Tech Noir

In a time when every artist/band is trying to mix multiple genres together to create their own unique sound, Julian Taylor Band has already figured out their niche sound: a deliciously weird fusion of jazz, funk, soul, rock/pop comes together on the band's Tech Noir and the homey sound fits like a glove for a band that only continues to get better.

Haunting piano riffs, sweet brass, solid guitar riffs, and pure vocals lend a satisfyingly full sound to the rich tracks, without sounding too overly produced, and allow the tracks to maintain an authentic and acoustic feel throughout as "Be Good To Your Woman" sinks into a slinking guitar riff and steady piano rhythm that drags you down into the alluring track and "The Other Side" features brass so big and piano riffs so soulful that Gulf Coast blues seem to drip from its every pore; each placing as much emphasis on the instrumentation and production as on the vocals and lyrics. 

Tracks ring out with an honest grace throughout, filled with sweet endearments and melancholy nostalgia, but never any hate. Even tracks that question your actions ring out with pure goodness, with lines "why would you do that? I thought you had my back" and "why does it hurt me so bad, you're just a memory of the past" being the most snarky among them ("Why Would You Do That" and "Hurt Me", respectively). Choruses "travel light and know that you're my hero, sail away to a brand new day, light comes and goes, still as stone, carry me home, where I will never be alone" and "do you remember way back when, we used to chill with all our friends, hanging out on those downtown streets, finding a way to beat the heat, we didn't have a care at all, do you remember way back when" ring out with gorgeous soulfulness and appreciation, rather than plaintive bitterness, offering a refreshing take on love and loss that feels so right on nostalgia filled tracks "Carry Me Home" and "Do You Remember". 

"No Guns!" takes a soft approach to a political issue while maintaining a bluesy feel and fun lyrics that lie far enough from the song's title that it just feels like good funk music here to make you dance, while the album's opening track, "You Say", reads like an introduction to the sound awaiting you on the rest of the album, featuring heavy brass, fun piano melodies, solid bass, wandering guitars, and a satisfyingly wide vocal range, all waiting to suck you into whichever song you choose. 

Of course, there's the band's inexplicably addictive "Never Gonna Give You Up" that has the same mental staying capacity as Rick Astley's own song of the same title, but so many times better that I've lost count. The track features a sweet organ, chiming horns, a fun chorus, and a rhythm that you just can't help but move to. The track's everything you want and will never grow tired of, all wrapped up in one. 

"Heatwave" feels like a trip back in time that focuses on that big brass band sound and the solid vocal harmonies of the '40's, with a playful guitar riff thrown in; while "Love Connection" goes for the bare bones feel of a softly played acoustic guitar, hesitant piano, and pure vocals that nearly overtake the instrumentation in an '90's alternative/soul "Fast Car" sort of feel (minus the soul crushing lyrics); and "Zero To Eleven" sinks steadfastly into a groovy funk feel, fun guitars and heavy horns included. The point is, the album cannot be pinned down to one genre, time specific influence, or even seasonal feel (summer vibes, crisp fall production, etc.); it's amazingly refreshing. 

Tech Noir feels like a sweet spot for a band that has been steadily making its move upwards in the business. Honest lyrics sound articulate, smart, and effortless, jiving perfectly with full productions featuring soulful melodies and pleasantly solid rhythms, perfect for relaxed listenings or dancing around. The album's impressive diversity gives it everything you could ever want and everything you never knew you had to be listening to, right now. 

Every track is spectacular but, if you don't have time for a full listen, make sure to give yourself enough time for "Do You Remember", "Hurt Me", and "Never Gonna Give You Up". Nothing is sweeter than a nostalgic jazz sound nonchalantly mixed with sweetly relaxed lyrics ("Do You Remember") and the steady down-strokes of "Hurt Me" offer up a superb support for lyrics that work to maintain their optimism. And "Never Gonna Give You Up" is just eternally great. 

Get Tech Noir from iTunes now and head to the sites below to find out more about Julian Taylor, the band, and their music. 

Julian Taylor Band             Twitter             Facebook             SoundCloud             YouTube

Geronimo

Nothing is as addictive as the music coming from Australian six-piece Sheppard and their first US single, "Geronimo", will turn you into a fan in one listen.

A gorgeous alternative rock sound is met with just enough of a pop influence to keep the track upbeat and you dancing, with satisfyingly full lead vocals and sweet vocal harmonies thrown in throughout.

Articulate lyrics run throughout but an alluring bridge presents "well I'm just a boy, with a broken toy, all lost and coy, at the curtains of the waterfall / so it's here I stand, as a broken man, but I've found my friend, at the curtains of the waterfall / and you rush to me, and it sets us free, so I fall to my knees, at the curtains of the waterfall" with such assured optimism that normally plaintive lyrics are left feeling addictive and hearty; and the repetition of "say geronimo" (used as an endearing provocation) and the overlaying of "can you feel my love" with "bombs away" and "make this leap" are too adorable to ignore. 

The fun rhythm, sweet chord progressions, and melodies made to make you dance breathe summer vibes from their core and the band's knack for teasing out the good in anything turns the most hopeless of songs into ones that ring with inspiration and love.

Listen to alternate tracks "Let Me Down Easy", "Something's Missing", and song of the day, "Hold My Tongue" to fall in love with, yet another, Australian band. 

"Geronimo" Sheppard

Sheppard          Twitter          Facebook          YouTube          SoundCloud

Sound of Erasing

Rubblebucket's "Sound of Erasing" offers a refreshing change of pace from the rest of the recently released summer ready singles; an upbeat rhythm, winding melody, and actually eloquent lyrics manage to take an honest approach to real life without sounding too plaintive or exasperated.

The interesting melodic embellishments give the prominent rhythm a nice contrast to stand against and offer up a hypnotic feel to the track while steady horns pipe up intermittently and keep the track feeling full and grounded, even as the melody tries to float away. 

A persistently upbeat chorus delivers the sweetly assuring promise "I won't let you worry now, don't take me off this cloud, this is the sound of us erasing, this is the sound of a wave, take us away" with such aplomb that eloquent lyrics stating "I wish I was a planet, with a forest full of answers, but instead I'm just a human, freaking out out out" and "I thought you were a dancer, so fuck your inhibitions, here's a better answer, drown 'em out out out" are left feeling regretless.

The melody feels like it could slip into melancholia in the tracks introduction were it not for the steady rhythm, horns, and solid progressions to back it up and push it forward, but articulate lines that take an optimistic approach seem to lift the melody and transform it until the end of the track feels perfectly light and easy to play on repeat.

Listen to the alluring single from US 5-piece Rubblebucket below and head to the sites to find out more about the artists and their music.  

"Sound of Erasing" Rubblebucket

http://rubblebucket.com https://www.facebook.com/rubblebucket https://twitter.com/rubblebucket Taken from the debut UK release Carousel Ride EP out 11 August 2014 Communion Records

Rubblebucket            SoundCloud            Facebook            Twitter

Free Download

Music Related News - 7/1

• We Are Stations released "Found My Way" (available for free now) and it's so sweetly perfect that it hurts a little. The sound feels like heading home while vocal harmonies are satisfying enough to be played at full volume with your windows down and there is something about the song, especially that guitar progression on the bridge, that just feels so right.
• Becky G released the music video for "Shower" and it is as just as deep as the song's lyrics would imply. I especially love the obvious product placement; the endorsement of Covergirl in this video is more noticeable than Stay Puft's in Ghostbusters. The most disappointing thing about "Shower" though is the fact that it is utterly void of the easy-to-sing-along-with-even-on-the-first-listen lyrics that we so desire in our thoughtless summer hits, even though the melody promises something fun. "Call Me Maybe" this is not (update: after ten listens the dancing and singing has commenced, but I will never forgive her for "Becky From The Block": that was straight up blasphemous).
• Ariana Grande released the track list for her forthcoming album, My Everything, due out August 25 and it reads like a who's who of celebrity mash-ups you've always wanted but were too afraid to dare dream of asking for (names include Childish Gambino, Big Sean, Ryan Tedder with Benny Blanco, and A$AP Ferg, among others). Catch her tomorrow night (July 2) during MTV's Total Ariana Live and watch for her new single, "Break Free" featuring Zedd, dropping tomorrow during the half hour event. 
• Sia continues her streak of sultry sweet summer sadness singles with "Big Girls Cry" and an intro which states "tough girl in the fast lane, no time for love, no time for hate... tough girl, whose soul aches" should have you completely hooked but when that beat drops and the melody frantically tries to keep up with soulful vocals that plaintively plead "I wake up alone" before allowing themselves to be wrapped up with "I don't care if I don't look pretty, big girls cry when their hearts are breaking" it's so gorgeous it aches. If you don't love Sia already, you haven't yet heard her music (or, more accurately, her heart-breakingly honest lyrics).  
• Watsky's first single since Cardboard Castles is catchy as ever; "Whoa Whoa Whoa" continues to prove that Watsky's production could not be better and his tongue in cheek lyrics are just as fun as everything that made you fall for his music in the first place while the choral repetition of "what do you take us for" hints at his omnipresent use of meaningful underlying messages.
• Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj are set to release the powerhouse collaborative single "Bang Bang" July 29 via Republic Records which will serve as the first single off Jessie J's forthcoming album due out this Fall and will also be available on the deluxe edition of Grande's My Everything.
• Owl City released the video for "Beautiful Times" (featuring Lindsey Stirling) from Ultraviolet (available now) and it sounds like a solid mixture of "Hello Seattle" and "Fireflies" and, to top it off, he is wearing the same damn shirt in "Beautiful Times" as he is in the "Fireflies" video (also it's the same fucking room and the same dang theme and this complete disregard of originality infuriates me, no matter its 'deeper' meaning). "Wolf Bite" was kind of awesome (honestly progressively better with each listen) and "Up All Night" is catchy as hell and they both veer far, far from that "Fireflies" sound, so check those out if you're tired of the watered down over-played radio singles.
• I don't want to like 5SOS but they're so greatly weird that it feels like they just happened upon their boy band status by accident and were like "'kay, cool; let's do this" and now they're just rolling with it but still putting out awesomely awkward videos that are totally cool with you being a freak. You do you and listen to 5 Seconds of Summer this summer because, let's face it, you can't stay away from it (and "Don't Stop" is pleasantly adorable).
• James Bay's Let It Go EP is still the most satisfying album you'll hear this summer. Sweet piano riffs are tied up with tangy guitar riffs that sound like home and rich vocals you will never grow tired of trot out lines that could not be more perfect were they taken from your journal (if you could ever remember to keep up a journal). 
• Australia's Sheppard (siblings George, Amy, and Emma Sheppard and friends Jay Bovino, Michael Butler, and Dean Gordon) are set to make their U.S. debut with their undeniably catchy single "Geronimo" and that fun melody that twines perfectly with an upbeat rhythm and wonderfully satisfying vocals is far too great to pass over; listen to it now and add it to your summer playlist, because you will be (shamelessly) addicted. 
• Lane 8's "I Got What You Need (Every Night)" featuring Bipolar Sunshine has to be the most satisfying single of this past week, though. With a sweetly slinking rhythm, a melody that breathes summer vibes, and charmingly full vocals doling out adorable lines you'll be singing along with in no time, the track is undeniably worthy of playing on repeat while dancing around. 
• I'm honestly so addicted to Zella Day's latest single that I don't even think I'm okay anymore. Seriously though, you have to be persistent as fuck to make it through any of Steinbeck's novels (even his novella's feel like a lifetime) and to write a song with lyrics which allude to the most basic ideas presented in East of Eden (that the creativity of a single person is the only real freedom left in this world) while a sturdy, persistent rhythm and pretty lilting melody feel like the constant struggle between good and evil (also a running theme in the novel) -- I'm too impressed with the writing style and production techniques to not be completely sated with this song that will never fall out of my head.