It’s been a very strange day here in Montana. We’ve gone from rain to snow and back to rain again, as winter continues its relentless quest for domination At least it will never overcome the power of music, and we have five very different artists for your review today.
Artist Name: Aqualung
Album Name: Additional Futures
Label: AllPoints
Genre: Indie
Track Listing: 1, All she Wore, she Was; 2. Complicated; 3. Fingermouse; 4. Use Me; 5. Blues
Publicist: Practise Music
Review: Until last month, we hadn’t heard from Matt Hales aka Aqualung since we last saw him perform at the RockDrive 2010 fundraiser at The Troubadour in Los Angeles. We got the chance to hear him again when we featured his song “Complicated” in one of our February Monday Mashups. As we mentioned then, “Complicated” is an amazing song and a true indication of the greatness that is Aqualung and what you will find in the five songs of Additional Futures, the EP sequel to his 2015 album 10 Futures. Every one of them is amazing, and this EP definitely deserves to be played on repeat. So glad to have Aqualung back 🙂
Recommendation: Definitely Get this one!
Artist Name: Marlene Oak
Album Name: Silver Moon
Label: Amuse
Genre: Folk
Track Listing: 1. Silver Moon; 2. How can I Move On; 3. In the Evening; 4. Everyone; 5. Come Home
Publicist: Effective Immediately PR
Review: We introduced you to Sweden’s own Marlene Oak back in early December when we featured her single, “In the Evening.” We also featured the live video of that single in our final Monday Mashup of 2018. To say we love that song would be an understatement, and our affection bubbles over to the other four songs on this EP. We really love the horns on the title track and “Come Home.” Oak is a treasure to her native Sweden, and we would like to share in her amazing talent here in the States. Listen to this one a few times, and we think you’ll wholeheartedly agree with our assessment.
Recommendation: Run and Get it.
Artist Name: Tony Monaco
Album Name: The Definition of Insanity
Label: Chicken Coup/Summit Records
Genre: Jazz
Track Listing: 1. Cars Trucks Buses; 2. Ceora; 3. Root Down; 4. Never Let me Go; 5. Quando Quando Quando; 6. Non Ti Scordar Di Me; 7. Awa Athar; 8. Last Date; 9. Truckin’; 10. Triste; 11. A Son for You
Publicist: Mouthpiece Music
Review: There is nothing like the sound of progressive jazz, especially when the sound includes the Hammond B3. Tony Monaco has developed a reputation as a Master of the B3, and he pulls out all the stops on this album, an eclectic mix of songs written by others. Amazingly, all of this great music comes from only a trio of musicians, albeit they are three of the best in the world, including guitarist Derek Dicenzo and drummer Tony McClung. Monaco’s wife Asako, a gifted pianist in her own right, also contributes her talents to “Never Let me Go” while Monaco contributes his vocals. This is truly a class act.
Recommendation: Definitely Get this one if you love jazz.
Artist Name: Saneit
Album Name: Crush
Label: Self-released
Genre: R&B
Track Listing: 1. Sprung; 2. One Desire; 3. I’m Your Baby Tonight (remix); 4. Candy Store; 5. I Said So; 6. Sprung Remix
Publicist: Shannon Brown
Review: Saneit is one of Chicago’s most promising artist, a rising R&B star that shines brightly with her soaring vocals and her perfect understanding and mastery of this genre. She is a voice that sounds fresh yet familiar, and you are probably thinking she definitely belongs on the radio. We couldn’t agree more. Enjoy these tunes and hopefully she’ll be back soon with more candy. So glad that she has a Crush on us.
Recommendation: Definitely worth checking out, especially if you’re into urban/R&B.
Artist Name: My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult
Album Name: In the House of Strange Affairs
Label: SleazeBox Records
Genre: Industrial/Electronic Rock
Track Listing: 1. Gold to Grey; 2. Forbidden Saints; 3. Treat Street; 4. The Chains of Fame; 5. Strange Affairs; 6. It’s me Holly; 7. Studio 21; 8. Year of the Klown; 9. Royal Skull; 10. Hanging Hearts; 11. Under a Crown; 12. Am I Dead
Publicist: TAG Publicity
Review: My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult (TKK) sprang from Chicago’s Wax Trax! Records and helped spawn the industrial music scene, along with label mates Front 242, Ministry and KMFDM. We had the wonderful opportunity to learn all about them at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival screening of Industrial Accident: The Story of Wax Trax! Records. The music of TKK has continued to evolve, and today they are more closely attuned to electronic rock, a genre heavily influenced by disco and funk which includes spoken word samples from a variety of B movies. Their music has been praised and used in countless movies due to the amazing cinematic style. Trust us when we tell you that this is one of the most unique bands you will ever hear. They could easily become a guilty pleasure. We look forward to see how far these songs reach.
Recommendation: If you love the dramatic in your music, then TKK is the band for you. Run out and Get this one.