Spencerwire Radio - Second Edition

Last months show was an eclectic mix of Pop, Rock, Progressive Rock, R&B, Folk and Instrumental. This is the type of thing you should expect from me always, as my tastes in music are all over the place. I've decided, though, that it would be a good idea to post information and links back to artists pages (aside from Jamendo.com that is) to give you better ways to follow artists that you really like. Music delivery systems are ever changing, but the Creative Commons music scene is more interesting than most I've had the pleasure of participating in. There is a great deal of talent here, and they deserve to hear from you. If you like what you hear, do your best to find out as much as you can about the artist, follow them and let them know you care.

With that out of the way, let's move on to this months show. You'll find all of the usual suspects (above) here, as well as some Vocal Jazz and some Swing for good measure. There are relative new releases as well as some old shelf offerings from Jamendo.com included. The show leads off with a one of two tracks from Alter Etno, so click play and let's go!

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Tua nai e meiga. Nope, I have no idea what it means. If you take a look back on the first show and Alter Etno's Fairytale, You'll know that I was just transfixed by the musical style here. I don't know if it is the way it is sung, or what, but it makes me laugh to hear this song. It's delightful, in a very foreign (to this unabashed English speaker) way. Check out Alter Etno on their My Space Page or on Jamendo.com

Dazie Mae's Two-Timing Lady is another laugh track. Dazie has a quirky vocal jazz delivery but raspy and sexy in a fun way. This track has a way of weaving itself into your soul and giving you a nice smile. This track is from her offering Seasonal Affective Disorder. Check out Dazie Mae on her Web Site or on Jamendo.com

Speaking of 'raspy', enter Daniel Brandell's low Alto and Maybe I Should Stay. There is a soulful, bluesy feel to this track. Check out the entire offering Recreation online. You can't seem to find much about Daniel except Here.

American Idol wanna be, Leslie Hunt, proves she's got power pop chops with American Dream Man. It punches forward with an unrelenting driving drum and guitar. To be honest, this is the only track that I really liked on Leslie's offering, Your Hair is On Fire, but if you like girl-pop, you may feel differently. Check it out online. More information on Leslie can be found on her Web Site or on Jamendo.com.

A little more versatile, perhaps, is Mercury in Summer and No I Won't Let You Go from Can You Feel It? that fit's nicely next to Leslie's track. Nothing really new here, but it's fun to listen to none-the-less. Straight forward pop-rock. Want more? You can find Mercury in Summer on their Web Site, on My Space.com on Facebook and of course Jamendo.

You may think the next track is a girls voice, but it is the high Tenor of Keen Arthur, and the single This is Not A Game. Keen has a delicate delivery, plaintive, yet sincere. Musically, this is very lightly flavoured Reggae with a touch of R&B soul. Very pretty. For now, you can only find Keen Arthur Here.

Satisfied Mind by My Bubba and Mi is a Pop-Folk number and very fine indeed! This track speaks lyrically to our ability to be satisfied with what we have. Under the major acoustic guitar there is a light bass slide and a pretty cool keyboard jam too. Check out My Bubba and Mi on Jamendo on MySpace.com on their own Home Page and on a host of other sites (a simple Google search will get you lots of hits).

What I Wouldn't Do is a Folk-Pop romp with a great beat, by She Swinged, She Swayed. It moves enough to entice your toes to tap and your fingers to snap. It's a fun little number. They can be found on their Web Site On FaceBook.com on MySpace.com and of course, right here on Jamendo.

Slim's Heathrow is a mid-tempo pop balad, but delightful none the less. The vocal delivery is strong and blends nicely in the chorus. At first the bridge doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the song, but as you listen, there is resolution that take place and transitions easily into the chorus. Heathrow is a great track! For now, you can find Slim right Here.

And now for some real fun! A little bit of Jazz, a little bit of Swing, all in the vein of 'Squirrel Nut Zippers' with one of two tracks this week from The Swing Ninjas, Dunkin' Bagels. It has a rewind the time machine back to the 1920's feel. Totally fun! Check up on The Swing Ninjas on their Here on MySpace.com or on FaceBook.com.

Changing pace again, we jump into the Pop-Rock realm with Your Reality by STEEP. The male vocal is hauntingly familiar sounding but I can't put my finger on who he sounds like. This track doesn't break any new ground musically. Still the instruments drive forward hard, keeping the song moving along. The production is very carefully executed, keeping the vocals front so you can hear the lyrics. I really like this track and STEEP. Check them out! More info can be found on MySpace.com and right here on Jamendo.com.

In the same tone as STEEP, but with a little Country/Folk Rock added to the mix, comes The Gasoline Brothers and Stardust Baby. The track has a Crosby, Stills, Nash feel to it, with a little more edge than their earlier work. The track moves, and again, The Gasoline Brothers have become a favorite listen for me. Check out their web site and MySpace.com page as well as their Jamendo.com page.

From the full offering Verbal Bandit, Heifervescent returns with Strange Kind of Fiction. If you relate back to the first radio show, you'll know that Andy Doran's offerings became an instant favorite of mine on Jamendo.com. Check out Heifervescent and Andy Doran. Check out their Web Site, MySpace.com and FaceBook.com pages.

The Swing Ninja's final track on this radio show is a remake of the old standard Bei Mir Bist du Schon. This cover makes no attempt to hide The Swing Ninja's comedic delivery (check out the in your face refrainj) but stays true to their Jazz/Swing roots at the same time.

This months final track is Alter Etno, with 55 Krokow and let the credits roll. I hope you've enjoyed this months selections. If you like what you hear (or not) give me some feedback. Find me on jamendo.com here or drop me a line here. I'm trying to mix things up as much as possible to give you an eclectic yet accessible selection of music that could be heard on the radio. Support the artists you like and leave them comments as well. Creative Commons artists live for your feedback, and if you can donate something to them, they always love that as well. Follow their links above or just leave a post on Jamendo.com. Radio Show number 3 is already in the works, so keep checking back or add me to your RSS feed. Until next month... Enjoy!

Spencerwire Radio - First Edition

My oldest son hates to dig through piles of music to find one thing he likes.  He'd prefer the ability to have someone else find it.  I can understand that.  Personally, I tend to be just the opposite, willing to scour music sites, bins, etc., to try and find something new and different to listen to.  Since discovering Jamendo.com I've been doing some scouring. Enter the first edition of Spencerwire Radio, about an hours worth of music and commentary for you to consider.  If you like anything here, feel free to take a trip over to Jamendo and download the music for free.  All music is released (as stated in the earlier blog post on "Heifervescent") under one of three Creative Commons licenses.  In most cases, this means that you cannot use this music for commercial purposes, but you can download it, burn it, share it with your friends without fear of any repercussions.  Cool, yes?  So click the "Play" button, and then read the reviews on the tracks below.

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RedEyeC opens things up with the single, "Tsunami," with shades of Pink Floyd, Alan Parsons, and a little bit of straight up rock guitar. It is a compelling, not quite instrumental track that evokes a rush of emotional tides. There's some great lead guitar work here, and the relentless bass and back beat, combined with the chant like vocals are simply intriguing.

Heifervescent follows up with a pop, radio-friendly, instrumentally diverse and ear friendly "Billy Comes Home." It's one of three tracks involving Singer/Songwriter Andy Doran on this radio show. Try not to sing along, no really... see if you can help yourself.

If you like what you heard on track two, then you'll be strangely puzzled at the similarities of vocal style on Cannula's "Dreamcatcher." Cannula has a very RUSH feel to it, albeit a much more pleasing vocal style. The song construction here is flawless and production values throughout all of Andy Doran's group offerings are impeccable.

If Heifervescent and Cannula exhibit some of pops greatest accomplishments, then Diablo Swing Orchestra throws out the rules on "Heroines." Diablo is a testament to what happens when you combine elements of progressive rock, jazz, operatic vocal styles, and blend them vigorously. It's wonderful, but it defies categorization.

Fresh Body Shop skips along with "Bring Me Down." Understated vocals, and chirrups of electronic noodling front this pop/rock party time tune. Percussion instruments are odd and yet add just the right texture here. There are several offerings from "Fresh Body Shop" on Jamendo, so you will likely hear more from them on future radio shows.

A little bit of blues, a little bit of jazz and a little bit of folk, is Bela Ruse's "Push On." The vocal here is in front of everything and demands to be heard. It's a different vocal style, but a pleasing one. Instrumentation is minimalist, but just the right touch for this track.

NYCO is both Rock and R&B on "Side Of The Road." It will keep your toes tapping, and if you have a dance floor handy, it will keep the rest of you moving too. Good background vocals and instrumentation are just the right touch to the lead vocalists slightly gravely vocals, smoothing with just the right touch, the rough edges. Don't get me wrong, those rough edges need to be there! Great track!

A bit art-rocky but heavily pop influenced, Zamza's "Flyin' Away" is a bit reminiscent of a female led "Men At Work." It has very similar vocal intonations. Midway there's a heavy use of echo, but it works.

A mid-tempo ballad, Burly's "Cinnamon" is a nice break in the action from the pop and rock above. Just a nicely paced and sweet number.

Another group that you'll be hearing more from (probably at least) on future radio shows is Julandrew. This folk/pop duo has just the right touch of 'quirk' and "Crazy" is a good example of their delightful style.

Alter Etno changes things up a lot. "Fairytale" is a story in a song, complete with a very cool spoken word intro. I absolutely love this track! Check out Alter Etno's EP on Jamendo and sample the rest of their work. Very, very, very interesting stuff, and not your same old, same old by any means.

The third Andy Doran track in this radio show is the return of Heifervescent and "When Stars Fall From Grace." This track is from their "Pond Life Fiasco" offering. I can't seem to get enough of this group. So I hope you will indulge me and just enjoy this track. Heifervescent has a true power-pop sound.

I really hope to hear more of the artist Rogier Van Den Brink which has the delightful little single "My Angel Told Me So." It is so reminiscent vocally of Boz Scaggs, although not annoyingly completely like him. It is a bit of a Jazzy Pop lounge number.

Consider the final track in this radio show, the closing credits. Manuzik's "D'où je suis" is an instrumental only track, that uses a cool little piano trill loop and a harp-sound pluck and frankly, I just like it. It makes a great book end to this radio show. Until next time.

Heifervescent: Five Albums worth of Wonderful Pop/Rock

There's something absolutely hypnotic about U.K. Singer/Songwriter Andy Doran's project "Heifervescent."  I recently stumbled across Jamendo.com while listening to music on another site, TheSixtyOne.com.  Since then I've been like a kid in a candy store, listening to the many great offerings on Jamendo.  For those not in the know, Jamendo.com is a site that represents artists who are willing to, under restrictions of one of three Creative Commons licenses, offer their music for free download.  That doesn't mean that these artists don't deserve money and credit for what they do.  "Heifervescent" is a great example of that.  Don't believe me?  Take a listen to the tracks here.

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At the time of this writing, there are 45,208 offerings available in every conceivable genre; But I digress.

"Heifervescent" is a true collage of sounds and styles.  There is music with harder edges and more mellow tones, but it all fits together in a very unique and wonderful sound scape.  Please take a listen.  I'll try to update this review with some specifics as time allows.

Amie Street purchased by Amazon.com - Who will notice?

This blog was originally formulated to highlight music found and purchased through AmieStreet.com but has in the last year and a half, strayed from this formula to include music found and delivered through other means as well.  On Tuesday, AmieStreet.com (AS) announced that it had sold the business to Amazon.com for an undisclosed figure.

Who will notice?  Well, not me.   Amazon.com has been investing in AS for the past 4 years and with each investment, the likelihood that you would be able to find the struggling independent artists-the jewels in the rough if you will-has decreased with each year.  This was the reason I was so excited when I found AS, clear back when they were in the beta phase.  In the past year and a half, AS has become the dumping ground for any number of labels trying to get every last penny they could from some pretty questionable "talent."  So much for the struggling independent artist.

Increasingly AS has cowed to the investment dollar, and the original formula that worked so well to lure me in has morphed into something unrecognizable from the original AS.  It's really too bad.  AS had an exciting formula: let the music speak for itself.  The original plan was that all music would start as free and would rise in price as it was purchased.  Artists such as "Jukebox The Ghost" saw their music start at 0 and go to the top of the price scale-because it deserved it.  Not because some label or middle man had arbitrarily set the price, but because the music "spoke for itself."  That too, had increasingly disappeared from the AS profile.  Music began to appear at 15 cents per track, then 45 cents, and sometimes there was no pretense to applying the original formula.  Suddenly, AS was no better than-and in some ways worse than-any one of the major download resellers.

I've missed the original AS for more than a year now; probably more than two years; But I'll not mourn their passing much now.  After all, it's not like there was much left of the original AS anyway.

The ever changing music of "Changing Modes"

Many people are locked into one musical era, genre or type.  Too bad too, because those people will always miss out on music that is truly interesting and innovative.  If you thought you had my love of pop music pegged by reading or listening to the music reviewed here so far, then hold on to your hats!  Enter Changing Modes and their 2010 CD, Here.  Changing Modes isn't your average pop or rock band. Their influences range from progressive rock to modern rock, jazz and classical.  While the bulk of this review highlights the talents of the vocalists and major instrumentalists, not enough can be said for the roles of David Oromander (drums, vocals, trumpet) and Grace Pulliam (vocals, percussion) who add all the right touches throughout.  There is more to hear than one listen will allow, because there is so much going on.  Whether you are mesmerized by the sometimes haunting vocals and harmonies, intrigued with the instrumentation or just taken away by the lyrics, you'll find many things worth discovering Here. 


Dissonance is used throughout Here's title track and opener, a song about being in physical or mental distress and looking for a way out.  Band co-leader, Wendy Griffiths, (keyboards, vocals) sounds alternately like Grace Slick, Chrissie Hynde or Kate Bush, depending on the moment in the song. The music adds an appropriate haunting urgency to the lyrics.  Here too is some magical guitar work from the other co-leader of Changing Modes, Yuzuru Sadashige (bass, guitar).  The interplay between the vocals and instrumentals really kicks in when the Theramin is included.


Here's theme is dissonant and haunting, and Moles is its counterpoint,  revving up the speed and kicking it up a notch.  It's the kind of song that wants your feet to move, even if the song's lyrics are about mole people in New York City who live in the subway tunnels. Wendy sings "But your life underground, is not what it seems, it's worse than your strangest nightmare and better than your wildest dreams" in the chorus, but that is just one of the images painted here.  You'll need to listen carefully to hear them all.


Louise introduces Jen Hammaker (Theremin, keyboard) on lead vocal in a whimsical song about Wendy's cat, which is just plain fun!  "What goes on behind those dark eyes?  Where do you go when I turn out the light?"  Not only is there a lot going on here instrumentally, but the backing vocals and harmonies are incredible too, with a truly interesting shift from major to minor key and back again.
  
And There's so much more! Cell to Cell is another fun toe tapper that explores carrying on a relationship via text messaging.  Distorted guitar adds interesting texture here that gives it a very punkish feel.  Embers Sweet has an almost "Yes" feel to it, if "Yes" were fronted by female vocals that is.  It definitely has that progressive rock edge to it.  A favorite track for me is the poppy, electronicly noodled One, which describes an obsession with lines like You are the One, you are the one.  White Lightning, again with Jen Hammaker, is a jazzy number with great trumpet fill from Oromander.  The White Room, sounds initially like a cover of Cream's White Room. When I asked Wendy about this, however, she assured me that "It's more of an homage to the Cream song than a cover."  It is a delightful changeup that explores sleazy politicians and their abuse of power.  Closing out the set is Meow Situation which has a swing piano feel that ends things on a light-hearted note.


Writing this review, I've been afraid that after listening to these tracks so many times, they would start to wear thin; They don't.  If anything, you begin to hear more nuances and textures that were hidden from your ears on the first listen.  Changing Modes deserves grand recognition for a diverse, haunting and playful set of music.  Instrumentation and vocals are accomplished and fun to listen to and the lyrics are deceptively simple in their complexity and entirely singable.  Formed in the mid-90's by a happenstance invitation to CBGB's, Wendy Griffiths was pried away from her classical practice room, to hear the band Soul Coughing with a friend.  It occurred to her on that night that she really missed the world of rock; "How that music hits you in the gut, which, as much as I love classical music, the concert music never quite does; At least not for me."  She came back to her room later that night and began to write rock songs, and has never turned back.  We are the beneficiaries of this epiphany, and Here is just one of those gifts.

You can find more information on Changing Modes by visiting them on MySpace or FaceBook.  They also have a web site, that is in drastic need of a voluneer developer (sorry guys), so volunteer those services if you can help them out.  You can hear sample tracks and purchase digital copies of Here from AmieStreet.com or both digital and physical copies of this and other Changing Mode CD's from CDBaby.com.

The Right Now's Pop-Soul Revolution

Picture this: Members of the Chicago based musical group The Right Now hijack Mr. Peabody's way-back machine and return to 1969. There they begin to study soul and rhythm and blues artists, like Issac Hayes, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Hot Buttered Soul and The Staple Singers.  The Right Now stay and study for four years, infiltrating Stax recording sessions and hiring on as session musicians.  After the completion of their studies, they return in the way-back machine to the present day where they blend what they have learned with modern pop-rock influences and modern soul and rythm and blues.  If you can imagine this picture, then you have an inkling of what the self-produced CD Carry Me Home is like-music that is both hauntingly retro and solidly present-day.

Lead vocalist Stefanie Berecz has a healthy set of pipes that can wail with inflection (You Will Know, Doing Nothing, I'll Get Down) add a plaintive mournfulness (Better Way To Live, I Could Really Hold On, Carry Me Home) or a soulful sweetness (Nobody, The One You Love).  If Stefanie's beautiful voice is the first thing you hear as you listen to Carry Me Home, the very next thing will be the tight perfection of the band.  Vocal assists come from Brendan O'Connell (guitar and keyboards) and Chris Corsale (guitar).  Greg Nergaard lays down a solid bass line on all tracks and no Stax influenced soul or rhythm and blues group would be complete without a horn section provided by Johnathan Edwards (baritone sax) and Jim Schram (tenor sax).  Let's not forget the consistent beat from drummer John Smillie.

Carry Me Home is tight throughout, blending slower and mid-tempo numbers with faster more up-beat offerings in just the right combination.  You never feel that you are getting too heavy a dose of one style or type because the metronome continues to shift from track to track.  Nobody truly highlights Stefanie's voice followed by a great mid-tempo rocker You Will Know which features Brendan's keyboards (a nice Hammond organ sound) and the horn section that really swings here.  There's great sax work to be heard on I Could Really Hold On and the guitars provide both rhythm and texture in a more prominent role on Before I Know Your Name.  Doing Nothing and I'll Get Down are perhaps some of my favorites here-if there can be favorites in such a great collection.  Here, Stefanie sounds like Aretha Franklin or Diana Ross and you can almost picture the band swinging and swaying as they lay down a really solid back drop.

You can find more information on The Right Now from their MySpace page including a schedule of upcoming live performances and you can purchase Carry Me Home digitally from both i-Tunes and Amie Street.  In addition, you can purchase the physical CD, T-Shirts a 45 single and other memorabilia from their Storenvy store front.  The Right Now have found a successful blend of retro and modern sounds that should please a wide demographic.  They deserve to be heard.  Check out The Right Now, right now!

Ian Axel: "This is the New Year"

Bathed in top notch piano, catchy vocals and humor, singer-song writer Ian Axel spanks the new year into existence with This is the New Year. It's a delicious romp full of great pop music craft. Ian sprinkles his ever present keyboards with orchestral flourishes and drums that add just the right texture. Layered vocal harmonies are used sparely with good effect. The production is not over blown, with arrangements and polish that add just the right touch. Nothing seems excessive. Lyrically, Ian dances around a host mostly relationship based subjects including telling a would be lover to take a hike, "Hangman", love lost that won't go away, "Leave Me Alone!" and of course infatuation "Girl I Got a Thing."

There are a lot of truly delightful tracks here. "Afterglow" represents masterful pop song craft with one of the best choruses I've heard in some time. "Girl I Got A Thing" has a pounding march-step delivery that will have your toe tapping in no time at all. All of these tracks have melodies that will ring in your head and trigger the sing-along mechanism. Seriously, you won't have a choice. "Waltz" has an almost Gypsy feel to it with a rapid one-two-three beat. "This is the New Year" features guest vocal Chad Vaccarino and talks of making resolutions-and keeping them.

More than anything, This is the New Year provides a positive, up-beat and optimistic tone to the months ahead.  Coming off a year that has been clouded with economic woes and political battles, real optimism is a very good thing!  There is a great deal of time left in 2010, but this musical offering could well be the best of the year-it's just that good.

Released only in digital format so far, you can find This is the New Year on Amie Street, Amazon and i-Tunes among other sources. You can listen to some complete tracks from Ian Axel on his My Space Page as well as videos from his YouTube Channel. When Ian releases the CD version, I'll try to post it here.