California Dreamin’ on Monday (Monday)
The importance of The Mamas & The Papas should not be neglected
Cold and grey weather is dominating the Northern Hemisphere, and longing for those (breezy) summer days has stepped in a while ago.
One of the songs that has perfectly expressed that longing is, of course, ‘California Dreamin’ by The Mamas & The Papas, a song that, at the same time expressed the mood and culture of the second part of the sixties, but also the need for that eternal, mild summer.
Yet, the influence and importance of The Mamas & The Papas goes beyond that single song. They were one of the key progenitors of what was (and still is) called sunshine pop, with artists coming after that drawing inspiration from them or having the need to reverse the feel and keep it intact at the same time (from their ‘Monday Monday,’ to The Bangles and their ‘Manic Monday’).
S/J, Liv Wallace - Never Win
S/J is one Seth Jude Richard (here joined by Liv Wallace), a guy from Louisiana who switched to Florida and from punk to folky acoustics. All possibly in the search for that eternal summer, judging by this breezy tune.
Dion, Susan Tedeschi - Soul Force
For his part, good, ‘young’ Dion switched from the fifties/early sixties pop/rock to blues and soul, fully reinventing his music, and with the help of Susan Tedeschi here, it seems to suit him perfectly.
Les Big Byrd - Mareld
Up north in Sweden, the summer longing this time around is expressed through some ambient, psych-tinged krautrock by this quartet led by Jocke Ahlund. At its ten minutes or so it is more than a single.
Donna Lewis, Holmes Ives - The Mark
Trip hop is one of those genres (or sub-genres, whatever) that was predicted a short life span, but it keeps on persisting, very often with some excellent results. Platinum songwriter Donna Lewis, here with the help of Holmes Ives proves that.
WILDES - heartbreak is silent
London singer-songwriter cites Patti Smith and PJ Harvey as her core influences. You can go on and search for those here (and probably find them) but, at the same time, she proves that she has her own musical personality.
Two Feet, Ari Abdul - KILL ANYONE
Behind the Two Feet moniker is one Toby Mai, and this one actually introduces a new record label (477), that, judging by Mai’s eclectic style will feature equally eclectic music.
Sarah King - The Longest Night
The Americana scene is very much populated by some excellent artists these days. You can easily add Sarah King to that list, with some excellent soul-tinged songwriting and a distinctive voice.
Diane Coll - I Don’t Know
What applies to Sarah King, can also be said for Diane Coll, whose Americana is a bit folkier, but really tasteful, with this song including some very tasteful quotes of the music that inspired her.
NiCKY - 4frida
There is an abundance of piano music around, with artists often blurring the line between evocative and just muzak. London artist NiCKY, luckily, stays on the right side of that line here,
Ronnie and the Savoys - Domino
With the resurgence of vinyl, along with the full albums, there are some great reissues of singles too, this one originally appearing in 1958, with decades on, it not losing its appeal.
CIRCOLO VIZIOSO - Choppy
A German (Berlin) band with an Italian name (Vicious Circle), expressing their continuous love for The Velvet Underground, and on the evidence of this one, for all the right reasons.
Elvie Shane - What Do I Know
One thing consistent with Nashville is that whether it produces good (country) pop or pap the quality of performance and production never wavers. Luckily for Elvie Shane, he has both songwriting and singing(playing) skills to go along.
Nervous Eaters - Why You Tell’N Me Now
The Nervous Eaters have certainly deserved the title of Boston rock legends and they bring their musical knowledge and experience to the full on this one.
Dana Gavanski - How To Feel Uncomfortable
Gavanski literally lost her voice while recording her previous album but this single for her upcoming album proves that she is back and that she hasn’t lost either her songwriting skills or vocals for that matter.
Pissed Jeans - Moving On
Pissed Jeans didn’t come up with much since 2017, but they seem to have recuperated the energy needed for this kind of jangly pop punk, particularly if they want to recreate this kind of stuff live.
Erika Angell - Dress Of Stillness
Shimmering is a word often used in describing music for all the wrong reasons. Yet in the case of Erika Angell and this piece from her upcoming album, that description fully fits.
Sofi Paez - Por que
The piano coda and Sofi Paez's exquisite, soft vocals and a perfect introduction not only to this promising artist but also show why she is the first signing to Ólafur Arnalds’ newly launched venture OPIA Community - a traveling music festival, label, and community hub.
Careen - Last Winter
All the way from Washington Careen revives all the good parts of the nineties alternative rock and with some good contrasts between musical ice and fire.
Aaron Lee Tasjan - Horror Of It All
Tasjan has been around for a while, but a bit quiet recently, possibly wanting to come up with something good, and judging by this slice from his upcoming album, he did good.
Nailah Hunter - Bleed
Composer, harpist, multi-instrumentalist, and vocalist Nailah Hunter already has rave reviews, and judging from this track from her new album she truly deserves that ‘multi’ tag.