Tag: MAGON Chasing Dreams LP

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Pixies-Esque “Solem Sequi”

Over the past handful of years, I’ve spilled a copious amount of virtual ink covering the remarkably prolific, Israeli-born singer/songwriter, musician and JOVM mainstay MAGON. After the release of his fifth album, 2022’s A Night in Bethlehem, the Israeli-born artist, along with his partner relocated to Costa Rica, where he continued his ongoing prolific period with three more albums, 2022’s Enter By The Narrow Gate, last year’s Did You Hear the Kids? and Chasing Dreams.

Chasing Dreams saw the JOVM mainstay collaborating with local indie rock outfit Las Robertas, who acted as his backing band for the recording sessions. Sonically, the album continued a slow-burn expansion of his sound with the incorporation of string arrangements, which add a lush and dreamily cinematic quality to the material. 

The JOVM mainstay’s recently released eighth album The Writing’s On The Wall is a bit of a return to form — but while continuing to push his sound in new directions: According to the JOVM mainstay, the material is a fusion of hallucinogenic re-imaginings of 70s soft rock, oddball outsider jams and laid-back indie fare.

Earlier this year, I wrote about the album’s first single “Breakthrough Blitz,” which sees MAGON pairing his laconic and easy-going delivery with a simple yet propulsive backbeat, glistening keys and a bluesy, Keith Richards-like guitar riff with a big hook. Thematically, the song touches upon the freedom and connection found in simple, everyday moments with the sort of contented sigh that can only comes from someone, who has lived a full and messy-life — and understands that he is truly very lucky. 

The Writing’s On The Wall‘s second and latest single “Solem Sequi” is Pixies-esque track anchored around a looping, strummed guitar melody, MAGON’s laconic delivery singing dreamily introspective lyrics paired with his uncanny knack for crafting enormous hooks.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: MAGON Shares Hauntingly Gorgeous “The Writing’s On The Wall”

Over the past handful of years, I’ve spilled a copious amount of virtual ink covering the remarkably prolific, Israeli-born singer/songwriter, musician and of course, JOVM mainstay MAGON. If you’ve been frequenting this site in that period of time, you’d remember that after the release of his fifth album, 2022’s A Night in Bethlehem, the Israeli-born artist, along with his partner and children relocated to Costa Rica, where he continued his reputation for being profile, with three more albums, 2022’s Enter By The Narrow Gate and last year’s Did You Hear the Kids? and Chasing Dreams.

The JOVM mainstay began the year with the announcement of his eighth album The Writing’s On The Wall, which will feature “Breakthrough Blitz,” a song that saw MAGON’s laconic and easy-going delivery paired with a simple yet propulsive backbeat, glistening keys and a blues Keith Richards-like guitar riff with a big hook. Thematically, the song touched upon the freedom and connection found in simple, everyday moments with the sort of contented sigh that can only comes from someone, who has lived a full and messy-life — and understands that he is truly very lucky. 

The Writing’s On The Wall‘s second single, album title track “The Writing’s On The Wall” is a slow-burning, Inner Journey Out-era Psychic Ills-like bit of country-tinged psych rock with a hauntingly gorgeous bit of wailing pedal steel by Cary Morin paired with MAGON’s meditative delivery. Rooted in seemingly lived-in experience, the song’s narrator describes the sensation of knowing when your time with a situation and place are over, and picking up your life and starting anew.

The accompanying video features footage of flowers and trees blooming shot on over-saturated film stock, which gives the proceedings a surreal yet dreamy air.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Meditative and Introspective “Breakthrough Blitz”

I’ve managed to spill a copious amount of virtual ink covering the remarkably prolific, Israeli-born singer/songwriter, musician and JOVM mainstay MAGON. After the release of his fifth album, 2022’s A Night in Bethlehem, the Israeli-born artist, along with his partner relocated to Costa Rica, where he continued his ongoing prolific period with three more albums, 2022’s Enter By The Narrow Gate, last year’s Did You Hear the Kids? and Chasing Dreams.

Chasing Dreams saw the JOVM mainstay collaborating with local indie rock outfit Las Robertas, who acted as his backing band for the recording sessions. Sonically, the album continued a slow-burn expansion of his sound with the incorporation of string arrangements, which add a lush and dreamily cinematic quality to the material.

The JOVM mainstay begins 2024 with the announcement of his eighth album The Writing’s On The Wall. The album’s first single “Breakthrough Blitz,” pairs MAGON’s laconic, easy-going delivery with a simple yet propulsive backbeat, glistening keys, and a bluesy, Keith Richards-like guitar riff with a big hook. Thematically, the song touches upon the freedom and connection found in simple, everyday moments with the sort of contented sigh that can only comes from someone, who has lived a full and messy-life — and understands that he is truly very lucky.

Shot in the fields of Oaxaca, Mexico, the video stars MAGON and his family — and features the JOVM as a sort of magical taxi driver, who picks up a woman and her young kids (the JOVM mainstay’s partner and two kids) on a dreamy and slow-burning trip through the verdant green, golden yellows and mountainous Mexican countryside.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Shimmering and Introspective “I Don’t Take You For Granted”

Over the past handful of years, I’ve managed to spill copious amounts of virtual ink covering the remarkably prolific Israeli-born singer/songwriter, musician and JOVM mainstay MAGON. Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site during that particular period, you might recall that shortly after the release of his fifth album,  A Night in Bethlehem, the Israeli-born artist, along with his partner and young daughter relocated to Costa Rica, where he continued an ongoing period of remarkable prolificacy with his sixth album, Did You Hear the Kids?

Did You Hear The Kids? featured what may arguably have been the broadest and most expansive sonic palette of any of his previously released work — and a collaboration with Paris-based indie duo SOS Citizen. 

The Isreali-born and now-Costa Rican-based artist’s seventh album, the recently released Chasing Dreams sees him collaborating with local indie rock outfit Las Robertas, who acted as his backing band for the recording sessions. Chasing Dreams sees the JOVM mainstay continuing a slow-burn expansion of his sound with the incorporation of string arrangements, which add a lushly cinematic and dreamy quality to the material.

In the lead-up to the album’s release, I wrote about two of the album’s previously released singles:

  • Album title track “Chasing Dreams,” a song built around strummed acoustic guitar, shimmering pedal steel and gentle drumming paired with Magon’s dreamily laconic delivery. “Chasing Dreams” seems indebted to Exile on Main Street-era Rolling Stones and Harvest-era Neil Young with some subtle nods to country and folk. Much like the material on his last two albums, “Chasing Dreams” is rooted in the sort of deep, heartfelt introspection informed by living a full, messy and well-lived life and getting older — with the song touching upon themes of maturation, love and enjoying cherished family and personal bonds while you have them.

  • “Under the Sea,” a child-like lullaby that sounds a bit like Yellow Submarine and “Octopus Garden”– perhaps as a result of a lush, 60s psych rock-inspired arrangement performed by the JOVM mainstay and his new collaborators Las Robertas, and an unfussy production. But at its core, the song is rooted in the pure and whimsical sense of exploration and curiosity of childhood.

“I Don’t Take You For Granted,” Chasing Dreams‘ third and latest single is a lush and introspective bit of psych rock/psych folk built around glistening, finger-plucked guitar, shimmering and cinematic strings and gently padded drumming paired with the JOVM mainstay’s laconic delivery. Much like its predecessors, “I Don’t Take You For Granted” is rooted in the same introspective, deeply lived-in lyrics that reflect a hard-earner, harder-won maturity and a contented sigh of recognition that adult love is so very difficult to find and harder to keep.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Dreamy and Whimsical “Under The Sea”

Over the past couple of years, I’ve managed to spill quite a bit of ink on the remarkably prolific, Israeli-born, singer/songwriter, musician and JOVM mainstay MAGON.

Shortly after the release of his fifth album, A Night in Bethlehem, the Israeli-born artist, along with his partner and young daughter relocated to Costa Rica, where he continued an ongoing period of remarkable prolificacy with his sixth album, Did You Hear the Kids?

Did You Hear The Kids? featured what may arguably have been the broadest and most expansive sonic palette of any of his previously released work — and a collaboration with Paris-based indie duo SOS Citizen. 

The Israeli-born, Costa Rican-based artist recently found creative and musical simpatico with local indie rock outfit Las Robertas, which led to his seventh album Chasing Dreams, which is slated for a December 7, 2023 release.

Chasing Dreams reportedly sees the JOVM mainstay continuing a slow-burn expansion of his sound with the addition of string arrangements, which helps add a lush quality to the material. 

Last month, I wrote about the album’s first single, album title track “Chasing Dreams,” a song built around strummed acoustic guitar, shimmering pedal steel and gentle drumming paired with Magon’s dreamily laconic delivery. Continuing a run of material that seems indebted to Exile on Main Street-era Rolling Stones and Harvest-era Neil Young, “Chasing Dreams” features some subtle nods to country and folk. And much like the material on his last two albums, the single is rooted in the sort of deep, heartfelt introspection informed by living a well-lived life and getting older, with the song touching upon themes of maturation, love and enjoying cherished family bonds while you have them.  

Chasing Dreams‘ second and latest single “Under the Sea” is a child-like lullaby that sounds a bit like Yellow Submarine and “Octopus Garden”– perhaps as a result of a lush, 60s psych rock-inspired arrangement performed by the JOVM mainstay and his new collaborators Las Robertas, and an unfussy production. But at its core, the song is rooted in the pure and whimsical sense of exploration and curiosity of childhood.