'SEASONS' / AMERICAN AUTHORS: ALBUM REVIEW

March 12, 2019

BY EMMA SCHOORS

American Authors’ latest effort, Seasons, is jam packed with blurred genres, beats from a plethora of instruments, and fitting, real lyrics about life and love. Strung together by community, it makes for a great addition to the band’s quilt-like collection of albums, but stands just as strongly on its own.

The album opens with “Stay Around”, a tune about the weary times that can often lead to ended or shaky relationships. It’s backed by a hand-clap beat and fronted by lyrics that reflect the title, echoing “...lighting my fuse is so easy to do.” Then jumps forward “Say Amen”, with Billy Raffoul adding to the rustic, gospel-like groove of the track.

“Calm Me Down” is a track infused with piano and anthemic choruses to match the plea that matches the title, “I need you here to calm me down”. The album peeked its head into the public arena in late 2018 with the tracks “Deep Water” and “I Wanna Go Out”, both of which offer a complexity that satisfies the overall vibe of the effort, but doesn’t give too much of it away too soon.

One of the songs on the album that departs from the future/forward thinking lyrics is “Neighborhood”. Instead soaked in nostalgia, the lyrics paint a picture of a loved community. “Can’t Stop Me Now” is one of the many songs featured on the album fit for an arena. The lyrics apply describe the title, and almost leave a taste of the band’s earlier material. It’s once again anthemic, yet not too much so that it drowns out the message.

“Bring It On Home” is a song that reconciles with the doubts that we all face and plows right past them to deliver an optimistic forcefield of lyrics. “Before I Go” contrasts the prior track with a more raw version of events. This theme is strung throughout the whole album. The effort closes with “Real Place”, which perfectly wraps up the authenticity that the band put into the album as a whole. The band’s earlier lyrics tend to be mischievous and fun-filled, and this album lights the fire for a much more relatable listen that forces audiences to think about their own experiences in a new way.

'WAIT FOR YOU' / JAKE MILLER: MUSIC VIDEO REVIEW

March 11, 2019

BY DAVID THOMPSON

A synthesization of optic stimulation, presented to it’s electro pop track, Wait For You, is now the latest music video premiere of artist Jake Miller. The visual engagement concocts carefully crafted imagery whilst still correctly and harmoniously executing it’s intended artistic vision. A potpourri of vibrantly fashioned colors, vivid and intensive visual effects, and potentially symbolic objective presentation in combination, create a videographic piece not only suited to that of its musical counterpart, but standing as its own independent visionary of art. Miller translates a masterful creative thesis to a conceptual figmentation of romantic feeling and the desire to love someone throughout the process of their own acceptance of being loved. Communicating an exquisite, ocular display, dense with passionate lyrical composition and sustainability, Jake Miller bequeaths his artistic perception of his world of love and it’s accommodations. a sight of his heart and a gift to the eyes, the videoed adaptation of Jake Miller’s Wait For You is out now.

ZACHARIAH: INTERVIEW

March 4, 2019

INTRO BY KAT VISTI

INTERVIEW BY CAMI LIBERTY

Zachariah recently released his latest single “Winter Doesn’t Wait” on February 15th. He falls somewhere between Sam Smith and Troye Sivan, but he has his own talent. We sat down with Zachariah to learn more about the single and his music.

When did you first decide that you wanted to pursue music?

ZACHARIAH: “I’ve always wanted to be a musician for as long as I can remember, since I was a little kid. In the first grade I dressed up like Elvis on career day.”

How would you describe your music in three words?

ZACHARIAH: “Nostalgic sad-boy pop.”

Who are some of your musical influences?

ZACHARIAH: “I grew up listening to a lot of different music, from Radiohead to Chet Baker to Lana Del Rey. I studied jazz in high school and I think that definitely influenced me melodically in my writing.”

You recently released your new single “Winter Doesn’t Wait” – can you tell us a little about the song and the process creating it?

ZACHARIAH: “The song is about how time is fleeting- especially time spent with the person you love. I wrote it with my friends David Burris (he produced it too) and Brooke Tomlinson, after coming back from a short trip away from LA. I was dreading coming back to my part time jobs and the monotony of LA, and ‘winter doesn’t wait’ popped into my head- I wanted to hold on to that one week of summer for as long as I could.”

Where do you find most inspiration when creating music?

ZACHARIAH: “For me, a lot of inspiration comes when I’m not trying to write. I’ve written some of my favorite lyrics sitting in traffic or at a party in the bathroom. I’m not someone that can sit in my sadness and write about what happened to me that day. I have moments of reflection- sometimes about things that happened years ago that come to me when I’m not asking for them to. I sometimes try to stir up that reflection by going on walks around my neighborhood - it’s been rainy and grey in LA recently so it’s been kinda perfect.”

Is there anything else we can expect from you in the coming months?

ZACHARIAH: “I’ll be releasing some more singles in the following months, and hopefully an EP by the end of the year.”

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FELICITY: INTERVIEW

March 2, 2019

INTRO BY KAT VISTI

INTERVIEW BY CAMI LIBERTY

Founded in Orlando, Florida, the band Felicity formed in 2014. They consist of vocalist Damien Fagiolino, guitarist Andrew Rapier, and bassist Michael Alosa, and in 2015, the group welcomed guitarist Cory Comly. In 2016 their album Brace Yourself! took the world by storm. In 2017 the band started to record highly anticipated EP Old Habits. Old Habits was officially released on February 15th of this year. Felicity has a big future ahead of them, and we sat down with them to get more information on their newest album Old Habits.

On February 15th you released your new EP Old Habits. Can you tell us a little about the process creating the EP?

“We recorded the EP at The Wade Studio here in Orlando, FL with Andrew Wade. This was our second time recording with Wade, so we were a little more comfortable and familiar with his process as he was with us, so he was able to get more from us than before when we recorded ‘Brace Yourself!’ During the pre-production phase before the studio, we’d spend countless hours almost every day just listening, re-writing, and re-structuring lyrics, melodies, harmonies, ideas, everything. We’d show our friends, family, coworkers, everyone we could the demos we were working on for feedback from all sorts of music fans so we could try to find new and innovative ways to push ourselves during the writing process. And we think the end result shows how much we believe in this record.”

Of the songs on the EP, which one would you say was the easiest to create?

“We’d have to say ‘Weekend Worrier.’ We wouldn’t say it was the ‘easiest,’ but probably the most “organic” to write. The message is something that most people can relate to, so a lot of the song, musically and lyrically, were kept the same to the demo, with added and refreshed parts.”

Which one would you say was the hardest?

“We were trying to write this one demo called ‘Patricia’ (we name our demos very weird things) and we easily spent a whole day trying to figure out how to lead parts together, get the melodies to match, and nothing was sticking. So, after a long day we decided to go ahead and scrap it. The next morning only a couple of us were at the studio until the start time and the idea of writing a whole new song from scratch came about when messing around with chord patterns being played at a fast tempo. After a couple days of work, we had the finished product of ‘Tough Luck.” Which now is most of our favorite song off the EP.”

Where do you find most inspiration when creating music?

“We get inspired by most things in life; going to live shows, feeling the energy of live performance, having new friendships or relationships form or end, loss of a loved one. We try to keep our messages relatable and something that most people can resonate and connect with.”

For those who have not listening to your music yet, which song of yours would you recommend they listen to first?

“You gotta’ start where ‘FELICITY’ really started to define ourselves. We’d suggest checking out the two singles from our second EP, alos recorded with Andrew Wade, ‘Hang On,’ and ‘Burn the World.’”

Is there anything else we can expect from you soon? Any upcoming tours?

“Definitely a tour! We have a US tour with Calling All Captains (Equal Vision Records) and Brigades this March. We are currently planning another tour for the summer; we have new music videos, new merch, and some other really exciting news that we can’t spill the beans on just yet! Soon, but not yet.”

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BRASSTRACKS: ON TOUR

February 24, 2019

BY SYDNEY WISNER

Need something smooth to calm you down? Time to tune in to New York duo Brasstracks. They’ve just released a new EP, Before We Go (Feb. 2019), featuring artists such as Anthony Flammia, Pell, and R.LUM.R to create their most R&B influenced collection of songs yet. Their previous album, For Those Who Know (2018), was a bit on the jazzier, hip-hop side, but Before We Go is a whole new evolution to Brasstracks’ sound. Now headlining the Vibrant Tour with Kemba and Pell, Brasstracks is bringing their hip swaying, soft smile, feel good in your heart music to a city near you.

Tour dates are listed below and tickets can be purchased here.

Feb. 27 / Vancouver, Canada @ Imperial

Feb. 28 / Bellingham, WA @ Wild Buffalo House of Music

March 1 / Seattle, WA @ Neumos

March 2 / Portland, OR @ Star Theater

March 5 / Boise, ID @ Reef

March 6 / Las Vegas, NV @ The Bunkhouse Saloon

March 7 / Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Music Hall

March 9 / Denver, CO @ Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom