PICK OF THE WEEK

“Contravertical,” the opening track in Kazyak’s new record Odyssey, begins in a haze of distorted spoken word and synthesized clouds that churn into a solid harmony by the time we hit the forty-second mark in the track. The music drones forward with a confident ease, unraveling one note at a time, …

After four long years, Nicholas Altobelli is finally back in the spotlight with some new material in the form of Vertigo, a 35-minute studio album packed with more haunting harmonies than most records twice its length are. Altobelli introduces us to fiery riffage in “Runaway Trains,” pastoral poeticisms in “Everybody …

In his first solo album, You Know, the artist known simply as Jaco (aka Birmingham heavyweight Jake Waitzman) combines elements of punk, garage rock and contemporary pop together in an amplified hybridity that can shake the floorboards beneath your feet as often as it can impart a deeply emotional narrative. …

Atop a piano’s sexy chime and a bassline’s weighty sway, Ronnue and Figuz deliver a party-starting powerhouse in the song “Why,” one of the twelve tracks that you’ll find in the former’s new full-length studio album, Introduction 2 Retro-Funk. Released this summer to a warm reception from both fans and critics, Introduction …

Hughie Mac has covered some of the most iconic songs in the history of pop music, and for those familiar with his latest album, the poignant Hughie Mac Sings Some Great Songs, Pt.3, his new star single “Let’s Get Away” is certainly one his very best performances so far. “Let’s Get …

Percussive palm-muting marks the disturbingly barren opening bars of “Carpet,” the new single from Wilhelm’s debut full-length album Lace, with a menacing texture that will only grow stronger as we delve deeper into the annals of this surreal acoustic ballad. Wilhelm’s lyrics are difficult to hear at first, as they’re sung …

URL: http://www.shanesmithmusic.com/ Menacing heavy rock riffs are met with forbidding harmonies of an acoustic nature in Hail Mary, the latest release from the one and only Shane Smith & the Saints. Singer Shane Smith tackles drama, dreams and demons of a personal variety in songs like “The End,” “Oklahoma City,” …

Saddle of Southern Darkness, aka SOSD, is the brainchild of brothers Trent and Chase Williams, and they bring metal and country together like that of no other on the single “Killbilly” which is graphically depicted in the promo video, but the song itself is quite a twang-fest crossed with a …

“Take a walk / Around the block / Down the hill / And through the park” sings Liz Kennedy in the opening verses of her latest single, the patient and chilling “Hike Up Your Socks,” with a graceful groove shadowing her every utterance. Kennedy’s voice is dripping with a vulnerability …

URL: https://www.richardlynchband.com/ The latest album from Richard Lynch, titled Think I’ll Carry It On, starts off in red, white and blue-painted grandiosity with “We’re American Proud,” a countrified American anthem that sets the tone for the eleven erudite tracks that will follow it. The hustle and bustle of this opening …