Tag: Conor Donohue

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Artists Worth Checking Out Get it or Forget it indie music Reviews

Get it or forget it – Earthquake Lights, Berlin Taxi, Conor Donohue, Safari Room, Jeffrey Halford and the Healers

Happy New Music Friday!  We hope you had a great week and are getting ready for the weekend.  Here are five albums that dropped today to get  you in the weekend mood.

Artist Name:  Earthquake Lights

Album Name:  Distress Signals

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Jazzy Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Moonlight; 2.  The Eight – One; 3.  May Day; 4.  Friends of Mine; 5.  We Will Never be the Same; 6.  Open Ocean; 7.  This is as Far as you Go; 8.  So Far no Luck; 9.  Transmission; 10.  Were you Listening

Publicist:  Noisy Ghost PR

Review:  Earthquake Lights have a brilliant indie rock sound that they blend with jazz and soul to create their own special blend.  The music goes down smooth and should be a multi-genre hit as it has the flexible to be heard on several different kinds of radio stations.  This is music to chill to, to get ready to and is perfect for daily living mediations and reflection.  This is music that can stay in the background 24-7 and you will never tire of it.  If this is the quality they put into their debut, we can only imagine how great the next one will be.

Recommendation:  Run out and Get this one.

Artist Name:  Berlin Taxi

Album Name:  Contract

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Synth Pop

Track Listing:  1.  Everybody Changes; 2.  Middle Man; 3.  Backroads; 4.  Last Night; 5.  Level with Me

Publicist:  WolfieVibes Publicity

Review:  We introduced  you to Berlin Taxi back in February when we featured their video for “Last Night.”  They were back again in our Ten Great Singles of March with “Everybody Changes.”  Needless to say, we are happy for the chance to hear three more songs from this amazing band, who is taking synth pop to an entirely new level.  Hop on board this retro train, and let’ boogie, especially to those last two tracks.

Recommendation:  Go Get it.

Artist Name:  Conor Donohue

Album Name:  Let Love Contaminate

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Roots Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Let Love Contaminate; 2.  Getting Better; 3.  Conversations; 4.  The Garden; 5.  Lost Weekend; 6.  Hedonist Glow; 7.  Gasoline; 8.  White Noise; 9.  Milk, Blood & Traffic Signals; 10.  Terrified Moon

Publicist:  WolfieVibes Publicity

Review:  Conor Donohue may have been raised on Long Island, but his time in South Carolina and New Orleans has transformed this singer-songwriter into a troubadour of all things roots rock.  You can feel the South Carolina breeze that brought us such treasures as Shovels and Rope and Alabama, and the NOLA influence that sets that sound free.  This album hits the ground running on that title track and never lets us, delivering a album that is great from start to finish and worthy of repeated listens.  Yo can’t go wrong with this one.

Recommendation:  Run out and Get this one!

Artist Name:  Safari Room

Album Name:  OOKO Session (Live)

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Indie Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Glass Box; 2.  Vices; 3.  Around the Bend

Publicist:   Self-promoted

Review:  What sets this indie record apart from its peers is the simultaneous release of both audio and video versions of each song.   The band recorded these songs live to show their growth as artists, and to spotlight one song from each of their prior releases.  Recording live is a gutsy move because playing the songs acoustically often reveals flaws in the songs themselves.  Thank goodness there are no such flaws in these three gems, and this band shows that their live performance is just as good as what they do in the studio.  We think you’ll want to hear these three songs on repeat.  Our only critique is that the vocals need a little more punch so they stay on top of the instrumentals.  All in all, this is a worthy effort.

Recommendation:  Grab this one today.

Artist Name:  Jeffrey Halford & the Healers

Album Name:  West Towards South

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Americana

Track Listing:  1.  West Toward South; 2.  Deeper Than Hell; 3.  Dead Man’s Hand; 4.  Willa Jean; 5.  Three-Quarter Moon; 6.  A Town Called Slow; 7.  Sea of Cortez; 8.  Gallows; 9.  Geronimo; 10.  Ballad of Ambrose and Cyrus

Publicist:  Miles High Productions

Review:  Jeffrey Halford & the Healers have long been a favorite of this blog, having earned two LA Music Critic Award nominations (Best CD Group and Best Roots/Americana Band) for the first half of 2017.  They’re back with their latest offering, West Towards South, and they just pick up where they left off.  The title track is done spoken word style, reminiscent of Shawn Mullins‘ “Lullaby.”  Halford returns to his singing on “Deeper Than Hell,” providing perfect rhymes that paint vivid word pictures over an electrifying musical soundscape.  If Americana music is your thing and you love an artist that can create memorable stories, then Jeffrey Halford & the Healers belong at the top of your list.

Recommendation:  This one is a must for your collection – run out and Get it.

 

 

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Artists Worth Checking Out indie music Ten Great Singles Women in Entertainment

Ten great singles released in March 2019

March continued to show an influx in the release of singles, and we received more than 300 requests.  After posting 20 of them in our four Monday Mashup articles, we have combed through the rest of the submissions to pick the best 10, and present them to you now to close the book on March.

Our first single is the latest from Americana stalwarts Jangling Sparrows.  This Asheville, NC based band has consistently given us great music, and their latest single, “Estuaries,” is one of their best, with its strong roots rock feel.  Let us know what you think.

Next up is a young singer-songwriter from NYC with a golden voice and the amazing ability to melt your heart with his lyrics.  Check out Dante Palminteri and his latest single, “Miles Away.”

For single number three we travel to New Orleans for the Euro-based synthpop sound of Berlin Taxi.  This one will bring back a ton of memories because it sounds so familiar yet fresh.  Check out “Everybody Changes.”

Our fourth single is sweetness in song from the one and only Kensington Moore.  She melts our heart with her story of love lost, a topic we can all relate to, and does it with some of the hottest pop beats we have heard.  Don’t worry Kensington – you’ll never hear us say “I Don’t Like you Anymore.”

Next up is an up and coming songwriter from Hong Kong who has a distinctive rock and R&B sound and a keen approach to songwriting.  We love the chill feel of her single “The Ride,” and think that DBE definitely has a future in this business.

We kick off the second five with a dreamy pop song from London’s DAYLA.  We love the way this one makes us feel, and think you will love it as well.  Here’s “Closer,” her debut single.

Next up is an iconic duo from Torrance, California who possess that rare gift – familial harmonies.  Sisters Aly and AJ Michalka will steal your heart and take you to “Church” on their latest.  Don’t miss the chance to catch them on tour this summer.

Single number eight is a folk-pop song that belongs on the radio.  The vocals drip honey and the musical accompaniment will have you relaxed in no time at all.  Here’s Aussie Josh Alexander and his latest single, “Closing.”

Is it the 80s again?  No, but that decade definitely influenced the sound of Sweden’s Cat Princess, and you can hear it on their latest single, “Silver Socks.”

We close out this edition with the rocking roots sound of Conor Donohue and his single, “Getting Better,” off his forthcoming album Let Love Contaminate, which we will be reviewing later this month.

We’ll be back shortly with our Ten Amazing Videos list.