Song reviews


  Broken Heart by Stephanie Manns


Broken Heart cover art


Swimming upstream

Steering her song “Broken Heart” safely down the middle of the highway, Glasgow's Stephanie Manns makes the mainstream, much like Jill Jackson before her, seem like the right place to be. A song to sing along with whilst driving in your car.


Review date: 
  www.stephaniemanns.com

  Alex McKinley by Joe De Vita


Alex McKinley cover art


Inward bound

Fuzzily presented, “Alex McKinley” is the kind of song that suggests its creator, Joe DeVita, is a deeper thinker than most. However, his voice lacks the conviction necessary to get his point across before the song fades away.


Review date: 
  www.joedevita.com

  Dust to Dust by Cara Mitchell


Dust to Dust cover art


Northern songbird

Endearingly fragile as always, Aberdeen’s Cara Mitchell perches on the branches of the folk tree and sends “Dust to Dust” upwards to float upon the clouds. The song itself rambles somewhat aimlessly but at least her lyrics suggest that she knows that some clouds are rain clouds. Free download from Soundcloud.


  Criminal by The Division Men


Criminal cover art


Melancholic

Laidback and with more than a hint of Mark Lanegan in their musical motivations, Texas band The Division Men leisurely walk through the shadows of Americana throughout “Criminal”. Needless to say, the song is more about mood than melody.


Review date: 
  www.divisionmen.com

  Vertigo by ENL1TE


Vertigo cover art


Urban talk

Mainstream in his musical ambitions, ENL1TE clearly knows where downtown L.A. is and uses Valerie Broussard’s ever appealing voice to entice us into joining him on his journey into urban r’n’b territory. That road is a busy one but, with “Vertigo “on his iPod, he might actually see a green light or three on his way.


Review date: 
  www.enlite.com

  Sparkler by New Mystikal Troubadours


Sparkler cover art


Tripped out

Musical degenerates the New Mystikal Troubadours continue their trek towards the dawn with “Sparkler”. This time there’s even a melody and something akin to a consistent tempo which, as their loyal fans will attest, is practically a sell out to the devils of commerciality. Much as with soup, it would seem that the best is usually homemade. Download from the Free Musical Archive.


  Mekong Delta Blues by Krom


Mekong Delta Blues cover art


Cambodian magic

Now we are getting somewhere. Downbeat and yet compellingly melodic, the vocal harmonies of Sopheak and Sophea Chamroeun add an elegant poetry to the music of Cambodia’s Krom with “Mekong Delta Blues” easily exceeding the sum of its unassuming parts.


Review date: 
  www.facebook.com/KromSong

  Funk Me by Reverend Fly


Funk Me cover art


Old school

Old fashioned but none the worse for that, Detroit’s Reverend Fly walk the seventies funk road with the aptly named. “Funk Me”. They’ve got the feel right and they’ve got the moves right so get out on to that dancefloor and, as they used to say way back when, shake your groove thang!


  Virtual Record Collection by Richard Haswell


Virtual Record Collection cover art


Growing old gracefully

There used to be this thing called light entertainment and, with a wry sense of humour on his side, Richard Haswell invokes its ghost for two and a half acoustical minutes on the glories of getting old. In “Virtual Record Collection” he even manages to name check Aldi so he’s alright for urban cool too.


Review date: 
  www.richardhaswell.co.uk

  Loving You From The Start by Amazon Blonde


Loving You From The Start cover art


Solid rock

An easy rolling rock song, as they used to say back in the seventies, “Loving You From The Start” shows that Amazon Blonde know how to mix musical fluency with conventionality. However, the rather familiar lyrics don’t give the female vocalist much to work with but she nonetheless gamely goes for gold anyway.


  Freedom by Left


Freedom cover art


Australian electro

Essentially, and probably cosmologically, low key, Left rummage through the streets like urban folksters armed with a laptop and a sense of isolation for company. Downbeat certainly, but their appeal should exceed the boundaries of the headphones permanently on brigade.


Review date: 
  www.leftprojects.com

  Goodbye To You by Fear Me December


Goodbye To You cover art


Argentinian rock

An Argentinian rock trio with a sound grasp of what is expected of a band in their genre, Fear Me December keep it both low key and muscular all the way through “Good bye to You” with the restrained, almost girlish, vocals of Lintu Doll adding a twist of lemon to their cocktail.


Review date: 
  www.fearmedecember.net


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