Tag: The Skullers

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Artists Worth Checking Out Get it or Forget it indie music New Music Friday

Get it or forget it – New Music Friday vol. 4

It’s been a while since we had a Friday morning off, so we are celebrating by sharing these great new albums with you.  They are all dropping today.

Artist Name:  The Skullers

Album Name:  Freight Trains and Party Games

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Modern Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Still Life; 2.  She Denies Herself the Things she Loves; 3.  Convenient; 4.  Out of the Garden; 5.  Brooklyn Girls; 6.  She Denies Herself the Things she Loves (at the record booth)

Publicist:  Self-promoted

Review:  The Skullers have hit the big time with the release of their latest EP.  It mixes elements of Americana/Rockabilly with modern rock to create a unique sound that is worthy of repeated listens.  We last reviewed them in March 2018, and they have continued to make great strides in their artistic growth.  This time around they have evolved from their blues rock origins to become a band worthy of heavy rotation on Top 40 radio.  We love every song on this EP, especially “She Denies Herself the Things she Loves” and “Out of the Garden.”

Recommendation:  Don’t hesitate to jump on this wagon – go Get this one today!

Artist Name:  Fox Stevenson

Album Name:  Killjoy

Label:  Anti-Fragile Music

Genre:  Funky Pop

Track Listing:  1.  Out my Head; 2.  Killjoy; 3.  Broken Man; 4.  Okay; 5.  Cavalier; 6.  Dreamland; 7.  California; 8.  Go Like; 9.  Use Me; 10.  Hold Steady; 11.  All Night; 12.  Perfect Lie; 13.  Headlights

Publicist:  Mystic Sons

Review:  Producer Fox Stevenson’s debut album Killjoy is a work of sonic beauty, with a richness that many seasoned artists don’t have.  It is funky, cool, fresh and worthy of repeated listens.  These songs are upbeat and perfect for keeping you in sync on your daily activities.  We think this album will launch his career out of the UK and into the rest of the world.  He hits the ground running with “Out my Head” and never lets up.  This one is a surefire winner.

Recommendation:  If you love fresh new music, this one should be first on your list – go Get it!

Artist Name:  Wildlife

Album Name:  Take the Light With You

Label:  Culvert Music

Genre:  Indie Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Wasted; 2.  Broken Magic; 3.  Cut-off; 4.  No Control; 5.  All in Black; 6.  Follower (LaLa); 7.  Euphoria; 8.  Whatever, Memory; 9.  Dance Now; 10.  House in the Shadows

Publicist:  Auteur Research

Review:  Toronto’s Wildlife is another band on the rise.  We debuted their single “No Control” in our Ten Great Singles of September 2019 article, and the rest of the album is even better. These lads have been influenced by the great acts of the 80s and 90s, like Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, U2 and more.  Even though they have been together for 10 years, they bring a new freshness to the power rock of those acts and set themselves up to be one of the best acts of 2019.

Recommendation:  What are you waiting for?  Go Get it!

Artist Name:  David J

Album Name:  Missive to an Angel From the Halls of Infamy and Allure

Label:   Glass Modern Records

Genre:

Track Listing:  1.  Mosaic; 2.  Blue Eyes in the Green Room; 3.  Baudelaire; 4.  (I Don’t Want to Destroy) Our Beautiful Thing; 5.  Lovelorn; 6.  Clandestine Valentine; 7.  Of Purgatory and Perfume; 8.  Migena and the Frozen Roses; 9.  No Floods can Drown; 10.  Pre-Existing Condition; 11.  Copper Level 7; 12.  (I Walked Away From) The Girl in Yellow; 13.  Best Western Blues; 14.  Missive to an Angel From the Halls of Infamy and Allure; 15.  The Auteur (Redux/The Scarlet’s Cut); 16.  I Have Only Silence Now

Publicist:  Shameless Promotion PR

Review:  What do you get when you cross Tom Waits/Bob Dylan with Leonard Cohen/Andrew Lloyd Webber?  You get David J’s latest eerie and invigorating new album.  These songs could easily be made into an amazing musical and should be performed in major concert halls.  This soundtrack is worthy of your repeated listens and could easily become a daily habit.  We truly cannot get enough of these songs, and will be listening over and over again.  We recommend you do the same.

Recommendation:  This one is a must-have.

Artist Name:  Doug Duffey and BADD

Album Name:  Play the Blues

Label:  Out of the Past Music

Genre:  Blues

Track Listing:  1.  The Things we Used to Do; 2.  Evil; 3.  Big Easy Street Blues; 4.  Have you Ever?; 5.  Drink it on Down; 6.  My Drivin’ Wheel; 7.  Talk of the Town; 8.  You Got That Somethin’; 9.  A Memory Left to Lose

Publicist:  Blind Raccoon

Review:  There are so many styles of the blues, from Delta to Chicago to Memphis, and no one can play them all better than Doug Duffey and BADD.  They combine elements from all these blues styles into their own unique blend that highlights the blues and transforms it into a celebration of life, not just a wailing sound of agony.  They even add some jazzy grooves into their song “Evil,” further separating themselves from the rest of the blues genre.

Recommendation:  If you love the blues or just plain great music, then add this one to your collection today.

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Artists Worth Checking Out Get it or Forget it Reviews Women in Entertainment

Get it or forget it – The Skullers, ROCKET, An American Forrest, LadyChild, Super Hi-Fi

Happy Friday!  We’ve been working hard reviewing this year’s releases, and will be caught up as of this edition of Get it or Forget It.  That’s 140 albums/EPs we have reviewed so far this year, including this edition.  Next week we will bring you our Monday Mashup, a deluxe set of new singles and music videos and hopefully a live performance review, in addition to next Friday’s Get it or Forget it reviews.  With that in mind, here are another five artists to check out.

Artist Name:  The Skullers

Album Name:  Meet the Skullers

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Blues Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Meet me in Memphis; 2.  Pressure Face; 3.  Eyes Open; 4.  Peace With You; 5.  One Foot in the Grave

Publicist:  Moot Management

Review:  A few years back, we reviewed Jack Skuller, the frontman and guitarist for The Skullers.  At the time Skuller was only 18.  Now, four years later, he has created a band that is taking New Jersey and the east coast by storm.  This debut five-song EP is a treasure, and exhibits so much potential for this band.  All five of these songs are great, with just the right amount of attitude, guitar, drums, and the amazing rock and roll voice of Skuller.  We wonder what the next four years will bring.  We can’t wait to see what’s next for the Skullers.  It is an honor to meet them.

Recommendation:  Don’t waste time – Get this one today.

Artist Name:  ROCKET

Album Name:  Get Huge

Label:  Exploited Music

Genre:  Alt Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Giants; 2.  Hey Baby; 3.  Fading Out; 4.  Remain; 5.  Fever

Publicist:  Powder Finger Promotions

Review:  Lead singer Janelle Barreto has been a staple of the LA rock scene for many years, fronting such bands as Exploiting Eve and serving on the other side of the industry with Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group before joining ROCKET.  The band has received much critical acclaim, including multiple LA Music Critic Awards and made the semi-final round for the WARPED Tour Battle of the Bands.  This EP is just the first fruits of the simply amazing music that pours from the stage whenever they perform.  The band is planning a huge EP release party at the world-famous Viper Room on the Sunset Strip on April 21.  If you live in Los Angeles, we highly recommend that you make it to the show.

Recommendation:  Do we really need to  tell you to Get this one?  It’s just so painfully obvious that you need it in your musical library?

Artist Name:  An American Forrest

Album Name:  Ol’ Yonder

Label:  Eat Local Records

Genre:  Folk/Cowboy Blues

Track Listing:    1.  Alberta IV; 2.  More Than Enough; 3.  Bed & Board; 4.  Pastures of Plenty; 5.  Darlin’ you Weren’t One (Rawhide); 6.  Quarter ’til Tomorrow; 7.  Diamond Joe; 8.  Yonder Mountain; 9.  Chehalis River #1; 10.  Hard Times; 11.  Lovesick (Did ya Read the Letter?); 12.  Room to Dream; 13.  Don’t Take Nothing’ (Ma and Pa); 14.  Wedding Song (Sam & Jessica, Lostine, May 20, 2017); 15.  Yonder Lies Heaven; 16.  Alberta Oregon

Publicist:  Self-promoted

Review:  With a voice similar to Tom Waits, An American Forrest brings us the “cowboy blues.”  This collection, recorded on an old cassette recorder, includes first drafts, covers of such artists as Woody Guthrie and Gillian Welch, traditionals and instrumentals he has written between jobs while out in the great outdoors.  It is a very eclectic collection with something that should appeal to just about everyone.  This one would make a good soundtrack for a documentary, so music supervisors, check it out.  For the rest of us, just put it on and let it fill the quiet with interesting stories and music.

Recommendation:  Definitely worth checking out.

Artist Name:  LadyChild

Album Name:  LadyChild

Label:  Self-released

Genre:  Indie Rock

Track Listing:  1.  Out of Breath; 2.  Man Overboard; 3.  Lazy Girl; 4.  Fooled Again; 5.  Just Fine

Publicist:  Behind the Curtains Media

Review:  LadyChild is like a cross between Janis Joplin, Grace Potter and Led Zeppelin, a fireball of a performer that is comfortable mixing genres to create her own very unique style.  Her vocals soar to the stratosphere while a perfect guitar and drum musical base provides the perfect landing zone.  “Out of Breath” is pure rock before she shifts gears to a more electric and soulful jazz sound on “Man Overboard.”  “Lazy Girl” is straight ahead progressive jazz that morphs into rock before returning to jazz and would be perfect for airplay on numerous smooth jazz radio stations, as well as be perfect for the next James Bond movie.  Likewise, “Fooled Again” is a lively jazz tune that would likewise appeal to the smooth jazz crowd.  She closes out the EP with “Just Fine,” a more traditional jazz song that soars and soothes, and is the perfect ending to this dynamic collection.

Recommendation:  If you are a serious progressive jazz lover, then you owe it to yourself to Get this one to complete your collection.

Artist Name:   Super Hi-Fi

Album Name:   Blue and White

Label: Self-released

Genre:   Reggae/Rock/Dub

Track Listing:   1,  Gone; 2.  Keep it Dirty; 3.  Dub to the Bone; 4.  Fergie; 5.  Revenge of the Whales; 6.  Blue and White; 7.  Little Black Book; 8.  Space Needle; 9.  Gale Caution; 10.  Hole in my Life; 11.  Biking to Bushwick; 12.  Son of Revenge of the Whales

Publicist:  Behind the Curtains Media

Review:   The horns and discordant chords that are heard on the first track, “Gone,” are very reminiscent of 80’s ska bands like No Doubt and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, while the reggae beat that permeates the songs give it that true island feel.  Throw in some rock guitar and a driving beat and you have the makings of their second track, “Keep it Dirty.”  Super Hi-Fi continues like this throughout the album, mixing genres in the process of establishing themselves as experts at a myriad of musical tastes and styles.  It is impossible to be bored with this release, as your ears are constantly adjusting to the creative waves of sound from reggae, rock, world music and jazz influences.  We can only imagine how much fun they would be to see perform live.  “Fergie” almost sounds like something Jimmy Buffet might do, while “Revenge of the Whales” has that ELO/prog rock feel.  We really love the title track, as well as “Little Black Book” and “Gale Caution.”

Recommendation:   You simply must have this eclectic album in your collection, for those times when you can’t decide exactly what you want to hear.  Definitely Get it.