Speaking of which, I spent a good deal of time listening to Reverbradio and Grooveshark this week. One of the fun things about diving into a sea of mostly DIY music is "discovering" an unsigned artist who could be the next big thing. At a very least, it's easy to find more than a few folks who are going to have exciting careers which I will enjoy following.
One is San Francisco area singer/songwriter Aoede (Lisa Sniderman, who also has a bitchin' blog). With a vocal style similar to Feist or Fiona Apple, her songs are more lush and ornate than either. She also writes some seriously catchy hooks. "I Lost You Win" builds from a simple melodic piano riff into into an almost Bell & Sebastion like baroque pop arrangement with a chorus that is just stuck in my head. In "Fairy Tale Romance" and "Crave Me" Aoede shows a playful side that is warmer and more intimate than B&S as well. It kills me that I'll be in San Fransisco the next two days and she has no live dates. Maybe next time.
One of the most intriguing artists I've stumbled across is the UK's Steve Thompson, who has apparently been kicking around the hallowed streets of Liverpool for the last twenty years, both solo and in various bands. You can hear some pub rock roots as solid as Brinsley Schwarz, but Thompson's sound is decidedly more sophisticated. His song "It's O.K" sports a catchphrase chorus over a stomping rhythm that sounds a bit like Wilco meets Oasis, as does "Do What You Like" (featuring a subtle, but infectious synth riff you don't hear from most guitar driven bands). Thompson recently released Cartoon Life, a six song EP and I look forward to hearing more.
Emmeline |
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