How To Ease Through The New Cobweb Summer
Switching to music from another profession isn’t as easy as summer turning into another season
Ok, it is getting quite cold in the Western Hemisphere at the moment and the lazy, languid summer Kurt Wagner and his Lambchop are talking about in ‘The New Cobweb Summer’ has been just a memory for a while now.
It took Wagner quite a turn to be able to transform himself from a carpenter and somebody laying floors around Nashville into the fully-fledged artist, musician, songwriter, singer, and poet that he is now. Oh, and somebody who is, along with his revolving musical collective is Lambchop moving the boundaries between musical genres.
As you can imagine, not that many artists were able to do that, at least not that well, but, in the end, real and true talent, whether you are creating excellent original music or doing imaginative covers (in Wagner’s case, both), has to shine through.
Ox - Aerostar
Whether Mark Browning, the songwriter for Canadian band Ox holding his tong behind his cheek when he gave the band’s upcoming album the title ‘KTEL,’ as in that all-around the genre generic record label, or something else was in question, maybe this single from the album holds a clue.
Teresa Winter - Flower Of The Mountain
Neo-classical music seems to be more accessible to a wider audience these days, so it is no wonder that Leeds-based composer Teresa Winter has chosen that direction too. For a good reason at that, judging by this one.
Morrr - Riptide
Morrr is Italian musician Dario Gatto, who likes his nineties sounds akin to Bark Psychosis and Flying Saucer Attack but seems to have given that sound some current musical touches along the way
Sarah Jarosz - When The Lights Go Out
Jarosz has four Grammys behind her belt and is quite a name among the fans of roots/Americana music, and this easy-flowing new single with light soul touches shows exactly why.
Catholic Guilt - Can You See Me?
This Melbourne quintet is like their indie-style rock with a lot of guitars and rushing vocals. It is an already tried and true recipe, but Catholic Guilt should definitely have no guilt about it, it suits them well.
Emma Zander - Not a Fairytale
Some would say that Zander has that Lana Del Ray-patented cinematic pop sound, but the thing is it is good enough to get a response - well, that is a good thing.
Mereki - Twin Flame
It took Mereki seven years and three continents to come up with her debut album released earlier this year, but it was an excellent effort, as this single testifies to that fact.
Rachel Goswell - Tic Tac
Slowdive came up with an excellent return album this year, but the band’s singer Rachel Goswell was in an extra creative mood, as this collaboration with Pete International Airport (Peter G. Holmstrom of Dandy Warhols) testifies.
Dave Mason & Joe Bonamassa - Dear Mr. Fantasy
An ‘old’ and a ‘new’ classic artist join forces on Mason’s classic song that simply does not get old, of course, when it is in the hands of the song’s composer and a blues guitar master.
Jake Stone - Late Nights
Another Melbourne musician, this one likes his songs in a lighter musical mode but with an interesting attitude to break up. As he says: “A big element of the song is this need for victory after a breakup; someone who comes out better off and seems to move on too quickly.”
UTO - Zombie
French duo Zombie likes their electronic music to drift away from some set standards, bringing in elements of more experimental artists like Sonic Youth and Stereolab, turning this one into an intriguing effort.
Noemi Buchi - Gene Transfer
Buchi is a Swiss artist who likes his music on a more avant-garde, experimental side of things, but at the same time not creating music just for the initiated few. Interesting.
ROWSIE: Fertile Fields
This London band like their sounds to be more conventional, but also quite melodic and rocking, and they do it so well, that you don’t care where to categorize them.
TTSSFU - Jed
When they say dream pop, they don’t mention that dreams can have dark overtones too, and Manchester’s Tasmin Stephens, aka TTSSFU shows what dark dream pop should sound like when done right.
Leon Frear - Secret Second Moon
Chicago’s Frear is a seasoned musician and you can hear that not only through his weathered voice but through the assured melody lines and playing, showing that those seasons in music were spent well.
Ron Gallo - I Love Someone Buried Deep Inside of You
Ron Gallo’s ‘Foreground Music’ did not make many best-of-the-year album lists, but maybe it should have, as this song from it shows why it should have at least been considered.
mmeadows - Friendship (acoustic)
New York duo rework one of their own in an acoustic manner here, and point to some excellent vocals and subdued guitar work that make it at least as good as the original version.
Shy Carter & Frank Ray - Jesus At The Taco Truck
An intriguing combination between a hip-hop artist (Carter) and a Mexican-American country singer (Ray) in this all-acoustic affair that works.
Lindsay Lomis - Handle With Care
Being signed to a big record label as a teenager can be a heavy load, but whether it was heavy or not for Lomis, we might not find out, as she surely makes good here.
Mark Thackway - Into The Light
This is from Thackway’s solo debut EP, but the Toronto musician has been around for a while, and you can feel that through his quite assured playing and singing here.