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Don’t tell me by Blair Djuna

Australian recording artist and singer/songwriter Blair Djuna starts the year off with an infectious indie pop single “Don’t tell me” that is sure to get your toes tapping. Having started off as a teenager writing music Derrick Attwood has come a long way since. He formed the pop duo “SEGANA” alongside Josh Paltoo in 2018 and then decided to launch his solo career under the stage name Blair Djuna in 2022 releasing three singles over the course of the year. “Don’t tell me” marks his fourth release and the first single of 2023.

 “Don’t tell me” is an upbeat, energetic, and catchy pop track that delves into the heartbreak and pain that comes with realizing that the love you thought you had was never really there. Blair’s expressive and flawless vocals add emotional depth to the track. The music is a perfect blend of synth plucks, ambient synths, and groovy bass lines that make you want to dance along. The upbeat drums and sing-along vocals make the song an unforgettable experience that showcases Blair’s songwriting and music production talent.

 “Don’t tell me” is a testament to Blair Djuna’s ability to create a distinct sound that combines self-reflective and heartfelt lyrics with groovy, upbeat music. The song is a perfect introduction to his music and we can’t wait to hear what he has in store for us in the future.

 

Fly Away by Atomic Bronco

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Austin, Texas-based Indie/Alternative Rock project Atomic Bronco have just released their first single of 2023 and it’s a very dark and personal tune. Entitled “Fly Away”, the song is not in any way your typical alternative or indie tune.

The track begins with soft and acoustic guitars that give you the idea that this will be a positive or bright-sounding track. To my surprise, the soft percussion and bassline bring a darker and more brooding atmosphere that adds to the very intimate lyrics a sense of authenticity and being in touch with one’s emotions.

The chorus has the same slow pace and moody vibe as the verses, which means the listener will never be taken away from the mood that the song began with. I really want to have a chat with these guys about how they came up with this awesome track, to be honest.

The cherry on top for me was the bluesy/melodic clean guitar solo that plays before the song ends. With the vocals after it coming back breathy and emotional once again, I felt a sense of danger. It’s as if this song was written to be in the soundtrack of a movie with tragic events happening to the main character. I can’t think of it any other way than that.

All in all, this is not just a track I recommend for Indie or Alt fans, but I think everyone should give it a spin for how different and original it sounds.

Landour by KaranXAnoop, Chris Savor, Aditya Pamnani

The idea that Landour might end up as a one-off project, a spur-of-the-moment affair that was a result of the right people being in the right time and right place is a bittersweet one for sure. 

Landour’s origin story might be a complicated, globe-crossing one, but it is certainly as smooth, inspiring, and as organic as the song itself. The story goes that Karan x Anoop, a producer-duo, were trekking in the forests of the Himalayan town of Landour, India, when suddenly an exotic scent took them to a land far far away, far removed from the hectic and stressful world we live in, then they poured this inspiration into the song we’re hearing right now right after they returned to their Airbnb, then the song was sent to vocalist and producer Chris Savor when he was vacationing from his homeland in the UK to Sardinia, he liked the sounds and immediately got to work. The last chapter was added by the producer duo’s longtime friend and collaborator, Aditya Pamnani, an actor, who immediately got, too, to work on a beautiful accompanying video, backed by a talent crew, painting a beautiful picture with the chosen locations, the dazzling, luxurious colors, and the fantastic performance of all those involved.

Now you and I might have our theories about the origin of this mysterious scent, but there is no denying that Landour is a terrific piece of music. Borrowing from the organic-sounding chill-wave electronics of Bonobo, The soulful is shock full of sensation and pure, atmospheric vibes. The production is granular and airy, the grand sounds of the synths are well-chosen and the mix is a great affair. Chris Savor’s performance is effervescent and effortless, calling to mind the similarly named ambient soul legends Ry X and Rhye, while doing his own spin on the style, and the result is an inspired sound that vitalizes and soothes at the exact same moment.

Whether this illustrious group of artists will ever come together again for more music is unknown. It’s possible of course, but whether the stars will align to create a piece that’s as inspired and as wholesome as Landour again, that’s what’s unlikely. So, let’s take a moment to celebrate the fact that this beauty exists.

 

Eyes Wide Shut by P. Lan

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Hip Hop artist P. Lan based in Orlando, US, drops a bomb on the hip hop scene with his new single ‘ Eyes wide shut’, released on the 8th of November in 2022. You will soar high in the sky with some black unicorns with this contrasting song, because of the dark topic and the fun, bubbly, and chill beat made for it. What’s better than sometimes just unwinding to a song that is both heavy and expressive that will leave you feeling okay anyway. This song is the first single from his EP ‘connected’. Some of P.lan’s musical inspirations include Mac Miller, Tame Impala, and Radiohead. P.lan  started making music seriously after Mac Miller died in 2018, which totally makes sense because his music resonates deeply with Miller’s unique hip-hop style. Parker Lander is the vocalist, producer, and songwriter of his music. 

It’s a groovy and chill daytime with this song from P.lan, who skillfully delivers a heavy topic in a very light and easily consumable way, and we think that he put some magic potion in the song that made us get hooked like crazy. Is it the laid-back vibe? Or the interesting storyline? Or the catchy bassline? We may never know, it’s just the whole vibe. The song talks about an unhealthy relationship that is full of agendas and manipulation, which we all know or have been through somehow. The overall sound of the song is a hazy, magical, and cool ride to chill land. The musical arrangement is brilliant with high-quality production and funky thoughtfulness in the music. You’ve got a hardcore grocery bassline so special and prominent in the song, making up a huge part of the laid-back, medium-paced melody. You’ve got chill, even lofi hip hop vibes that are great for morning or afternoon relaxation with gentle reflections of oneself. The song is the perfect balance of deep and fun which is really rare. They’ve got subtle and sometimes harder drums and cymbals, a mind-blowing saxophone solo, and subtle, sexy electric guitar sound effects backing up the beat. The vocals are playful and nonchalant. P.kan must make more of this blissful music.

Genius by Danny B The AirHead

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Artist Danny B the airhead released a song that is like blazing fire all the way from Essex, UK, called ‘Genius’ on the 3rd of March. Words can’t describe how good this song is from every little aspect to the big. It’s a beautifully crafted hip-hop song, a striking mix between rap, Afro-pop, and dancehall. This song was inspired by NSG’s ‘options’ produced by Jae5, and his vocals were inspired by artists like Beenie and Shaggy. The song’s production is so fierce you won’t believe it was recorded in the comfort of his bedroom. Danny could take as much space as he needs boasting about himself because his lyrics are just pure talent. Danny is 26 years old and is a recording artist and producer, making his music from scratch, with completely original vibes.

Genius is a song that will elevate your mood instantly. You will want to dance and feel yourself to the maximum. The song’s overall sound is spicy, full of heat, smooth, and deadass badass. With so much confidence, Danny is radiant with his lyrics and vocals as he explains how he has high self-esteem and believes in his capabilities. With a sophisticated tone in this dancehall rap palette, the musical arrangement is just amazing and dynamic, you will just want more and more. You’ve got a medical paced, dance hall soundscape with tropical feels and percussion, intense and touch piano giving the edginess that is needed with the vibe, with a softer piano at the back creating a fun and juicy melody and texture, a hardcore bass, and lots of sexiness. The song is unbelievably smooth and the rhymes are really good. There are also subtle saxophone vibes. This song is just highly addictive and has a much-needed fresh sound.

Wrap Me Up by Clare Easdown

Clare Easdown’s latest single is a sensual call for love that’s haunting, ethereal, and with a hint of darkness that leaves a lingering feeling after the song’s runtime ends.

A native of Menai in Australia, Clare Easdown is a singer/songwriter whose brand of electronic pop can be defined somewhere close to chillwave on her latest single, titled ‘Wrap Me Up’. The low, brooding tempo of the piece is commanding and sets a particular mood of alluring, dramatic gravitation, that coupled with the lyrics, paints this song with a sheen of desire for love that’s not entirely innocent and pure, with the slow pace and the crawling sub-bass, this song gave a chilling sense of being stalked upon, which may or may not have been Clare’s intentions. In any case, Wrap Me Up is beautiful. There can be no denying that the vibes of the song are chill and soothing, Clare’s lyrics are visibly sweet and have a pure yearning for love that is truly harmless, and her singing is also pulling and warm, with a multitude of gorgeous harmony lines that make the vocal part sound rich and intricate.

Wrap Me Up is a beautifully written and produced piece of electronic pop that’s chill, slow, hypnotizing, and with a captivating atmosphere that’s full of attention to detail. An easy song to add to any playlist whose themes include brooding love songs, or songs that would be fantastic for night drives.  

Fav Flavor by Amanda Holley

When embracing love, lights, music, and beauty, we get “Fav Flavor” by the talented singer/songwriter Amanda Holley and its bursting-with-life music video with its glamorous footage.

Amanda Holley is one of the gifted artists who is hard to forget. I remember reviewing her single “CODE,” which was an empowerment anthem for women. And in “Fav Flavor” too, she uses music to convey a certain setting, feeling, and way of life, which in this case is being immersed in love and beauty of all shapes.

“Fav Flavor” is a lush pop song with a dreamy melody and the captivating, richly layered vocals of Holley. Via her melodic, dulcet voice, this artist has a deep sense of varying and illuminating each emotion of the overall narrative. In every song of hers, and it’s obvious in this one, she writes sincerely and seamlessly embodies her notion, lyricism, and sound via her soulful singing, making one easily drawn into her magical realm.

Hearing an affectionate song through soaring 5 octaves is definitely a quiet experience. The sultry, smooth musicality backs up those intoxicating harmonies of Holley well, giving her the space she needs to shine brightly. The composition, combined with the vocal performance and sentimental lyricism, somehow results in an aura of warm colors that can be felt rising to the horizon and spreading good vibes.

 

Speaking of colors, the music video’s purple and yellow footage is a tasty pleasure to the eyes. Amanda Holley is a true artist who understands how to enhance her creations with a music video full of sensibility and ravishing visuals that artfully illustrate her concept.

In the music video, in which she stars, her friends accompany her, creating a goddess feel and showing us that the “fav flavor” comes in all shapes, tastes, and colors. With the vivid scenes, she demonstrates what it feels like to live life with one’s own fav flavors surrounding them. Friends, a guitar, music notes, a dream catcher, fabulous curly hair, chocolate, and other splendid aspects show many sorts of beauty and artistic identity.

This is your cue to pick your own fav flavor and enjoy life through its delicious taste! Enjoy watching the video.

عمرودياب ومنير وغيرهم يحتفلون مع الموسيقار هاني شنودة

في ليلة استثنائية وحدث أكثر من مذهل يحتفل الجميع بأكثر من ٦٠ عاما من العطاء الفني مع الموسيقار هاني شنودة، الذى بلغ عامه الـ80، بحفل ضخم على خشبة مسرح أبوبكر سالم بوليفارد الرياض سيتى، ضمن موسم الرياض.

في أجواء لمستنا جميعا اثناء سمعنا لموسيقي افلام تربينا عليها مثل المشبوه والغول والحريف والافوكاتو وأكثر من ١٥٠ عمل سينمائي وتلفزيوني. في حفل تاريخي من تنظيم شركة Benchmark تحت رعاية الهيئة العامة للترفيه برئاسة تركي آل الشيخ، التي حرصت أن أجواء الحفل تحتوي على بوسترات أشهر الأعمال السينمائية التي شارك فيها الموسيقار هاني شنودة. 

الجدير بالذكر أن شهد الحفل على العديد من اللحظات المميزة، حيث ذكر الهضبة بأن تلك أول مرة يقوم بالغناء على بث مباشر، ومع اوركسترا، والتي كانت تفوق الروعة بقيادة المايسترو هاني فرحات. ومن اللحظات المميزة غناء الكينج محمد منير مع انغام سويا اغنية انا بعشق البحر للفنانة الكبيرة نجاة الصغيرة، وغناء الهضبة عمرو دياب مع الكينج محمد منير اغنية “امي” انها من الحان الموسيقار الكبير هاني شنودة وتكريم اليوم العالمي للمرأة الذي تزامن مع يوم التكريم للموسيقار الكبير. 

كما ذكر الموسيقار الكبير عمر خيرت كلمته عن كيف كانت بدايته مع الموسيقار هاني شنودة وتكوين الفرقة المميزة والأشهر في فترة الستينيات والسبعينيات وهي فرقة Le Petit Chats ، مع وجدي فرانسين وعمر خيرت وعمر خورشيد وعزت أبو عوف، وطبعا الفرقة المميزة The Black Coats والتي ضمت العديد من الموسيقيين المؤثرين مثل إسماعيل الحكيم، طلعت زين، شريف ظاظا، ومجدي الحسيني وغيرهم. ونقطة التحول الحقيقة في الموسيقي المصرية،  حينما كون فرقة المصريين في أواخر السبعينيات والتي اشتهرت بأغاني مثل “ماشية السنيورة” و “ما تحسبوش يا بنات” وغيرهم الكثير. 

وحرص الفنان عمرو دياب على التواجد مبكرا، لحضور بروفات وكواليس حفل “ذكريات”،  وعمت أجواء الود والاحترام في كواليس التحضير للحفل، وحرص عمرو دياب على استقبال الموسيقار هاني شنودة، وقال مازحا: “ده أنا أول واحد جاي من بدري”، تقديرا لمسيرته الفنية الكبيرة. 

وقال عمرو دياب في تصريحات لبرنامج Et بالعربي، إن الموسيقار هاني شنودة يستحق التكريم، ووقف بجانبه حينما كان في بدايته الفنية، موضحا:” فنان كبير يجي له حد يقوله عاوز أغني فا يشجعه وينصحه ويقف جنبه.. دي رسالة احنا محتاجينها دلوقتي”. 

وأكد عمرو دياب، أنه سعيد بالغناء لأول مرة مع الكينج محمد منير وأنغام في حفل واحد،  وهي أول مرة له أيضا بالغناء برفقة أوركسترا، وفي حفل مذاع على الهواء مباشرة، موضحا:” إحساس فظيع وهنكرره تاني”. 

ومن اللحظات المميزة ظهور الفنان الكبير أحمد عدوية وغنائه مع مصطفي حجاج زحمة يادنيا زحمة، وبالطبع مشاركة الحفل مى فاروق، فريق كايروكى، إلى جانب منى عزيز مطربة فرقة المصريين التى أطلقها هانى شنودة فى اواخر السبعينات.

يعد التغير الجذري الذي فعله هاني شنودة بدأ مع العندليب عبد الحليم حافظ وهو تغيير النمط الموسيقي السائد وقتها بوجود توزيع موسيقي مختلف وفرقة موسيقية أصغر، كان هذا هو الباب الذي أنجب جيل جديد من الفرق الموسيقية والمطربين والملحنين في الثمانينيات، مما أدى تطور جذري للموسيقى المصرية إلى وقتنا هذا. 

كل الشكر والاحترام والتقدير للموسيقار الكبير هاني شنودة

Message of Hope from Other Planets by The Loopstationist

I find it intriguing how an artist’s chosen stage name can throw you off from his actual music. As mentioned by the artist Giulio De Marco who goes by “The Loopstationist”: With a name like The Loopstationist, I was expecting… something trancey and repetitive, dance-fueled and electronic-based.” Yet, to our surprise, once you press play, you will be flooded with dreamy tunes and delicate music that will carry you into an alternate world.

 Giulio De Marco is initially a skilled software engineer with a passion for information technology, yet “The Loopstationist” was born out of the artist’s passion for music which started at a young age, given how he was raised with his sister, who was a talented pianist, he learned to play multiple instruments. He combined both passions and talents and released his first series of three instrumental tracks earlier this year, produced by a Digital Audio Workstation. Starting with “Into the Storm”, “Bittersweet Dreams”, and recently “Message of Hope from Other Planets.”

The song starts with a soft piano melody sustained by an arpeggiated bass line, that sets you in a relaxed, romantic mood from the first few seconds. With the overall aesthetic of the music and choice of the song title, you have no choice but to feel the hope and listen to the ongoing conversation between the different melodic motifs. After only one month of its release, the song reached over 2.5K streams on Spotify. This is not one you wanna miss out on!

 

When You’re Gona by Alleya

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Alleya’s reflections on toxicity are on full stroke in her newest single. Lyrically and musically, When You’re Gone is a display of arranging and songwriting that carries as much responsibility to deliver the message as the lyrics themselves. 

The London-based Alleya is a singer-songwriter, and on her latest single, she embraces a sound of intense synth wave that’s dense and borderline abrasive, and ginger the topic of the song, this abrasion seems to be every bit intense. When You’re Gone features a chord structure that’s melancholic and desolate at heart, but when excessively adorned with leagues of slurring and rattling layers of synth waves, the melancholy and dissonance seem to transform into anger and a feeling of helplessness that lingers, with a hint of despair. Alleya’s vocal performance is straightforward and on their own, I bet they can contribute to a dazzling acoustic or piano-only arrangement, but since When You’re Gone is neither of those things, then I’m pleased to announce that Alleya’s charming and accessible vocal delivery creates a contrast that proficiently controls the chaotic musical backdrop, providing much-needed balance.

Alleya’s latest single, When You’re Gone, is an enjoyable piece of noise pop. Created with obvious and delicate pop sensibilities that were then soaked with a plethora of harsh synths, When You’re Gonna is an unquestionable risky formula that Alleya’s restrained vocals absolutely corrected, resulting in a cathartic display that pits the listeners directly against their innermost demons.