Frank Shiner – Lonely Town
URL: www.frankshiner.com
Frank Shiner’s 2016 album - Lonely Town, Lonely Street is a dedication to some of his favorite artists of the past and present, from an artist with a career in both theater and music. He’s been around the block and so have the people he works with, which includes too much to name here when it comes to producers and writers. He has also released a Christmas cover song to take out 2016 in cerebral fashion.
Django Mack - 100 Page Tattoo
URL: https://www.djangomack.com/
100 Page Tattoo finds Americana band Django Mack returning with the same mix of rough and tumble blues coupled with flashes of real poetry that has distinguished their previous releases. It also shows their songwriting becoming increasingly refined; they achieve the same impact with shorter, more focused songs that might have been longer and more diffuse on prior recordings. The continued sharpening of their presentation sets them apart from similar acts and never sounds ill fitting – Django Mack’s members sound like they have internalized the sound and mood of their songs rather than using nothing but technique to approximate some novice or poseur’s idea of what this musical style should sound like. They are obviously keyed into a particular design for how they should sound – this is further reflected by the production credits shared between lead singer and primary songwriter Brandon Butrick, bassist Tom Donald, and drummer Tim Vaughan.
Ian Bouras - Absence (live looping)
GOOGLE PLAY: https://play.google.com/store/music/album/Ian_C_Bouras_Absence_Live_Looping?id=Bex3w2xn23frcm6kwy2d4gabvxq
Primarily associated with ambient or dub music in his solo career, Ian Bouras’ wide ranging skills set him apart in an era of diminished expectations. Bouras’ latest solo effort, Absence (live looping), certainly embraces an ambient sound with its fixation on surrounding Bouras’ guitar with electronic looping or delay effects. His use of this technology isn’t just shallow gimmickry; instead, it is noticeable, from the first, the added depth and color he brings to his compositions thanks to the tasteful use of those aforementioned technologies. His tenure playing with and writing in bands like New York City’s AñaVañA has honed his melodic strengths to a glittering edge and those talents rise to the fore at numerous points throughout this release, but there are other moments where Bouras is clearly aiming to craft compelling soundscapes that suggest cinematic imagery to listeners while still connecting with them emotionally.
Jonathan Cavier - Blue Room Remix
AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Room-Remix-Jonathan-Cavier/dp/B076SRJTH4
Jonathan Cavier’s 2017 album Blue Room will likely finish out the year surrounded by the same atmosphere greeting its initial release – as one of the year’s best all-around effort regardless of genre. This likelihood, however, doesn’t persuade Cavier to stand pat. Great albums are never finished, only released, and Cavier has opted for revisiting his album in collaboration with engineer Nico Essig for a full remix that casts his sophomore effort in a different light through adding previously unreleased songs, reworking his already fine vocals, and twisting the overall sound in another direction. Essig, with a CV including artists Katy Perry and Paul McCartney, has wreathed Cavier’s material in a robust and thoroughly modern sound that accentuates his musical and vocal strengths. The new material doesn’t upset the original album’s balance but, instead, ratchets up the intensity of the release and allows different sides of Cavier’s musical character to get their day in the sun.
Trevor Drury - Snowy Nights
URL: www.officialtrevordrury.com
“Snowy Nights” might have a wintery theme, but Trevor Drury’s latest single is far from a crass attempt to cash in on the season. Its timely release is, indeed, a bit of shrewd and obvious marketing, but even a single pass through this song should convince even the most jaded of listeners that the track comes from a very personal place for Drury. It doesn’t come through in just his vocal and the songwriting, but in the inviting and warm sound he invests the song with. There’s an unique atmosphere surrounding the recording imbuing his voice and the minimal instrumentation with resounding clarity and a sense of gravitas appropriate to the seriousness he shows taking on the material. It’s a powerful composition in every respect and continues to solidify his rapidly expanding reputation as one of the most promising talents on the modern pop scene.
Valerie Fahren – Say You Love Me
URL: https://www.valeriefahren.com/
As a seasoned Artist Development and Vocal coach, Valarie Fehren has helped a long list of artists succeed for the last two decades, and there is a lot behind that. Fahren is also a singer-songwriter in her own right, with a new single; “Say You Love Me” which showcases her own talents as she continues to grow herself as an artist and music business professional. Fahren has worked with an assortment of artists and stars over the years, such as Edgar Winter, Neil Diamond, Juliette Lewis, and award-winning songwriter-producer Andre Lindal. And her clients have performed with such artists as Chaka Khan, Jessica Simpson and Beck.
Michael Shynes - Cold Day in Hell
SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/michaelshynes/cold-day-in-hell
Minnesota based singer/songwriter Michael Shynes put in a lot of relentless time working at his chosen art before ever committing himself to recording and, since his debut, has carved out a reputation for himself as one of the most complete performers working in modern music today. His preferred mode for performance is clear – “Cold Day in Hell”, his latest single, has a distinctly retro rock influence, particularly with the subtle addition of organ at key points, and is largely carried by a mix of acoustic and electric guitar. The production chores are carried out with all of the skill one can hope for and it gives the performance a high gloss polish that, nevertheless, never dampens its spirit. Despite the suggestive humor of the song, springing in most part from its title, there’s a real sense of moving on in this song that will resonate with any adult listener who has endured a break up or separation.
Cameron Blake - Fear Not
URL: https://www.cameronblakemusic.com/
It’s difficult to not love a noble failure. Cameron Blake’s twelve song opus Fear Not doesn’t trifle with a mandate – this isn’t your typical collection of pop songs chronicling the vagaries of love but, instead, aspires to nothing less but an intimate exploration in song about the emotion fear and how it influences human lives. It’s heady stuff for a pop album, even one like this that certainly reaches far beyond the purview of 4//4 rock and roll or formulaic four minute pop songs. Blake confidently delivers the material, however, and despite a small bevy of influences not typically heard in pop songs, it connects with listeners without much difficulty. His musical training is undoubtedly a big part of his talent, it allows him to shape these emotional vibrant songs with a degree of finesse that furthers his ambitions for the collection. His attempt at making a serious artistic statement with this release is wholly successful; it might not prove easy listening for everyone, but there’s no doubt that he’s hit his presumed target of doing something more with the form than ruing a broken heart or wallowing in self-indulgent despair.