Sometimes it takes only one class to change your perspective and life goals. Originally a cinematographer, Kejcz fell in love with music during his film music classes, which later inspired him to compose and produce his music. With two previous single releases, “Dr. Jekyll” in 2016 and “Gone for Good” in 2020, the Polish artist dazzles us with yet another single, “Set Me Free.”
A dynamic, EDM, dance track with a booming sound and a vibe like no other, if you started creating your summer playlist, “Set Me Free” should undoubtedly be on the top. The song’s intro is powerful enough to hook you up with the first 30 seconds. The instrumental track was created in 2021, and after suggestions from the artist’s publisher, the vocal line was later added. Basia Kolasa is on the lead vocal line with her powerful and aesthetically unique voice. Together with; Sequelachi on backup vocals, create a unique color, flavor, and harmony like no other. The song was recorded in the studio of Marek Dulewicz, who did fascinating work mixing and mastering the track. This track is not one you want to miss!!
With this delicious, tight, new EP from Fifth Lucky Dragon, we get a beautifully produced trio of pop gems that sound punchy and colorful, perfectly in time for the spring season.
Fifth Lucky Dragon is the moniker for Louis Imperiale, a writer, producer, singer, and creative director that’s based in Indianapolis. His previous singles have already been smash hits across platforms, especially on TikTok, where he has amassed more than 100k views. His sound is, simply put, delicious pop. Short bursts of colorful music, with crisp production, easy-to-follow compositions, and arrangements, and for sure, snappy and memorable lines and melodies. White Lies & Purple Elephants is no exception. The starting and title track is about lies that start as harmless, passive, “white” lies, and eventually start to gain momentum until they become problematic, and a hurdle that needs to be crossed. The music is punchy and sweet, based on an operatic choir that sings the titles dramatically, adding a distinct color. The syncopation of the main vocal melody is the engine that propels this song’s immaculate groove forward, with minimalistic beats and compositions, the space is vast for the vocals to show off, playing with rhythm and melody freely.
Don’t Look Too Far Ahead is a more sentimental offering. With a cheerful, optimistic composition, the melodies of this song are a little less groovy than the starting song, favoring a more conversational route, as Imperiale comforts listeners that looking too far ahead serves no good, no one can see the future, and it’s not worth losing anymore sleep over what we cannot control or change. A delightfully hot saxophone wails charismatically and takes this song easily to the rich realms of funk pop. Mango, the closer sticks to the formula started by the first song. A more rhythmic and syncopated vocal delivery sits on top a throbbing synth backing, and a lively, brisk drum part, for a short song of fast paced, energizing fun.
Fifth Lucky Dragon’s music is neat and immaculately clean. His songwriting is restrained and his arrangement ideas are fresh and exciting, resulting in songs that are way more memorable and rich than what’s normal for pop that sounds this simple, making me think that maybe after all, pop that sounds this simple, is not actually this simple.
If you like your hip hop punchy and tight, your blues sexy and smoking, and your rap sizzling with a standout attitude, then you’ll definitely like Brendan Lane’s latest fire-breathing single.
Brendan Lane is a Washington DC-based rap-rock artist whose latest single, titled One Life, pushes forward a plethora of stylistic musings carried over from previous eras, like the luxurious, whisper-quiet euro rap, which harkens back to Massive Attack’s Protection era. We also find the sleazy funk and psychedelia fusion in all the wobbly synths, along the tightly compressed drum and bass lines, making this fusion one that’s rich, dense, and entertaining, while paying respect to a healthy bunch of artists and musical eras.
Dominated by a rigorous rock outfit of twangy rhythm guitar, a massive drum kit, thick bass, and what sounds like a dozen keyboards. The featured verse from Quesmark is brilliant. A soulful performer whose passionate delivery calls to mind the crazy vocal acrobatics of CeeLo Green. The lyrics are playful and the attitude is electric, but with a wholesome message to support it, and the masterful production does an amazing job of putting every single element where it belongs; an increasingly important and challenging task as the arrangement gets denser.
Brendan Lane’s One Life is an intoxicatingly fun hip-hop, rock, funk, and rap fusion that’ll leave you wanting more.
“I Ain’t Coming Back” is the latest bombastic release by the independent artist Antony Alexander. It’s a breakup anthem with the ability to use synth waves and blended electronica flairs to push one to move on and see life with new colors.
Antony Alexander is a talented producer who crafts his music at home, resulting in a fusion sound of EDM, pop, and a nostalgic disco touch to complement the sleek execution. The nuances here and there in “I Ain’t Coming Back” reveal how he pays attention to every detail, places each component quite effectively, and is obviously passionate about what he does.
“I Ain’t Coming Back” has a liberating vibe that is presented by the instrumental, the vocals, and the mix and production. The catchy beat and infectious grooves immerse one in the carefree realm and make them get lost there for a while. The synth bursts with vitality, enticing one to move hypnotically and sway with the melody. And the drumming creates a dynamic atmosphere that gets the heads bobbing.
The silky, bright female vocal line is characterized by an optimistic, fresh feel, sounding like someone opening their arms to hug life again. We may say that the vocals were emphasized to help the rhythms boost the mood, even if the great musicality in this song is what stands out.
With its rich sensibility, deft writing, and superb production, this track will appeal to any fan of electronic music. Also, neither a certain setting nor a particular state of mind is necessary; you’ll enjoy it anyway.
With the release of their debut single “Day Dreaming” on the 24th of February, Hiza Guruma is kicking off their musical career and creating a buzz for their upcoming self-titled debut EP, set for release on the 17th of March.
Hailing from Athens, Greece Hiza Guruma is an experimental rock band formed in 2021 by George Sapountzis. Inspired by Neo-psychedelia, dream-pop, shoegaze, garage, and surf genres, Hiza Guruma takes a nostalgic approach with the goal of reviving 80’s and 90’s music.
“Day Dreaming” is written, co-produced, and performed by George Sapountzis, with the help of Vice Lesley as co-producer and Nick Arkomanis who mixed and mastered it.
“Day Dreaming” is a downtempo psychedelic rock song that takes the listener on a spiritual trip. With ambient synth, a melodic Eastern guitar riff, and laid-back percussions create a peaceful atmosphere encouraging the listener to self-reflect. The vocals are distant and reverbed creating a spiritual calling vibe that is felt right away as George begins singing with his flawless voice and eastern melodies. The lyrics are poetic and present a philosophical perspective on life and the concept of time divided into three verses. In the first verse, George starts painting the picture of a dream where a beam of light warms him and he finds himself in a trance-like state. The second verse starts with the line “Sun may rise for those who’ll notice and can realize” suggesting that the sun may rise for those who are aware and can realize their place in the world. The last verse uses the concept of time while reminding the listener of mortality in the line “Grains of sand are what we are”. Ending with a long instrumental outro, the song gives space and atmosphere for the listener to reflect on the lyrics. “Day Dreaming” is a meditation experience that you won’t want to miss out on.
Folk artist The Eighty Six Seas based in Brooklyn, NY creates an explosive, juicy, and catchy remake of The National’s song ‘ I need my girl’. Originally an indie alternative tune, this song was created in such a way that it incorporated an EDM soundscape, which also tracks the artist’s progress sonically and how he has shifted dramatically in his musical career. Nick Stevens collaborates on this one with singer Elly Kace, gracing the track with a very strong and feminine touch. Nick started sending out his music for the world to experience during the pandemic and works in his consistent brand of folk music whilst changing up the styles with which he incorporates it.
Beautiful and vulnerable in its nature, the song is really spiced up with the EDM and almost pop soundscape that Nick provided to the original song. It’s bursting with flavor and multiple sound effects. The overall sound of the song is somehow cheery, very open, and honest. It’s the kind of song you blast to make you feel better instantly. The song is relatively calm, and the musical arrangement is rich and dynamic, with the piano as a star instrument. The piano is light yet strong, and there is a funky pop melody really moves the beat. There is also a very prominent, sappy sound effect that is always there in the background creating this very rich, electronic texture. There are humming sound effects, a good snare, and dramatic drums that surprise you at some point. The vocals of Elly are strong, and beautiful and can reach very high-pitched levels, while Nick possesses a low tone, steady one. All in all, this song is a very fresh vibe and should definitely be on your playlist.
Today’s feature is quite special. We bring to you blood brothers artists Steve N Chris, who debuted on the 4th of February with a pretty cool concept of showcasing their musical skills as a super hip hop and R&B duo. The album is called ‘ Remix Kings Mixtape’, a truly creative way of covering music with a fresh take. Based in Fort Lauderdale, US, Steve n Chris are about to blow your mind with how flexible and authentic they are as they have the courage to remix the music of exceptional artists in the Hiphop scene like DJ Khaled, Diddy, Babyface, and Metroboomin. The album consists of 9 famous hip-hop tracks, and the duo attempt to cover a small part of the song, usually 2 minutes maximum, just showing what they really can offer to this music industry. Alongside this project, the duo also proceeded with creating their own original song called ‘ Traffik n sex’, featuring Courtney Hamilton that speaks for a cause they believe in and stand for which is anti-human trafficking.
This album is a creative masterpiece because although it may seem like it’s just covered, it’s really not that often you find artists attempting to recreate the lyrics and vibe of rap or hip-hop music and actually recording the song. Steve n Chris really step out of their comfort zone and pull out new and inspiring personas to the already existing music productions of these great artists. Character, vibes, and style in their vocals and performance are so unique they flip the song completely into something new. Also, the changed lyrics and writing of the song to match the feels of the beat and create a totally different yet relevant context for storytelling to that of the original music is just crazy and highly impressive. Challenging and competitive, this album will raise the bar for any young artists and rappers to really break barriers and believe in what they are doing.
The soundscape of the album is a variety of hip-hop and R&B beats made by different artists, each with its own unique beat, style, and message. What Steve N Chris brings to the table is a totally different style from the vocals. Every song starts with the R&B sweet and intimate sound, which is also high-key seductive and sexy, and then comes the hardcore rap with strong and harsh vocals. Both of these mix perfectly, giving you the very exciting and dynamic elements you listen to the song ax The flows of the bars are incredible, you will find that there is no breather from how quick and witty the rapping is. Also worth mentioning is that there seems to be an early 2000s rap style in this Duo which makes us feel a little nostalgic. Occasionally you’ll find some small changes in the beat but what is really prominent is the backing vocals that give texture and a very different style that is unique to the duo. Both are emotionally charged, and passionate and really wield all the power to create a distinct narrative and persona to the songs. Steve N Chris possesses great lyrical skills, an incredibly smooth and slick attitude, and ultimately spicy and passionate performance, you’d think that these songs are their own originals.
Malibu Hot Flush released their newest synth-rock single “Too Much” on all platforms on the 17th of February, from Manchester, United Kingdom.
Malibu Hot Flush are a duo collaboration between singer and guitarist Luigi Tiberio and modular artist Tim Bleasdale. Their latest release “Too Much” is an explosive throwback with modern polish.
“Too Much” borrows inspiration from the popular dance and electronic music of the 80s, but sounds remarkably like the music you would hear in 2023, because of its contemporary improvements to the old-school genre in sound design, guitar tone, and awesome arrangement. “Too Much” is a modern-day renaissance painting for 80s music and a wonderful tribute to the era.
The track is characteristically unique with an otherworldly feeling that comes from the combination of immaculately crafted synth sounds performing suspenseful melodies and the calm appealing vocal performance that is washed with a strange, high-quality, realistic digital reverb.
What impresses me the most about Malibu Hot Flush’s single “Too Much” is the attention to detail and minutiae throughout the track’s entire performance and production, whether it be subtle synths panned right and left, or fleshed-out guitar chords hiding in the mix but building the track and padding its atmosphere. There is a lot of detail in every second of “Too Much” but it’s not too much.
Alongside the release of this single, Malibu Hot Flush announced that they will be performing at the Glastonbury Festival this June, so we’ll be looking forward for an amazing performance by the duo.
Prima Apollinaare’s latest EP might quite possibly end up as one of my top listens for 2023, not just as a writer for music, but also as a listener. A triumph in songwriting and arranging, Alignment is a short and sweet collection of drop dead gorgeous dream pop songs that made me, for 17 minutes, get lost in pristine sounding recordings, nuanced and colorful soundscapes, and haunting vocals, harmonies, and lyrics.
The Los Angeles based singer songwriter Prima Apollinaare has a delightful voice, that reaches high as effortlessly as it populates the more relatable and intimate registers. She sings with purpose and drives, her performance ends up sounding consistently soulful and heartwarming.
The EP starts with Believe. A true dream pop offering, Believe is based on flickering, light synth pads that live in the air of the song like colorful soap bubbles floating in peace. Apollinaare’s voice is incredibly powerful in the souring chorus that features an anthemic, youthful choir singing their hearts out, bolstering the hopeful message the song is here to deliver. In a pleasant stylistic departure, Deeper in Love starts with a rhythm of finger snaps that is a proponent of a funkiness that soon hits in full swing. The slow hitting beats stutter in a confident gait that supports the endlessly dreamy 2-chord Lydian composition. The vocal climb in the chorus, making perfect use of the mode the song is written in, sounds invigorating and outlandishly cool, for an unforgettable hook that’s my favorite in the entire album.
The melancholy intensifies in the latter half of the EP, without once veering off the path of perfectly accessible lyrical themes discussing valid emotions that we all can understand and relate to. Venus or Neptune is driving and shimmery sadness. Mostly devoid of Apollinaare’s impressive, soaring highs, Venus or Neptune is a masterclass in restraint, producing rich and memorable arrangements. It is an understated piece of dream pop tastefulness. Fantasy Ride has a wonderful bass line and a wonderful tone to it. The intro of Fantasy Ride features clean guitars and dramatic composition, with angelic harp flows populating the background. The sound of Fantasy Ride is infinitely bright and restrained, with bouncing effects and an artfully crafted dreamscape. It’s the album’s best-crafted and most engrossing background. The closer, My Own Fleet, is built on a plethora of guitars playing perfectly well on top of each other, controlling the pace and the dynamics of the piece. The vocal harmonies here are lush and adventurous, sometimes vocalizing melodies in gorgeous counterpoint, and at other times singing beautiful harmonies. This wonderful slow burner introduces a domineering bass line near the end that totally takes the music to an entirely different sphere.
It would be an actual crime to forget to give a ton of credit to Eren Cannata, the producer of Alignment, and the writer and producer for Netflix’s most-watched film for 2022, Purple Hearts. A force to be reckoned with and for sure a visionary who must be responsible for some of this album’s deepest and most impactful decisions. Alignment is a simple must-listen. A delight for the senses, a masterclass on many fronts, and on every front, a beautiful, well-crafted gem of sensational dream pop.
Are you in for a Latin dance floor banger that’s also a woke and progressive political statement that calls out a government for its widespread corruption? INDIE POP
Will Lisil is a contemporary London-based artist and producer whose extensive cultural background and desire to be a platform for free speech in music have allowed him to handle music distribution for artists from over 5 different countries. Lula Ladrao is a collaboration with Brazil Was Stolen, a movement that aims to expose political offenses carried out by the Brazilian government against its people using music. The result, Lula Ladrao, probably calls Lula da Silva, Brazil’s recently re-elected president, who comes after a time of widespread political unrest in the country. A world apart from being a political commentator, I am here to discuss music. Lula Ladrao is sizzling with Latin beats from a style known as Brega funk that’s extensively popular in the northern parts of the country. With cohesive production featuring a composition that makes a statement while being simple and accessible, drums that sound like traditional street percussion, catchy voices laying political messages in a rhythmic way that would make you thankful if you can’t understand the lyrics, as you’d dance away to them without distraction.
Will Lisil’s message and direction are commendable and brave, his efforts certainly aim to help literal millions around the world, and it helps that in the way, he puts out nice, crisp-sounding, and wholesome music to help. Lula Ladrao is certainly among those.
