MUSIC REVIEWS

Tom Tikka and Star Prairie Project’s Nolen Chew Jr. pair up for a songwriting gem entitled “California Smile”, and it’s the perfect song for sweeping away any lingering winter chill. Tikka is one of the music world’s best-kept open secrets as a songwriter, and recent releases such as Rainbows and Dead …

The Ontario underground has always produced some of the most provocative artists known around the world, and this February it’s offering us another bold duo of musicians with a talent for making impeccably experimental music in instrumentalists Marbyllia. Marbyllia is a collaborative project from Bill Gilliam and Margaret Maria dedicated …

Different Moon’s “The Underdog” is the latest single from North Carolina-based Jim Piper’s personal project now nearly ten years down the line from its first release. Piper may be working on the margins of the independent music scene, but it isn’t because he lacks talent. Different Moon’s blend of pop, …

Johnny Wheels definitely knows his blues and his skills are a harmonica player are second to none. I feel like I can make this statement after a virtual lifetime of listening to the blues; Wheels’ harp skills remind me of the great Paul Butterfield’s proficiency on the instrument. FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/SWAMPDB/ …

Alice the G00n’s rise to the forefront of indie musical talents continues with the single “CYA” and the song’s music video. The latter’s recent debut should propel her trajectory several hundred extra miles as it is nothing less than a startling visual realization of the talents at her fingertips. She’s …

In songs like Sweetwater’s title cut and “Smile (Guitar Rock Mix),” listeners get an up close and personal look at the persistent crooning of AV Super Sunshine that is unlike any other he has shared with us thus far in his career, and I say that knowing full-well just how …

I enjoyed Chris Chitsey’s “Life Is Hard, Whiskey Is Easy” on my first pass and further plays only strengthened my esteem for the Texas singer’s new single. Chitsey has released an unadulterated modern country classic free from many of the trappings marring the bulk of today’s offerings from Nashville. There …

The new EP Dark Side from Indian-origin singer and musician Anjali Ray carries on the tradition of challenging, rewarding music sustaining her professional journey from the outset. She brings a wide breadth of musical knowledge to everything she touches without ever reducing her art to the level of an academic exercise. …

No Signal’s second album Distorted Reality serves notice that this Boulder, Colorado headquartered trio has their eyes on big game. They could have written and recorded the customary sophomore effort featuring ten to twelve solid, well-written standalone songs and walked away smiling. Riley Schmelzer and his bandmates, however, went bigger. Instead, the sixteen-song magnum …

Name Sayers’ Joyboys in the Grindhouse has broad utility. Its varied uses as a synth-pop, cumbia, psych-rock, and hip-hop collection give the eleven-track release a staying power that few other modern releases share. Devin James Fry and his three bandmates cast a hip and intelligent eye toward posterity without ever succumbing to …