Mt. Doubt has released their new single titled ‘Headless’, from their new album ‘Doubtlands’. A beautiful collage of soundscapes and vocal harmonies, ‘Headless’ is a solid track that veers in wild directions while standing still. By that, I mean that the track has a wide range of lush sounds while staying true to its form. Somber and succulent in one take, ‘Headless’ gives that certain something found in only the best tracks that are hard to pin into a genre.
Comprised of a glistening steady guitar-driven chord progression, the song comes to an artful climax with a gritty saxophone and concludes with the listener wanting more.
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LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/MtDoubt
https://www.bandcamp.com/mtdoubt
https://twitter.com/mtdoubt
https://soundcloud.com/mtdoubt
https://www.instagram.com/mt.doubt
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Para Lia Releases ‘Hawk Hill’ EP on Jammerzine (The Week in #Indie Segment)
Para Lia has released their new EP titled ‘Hawk Hill’ on June 14th. Each track, simply put, is a well thought out yet spontaneous mix of grit and pop in all the right places with a beautiful combination of guitars and harmonies by thinking musicians for thoughtful listeners. This is alt-rock for the alt-mind.
About Para Lia
Melodic alternative/indie rock duo Para Lia have announced their new single ‘Hawk Hill’, which will release on June 14. A special Bandcamp edition also features two additional tracks: ‘Over It (single version)’ and ‘On My Way Home’.“Hawk Hill is about my love/hate relationship with the small insignificant town of Falkenberg, where I spent my childhood. In German, ‘Falke’ means hawk and ‘Berg’ means mountain. But in fact Falkenberg has no hawks or mountains. The words ‘Hawk Hill Lane’ popped into my head one day while working on a guitar riff – it was a ‘Penny Lane’ moment, reminding me of the street I walked down every day to go to school. The vocals reflect today’s view on a town with the same fate as many small towns in rural East Germany,“ says René Methner.
“After big political changes in early 90’s Germany, many jobs were lost, youth moved out, schools and cultural centers closed, the cash flow stopped and small towns like Falkenberg fell dormant – kind of like a dead end street. You still can smell the fragrance of the past. Both Cindy and I grew up in Falkenberg and even lived on the same street, but we never met back then. We met years later and understood that we’ve walked the same streets and shared the same roots – a great good omen for walking hand in hand into the future.”
This new single release follows hot on the trail of their debut album ‘Soap Bubble Dreams’, a collection of 10 tracks that released in March 2019.
Para Lia is an indie/ alternative rock duo based in Cottbus (near Berlin), influenced by the rhythms and tones of ‘90s alt-rock and the synth density of ‘80s darkwave.. Their own sound blends melodic guitars, along with distinctive lead guitar and resonant synths.
Comprised of René Methner (all instruments and vocals) and Cindy Methner (backing vocals), their band name was born of their love for Greece, with para lia, (παραλία) meaning “coast” or “beach” in Greek – a name full of mystery but optimism, which both has history and evokes a balance of the masculine and feminine.
René Methner was raised in the eastern part of a divided Germany. Learning acoustic guitar from a young age, he finally hooked up with like-minded musicians upon moving to Cottbus for university, forming his first band and moving on to various other bands in the 90’ and 00’s – as guitarist, songwriter, and frontman.
While Methner began composing earlier, Para Lia first presented their music publicly in April 2018. “In 2017 I felt something inside musically and the inner need to let it out. So I started to write songs again… She makes me feel complete, we are soul mates. So it also feels in our music,” explains Methner. Around that time, Cindy came into his life and the couple transformed into a marriage and the musical tandem we know today as Para Lia.
“Para Lia is the most intimate music project I ever made. It is just everything I was breathing in with regards to music influences in the past few decades and my personal musical development over the years… what I ultimately breathe out is Para Lia. For me, a song is beautiful if it radiates something special. I love good melodies and a loud and crunchy wall of sound, combined with gentle harmonies,“ says René Methner.
Para Lia’s musical influences include bands like Sebadoh, The Notwist, Dinosaur Jr., Motorpsycho, Pixies, Interpol, and Neil Young, not to mention the garage rock sound of the mid-1960s from bands like The Who, Creation, and The Eyes.
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/paraliamusic
https://paralia.bandcamp.com
https://twitter.com/para_lia_band
https://soundcloud.com/para-lia
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNABsfHKaCDk28fOj91Dc1g/videos
https://open.spotify.com/artist/1cLZhbb6pWX67RV0eaWyXY
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/para-lia/1434289348 -
Tommy Down Drops ‘Superficial’ (The Week in #Indie Segment)
With a smooth groove and sometimes staccato-like rhythm within the lyrics, Tommy Down delivers a memorable track in the form of ‘Superficial’, which is steeped in melody and simply memorable in the aftermath. And now matter and antimatter collide musically with the help of Decca Records artist Rhys Lewis.
This dynamic duo chisel out ‘Superficial’ in a way that is anything but. This song is deep. Musically, creatively, maybe even spiritually on a guttural level. The chorus has such a lyrical delivery of the song title that it is actually still in my head. That is the mark of genius. When a song stays with you and becomes a part of you. That is more than superficial.
About ‘Superficial’
Produced by rising Decca Records star Rhys Lewis, ‘Superficial’ sounds like the brainchild of Nile Rodgers and Sade scoring a Boogie Nights sequel. Managing to tactfully balance its glossy velvet-toned nostalgic influences with a raw and stripped-back production approach, ‘Superficial’ sees Tommy Down analyzing the psychological perils of a generation addicted to selfies and social media. It’s all captured in the contradiction at the heart of its narrative: guy judges a girl for taking a selfie with him, yet harbors a desire to see himself tagged in it the next day.Ultimately ‘Superficial’ navigates the complex, maddening, and circular logic of technological overthink by asking us if we’re even perhaps a little attracted to the idea of our own narcissism. Maybe the fact that we go into these things ambivalently makes us more woke anyhow? It’s three minutes of clever, concise and thought-provoking pop that puts Down both sonically and lyrically on a standout path. With Tommy starring as himself and his own conscience, alongside live bandmate and Cold Feet actress Sylvie Briggs, and Raffy Ellison, the accompanying video, (directed by Toby Harris), is a colorful, slick and tongue-in-cheek dramatization of the lyrics.
About Tommy Down
Tommy Down is the sharp-suited and incisive lyricist and frontman to Harker Moon. He started the project in 2015 with schoolmates Hal Briggs, Ben Phillips, Olly Jay, and Joe Caplin. The band peddles an uproarious blend of rock, soca, funk, and roots with a trademark relish for old-school feel-good vibes. Tommy has been writing music and recording since he was fourteen, and since leaving university a year and a half ago, has been dedicating himself to it fully. In that time, he’s already netted a few accolades and picked up a wealth of practical experience – winning an award for ‘Best Original Composition’ at the UK Open Mic Competition, for instance. He also started performing as the male vocalist for Bristol University Jazz Orchestra in 2015 and now gigs in venues across London including the Camden Assembly.Tommy’s broad knowledge of musical styles and emphasis on innovative stylistic fusions make him one of the most interesting emerging British artists. >From London to New York he has also been forging some eminent collaborations this year, including Jeff Silverman, Charlie Perry (who helped produce Jorja Smith’s Lost and Found), and John Shave & Jason Pebworth from the Grammy-nominated “Invisible Men” – the hitmakers behind songs by Britney Spears and Rita Ora. Both as a bandleader and as a solo artist Tommy unequivocally shines, but it’s in the latter category that we’re seeing his unique artistry in its full resplendent glory.
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/Tommy-Down-138191366266833
https://soundcloud.com/nii-amar-children
https://www.instagram.com/tommydownmusic -
Traveller – All This Time
The summer of 2012 saw Gerry Sheridan and Simon Usher begin their songwriting partnership, which progressed to become Traveller in January 2016 when they were joined by Martin Yves on guitar and Brian Socha on bass.
By spring 2016 the band had written and recorded their debut EP at Chamber Studios in Edinburgh. Taking just four days to complete, ‘All This Time’ enabled Traveller to connect to an ever-growing fanbase who are drawn to their Anthemic Rock wall of sound.
Gerry started out playing violin and piano focusing more on Classical music before teaching himself guitar and concentrating his efforts on more contemporary music; his songwriting is influenced by bands such as The Stereophonics, The Beatles, Crowded House and Travis.
Simon started playing the piano and taught himself both the piano and drums from an early age by listening to artists such as Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Elton John, Sting, Pink Floyd, Crowded House, as well as Coldplay and U2. Drummers such as Steve Gadd provided the initial inspiration for him to focus on his writing and playing.
Martin remembers seeing his dad play the harmonica that sparked the inspiration for him to dedicate himself to music and a lifelong appreciation for all styles of music though he’s particularly passionate about the late sixties to early seventies Rock, especially the sonic experimentation and sound of Pink Floyd.
Brian’s influences are very diverse from Rock and Pop to Jazz, Funk and Soul, from Frank Zappa to Pink Floyd, Brian’s bass playing provides a solid foundation for the band’s music.
“There’s a sonic harmony that is often created by the band during rehearsals and it’s often from this that sparks the imagination to write” explains Simon. “We write about life’s journey, from the people we meet along the way to all the various experiences that we have, both good or bad…”
LINKS:
http://travellerband.com
https://facebook.com/travelleruk