MUSIC REVIEWS

Tundra Music Collective aren’t playing out old formulas and watered-down concepts based on their idols’ greatest hits in the explosive album Rawk On. There are no big props, filler, or synthetic harmonies to adorn simplistic lyrics of love and loss upon. In tracks like the record-starting title cut, the blustery “Modified” …

An earnest beat engages a melody at the start of “Ancient Cosmic Truth,” the title track of Louis Siciliano’s all-new experimental EP, and though the rhythm of the instrumentation is pendulous, there comes a quiet urgency in the distant vocal element that pushes anyone within earshot to the very edge …

The faint noise of a helicopter’s fading blades is broken apart by the decadence of a piano, its keys echoing into the background and extending a warmth that was absent only a few moments prior. There’s a light hum from the bassline starting to enter the frame beside them, but …

Indie pop tends to be more emotional than straight-up pop music is, but this genre provides a platform for contemporary balladry that is virtually unmatched in western music today. Players like The High Plains Drifters are giving audiences quite the revolution in melodic songwriting in 2023, and despite a plethora …

The art of being a rock band in a modern music industry generally means conforming to an idea that the masses have of what you should be; as rock slowly grows away from being one of the undeniably biggest genres in the world, weaning in favor of hip-hop, pop, and …

It’s been quite the journey for Kimberlye Gold, starting with the release of her debut album back in 2004. She’s navigated through what would eventually become three unique eras in the history of pop music to come out on the other side of things sounding a lot more focused than …

Michigan native Elysia Marie has long since relocated to Chicago pursuing musical success, but she’s a citizen of the world. There’s nothing regional about her music despite Elysia Marie’s deep and highly visible involvement in the Windy City’s musical scene. Her latest single “Strong and Beautiful” is just one color …

Central Illinois’ Frames calls their music “power pop” and their new single “Peach Pit” bears that out. It’s a compelling mix of stylized guitar, a strong backbeat, a steady yet understated rhythm section attack, and personal lyrics. The latter quality of the new single is one of its chief selling …

To say that it’s not very often that an indie single enjoys the buzz that Sarah Diamond & The Soul Miners “Doin Whatcha Doin” is receiving today might be the understatement of the year, but that isn’t stopping country music buffs from singing the burgeoning songwriter’s praises this year.. Influenced …

Lisa Marie Claire has a poet’s soul. The singer/songwriter takes her cues from the tradition established by such artistic luminaries as Joni Mitchell, but it misses the point to stop there. She does what any talented artist, musical or otherwise, sets out to do – use their influences as a …