#also showtunes/broadway was my too genre. again

[fatestouch]

my wrapped really said “you have a Disease”

#ooc;; #its giving ‘there is something Wrong here’ #also showtunes/broadway was my too genre. again

[shemakesmusic-uk]

Getting To Know...

Jackie Mendoza.

Jackie Mendoza has shared a new single / video ‘Mucho Más’, from her debut EP LuvHz. out now on Luminelle Recordings. The accompanying video for the track presents Mendoza swirling with effervescent colors and warping, bright images.

Born and raised in the border city of Chula Vista, California, Jackie Mendoza blends the cultural influences of her hometown and her motherland of Tijuana, Mexico, creating eccentric pop, Latin-driven dance beats, and vibrant soundscapes.

Mendoza’s LuvHz EP is a 6-track exploration of love and relationships. Throughout, Mendoza uses both personal experiences and observations, delving into online unrequited love, the indecisiveness in a new romance, and the toll that being away for long periods of time has taken on her relationship with her home. The LuvHz EP was recorded with Rusty Santos (Panda Bear’s Buoys). Both have lived in Los Angeles, New York, and Mexico and have an appreciation for Latin producers and Reggaeton artists, sounds that perfectly translated into Mendoza’s music.

We had a quick chat with Jackie all about the new EP, her influences and more. Read the Q&A below.

What led you to make music?

“The earliest memory I have of wanting to sing and perform is when I saw the movies Annie the Musical and Pippi Longstocking. I would belt the songs around my house and I would make my younger brother sing along with me. I took a few voice lessons in grade school and joined the choir, I did musical theater all throughout high school, and taught myself to play guitar, piano, and ukulele. It wasn't until I moved to New York that I started writing more original songs and learned how to produce music. I had a lot of time in between classes and kept to myself a lot my first year. I would spend hours and hours writing and making beats; there were nights that I didn't sleep at all because I was having so much fun. After I joined my previous band, Gingerlys, I never wanted to stop making music and playing shows and that's what I've been doing since 2014.”

How would you describe your sound? Who or what has the biggest influence on your music and songwriting?

“My sound is sporadic and genre-bending electronic pop. Music is the easiest way for me to express everything at once; my thoughts, feelings, and identities. I think if I had to choose the biggest influence on my music it would be showtunes. Whenever I make a song I feel like I'm conducting an orchestra and leading a chorus into song. I like using many voices and harmonies like ones you would hear in a Broadway musical. I like storytelling and writing songs that are direct, as if the story were developing right in front of you. My sound is a mix of these elements with Latin beats, Spanish vocals, electronic beats, synths, and electric ukulele.”

You recently released the video for 'Mucho Mas'. What was the inspiration behind the track and it's visuals?

“’Mucho Mas’ was originally a poem I wrote to myself on a day where I felt too depressed and anxious to leave my bed. I had to encourage myself to face my fears and I wrote these words as a pep talk to myself. When I was in the studio recording LuvHz, Rusty and I wanted to try some cool effects on the ukulele and we arrived at this rumbling bassy harp sound. It started with ukulele, Rusty made a beat on top of that, and I free-styled on top of it using that poem I had written. I tried doing it again but the first take sounded the best! I knew the video had to be as strange and psychedelic as the song; but also vibrant and optimistic. I shot scenes around Brooklyn and a Holographic studio in Manhattan, and I sent the footage to Juli Williams (Glitchybb) to edit her visuals into the video.”

‘Mucho Mas' is taken from your debut EP LuvHz which was released last last month. What's the story behind the record? And what kind of things have you learned during the process of making your first EP?

“Some songs from the EP were written as far back as 2015 and others were written last summer in the studio. When I started writing and producing songs, I would automatically upload them to Soundcloud or release singles using different distribution platforms. For years, I did everything myself and thought that the bravest thing an artist could do was to be independent. Soon after I first spoke with my manager, Walter, I realized that a braver thing for me to do was to accept guidance and help from other people. I started gathering songs and ideas and I did my best to produce the music myself. Walter then connected me with Rusty and we decided to work together to construct the final form of the EP. We met in LA for 5 days and we connected instantly and managed to finish the EP and write 3 new songs in the studio too. When Luminelle came into the picture, I knew everything had fallen into place. I've learned that collaboration is important and that you can find inspiration when you least expect it.”

Finally, what's next for Jackie Mendoza?

“I have a few tours planned in the coming months. I'm excited to play outside of the US and to meet people who have connected to the EP in some way. I'm writing songs for the album and I hope to tour even more after that.”

LuvHz is out now.

#getting to know #jackie mendoza #much mas #luvhz

[writingandmore]

Can I get a matchip for MHA and Umbrella Academy? I am 5'7, shoulder length hair dyed red, and I am biromantic maybe asexual, scorpio. I love to read and write stories. I love to listen to classical music and Broadway and musicals. I can't sing well, but I have been known to burst into a showtune anyway. I'm usually very quiet around other people until I get to know them better. I have an anxiety disorder that causes me to panic when in a group, so I like to spend quiet nights at home. 1/2

Don’t like any kind of hate be it racism, sexism, transphobia, etc. I have been told I have a pretty scary glare. I’ve had quite a few people back away from me when I’ve turned my glare towards them and I’ve been told that I get scarily quiet when pissed off. That said, I usually back down if people try to get violent. I have tried to learn how to defend myself but it never stuck. I love romance but it is hard for me to open up because of being cheated on and abused. I like to take it slow. 2/2

BNHA: Momo!

 -As a Scorpio, you’re probably a very determined person who works hard. Momo is the exact same way, especially with her studies, so she’d admire you for those traits. To be in a relationship with her, you can’t really be lazy or not have a work ethic-it would make her extremely anxious. 

 -She enjoys to read as well! She likes history and biographies, but she has a soft spot for fantasy as well. She doesn’t really like to talk about that though in case anyone looked down on her for it, but if you read a similar genre she would possibly open up to you!

 -She enjoys classical music a lot. It helps her relax or enhances her focus when she studies. Not many others in her friend group listen to it often, so she would bond with you quickly over that. Also, she doesn’t know many musicals, but she would love some of the darker or historical ones like Le Mis! 

Umbrella Academy: Allison! 

 -Allison doesn’t stand for any hate for anyone, but especially marginalized groups of people. She would most likely use her successful acting career as a platform to speak out against that hate, so knowing that you feel the same way would make her comfortable around you. 

 -She can be scary herself, and prides herself on that fact when it can be used for good. She’d be really impressed by someone intimidating as long as they didn’t use it for a bad reason-a good example of what she would like is using it to stop someone from hurting another person.

 -She’s a romantic too, and loves to think about dancing or going on romantic dates with someone again one day. She got hurt a lot from her past relationships, and though she’d willingly admit some of it was on her, she’d have just as much trouble as you getting back into dating, so helping each other out could work!

#bnha #bnha matchup #boku no hero academia #momo yaoyorozu #nbilling133 #the umbrella academy #umbrella academy matchup #allison hargreeves

[katiecat446]

all the questions

1. Do you ever doubt the existence of others thanyou?

Not really, no.

2. On a scale of 1-5, how afraid of the dark areyou?

A solid 1.5?

3. The person you would never want to meet?

My fiance’s ex, probably because I would want to hither.  I saw her once from a distance andthat was bad enough.

4. What is your favorite word?

Anything with a hard “ck” sound in the middle.  Monarchical, for example.

5. If you were a type of tree, what would you be?

I would love to be a cherry blossom tree.

6. When you looked in the mirror this morning what was thefirst thing you thought?

Yikes.

7. What shirt are you wearing?

An oversized grey one from my university

8. What do you label yourself as?

Uh, I have many labels I guess? Feminist, queer, empathwould probably be 3 of them

9. Bright room or dark room?

Bright room

10. What were you doing at midnight last night?

Discussing the pros and cons of different forms oflightsaber combat, specifically Forms III (Soresu), IV (Ataru) and V (Shien)with my fiancé Nathaniel (aka @mr-villainous, the asker of these questions)

11. Favorite age you’ve been so far?

This one (19) or maybe when I was juuuust barely 18.

12. Who told you they loved you last?

Nathaniel

13. Your worst enemy?

My mental health problems, let’s be real.

14. What is your current desktop picture?

A picture of a mountain with starry skies behind it, and mylocked desktop background is a picture of the Coruscant skyline

15. Do you like someone?

I may in fact, like like someone. Enough to marry them, infact

16. The last song you listened to?

Sugar Daddy, Original Broadway Cast, from Hedwig and theAngry Inch

17. You can press a button that will make any one personexplode. Who would you blow up?

Steve Bannon, for sure.

18. Who would you really like to just punch in the face?

MY EX

19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it beand what would they have to do?

Not really a fan of answering ~cute questions~ about slaverylmao

20. What is your best physical attribute? (showing saidattribute is optional)

…none? The color ofmy eyes maybe?

21. If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would youlook like and what would you do?

I would look like I do now, but more masc I guess? And Iwould probably bask in the glory of not having massive weights on my chest and thereforethe glory of not having back problems.

22. Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it?

I do not. I don’t even have a non-secret talent. I’m not atalented person.

23. What is one unique thing you’re afraid of?

I’m afraid of most things. Clowns, spiders, most bugsreally.  OH WAIT. Whales.  Whales and deep ocean terrify me.

24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwichingredient known to humankind is at your disposal.

This isn’t a question, so I all I can say is “nice!”

25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it?

Either my next tattoo (Rebel Alliance symbol boiii) or useit to buy Nathaniel the Horizon Zero Dawn game that he’s been salivating overfor months

26. You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere in theworld, but you have to leave immediately. Where are you going to go?

Back home to Portland so I can see Nathaniel lmao

27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetimesupply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says.Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’ssomething you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be?

Oh shit. Uh, that’s hard. I’d want to choose between Midori,Svedka (Orange Creamsicle Flavor), Khalua, or Kraken Spiced Rum.  Probably Kraken.

28. You discover a beautiful island upon which you may buildyour own society. You make the rules. What is the first rule you put intoplace?

Official form of economy and government = democraticsocialism

29. What is your favorite expletive?

Fuck, it’s so versatile

30. Your house is on fire, holy shit! You have just enoughtime to run in there and grab ONE inanimate object. Don’t worry, your lovedones and pets have already made it out safely. So what’s the one thing you’regoing to save from that blazing inferno?

Please do not make me choose this is rude.  I’m going to assume that I’m coming home tothe blaze, which means that I will already have my backpack with my laptop andphone on my person.  I’d have to go withmy box of things/letters I’ve received from Nathaniel.

31. You can erase any horrible experience from your past.What will it be?

When I told my mom I hated her when I was 8.

32. You got kicked out of the country for being atime-traveling heathen who sleeps with celebrities and has super-powers. Butcheck out this cool shit… you can move to anywhere else in the world!

Is this asking me where I would move to? I would go withCanada, lbr. I know its boring bc I live right next to it, but living in Canada= same relative climate, easier for family to visit me, not an entire lifestyleupheaval, plus universal healthcare!

33. The Celestial Gates Of Beyond have opened, much to yoursurprise because you didn’t think such a thing existed. Death appears. As itturns out, Death is actually a pretty cool entity, and happens to be in afantastic mood. Death offers to return the friend/family-member/person/etc. ofyour choice to the living world. Who will you bring back?

I’ve not really experienced death personally yet, except formy paternal grandfather whom I was not close to.  But I think I would say him, because my dadchanged a lot after he passed, and not in many good ways.  If bringing my grandpa back would bring mydad back, I’d like that.

34. What was your last dream about?

Something about Nathaniel and I in the Star Wars universe. Ithink we were having a threesome with “General Kenobi” aged Obi-Wan tbh

35. Are you a good….[insert anything you’d like here]?

The asker of this question was lazy and didn’t specifyanything for this question.

36. Have you ever been admitted to the hospital?

When I was a few weeks old, for massive dehydration.

37. Have you ever built a snowman?

Yes I have

38. What is the color of your socks?

Pink, grey, and purple

39. What type of music do you like?

Indie-pop (The Mowglis, The Wombats), Lo-fi (ElvisDepressedly, Mac DeMarco), Broadway soundtracks, I don’t know what the genre is but female artists that are unapologetic about their sexuality (Melanie Martinez, Lana, Marina and the Diamonds, Nicole Dollanganger) and NineInch Nails as its own untouchable genre.

40. Do you prefer sunrises or sunsets?

Sunrises, I think.

41. What is your favorite milkshake flavor?

Cookies and cream!

42. What football team do you support?

It’s not a question of who I support, its who I don’t.  I refuse to support the Patriots, Steelers,or Saints.

43. Do you have any scars?

Yes, though they’re mainly from self-harm. I have one on theback of my right hand from scratching at it during a panic attack, several onmy left wrist, 2 on my right ankle, and one on my right arm from when I closeda hot oven door on it.

44. What do you want to be when you graduate?

Who knows!!!1!  I’dlove to continue in academia as a professor. But I’d also love to work in a museum. But I’d also like to work at a university providing student support. ButI’d also like to do community activism and service for underprivileged groups,specifically those that have experienced sexual assault and/or relationshipabuse. So, its up in the air at the moment

45. If you could change one thing about yourself, what wouldit be?

My weight. I’d like to be about 30/40 pounds lighter

46. Are you reliable?

Depends on who you ask t b h

47. If you could ask your future self one question, whatwould it be?

What actions do I need to take now to ensure financialstability for myself and the family I am building?

48. Do you hold grudges?

I really try not to, but there are times that I do. They’renot usually petty though. They’re for solid reasons.

49. If you could breed two animals together to defy the lawsof nature, what new animal would you create?

I would create the Beargle. Half bear, half eagle.

50. What is the most unusual conversation you’ve ever had?

Someone came into my office and asked if we had a Furry Clubon campus, so.

51. Are you a good liar?

Not really, no

52. How long could you go without talking?

I’ve gone like 4 or 5 days before

53. What has been you worst haircut/style?

When I cut my own hair at age 5

54. Have you ever baked your own cake?

Of course

55. Can you do any accents other than your own?

Lmao no

56. What do you like on your toast?

Just salted butter, sometimes with cinnamon sugar too.

57. What is the last thing you drew a picture of?

Probably a mock up of something event related for work

58. What would be your dream car?

One that doesn’t squeak when it drives like my current one.

59. Do you sing in the shower? Or do anything unusual in theshower? Explain.

I sing Broadway showtunes in the shower when I’m home alone

60. Do you believe in aliens?

I believe in forms of life that we haven’t yet discovered.

61. Do you often read your horoscope?

When someone shows it to me lmao

62. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet?

N, I think. Or C.

63. Which is cooler: dinosaurs or dragons?

Dragons tbh.

64. What do you think about babies?

Sketchy on ones that belong to other people, really reallywanting my own with Nathaniel

65. Freebie! Ask anything interesting you can think of.

Again, Nathaniel was lazy and didn’t specify anything in hisask.

#mr-villainous #ask #questions

[backseatstorytime]

1/29/2016, 1:14pm – country.

Names, dates, times, and specific details have been modified to protect my riders’ privacy. If you have reason to believe that your story is being told and you’d prefer it not to be shared, please message me and I’ll be more than happy to take it down.

For those who don't know me personally, I'm really big on music. I play a few different instruments, I write music, I've jumped from genre to genre over the years, and I've come to really appreciate all kinds of music. Any time someone gives me something to listen to, I listen to it the whole way through. I'm always open to learning about new music, learning to play new music, and just expanding my repertoire. Music was my first love, and nothing has changed.

I don't really have a particular go-to driving playlist. Often times, I just play what I feel. Sometimes I'll have a Queen playlist going; other times, I'll have showtunes. While I'm on the clock, I avoid anything particularly harsh or offensive, so I avoid music with shrill screaming or songs about "bitches and weed," so to speak. That means normally, I don't have a lot of rap or hardcore metal. I tend to learn towards the chill side of music, learning towards mellow beats, acoustic sounds, things that are more relaxing than anything else. That also means that normally I opt not to throw on something like Animals as Leaders.

Lately, you'll find me listening to two different playlists: my showtunes playlist or my Chance the Rapper playlist. A close friend of mine had recently shown me a song from the new Broadway musical Dear Evan Hansen called "Waiting Through a Window". I was in love from the get-go, and I built a playlist around that sort of uplifting, pop-driven musical theatre style. On the other hand, I've also been on an on-and-off Chance the Rapper binge. I think it's safe to say that he was my favorite artist of 2016, and I still haven't fallen off the wagon. I keep finding myself coming back to his album Coloring Book or his work on Donnie Trumpet Nico Segal and the Social Experiment's project Surf. On top of that, I also picked up Telefone, the album by Noname Gypsy, who's been featured on a few of Chance's songs. It's got similar vibes and it falls in the mellow side of hip hop that I've been really enjoying recently, so I've got a bunch of Chance and Noname on the same playlist.

Last Sunday, I put the latter playlist on. I drove around Burbank around noon, and Chance filled the air in the car. I made a pickup on a corner by a cafe. In came a young guy named Rommel.

Rommel was almost the perfect image of the millennial stereotype—early 20s, contemporarily dressed and accessorized, sporting round-framed, half-rimless glasses, earphones, and his cafe work uniform in hand. The second he sat down, he pulled out his phone. There's nothing inherently wrong with any of that; speaking as a millennial as well, it's the norm of our generation.

I didn't really gauge much of a conversation incoming, so I let the music fill the air. The song switched from Noname's "Diddy Bop" to "Wanna Be Cool" by The Social Experiment, which featured Chance pretty prominently.

"Hey, man, I'm pretty into Chance, too," Rommel said from the backseat.

"Oh, for real?" "Yeah man, Chance is pretty good. I like a lot of the stuff he comes out with. My brother's way more into him than I am, but I dig his stuff."

"That's awesome, man," I began. "I was actually having a hard time figuring out what to play in the car today, but I settled on Chance." "I know what you mean," Rommel laughed, "I listen to a bunch of different kinds of music so it can get pretty hard to decide sometimes."

"Same here man, I'm all over the map. I've been listening to a lot of weird stuff lately." "Oh for real? Try me."

I'm always a little overconfident in my music knowledge. More often than not, I do it in hopes of being wrong so I learn something new, but I find some satisfaction in being right.

"How about 'Tennessee Whiskey' by Chris Stapleton?" "...Alright, you got me there."

Country was the last thing I expected from the African American twenty-something sitting in my backseat. California doesn't have a heavy country music scene, at least not one I'm familiar with, nor one that I'm aware of at all. I can probably count on one hand the number of people I know that regularly listen to and enjoy country. And at that point I only really appreciated the genre, but I never actively sought it out.

"I know, man, usually I don't bang country either, but my roommate sent this to me and said, 'You're gonna call me the whitest dude ever but just listen to this,' and I got into it!"

Rommel was living with a roommate, working two jobs and making a living for himself while devoting the rest of his time making music. I thought I was big on music discovery and learning about new music until Rommel told me that he would toss on whatever random playlist Spotify would throw at him and listen to it the whole way through. "Sometimes it's hit, sometimes it's miss, but it's worth it when you find those really good songs like these."

Once we hit a red light, I opened up Spotify to play the song.

Right from the get-go with the walk up into the sweet guitar solo in 3/4 time, it hit me. My head impulsively reeled back, matching the song's cadence and dropping down on the next downbeat. My eyes closed and rolled back into my head for a moment as my eyebrows furrowed ever so slightly and as I mouthed a silent "ooooh". I was swaying, and before I could even get a word in, Rommel already had a smile on and hit me with "Right? It's good!"

He wasn't kidding. I'm not sure what your stance is on country music, but I don't actively seek it out. The music itself doesn't elicit a reaction from me, but it's the lyrics in particularly evocative country songs that get me. This was a song in which the music hit me right off the bat and where the lyrics got me not long after. By whatever unspoken standard I hold my music to, this lived up to it.

I let the playlist run as we kept talking about country. Rommel brought up something that changed the way I viewed country music.

"I've been noticing it a lot the more I listened to country, but country and hip hop have a lot of similarities."

I was pretty surprised by this hearing it initially, but after the sweet surprise of "Tennessee Whiskey," I was prepared and even anticipating to hear what he had to say about it.

"I mean, think about it. They both have those similar moments. You listen to the subject matter that rapper rap about: drugs, money, expensive shit, 'bitches,' common themes in the rap game. It's not all that far off in country music, either—country singers will sing about their booze, their bars, their pick up trucks, their girls in daisy dukes... it might not all line up the same way, but there's a bigger overlap than most people really notice. And both of them have some really cheesy songs. You've got all these songs in rap with crazy metaphors, like "Broccoli" or, like... "Panda," you know? Country's got a lot of cheesy shit like that, too, like..."

While he was talking about this, "That's Why God Made a Front Porch" was playing on Spotify. "Like this song, right?" I asked him.

"Yeah man, like this song!" he laughed.

We were both laughing as we neared his stop. He thanked me for the trip and said "Hope we cross paths again, man."

That was my last trip for the day; it was a good point to call it. The whole way home, I let the random country music playlist play and I found some really awesome music.

It's really funny thinking about it. Bo Burnham recently ripped on country music in his latest comedy special, and as far as I could tell at the time without really knowing country music, it seemed accurate enough. Peering from an outside perspective, country music as a whole seemed a lot like pickup trucks, whiskey, and resonator guitars playing simple chords with violins riffing in the back. But thinking about hip hop in the same way, from what it may sound like to someone that doesn't listen to it, hip hop just seems like girls, drugs, lavish spending, and deep bass hits behind either sampled hits or generic synth melodies with people in the background yelling "HEY". They both have their moments that perpetuate the stereotype, but they have some absolutely solid moments hidden underneath all the generic-colored variety.

At the end of the day, every genre has its gems hidden beneath a lot of plastic. That's why I don't have a particular favorite genre or a particular favorite band—there's too much good in every genre to really narrow down one thing I like best. And it's fine if you've found the one or two or few things that resonate with you deeply. There's no wrong answer in the realm of music; if there were, we wouldn't have jazz and... well, most music today. All that matters is that you've found something that elicits a positive response. Music is magical, after all. I think it's one of the few things in life that's truly universal. Whatever you enjoy, whether it's top 40 pop music or NWOBHM, play on. Don't be afraid to try new things; you might like something you didn't think you would.

As always, thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time.

#lyft #uber #ride #rideshare #rides #driver #driving #life #stories #uber stories #lyft stories #backseat storytime #backseatstorytime #music #hip hop #rap #country #country music

[newmusicmonthly]

2017

Hello,

It has been a whole year without a monthly mailer, hence this now being a yearly mailer.

I hope you’ve all had a great year (and that said monthly mailer hasn’t been missed too much… or has it?).

Anyway, below are my top ten picks of the year, plus my five track picks per month for the whole year (which I have sequenced and arranged roughly chronologically, for your listening pleasure, and because I like lists).

Normal monthly service will hopefully be resumed next year.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year, Roger

TOP 10 TRACKS

LCD Soundsystem – how do you sleep?

The Killers – The Man

Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Anthem for No State (Pt.I-III)

The War On Drugs – Pain

The Horrors – Something To Remember Me By

Spoon – Whisperi’lllistentohearit

The Orange Drop – The Curse of Kukaka

Endless Boogie – Back in ‘74

Chris Forsyth – Have We Mistaken the Bottle for the Whiskey Inside

Ron Gallo – Young Lady, You’re Scaring Me

TOP 10 ALBUMS

LCD Soundsystem – american dream

The Horrors – V

Endless Boogie – Vibe Killer

The Orange Drop – Stoned In Love

The War On Drugs – A Deeper Understanding

Mount Eerie – A Crow Looked at Me

Broken Social Scene – Hug Of Thunder

Michael Nau – Some Twist

Boubacar Tarore – Dounia Tabolo

Richard Dawson – Peasant

Special mention to the best compilation of the year, Various Artists – Wayfaring Strangers: Acid Nightmares

TOP 10 GIGS

31/10/17 – Godspeed You! Black Emperor, The Troxy, London

16/03/17 – Glass Animals, Brixton Academy, London

29/10/17 – The Horrors, KOKO, London

09/12/17 – Marilyn Manson, Wembley Arena, London

01/09/17 – Interpol, Alexandra Palace, London

04/11/17 – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Brixton Academy, London

17/06/17 – The Stone Roses, Wembley Stadium, London

11/02/17 – Matthew Logan Vasquez, Islington Assembly Hall, London

13/06/17 – Prophets of Rage, Brixton Academy, London

26/09/17 – Kirin J. Callinan, Hoxton Bar And Grill, London

Special mention to the best festival of the year, quite clearly Glastonbury.

NEW MUSIC 2017

The Orange Drop – The Curse of Kukaka Strictly speaking this was released late last year; an exemplary psych wig-out.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Nuclear Fusion Ever wondered what people mean by playing behind the beat? Well you can hear the two drummers play both behind and in front of the beat… in the same song! Mentally groovy!

Dead Horse One – Insight Again, released at the end of last year; a wonderful droning compressed psych embrace.

Miles Mosley – Abraham Man alive this band have chops, a fantastic piano-led soul/funk work-out.

Small Feet – A Winter Coat On Bare Bones I think Stockholm band-leader Simon is special singer/song-writer somewhat reminiscent of Neil Young; a song for lonely winter walks.

Loyle Carner – The Isle Of Arran Great rapper, inspiring lyrics, awesome performer, and one of the best samples all year; nuff said.

Sinkane – Telephone Subtle this is not; big dance grooves.

Ron Gallo – Young Lady, You’re Scaring Me Part White Stripes, part Two Gallants, part Rival Sons,; all rock n roll!

Tinariwen – Sastanaqqam The elder masters of ‘desert’ blues always hit the spot.

Strand of Oaks – Everything Punchy boisterous rock, with a few Elvis/Josh Homme ‘Huhs!’ thrown in for good measure.

All Them Witches – 3-5-7 Love this band; rolling heavy stoner rock grooves.

Chicos de Nazca – Never Ends Even woozier than the above, sun washed tequila haze guitars abound.

Great Ytene – Locus Post punk but also four to the floor rock, interspersed with, and descending into, gnawing nervous, and bordering on atonal, washes.

Cameron Avery – C’est Toi Crooning ‘standards’ love song authentically made modern; big baritonevoice, strings and cinematic appeal aplenty.

W.H. Lung – Inspiration! This is a stellar find, coming across as a mix up of Neu!, Talking Heads and Hookworms, exceptional!

Spoon – WhisperI’lllistentohearit Really good album but it is the propulsive drumming which is absolutely stand-out brilliant on this track.

Tamikrest – Wainan Adobat New masters of ‘desert’ blues in my opinion, this is a great up-tempo number.

Mount Eerie – Ravens One of the most difficult and most emotionally affecting songs I’ve ever listened to. Painfully sad and personal, as real as a portrayal of grief as I can imagine.

British Sea Power – Praise For Whatever A tale of two songs in one, with the first half given to atypical British Sea Power songwriting, before mid-way through out stomps an enormous bass lead groove wig out.

The Black Angels – Half Believing Modern psych kings back on form with this menacing yet mournful track.

Betrayers – Belong Here Raga No idea how I found this, but it’s a chugging bluesy number, although not sure it qualifies as a raga.

Matthew Logan Vasquez – Same Stomping, grooving funk soul rock.

Jane Weaver – Did You See Butterflies? Jane laying down those now trademark motorik bass and beats and ethereal vocals, this time concerned with butterflies.

Thurston Moore – Exalted A slowly unfurling melodic opening gives way to some molten guitar workout, before some almighty build and release crashes, and then comes the vocals; immense.

Ho99o9 – United States Of Horror Speaking of immense, these guys are fucking awesome; turn it up to 11, atop spitfire politically charged lyrics, but unlike anything else out there.

Endless Boogie – Back in ‘74 Boogie-tastic with perhaps my favourite lyrics of the year about a kite flying contest at a Kiss concert in 1974.

Pumarosa – Red Beautiful vocals float above a glorious melody and some seriously tight grooves.

Aldous Harding – Blend Sparse, confessional sounding, but altogether quite beautiful.

Minotaurs – Hipswinger Now I know I go on about grooves, but seriously, this is just groove-tastic, when it drops around 0:55, I mean, hell yeah I’m gonna swing my hips; with added brass.

Richard Dawson – Weaver This is a very unique album; it is a concept album, I’ll say no more; this was the track I returned to most often.

Hey Colossus – In A Collision Chugging rock which also manages to sound ominous and delicate at the same time.

Floating Points – Kelso Dunes Ambient instrumental post rock that really taps into a driving motoric groove, that borders on space rock!

B Boys – B Boys Anthem Arty, brash, tight rock song barely over a minute

Michael Nau – Good Thing The sound of this album is a joy, with warm tones and an obvious hiss akin to old records; this track is the most lovely of the lot.

Peter Perret – Living In My Head This is real climbing up the walls, in your head, blues-esque stuff; how Peter Perret has come back from the brink to deliver this kind of great music is anyone’s guess.

Broken Social Scene – Vanity Pail Kids Industrial pounding opening and a soaring indie chorus.

Holy Fuck – Chains Oh Holy Fuck; this is scary techno, which piles on the layers of noise and pounding beats until your ears bleed; it has it’s time and place, but I love it.

Public Service Broadcasting – The Pit Top band, with another great idea for an album; battle like drums and swelling guitar swirls and strings.

Dan Croll – Tokyo Classy pop song-writing with an absolute earworm of a motif.

Jesus on Heroine – Neu!comers A glorious bed of guitars and gentle swells.

Kacy & Clayton – The Light of Day Some 70s folk sounds, bordering on country vocals, warm yet clear.

Chris Forsyth – Have We Mistaken the Bottle for the Whiskey Inside There is that groove; reminds me a bit of a favourite from last year, The Wave Pictures, in the instrumentation, except this has more drawl.

LCD Soundsystem – how do you sleep? So fucking good; the definitive 101 on how to create a build in a song; ominous percussion, unnerving strings, savagely brilliant lyrics (perhaps a touch Bono-esque), which has drop after drop as each instrument is introduced, building to the brilliant titular pay-off; my only gripe is that James didn’t fucking play it live!!!

The Horrors – Something To Remember Me By Great band, great album, and an absolute banger.

The War On Drugs – Pain Guitar solos; hummable, glorious, soaring guitar solos.

The Killers – The Man This is the best song of the year (except LCD obviously); a groovalicious squelchy lyrical monster; it’s USDA certified lean!

Thee Oh Sees – Animated Violence The heaviest Thee Oh Sees (or whatever they’re calling themselves these days) have ever been; a giant slab of heavy sludge interspersed with bizarre guitar arpeggios.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Anthem for No State, Pt.III I consider myself lucky to be here at a time I can see Godspeed play live; they are truly peerless. This best track from their latest album comes across like an apocalyptic mariachi song, with strings, guitars, drums, building to a trademark cacophony before the subtle transition at 6:20 which carries you away; beautiful, mournful noise.

Neil Young – Captain Kennedy Not strictly new music, but from the unreleased ‘Hitchhiker’ album released earlier this year, this is Neil at his folky acoustic best.

Juju – And Play A Game A bizarre but wonderful song built upon one repetitive bass line, which literally has about a dozen genres stuffed in it; stick with it though, and from roughly 2 minutes in it is motorik gold.

Marilyn Manson – SAY10 Manson doing what Manson does best; that chorus is one of the hookiest things I’ve heard all year, and the guitars sound absolutely on point, just the right about of crunch.

St. Vincent – Smoking Section I think of this as Annie’s broadway showtune of sorts, like ‘A Man Needs A Maid’, but it’s more than that, it’s personal, mournful, and yes theatrical, but also has a wonderful send off.

Courtney Barnett, Kurt Vile – Fear Is Like a Forest Much as I struggle with Courtney’s vocal delivery, she does sound great here, and with Kurt layering on the Crazy Horse guitars, it’s just a great track.

Curtis Harding – Ghost Of You Smoky soul and grooves.

New Candys – Tempera Reverb?! Can we get anymore reverb?! Solid psych under 3 minutes!

Baxter Dury – Miami Perhaps the best bassline of the year, slinky and disgusting at the same time, with the lyrics to match depicting a grotesque character amped up to 11, but absolutely delicious.

Baltic Fleet – A la Mortal I have a penchant for crescendo focused instrumental ambient rock, which is exactly what this is.

Pete International Airport – Flowers Of Evil Languid grooves buried beneath ambient textures and Robert Levon Been’s (of BRMC fame) trademark sing/sneer, but transitions into a gentle and quite beautiful outro.

Pretty Lightning – The Rhythm Of Ooze With a distinct whiff of Archie Bronson Outfit, this takes a blues riff and pushes it to the max.

Boubacar Traore – Dis lui que je l’aime comme mon pays Absolutely fantastic acoustic blues from the legendary Malian bluesman; it’s the same progressions and structures but with a vital energy and magnificent instrumental interplay which is as rousing as it is impressive.

#2017 #best of 2017 #new music 2017 #best music 2017 #psych rock #alternative music #rock music #top music 2017