by Meredith Schneider | May 13, 2019 | singles, wolf tracks
Birmingham-based rock musician Alabama Rose just released a song that was basically made for your next great adventure. “Come With Me” boasts ethereal reverb for days, and robust vocals that weave gracefully in and out of guitar-heavy instrumentals. We’re hearing hints of Zooey Deschanel and Joan Jett coming through, a sound that is enigmatic and timeless all its own. As Alabama Rose urges you to “Come With Me”, the urge to move energizes you. This song is perfect for road trip weather and lazy, beautiful days in the grass.
Keep up with Alabama Rose here.
by Ian Schneider | May 10, 2019 | albums, review
Punk in every sense of the word, the Zig Zags’ new album They’ll Never Take Us Alive rings out loud and proud with electric guitars and metal riffs. From its lead off track “Punk Fucking Metal”, the Zig Zags let it be known that they are not messing around with their fourth album.
You can physically feel the metal influences in every single note and lyric sung. This listener appreciates the constant appearance of the galloping electric guitar, accompanied by fast kick pedals. Like something straight out of a Guitar Hero video game, the ever present guitar solo will have you wanting to do anything requiring physical energy, let’s just say, I don’t know, run head first into a roaring mosh pit. With all this speed metal talk, it is hard to look pastZig Zag’s ability to also slow it down, in a very punk rock way. Their track “Fallout” brings the tempo down just a hair, almost reminiscent of Dio’s “Holy Diver”. But, the consistent theme across the board is the methodical gallop of the electric guitar that will be ringing in your ears for days to come after listening to this album.
Zig Zags have been an ever evolving force in the punk rock landscape for years now, and their fourth album really puts on display their growth, in the most punk way possible. They’ll Never Take Us Alive is available now, and make sure to keep up with ZigZags here.
by Karina Marquez | May 10, 2019 | albums, review
Acclaimed artist Allman Brown captures intimate love and all its facets in his sophomore album Darling, It’ll Be Alright. Brown has created an album that is so smooth and captivating in both vocals and lyrics that you find yourself easily slipping into a constant loop of his music for hours.
The album opens up with the effortless soft pop of “Home,” a heartfelt track that is as catchy as it is uplifting. The title track, along with “Dust & Heat” and “Bury My Heart” have a similar positivity to them that feels genuine and sounds like summertime. On the flip side, songs like “Crazy Love” and “Shapes in the Sun” delve deeper into the sultrier aspects of Brown’s music. It is reminiscent of fellow British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran’s many hits in the unique vocal melodies and edgy, sharp guitar riffs.
Brown also delves into more somber ballads with “Hurting,” “Waiting for Something to Believe In,” and “Lonely Hearts, Los Angeles.” In particular, “Lonely Hearts, Los Angeles” stands out as a track that discusses the solitude of being in a big city, but still manages to be romantic in its depiction of something as gloomy as being alone – a difficult feat. Another standout was the final track, “Natasha,” which is a perfect example of Brown’s ability to emphasize the details of a loving relationship as well as highlight the beautiful simplicity of the song itself:
I bought you a Neil Young CD,
You made me try different food,
Showed me that being angry is not the same as being strong,
My darling, my darling one,
This is you love song.
Much like how Brown comes across in his music, Darling, It’ll Be Alright wears its heart on its sleeve. It is deeply romantic, heartbreaking, optimistic, and incredibly honest. To put it simply, this is what passionate music sounds like.
Be sure to check out the album, and keep up with Allman Brown here.
by Meredith Schneider | May 10, 2019 | premieres, videos, wolf tracks
Indie-soul musician Oliver Kennan releases the music video for his single “The Tinkerer” today, and we’ve got the exclusive premiere. Slightly muted colors give a vintage tinge to the visual that allows it to match its soundscape a little more. A complicated relationship, lots of curls, and some quick choreography make for a stellar visual experience. Explains Oliver:
The music video for ‘The Tinkerer’ is a surreal comedy about a young girl and the chaos of growing up. It re-contextualizes the lyrics of the song which read like the wild inner dialogue of a troubled soul. Everyone knows that adolescence can be just as complicated as adulthood and the contrast of the image of a child and the thoughts of an adult lets us explore that idea and laugh about it at the same time.
Tour Dates
- 05/14/2019: Boston, MA @ Haymarket Lounge at City Winery
- 05/15/2019: Burlington, VT @ Nectar’s
- 05/16/2019: Syracuse, NY @ Funk N’ Waffles
- 05/19/2019: Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Tavern
- 05/21/2019: Chicago, IL @ Schubas
- 05/24/2019: Louisville, KY @ Jimmy Can’t Dance
- 05/25/2019: Nashville, TN @ The Basement
Check out a live version of the song at SXSW 2019 here. Keep up with him here.
by Meredith Schneider | May 9, 2019 | singles, wolf tracks
This month, epic rock band Shinedown released the piano version of their track “Get Up”. The original version of the song was featured on their 2019 album Attention Attention, and was quite remarkable already. The piano version, however, allows the audience the space to truly bask in the lyrics and their meaning. So often we layer intrinsically gorgeous lyrics with heavy instrumentals or a pop beat to mask the reality of the words. Luckily, Shinedown’s original version was done in such a truly beautiful way, that taking out some of the instrumental section hasn’t done any negative to the structure of the track.
If you were ever in doubt
Don’t sell yourself short, you might be bulletproof
Hard to move mountains when you’re paralyzed
But you gotta try
And I’m calling out
Get up, get up
Get a move on
Get up, get up
What’s taking so long
The piano version feels raw, and we’re all the way in.
Keep up with Shinedown here.
by Meredith Schneider | May 8, 2019 | snapshot, visual
On Friday, May 3rd, The Japanese House entertained a wall-to-wall sold out crowd at Riot Room. Opening for them – Art School Girlfriend – came before them calm, cool, and collected, and really set a gorgeous tone for the performance. Check out some of our favorites from the show below!
Keep up with The Japanese House here.
by Meredith Schneider | May 8, 2019 | premieres, videos
In the mood for a beautifully composed track that carries you on a very interesting plot line in its new accompanying music video? Jake Waitzman’s project Jaco has just released the new video for his song “Blackboard”, and the black and white video is wild, to say the least. Take yourself on a bit of an escapist’s journey below, and let us know what you think on Facebook!
Keep up with Jaco here.
by Meredith Schneider | May 7, 2019 | soundtrack
We made this playlist thinking about what inspired us during the album production time or simply what we listened too and maybe indirectly inspired us. The result, is that we actually and apparently listened to different kind music from different style and different historical period. Most part of the music is rock or came from rock, another part is electronic or contaminated by it , for example, we enjoyed some classic song from icons like Rolling Stones, but we have been impressed by some young and fresh artists like Tom Vek. We jumped from the “Dark Country” of the Builders and the Butchers to the Industrial sound of Ministry, or from the City And Colour melancholy to the energy of the English Architects!
Anyhow, we personally don’t think that there is a huge gap among those 48 songs , they have something in common and I challenge you to find this point. Maybe is a matter of frequency or just the mood or maybe all of them have the same roots, you can find it or maybe just listen to the playlist and have fun jumping from a romantic acoustic sound to an extreme electronic metal.
Keep up with SOAWARE here.
by Meredith Schneider | May 7, 2019 | snapshot, visual
On Wednesday, May 1st, we celebrated May Day with Jai Wolf at the Truman in Kansas City, MO. The room was decked out with humans from wall to wall dressed in their EDM best. We have a few photos to share the kaleidoscope of a night with you!
Keep up with Jai Wolf here.
