Kate is joined in the studio by Grammy Award-winning producer Stewart Lerman (Boardwalk Empire, Vinyl, Patti Smith, Elvis Costello), Steve Holley (Wings, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Kiki Dee, Joe Cocker, Ian Hunter) on drums, Steuart Smith (The Eagles, Rodney Crowell, Michelle Branch, Don Henley) on piano, guitar and various instruments, David Mansfield (Bob Dylan, Bruce Hornsby and the Range) and Paul Socolow (Herbie Mann), among other musicians. “I listened to Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris on the record player while imagining how I wanted to do this song,” Kate said. “These women and their sounds and styles are timeless, and I wanted to create a classic and lasting rendition of my one of my favorite Christmas songs.”
LINKS:
http://www.kategrom.com
http://www.facebook.com/kategrommusic
https://twitter.com/kategrommusic
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Vix 20 – Tron Takes the Train
Vix20 is Gary Mills and CJ, two music industry veterans who grew so disillusioned with the state of every element of the music industry that they both walked away vowing not to return…fast forward a few years, now rejuvenated, though no less prickly about the Modern Age, they return, to quote the band themselves, “we’re hard rockers turned to the dark side of pop”. As evidenced in their single, Digital Age, their passion for power-pop (don’t say ‘punk-pop’ to them, it suggests too much jumping around) and dexterity with words combines to become insanely catchy 3-minute thunderbolts. Completing the Vix line up is long time conspirators Rich Norris and Kill, with a busy year ahead the next single is planned for April and the band will appear at the International pop overthrow festival in May at the legendary Liverpool venue The Cavern.
LINKS:
https://www.vix20.com
https://www.instagram.com/vixtwenty
https://www.facebook.com/vixtwentymusic
https://twitter.com/Vixtwenty
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuPABFfRP8fWPKkp6mA9Kkw
https://open.spotify.com/artist/01fEKKUsAN1pp9jguVrTQG?si=0cMw1OI6R6mM2iO_42M6sw -
Atmosphere – Graffiti
The last time we checked in with Slug and Ant was on 2016’s Fishing Blues, the latest chapter in a string of albums showcasing the pair’s evolution from tortured hedonists into settled-down dads making kicked-back rap records. It would have been nice to carry on thinking they were finally at well-earned peace after two decades of extensively documented trials and tribulations. But just because your corner of the globe is peaceful, that doesn’t mean that the rest of the world stops turning.
It’s a different place than it was two years ago, and the seventh Atmosphere album, Mi Vida Local, reflects the ways in which the world and Atmosphere’s place in it–have changed. The idyllic domesticity of the past few records has morphed into anxiety over keeping loved ones safe during turbulent times. Instead of bragging about backstage misadventures it’s about grappling with mortality. The easygoing collaboration between Ant and Slug has started to feel more like the life-or-death intimacy of two men trapped together on a lifeboat.
At times it’s a heavy album (“I might be the last generation of grandparents,” goes a key line from “Virgo”), but it’s far from grim. There are jokes being cracked, joints getting smoked, a little trash talking and beefing here and there–after all, it’s still a rap record.
And Atmosphere’s never sounded better.
As the name implies, Mi Vida Local is intensely focused on the place it was created–the southside of Minne apo lis–where Slug and Ant work tirelessly in their “beautiful basements”, refining their sound without interruption. (Although a handful of friends from the Minneapolis hip-hop community showed up to contribute.) A year of one-on-one collaboration resulting in an album that matches complex subject matter with equally deep beats–ones that show a clear lineage back to the psychedelic funk landmarks from an earlier era where America was going through a post-utopian hangover, and prove that there won’t ever be a time where boom-bap beats don’t sound perfectly of the moment.
Mi Vida Local might be the best album Atmosphere’s ever made. It’s definitely the one they needed to make right now, and one listener’s needs to hear just as urgently. If it’s sometimes an album about how the fight to find happiness never really ends–even after you get the house and the kids and the artistic freedom to make dad-rap records–it’s also about discovering that there’s happiness to be found just in fighting.
Photo by Dan Monick.
LINKS:
https://rse.lnk.to/MiVidaLocal
https://rhymesayers.com/artists/atmosphere
https://www.facebook.com/Atmosphere
https://twitter.com/atmosphere
https://www.instagram.com/atmosphere -
Gina Cutillo – Brand New Start
Gina Cutillo’s 2016 single “Keep On” debuted at #34 on Billboard Top 40 Mainstream chart and was the most added track to radio. The track reached #41 on Top 40 MediaBase Activator Charts, #12 on Top 40 NMW charts and was the #1 Indie record.
With song placements on Oprah, Nickelodeon, Mean Girls 2, Barbara Walters, MLB, Food Network, Degrassi, E! Network, VH1 and more, Gina Cutillo’s music is heard worldwide. Her recent single, “The Inside”, was co-written with Pete Nappi of Arthouse Entertainment (Meghan Trainor, Ke$ha, Shinedown, Kara DioGuardi ). “The Inside” become a viral hit with social media fans and major industry execs.
Gina has also toured with Katy Perry, Paramore, Gym Class Heroes and more on the Warped Tour. Her stage presence and catchy songs won over many crowds and other major artists on the tour. She’s performed on stage with Prince and has played SXSW a few times including her last performance as the opener for Neon Trees. Gina has also performed at CMJ, Launch, Dewey and other major festivals.
Between her critically-acclaimed third album “The Lover” and her singles “The Inside”, “Fly (Feel Love Tonight)”, “In Another” and “In Time” that will be featured on her upcoming album, Gina released two EPs “Monolovers” and “Love, Faith, Soul”. Both were put in the forefront of the APM library with a review stating: “New Yorker Gina Cutillo delivers Pop/Rock/Dance at its best with a fresh batch of incredibly catchy memorable songs.”
Gina Cutillo’s mission has always been a worldwide success by reaching fans through her music. She has been quoted:
“The best feeling in the world is when someone tells you they had a better day because of your song. It’s true what all the success comes down to … my fans.”
SOURCE: Official Bio
LINKS:
http://ginacutillo.org
https://www.facebook.com/ginacutillo
https://twitter.com/ginacutillo