Showing posts with label Casual Fan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Casual Fan. Show all posts

Remington Super 60 - Mood Taeg - Ali Horn - Wynnm - Lorna - Casual Fan

We shared an E.P by Remington Super 60 at the beginning of the year and it's good to have them back with today's new single release 'I Won't Change My Mind'. The bands smooth flowing indie music is notably melodic and intimate on this new track. ===== Mood Taeg double A side release is a feast of German musical influences from Kraftwerk to Can indeed the first song 'Corpora' is reminiscent of both bands, whilst 'Konkord' sees the duo put more of their own mark and styling into effect, both songs are wonderful. ===== We have had the pleasure of featuring Ali Horn a couple of times in the past and today's release 'End Credits' is another fine song, with a bright and rhythmic musical backdrop and his distinctive vocals adding plenty of feeling. ===== Wynnm returns for a third time this year with 'Falling From The Stars' a song that sees her attractive vocals upfront above a more restrained yet intricate musical arrangement. ===== Yesterday Lorna released her first E.P 'Who I Really Am' from which we have 'Go On And Breathe' which makes for a good representation of this imaginative singer songwriters four song collection. ===== Earlier in the year we shared two tracks from today's E.P release from Casual Fan entitled 'I've Dreamt About These Days' and I think it's fair to say all eight songs are of a very high standard where alt rock melodic and sweeping vocals and harmonies are everywhere.

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Remington Super 60 - I Won't Change My Mind.

I Won't Change My Mind is the second single from Norwegian band Remington super 60's upcoming EP, due to be released February 2021. The theme of the EP as well as this song is very personal to the band due to the breakup between Remington super 60's producer Christoer and singer Elisabeth. 

They are still good friends and have continued their musical work together Remington super 60 was founded by Christoer Schou in 1999 as a bedroom DIY project, between 1999 and 2007 the band was very active on the indie scene with several albums and EPs released on various small labels around the world. The early music style was very inspired by 60s music such as Beach Boys and Burt Bacharach but with the addition of lots of Casio keyboard blips and beeps.

Christoer has an impressive collection of small Casio and Yamaha keyboards. This resulted in the band being labeled as a Casio pop band. After 2007 the band only gave a few life signs every now and then. But since 2019 they started to produce a lof of new music again that resulted in the EP "New Ep" released January 2019. Musically they have now been labeled more or less a dream pop band by various blogs.

The band is still a DIY project although not based in Christoer's bedroom but in his living room. “Remington super 60 know how to cut a track” - Super world indie tunes “Dreamy sounds from Norway” - Tonspion.de “Remington Super 60, «The highway again». En ekte drømmelåt” - Kultur magasinet PLNTY “what matters most is that they sound just as delightful now as they did back in ’98” - Austin town hall “beautiful dream-pop” Barry Gru Remington super 60 2020 consists of: Christoer Schou, Elisabeth Thorsen and Magnus Abelsen.


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Mood Taeg - Corpora / Konkord.

Mood Taeg (pronounced mood tag) is a Scottish / German musical project located between Düsseldorf and Shanghai. Mood Taeg create music that incorporates the motorik drumming of Klaus Dinger and Jaki Liebezeit; the melodic sensibilities of Neu! and Kraftwerk; and the experimentation of Can, Cluster and Harmonia to produce instrumental compositions that are contemporary and, at the same time, fit exactly within the lineage of their influences.
 

Mood Taeg see their music as uncompromising but totally accessible. They don’t believe the form dictates the art. For them, the art dictates the form. Thus, songs may often be 10 minutes long with motorik grooves punctuated with vocal samples, ethereal synths and angular guitars. On this new single the band add extra elements to their sonic pallet. The A side, ‘Corpora’ has been tightly edited with pulsing electronics at the forefront, creating a soundscape that is as much dreampop as it is krautrock. The AA side Konkord is part of a collaboration with Dundee Poet Andrew French. Its spoken word vocals in a distinctive Scottish twang add an edgy lo-fi indie-rock dimension, akin to that of Glasgow’s Arab Strap.
 

Mood Taeg record all of their music at their home studio, Lowell’s Garden. They are also part of the wider Mood Taeg kollektiv which includes musicians, graffiti artists, DJs, photographers, painters, and video artists.

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Ali Horn - End Credits.

‘End Credits’ is a nihilistic yet optimistic track about slipping into the unknown of the afterlife. Musically joyous, lyrically dower this track perfectly sums up the highs and lows of realising our human condition as we hopelessly and defiantly trudge towards the end.

More dance-y than his previous work and making use of a wider range of interesting instruments, Ali self-produced this track at his home studio in Toxteth, Merseyside in May 2020 collaborating with Ste Cole of What? Studios to add drums and mix the track.

The only thing we know for sure is that we can’t stay here for long. We’re a speck of light reflecting off a fractured fragment of smashing glass in slow motion. There for a second and then gone. But let's have fun while it lasts. You can’t hide for the inevitable.

2019 saw Ali Horn release his debut E.P. ‘It Wears Off’, six songs exploding with hazy pop hooks and sunburst psychedelia, with themes that stray between life, death, love and paranoia.

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Wynnm - Falling From The Stars.

Falling From The Stars is a bold snapshot of Wynnm's music evolution and, with her new EP in the works for 2021, an exciting peek at what’s to come from a multi-talented artist who crafts a new world with every piece of music she makes.

New single Falling From The Stars is a downtempo, electronic, indie song, where she brings together her unique mix of styles. After 2 minutes and 45 seconds you only want to do one more thing and that is press repeat.

Wynnm about her new single: "Falling From The Stars, as a song, asks you to walk the path towards the stream of consciousness. To alter reality, and to not trust what you once trusted. A fusion of nostalgic sounds and forward vocals, winter will be better with this song."

Much acclaimed debut EP Moonwalking, released earlier this year, gave Wynnm the attention she deserved with rave reviews and radio airplay all over the world. Her music can now be heard on radio in the USA, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France, Russia, Ireland, Mauritius, Switzerland and Austria. Also her singles could be found in the Apple Music iTunes Charts in 44 countries worldwide! Falling From The Stars is released today 11 December 2020.

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Lorna - Go On And Breathe.

Who I Really Am, the first EP of singer-songwriter Lorna’s new Inspiring Conscious Pop project is coming on December 10th. The EP with original songs is the result of the Las Vegas-based singer's deep emotional conversations with followers of her new Facebook page, released right after the pandemic hit, back in May.

With a unique style that combines ambient music, Enya-like hypnotizing beautiful vocals, and emotional pop lyrics, Who I really Am, is a balm for the soul of the listeners, bringing comfort to their hearts and not rarely bringing tears to their eyes. In times when there is plenty of negativity and fear in the world, and when so many are hurting, emotional songs like “Go on and Breathe”, and “You Are Enough” transport the audience to a place of peace, hope, and positivity.

“I started this music Facebook page to create a community of people supporting each other to stay positive and to grow into self-love by developing themselves mentally and spiritually. To spread love and to comfort, but at the same time to empower them to feel strong and worthy, to overcome their challenges and to be happy”.

Soon enough, the engagement rate on Lorna’s page went through the roof, and people started sharing with her how overwhelmed, lonely and hopeless they felt sometimes, especially since the health crises started. That is how the songs of the new EP were born. With the intent of bringing positivity and encouragement.

Nowadays, even with a relatively small community of 15 K followers built in 6 months, Lorna’s Facebook engagement rate climbs up to 201 %, which shows how strongly and deeply she’s connecting with her audience when comparing these statistics to some of the biggest names on social media.*

Lorna is a multicultural influencer. Of English descent (her last name is Earnshaw), she was born and raised in Argentina and lived for years in Brazil before moving to Hollywood to teach vocal technique at a Los Angeles’ music university in 2013. She started building her Youtube channel in 2008, teaching singing lessons in Portuguese and English and helping students to believe in their dreams, with some of her videos reaching 1.2 MM views organically. As a voice coach, she has taught more than 1000 students from 102 countries with her online courses and more than 350 one-on-one students in English, Portuguese and Spanish.

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Casual Fan - I've Dreamt About These Days (E.P).

'I’ve Dreamt About These Days' was written between late 2017 and mid 2019, with most songs written while moving from Newcastle to Sydney in April 2019. Shortly after the move, friendships were made, a band was formed and songs were given shape and structure, going through several iterations before finally being captured during a week recording with Mark Myers at Big Sister Studio in Cairns, Sep 16-21, 2019.

The songs are primarily about movement between places. They were mostly written on acoustic guitar, but playing some sporadic live shows in 2019 allowed the songs to breathe and move beyond the confines of folk chords and simple lyrics.

'I’ve Dreamt About These Days' is a line in the second last song. It’s about growing up and realising that, while things are not what you thought they might be years ago when you were up late thinking about the future on a January school holiday midnight, the life we are given is usually more beautiful and meaningful than we give it credit for. In a sense, that’s what all these songs are about. Ultimately, the best thing about music is the friends we discover through making it or listening to it, and I’m grateful that writing and playing these songs has given me the chance to meet many wonderful people, who I now couldn’t imagine not knowing.

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Immaterial Possession - Violent Vickie - AMJ Collective - Casual Fan - banfi - Nichole Wagner

The first track from Immaterial Possession forthcoming album is 'Midnight Wander' and it's accompanied by a suitably matched video as the bands dramatic doom-dance quickly demands more than a little attention. === Los Angeles based Violent Vickie releases 'Circle Square' today, where sweeping synths glide over techno/electro beats as the shimmering vocals drift in and out. === AMJ Collective have shared their extended single 'Earth Is Calling' where instrumental reggae and some fabulous dub music shine beautifully. === Casual Fan just released 'Runners' a melodic indie song which exudes natural personal feeling through the vocals. === The brand new album from banfi entitled 'Colour Waits In The Dark' is an absolute feast of wonderful music and is streaming in full below. Creative and superbly delivered musical ideas cover considerable ground on what is a really fine album, one to take time out for. === Nichole Wagner releases her new E.P 'Dance Songs For the Apocalypse' with five distinctly different songs Nichole covers a lot of musical ground her consistently fine vocals keeping the overall feel together, this is a high quality collection.
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Immaterial Possession - Midnight Wander.

Midnight Wander is an energetic, doom-dance song, navigating the throws of impending earthly catastrophe, not without an uplifting shimmering view through the dark clouds.

Immaterial Possession was conceived by Atlanta natives, Cooper Holmes and Madeline Polites, whom share a history of the underground DIY Atlanta music, theater, and arts scene. The duo moved to Athens and was soon granted the seasoned drummer, John Spiegel, and eventually fulfilled with Kiran Jeremy Fernandes (keyboards, clarinets, flutes)- descendant of Elephant 6's beloved John Fernandes (Circulatory System, Olivia Tremor Control, Cloud Recordings).

All members bring forth a spectral hue unique to the ear- with Holmes' dark and driving punk-rooted base interwoven with Spiegel's vast repertoire of drumming artistry and sacral ardor. Polites, inspired by the musical scales of the Greeks and Spanish, weaves from her haunting bedroom classical guitar and transposes to a grittier electric. Fernandes' hands dance fearlessly along the keyboard as well as clarinet, offering windows into far away eastern lands as a light in the looming darkness.

The group's vocal charm is shared by both Holmes and Polites, tying the dynamic of the band into an intricate bow- sometimes in relatable rawness, other times by billowing operatic impulses. All together they create a sort of entrancement exclaimed as distinctly rare. "Immaterial Possession", the debut LP to be released on Cloud Recordings, is as much a visual journey as auditory. With Holmes, Polites, and Fernandes all sharing ties to surreal and abstract theater, each song on the album creates a distinct 'world' of impression and mystery.

The album commences with the apocalyptic fury of "Midnight Wander" to "See Through Stares"- the catching pop tale of altering the past through the present. It takes you through the psychedelic landscapes of "In the Loom", the hallucinatory darkness of "Accidental Summoning", towards the final 'Night Cap'- a soft, but inescapable ushering into the depths of the ancestral dream state. Cover tin-type by Salvage Sparrow.

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Violent Vickie - Circle Square.

Los Angeles-based Dark Synth-Riot artist Violent Vickie, is launching her latest track “Circle Square" today.

After being featured in EDM Joy, Brutal Resonance, and Fresh on the Net for her music video/single "Serotonin", Violent Vickie returns with "Circle Square", a gloomy, noisy electronic track with forlorn and haughty vocals that explores the illusion of not belonging.  The second single from her upcoming Division LP, Circle Square is a mix of techno/electro beats and noisy synth texture, reminiscent of the dark techno tunes Vickie partied to at Oakland warehouse parties.

Violent Vickie is a Los Angeles based Dark Synth-Riot artist consisting of Vickie and co-producer/recording guitarist E.  Vickie has toured with Hanin Elias of Atari Teenage Riot and supported Jessie Evans (The Vanishing), Trans X, Them Are Us Too, Aimon & The Missing Persons.

Her track "The Wolf“ was featured in a National Organization for Women film and she was interviewed for the documentary “GRRRL”, part of the museum exhibit “Alien She”.  Her LP "Monster Alley” was voted best album by KALX and her tracks have been remixed by 25+ artists.  Violent Vickie’s “Division” LP will be out in the fall of 2020 on Crunch Pod.

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AMJ Collective - Earth Is Calling.

Earth is Calling is a powerful instrumental lamenting the state of our planet with an uplifting call for a wiser, positive future. It was recorded live in the studio with the band.

The mixes feature once more the skills of Rob Smith at the controls. This tune will grow, there are more versions to come (including vocals), but we thought we’d share what we have with you right now and send some good energy out to the world. - Bless. AMJ

Led by producer John Hollis, the AMJ Collective is a group of musicians, thinkers and creators originating from the UK, Jamaica, Cuba, Colombia and Africa.

AMJ have been releasing fresh, modern dub tracks since 2011, steadily building a solid reputation for an original sound. Their first album, Sky Blue Love, a collaboration with dub maestro Rob Smith (RSD, Smith & Mighty), came out in 2016 to wide acclaim across the world. This was followed in 2017 with the Believe album. Now they embark on the 2020 Series, a collection of their latest recordings.

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Casual Fan - Runners.

It’s early March and you’re sitting in your car at a lookout on top of the ocean, looking down on the beaches you grew up on, thinking about a city you’re moving to and already missing the people you won’t get to see all the time.

You stay there a while and it gets to 6:30pm and cos of daylight savings it’s still light outside. The surfers are still all out there, and the sun setting over the hill shoots beams into the blue and orange haze and it’s like everything stands still, just for a moment.

Recorded in Cairns in late 2019 by Mark Myers (The Middle East) and mixed by Tim Fitz (Middle Kids), “Runners” is a song about the slow jog of life, and the rare moments you get to sit and watch it all run by.


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banfi - Colour Waits In The Dark (album).

Having relocated from North West England to South Wales via Edinburgh, Cornwall, Sheffield and 6 years in London, Joe Banfi has settled amongst the stark beauty of the Gower Peninsula. He entirely self-produced and recorded the album here, before heading to Eastcote Studios in London to mix the record with Eliot James (Two Door Cinema Club, Noah & The Whale).

Thus far 2 singles have been released from the album - the summertime-reckoning pop-hooks of ‘So Bright’ and the hypnotically addictive ‘Always Goodbye’.

Talking about these tracks and the album, Joe explains "Time and natural landscapes in relation to how I feel... I'm just trying to weave these things together for the listener... love and the passing of love among ancient things. Time and love entwined with the blood in the sky blessing my heart and the shells down on the beach that will go on sighing without me.

I've tried to voice a kind of void-fear amongst hope... John Keats’ gravestone (“Here lies one whose name was writ in water”) evokes a dread of time leaving each moment behind in a centreless dark, like goodbyes written on pages that'll one day float away.

But then there are no real grounds for believing that an afterlife, or lack of one, is any more eternal or real than the fact that you have once existed and always will have, forever in the past. We tend to project our linear view of time onto death, and maybe that's a mistaken view of the world. For me these answerless trails of thought create a flowing, bird-in-the-wind feeling of surrender to the force of time that I’ve tried to capture”.


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Nichole Wagner - Dance Songs For the Apocalypse (E.P).

Born and raised in the small town of Louviers, Colorado, Nichole Wagner grew up with a love of music and an extraordinary voice, but she had no way to really share her passion with the world. “I grew up writing song lyrics and wanting to be a musician, but I didn’t really play an instrument,” she says, “so that was a problem.”

At eighteen Nichole moved to Arizona to study journalism at Arizona State University, a career path that would offer a steady paycheck while also allowing her to indulge her love of photography.  But she found that it’s not so easy to let go of a dream.

“I wanted to be Stevie Nicks,” she laughs, “but I had no idea how to start playing music out in public, and I still didn’t play an instrument with any degree of skill.”  So I put that dream up on a shelf and said ‘well that’s probably a thing I’m not going to get to do.’”

After college, she moved to Austin, where she photographed the music scene and wrote articles from the sidelines. But the dream refused to die, and one day she found herself onstage at an open mic. She started writing new songs, learned to play guitar, and like wildfire the long-buried dream flared back to life.

In 2018 Nichole’s first album, And the Sky Caught Fire, was released, a terrific collection of country-rock that balances commerciality and integrity. It earned high praise from none other than Americana sage and No Depression magazine founder Peter Blackstock, who wrote in the Austin-American Statesman, “Wagner’s first full-length record establishes her as one of Austin’s most promising young singer-songwriters.”

Her new EP, Dance Songs for the Apocalypse, is another great leap forward. The first single, a funky, soulful take on the Talking Heads’ Life During Wartime, is a stunner: a deep and danceable track that takes David Byrne’s dystopian vision one step further and highlights Wagner’s abilities as an interpreter as she takes the song into deeper and darker territory. Those interpretive skills show themselves again in an intimate and mournful eight-minute take on Neil Young’s Ambulance Blues, a gorgeous piano and violin trip through sadness and reflection. Yet somehow none of it comes off as doom and gloom. There is the triumph of Better Son and Daughter, which starts off with an acoustic guitar and Wagner’s front porch delivery, but then builds as the band comes in, gathering steam and force. Finally, Bird Set Free shows off an electric piano and strings and carries you off to an ethereal and poignant place.


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me&you - Arielle Silver - Carroll - Casual Fan - Reckless Kelly - Lial - Rue Snider

me&you have released 'S.O.L' today and its a natural Americana song where folk and country come together beautifully, the dual vocals enriching the track even further. === Singer songwriter Arielle Silver shares her brand new song 'What Really Matters' where the poignant lyrics are passionately delivered on this powerful Indie folk piece. === Today Carroll release their third album 'Leap and the Net Appears' which is streaming in full below, we have already shared the song 'Fern' from the collection, and I have to say the album has lived up to the promise that track hinted at. === From Sydney, Australia we have Casual Fan and their latest song entitled 'Flight', it's a gently paced alt rocker with gorgeous vocals and background harmonies and some refined musicianship. === Reckless Kelly share 'North American Jackpot' which is a timeless country rocker with just a hint or two of Southern rock vibes. === From London we have Lial and the song 'Embers' which is released today, it's an electro pop song with plenty of feeling and emotion. === Rue Snider makes his seventh appearance on Beehive Candy with today's release 'Oklahoma' a gentler ballad that is both melodic and quite personal sounding.
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me&you - S.O.L.

me&you, formed of siblings Karlee and Connor Hormell, are an Americana duo from Sacramento, CA. Their new single, "S.O.L." is a country-folk slow burner about bad timing in a relationship. The single will be released Friday, February 28, ahead of their debut as official showcasing artists at SXSW 2020.

About me&you: "My brother and I always tell each other: all we have is me and you," explains Karlee with regards to their band name. The siblings have been playing music together since they were kids, but the band really came to fruition when they went on a month-long campervan trip in the backcountry of New Zealand and ultimately wrote their debut EP, Chasing Trails.

Since then, the duo has shared the stage with Dwight Yoakam, Barns Courtney, John Paul White (Civil Wars), Bastille, and others and has been sponsored by Patagonia, REI, SC Vans, and Visit Sacramento.

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Arielle Silver - What Really Matters.

In November 2018, there was a shooting at the Borderline Bar in Thousand Oaks, CA. The next day, the Woolsey and Hill fires broke out, burning over 96K acres of Southern California. People who were still wrapping their heads around losing 13 of their neighbors in the shooting were now having to pack up whatever they could to evacuate the fires that were rapidly heading their way. One of these nearby residents was Americana singer, Arielle Silver.

After these tragic events, Silver began to think about what really matters most when you are facing a tragedy and from that, her latest single was born. "What Really Matters" is released today Friday, February 28.

Arielle Silver crafts songs that are luminous, literate, and alive. A Thousand Tiny Torches, the singer-songwriter’s new Indie Folk Americana collection, is a testament to her renewal of inspiration, the rekindling of dreams, and the redemptive power and connective compassion that defines her artistry.

Her rich, expressive alto voice frames expansive melodies that echo the American heartland. Now based in Los Angeles, Arielle knows this geography well. A performing itinerary transported her from Club Passim in her adopted hometown of Boston to venues including Eddie’s Attic in Atlanta and Nashville’s 12th & Porter, plus stops to the Southwest, as she steered a vegetable oil-fueled vehicle across Texas to Abilene, Odessa and Austin.

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Carroll - Leap and the Net Appears (Album).

Leap and the Net Appears (out February 28th 2020 on Shattered Orb Records) is the third album by the Philadelphia band Carroll. The album takes the band’s outrospective sonic palate to glistening new heights and some of the murkiest depths of their career. Recorded in the band’s subterranean bunker in Philadelphia and at Berlin Studios in New Jersey, the record captures the first moments of a hibernating bear blinking into the sunshine after months in its den. On songs like first single “Fern” and album opener “2 Have U,” we see a band with one foot firmly planted in the void while cautiously approaching the light.

After years on the road and stints opening for the likes of Dr. Dog, Whitney, and Jessica Pratt, the four members of Carroll are learning to stay in place. “I tried fixing the holes inside / then I covered the door in your color,” sings frontman Brian Hurlow on “Nona.” Home improvement and domesticity butt up against inner turmoil in songs about unsettled settling. “This one has been a crazy year of tearing the yard apart,” Hurlow reflects on the sublime album closer "Bemy."

Underneath Hurlow’s plaintive delivery swirl the dense psychedelic landscapes the band is known for. The propulsive, liquid bass lines of Charles McClung are a second narrator throughout the course of the album and Max Kulicke continues to create microclimates and sonic storms with his atmospheric guitar. The record’s tasteful and varied synthesizers seem to bubble up from beneath the understated beats of drummer Charlie Rudoy, while the tender saxophone work by free jazz explorer Gabriel Garcia polishes off what are the most enveloping grooves of the band’s career.

The first lines of "Fern" are an apt metaphor for Carroll's newest record: "I'm a fern with the leaves curled up / in the light I extend and unravel." As you spend time with Leap and the Net Appears, the album unfurls, blooms, and blossoms around you

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Casual Fan - Flight.

Casual Fan is a musical collective from Sydney, started when songwriter Nathan moved from his home town of Newcastle to Sydney’s Inner West and pulled together some new friends to take his folk songs in a different direction. The result is a dynamic mix of subdued interludes and frenzied refrains, with Nathan’s resonant vocals and intricate guitar work providing a unique through line for the listener.

“Flight” is the first single from Casual Fan’s forthcoming debut album “I’ve Dreamt About These Days”. Recorded with Mark Myers (The Middle East, The Starry Field), it’s a song about being stuck between where you are and where you think you should be.

Listen as rich guitar tones and yearning vocals soar over unique rhythms to create a song that’s nostalgic like the Australian summer — like it’s 38 degrees and you’re packed into your friend’s ’97 Nissan Pulsar on your way to the beach in late February.

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Reckless Kelly - North American Jackpot.

The Austin, TX-based country rock band Reckless Kelly released “North American Jackpot,” the first single and title track from their upcoming album American Jackpot (out May 22 alongside their album American Girls). The song will be available everywhere tomorrow but you can hear it now on Taste of Country.

“Writing ‘North American Jackpot’ I kept hitting a wall with the verses and the theme,” says Willy Braun, who co-founded Reckless Kelly with his older brother Cody Braun and drummer Jay Nazz in 1996. “Trouble was, I kept going back to my first idea, a story about my grandparents, which wasn’t really going anywhere, but I couldn’t get away from it. I  thought, I’d have to scrap this one till it made sense… the problem was, I’d already started writing the rest of the album and was close to being finished, but the title track, 'North American Jackpot’ wasn’t close to being completed, and far from the cornerstone it needed to be. I called Jeff Crosby, songwriter extraordinaire from the Gem State asking for help. The next day he sent a nearly perfect first verse that got me out of the rut and on the right track. I wrote a second verse almost immediately and we polished it up in Boise a couple weeks later. I had my cornerstone.”

For nearly 25 years, Reckless Kelly has graced the musical landscape with a high-powered form of Americana, equally rooted in raw passion, refined musicianship, and gritty authenticity. With the dual release of two new albums—American Jackpot and American Girls—the Idaho-bred band presents a beautifully detailed portrait of their beloved country, turning their nuanced songwriting to its many glories and tragedies. “North American Jackpot” appears on American Jackpot, throughout which Reckless Kelly joyously examines what they most cherish about their homeland, exalting everything from the thrill of mule-riding through the Grand Canyon to the country’s singular potential as a cultural melting pot. At the same time, the band never shies away from calling out forces that threaten America’s character. To that end, the album is bookended by two piano-driven tracks with lyrics lifted from the Emma Lazarus poem inscribed at the Statue of Liberty: the full-hearted and hopeful “North American Jackpot,” and “Goodbye Colorado #3” (a quietly impassioned response to anti-immigrant rhetoric).

For American Jackpot and American Girls, the band called upon friends and fellow musicians Bukka Allen, Jeff Crosby, Charlie Sexton, Gary Clark Jr., Rosie Flores, Shawn Sahm, Muzzie Braun, Suzy Bogguss, Wade Bowen and many more to join their recording sessions. Although Reckless Kelly initially intended to make just one album, the project took on a life of its own once they headed into the studio. “I wanted to produce this one by myself, just to try that out, and I made sure to book plenty of studio time to get it done right,” says Willy. “We ended up moving along really fast, so I pulled out a few more songs and figured we’d end up using them down the road. Before we knew it, we had enough material for two really good records.”

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Lial - Embers.

Lial is a London artist making a haunting and melancholy strand of electronic-pop, laced with a hypnotic and sensual vocal which has been likened to a mix of Kylie and Billie Ray Martin. On 28th February, she releases brand new single Embers ahead of the release of her second EP, Made To Break, which follows in Summer 2020.

Lial sites artists such as Låpsley, Sia, and Lana Del Rey as influences, with her sound encompassing echoes of each. Lial’s enveloping minimal arrangements recall Låpsley’s dark, brooding alt-pop but coupled with Sia’s glistening pop-sensibility. There’s also a touch of Del Rey’s sultry heartsick delivery, weighted by the subject matter of Lial’s songs. New single Embers is about the struggle of removing oneself from a destructive situation which is simultaneously addictive. The song’s darker undertones are laced with a wistful edge which Lial describes as “the recognition there is something good that could have been, even as you try to draw a line under it all.”

After performing live as a professional singer at big sports events including England Rugby matches, Lial began working on her own music. In 2019 she shared her debut Heart Scars EP, self-released and unpromoted, it organically accumulated over 68k Spotify plays, UK and international blog posts for its lead title-track, and fans in a wide range of places.  Lial found music from the EP shared and championed on social media by fellow songstress Pixie Lott and actresses Lily James, Michelle Dockery and Jo Froggatt (among many others).

Embers is released as a digital single on 28 February. It is written by Lial alongside co-writer and producer Gregor McWilliam and mastered by John Davies. Lial’s Made to Break EP follows in Summer 2020.

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Rue Snider - Oklahoma.

Brooklyn based Rue Snider today releases his new song Oklahoma. Rue tells us "It's a ballad about a sex worker. It's quieter than the stuff I've been putting out lately".

Singer songwriter Rue Snider combines 80s alt sonics with a lyrical style reminiscent of 60s rock revolutionaries. His sound and ideals are both a reflection of and a reaction to growing up during the 1980s in a small town.

The tone of his hometown and it’s conservative foundation spawned Rue’s progressive values and belief in social justice. His home filled with records by Neil Diamond, Elvis Presley, and Air Supply, and his elementary school music teacher father propelled his love for music and interest in performance. Investments were made in lessons on piano, cello, trumpet, and eventually voice, which were met with the same embrace any free spirited young person attaches to something they are forced to do.

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Bumper Catch Up featuring: Rubblebucket - Mollie Elizabeth - Lilly Hiatt - The Kearns Family - WILDES and St Francis Hotel - Lucette - Caroline Strickland - Mon Rayon - Lala Salama

Keeping the comments a little shorter so we can cram a few more songs in than usual, this is our first bumper catch up of some really fine r...