Content

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Sika & Voyce: A Tale Of Two War-riors

Science & Magic

The Devil:Chapter 2

Songwriter and musician Andrew Fos-ter presents his first full-length album, Science & Magic.

Blue Stahli is already proving to be an exciting electronic music project the rock audience should look out for.

november 2014

18 20

24

HollywoodUndead

Kimbra’s Shining Moment

Channels Re-booted EDM

Spirit

Hollywood Undead returns with “Day Of The Dead,” an anthemic industrial banger that features the band’s signature melancholic vocals, guitar wailing, and zombie-movie themes.

The Golden Echo feels grandiose both in its runtime and sonic depth. There are 12 tracks (not including three bonus tracks on the deluxe version) and no filler material.

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Content november 2014

28. Budz’s Look TapeMakeWay’s frontman BuDz drops another bomb with his first solo venture Look Tape, and oh how wonder-ful this one hits.

30. The ValveenusThe band from Ottawa, Canada has a certain groove to them that is fun and edgy, the kind of energy that really shines and right through the length of their EP “Moving On.”

32. Mel Alston Jr.Just how good is Mel Alston Jr.’s Movie Muzik: A Cin-ema For The Blind?

34. Play, Record, EraseNew Colour, debuted just this past August, is Play Re-cord Erase’s first official release. Generally speaking, the EP is loaded with many remarkable features.

36. Animal Nights“Suicide Night” is a heavy and heartfelt anthem that preaches about cherishing your life and straying away from the act.

37. Crystal TaisCrystal Tais brings her own flair to Rae Sremmurd’s massive banger “No Flex Zone”.

38. Corrupted MindsToday, as a six-member band, Corrupted Minds sets stages ablaze with storm worldwide, both aurally with their music and visually with their stage costumes and masks.

40. Kyle LacyLacy belongs to the all-welcome club of galvanized rookies with striking reper-toires and unwavering enthusiasm.

42. DarjaHailing from Riga, Latvia, and being raised in Germany and the UK, the multilingual singer/songwriter Darja (pronounced Dar-ya) is already moving the music scene.

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Editorialletter

elcome to 24OurMusic! It’s getting chilly here in Canada, but our coverage of new and excit-ing acts from all over the world continues to

be hot as ever. As usual, the musical tastes and artists that are in our content are varied

and diverse; Zilos and Darja team-up for summer’s swan song with their scintillating pop hit “Summer Breeze,” while Andrew Foster shows off his “Science and Magic.” Australian queen Kimbra presents “The Golden Echo” while Mel Alston Jr. channels something sensual and seductive with “Movie Muzik.” We always strive to ensure that there’s something for everyone to enjoy and discover, and this issue is no exception.

As we continue to grow as a company, as a platform of diverse music, and as a family of writers and readers who simply love music, 24OurMusic will never falter in its quest to deliver the news of the world’s most exciting sounds. Internationally, we are growing and receiving more recog-nition; this month’s issue is just another testament to that growth.

WCreative Department

Creative Director: Justin Everest

Senior Designer: Karl Nicolas

Writing Department

Editor-in-Chief: Justin Everest

Manging Editor: Brandon Minia

Senior Staff Writer: Karl Nicolas

Staff Writer: Samantha Mok

Staff Writer: Patricia De Oliveira

Staff Writer: Trenton Minia

Staff Writer: Evan Crandell

Staff Writer: Gustan Koumantaros

If you have any questions or would like to

advertise with 24OurMusic please contact

us with the provided information below.

EMAIL: Info@24OurNetwork.com

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The Devil: Chapter 2

Based out of Detroit, Michigan, Bret Au-trey—aka Blue Stahli—is already proving to be an exciting electronic music project the rock audience should look out for.

Since evolving from his high-school project VOXiS (2000-6), Bret has gone a long way. If you have watched TV shows such as The Big Bang Theory, and Criminal

Minds; trailers such as Iron Man 3 and The Amazing Spi-derman 2; or played video games such as Dead Rising 2, chances are you have already been exposed of Bret’s work. His latest release brings us Chapter 2 of his LP The Devil.

As the title suggests, this album is nothing but an ag-gressive cinematic journey. This is not an album any listener should take lightly because even though it is four tracks long, The Devil Chapter 2 offers a heck lot. Both tracks one and four, The Beginning and The Enemy (Premonition) are instrumental tracks, but also have the perfect cinematic buildups and dynamics. The Begin-ning begins with a haunting guitar riff before the whole song is on lift-off, featuring gripping basslines, electrify-ing guitars, and thumping tribal drums.

Both tracks two and three—Ready Aim Fire and En-emy—are vocal tracks sung by Bret himself; these songs do not disappoint. Ready Aim Fire is very reminiscing

AS THE TITLE SUGGESTS, THIS ALBUM IS NOTHING BUT AN AGGRESSIVE CINEMATIC JOURNEY.

Writer: Trenton M.

ALBUM REVIEW

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of the electronic rock songs I listen to on video games, and this specific track does a very great job establishing a fighting spirit and mentality within the listening audi-ences. Thanks to the enchanting vocals, twisting synths, tripping bass & guitars, and the splintering drums, Ready Aim Fire will leave you thrashing, while holding on to dear life on a fast

thrilling rollercoaster ride. The third track—Enemy—starts off more mysteriously unlike the previous track, but still has the belligerence Blue Stahli offers. This song has an addicting chorus, and the intricate beats

and rhythms packed tightly will keep your headphones on and your music player playing under a combustive nature.

It is very impressive for a self-taught musician like Bret Autrey to be making professionally-sounding electronic rock music for quite a significant amount of time now. It is perhaps that closely working with Scott Albert — also known as Klayton, also known as the legendary Cell-dweller — and who is also part of the production team on The Devil Chapter 2, assisted in lifting Blue Stahli and this release to its highes potential, and it can only escalate even further from here. If you are not on the Blue Stahli train yet then you better be jumping on now, as it will only be a wild ride from here on out. If art is a weapon—as Blue Stahli’s bio claims it is—then it has been used in a very lethal matter.

THANKS TO THE ENCHANT-

ING VOCALS, TWISTING SYNTHS, TRIPPING BASS & GUITARS, AND THE SPLIN-

TERING DRUMS, READY AIM FIRE WILL LEAVE YOU THRASHING, WHILE HOLD-

ING ON TO DEAR LIFE.

ON PHOTO: As the title suggests, this album is nothing but an aggressive cinematic journey.

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FOSTER TACKLES SEVER-

AL ISSUES AND THEMES IN SCIENCE & MAGIC. WHAT’S REMARKABLE IS THAT HE SOMEHOW

MANAGES TO AVOID BE-ING TOO HEAVY-HANDED

WITH HIS LYRICS.

Songwriter and musician Andrew Foster presents his first full-length album, Science & Magic. This 13-track trip is an expertly crafted collection that heralds the emergence of a talented singer/songwriter. Since burst-ing onto the scene with his 2012 EPs Russell’s Teapot and New Criterion, Foster has opened for and supported such acts as Mumford & Sons, Terry Reid, Passenger, Hard Fi and Charlene Soraia. With Science & Magic, Foster brings an atmospheric, folk-inspired approach to his arrangements that are punctuated by flashes of rock and psychedelia. Here is an artist well versed in tradition, establishing his own unique approach to traditional structures.

Foster tackles several issues and themes in Science & Magic. What’s re-markable is that he somehow manages to avoid being too heavy-handed with his lyrics. Part of that might have to do with the confident modesty in his voice—it tackles gravity with a certain optimism that is not only invit-ing, but inspires a kind of hope.

This is best exemplified in the second half of the album, where, hands down, Foster’s crowning achievement is found. “Interstellar,” the ninth track of Science & Magic, is a staggering piece of songwriting. The pared down acoustic arrangement is accentuated by its beautiful and complex lyrics. If you listen to nothing else on this album, go out of your way to experience “Interstellar.”

Science & Magic is Foster’s coming out party. Here’s hoping this is the launching pad of a promising career, the first of more albums to come.

Science & Magic!ANDREW FOSTER’S CREATIVE MASTERPIECE

Writer: Gustan Koumantaros

CREDITS

1 Photo Credit: Aaron Bennett 2

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A TALE OF TWO WARRIORSSIKA & VOYCE

Things are about to get exciting for one Montreal singer.

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After skyrocketing to the top of the indie dance-pop scene with her hot single “Love Kills,” Sika is about to return in a bombas-tic way, supplemented by the ever-talented Voyce* in “Warrior,” a hot and contagious dance-pop track that is rearing to drop this upcoming 2015.

The sexy, hard edge of Sika melds seduc-tively with the genuine softness of Voyce, a deadly combination. As Voyce states, both performers simply “let the instru-mental speak to us and that was it;” play-ing to the authenticity that Voyce seems to bring to all his projects, this cou-ples very nicely with Sika’s more grandi-ose and charismatic demeanour, allow-ing two seemingly opposite personas to speak their own stories in perfect harmo-ny. Again, Voyce states this best: “there’s something beautiful about seeing two worlds come together and instead of them clashing they harmonize with each other. That’s how I’d describe the way Sika and I work, two worlds harmonizing.”

Sika is not an artist simply banking off her

meteoric success on YouTube, an arguable mistake that many artists seem to make. She’s taking the opportunity given to her and grasping hard with both hands, put-ting in a great amount of effort to not just produce good music, but to evolve per-sonally and musically. Indeed, her upcom-ing album will sound “different, definite-ly a new level, but I’m still staying in the pop-dance style.” It’s a little difficult to find that balance between sticking to the sound you know and evolving your style, because this brings about the challenge of still sounding good (and you proba-bly know a few artists who have failed this challenge), but Sika succeeds in rising above this.

“Love Kills” was bubbly and frenetic in energy, introducing to the world an art-ist who has the confidence of an elite diva and the ear of a top-tier pop artist. Her upcoming single “Warrior” is anything but bubbly and frenetic, but it still dis-plays fierce divaness and an instrumen-tal ear, keeping the singer’s image and sound fresh and exciting. The underly-

ing flair across her music also remains the same throughout; Sika states that her goal is to “inspire ... to empower women in their weakest moments. Pop music is a univer-sal medium to pass positive messages to the youth for a better tomorrow.”

This is a fantastic trend to aspire to; look at Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and even older acts such as Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani. These are all women who possess a certain “sexy edgy fashionista” vibe that Sika ascribes to herself, but most impor-tantly have successfully touched listen-ers in purely positive ways. With such fiery confidence and style, it’s implausible to not believe that Sika is headed down the same route towards this elite group of la-dies.

Photo Credit: Cedric Sequerra

Photo Credit: Christophe Flemin

IMAGES CREDITS

1

2

Makeup Artist: MUA Melyna Leclerc 3

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EXCLUSIVEINTERVIEW24- Tell us a little bit about yourself in 140 characters or less. Go.

S- With all my past experiences I now know exactly who I am, where I want to be and I’m taking control of it.

V- The tattoo on my chest says it all “Born on the Moon, Raised on Mars, Stuck on Earth, Reaching for the Stars”.

24- Sika, your rise came quite spontaneously and you’ve achieved quite a lot of success in just the last two-or-so years. How over-whelming or exciting has it been since your rise in the music scene?

S- It has been such an amazing time, [having] close to 100,000 views on YouTube on my song ‘’Love kills,’’ being top 13 on NRJ France and awesome feedback from fans, friends and labels is al-ways very exciting but that doesn’t stop me from working harder to get higher.

24- How would you describe your style, both aesthetically and musically?

S- I would describe my style as a sexy edgy fashionista. I’m al-

ways in black&white which for me represents the Darkness and the lights ... the bad and the good side which we all do have. My music is also edgy and filled with personal experiences and mes-sages.

24- Voyce*, you seem to have this very commanding but knowl-edgeable presence when you make music with artists. Where do you attribute this persona of yours from?

V- I don’t know if I’d say I have a commanding presence ha ha, but I am true to myself and I guess that could be seen as “com-manding”. I may not always know who I am, but I’m aware of who I don’t want to be, and that comes across when I make music with other artists. That persona comes from life, from my experiences, from loss, from pain, from having everything and suddenly having it all taken away, from living on both sides of the same coin. My music has always been a reflection of the life I lead, have led or will lead, so when I make music with other artists, I’m just bring-ing myself to the table, nothing more, nothing less.

24- When you sat down to work with Sika on her upcoming single, what advice or tips did you give her, either for her performance, her songwriting, or the direction of her music?

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Voyce

" MY MUSIC HAS ALWAYS BEEN A REFLECTION OF THE LIFE I LEAD, HAVE LED OR WILL LEAD, SO WHEN I MAKE MUSIC WITH OTHER ARTISTS, I’M JUST BRINGING MYSELF TO THE TABLE, NOTHING MORE, NOTHING LESS. "

Writer: Brandon M.

Photo Credit: Cedric Sequerra

CREDITS

1

2 Photo Credit: Christophe Flemin 3 Makeup Artist: MUA Melyna Leclerc 4

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24- Tell us a little bit about yourself in 140 characters or less. Go.

S- With all my past experiences I now know exactly who I am, where I want to be and I’m taking control of it.

V- The tattoo on my chest says it all “Born on the Moon, Raised on Mars, Stuck on Earth, Reaching for the Stars”.

24- Sika, your rise came quite spontaneously and you’ve achieved quite a lot of success in just the last two-or-so years. How over-whelming or exciting has it been since your rise in the music scene?

S- It has been such an amazing time, [having] close to 100,000 views on YouTube on my song ‘’Love kills,’’ being top 13 on NRJ France and awesome feedback from fans, friends and labels is al-ways very exciting but that doesn’t stop me from working harder to get higher.

24- How would you describe your style, both aesthetically and musically?

S- I would describe my style as a sexy edgy fashionista. I’m al-ways in black&white which for me represents the Darkness and the lights ... the bad and the good side which we all do have. My music is also edgy and filled with personal experiences and mes-sages.

24- Voyce*, you seem to have this very commanding but knowl-edgeable presence when you make music with artists. Where do you attribute this persona of yours from?

V- I don’t know if I’d say I have a commanding presence ha ha, but I am true to myself and I guess that could be seen as “com-manding”. I may not always know who I am, but I’m aware of who I don’t want to be, and that comes across when I make music with other artists. That persona comes from life, from my experiences, from loss, from pain, from having everything and suddenly having it all taken away, from living on both sides of the same coin. My music has always been a reflection of the life I lead, have led or will lead, so when I make music with other artists, I’m just bring-ing myself to the table, nothing more, nothing less.

24- When you sat down to work with Sika on her upcoming single, what advice or tips did you give her, either for her performance, her songwriting, or the direction of her music?

V- The beauty of music or really any form of art is freedom of ex-pression. Being able to create without restriction or limitation. When you let that be you’re “guide”, then the music process is or-ganic and never feels forced. When Sika and I worked on the sin-gle, we just created. I don’t think I ever at any point gave her any advice or anything of that sort; we just let the instrumental speak to us and that was it. What I love about the song is that even

though on the surface it’s a pop song, beneath that layer, there are many themes and stories being told. Every listen says some-thing new, even for me. I don’t think we would have managed that if either one of us had imposed a direction.

24- Sika, the production of “Love Kills,” from the sound all the way to the music video, have the mark of an artist who is mature and seems to really know what she is doing. What was the think-ing process that went into this incredible project, and what were you hoping to accomplish when you were making it?

S- At that time, I was getting out of a hard relationship, which for me, Love Kills was the perfect song to express [deceptively] and release my anger. My intention was to [say to] my ex, ‘’In your Face’’ Mother [expletive!]

24- How crazy was it around the time that you started achieving all this success?

S- I was so busy with the upcoming productions that I couldn’t re-alize the success my song was having. Hopefully, I can enjoy the next rise.

24- How crazy was it around the time that you started achieving all this success?

S- I was so busy with the upcoming productions that I couldn’t re-alize the success my song was having. Hopefully, I can enjoy the next rise.

24- For your upcoming EP, how much of the energy from “Love Kills” can we expect, or are you may be taking a new direction? What are your goals for this record?

S- Always on the rise... My sound will be different, definitely a new level, but I’m still staying in the Pop-dance style. At this mo-ment I am working really hard to get the best songs and sound for this upcoming EP which I am really excited to show to my fans. My goal is pretty simple, Inspire people with my music, make them believe in themselves with songs that have deep meanings, such as my upcoming release “Warrior.” [This will be] the first song that will be released February 2015 featuring Voyce*.

24- Voyce*, how would you describe the way your aesthetic and talent blends with Sika’s?

V- Musically, I love working with artists that are fundamentally different from me when it comes to art style. There’s something beautiful about seeing two worlds come together and instead of them clashing they harmonize with each other. That’s how I’d de-scribe the way Sika and I work, two worlds harmonizing.

24- Having worked a lot with many artists, how different is the whole process of writing and recording when you collaborate

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Voyce

" WHEN I MAKE MY OWN MUSIC, I’M IN MY WORLD AND MY WORLD HAPPENS TO BE SPACESHIP TRAVELLING THROUGH THE COSMOS. "

Photo Credit: Sukhi Benning 5

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rather than take the center? What kind of energy would you say you brought to the single?

V- When I record music for my own projects, every aspect of it is me. I’m telling my story in my world. It’s free and without re-serve. When I work with other artists on their projects, I still tell my story, I still bring myself to the table, but I need to be aware of the world I’m telling the story in. There’s something excit-ing about that. If it isn’t apparent by now, I am obsessed with all things Space. So, when I make my own music, I’m in my world and my world happens to be spaceship travelling through the cos-mos. When I work with other artists, I land my spaceship on their planets and suddenly need to take the gravitational pull of their worlds into account. That’s the energy I brought to the single, I brought my aura as seen from Sika’s world.

24- Your bio says that you had a rollercoaster of a ride to success. Through these trials and successes, what do you think is the sin-gle-most important life lesson you learned?

V- Don’t wait for the world to show you the way. When you’re lost in your darkness, all you can do is choose a direction and start walking. Standing still will lead your nowhere. Keep moving and eventually you’ll find an exit.

24- Do you ever have those moments where you’re just so frus-trated or stumped with writing and recording that you don’t know where to go? How do you go about solving these problems?

V- Like I mentioned earlier, my music will always be a reflection of my life. If I suddenly find myself in a place where I’m having writer’s block, then the problem goes deeper than just not being able to find the right words, melodies or musical arrangements. It means I need to take time and look into myself. It means maybe I’m not ready to tell that particular story.

24- Sika, what music or artists have you been listening to lately?

S- I am a huge fan of The Weekend because of his unique sound, you will find his music in my iPhone for sure. Lately I’ve been also listening to the song ‘’Animal’’ from Maroon 5 . It has a catchy and fun melody which I really do like.

24- Voyce*, what is one project of yours that you always look back at fondly or are most proud of?

V- Honestly, every time a stranger walks up to me, tweets me or even writes me on Facebook, just to tell me that a particular song

of mine made a difference in their life, then that moment be-comes my proudest moment. I don’t think there’s a greater feeling.

24- Are there any artists, past or present that you think you’d like to collaborate with?

V- I wish I could have been a fly on the wall in any of Michael Jackson’s recording sessions, to be able to watch him work and witness history in the making (see what I did there? ha ha). You know who I’d love to just hang out with though? Justin Timber-lake, he just seems like such a cool guy.

24- Sika, are there any plans to tour? What are some stops you’re excited for?

S- Yes for sure, I had a great success with my previous one. We are at this moment organizing everything to have an amazing show once again. Destinations are still a surprise though.

24- Your bio states that “Sika embodies the bold attitude of to-morrow’s generation;” can you comment on this “generation of to-morrow” and how important you think it is that pop music contin-ues to evolve and keep itself young?

S- The generation of today has been fashioned by the music of yesterday so the message that I pass through my music can some-what rectify the negative undertones that have already been made in the past. My intention is to empower women in their weakest moments. Pop music is a universal medium to pass posi-tive messages to the youth for a better tomorrow.

24- This last one is just for fun: if you could be any flavour of ice cream, which one would you be?

S- RockyRoad for sure .... cause every bite is a surprise ;) just can’t get tired of it... Haha

V- Oreo, because it’s the only one that doesn’t make me feel sick lol

24- Thank you both for your time; I wish you all the best I hope we get to talk more music in the future!

S- Thank you so much Brandon , Can’t wait for you to hear my new music ;)

V- I should be thanking you :)

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Hollywood Undead Doing what they do best, no curve balls or magic tricks...

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Hollywood Undead Ingites The Zombie PartyThe legendary Hollywood Undead returns with “Day Of The Dead,” an anthemic industrial banger that features the band’s signature melancholic vocals, guitar wailing, and zombie-movie themes. This single is the marker of a band that is just doing what they do best, no curve balls or magic tricks pulled out of a hat; just the same pure, raw, and visceral energy that the group has dished out for years.

The masked group of rap-rockers returns with the usual showy flair of their previous tracks, one that seems to channel a certain gruff mixed with cinematic edginess. There is indeed that element of horror laced in the sounds, one that manifests perfectly in a song that aptly shares its title with George A. Romero’s classic flick (and even channels the same energy that may be found in the remake of Romero’s Dawn of The Dead.) There’s a distinct end-of-the-world dread that churns all through-out this number, and I think that already wins the group top marks for being able to skillfully create this aura.

The song itself clocks at four-minutes, although with its dark and hard energy it seems to go by at an ap-propriate and faster pace. Progressing melodramati-cally between acoustic guitar sequences and distorted electric sections, supplemented by the group’s trade-mark rap vocals and an anthemic chorus, “Day Of The Dead” is at its core a memorable rock song, never too embellished nor lacking at any moment. The guitars rip at just the right moments, and the angsty vocals that have so pervaded the band’s music take centre stage all throughout the single. The lyrics are as expected of Hollywood Undead, keeping true to the fantastical and raucous nature that has so prominently propelled their music for over a decade.

“Day Of The Dead” it seems is only a glimpse into the zombie apocalypse that the rap rock band is about to unleash, and given their track record of how rambunc-tious and raw their music is, this is one release worth waiting for.

Writer: Brandon M.

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A Review of“The Golden Echo”

Kimbra’s Shining Moment

Writer: Evan C.

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Anyone who first discovered Kimbra in Gotye’s 2011 smash hit “Somebody That I Used to Know” and went to find out more about the singer from New Zealand were probably surprised by her solo work. Depending on the listener’s expectations, he or she would likely have been either put off by the quirky, nontraditional musical techniques or enamored by her creativity and obviously massive skill in songwriting and production. What we have all come to realize about Kimbra, first from her 2011 debut solo album Vows and now with the fol-low up The Golden Echo, is that aside from having immense vocal abilities, she consistently maintains her originality and avoids clichés that have steril-ized mainstream pop music in recent years.

Even in her brief guest spot in Gotye’s hit it was clear that Kimbra was exhibiting a certain level of restraint. While Gotye appeared entirely comfort-able portraying a controlled level of emotion, Kimbra seemed ready to burst by the end of the track. With The Golden Echo, her ideas are let loose and allowed to breath without limitation. One gets the feeling that the album is only a sliver of her cre-ative output and that she may be sitting on much more material, which will hopefully be released in the future.

The Golden Echo feels grandiose both in its runtime and sonic depth. There are 12 tracks (not including three bonus tracks on the deluxe version) and no filler material. With every entry, Kimbra shows purpose, care, and devotion to her work. One cannot help but marvel simply at the amount of detail and effort that have gone into crafting each song. The instrumentation on the album employs a blend of organic instruments with digital programming in a way that gives the music a human pulse with a heavy backbone of synthetic power.

The long list of guest artists on The Golden Echo adds to the sense of scale of the work. Kimbra works with the likes of bass virtuoso Thundercat, composer and arranger Van Dyke Parks, rubbery vocal powerhouse Bilal, string arranger Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Michael Jackson collaborator John “JR” Robinson, guitarist Omar Rodriguez Lopez of The Mars Volta (on the bonus track “Slum Love”), and producer Rich Costey (Foster the People, Inter-pol, and Muse), among many others. Kimbra is able to effortlessly integrate all of these different voices and energies into her work while maintaining her signature sound on every note.

Every track on The Golden Echo has its own per-sonality and in all, we get a profound view of the personal and musical worlds of Kimbra. While the more mainstream fans might be drawn to tracks like the nostalgic “90s Music” or the upbeat disco jaunt “Miracle,” there is a five-track run toward the

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latter part of the album that is musically diverse and dynamic, effectively portraying Kimbra’s eclectic, soulful style.

“Madhouse,” with Thundercat’s fluttering bass line, is a musical ode to Prince and a lyrical look into the madness of human nature and existence. “Everlovin’ Ya” is perhaps the most musically dense and oth-erworldly track on the album. The pulsing produc-

tion and Bilal’s raw vocals and overdubbing create a hauntingly beautiful song that concludes with 30 seconds of Atwood-Ferguson’s string tremolos that drive home the poignant mood and complex har-mony. “As You Are” is a heartfelt ballad that show-cases Kimbra’s elastic vocal skills and harmonizing prowess. The occasional vocal effects here almost go unnoticed but probably should have been left out of this intimate concoction of piano and strings. In a

IF LISTENERS

ARE ABLE TO RE-

CEIVE THE GOLDEN ECHO

WITH AN OPEN MIND AND

APPRECIATE THE MASTER-

FUL MUSICIANSHIP AND LOVE

THAT WENT INTO ITS CRE-

ATION, THE ALBUM WILL PAY

DIVIDENDS FOR YEARS TO

COME

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turn to the ethereal, the slow burner “Love in High Places”

highlights Kimbra’s celestial sonic concepts and produc-

tion, along with a strong dose of Thundercat’s viciously heavy,

syncopated bass in the chorus. Finally, in what could maybe be

considered the centerpiece of the album, “Nobody But You” is a compositionally intricate

song, with its accessible verses and chorus and spacey bridge. The track seems to embody what Kimbra’s sound is about: catchy hooks, danceable grooves, all underscored by intensely elaborate and sophisticated ideas and production.

One’s perception and reaction to The Golden Echo will undoubtedly be partly determined by that person’s preconceived expectations and desires. Those expect-ing more mainstream, radio-friendly hits like her work with Gotye might be dumbfounded and disappointed by the complicated music on the album and lack of

cohesive, succinct pop songs from the tried and true cookie cutter formula. What is abundantly clear here is that Kimbra could create those types of songs if she chose to go that route. She did not. It’s as if she wrote songs to reel in audiences, as pop songs do, but then just kept going, taking her music in fascinatingly un-predictable directions. If listeners are able to receive The Golden Echo with an open mind and appreciate the masterful musicianship and love that went into its creation, the album will pay dividends for years to come.

IF LISTENERS

ARE ABLE TO RE-

CEIVE THE GOLDEN ECHO

WITH AN OPEN MIND AND

APPRECIATE THE MASTER-

FUL MUSICIANSHIP AND LOVE

THAT WENT INTO ITS CRE-

ATION, THE ALBUM WILL PAY

DIVIDENDS FOR YEARS TO

COME

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Breathe Carolina has the tools and talent to produce something good, we just gotta sit back and wait...

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Breathe CarolinaChannels Rebooted EDM Spirit

Breathe Carolina is almost of a legend, known for their masterful blend of rock, metal, and dance mu-sic. Indeed, it’s almost unbelievable that tracks such as “Diamonds” and “Classified” came out seven years ago (was it really that long since we were in high school? !??!!). Their re-cent release “I Don’t Know What I’m Doing” is a collaboration with pro-ducer Oscar Olivo and a “reboot” of the hit banger from Savages (2014), a track that is rebuilt to cement the group’s intent to go “head-first

in the EDM direction” as a “fully electronic act going forward.” Gone is the crisp, filthy, lethal bite of the original, replaced instead by Euro-style drops and synths. Indeed, this “reboot” isn’t a bad effort, but a puzzling one at that.

Savages did not have the Euro flair that the reboot of “I Don’t Know…” contains, but the overall product was definitely more polished, complete with Breathe Carolina’s signature swagger, and yes: it had

AN ESTABLISHED GROUP OF MUSICIANS THAT WE KNOW IS MORE THAN CAPABLE OF RAISING HELL AND THROWING UNFORGETTABLE PARTIES

Writer: Brandon M.

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that “EDM” edge to it that the reboot supposedly tries to channel. As ambitious as the remake sounds, it just seems too watered down from its original, trading the the band’s usual lethal drunkenness for drops that sound regrettably bland, generic, and underwhelming. Dave Schmitt’s vocals still give the obvious reckless-seductive BC style that topped and pervaded all of the group’s music from the last seven years, but in this number his crooning is unfortunately wrested out by the track’s obnoxious and forgettable synths, of which are wailing over a careless four-four beat. Breathe Caro-lina seemingly tries to blend themselves with this new “EDM” flair, but instead creates something discombobu-lated and broken.

It’s the reboot’s drops that are inevitably going to divide the fans, and rightfully so; scrapped is the dirty and shocking drop that capitalized the original track on Sav-ages and caught many listeners off guard, and in place are non-sensical drops that seem horrifically awkward and out of place. “Dirty” is still a word that can be used to describe them, but they just wrongfully stick out and don’t seem to gel nicely to the track like the original. While I don’t deny that these drops would not sound out of place from a big event, its generic nature will inevita-bly be drowned in the sea of more memorable tracks.

There’s no denying the group’s ambition and boldness for trying something new. However, the reboot of “I Don’t Know What I’m Doing” seems to be a step back-wards in music quality, as Breathe Carolina seems to ac-cidentally trade their whole musical identity away in an attempt to make music with a more mainsteam sound. This isn’t to say they’re horrible at it — their recent re-mix of Sofi De La Torre’s “Vermillion,” for example, is not perfect, but quite decent and polished, and may be a slightly better glimpse into what the band would sound as a mainstream act.

Established artists such as Steve Aoki, Calvin Harris, and Zedd have achieved much success in the EDM scene, but maybe that’s just it; maybe BC just needs more time to establish themselves. And that’s why this reboot is once again puzzling: Breathe Carolina already is an established group of musicians that we know is more than capable of raising hell and throwing unforgettable parties. Nevertheless, if the more conventional house sound is what this ambitious band wants to achieve, then it is up to the fans to support them and let them grow; we already know the group has the tools and tal-ent to produce something good, we just gotta sit back and wait. But one can’t help and wish the group opted to build on what they already know, rather than try to swing full-on into a new direction, because among the sea of Steve Aokis, Calvin Harrises, and Zedds, there is only one Breathe Carolina.

As the old adage goes: don’t reboot what’s unbroken.

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SURPRISE WITHBUDZ'S LOOKTAPE

MakeWay’s frontman BuDz drops another bomb with his first solo venture Look Tape, and oh how wonderful this one hits.

BuDz and Look sounds undeniably dark and filthy. Anger and testosterone are abound in this one, starting on track one with “Say Something.” This head-bobber has dirty swagger, dropping emphatically into the equally bombastic and grimy “All Seeing Eye.” Featuring MakeWay favour-ite High Q, this track transforms both gen-tlemen into gods, the production stand-ing toe-to-toe with the fiery performances. The high and mighty hook transcends this track into immortality, making this one a surefire fan favourite.

Track three is one of my favourites, and with arguably the (second) catchiest cho-rus on the mix it’s hard not to make this one your favourite too. “Why Not” has a snarling hook that is contagious and pug-nacious, cutting deep with only two words (guess what they are). David Baow sounds absolutely stunning here, with one of the shiniest performances on the entire al-bum.”Hard Body” on track four is a trium-phant declaration of BuDz’s hard work and ear for killer beats, which yells with great

force all the way through and until the very end of the track.

I almost lied with what I said earlier be-cause the catchiest hook on the album actually belongs to track five’s “Madon-na,” and it’s one you really need to expe-rience yourself. Being the absolute oppo-site of cliché, this massive track is bougie in the classiest way possible, celebrating wealth and materialism in the most grace-ful yet hardest manner. Featuring a verse rapped in French by Fanfan, this track will perhaps go down as the signature track of BuDz, combining the heavy bass that BuDz absolutely demands and skillfully masters, combined with the French back-ground of Montreal, a track that can per-haps catapult the rapper to the forefront of Montreal’s music scene. It’s a marriage of two great things that encapsulates the spirit of a great city’s music scene; what is not to like? It goes without saying that this is probably the best track on the entire al-bum. Go check this one out right now.

“Medicine” is a track about drugs, and there’s obviously a deeper meaning to that, otherwise the track would probably be called “drugs.” Or maybe it is just sup-

posed to be about drugs. Either way, take it as it is. This is one of the sleeper cuts on the album, complete with an emphatic and triumphant beat laced with horns. It’s not blatantly obvious compared to “Madonna,” but this track demands you like it, enjoy it, and sing along with it.“I Can’t Love” is one of the more angsti-er tracks on the record, once again fea-turing David Baow. The Kendrickish vibe spliced throughout this obviously BuDz-esque product is just another mark of BuDz’s outstanding ear for good sounds. The final track is a triumphant and cele-bratory ending of a fantastic record; “An-ything” is about wealth and victory, com-plete with a chorus that preaches about being on top of the world. This is a fitting end to one of the more dirty efforts by the Montreal rapper.

Look Tape is a marker of great things to come from BuDz, showing fantastic pro-gress and tighter beats in the form of fan-tastic performances that shine strong-ly alongside some dark and hard-hitting production. Arguably BuDz’s best effort to date, Look is complete with two hooky tracks that fans will swallow with pleas-ure (“Why Not,” ‘Madonna”), the build-

WITH SCORCHING TRACKS, BELLOWING BEATS, AND FIERY

VERSES, THIS MAY VERY WELL BE BUDZ’S BEST PROJECT TO DATE.

Writer: Brandon M.

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ing of a signature song that beautifully combines hard bass with Montreal flair, which also contains a verse rapped in French (“Madonna”), and a track that is a little too easy to fall in love with which features one of MakeWay’s greatest stars (“All Seeing Eye,” with High Q). There’s the ever biting possibility that the in-

clusion of a faster track somewhere in the mix might vault this record even fur-ther and make an instant standout track, but who really cares considering how tight this entire album is? There’s just no more deliberation that can be done with this. You need to listen to Look Tape, right now.

Writer: Brandon M.

Photo Credit: Brandon V.

CREDIT

1

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Memorable Fervor “Moving On”

The Valveenus is downright spunky. The band from Ottawa, Canada has a certain groove to them that is fun and edgy, the kind of energy that really shines and right through the length of their EP “Moving On.”

Characterized by quirky drum sequences and fast and folky guitar riffs, as well tracks that are quick and clock in at no longer than three minutes, “Moving On” is entertaining and memorable, a record certainly worth taking a peak at by punk and rock enthusiasts alike.

Many listeners will appreciate the short and straight-forward flamboyancy of track one’s “Misery.” Perhaps the most memorable of the four tracks, “Misery” is a great hook into the EP that features a stylish acoustic guitar intro, and is a can’t-miss track of the record. This energy feeds perfectly into the skate-punkier number “Cold Hard Truth,” a fast-paced and fun track that keeps the heart racing and has a very happy and summery feel to it. These first two tracks make up what is a very jumpy and joyous first half of the album, clocking in at a modest four minutes and fifty seconds in total.

“MOVING ON” IS ENTERTAINING AND MEMORABLE, A RECORD CERTAINLY WORTH TAKING A PEAK AT BY PUNK AND ROCK ENTHUSIASTS ALIKE.

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Memorable Fervor “Moving On”

This raucous energy only continues with “Chemical Worker’s Song,” a slightly underwhelming track in comparison to the other three on the EP, but it’s still got that spunky attitude that the band carries throughout the record. “Moving On” is a rambunctious ending to the short-and-sweet record, featuring some sweet guitar riffs and a fantastic chorus.

The overall production is well done for the type of prod-uct we have here — fast-paced instrumentals, vocal-work that matches the folk-punk tones of each track perfectly, and crisp mixing that brings out the happy-go-lucky attitude that chugs throughout the EP.

In the end, we’re left with something that is tight enough as an EP, and yet there are a few sounds that the record could possibly benefit from. The straightforward sensibilities of their folk-punk rock sounds certainly has character and attitude, and yet it feels too safe and maybe a little redundant, even for a four-track EP that barely clocks in at nine minutes. This doesn’t detract a

whole lot from what is otherwise a stylish little EP that will certainly leave listeners waiting in anticipation for more of The Valveenus’ up-tempo style.

ON PHOTO: Fast-paced instrumentals, vocal-work

that matches the folk-punk tones of each track perfectly,

and crisp mixing that brings out the happy-go-lucky at-

titude that chugs throughout the EP.

Writer: Brandon M.

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Movie Muzik Magic

Mel Alston Jr.’s

Fantastic AlbumJust how good is Mel Alston Jr.’s Movie Muzik: A Cinema For The Blind?

It’s the combination of many things gone right: mainly fresh sounds, crisp production, and fantastic vocals. This is the work of an artist who isn’t known enough that knows he should be known more. Lending a skilled ear to fantastic song crafting, creating tracks that meld R&B with elements of rock in perfect harmony, and backed by the skillful producing hand of Willie Stone, Mel Alston Jr. is perhaps overdue for major success; this album one deservedly puts him over the top.

I’m sure we all wish Usher stayed away from making some of the last decade’s (most horrific) dance pop tracks, and though I don’t want to go too far ahead to say that Movie Muzik is the second coming of the legendary R&B artist, Movie Muzik is definitely exciting in a very nostalgic yet fresh way. After a cinematic and showy intro on track one, the album vibes in a positive way, starting with “Science And Math” on track two. Smooth vocals hung by Alston’s astonishing range draws the listener into the record, as well a fantastic song progression and catchy, head-bobbing chorus. But the album really gets going at “Purple,” one of the record’s best tracks that is sure to be a fan-favourite. Alston’s swagger on this track is sultry in his vocals and seduc-

tive in his lyrics, crooning over the perfect harmoniza-tion of acoustic guitar and percussive snapping. There’s a definite Miguel vibe on this one, emulating his perfect control while at the same time bringing in a flair that is quite clearly Mel Alston Jr.’s own.

This sultry energy only continues on track four with “Long Night,” another surefire fan-favourite. This one has a definite Justin Timberlake vibe that swirls mag-nificently with Alston’s own swagger, trading Purple’s acoustic guitar for a triumphant but still flirty electric guitar. This one also features some pretty seductive lyrics, and if lines like “I wanna kiss you in places that make your body go ‘ooh’” don’t make you swoon then maybe you’re just incredibly hard to please.

“The Other Significant” on track five is more angsty, one reminiscent perhaps of a cut from Frank Ocean with slightly better pop sensibility. This one has some of the purest energy you’ll find all throughout the album (which doesn’t say much; every track has some pure and raw energy), and is probably a better one for the rainy days.

The album does lull a little on track six with “The Big Picture,” which is not to say it’s not a good track. It’s just not as notable, being a little more repetitive in nature

Writer: Brandon M.

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rather than possessing the stunning yet accessible complexity that can be found on the other tracks. I’m sure there’s a niche for songs like these, but this one feels like it could have been worked on a little more.

Luckily this lull is saved on “The Day After Forever,” one of the smoother head-bobbers on the record that feature a catchy chorus and some of the re-cord’s better vocal embellishments all throughout. Although it is also one of the more angstier tracks on the record, this one is much sunnier than “The Other Significant,” perhaps more triumphant and hopeful as well. Every album has that one sleeper hit, and I think this one may find its way sneaking into people’s favourites list without them realizing.

“Moon Drops” has the makings of another sleeper hit on the record, one of the more stunning cho-ruses on the album that is sure to vibe with the listener in a very powerful way. Good luck singing along to this too, as the entire song showcases Alston’s fantastic falsetto vocals. There’s a lot of bedroom tracks on the album, but this one may be the best out of all. With fantastic production, one of the best lyrics on the record, and a tip-top per-formance by the ambitious singer, “Moon Drops” may definitely be a surprise to anyone picking this record up.

The record ends triumphantly with “The Impos-sible,” featuring Jay Griffy, a rambunctious ending that wraps up one fantastic record. (Also, we get a much awaited rap verse from Jay Griffy’s feature, something that most music fans may wish showed up a little more often and sooner on this record).

The boldest way to end my review would be to say that Movie Muzik catapults Mel Alston all the way into the tier of today’s elite R&B gentlemen, and that’s just what I’ll do; Usher, Miguel, Frank Ocean, Justin Timberlake, Ne-Yo, and now Mel Alston Jr. would make quite an amazing playlist of R&B music. It’d also be nice to see more rap verses sprinkled here in there just to increase the dynamic value of this fantastic record, but considering the tier of musicians that Mel Alston contends with, I’d be quite surprised if more rappers didn’t consider future collaborations with this singer (wouldn’t a Kendrick Lamar feature on any of these songs be handsome?) And, if fans can’t get enough of the smooth swagger emanating from this juicy record, the two extra bonus tracks — including a blue-sier version of track five’s “The Other Significant” — should be enough to appease you until Alston drops another record, which hopefully is really soon. Movie Muzik: A Cinema For The Blind is an R&B record that heralds the coming of something pure, raw, and talented.

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There is an expression, which I’m sure you’ve heard before, that goes “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”. Often misquoted and misattributed, the line essentially means to say that in some situations, the final overall outcome or achievement is often more pleasing or beneficial than each contributing factor would have been on their own.

For example, eggs and flour are pretty cool, but are even cooler when baked into a cake. Likewise, a bundle of sticks would probably be a lot harder to break than an individual stick on its own. Of course, the “whole” isn’t always necessarily greater than its parts; a hockey team loaded with multi-millionaire super stars wouldn’t necessarily be guaranteed to win – it all comes down to how cohesively they function as a unit.

Maybe you’re thinking: “okay thanks for the philosophy lesson, but what do eggs and hockey have to do with music?”

Play Record Erase are a four-piece alt-rock band based in Yorkshire, North England. Featuring Ben Holbrook on vox / guitar, Rachael Koszalinski on lead guitar and backing vocals, Alex Taylor on bass, and Joey Heaton on drums, the group came together during their time at Leeds Metropolitan University, where each member currently studies Music Production. While Holbrook takes the title of the band’s de facto lead writer, each member of Play Record Erase contributes in his or her own unique way.

New Colour, debuted just this past August, is Play Record Erase’s first official release. Generally speaking, the EP is loaded with many remarkable features, dem-onstrating everything from the band’s impressive musi-

cianship to their narrative creativity to a great sense of production and mastering. The one major shortcoming about New Colour, however, is that as a cohesive whole it sometimes struggles to be…. Well, a cohesive whole.

One of Play Record Erase’s strongest characteristics is how seamlessly each member, despite having their own backgrounds and influences in music, comes together. New Colour, on the other hand, seems to struggle with achieving the same collectivity. For example, the EP itself loosely follows a narrative theme of an alien inva-sion – tracks 1 through 4 essentially detail the start, battle, capture, and acceptance of humanity’s demise – but you wouldn’t explicitly know that based on the record’s name or cover. (Overall, this is a minor point, as music should be judged on its sound and quality and not its visual design, but I do feel that the EP’s aesthetic does make a bit of a misleading first impression).

Moving on with the EP’s narrative theme, however, there are some points worth noting. The first track, “Rapture”, creates a great lead-in to the band’s overall sound and presence. Immediately, you can tell each member of the band knows their way around navigating song composition. Each component – from Holbrook’s hauntingly urgent vocals to Heaton’s pounding toms, to Taylor’s growling bass lines and perhaps most notably, Koszalinski’s wonderfully fuzzed out guitar – helps cre-ate a larger-than-life sound without overpowering the others or losing balance.

The transition into the second track, “Wars of the Intergalactic Kind” is a bit of a shaky ride, but is quickly forgiven as the song quickly moves into its groove. The alien invasion theme is perhaps at its strongest here, with “radio transmissions” dubbed into the early parts of the song, soon followed by some killer guitar work.

Play Record Erase’s Debut Record:

Out of this World

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Notably, this is also where we hear the band’s personal influences like Muse and Radiohead come into play. The slide into track 3, “Heart of Gold” is much smoother than its predecessor, as the album moves into the climax of the narrative and what is one of the most haunting tracks on the EP as a whole. The song begins with a much more mel-ancholy but no less powerful intro-duction, before welcoming the rest of the band around the 1:00 mark. Despite it’s rise in energy however, one gets the sense that the battle being fought in the album’s narra-tive is a losing one – despite the ef-forts of the people fighting, defeat appears highly eminent. On the bright side, however, the track is yet another display of some excellent musicianship and guitar playing.

The final song on the EP, “Asymme-

try”, ostensibly describes life after the defeat and demise of humanity, but immediately slides back into the energy and punch of the earlier half of the record. Again, the production and mastering of the track is quite impressive and aptly demonstrates each member’s abilities (although, I did feel like the track would have benefited from turning the bass guitar up a bit more). Despite be-ing quite sorrowful in its narrative nature, the track itself provides a great close to the EP, creating a sound (and a message!) that is sure to reverberate with its listeners long after it ends.

As a bonus, New Colour also in-cludes two acoustic tracks, includ-ing a stripped down version of “Asymmetry” as well as an acoustic version of a previously unreleased track called “For We Are Old”. While

these are both quite good in their own right (the latter track has a particularly enjoyable Radiohead OK Computer-vibe to it), some may sense that they feel a bit out of place on such a short EP, espe-cially given the previous narrative structure.

Overall, it would be interesting to see a fully fleshed out version of New Colour, with an attempt at a longer version of the alien invasion narrative. As it stands, the potential of New Colour as an album seems to almost be constrained by its size as an EP. However, with a slight re-tweaking of the record’s focus, Play Record Erase may definitely become a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming months.

ON PHOTO: Play Record Erase are a four-piece alt-rock band based in Yorkshire, North

England. Featuring Ben Holbrook on vox / guitar, Rachael Koszalinski on lead guitar and backing

vocals, Alex Taylor on bass, and Joey Heaton on drums.

Writer: Samantha Mok

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Saving Lives Animal Nights and Suicide

Animal Nights is a four-piece alternative & punk rock band from Eagle Pass, Texas, USA, consisting of Rogelio Trujillo on vocals and guitar, Fernie Villegas on drums, Carlos De La Cerda on vocals and bass, and Jonluc Mendez on guitar. Amongst their releases is a track named “Suicide Night,” their last track on their “Undeci-sive” extended play.

“Suicide Night” is a heavy and heartfelt anthem that preaches about cherishing your life and straying away from the act. In the chorus, Animal Nights sings, “Keep your head up high. You don’t have to go through this every night.” Life will always suck but we must be strong, keep our head up, and move onward. At the end of a dark and seemingly endless tunnel, there is always a bright light at the end of it. That’s the message Animal Nights is conveying through their song.

As an alternative/punk song itself, it’s thoroughly enjoy-able. The vocals are melodic and emotional, the guitars are fiery without being overdone, and the drums are crisp and well equalized, complete with a nice touch of a little reverb to add on a very garage sound. Overall, they avoid the mistake of making the track too loud to the point that there’s clipping everywhere and our

eardrums begin to burst; Animal Nights finds the happy medium between quiet and loud to make this track au-dible for listeners, without having them fiddle too much with the volume knob.

Even when the production of the song has that afore-mentioned garage sound to it, the band is still off in some areas. The guitars and vocals are a little shaky, and are not as solid as they should be.

But all in all, Animal Nights has shown great dedica-tion towards their fans, and high promising potential towards their music. Their song “Suicide Night” is a very appropriate recording to connect to new listeners scouting for new music to add to their library. As they continue to build on their sound and image as a band, their music quality can only rise up as they go.

Writer: Trenton M.

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Crystal Tais brings her own flair to Rae Srem-murd’s massive banger “No Flex Zone,” a flair that in many ways seems to be higher, hard-er, and tighter than the original. And, unlike the original track, Crystal’s vocals are more stylish, less reliant on cliché growling nu-ances and lazy rhythms, showing off a wider range of vocals and even showcasing some fine-sounding singing. Indeed, albeit being only a cover, this track is the mark of an artist with an ear for good music and a lot of fire just waiting to be shared with the world.

Clocking in at a significantly shorter time than the original (2:47 versus 3:51), “No Flex Zone” comes and goes quick, but not without stomping through with massive aplomb. Even the opening verse roars through with a louder feroc-ity than the original: “So shout out to my real artists / who invest to see some real progress.” Crystal Tais authorita-tively serenades her fellow musicians who share the goal with her of making “real” music, while at the same time calling out artists who lack the same and genuine work ethic. This declarative statement is not without merit too; in fact, it serves as a true exclamation point to capitalize on the deadly swagger Crystal Tais clearly possesses.

And, unlike the original, Crystal Tais’ does not plod on with nonsense verses topped by repetitive rap embellish-ments. Crystal’s proclamation to stand with “real artists” is short and sweet, one that is loud rather than quiet, leaving a mighty impression to fans who are more than likely just discovering her.

Indeed, in just under three minutes Crystal Tais proves that she is the real deal. Considering this is only a cover, one can only wonder what more the gutsy artist can come out and hit us with.down. (And to point out the other obvi-ous, what do we do when it’s summer? We party!) Besides, Summer Breeze wouldn’t be much of a great song if it didn’t make you think of summer.

Writer: Brandon M.

The Real Deal: Crystal Tais’ No Flex Zone

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Corrupted Minds “Charms with Snakes and Tears”

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What do you get when you fuse drum & bass, dubstep, metal, rock, and electronic dance mu-sic into one super mega genre of fire, harmonious noise, and clash?

Enter Corrupted Minds—and they are not messing around.Corrupted Minds is composed of Andrea Balestra on vocals, Cristian Pavese on synth guitar, Laura Marchetto on keyboard, Marco Marinato on guitar, Isabella Amoroso for bass gui-tar, and Elisa Montin on drums under Big Riddim Recordings. Product of Venice, Italy, Corrupted Minds began in 2012 as a two-elemental drum & bass DJ set, D.O.M. and Lilith. Corrupted Minds was converted into a band with real instru-ments following their Europe and Japan-

wide tour.

Today, as a

six-

member band, Corrupted Minds sets stages ablaze with storm worldwide, both aurally with their music and visually with their stage costumes and masks.

Among Corrupted Mind’s recent releases brings us “Snake Charmer” and “Tears of Mankind.” “Snake Charmer” does not delay in delivering its promised genre fuse to the table.

Right from the start we are already given a bass-heavy synth and distorted guitars. The song builds up to the vocal-ist’ scorching vocals until everything else kicks in and my headphones begin to melt from the heat. The grinding deep synths are crisp and clean with the ste-reoize effect to a tee. The drums play a very important role in delivering unique, glitchy, and thumping drum & bass beats to keep the song not only from being repetitive but also unique to give Cor-rupted Minds its own charm and label. Finally, the anger and emotion can be felt with the vocalist to give the overall song a dark and mysterious flair.

“Tears of Mankind” delivers much the same promises as Snake Charmer, and it does not disappoint as well. The vocals (especially at the beginning) and the instrumental throughout the song suc-ceed in setting a cinematic and raging

tone for the song. The drums once again play an important role in controlling the pace of the song, and there are surprises and distinctiveness to keep the audience captivated.

Keeping dubstep unique from others is quite difficult as it is too easy to have so many wobbles and remixes sound like each other. Fusing drum & bass, dub-step, metal, rock, and electronic dance music is no easy task, but Corrupted Minds had a vision in their minds and they executed it superbly.

Their music is at the point where it is very unique, and audiences in the electronic and rock scene looking for something different can appreciate what Corrupted Minds has delivered. Look out for more of them in the future, as they’ll be razing stages and your speakers for years to come.

Corrupted Minds “Charms with Snakes and Tears”

CORRUPTED MINDS SETS STAG-

ES ABLAZE WITH STORM WORLDWIDE, BOTH AU-

RALLY WITH THEIR MUSIC AND VISUALLY WITH THEIR

STAGE COSTUMES AND MASKS.

Writer: Trenton M.

40 – 24OURMUSIC

Kyle Lacy is a blues, rockabilly and soul singer-songwriter of only 23 who left his Atlanta hometown for the cacophonous Manhattan, guitar in hand and portable piano under arm, touring cafes, bars and lounges for early- and late-night gigs, hair cautiously gelled up and heart abnormally wide open.

Lacy belongs to the all-welcome club of galvanized rookies with striking repertoires and unwavering enthusiasm, and with good looks helping – he is a mix of James Dean and Sid Vicious – and a keenness towards cutting introspection, it appears he’ll make it out of the first round.

He keeps a blog he frequently feeds with advisory posts, as well as quasi-academic meditations on the interrelation of depression and songwriting, these being weaved with videos of songs he’s recently com-posed. Certainly, he is one who banks on transparency and uncensored truthfulness, who knows that the key to sufficient exposure in a social-network-ridden world where the self is foremost is the docu-menting of the artistic process, the exposing of the human dimension to the artistic endeavor, the trials and the tribulations, rather than the glittery and glamorous. His music pays homage to the likes of the Beatles, Billy Joel and radio-friendly Matchbox Twenty, leaning toward a sound that captures a youth’s hopefulness and disappointments with the rawness of his age, a powerful rock binge that talks of love in speedy cars and a voice all rasp and grit.

Kyle Lacy A Rockabilly Kinda Guy

Writer: Patricia O.

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Lacy is a rockabilly prince, down to the name, a Georgian boy of blues who’s stood at attention and picked up the torch the Kings put down or dropped. His commitment to the genre is impeccable, offering up not the watered-down or homogenized version, but living up to the high standards of the music style, sporting the pompadour and blue jean vests, the Gretsch guitar plus yet enough of a boyish look to cause young girls to transform into paramour-wannabes. His most recent EP titled “Last of the Love Songs,” a crowd-funded effort he is most proud of, translates the earnestness his adolescent visage expresses. Discarding guitar riffs and licks in favor of a more stripped-down approach, far from the fervid energy of his debut that found him sweaty and feverish at the end of sets, Lacy opts for an almost autumnal feel where his voice rings crystalline and beautiful, replete with crimson and burnt orange hues, and we cannot but revel in the simple beauty of the youthful heart that beats so true and pure.

Composed of six well-rounded tracks, the EP showcases a kind of amateurism that is not one bit unpleasant; Lacy manages inadvertently or by design to play it off as an admission of innocence and doomed naiveté. His voice is at the forefront, a powerful presence. And one would find such a young artist as Lacy to be incapable of communicat-ing such emotive responses, the kind of evocative lyrics which often require maturity or a wealth of experiences to conjure, as opposed to the clichéd ramblings characteristic of his age. Here we have the candor and the wealth, a most rare conflation. The record sounds as if it has simmered awhile, as if from a bygone era: Kyle Lacy knows how to transform heritage into distressed fabric, and his experiences here feel as though lived by one twice his amount of stripes. He has long ways to go, and these most de-lightful love songs will most certainly not be his last.

THE RECORD SOUNDS AS IF IT

HAS SIMMERED AWHILE, AS IF FROM A BYGONE

ERA: KYLE LACY KNOWS HOW TO TRANSFORM HERITAGE INTO DIS-

TRESSED FABRIC

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Darja Rocks the Summer Breeze

Hailing from Riga, Latvia, and being raised in Germany and the UK, the mul-tilingual singer/songwriter Darja (pro-nounced Dar-ya) is already moving the music scene.

Splitting time between her education and her music career, she appeared on TV music compe-titions, including Germany’s Popstars in 2001 and ITV’s Pop Idol, Season 2. After her performance of Shakira’s “Underneath Your Clothes,” Simon Cowell drew a comparison between her and Shakira: she possesses “that certain hit factor,” and as a result, he states, “as a pop star package, I think it was excellent.”

Through Zilos’ single, “Summer Breeze” featuring her scintillating vocals, Darja has shown she is pop music material listeners can instantly fall in love with.

Right off the top, we have a stimulating intro that makes you feel like you’re entering the start of a party upon a young evening. The intro synth tune is heard throughout the song, transforming the track into an anthem.

The lyrics are simple: we’re all dancing, getting

hot, letting loose, falling in love, and all that stuff, but it doesn’t have that cheesy feel like most top 40 songs today have. The vocals and the instru-mental complement each other which makes the song easy to listen to. Darja’s voice is a pleasure to listen to, and does enough to captivate you and your thumb from reaching the “skip track” button. Electronic dance music, even when going for a crowd-pleasing sound, can still be difficult to produce if the mixing and mastering is poor, with cliché lyrics and production overdone to the point that the party train derails right off the tracks. But Darja’s vocals successfully keeps “Summer Breeze” simple, yet fun and lovable to make you move.

Perhaps the most important effect achieved within the song is giving the song a summer atmosphere. Darja sings about her lover heating her up before singing, “I want to feel you like a summer breeze.” Imagine you’re at the beach on a really hot sunny mid-summer and you’re depending on the cool breeze from the waters to cool you down. (And to point out the other obvi-ous, what do we do when it’s summer? We party!) Besides, Summer Breeze wouldn’t be much of a great song if it didn’t make you think of summer.

DARJA’S VOICE IS A PLEASURE TO LISTEN TO, AND DOES ENOUGH TO CAPTIVATE YOU AND YOUR THUMB FROM REACH-ING THE “SKIP TRACK” BUTTON.

Writer: Trenton M.

43 – 24OURMUSIC

ON PHOTO: Through Zilos’ single, “Summer Breeze”

featuring her scintillating vocals, Darja has shown she

is pop music material listeners can instantly fall in love

with.

44 – 24OURMUSIC