A Mixtape from Ben Lee

This is good stuff! Most compilations have fillers or a varying quality of songs. This hasn't.

Start to listen to tracks 1, 2, 6, 9.

Ben says: "This album began as an exploration of songwriting. I decided to write songs for different voices, and invite these singers to perform them. My dear friend Sam Spiegel offered to produced the record I had conceptualized, and we began working on the collaboration in earnest in 1998. 

Over the next 6 or 7 years we continued to record intermittently. All kinds of wonderful musicians came by and offered their help with recording. I should have kept better notes during the sessions but I know you can hear Eric Gardner, James Valentine, Rusty Logsdon and Alfredo Ortiz amongst many others. I am grateful to everyone who played a part in these recordings, large or small, remembered or forgotten."

Lost Stars - Gregg Alexander Live Recording

In my humble opinion the very best performance of the Oscar nominated song "Lost Stars" by the man who wrote it - Gregg Alexander:

Astrid North (The Cultured Pearls) - new record by crowd funding

Astrid North's voice is sheer beauty.  In the 1990s she was the voice of The Cultured Pearls. For almost a decade and five stunning records they were quite successful by mixing influences from Soul, Pop, Funk and Jazz into their very own kind of music.

After the last record of The Cultured Pearls in 2003 there were ten long years of silence. In 2013 the first solo record of her surfaced (simply called "North") and now Mrs. North just started a crowd funding campaign for her second album. Rightfully after the first day almost 50% were already financed! Way to go!

Here is the English video for the campaign:

 

And if you don't know The Cultured Pearls - listen to this:

You can preorder the new record "Precious Ruby" at Pledgemusic (digital, CD or signed CD, House concerts, lyric sheets and much more!).

Taylor Locke - Time Stands Still (review)

Taylor Locke co-founded the L.A. based band Rooney in 1999 and was signed to Geffen Records at the age of 18. After 3 albums and a number one single in Germany he is ready now for a solo career.

His debut solo album "Time Stands Still" will be out at Lojinx on February 23, 2015.

The record has 10 songs and not a single filler - Time Stands Still is full of highlights:
There are songs of pure beauty - like the opener Burbank Woman, the title track Time Stands Still or The Art Of Moving On.
Running Away From Love travels back to the 70s, So Long is the perfect track for radio airplay and the heavy Call Me Kuchu occupies the middle of the LP.

There are lyrics from the late Kim Fowley, as well as co-writing with singer-songwriter Kelly Jones and Chris Price (a member of Taylor Locke & The Roughs).

Time Stands Still has its band parts, but there are also intimate acoustic parts where the band steps aside. And it's exactly these parts, which makes this album so special to me.
It's definitely an early musical highlight of the year 2015.

Buy it directly at Lojinx (digital, CD + digital, LP + digital) HERE.

Bobby Emmett - Learning Love

Sometimes you discover a record which comes out of the blue and you have the feeling you know it already for years. Or at least you SHOULD.

Learning Love from the Detroit based Bobby Emmett is exactly this kind of record. After three LPs as a member of The Sights this was his debut solo record - released in 2010.

With a length of just 33 minutes it contains 10 tracks of intense Rock 'n' Roll and PowerPop.

The opener Queen Of Hearts is the perfect outlook of what you can expect from the LP: rough guitars, claps, and an extremely 70s vibe!



Still Want To Be With You may be the catchiest tune I listened to for months! This is maybe my personal highlight of the record.



Broken Hearted would be a perfect radio song - in a good way.



Songs like Not Gonna Take It. (pure rock!) or the Lennonesque Never Waited So Long should not be missed!

It's just a shame it's not available on CD or digital anymore (the only way to find samples was on Myspace - MYSPACE! - Does anybody remember Myspace?).
If you have the chance to get this on CD - buy it! No, buy two (one for me)!

I highly recommend the record if you like: Brendan Benson, Big Star ... or haunting melodies that get stuck in your head.

Ron Sexsmith - Carousel One

There's a new record of Ron Sexsmith, it's named Carousel One.
Listen two two of the new tracks ("Saint Berndard" and "Can't Get My Act Together") HERE.

Track list:
Sure As The Sky 
Saint Bernard 
Loving You 
Before The Night Is Gone 
Lucky Penny 
Getaway Car 
Nothing Feels The Same Anymore 
Sun’s Coming Out 
Lord Knows 
All Our Tomorrows 
No One 
Can’t Get My Act Together 
Tumbling Sky 
Many Times 

Bonus tracks (available in different countries)
The Other Side 
Is Anyone Going To San Antone

Carousel One will be out March 17, 2015. Watch this space!

Jellyfish - Spilt Milk & Bellybutton - Deluxe Reissues

The phenomenon Jellyfish is unstoppable: The band released just two albums in their short career. Thanks to Omnivore Recordings this catalogue has grown a lot. And the newest entry are the 2015 Deluxe Reissues of the two records: Spilt Milk and Bellybutton. Both are 2CD sets packed with bonus stuff (see the trackless below).

The sound quality seems to have been improved a lot (judging to the unprofessional, not-so-much-audiophile opinion of the writer of this blog). For anyone who somewhat likes this band: buy this stuff already!

Bellybutton
Disc One:
1. The Man I Used To Be
2. That Is Why
3. The King Is Half-Undressed
4. I Wanna Stay Home
5. She Sill Loves Him
6. All I Want Is Everything
7. Now She Knows She’s Wrong
8. Bedspring Kiss
9. Baby’s Coming Back
10. Calling Sarah
11. The King Is Half-Undressed (Live)
12. Sugar And Spice (Live)
13. Mr. Late (Live)
14. All I Want Is Everything (Live)
15. Jet (Live)
16. The King Is Half-Undressed (Live)
17. Baby’s Coming Back (Live)
18. I Wanna Stay Home (Live)
19. She Still Loves Him (Live)
20. All I Want Is Everything (Live)

Disc Two:
1. The Man I Used To Be (Demo)
2. The King Is Half Undresssed (Demo)
3. I Wanna Stay Home (Demo)
4. She Still Loves Him (Demo)
5. All I Want Is Everything (Demo)
6. Now She Knows She’s Wrong (Demo)
7. Bedspring Kiss (Demo)
8. Baby’s Coming Back (Demo)
9. Calling Sarah (Demo)
10. Deliver (Demo)
11. Queen Of The U.S.A. (Demo)
12. Always Be My Girl (Demo)
13. Let This Dream Never End (Demo)
14. Season Of The Witch (Demo)
15. That Girl’s A Man (Demo)
16. Bye Bye Bye (Demo)

Spilt Milk
Disc One:
1. Hush
2. Joining A Fan Club
3. Sebrina, Paste And Plato
4. New Mistake
5. Glutton Of Sympathy
6. The Ghost At Number One
7. Bye Bye Bye
8. All Is Forgiven
9. Russian Hill
10. He’s My Best Friend
11. Too Much, Too Little, Too Late
12. Brighter Day
13. Family Tree (Demo)
14. Ignorance Is Bliss (Demo)
15. Worthless Heart (Demo)
16. Watchin’ The Rain (Demo)
17. I Need Love (Demo)
18. I Don’t Believe You (Demo)
19. Long Time Ago (Demo)
20. Runnin’ For Our Lives (Demo)

Disc Two:
1. Spilt Milk Intro (Demo)
2. Hush (Demo)
3. Joining A Fan Club (Demo)
4. Sebrina, Paste And Plato (Demo)
5. New Mistake (Demo)
6. Glutton Of Sympathy (Demo)
7. The Ghost At Number One (Demo)
8. All Is Forgiven (Demo)
9. Russian Hill (Demo)
10. He’s My Best Friend (Demo)
11. Spilt Milk Outro (Demo)
12. Think About Your Troubles
13. That Is Why (Live)
14. The Ghost At Number One (Live)
15. Joining A Fan Club (Live)
16. S.O.S. (Live)
17. Fan Club Message

Taylor Locke - Time Stands Still

Taylor Locke, best known from Rooney and Taylor Locke & The Roughs is ready for his first straight solo record. The LP will be called Time Stands Still and is out at Lojinx (CD, LP, digital) on February 23, 2015. 

A set of songs that could already be found at Soundcloud (at least for a limited time) were Time Stands Still, No Dice, Running Away From Love and Call Me Kuchu.

The superb title track is free to download:

Bleu - Make Music with Bleu

The BluRay/DVD of the latest Disney movie "Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast" by Steve Loter will be in stores March 3, 2015. The soundtrack is mainly composed by Bleu. Exclusively at Walmart there is a special edition of this release. It includes a bonus DVD: "Making Music with Bleu".

Well, that's interesting! There's sadly no more information so far.

Link: Legend Of The NeverBeast (Blu-ray) / Make Music With Bleu - Walmart (03/03)

By the way: If anyone has a good idea how to get this set for international fans, let me know!

Top Ten Records Of 2014

It's mid-december, the nights getting longer, days shorter - so it's time to finish the year 2014 (musically).
It was an incredible year with stunning new music! Here they are - my Top Ten Records of 2014:

1. Dan Wilson - Love Without Fear

Love Without Fear has become an outstanding record with a strong collection of songs.

It starts with the title track Love Without Fear: beautiful harmonies and lyrics create an optimistic, catchy opener which draws the listeners attention to what may come next...
... and you won't be disappointed: songs like However Long, Disappear, We Belong Together, When It Pleases You are mature work and perfect musical handcraft. 
The record closes with the amazing Even The Stars Are Sleeping (maybe my personal highlight of the record).

For me the most amazing aspect about this album is the awareness of having a honest piece of work which carries true emotions.

2. Jeremy Messersmith - Heart Murmurs

The singer-songwriter Jeremy Messersmith from Minneapolis has maybe created his masterpiece with his fourth album: Heart Murmurs. While his last record - The Reluctant Graveyard - was centered on death, Heart Murmurs is about love - with all its perspectives, such as addiction, self-laceration and desire.

If you like smart music, an incredible voice, and a record that has all the indication of being an instant classic, you'll be right with Heart Murmurs.

3. Vacationer - Relief

If you're still looking for the perfect summer-record, I think I can help you there: Vacationer - a group from Philadelphia - just released their second album Relief. Vacationer are Kenny Vasoli, Matthew Young and Grant Wheeler.

Relief is not just the title of the record - it's the record's proposition.
From start to finish the album is the musical image of vacation, palm trees, wide sand beach and blue sky (the cover fits quite well).

Vasoli says: “Whether through love, exploration or relaxing, we all strive for relief. It’s just a quick flip-of-the-switch away, and think it’s good to be reminded of that.”

Make sure you listen to: Onward & Upward, The Wild Life, Paradise Waiting, In The Grass and Heavenly

Official website: vacationermusic.com

4. The Cry! - Dangerous Game

The second studio album by The Cry! is called Dangerous Game. With upbeat songs full of pure energy, catchy guitar riffs and harmonies The Cry! are a reminiscence to the 50s, 60s and 70s. But they are surely more than that! You'll instantly recognize their influences like The Beach Boys, Exploding Hearts and The Sweet. The band brings back Rock'n'Roll, Power Pop, Glam and Punk, which makes them timeless.

Dangeous Game are 10 tracks - and 28 minutes of pure musical fun and Rock'n'Roll.

5. OK Go - Hungry Ghosts

The new record of OK Go - called Hungry Ghosts - was one of the most successful crowdfunding campaigns in 2014. And it was worth it for sure - just listen to the songs or better - watch their stunning videos: 

6. Ryan Adams - Ryan Adams (2014)

Three years after his last record Ashes and Fire, Ryan Adams is back. The new record is simply called Ryan Adams. The album was produced by Adams himself and Mike Viola at his own Pax Am Studios in Los Angeles.

7. Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness

Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness is the debut record of Andrew McMahon's same titled band.
Andrew McMahon is a singer-songwriter and pianist known from bands like  Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin. In 2013 he released his first solo EP - The Pop Underground.
The album was partially produced and co-written by Mike Viola.
Do yourself a favor and listen to his music NOW!

Listen to the first and second single "Cecilia and the Satellite" and "High Dive" here:

www.andrewmcmahon.com

8. Sunday Sun - We Let Go

The new record of Sunday Sun - and after three EPs this is their first full album - is called 'We Let Go'. And it's at least as good as their EP 1 - 3, which may be the best compliment you can pay to them.

The first single will be I Call You Honey:

Order on iTunes: http://bit.ly/SundayiTunes

9. Jeremy Fisher - Lemon Squeeze

Jeremy Fisher is back with Lemon Squeeze. It's available at www.jeremyfishermusic.com (digital, CD, Vinyl).

  

10. She & Him – Classics

The fifth album of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward consist of classic songs. The arrangements on Classics are handled by a full 20-piece orchestra.  

Deschanel explains: “We are incredibly excited to release a record of our favorite songs. It was a dream of ours to record these songs in a way that highlighted the brilliance of the songwriting and the beauty of their melodies. We had a wonderful time making the record and we hope people have a wonderful time listening to it.” 

Honorable mention:

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty OST

There are very few movie soundtracks that are so different, inspiring and outstanding to outlast the popularity of its movie - the soundtracks of Magnolia or American Beauty are two perfect examples for this.

All of a sudden The Secret Life of Walter Mitty OST happened to me. And it stuck since then.

Side A (yes, on vinyl) opens with the epic Step Out by José González to Dirty Praws (Of Monsters And Men) and Stay Alive(José González) - it left me breathless.

Side B continues without deceleration with two songs from Junip (Far Away and Don't Let It Pass) and the beautiful dreamy Lake Michigan by Rogue Wave. On Side C and D you'll find the gorgeous Rogue Valley with The Wolves & The Ravens but the second half of the record is dominated by cover versions: Escape (The Pina Colada Song) by Jack Johnson, Don't You Want Me by Bahamas, José González with #9 Dream and Space Oddity (it's the original David Bowie song except the first verse which has Kristen Wiig at vocals). A very different version of Maneater (by Grace Mitchell) closes the record.

By the way, if you didn't watch The Secret Life of Walter Mitty yet you should do it, just because the movie is equally good as the soundtrack. It's just an amazing experience.

  

Here Comes The Reign Again: The Second British Invasion

If you have a look at the right side of this blog, you'll find a complete index of artists I wrote about in the last four years. A great deal of these musicians came together on Here Comes The Reign Again: The Second British Invasion. I am lost for words... 

...well, not completely: Here Comes The Reign Again is a compilation by Andrew Curry. It's his second project, his first was Drink a Toast to Innocence. Find all information and updates also at the Facebook page of Here Comes The Reign Again.

Involved artist are: Mike Viola (Everybody Wants To Rule The World), David Mead (Save A Prayer),  Bleu (Don’t You (Forget About Me)), The Nines (Life’s What You Make It), Eric Barao (Tainted Love), Taylor Locke (Dancing With Myself), Cliff Hillis (Wouldn’t It Be Good), Chris Collingwood (Life In A Northern Town), Rachael Yamagata (Do You Really Want To Hurt Me), Kelly Jones (Something About You), Linus Of Hollywood (Every Time You Go Away), Ken Stringfellow (Digging Your Scene), Chris Price (Don't You Want Me), The Corner Laughers (Our House), Big-Box Store (Kids In America), An American Underdog (Things Can Only Get Better) - and many more!

Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast OST

"Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast" is the new full length Disney movie out in early 2015. The soundtrack features music from KT Tunstall and Bleu.

"Float" (written by Bleu, sung by KT Tunstall), "Strange Sight" (sung by KT Tunstall) and "1000 Years" (a duet by KT Tunstall and Bleu!) are three damn fine songs.  Especially the latter is Bleu at the top of his game.

Listen (and buy) the soundtrack at iTunes:

   

Ransom & The Subset - No Time to Lose

Ransom and the Subset is an American alternative rock band based in Seattle, Washington.

Ransom and the Subset is the brainchild of singer/songwriter/guitarist RanDair Porter. Along with producer/multi-instrumentalist Brian E. King (OranJuly and Parks) and Grammy-winning engineer/mixer Ducky Carlisle (Mike Viola, Bleu, Major Labels, Taylor Locke and the Roughs) the team collaborated to create Ransom and the Subset’s debut album No Time to Lose. 

Ransom and the Subset is one of the most interesting new discoveries in 2014 (just listen to "Anna" and "Million Out Of Me").

www.ransomandthesubset.com

Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast Soundtrack (KT Tunstall, Bleu)

"Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast" is the new full length Disney movie out in early 2015. It is about the relationship that develops between Fawn, a compassionate animal fairy who thinks with her heart, and Gruff, a massive beast with glowing green eyes who seems to be on a mission.

The soundtrack may be of interest for the longtime PowerPopSquare reader - it features music from KT Tunstall and Bleu.

"Float" (written by Bleu, sung by KT Tunstall), "Strange Sight" (sung by KT Tunstall) and "1000 Years" (a duet by KT Tunstall and Bleu! ... wait ... !!!) are three damn fine songs. 

Especially the latter is Bleu at the top of his game.

Listen (and buy) the soundtrack at iTunes: