Category: Artists (Page 110 of 262)

Steal This Song: Carlon, “Cantaloupe”

September 2, 2008 / David Medsker

Holy “Jesus Was a Crossmaker,” Batman.

New Jersey: It’s not just for bar bands anymore. This quartet does the best Hollies impression we’ve heard in ages, good enough to blow away anything by Band of Horses, to whom the band is favorably compared in their press release. Now, we like that Band of Horses album as much as the next guy, but there isn’t anything on Cease to Begin that comes close to matching the beauty of “Cantaloupe.” Is it just us, or does everyone else hear Christopher Walken’s voice when they see the word ‘cantaloupe’? Blame it on too many viewings of “True Romance.”

The band’s full-length debut, Johari Window, comes out September 30. We can’t wait to hear the rest of it.

Carlon – Cantaloupe

Americana, Artists, CD QuickTakes, Downloads, External Music, Songs

Richard Frankz: The Traveler

August 26, 2008 / Captain Capm

Richard Frankz explodes out of your stereo with his good-time honky tonk/blues-country cookin’! It’s true, people. Frankz is a solid songwriter and The Traveler is a fine CD packed with journeyman type songs. “Just Being Me” swings with steady assurance with tight production and rock solid playing by Frankz’ band. “More Each Day” has a smooth kind of ’70s professionalism to it, while the same rings true for “Just Spending Time (With You).” Then there’s the pop side of Frankz, which is best experienced on a track like “I Could Never Fall” that sounds like something Chicago might have done when Terry Kath was still alive. Good stuff, indeed. “Southern Summer Nights” recalls Little River Band as well as Glen Campbell. And on “One Step Forward” Richard Frankz shows off his abilities at melding country and bluegrass with much panache. The Traveler is certainly a rock-solid album that fans of older country stars and just plain good songwriting and performing will like. It’s certainly nice to hear this style of music at this quality being made today. (Richard Frankz Music)

Richard Frankz’ MySpace page.

Artists, Blues, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Country, Pop

Davina Robinson: The Blazing Heart

August 22, 2008 / Captain Capm

Let’s get one thing straight: “Never Good Enugh” might just go down as the best rock tune of 2008. That said, whether or not the world at large catapults Davina Robinson to stardom is anyone’s guess. On this four-track EP, Robinson is billed as “The Rock n’ Soul Chick,” and that’s a pretty good description of her talents. On “Conversations in My Head” she sounds like the female equivalent of both Lenny Kravitz and Terrence Trent D’Arby. The big electric guitars in the mix are definitely what sets Robinson’s music apart from that of others in the “Soul” category. Sometimes, things get a little cliched, as on “Making Love to Your Girlfriend,” whose ‘thinking of another person while getting it on’ sentiments have been done too many times to count before. But overall, this a really solid disc that fans of rockin’ tunes and good singing should easily enjoy. (Plum Wine)

Davina Robinson MySpace page

Artists, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Steal This Song: Jem, “On Top of the World”

August 17, 2008 / David Medsker

Ooooh, her music is so dreamy. And she’s not hard on the eyes, either.

The press release for Jem’s upcoming album Down to Earth threatens that it will be a disturbingly eclectic affair, using choirs, banjos, Latin beats and even Cut Chemist doing his thing. Her blog-approved song “On Top of the World,” however, is all about the blissed-out pop. Not that there is anything wrong with that. St. Etienne’s best-of receives near-daily play at Chez Medsker, so this sounds just fine to me. I will reserve judgment on the “funky banjo” track until I hear it, though.

Jem – On Top of the World

Artists, Downloads, External Music, Pop, Songs, Soul

Nick Motil: Everything’s Alright

August 8, 2008 / Captain Capm

This six-song EP by singer/songwriter Nick Motil is sure to please fans of artists like James Taylor. In fact, Motil sounds enough like Taylor on “Butterflies” here that you’d almost have to double-check whom you were hearing if you didn’t know beforehand. Motil’s music is tasteful, acoustic-based stuff that will easily tug at the tender heartstrings of music fans who yearn for something that reminds them of yesteryear. While it’s nice to hear Motil do his thing, it’d be nice to hear him stretch out a bit more. After all, not every tune needs to run at a slow canter. But that’s what you get here, a handful of slower-paced tunes that are well produced, well sung, and are completely contemporary. It’s hard not to imagine females everywhere swooning for the likes of “Cliche” and “Try Harder.” But will the guys like it? It’s hard to say. James Taylor had legions of fans, so it’s probably a safe bet that Nick Motil can capture the ears of anyone out there as well. But again, it would have been nice to hear him do something a bit more adventurous – even just one song, even – instead of staying in his comfort zone for the length of this disc. (self-released)

Nick Motil MySpace page

Artists, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop