Jeff Litman - Crowded Hour EP

Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Jeff Litman latest release, Crowded Hour is out now! 

Litman was born in Minneapolis at the end of the 70s, playing piano by age six and guitar by ten. Listening to grunge and metal throughout the 90s, he eventually became hooked on the melody-driven classic rock of the Beatles and Beach Boys as well as the gritty melodic rock of Minneapolis bands like The Replacements, Soul Asylum, and the Jayhawks. After being tuned into Miles Davis by a guitar teacher, he dropped into the deep end of jazz, eventually earning a degree from Indiana University’s prestigious jazz program in 2002. After college, he followed his growing love of classical music to New York City, where he enrolled at the Manhattan School of Music, earning his masters degree in classical guitar in 2006.

Listen to the Crowded Hour EP here - and buy it (digital or CD):

Elise Trouw - Line Of Sight

Elise Trouw is a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from the US.

To tell her story with her own words: "I was born in Southern California to a South African father and a mother from New York in the very last year of the millennium. Raised on The Carpenters, Green Day, and 80s New Wave, I always looked forward to rides in my mom’s car where she played her “mixtapes", whether it was on a compilation CD or an ancient iPod. Inspiration struck when my six-year-old self first heard the haunting piano melody in “My Immortal” by Evanescence. I distinctly remember a five hour plane ride that consisted of that one song blasting repeatedly into my ears. So I begged my parents for piano lessons, and after they finally relented, they were then begging me to not practice at five in the morning every day. I did it anyway, and my love for piano just grew stronger. Life changed when my family bought the game Rockband for Xbox. After mastering the drums to "Dani California” on Expert Mode, I thought I was ready to rock (thank you, Chad Smith). It took a lot more to convince my parents I needed drum lessons, but I managed to wear them down with my obsessive talk and relentless requests. Luckily, at that time we were living on a 2-acre former chicken farm in the middle of nowhere, so the decibel change from piano to drums was irrelevant."

She adds: "A few months after finding my way around an actual drum kit, my parents realized that I was serious about drumming, so they supported my cause and enrolled me in School of Rock, where I learned how to play and perform with other young musicians. Being one of the youngest only pushed me harder to keep up with the older kids. From Mitch Mitchell's jazz-rock waltz on Jimi Hendrix’s “Manic Depression" to the syncopated groove of Richard Bailey on Jeff Beck’s “Blow by Blow" to the funky feel of Tower of Power’s David Garibaldi, I wanted to learn it all. During my high school years, I started reading charts in band, and jazz became another component of my musicality. At the same time, I began writing both on piano and guitar, spending hours before, after, and even during school to fulfill my creative desires. Because of my dedication to music and growing following on social media, I graduated early to commit fully to music and the creation of my first album."

"People ask me "What genre is your music?” With songs in 5/4 and 7/4, chords that you'd normally find in The Real Book next to "Take Five,”and influences like Radiohead, The Police, and Steely Dan, I'm really not sure what box I fit into- I’ll leave that up to you."

Her new single "Line of Sight" is out now. It has become an astonishing good, fresh, uncommon song. And it will get stuck in your head for a long time:

 

Elise did also a beautiful cover of the Getz & Gilberto classic "Girl from Ipanema":

Listen also to her stunning first record "Unraveling" here:

Roger Joseph Manning Jr - Glamping EP & Reissues

Most of you may know Roger Joseph Manning Jr from Jellyfish, but the man had also 2 fabulous solo records: Land Of Pure Imagination (it had a slightly different release in Japan with 3 different tracks and was called Solid State Warrior) in 2006 and Catnip Dynamite in 2008.

Since then it was very quiet regarding new records - until now!

The is a new campaign on Pledgemusic for his complete musical work:
A new four track EP called Glamping (digital and CD release in May 2018, vinyl later), reissues of his first two records (CD & colored vinyl), signed stuff, lyric sheets, art books, clothing, Skype interviews, writing birthday songs and much more.

Chris Price - Dalmatian

The new record of Chris Price is out now! After his critically acclaimed second record Stop Talking nearly 50 songs were left off from the record because they simply didn't fit in its concept.
With the arrival of Dalmatian, Price’s brand new third album and second release in only 10 months, that music finds new life.
The 13 tracks found on Dalmatian are all written, produced, engineered, arranged and mixed by Price himself (with occasional help from co-writers Taylor Locke, Fernando Perdomo, and Alex Jules).

Price says, “This is a collection of fragments, outcasts and ideas from the sessions that produced Stop Talking. A lot of material that I love was left off of that album for one reason or another. Whether it was because the songs didn’t fit tonally or thematically, or the sonics didn’t match up, I found myself sitting on a pile of stuff that couldn’t find a home. I’m not sure if this is my new album or a companion piece to the last one (Disc 2, if you will). Maybe it’s both. I’ll let everyone else decide. All I know is I’m very proud of this work and I’m so happy to have it out there in the world instead of buried on a hard drive somewhere.”

Track List:

1. Prelude
2. Sick Boy
3. Fever Dream
4. Roller Coaster
5. Breakfast Cruise
6. The Dream Is Over (But We’re Just Waking Up)
7. Dalmatian (Interlude)
8. Discount Love
9. I Won’t Be Loved
10. Peculiar Lake Superior
11. Uncle John
12. I’ll Follow Her Anywhere
13. The Angels Of Buena Vista

So, according to his last record (Stop Talking) which was stellar, you MIGHT have a look at this release! Order the record (CD and digital) at Omnivore and Bandcamp!

Teitur - Sara

'Sara' is the first single taken from the upcoming Teitur album 'I Want To Be Kind'.

Buy or stream the song here: TeiturMusic.lnk.to/SaraSt
If you're old-fashioned - just wait for the new record!