'I'M DONE WITH YOU' / JACQUELINE LOOR: SINGLE REVIEW

August 3, 2021

by shelly decaigny

Jacqueline Loor recently released a powerful and dramatic new single entitled “I’m Done With You.” This emotional presentation is dark and eerie, but with undertones of energy and empowerment. Her soft slow intro embodies the feelings of defeat and exhaustion caused by a toxic relationship. As the intensity of the song grows, you can feel the shift that occurs when someone decides to break the unhealthy connection they have with another person.

The depth of sound, between Loor’s voice and the instrumentals, effortlessly takes the listener on a journey from the realization that things are over to the termination of the relationship. The journey from despair to liberation.

While listening for the first time, I found myself picturing this song as part of the soundtrack for a drama film. Jaqueline is a true artist, as she can paint a vivid picture in the minds of those who hear her creations.

I look forward to hearing more from Jacqueline Loor. I wonder if I might, in fact, hear “I’m Done With You” while watching a movie on the big screen. Sit back, take in the song with all of your senses, and see if you feel the same.

VALLEY: INTERVIEW

August 3, 2021

by brittany and everly ormiston

Valley is a note-worthy alternative-pop band who is known for their upbeat songs accompanied by melancholy lyrics. The band wanted to push the envelope and demonstrate their willingness for experimentation by releasing a new track with a blissful, nostalgic feel. “Tempo” was released on July 21st, and has easily become a summer anthem for all listeners. This track paints a clear picture of living in the moment with the one(s) you love and wanting to slow down time to treasure it all even more. Valley will continue to “change the tempo” when they reunite with fans on tour and partake in live music once again. The band will be performing at Wonderbus Festival in Columbus, OH and Bottlerock Festival in Napa Valley, CA at the end of the summer, and then opening for COIN on a 17-date North American tour in the fall.

How do you guys feel now that “Tempo” is out?

Valley: “Really good! The reactions have been way past our beliefs. Regardless of how much we are growing as a band the past year, every time we put out a song it’s kind of nerve-wracking because you just don’t know if people are going to love it or not. The response has been crazy. Everyone has said, ‘This is my new summer bop’ and ‘I needed this [song] this summer.’ We’ve been getting a lot of messages. We are really excited because we definitely took a risk with this one. We were experimenting and wanted to do something a bit more dancey and upbeat. There is not a lot of instrumentation happening. Our songs are usually pretty dense, and with this one we were very strict about keeping just the elements and keeping it focused and positive. We are excited that people love it so much.”

The other day you described “Tempo” as “...definitely us breaking ground on what Valley can be and sound like.” Can you expand on that? Did you officially find your sound/discover what direction you want the band to go in?

Valley: “A lot of our music comes from this obsessive idea of happy and sad. I think everyone is. There is nothing more sweet than when you compare a sad lyric to a happy melody or a happy melody to a sad lyric. With this song we were trying to see how far we could push the envelope of not doing that. Can we just write something a little more uplifting and is ironic with itself. That’s where it came from. We actually wrote it over Zoom with this wonderful artist and writer called Soaky Siren. She brought a lot of positive energy to the session. We were pitching sad concepts and any time we did that she would say, ‘Why don’t you flip that? The world doesn’t need that right now. Flip it and make it positive.’ That’s why we love collaborating with other people because they force us to see things through a different lens. We programmed that piano and it became the anchor for the whole song. Karah laid down insane harmonies and layers and we tweaked the lyrics. There’s a crazy bass synth that Alex plays now live. It’s so intense. It’s just fun. It’s us experimenting. I always say it reminds me of ‘Slide’ by Calvin Harris, that feel and groove. Just us trying something new because it’s fun to keep it interesting. We want to paint with all the colors until there is no more.”

You were talking about collaboration and we saw Josh Gudwin mixed “Tempo.” He is a well-respected name in the music industry. How was it having him as part of the process?

Valley: “Incredible. I’ve been obsessed with Josh Gudwin for a while because he mixes all the stuff that we really love. He mixed a bunch of the Dua Lipa tracks and a lot of Selena and all of the Justin Bieber songs, all of the pop music that we’re obsessed with. He’s also a producer and a writer as well. This has been a dream of ours for a while. Our team and us reach out to him and he really loved the music and said, ‘I would love to mix this.’ He actually worked on ‘Sucks to See You Doing Better.’ He mixed that record. When we got to this song we said, ‘This song needs to smack really hard,’ and if anyone should mix this song it’s Josh. When we messaged him, we were even smaller than we are now. I consider him an honorary Canadian because he got an email saying, ‘This tiny band from Toronto wants you to mix their stuff,’ and he responded and said, ‘I love this music. Yeah, let’s do it.’ Definitely an honorary Canadian move in my book.”

What is your creative process? Do you hear a random beat and add lyrics in or do you tend to come up with a lyric and then add the melodies?

Valley: “Every song happens differently. We don’t have a formula or a set creative process. It is chaotic and all over the place which is how we want it to be. If you make it formulaic then you will start to see the same results. When there is a formula to the process, it can hinder how much creativity you are expelling. We overthink quite a bit. We are overthinkers for sure, but when we are writing songs we have thoughts like ‘It’s all good.’ ‘It’s all good when Rob sang it for the first time.’ ‘Don’t touch it. Leave it. Keep it.’ Usually melody and lyrics happen in tandem and it’s never really just melody and just lyrics. Lyrics are tougher because you’re creating a narrative. It’s not typical to create a narrative from top to bottom. I don’t know anyone who does that. It mostly happens in phases and in drafts. You’re going through it and [figure out] this word makes more sense than this one. As you guys know, you have to go through it multiple times and make sure everything makes sense and there is a storyline. That’s usually how we do it, and obviously if it starts to feel like work then we are doing something wrong. Then we check ourselves and go back to square one and figure out how we are going to continue to create without making it mundane. It can feel like that sometimes when we are doing so much of it, but at the end of the day songs only come out that have hit us in the gut. We don’t put stuff out that we can’t feel or cry to.

Also, for any younger fans or artists listening I’ve started giving this advice out because I have thought about it a lot: the biggest breakthrough for our band was not assigning roles. For the longest time, kids who wanted to start a band or a project would assign roles like ‘the singer will sing the songs and then I’ll play my guitar part and then the drummer will add the drum part.’ They were cutting their creativity short by doing that. Some of our biggest breakthroughs with songs and with lyrics have been Mickey suggesting a lyric or doing the drum beat or Karah writing the bass line or Alex doing the guitar part. When you don’t assign roles, you are going to have so many more creative breakthroughs. To reference our friends: [The Band] CAMINO is a great example. They are not locked on roles. Spencer can sing the most heartfelt song as Jeffrey and Garrison can add production. You never want to assign roles to creativity, especially in a band dynamic. That’s what caused our biggest breakthrough as a band and when everything clicked. We have different roles a lot because we aren’t octopuses. When we are in the studio there are no roles. Obviously Karah and Rob will sing the vocals finally but that doesn’t mean that we wrote it. Mickey and Alex could have written the whole verse. Naturally, you fall into what your strongest role is in terms of what you end up contributing the most of, but also there is space to grow because you aren’t necessarily locked to that so you get to dabble in everything. In terms of the dynamic being smooth, people kind of know when to trust the other people because they have seen it work out or not work out.”

We want to tap into your musical inspirations in general, and also in relation to “Tempo.”

Valley: “For ‘Tempo’ we went into the session referencing Mura Masa. There is a song called ‘Live Like We Are Dancing’ so we referenced that along with ‘Slide,’ just upbeat and dance bops. There is almost a split screen to the inspiration thing. Say Fleetwood Mac is Valley’s favorite band because there is a lot of our spirit in that band. But when you listen to our music you don’t necessarily hear Fleetwood Mac. We have career-inspiring bands and then specific artists we pull into our stuff. For example, Coldplay is a career-inspiring band because they’ve managed to be such a generational band and constantly evolve and will consistently sell out arenas for the rest of their lives. Now that is a dream. Do we sound like Coldplay in particular? You hear it somewhere here and there. Other overarching artists [for us] are The 1975, Fleetwood Mac, and pop stars such as Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift. [Those] groundbreaking career artists. Then we have specific artists that inspire specific songs. For ‘Tempo’ definitely artists like Calvin Harris and Mura Masa [inspired it]. ‘Society’ was Smashmouth. It’s hard to say one artist for us because it’s crazy all the time. We are never referencing the same thing. We literally referenced the drum from Lion King once.”

Is there a backstory behind the Michael Jordan reference in ‘Tempo’?

Valley: “We wrote this song right after we came back from an Airbnb for a month where we wrote constantly. While we were at the Airbnb, we watched ‘The Last Dance,’ the Michael Jordan documentary, and we all got so obsessed with basketball. There was a basketball court next door to our Airbnb and we went out to a store and bought a basketball. Every day we would play basketball and then write songs. Karah broke her finger playing basketball so we should’ve found a way to put that in the song. We talked about having good vibes with somebody you love whether it’s a relationship (romantically or platonically) or family or whatever. Then we came up with the line, ‘the way you move is so pro.’ You’re like Michael Jordan: so eloquent, you’re presenting yourself at highest form, to me you’re as iconic as Michael Jordan in 1998 on The Bulls in Chicago. You could have no interest in sports and this documentary could change your life. It’s focused more on life and mental health and there’s so much more to it than just basketball.”

Any reason you’ve referenced Chicago multiple times in your music?

Valley: “Yeah, this is the second time we have shouted out Chicago in our songs. Since Michael Jordan played for Chicago we just connected that, but we like Chicago. We also say, ‘that night we had in Chicago’ [in our other song] so it’s a double whammy. Chicago as a city is very much a mix of Toronto and LA together. It’s a really cool city. Every time we reference Chicago in one of our songs the ticket sales go up. I have a feeling the next show in Chicago is going to be really special.”

Also, why Denny’s?

Valley: “With Denny’s, the outro thing was very last minute. The song was ready to go to mixing and one night it was really late and my friend showed me the song called ‘Good Days’ by SZA. It has this pump and it was in the same key too. I thought I would love to do something like this right now. I started messing around with samples and for some reason with ‘Tempo’ being this upbeat dancey song, I wanted the outro to feel like nighttime. You know when it’s two in the morning and you’ve had a long night out with your friends? You go to the greasiest place just to get food because that’s all that’s open. The outro is the end chapter to a night out for us sonically. We got Karah to say it in the mic and we just kept it. We also have memories at Denny’s. We would go to Denny’s at two in the morning in Niagara Falls. About a month ago, we needed to shoot a music video and afterwards thought, ‘We should get food from Denny’s.’ We ended up driving 45 minutes to get it. With a song this playful it’s fun to add things like that.”

What are you hoping the fans will take away from this song?

Valley: “Feeling good, bringing joy. That’s pretty much the point of this song. Someone tweeted this yesterday: ‘I always get anxious when Valley releases a new song because I never know if I will have a serotonin boost or I’ll need extra therapy.’ This one is to give you a serotonin boost. Escapism is the word. Forgetting the stress of everyday life and having a good time and just living. That’s what this song is about, just living. We wanted a song like this for ourselves too. We have park hangs with our friends and Karah will bring her Bose speaker. We aren’t going to bump sad, existential music. We are bumping dance songs, good vibes. We wanted our fans when they go to a park hang or at a party with their friends to have a Valley song for that moment. Maybe ‘Sucks to See You Doing Better’ isn’t the vibe there and maybe ‘Tempo’ can fit in that playlist now which makes us really happy. Coldplay has ‘Yellow,’ but they also have ‘Charlie Brown’ or ‘Something Just Like This’. They have the party bops.”

There are several festivals you will be performing at here soon, and you will be going on tour with COIN in the fall. Do you have any pre-show rituals? Any must-have items on tour?

Valley: “This is our pre-show ritual: ‘cinnamon roll!’ We literally put our hands together and we make a cinnamon roll. It’s hard to explain but your hands fold in a way that creates a cinnamon roll type movement. If we are playing with [The Band] CAMINO, we guarantee they will knock on our door and they will bring shots so sometimes we will have those. This tour I really want to practice music in the green room before a show because it’s always quiet. We should make a green room playlist and have something always playing. A good dinner before a show is good luck too and we have some time to sit together and talk about the show. We can say things like, ‘Last night you did this and that was really cool. You should do it again tonight.’ A shower is nice and when a venue has a good shower I love that. Mike has a thing where he always buys new shoes before shows because he always loses or forgets his shoes at the hotel or at the last venue. The most comfortable, fresh clothes you could wear on stage... and then get them completely ruined with sweat. Meeting fans before shows also gets us so hype. If we walk by a line and if we were given a gift or a letter then that automatically makes us want to go 200% that night.”

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'WEIRDO' / ÄTNA + MEUTE: REVIEW

July 31, 2021

by mariah estran

The avant-garde pop duo ÄTNA is back with a new single and video for “Weirdo.” Vocalist Inéz and drummer Demian Kappensteinm teamed up with the electrifying, techno marching bang group MEUTE. Merging their inventive sounds to create a tune that shows ultimate versatility in pop music.

The deep bass drums fill the track with power as the lyrics recite the concept of a weirdo, while MEUTE’s brass instruments crescendo over synth layers. The fusion of unconventional sounds is familiar to ÄTNA. But this collaboration represents the limitless possibilities that lie within their creative arsenal. It’s fresh documentation of how they’re expanding the pop universe to new heights.

And the music video is no exception. Directed by Philip Zeller, the duo is seen in head-to-toe matching outfits, performing in the center of an elevated platform as the marching band plays around them. With the clean use of set design — the bold fashion choices and the energetic tune are given absolute recognition.

“Weirdo” follows up the February release of the single “Tuk Tuk” with producer Solomun. Five months later, “Weirdo” has proven to be worth the wait.

MATT LEGRAND: INTERVIEW

July 30, 2021

by abby crabill

Matt LeGrand is a multi-talented musical artist who has explored several aspects of the field, from playing instruments to songwriting. He has been interested in music from a young age.

On July 16th, Matt returned to the world of music with his brand new single, "Message in a Bottle," accompanied with a summer themed music video. The animated music video introduces his "alter ego," Matthieu.

For those of us that can't get enough of Matt LeGrand, we can look forward to another video soon, that will be self-directed by Matt. He is just getting started when it comes to leaving his mark on the music industry, and hopefully we will get to see him performing live in front of large crowds in the future.

What inspired you to begin exploring different aspects of music?

Matt: “The catalyst was really wanting to bring something different to the table through my music. It takes so long to develop your ‘sound’ so to say. I knew I wanted to make music my career when I was in high school, which was an interesting time because during high school I was very particular and closed off with what I’d let trickle into my ears. It was either heavy metal or pop punk and that was it. When I branched off into my solo project, I really started to explore and open myself up to just about everything. It was so much more interesting to me and more importantly it was more interesting for my listeners. As I am still crafting my sound today, I’ve learned that it is made up of little bits and pieces from each of my influences! I look forward to continuing my musical exploration and really encourage others to open themselves up.”

If someone has never listened to your music, how would you describe your sound to them in three words?

M: “Diverse. Hopeful. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”

What current artists influence you? Why?

M: “I'm really into JXDN, and pretty much anything that Travis Barker is doing. I started in pop punk bands when I was younger, so to see this pop punk resurgence happening right now is literally everything that I’ve ever dreamed of. I loveeeee mainstream music right now!!! I'm also looking forward to The Chainsmokers and Lauv’s new album! And I also never stop following one of my favs, The 1975. All these groups have something in common for me and that's the feeling of euphoric nostalgia! Everyone is in need of feeling nostalgic, especially after the year we’ve had!”

What things in life inspire you to create music?

M: “The thing that inspires me the most when creating music is that I know one day I’ll be able to play it live for people and hopefully one day I’ll just completely forget all the words to my song and they’ll be able to sing every word to me.”

Without knowing who would find it or when, if you could send out one "message in a bottle," what would it say?

M: “I’d write my IG @mattlegrandofficial so that they could follow me. LOL No, just joking!! I’d say you’ve been chosen to lead millions to the light. Do well young Padawan! Please feel free to follow me on IG @mattlegrandofficial.”

What was the inspiration/process for creating an animated music video for your song, "Message in a Bottle"?

M: “Veteran entertainment executive Bryant Reid who served as Creative Executive Producer of the animation short came up with the idea of the character Matthieu. His vision was to have Matt LeGrand live vicariously through his alter ego Matthieu. He and Viviana Acevedo, who is a Producer at HBO, assembled the creative team. I want to bring my fans in on a little secret! My name is actually spelled Matthieu. Also, we didn't believe it would be a good idea to assemble a large crew during the pandemic. The video is streaming on YouTube now!”

What's next for you on your music journey? What do you still hope to accomplish?

M: “I’ll be releasing another video soon that I actually directed myself which I’m really looking forward to! I’ve also just been getting back into the studio to work on my next vision/concept. There is so much I still hope to accomplish and in many ways I don’t feel like I’ve even started yet to be honest. Like, I guess working with Travis Barker and going on a date with Madison Beer would be really nice, but I’m most looking forward to when I can go out and tour and see my people! Live performance is everything to me.”

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'CURLED TOES' / ALYSSA JOSEPH: PREMIERE

July 26, 2021

by madden levin

Singer-songwriter Alyssa Joseph is back with another perfect summer day single, “curled toes.” Though she has been quite busy releasing plenty of other tunes for her fans to enjoy over the past few months, post-move to Nashville, she sure didn’t let this single fall flat of amazing! From the beginning of the tune, there is a wave of comfort that flows through the eardrums and travels to the rest of the body. With a quick build-up, despite continuing the calm vibe, Joseph captures her audience with a catchy melody, outlined by her addictive voice. The instrumentals surrounding “curled toes” aids in its calm feeling, as they invoke a relaxed emotion, while each beat perfectly matches the messages she is trying to get across.

Out of all her recent singles and releases that we are lucky to have on our playlists, this is the song that I believe truly captures Joseph’s impeccable production quality and ability to create a song for virtually any emotion or situation. We are sure that this new single will be on repeat on your playlists — be sure to give it a listen before you go!

Not only has Joseph released this new single, but we were lucky enough to speak with her about the exciting changes she’s been making in her life and if “curled toes” is a continuation of any previous singles or if it marks a new journey for her as an artist. The last time we spoke with her was back in 2016, so we were extremely excited to chat about maturing and how her life has brought her to the lovely city of Nashville to continue to embark on her musical journey. Check out our exclusive interview with Alyssa Joseph below! And don’t forget to listen to “curled toes” on your favorite streaming platform starting July 30th! You can also get a free early download of the song here.

For those who have never gotten the chance to check you out before, can you tell us a bit about your music/who you are? What’s the first song of yours you’d direct these new fans to listen to?

Alyssa: “Yeah, I’m Alyssa Joseph — singer, songwriter, vegan, plant mom, sensitive human who feels a lot. I’m from Jersey and have been living in Nashville for two years now. My music is alternative indie rock, but I like to describe it as grungy sadgirl.”

You recently(-ish) moved to Nashville. Why was this move so important to you and your music, too?

A: “Nashville is Music City! A lot of people think it’s just for country music, and that’s not true. All genres are blooming here, and it’s where a huge part of the music industry is located. I lived here for a summer in college and really loved it; I always wanted to move back.

Mostly everyone is a creative here. I needed to change my environment to grow and set myself up to meet and interact with potential collaborators. I have definitely seen growth in myself and my music so far and am excited to continue that hustle.”

Last time we caught up with you was back in 2016. Since then, how do you feel that your music has matured/you as well? I have definitely noticed a change in confidence in your music that is quite motivating!

A: “Wow — 2016 was the year I graduated college. It feels like a different version of myself. I have definitely evolved and grown. It was cool — after college I didn’t jump into a job or any environment where I was surrounded by peers or a ‘system’ everyday. I didn’t have the constant pressures or insecurities or confines of seeing the same people every day.

I could re-evaluate myself, where I stood in the world, how I portrayed myself. And I decided to become the girl I always wanted to be but told myself I couldn’t. I learned to love my body, I developed a style, an aesthetic, a brand.

As a solo artist, who I am as a person is what my image/brand is as a musician. So having that time after college to just focus on myself — to learn to love my plus size body, to chop my hair off, to dye it tons of colors, to get a nose ring, to experiment with dark lipsticks and makeup, to date around and experience sexual growth, to choose to push myself out of my comfort zones — was so so important in my experience as a human. And that translates to my music and who I am as an artist.”

Your most recent EP, alive, has been out for about a month now. Can you tell us a bit about the creative direction you were going for, for the EP as a whole and how the production process was?

A: “alive is an EP-version of a record that I will be putting out in a few months. It is a collection of the more polished songs on the record — the songs that are more about external factors in my life and how I reacted to them. Each song was written during a moment where I felt very alive — either feeling the weight of existence or stuck in a tough transition or just in awe of how we are tiny little ants in the scope of the entire universe.

I recorded those songs in Philly, and moved to Nashville with the stems. I wanted to find some badass womxn engineers to work on the record, and I found Kate Haldrup. She mixed the EP (and LP), and completely made it sound 3 dimensional.

I was then connected with Raelynn Janicke who mastered the record analog. Finding women to work with through the process was a completely rejuvenating experience. As a woman, if I am not going to pursue womxn engineers, what man is going to?”

You are definitely not wasting any time with the release of your newest single, “curled toes,” coming out on July 30th. Is this song an extension of the EP or a step in a different stage/story line for you?

A: “Let’s keep the new music going, right? ‘curled toes’ is the segway from the EP into the full album. :) It’s the most light-hearted song on the record, and I figured it would be the perfect summer track!”

Can you share with us why you wanted to make this song in particular a single? What was that turning point moment for you?

A: “I think that ‘curled toes’ is a soft, sweet, and fun moment on the record that is in the midst of some pretty dark stuff. So, I wanted to highlight that moment. I really enjoy playing it live, and I’m so stoked to incorporate it into my live shows — that will actually happen this Thursday, July 29th at The End in Nashville, TN!”

The song itself from the very beginning is something that feels almost like a picnic during a nice sunset in the summer season. Do you imagine a visual representation of your songs at all in creation? Do you think it is important/fun to do so?

A: “I definitely think visually. It’s important, especially when figuring out arrangements and recordings, but also the content that goes alongside each song. What emotions do you want to elicit in the listener?

‘alive’ to me is staring up at all the stars in a remote location on a clear night. ‘easier’ is an angsty morning when I haven’t eaten breakfast yet. ‘curled toes’ is playing in the background while I’m driving with the windows down on a summer day and the sun is shining on my skin.”

Are you looking forward to live shows continuing? Out of all your newest songs since last stepping foot on a stage, which are you most excited about performing live?

A: “I am definitely excited to perform. I have my first live show coming up on Thursday, 7/29. I haven’t played a show in person since March 13th, 2020. AND it’s my first full band show in Nashville. So, I really can’t wait. I’m excited to play all of them! There isn’t one in particular.”

Got any fun things coming up in the future that you can tell us??? :)

A: “Well, for those who are not in Nashville and can’t make it to my 7/29 show at The End, I will be having a ‘curled toes’ livestream show on YouTube Live on Thursday, August 5th! You can RSVP here.

I can tell you that there will be a full album. That there will be more video content. That there will be chances to see each other again and experience music together, in-person.”

And before we go… last chance to plug anything you want… social media/new songs/shows/etc. BUT, plot twist, you must also describe your music using as much alliteration as possible.

A: “You can pre-save ‘curled toes’ here! If you’re in Nashville, this Thursday, 7/29 I’ll be playing at The End with my full band! If not, don’t worry because I’ll be doing a livestream show on Thursday, 8/5 on YouTube Live! And grungy guitar girl guts. ;)”

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