FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/intimatedream

The Minnesota based outfit Intimate Dream isn’t bad, but they are just a little bit disjointed across this EP. The 6 songs hop genres a little too much for their own good, leaving an entertaining collection of music that would benefit from being one thing as opposed to many. Still, what’s included is listenable enough with stirring guitar work all throughout.

The title track is an alright introduction, but it is by far the least dynamic and most plaintive number on the recording. It’s a standard, radio friendly tune with electric/acoustic textures and the obligatory chorus. Even the subject matter, which centers on pining for a girl out of reach, hardly raises the flag about the “standard fare” level. Thankfully, this so/so piece is offset by the explosive “In Your Head.” Vocalist/guitarist Hugh Faulds borderlines his vocals on a near shout here with the entire band falling his lead; the guitars ignite with an overload of fireworks, the drummer spices up the material in a volley of snare fills and the bassist practices his best alley cat slink. There’s a crunch to this material that would have suited it as a better as an opener than the one chosen.

URL: https://www.jupiterinvelvet.com/

If you want to hear the envelope pushed in terms of what rock music can be, one man band Jupiter in Velvet aims to please on The World Didn’t with U. It’s hard to believe this is the work of a single player, because there is so much going on it sounds like a quartet or quintet is ripping it full blast.

Sounds Like: Brett Dennen, Damien Rice, John Mayer, Timmy Curran, Mason Jennings, Matt White, David Gray

URL: https://shanescheib.com/

Shane Scheib is an American/Nashville based singer-songwriter. His latest 6 Track EP “Fast Friends” is an original blender of sound mixing artists like , Timmy Curran, Mason Jennings, Matt White and David Gray, with just a dash of Gavin DeGraw. On this CD expect a heart plucking pop/rock staple that fuses folk and contemporary songwriting with soulful melodies and subject matter. All songs touch on all styles, fusing many amazing genres with each song. I can even hear elements of Americana, Blues and alt-rock. This latest 5 track offering is a pop-rock 5 track wp/album that gleefully dances up and down the spectrum of all of the aforementioned styles.

URL: https://oogeewawa.com/

These guys are putting us on a little and it’s all good. Oogee Wawa would like for you to believe that they are about have good times and spreading positive energy through their music and that’s certainly true. They never claim that’s all they do, but their album More Sand than Money clearly reveals the Long Island based four piece as far more sophisticated musicians and players than they trumpet. It’s part of their appeal and manifests itself in assorted ways throughout the album’s 12 tracks. These aren’t sullen virtuoso musicians or impassioned social critics. The songs are unvarnished glimpses into their lives and draw from the comedic and serious alike in varying amounts. There’s also tremendous character that comes through in their music and lyrics. Few tracks embody like the opener “Let It Out”. Oogee Wawa contrasts full-time stresses of balancing “real life” obligations with the life of a professional musician and finds that the heart ache, worry, and disappointments are worth it when it’s time to go onstage. The reggae influence is strong, but the musicians infuse it with a rock bite. They turn to much more melodic fare on the second track, “Pretty”, one of the album’s earliest examples of the band’s songwriting potential. The song’s ability to give listeners a multi-dimensional speaker and meaningful lyrical content over a much more traditional reggae track is quite impressive. “More Sand than Money” follows the melodic path of its predecessor and peaks with an instantly memorable chorus, but other elements stand out. The biting guitar fills and fluid rhythm section playing make all things possible here and the vocal tops it off superbly.

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/RONLSHOUSE 

The son of Ronald Smith, a founding member and horn player with disco legends KC and the Sunshine Band, scores big with the release of his album The Prince of Sunshine. Ronald Louis Smith II unleashes a dazzling eight song collection that explores an assortment of voices while maintaining a constant tether to a hard-charging, sharply defined dance music aesthetic. Other musical influences exert a hold over his approach and his command of fundamentals strikes an interesting contrast with the album’s glossy, modern production.

URL: https://www.kwamebineashakedown.com/

This outstanding eight-piece assemblage of talent features the songwriting of front man Kwame Binea and one of the band’s two guitarists, Justin Wilcox. The remaining band may not garner songwriting credits but modern listeners will struggle to find such large collectives of musicians, in any genre, capable of delivering Kwame Binea Shakedown’s dramatic musical punch. The band’s debut, self-titled ep is a polished and passionate reminder that the fearlessness dividing entertainers from artists is clearer than ever before. Kwame Binea commands these four songs with his charismatic and intensely musical singing and the band matches him step for step with a bold fusion of styles.

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/SydneyAlese/479160072184571

Sydney Alese delivers an exciting mix of dance, rock and pop on her infectious debut Time.   For an artist just starting out she has an excellent grasp of the fundamentals. There are enough hooks and beats here to incite a foot movin’, club frenzy while having people singing along at the top of their lungs. Not only is Alese a multi-instrumentalist, but she’s also a great singer that’s really working her voice across the album’s punchy set.