Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Over the past couple of months  Stockholm, Sweden-based indie electro pop act Red Sleeping Beauty have added themselves to a growing list of JOVM mainstay artists. Initially comprised of Kristina Borg (vocalist), Niklas Angergård (guitar, vocals) of Acid House Kings, Mikael Matsson (guitar), of The Shermans and Carl–Johan Näsström (bass), the quartet originally formed in 1989 and with the release of two full-length albums Bedroom and Soundtrack, a number of EPs and singles, the Swedish pop quartet received both national and international attention before the quartet split up. After almost two decades of the renowned Swedish pop act’s members pursuing other creative and pursuits, the members of the band reunited as a trio featuring Angergård, Matsson and Näsström — with an occasional contribution from Borg, who was battling cancer during part of the band’s hiatus.

The reunited band quickly recorded a cover of Alpaca Sports song “Just For Fun” and “Merry Christmas, Marie,” a holiday-themed track, which caught the attention of fans and critics, who had been desperately awaiting both a reunion and new material from the act. Continuing upon the buzz, the act followed up with the release of the  “Always” 7 inch and “Mi Amor,” the first song the band recorded with a chorus completely sung in Spanish, as well as a live set at Madrid Pop Fest. And adding to the growing attention over the course of 2016, the band released their first full-length album in 19 years, Kristina, an album written as a sort of tribute to their friend and bandmate Kristina Borg. Now you may recall that I wrote about two of the album’s singles, “If You Want Affection” an 80s synth pop channeling single which had the band pairing a motorik groove with shimmering synth cascades, an infectious hook and chilly yet plaintive vocals while quietly undulating with an urgent, almost frantic need and “Cheryl, Cheryl, Bye,” a slow-burning, contemplative song in which the band paired layers of bass synth and shimmering keys with plaintive and aching vocals. And while both songs tackle slightly different themes — they do so with a

 

Interestingly, the album’s second and latest single “Cheryl, Cheryl, Bye” is a slow-burning , atmospheric and contemplative song in which the band pairs layers of bass synth and shimmering keys with plaintive and aching vocals; of course, that shouldn’t be surprising as the song is one part bitter farewell and one acceptance of a truth that the narrator doesn’t want to completely accept. After all, life pushes us forward no matter how much we want to deny it. In some way, sonically the song sounds as though it draws equally from Roxy Music — think of “Avalon” and “More Than This” in particular — as it does from Pet Shop Boys.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New York music scene vet Kelsey Warren has been a JOVM mainstay as the singer/songwriter and guitarist has spent time as a hired gun, studio hand and frontman in a number of locally and nationally known projects including Denise Barbarita and the Morning Papers, pILLOw tHeORY and a number of others. Earlier this year, Warren’s latest, mostly solo recording project Blak Emoji quickly received attention with the release of Sapiosexual,” a single, which revealed a radical change of sonic direction for grizzled NYC music scene vet as the power chord-based pyrotechnics have been pushed to the background for slinky synths and a dance floor friendly sound while retaining the anthemic hooks that first caught the blogosphere’s attention.

Warren’s Blak Emoji debut EP Intro is slated for a January 20, 2017 and if you had been frequenting this site last month, you may recall that I wrote about the EP’s second single “Velvet Ropes and Dive Bars,” which continues in a similar vein as “Sapiosexual” as Warren’s seductive cooing is paired with slinky synths, a sinuous bass and guitar lines, four-on-the-floor drumming and an infectious hook in yet another slickly produced, dance-floor friendly song. “Honey,” the EP’s third and latest single pairs throbbing low-end, swirling electronics, cascading and buzzing synths and guitars with arena rock-friendly hooks — and much like “Velvet Ropes and Dive Bars,” his last two singles have proven to be among the most seductive and propulsive songs he’s written to date.

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstays La Femme Return with Surreal and Nightmarish Visuals For Their Latest Single “Mycose”

The Parisian collective’s highly-anticipated sophomore effort Mystere was released earlier this year and you may recall that I’ve written about three of the album’s singles — Sphynx,” a track that manages to evoke a lingering fever dream, “Ou va la mode” a somewhat stripped down track that seemed as though the French act were returning to the breezy and decidedly French take on surfer rock that comprised Le Podium # 1 but with warped, carnival from hell-like organ and “Septembre,” a track that sounded indebted to 60s psych rock and psych pop with a mournful, bittersweet air. The album’s fourth and latest single “Mycose” is a moody and somewhat atmospheric track comprised of undulating synths, a propulsive bass line, some industrial clang and clatter paired with punchily cooed lyrics and a psychedelic-leaning guitar solo. And of course, Mystere’s latest single will further cement the French collective’s reputation for crating a propulsive and danceable sound that also manages to be difficult to pigeonhole.

Directed by Paul Gondry, the son of renowned director Michel Gondry, the recently released video for “Mycose” was shot on the streets of New York and while coolly seductive, the video possesses a nightmarish horror-film meetings high-fashion ad logic.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Emily Robb (guitar, vocals), Leslie Burnette (organ, vocals), Emily K. Eichelberger (bass, vocals) and Jenna Robb (drums, vocals), the Philadelphia, PA-based quartet Louie Louie specializes in a sound that meshes 60s rock, 60s Motown-era soul, pop and R&B with post-punk — while clearly nodding at Phil Spector‘s Wall of Sound-like production. And much like the material and period that influences their sound, Louie Louie’s material possesses a lovelorn vulnerability and ache while revealing a maturity and self-assuredness beyond their years, as you’ll hear on their latest single “After Me” — but just under the surface is a swooning sincerity that sets the Philadelphia-based quartet apart from many of their contemporaries.

 

 

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Gorgeous and Wistful Visuals for Ten Fe’s “Overflow”

Hit The Light was recorded at Kompakt Records Studios in Berlin with Ewan Pearson, who has worked with Jagwar Ma, M83 and The Rapture and the album reportedly finds the duo meshing contemporary electro pop, Americana and the renowned Manchester sound — while thematically focusing on renewal, hope and possibility. And the duo’s latest single “Overflow” is a shimmering 80s-inspired synth pop/New Wave ballad with a motorik-like groove that focuses on the end of a romantic relationship and a lost love. And while being naturally wistful over what once was, the song possesses a hopeful message, that heartbreak no matter how profound is a reminder that you once knew and had love in your life, and that you will have heartbreak and love many times over.

Directed and edited by Modu Sesay, the recently released music video is shot in a gorgeous, cinematic black and white and features the band playing the song in their rehearsal space; but it’s cut in between with flashbacks of the band playing a live show in front of an ecstatic live audience, friends and couples having fun, hanging out and catching their friends play live shows — and it suggests that many of these small seemingly mundane things can influence art and the artists who create it.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Moodily Psychedelic Visuals for Heat’s “Lush”

Comprised of Susil Sharma (vocals, guitar and synths) Matthew Fiorentino (guitar, synth), and Raphael Bussières (bass), the Montreal, QC-based indie rock/post-punk trio Heat have received praise from Brooklyn Vegan and NME for a swaggering and moody material that’s “equal parts hooks, melody and attitude.” The band’s latest single “Lush” off their new album, Overnight is moody and seductive track in which the band pairs shimmering synths, angular guitar chords played though reverb, thumping, four-on-the-floor drumming, and a sinuous bass line with a razor sharp hook to create a sound that nods heavily at The Psychedelic Furs and Echo and the Bunnymen — but with a slick, dance floor-friendly feel.
Directed by Charles Andre Coderre, the recently released video feels as though it could have been released sometime in the 80s as it employs the use of split screens — in one half, a man may be sleeping or it may turn into heavily treated footage of daily life somewhere — mainly people walking around a busy Chinatown. It’s a trippy yet fitting accompaniment to a propulsive and wistfully moody song

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Surreal and Brooding Visuals for Up-and-Coming Icelandic Post-Punk Act Fufanu’s Latest Single “Sports”

Currently comprised of founding members Katkus Einarsson (vocals, guitar), whose father Einar, was a member of The Sugarcubes and Guðlaugur “Gulli” Einarsson (guitar, programming) (no relation,by the way) along with Erling Bang (drums), the members of Reykjavik, Iceland-based indie rock/post-punk trio Fufanu can trace its origins to when its founding members met at school — and as the story goes, Katkus had glanced at Gulli’s iTunes and noticed that they had listened to a lot of the same techno and electronic music. In the same week that the duo met, they went into the studio and began writing and recording electronic music under the name Captain Fufanu. And within a month of their meeting they began playing shows in and around Reykjavik. “It was happy electronica,” Katkus Einarsson recalls in press notes. “We were aiming for something deeper, but didn’t have the capabilities. The reason we never released anything as Captain Fufanu was that as soon as we had something ready, we aimed for something new, more challenging.”

In a strange twist of fate, that album that Katkus Einarsson and Gulli Einarsson wrote and recorded has long been presumed lost as the studio they recorded their original Captain Fufanu album was burgled and this was paired with the duo wanting to reinvent their sound. Interestingly, at the time Katkus Einarsson was in London working on Damon Albarn’s Everyday Robots and touring with Bobby Womack when he began writing lyrics — and simultaneously Gulli Einarsson had started to recreate their sound in a way that Katkus describes as conveying what he had been thinking. They then added guitars and drums and began pairing that with Katkus’ brooding vocals — and then renamed themselves Fufanu.

Their first live set with their new sound and aesthetic was Iceland Airwaves and they quickly became one of the most talked about bands of the entire festival. The band’s founding members then went into the studio to record their brooding full-length debut A Few More Days To Go, which further expanded a growing national and international profile as they toured with renowned acts such as The Vaccines and played at JaJaJa Festival. The band’s forthcoming Nick Zimmer-produced sophomore full-length Sports is slated for a February 3, 2017 release through renowned British label One Little Indian Records and the album which has the band recruiting Erling “Elli” Bang (drums), also finds the band expanding upon their sound and its thematic direction. While retaining sound elements of the synth-based sound that first caught attention, the band’s sound also possesses a motorik groove reminiscent of krautrock acts like Can and Neu! as well as Joy Division and Security-era Peter Gabriel as you’ll hear on the moodily atmospheric and propulsive first single off Sports, album title track “Sports.”

Reportedly, “Sports” as well as the rest of the material on Sports thematically deals with the drudgery and mundanity of daily life, while subtly hinting at other things in an enigmatic fashion. As Katkus Einarsson explains their lead single “could be about getting really obsessed with a chocolate brownie, or it could be about a boy or girl and being obsessed with getting them on your side.”

The recently released music video was directed by the members of the band and the video is a rather ironic take on the song as it features a bunch of high-school aged kids getting off a bus at a local track where they stretch and do the Olympic-styled track and field sports — but as the camera follows some of these kids, there’s creeping sense of something not quite right, as the kids look at the camera with distrust, loathing, fear and confusion. It’s a striking and surreal video that leaves a lingering feeling of unease, much like the song that it accompanies.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Surreal Visuals for Up-and-Coming Polish Pop Artist Brodka’s Latest Single “Holy Holes”

Monika Brodka is Polish singer/songwriter, who rose to fame after winning the third season of Polish Pop Idol back in 2004. And since winning Polish Pop Idol, Brodka has released three critically and commercially successful albums in her native Poland — her full-length debut 2004’s Album was certified gold within a few months of its release, her sophomore effort 2006’s Moje piosenki (My Songs) was also certified gold; however, her third full-length effort, 2010’s Granda revealed a radical change in sonic direction, as the material drew from electro pop, rock, roots music and pop and received international attention, while being certified double platinum. Additionally, she’s received several Fryderyk Award nominations (Poland’s equivalent to both the BRIT and the Grammy Awards) winning a Song of the Year Award in 2013 for “Varsovie” off her LAX EP while singles such as “Ten”, “Dziewczyna Mojego Chłopaka”, “Miałeś być” and “Znam Cię Na Pamięć” have all topped the Polish charts.

As for the aforementioned LAX EP, Brodka along with producer and engineer Bartosz Dziedzic wrote and recorded the material while at Red Bull Studios in Los Angeles, and the material included two songs with lyrics written and sung in English, the aforementioned “Varsovie” and “Dancing Shoes” along with remixes. Of course with tremendous success across her homeland under her belt, Brodka hopes to expand her profile Stateside with the recent release of her fourth album, Clashes, which is also her English language debut, as well as arguably her most ambitious and diverse album she’s released to date — with the material possessing elements of brooding, orchestral pop as you’ll hear on “Holy Holes,” off Clashes. Essentially, her fourth album finds Brodka continually experimenting and pushing her sound forward.

Sonically speaking, in “Holy Holes” Brodka pairs looping accordion chords, stomping percussion and her gorgeous and lilting Kate Bush-like vocals, buzzing bursts of what sounds like guitar and stomping percussion to create a song that manages to be simultaneously intimate and cinematic while drawing from folk, orchestral pop, jazz and other genres. Additionally, as Brodka mentions in press notes, the material on the album thematically draws from her earliest experiences and memories of Catholic Church services. “For this album the big inspiration was liturgical outfits,” the Polish singer/songwriter explains. “I wanted to take the colors – silver, gold, white, purple, blue – and the shapes of some of these clothes and turn them into something more modern. I am always trying to take some of the meanings of the subjects that I am interested in, chew them up, digest them, and throw up something that is more my kind of thing.”

Directed by Jan Simon, the recently released video for “Holy Holes” pairs the song’s dramatic vocals features a series of geometric shapes being filmed as they move across the screen in a dramatic, slow-motion.

Uncategorized by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Canadian Indie Rock Quartet’s Sultry Post-Modern Take on the Art of Seduction

Since the release of their full-length debut, the members of July Talk have developed a reputation for explosive live shows in which they have grown their national and international profile as the band has toured across Canada, the US, Europe and Australia with festival stops at Toronto’s WayHome Music and Arts Festival, Atlanta’s Shaky Knees Music Festival, New Orleans’ Voodoo Music and Arts Experience, Montreal’s Osheaga Festival, the UK’s Isle of Wight Festival and Austin’s Austin City Limits Music Festival. And building upon the band’s growing profile, their sophomore effort Touch was released earlier this year with the album’s first single “Push + Pull” holding the number 1 spot on the Canadian Alternative Radio charts for more than 8 weeks.

The band is currently on tour to support Touch and it includes a December 15 stop at the Bowery Ballroom; but in the meantime, the band’s latest single “Picturing Love” will further the quintet’s reputation for their unique sound in which Dreimanis’ gruff, whiskey and cigarette-tinged growl and Fay’s coquettish and ethereal vocals are paired with bombastic, anthemic hooks, twinkling keys, angular yet propulsive power chord-based guitar and bass chords and thundering, arena rock-like drumming in what is arguably one of the sultriest songs I’ve heard this year. Lyrically, the song focuses on the art and act of seduction in the modern age.

The recently released music video was filmed and shot in a gorgeously cinematic black and white and much like the song is a post-modern take on love in the modern age, as it features the central couple viewing each other through several layers of screens — and it suggest that the video’s central couple, the band’s vocalists are almost always at a sense of remove from one another, yet desperately wanting each other’s touch. But on another sense, it also evokes the game and roles people play when it comes to lust and love.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: Eddie Palmieri Performs Songs from Harlem River Drive

Eddie Palmieri is a legendary, Grammy-winning New York born and -based pianist, composer and bandleader who has released a number of beloved and highly-regarded Latin funk albums that have pushed the boundaries of what the genre should sound like and concern itself thematically, through renowned labels including Fania Records, Alegre Records, Tico Records, RMM and Concord Picante. Back in 1971, Palmieri along with a new backing band Harlem River Drive wrote and recorded Harlem River Drive, a sociopolitically charged album inspired by the inequality that his fellow Puerto Ricans faced in the New York of the early 1970s — and as a result, the album was a fiery and much-needed protest that featured novelistic lyrics that immersed you into its creators world. Interestingly, the album wasn’t a major commercial success but over the years, it became a cult-favorite album, while being as powerful and relevant today as it was when the album was originally released.

Earlier this year, Red Bull Music Academy invited Palmieri and his backing band to perform the material off Harlem River Drive live for the first time in several decades on what turned out to be a rainy afternoon and evening at Harem’s Marcus Garvey Park — and the folks at NPR’s Jazz Night in America shot some great live footage that includes album title track “Harlem River Drive,” “Seeds of Life” and “Comparasa.” Check it out by clicking on the link above and it’ll lead you to a full-screen embed.