Browsing Tag

producer

Prepare to be torn from passive slumber with Cielo Pordomingo’s orchestral alt-electro feat of world music, Wake Up

Posted on 9 July 2022

Here to tear us from our jaded slumber with her spiritual synthetics is the alt-electro trailblazer, Cielo Pordomingo, with her latest single, Wake Up.

‘Enlivening’ scarcely cuts into the alchemy that the composer, singer, and producer used to reflect her soul in the orchestrally heightened single. It’s Europop meets Depeche Mode via Bond soundtrack with a classical chamber outro; need we say anymore? If we want to do Cielo Pordomingo justice as a lyricist, definitely.

Wake Up is far more than your average cry to people letting their lives pass them by. Pordomingo practically takes you by the hand to guide you through your awakening while addressing the problem of our tendency to waste existence by branding it as just another day. At this point, if she started a cult, I’d jump right into it.

Wake Up is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: Andy Hobson brought ascending melodicism to sonic meditation with his latest single, Rise

Posted on 8 July 2022
https://soundcloud.com/andyhobsonmusic/rise/s-P1ghFdxlrW2?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

The London, UK-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and spiritual teacher Andy Hobson is so much more than a diamond in the rough. With his latest single, Rise, he is the calm in the ever-calamitous storm that can’t seem to break away from our shores.

From the outro, you will feel some Nick Drake nostalgia. From there on out, the ethereal orchestral strings under the vibrantly ascending acoustic strings deliver heightened emotion exclusive to Hobson’s meditatively inventive take on alt-rock.

If you merged the plaintive sting of The Verve, the unrelenting compassionate tenacity of Nada Surf in their Let Go era with Radiohead-style gravitas and a burning sense of responsibility to spill the equanimity, the end result wouldn’t be too far away from the profound alchemy in Rise.

Here is what Andy Hobson had to say on his latest single:

“This is a bittersweet song about the passing of time and seeing the ups and downs of life as the same thing. Both can lead to new adventures. The song started as a dance track with big drums and a groovy bass line, but the emotion of the melody and lyrics didn’t really fit, so I stripped it back to acoustic guitar and wrote a haunting string section to give a final lift in the outro.”

Save a spot on your radar, as Hobson’s debut LP is due for release in 2023.

Rise, which was mastered by Stefano Ferracin and features Tom Meadows (Kylie/Will Young) on drums, is due for official release on July 8th, 2022. Check it out on Spotify & SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

Bedroom producer, J4RED transcended genre in his artfully reflective introspection slice, ‘hurt u’

Posted on 25 June 2022

Sometimes it is the emotion that grips you; sometimes, it is the musicality and originality; in his third single, hurt u, the bedroom producer, J4RED, proved that he is a triple threat. Perhaps even more impressively, hurt u transcends genre while carrying vast universal appeal.

The dark mellow pool of experimentalism created the perfect atmosphere for the fiery yet quiescent vocals to ooze into, allowing you to feel every ounce of the exhaustive frustration that breeds from dynamics where the mental scars tally our time together.

After launching his music career with his EP, UNCONSCIOUS, which debuted when he was 17 years old, he joined bands in the UK and Germany, and produced for other bands, such as the up-and-coming metalcore band, Half Me. If he keeps on at this level of momentum, it is only a matter of time before he breaks into the mainstream.

hurt u is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Graffiti Welfare tells his anxious coming of age story in the trippy meditative alt-electro album, Revolving Shores

Posted on 23 June 2022

Revolving Shores is the gravity-defyingly meditative debut album from the up-and-coming artist and producer Graffiti Welfare. After appearing on the airwave in 2018 through his EP, Into the Soul of Space, which has been extensively playlisted & lauded by critics, the Austin-born, Denver-based artist let the world in on his coming of age anxiety.

Regardless of your age, there is ample resonance in the LP that explores the profoundness of loss in context to perceptions of reality. As someone who has only recently lost their mum after a long illness, I’m pretty reasonably qualified to attest to the efficaciously comforting gentle tenacity in the 10-track release.

Revolving Shores gently eases you in through the minimalist melodic opening score, To Be It, which almost rings with neo-classic cinematic atmosphere, then cruises right on into my personal favourite, Just Follow, which reflects the feeling of unravelling as you lose direction.

DejaBlue picks up a little more melancholy through its genius titular metaphor for carbon copy ennui before Good News flirts with elements of coldwave EDM. What is easily the biggest experimental triumph the album, Synesthesia, dips into far more indie territory, with nuances of post-punk in the chilling, stabbing and distorted angular notes. SeaShell as the closing single was an all too efficaciously entrancing way of ensuring that Revolving Shores doesn’t leave you without sticking to your synapses first.

Graffiti Welfare Said

“Revolving Shores evolved from watching my childhood fade into the unknown as grandparents and friends passed away while I was coping with coming-of-age anxiety. By day, I was trying to finish my thesis and escape the clutches of graduate school with my sanity intact.

By night, I wanted to make sense of everything by creating something sincere, unique and tangible. Each track represents a lucid perspective that builds from the last, guiding a quiet meditation towards the unknown and back into waking life. Rinse, float, repeat – cause who knows where you will wake up next?”

Revolving Shores was officially released on June 17th. You can check it out for yourselves by heading over to Spotify and SoundCloud.

To keep up to date with the latest releases from Graffiti Welfare, follow him on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

UK Hip Hop Got Hotter Through Dalts’ Latest Collab, ‘No Time’, featuring Jez, SK1NT and Charla Green

Posted on 21 June 2022
Dalts

Sheffield’s most infamous producer, DJ, events promoter, and label runner, Dalts, has contributed more than most to the UK music scene in the past five years. Now, he’s here with his latest single, No Time, featuring Jez, SK1NT and Charla Green.

The garagey hip-hop track uses old-school grooves, oscillating bass and skippy beats to keep the flow kicking under the clever vocal layering, which merges the originality of every featuring artist. From deadpan rap bars to distorted and transcending vocal samples, No Time is a hypnotic vibe tapestry which reminds you how great and gritty UK hip hop can be.

Check out Dalts on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Renowned indie DJ and producer, Paul Allen Wright, went back to his rock roots with the arrestive rhythms in his EP, Voices

Posted on 17 June 2022

The indie DJ and music producer Paul Allen Wright returned to his rock roots with his riff-driven EP, Voices, featuring the standout single, I’m Walking, which has already racked up over 120k streams on SoundCloud alone. The hypnotically tribal guitar-led rhythms leave little room to wonder why I’m Walking has become a fan favourite.

His aversion to genre specificity gave I’m Walking a similar structural feel to a chilled indie leftfield electronica record. Instead of synths sitting prominently in the mix, Wright opted for acoustic strings to guide the desert-y and sporadically blues-y progressions. With the choice of the Stevie Nicks-ESQUE female vocals, I’m Walking was ethereally complete.

Hear I’m Walking for yourselves on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Astro Spectacular – He Has Risen: Witness the Deep House Resurrection.

Posted on 7 May 2022

Astro Spectacular brought the eccentricity of a renegade to their latest deep house track, He Has Risen, which was penned on Easter eve, and performed with a little help from The Conservative Pygmies.

80s synths, funk-riding grooves, and sporadic bursts of otherworldly influence make He Has Risen a deep house track like no other. The producer and songwriter, also known as Mooney Star, started his Astro Spectacular project as a result of the lockdown restrictions that prevented him from getting together with his band, Warm Leatherette. Going forward, Astro is set to take his cosmic take on deep house on tour across Long Beach, CA and release a string of new singles to follow He Has Risen.

You can witness the resurrection for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Zight – Number One featuring Adam Christopher: Euphoria-Fuelled EDM

Posted on 2 April 2022

Zight’s latest progressive house hit & music video featuring Adam Christopher has already racked up in excess of 155k streams since the premiere on March 24th. The F1 Championship may not seem the most likely inspiration for a vibey summer EDM hit. But the Hong Kong-born, London based producer succeeded in fusing his love for music and F1 in the single, which is just as panoramic and palpably euphoria-driven as the professionally shot video.

Even with the inspiration behind the single, there’s just enough ambiguity in the lyrics to transform Number One into your ultimate summer EDM playlist staple. It’s all but impossible to tire of the effortlessly radiant energy in Number One. Naturally, we can’t wait to hear what comes next.

You can check out the music video for Number One yourselves by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

mild gets colourfully elemental in his latest lo-fi house mix, blue snow

Posted on 23 February 2022

The lo-fi house legend in the making, mild, has delivered yet another absorbing soundscape with his latest vibe-packed release, blue snow. Despite the name and the deep azure textures, there is a warming ambience to the production from the 21-year-old producer who has been making major waves on lo-fi house playlists since making his debut in 2021.

Right from the first hit, you get the sense that mild produces his mixes with the listeners’ vibes and need in mind. He knows exactly how to feed the vibrant energy, even with a slower tempo and his organic yet sophisticated approach to production. We can’t wait to hear the soulful electronic grooves that follow.

blue snow is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

LA’s Yaz heats up our imagination on thrilling new single, ‘Heresy’

Posted on 22 February 2022

Taken off her brand new debut album named ‘Inferno‘, Yaz tells us the story of Lilith and Eve that has been reimagined on the striking new release that will surely get your pulse racing, ‘Heresy‘.

Yazmeen Mirgoli aka Yaz is an incomparably talented Los Angeles, California-based indie electronic artist, singer-songwriter, producer, director, filmmaker, and designer.

”Inferno is an exorcism of societal shame and judgement. It forces us to face our darkest fears by holding up a mirror to the hypocrisy of our society, and liberates us by guiding us through each circle of Hell head-on, and celebrating that which is typically deemed taboo and amoral. I wanted to provide an experience for the audience that immerses them into a world that celebrates the entirety of who they are, and sets them free from the shackles of society.” ~ Yaz

With a bass-thudding entrance that is loaded with intoxicating heat and boundless energy that gives you shivers at times, this is a tremendous effort from a truly captivating artist named Yaz. The illuminating beat slams hard into your intrigued soul – and seems to burn a piece off you – before bringing a tiny fragment back, as we are thrown into an avalanche that never lets up.

”Produced by YAZ’s production company, Yaz Media, the video is YAZ’s directorial debut, and features fashion by world-renowned corsetieres Dark Garden Corsetry, and YAZ’s surrealist avant-garde design label Yaz Mania.” ~ Yaz

‘Heresy‘ from the LA-based multi-talented creative Yaz, is a visually stimulating track from an artist who is pressing the boundaries of what is possible and is only going to reach higher pinnacles as you sense her hunger throughout. On a track that sends you into a mood to test your own fascination, this is a startling effort that is a speaker-rattling effort that your elders warned you about.

Listen to this pulsating new single on Spotify and see more news via IG.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen