iTunes Single of the week #12

Hi,

So, it's that time of the week again. This week's free single was "Thinkin Aboutchu" by Dan Croll.

Dan Croll is a 23 year old indie-rock/pop, folktronica, pop-rock artist from Newcastle. He has one album out called Sweet Disarray which came out on March 10th this year.

Review:
So I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover but my immediate response when I first saw the title was: this is either going to be an awful, generic electro-pop track or it's an ironic name and a really fun original piece of music. To be honest it's neither of these. This is indie-electro-pop with prominent but simple bass guitar at the beginning leaving space for the vocals to grow, but they really don't. The vocals are very simple and reserved which can be good, but in this case are boring. There are times when you feel the vocals should stretch out and show full potential but just stay on one level throughout. The backing music is quite catchy but nothing very special or unique.

Overall, this track has some good points but it's boring and not a song that you can listen to very often without wanting to rip off your headphones. I think it deserves 3/10!

iTunes Single of the week #9

Hi,

So this week's free single of the week was "Dripping Down" by East India Youth.

East India Youth has one album: "Total strife forever" and one EP: "Hostel". He is William Doyle, a 22-year-old multi-instrumentalist from Bournemouth.

 Review:
This track is an indie-grunge with electronic tones. I really like the vocalist, he has a deep but soft and gentle voice. Although he can get a bit monotonous at times, we hear his talent when he moves pitches. About three quarters of the way through we think the song has finished but it carries on with the backing removed but we hear gorgeous harmonies, these are haunting and so well written with beautiful changes in chords and dynamics. I could listen to those as a whole song! The song starts off with the vocals sung relatively high, but these are soon brought down again to the nasal slightly samey tones of the rest of the track. I love the harmonies behind the main vocalist. The backing is electric and with Caribbean drum beats, I like this but only with the more indie-grunge vocals.

Overall I would give this song 7/10, for the beautiful ending.

George Ezra

Hi,

Today's post will be about an amazing guy who's getting big in the music circles and I think you should know about! You can listen HERE! Click HERE to get a FREE download of a couple of songs!

Background Info:
George Ezra is a 20 year old singer/songwriter from Bristol. He has one EP out called "Did you hear the rain?"

George Ezra's voice has a deep and mature tone that is really sexy, but as demonstrated in Did you hear the rain he can reach the high with confidence and beauty. Did you hear the rain sounds like it's from a western movie with it's desert like guitar chords. I love the end when he sings a wonderfuly gorgeous cadence ending after the backing does. Benjamin Twine is an upbeat bluesy song that lifts your spirits. The lyrics are great to this, they literally tell a story which hasn't properly been done since the 40s so good on him! Angry Hill is a more gentle and soft tune that makes you feel so calm and stress free, it's a great song to fall asleep to. I love the threatening chords and I think that this track really shows off his vocal talent. This one is my favourite! Budapest is his most famous, it's another blues track which is a great way to start the album. I think that you get the full Ezra song writing talent in this track, it's all so great! I love this guy and I hope you do too!

ACADEMIC_

Hi,

So today's post will be about an artist called "Academic". I'll be telling you about my favourite two songs of his: Bye Bye- HERE and Prelude to a dream- HERE

Background info:
His name is Tyler Matthews and he is a 28 year old electronic artist from Columbia, SC: home of Hootie and the Blowfish, Toro y Moi, & Washed Out. He left the finance world to focus on his music. He makes music for tv & movie soundtracks as well as commercials. He's planning to begin a regional tour in the Spring of 2014.

Review:
Bye Bye has nice strong intro beats, it's clean and sharp which is nice to hear. This is electronic, but not too poppy and in that respect  breath of fresh air. There are some really interesting changes throughout this track which give your ears something to hold onto. Some nice beats and added electro "twinkles" are a nice touch. Personally,  find this 4 minute track a bit boring for the whole thing, but that is my techno-resenting opinion. It is worth a listen.

Prelude to a dream has an interesting start. The short tapping beats are a nice addition and the far out noises are lovely. The added moving pitches give a nice effect, overall I like this one better.

So I hope you can all find time in your busy schedules to listen to "Academic Beats", it's worth it! HERE is his sound-cloud link so you can listen to more. There are a couple of free downloads on there if you want! Follow him on twitter @academicbeats. Thanks for reading!

Lux Lisbon- Get Some Scars

Hi,

First off I am so sorry I haven't posted for ages. I've been unbelievably busy over the Christmas period. I had some great Christmas music posts lined up as well which I'm gutted about! Is it too late? If you would like to see them anyway then let me know in the comments! Anyway, apology over on with the post.

So today I'm going to be reviewing the Lux Lisbon's free download: "get some scars". To get the free download click HERE .

Background info:
Lux Lisbon are a 5 piece indie-rock band from Nottingham University. They have one EP out "Get some scars" (which is worth a listen!). You can buy their EP for £4 or more HERE .

Review:
"Get some scars" is a catchy song with a great meaning. The video is great as well if you want to watch. I love the lyric "oh while we're young yeah, let's go out and get some scars. 'Cos when we're older we'll wear them to tell us apart". The song starts with one singer for a bar then a harmony sung by the band with only sparse guitar chords which works really well. They have boy/girl harmonies which sound great and we are hearing more of recently but still not enough in my opinion. We have too many one gender bands! Sorry, rant over! When they get into it they start to sound a bit like a barber shop choir, which isn't necessarily a bad thing just a bit weird at times. I recommend these guys if you like Dog is Dead or Fleetwood Mac. So, their track is definitely worth a download! Follow them on twitter @luxlisbonmusic!!