vocals of this track. The lyrics of the track deal with the political state of the country at the present time. While it is a rather political track, many will likely agree with the sentiment shared within the lyrics.   

Although only five tracks, Maybe It’s the Drugs from Jesh Yancey and The High Hopes shows a band that has plenty of musical ability and talent. Each track has a different sound, a different feel. Because of this, the release flies by, leaving the listener wanting for more. 

Maybe It’s the Drugs from Jesh Yancey and The High Hopes will be available shortly. When the release is live, you can find it here. Until the entire EP is available, you can check out the first single off of the release, “When In Rome”.

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

Single Review: Mark Ambuter “Love is Everywhere (Extended Single)”

Mark Ambuter is a singer-songwriter from the city of Crestline, California. Ambuter had been a part of bands earlier in his life. And during that time, he was creating music that was drawing from the likes of Led Zeppelin, Badfinger, George Harrison, along with many others. Eventually, certain reasons made it difficult for Ambuter to continue and he left the music industry for a while. Now, however, he has returned to rekindle his love for making music. The result was the result of the 2016 album entitled A Scratch of Grace. Along with that album came other singles. One such single is the track “Love is Everywhere”. Like many of the folk and folk-rock songs that were released back in the sixties and early seventies, “Love is Everywhere” was created by Mark Ambuter as his statement against the current political climate in the United States. And because this new track falls into that type of situation, it should come as no surprise that Ambuter has created a new song that draws from the climate and artistic expressions that were around back in the sixties and early seventies. Meaning, of course, that “Love is Everywhere” by Mark Ambuter not only contains a great deal of Rock and Roll influence, but the song is heavily laden with certain psychedelic influences, as well. But since this track was produced by English producer Stuart Epps who had worked with several British artists like Elton John, George Harrison, Led Zeppelin, The Firm and others. The heavy psychedelic influence on “Love is Everywhere” begins right from the beginning as the track starts with the sound of the sitar and percussion which helps to transport the listener back in time to the sixties. The beginning seconds of the track feel like a Hare Krishna song before the track takes on a more modern feel to the music. The rest of the track takes on a pop-rock feel that reminds the listener of modern English rock and roll tracks from the like of Coldplay or even like the American band Imagine Dragons. To go along with the music, the lyrical content of the track is delivered as one entire group of singers helps to back up Ambuter as he sings of the love that’s in the air as people fight the current political climate that is creating the unfriendly feeling in the country. While there is an undeniable retro feel to the track, there is also enough of a modern feel to the track that you could imagine the track getting a lot of plays on Adult Contemporary radio formats if given the chance.  

“Love is Everywhere” by Mark Ambuter is already a rather long track at over four minutes in length. But Ambuter decided to extend the track by creating the “Extended Single” version of the song. By giving the track the extra fifty seconds or so, the song ends up with more of a jamband feel to the song. You can hear the track by click on the link below.

CD Review: Caroline Ferrante “Beyond”

Singer-songwriter Caroline Ferrante started out on the South Side of Chicago where she gained her knowledge of theater and voice. With this added knowledge, she ended up in the Washington, D.C. music scene where she has been making music ever since.

As a solo musician, Caroline Ferrante is constantly adding to her collection of songs. She has several releases under her name at the moment. Having already released Live from the Belfry, and Sky, Ferrante returns with yet another release called Beyond.

Beyond from Caroline Ferrante sets itself apart from her earlier releases as Ferrante shifted her style to take on a religious feel to the music on the four-song EP. While Ferrante stays true to her Folk music background, the addition of religious themes and words gives the tracks a much different feel than what had come before from the singer-songwriter.

Caroline Ferrante begins her Beyond release with the track “River Flow”. The track begins with a strong beat that is the result of several people clapping their hands and stomping their feet to create a rhythm for the rest of the instrumentation to go on top of. The rather strong beat in the song is met with the sound of an acoustic guitar that helps to create the actual music for the song. What is created is a sound that is Folk-Rock at its best. The lyrical content of the spirit being a river that washes the singer clean helps to bring the religious meaning of the song to life. The inclusion of other female voices blending together with Ferrante’s voice helps to create a strong chorus in the track. “River Flow” contains a strong musical approach to start the EP off strong.

The Beyond release slows down a little on the track “Peace Be Still”. Where the previous track of “River Flow”contained a strong beat providing a powerful backdrop to the rest of the music on that song, “Peace Be Still” is much more relaxed in nature. And while the previous song also contained a strong, religious message, the EP’s second track is much more relaxing to listen to. The laid-back feel of the music once again comes from the acoustic guitar; but this time, the instrument is played with a gentler approach. The soft, laid-back approach on the music works well with the lyrics about seeking the chance to find inner peace when everything around you is not the way you want it. As Caroline Ferrante sings the lyrics, she produces a crescendo in his delivery near the end of the track that is very reminiscent of the same type of build up one would expect from the late entertainer Kate Smith who was known for her pinnacle version of the song “God Bless America”. While the previous song on the release may be a stronger track because of its energetic feeling, “Peace Be Still” has its own strength in its musical beauty.

The energy level goes way up on the next track of the four-song Beyond EP. The track “A Little More Faith” finds Caroline Ferrante joining forces with a Gospel choir to bring the song to life. And with the combination of Ferrante and the chorus, there is definitely a lot of life in the song. The music of the song contains a Folk-Rock approach with a stressing on the word Rock. The entire musical ensemble blends their various musical and vocal talents together to create a track that is one of the strongest points within the four songs included in the release. The music and the vocals come together to create a track that is sure to fill up your ears as you listen to the song.

Beyond from Carolina Ferrante comes to a close with the track “Hear Your Name”. This track is one of the more spiritual tracks of the EP as Ferrante sings to and about the one above. The guitar and piano found on the track blend together to create a musical sound that is beautiful and easy on the ears. The feel of the music, the lyrical content and the vocals delivery from Ferrante all combine to create a track that feels very reminiscent of a rather well-known singer within Gospel music circles- Amy Grant.

If you had to come up with a one-word description for Beyond, the latest release from Carolina Ferrante, “Energetic” is probably the word to use. Right from the start, the listener experiences the Folk-Rock of “River Flow”. Then, the pace decreases as it slows down on the song “Peace Be Still” but the intensity on the track does not decrease. As the release continues, the other tracks help to finish out the EP with both beauty and strength.

To check out the music of  Carolina Ferrante, check out her song “Peace Be Still“. 

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:

CD Review: The Good Morning Nags “No Damn Good”

The Good Morning Nags is a six-piece NYC based ensemble. The band dates back almost a decade as they formed back in 2010. Today’s version of the band consists of Tim Hassler (fiddle, vocals), Ben Quinn (mandolin, guitar, harmonium, and vocals), Titus Tompkins (percussion, mandolin, vocals) and Britt Reagan (guitar, dulcimer, vocals) as well as Mark Spitznagel (banjo, vocals) and Pete O’Neill (bass, vocals). This ensemble of musicians takes their various musical influences and creates a style that revolves around a Folk-Rock/Country-Rock style of music. Having put out a self-titled release not that long ago, they have returned with a new two-song release they have called No Damn Good.

 
No Damn Good from The Good Morning Nags begins with the first of two tracks called “Birmingham”. The track begins with the sound of a vehicle turning over and coming to life. The sound of starting a motor actually works as the song is about traveling as the lyrics deal with getting behind the wheel and going on a road trip. In this instance, the song is about going down to Birmingham, just as the song title suggests.  “Birmingham” from The Good Morning Nags is a track that does a fine job of blending together the Old Timey feel of Bluegrass music with a driving feel to the tempo that comes from a more Rock and Roll-type musical approach. The track would fit right in on any radio format that features modern-day Country music and/or Folk-based music. While the energy level for the music of the track would be great for today’s Pop-Rock radio, there is just a little too much of a Country flavor to the song. That being said, fans of modern-day Folk-Rock/Country-Rock musical blends will instantly fall in love with the feel of the song. And with the inclusion of the clapping near the middle of the track and the rather funky feel to the ending, “Birmingham” has a lot of different elements to combine for a song that is fun to listen to.

 
After the first of two songs comes to an end, the No Damn Good EP from The Good Morning Nags continues with the title track “No Damn Good”. While the first track on the two-song EP blends together Bluegrass with a blend of Country, Rock and Folk, the title track of the EP features a sound that is rather different in sound but is just as varied in its musical makeup. The Bluegrass base that was found on “Birmingham” is joined on “No Damn Good” by a Creole style of music. The result is a track that contains a strong accordion presence to go along with a Country-style approach. The track brings to mind the style of someone like the “Louisiana Man” himself, Doug Kershaw.   “No Damn Good” features a lyrical content that is rather self-deprecating but the strong, driving feel of the track’s pace allows the listener to enjoy the song without truly feeling sorry for the singer. The more Creole approach on this track is a nice contrast to the Folk-Rock/Country-Rock style of music found on “Birmingham”.

 
Having experienced the sound and style of The Good Morning Nags from their earlier self-titled album, it’s nice to see that the band doesn’t seem to be slowing down. The two tracks on the band’s No Damn Good EP add to the music The Good Morning Nags had already produced and let the listener know that there’s more to come from this talented musical ensemble.

 

To hear some of the music from The Good Morning Nags, check out the title track from the band’s No Damn Good EP. 

Find the band’s No Damn Good EP  on SPOTIFY.  

For more information, check out The Good Morning Nags’ PR firm of Whiplash PR & Management by clicking on the logo for the company.

 

CD Review: Gordon Thomas Ward “Providence”

Singer-songwriter Gordon Thomas Ward splits his time between creating music that would fit into several different genres and writing books that cover just as many topics as his music seems to cover genres. That stretching of his talents means that Ward continues to add to his many different influences. And those influences, in turn, influence each other. As far as his music is concerned, Ward has already released one album with the title of Welcome to the Past. Soon, however, he will be adding to that album with another release. The newest release from Gordon Thomas Ward is titled Providence.

The Providence EP from Gordon Thomas Ward is a short, five-song release that begins with the track “Acadia Lament- Names Into Stone”. This beginning track makes it rather obvious that Ward has influences that stretch the gamut as the song begins with a Classical music influence that feels very medieval in nature. The lutes and guitars in that section of the track create a moment of about two minutes consisting of relaxing music before the song segues into something a lot more intense. The second part of the track turns up the heat as the Folk-Rock created features a strong electric guitar and a strong driving feel to the music. Near the end of the track, the music seems to combine the Classical flavor from the beginning with the later musical approach with the strong Folk-Rock feel.

Gordon Thomas Ward changes the direction of the music with the next track. While the previous track takes two different paths in its music with widely different sounds, the song of “Destiny” takes on yet another approach. With this song, the music seems to be rather influenced by the music of the band The Eagles as the track’s Folk-Rock music appears to have a touch of Country flavor to it, much like much of the aforementioned supergroup from the seventies. The lyrical content to “Destiny” finds the singer pondering life as he travels down the road. For those who enjoy some of the music from the seventies, this song will take you back to those days while still containing a fresh feel to the music.

Providence from Gordon Thomas Ward takes on a more emotional feel with the next track of “Just One More”. Like the track before it, “Just One More” finds Gordon Thomas Ward creating a track with Folk flavor to it. But with this track, the emphasis is squarely on the Folk genre as the track contains more Folk feeling than the rest of the tracks on this EP. To go along with the Folk sound that exists inside of the track, Ward writes lyrics that have a lot more of an emotional tug than the rest of the release. The lyrics to the track deal wanting only one more time with those you love, especially those who are now gone, the ones you will never have the chance to spend that time with again. “Just One More” will grab you by the heart and never let go throughout the four-an-a-half minutes of playtime.

As “Just One More” features the most Folk flavor of any of the tracks on the Providence release, the track “The Horseman” finds Gordon Thomas Ward creating a song with the most Country influence to it. It turns out that the Country/Folk combination on the track is a good base to go along with the lyrics to the track. The lyrics, it seems, revolve around the tale of The Headless Horseman. The use of the Country/Folk musical blend goes well with the setting of the story which takes place back in the late 1700’s. With “The Horseman” being a story set to music, the track puts both sides of Ward’s personality to good use, blending the storyteller and musician together on the track.

With the song “One Kiss,” Gordon Thomas Ward seems to be channeling the spirit of John Denver as his vocals, lyrical content and all-around sound to the music of the track bring to mind the style of the now-deceased Denver.  The final track of the EP brings back a lot of the emotions and mindset that had been found on the song “Just One More” as the lyrics deal with looking back at moments that have past too quickly, whether it’s a child growing up, or the loss of one’s mother. The emotional feeling of the track brings the 5-song release to a close in a way that will stay with you long after the last note ends.

Providence from Gordon Thomas Ward may be a short, five-song release, but the tracks that make it up give the listener several different musical approaches throughout those tracks. Because of that, the short but powerful EP gives the listener a good representation of what the music of Gordon Thomas Ward is like.

To check out the music of Gordon Thomas Ward, check out the track “One Kiss“. 

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