MUSIC REVIEWS

In these times of heartache and personal loss we’ve faced over the past year and a half now, we’re all looking for a cathartic release in the form of music, be it something that speaks to the harshness we’ve had to endure, but we’re also looking for something to make …

Strikingly disciplined to the point of sounding a bit frustrated in a couple of memorable moments, the beat behind the music in Jeremy Rice’s “Underneath the Ground” plays a pivotal role in creating the energy through which the mood of the lyrics will be filtered. There’s already a lot of …

“Melissa On Fire” is the new sultry hit from crooner extraordinaire Gary Dean Smith. Jazzy with bluesy licks and raging female vocals to accompany his confident, debonair disposition, Smith sets the scene for a ravishing night and one that the listener is completely intoxicated. The dashing mood, the velvety voice …

All That We See is the eclectic debut album from Philadelphia’s Brian Shapiro Band. Filled with crunchy guitars, tight percussion and some provoking lyrics, these nine songs tell a complete story. Even if you listen to the songs out of order, you are sure to glean a strong sense of …

Hitting their stride inside a couple of seconds flat, Alan Bibey & Grasstowne get right down to business in the title track of their new album, the impeccable Hitchhiking to California, which was released this past January to acclaim from across the bluegrass spectrum. Although built on an enormous groove, this …

With a furious thrust, we’re quickly escorted from darkness into light on the back of a string melody in “Midnight & Lonesome” as strong as the southern wind in fall. As much as the name of this song might want to fool you, there’s no feeling isolated amidst the harmonies …

In their latest release, an album titled Hopeless Romantic, Bobby Dove takes up the task of adapting a popular sound to suit their own style of play with mixed results; the best of which being the record’s title track and first single. We’re immediately hit with a bucolic balladry upon pressing …

Understated, throwback pop has been trending hard in the United States and Canada lately, and in her new single “Love to the Moon,” Raquel Kiaraa puts her own spin on the style with some interesting results to say the least. “Love to the Moon” is undeniably defined by its stinging …

Progressive R&B is finally seeing women dominating on every level of the game, and this is no doubt thanks to a vibrant underground scene producing the likes of ayoka and the unique generation of players she’s representing. In her new single “Elevate,” ayoka works a “Studio”-style beat into the corner …

In the track “All or Nothing” on Go Time!’s latest release the magnetic and manic Eight Ball, there’s a line “I always take it too far, never see it coming, leaving me reaching for all or nothing” and I’d argue more than the albums titular song, this is the best …