But here is a really neat little South African news service I've been following:
Go check it out - it's in my opinion uncluttered, concise, neat.
Reviews of mp3 releases, especially of the South African music scene. Reviews also of books, restaurants, wine and whatever else Reviewbru gets in contact with!
But here is a really neat little South African news service I've been following:
Go check it out - it's in my opinion uncluttered, concise, neat.
Coldplay has made their new live album "left right left right left" available for free download from their site:
http://www.coldplay.com/lrlrl/lr.php
Enjoy.
http://www.myspace.com/jeredtanner4pres
Now here is a tune, and an artist worth noting. If you can keep somebody's attention solid during an acoustic performance, you've got the chops.
"June" is the track by this project (although to me it seems like one dude) under scrutiny today.
Let's get the crits out of the way. I get the sense during the song that some of the "peculiarities" of the singers voice is almost affected, and not a natural product of his singing and breathing, BUT as always, one needs to put this in context of the style of music, his song and the like. Certainly belting is not required in this song, so maybe slight forcing of ones vocal chords through the mid (throat) to high (nasal) registries is acceptable. However, this criticism only comes after having listened to the tune about a dozen times. My guess is first time listeners would be more than pleased and engaged.
Lyrically this is a beautiful thing, although the metaphor not always easy to follow, but just damned 'nice'. Not like a cup of tea nice, but really nice. Almost like a happy Walt Whitman. For fear of publishing copyright infringement reprisals I will neglect to put some of the lyrics here, but lemme just say, whether June is a girl or a month or a time in his life, she must be damned fine, if a bit complicated.
Delivering his lyrics with untraditional almost rap/rhyme-like back beat sensibilities in the long sentences break the fairly straight -forward beat and rhythm of the song.... and this is a ridiculously long sentence without commas. Most great folk singers have this in their arsenal, like Jack Johnson, except Jered Tanner for President does not run out of breath in the middle of it and he does deliver it with a pure voice, no throaty whispery huskiness. (For the record: I think Jack Johnson is a legend).
My final thoughts? A killer tune. What would I like to see? A bit more chest register singing from a singer who is under-utilising the full range of his voice.
Oh, the guitar playing is solid, although there is some fret-noice on the strings, which is the guitar, not the player. The question beckons however: how many songs will still be made from that opening chord progression? I personally have about 3...
http://www.ilike.com/artist/christian+summer
http://apps.facebook.com/ilike/artist/christian+summer
Having discovered this guy at Garageband, I've had a good time listening to his tunes.
"Take me Home" would be the focus of my review - what a song! But first with my criticisms. It sounds live, but I think his voice could've carried better over a drier recording. He has enough texture and timbre to carry the song without the echo/reverb. But that's purely technical. I am afraid that one might only be able to listen to about 5 of his songs, if one was focusing on the voice only, which tends to be high, but the songwriting more than makes up for it.
"Take me home" is a simple acoustic-vocal song, but with enough technical prowess, both vocally and guitar-wise, to keep any listener glued. Not just that, but it is delivered in a non-showy, functional way, keeping the focus and integrity that of sounding good.
Lyrically any folk-singer needs to know his stuff, and Christian Summer does not let us down here. A criticism that has been directed at me in the past, especially with the vocal/guitar format, is a lack of emotion in delivering lyrics, because of focusing on your playing too much. I can't say the same here. Syncopation is solid, with great delivery on both sides.
I'd really like to see this guy tear up the world in small-venue, exclusive ticket settings. I think he'll be a huge hit still.
Check out this site:
Just click on the button to download music for free, legally. The artists get paid for every download, sponsored by the individual advertisers on the site. Virgin Mobile are advertisers, so it'll give you an idea of the credibility. Music available are mainly South African, but some really awesome tracks available, from Tristan Waterkeyn's Private Beach to some great ditties from the Dirty Skirts.
I apologize for the few entries the last while, but I've taken notice of some really cool artists I want to review. Life's been a tad crazy, but watch this space!