Sunday, January 30, 2005

Esthero

Esthero

I've loved Esthero since I first heard her singing "Half A World Away" about 7 years ago. Her debut cd was entitled "Breath From Another" and it's spent a lot of time in my player since then. She's an amazingly talented artist who has done work with lots of different people like The Black Eyed Peas (she was their go-to female vocalist before Fergie came on full-time) and DJ Krush. She's also done a lot of soundtrack work that's always gorgeous. She has a song on the "Go" soundtrack that's absolutely beautiful called "Song For Holly". Check out her official site and a very detailed fansite. So, I've been waiting since 1998 for her to come out with a new full-length album and she's finally almost there. She's released an EP entitled "We R In Need Of A Musical ReVoLuTIoN". The full-length is supposed to be out in the next month or so. Buy "Breath From Another" or the new EP.

Saturday, January 29, 2005

Josh Kelley

Josh Kelley

Josh Kelley reminds me of John Mayer (apparently he reminds everyone of Mr. Mayer because all the reviewers say so as well), but in a good way. He's from Mississippi and is definitely a talented singer/songwriter who can craft a melodic pop song with the best of them. His album came out in 2003 and I'm actually posting about him today because they were playing "For the Ride Home" in its entirety when I was shopping at Anthropologie today. It's good stuff. Check out his website for some songs and the video for "Amazing". Buy the cd.

Friday, January 28, 2005

Owsley

Owsley

Owsley is a great pop band that is actually just one person named William Owsley. He's from Nashville and his debut came out in '99. His second record didn't come out until February of last year. When you listen to his records, it's not surprising that he was once in a band with Ben Folds. If you like old-fashioned melodic rock, check out his website and click on the new album link. Buy the self-titled debut or "The Hard Way".

Thursday, January 27, 2005

Jem

Jem

I've been listening to Jem for about a year and I have to say that she's my favorite kind of artist. Singer/songwriter with a great voice who mixes genres in a way that makes her truly unique. She's from Wales and has been played a lot on KCRW. Check out her sound page to see what I mean. Buy the cd.

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

Razorlight

Razorlight

I know everyone's talking about Razorlight, but I'm going to as well. They're just THAT good. Check out the audio and video for their first single, "Golden Touch" at their U.S. website (just go to the media page). The song is incredibly catchy and oh so British. If you go to their U.K. website, there's lots more songs and videos from the album "Up All Night". I'd describe them as pop with an edge. Buy the cd.

Tuesday, January 25, 2005

Mindy Smith

Mindy Smith

Updated: I'm not a big fan of country, but if the music is good, chances are I'm gonna like it. Mindy Smith is one of those artists. She's a singer/songwriter from Tennessee who has a truly angelic voice. She was originally picked for a Dolly Parton tribute album to cover the classic "Jolene". Dolly liked her version so much that when Mindy recorded the video for her debut cd, Dolly decided to be a part of it. You can listen to some tracks and see her video for "Come to Jesus" at her music page. Buy the cd.

Monday, January 24, 2005

Two Loons for Tea

Two Loons for Tea

Updated: I've met the two members of Two Loons for Tea (Jonathan Kochmer and Sarah Scott) and, not only are they talented, they're really nice. They're from Seattle and their last album "Looking for Landmarks" didn't leave my cd player for several months. Their new record "Circle" is coming out soon. They've been touring the West coast and I'm sure will be touring more extensively once the cd comes out. You can check out some sounds at their website. I've heard them compared to Splashdown, and I can see it, but their sound isn't as electronic as Splashdown's. Buy "Looking for Landmarks" or "Two Loons for Tea".

Sunday, January 23, 2005

Federico Aubele

Federico Aubele

I'm a sucker for Latin music. Usually, it's Brazilian (there's something about Portuguese that I love), but Federico Aubele is from Argentina, so his songs are sung in Spanish. He's not the singer, though. He plays guitar and has a few female vocalists take care of singing duties. He's definitely a cross-over artist: a hard to define mix of electronica and Latin music with who-knows-what-else thrown in. Check out the videos for "Postales" and "Ante Tus Ojos" from his album "Gran Hotel Buenos Aires". There are song clips at his site as well. Buy the cd.

Saturday, January 22, 2005

Ray LaMontagne

Ray LaMontagne - Trouble

They've been playing Ray LaMontagne on the WB shows for the past couple of months and he was on Conan O'Brien last week. Check out the performance from the show. I hope he becomes really popular, but I don't see it happening. He's kind of sweet and depressing like Nick Drake, so it's not likely he'll be appreciated by the masses (especially in his lifetime). Check him out though, because I think there's something there. I've been listening to his record "Trouble" for a couple of months now. Here are some tracks from his website. NPR's got a recording of the single "Trouble" on their site. Buy the cd.

Thursday, January 20, 2005

Alana Davis

Alana Davis

Alana Davis has been around for a while, but I feel she's okay to post about because she just started her own label and needs all the help she can get. She's an incredibly talented singer/songwriter that I've seen live. Her sound is a mix of pop and r&b/soul. Her new label is called Tigress Records and the new album called "Surrender Dorothy" will be out on February 22nd. You can go to her web site to check out some tunes and other stuff. Buy the cd.

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

George

George

George is from Australia and they're difficult to find around here, but you should check them out anyway. They're a bit like Stars, the band I posted about yesterday, in that they have a male and female singer. They tend to separate the singing a bit more with siblings Katie and Tyrone Noonan trading lead vocals on each song. Katie has a beautiful voice that's got an edge and Tyrone reminds me a little bit of Jeff Buckley. If you don't know who that is, you must immediately buy Grace. To check out some tracks from George, go to their sound page. If you like them enough to buy, definitely go for "Polyserena", because it's great. I think it's better than their newer one, "Unity". Buy "Polyserena" or "Unity" from their website (it's not available in the U.S.).

Monday, January 17, 2005

Stars

Stars - Heart

Stars are a great band from New York who currently call Montreal home. You can't get their new record here, but it's been out in Canada since last October. It's great and it's called "Set Yourself on Fire". I fell in love with Amy Millan's voice when I first heard "Elevator Love Letter", the first single off of their last album, "Heart". Amy and Torquil Campbell share vocal duties and are incredibly successful at harmonizing together. If you'd like to buy "Heart", you can get it anywhere online, but I recommend going here, because you can buy "Heart" or "Set Yourself on Fire". Their home page has some songs on it and you can also go here for some samples. If you're a fan of dreamy, infectious pop songs, Stars are the band for you. Buy "Set Yourself on Fire" or "Heart".

Friday, January 14, 2005

Universal Hall Pass

Universal Hall Pass - Mercury

Universal Hall Pass came out of the ashes of one of my favorite bands, Splashdown. Splashdown was an amazing band that got completely screwed out of the fame and fortune that they deserved by none other than Alanis Morissette's crony Glen Ballard. What a complete waste the major labels have become these days for not releasing amazing records and not letting the artist release them either. It's happened to Aimee Mann, Patty Griffin, and countless others, but that's another story for another time. Splashdown's amazing unreleased record was called "Blueshift" and featured the beautiful vocals of Melissa Kaplan. You can hear some songs on this page. If you like what you hear, let me know and I can hook you up.

After the band realized the record was never going to be released, they fell apart, and Melissa went on to form Universal Hall Pass. The band is basically just her, but she has other musicians' help in playing some of the instruments. You can check out the site, or listen to some tracks. The album is quite good and I highly recommend it and any Splashdown stuff you can get your hands on. Buy the cd.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

The Honorary Title

The Honorary Title

The Honorary Title is from New York and to me, they seem like a classic indie rock band. Their songs have great hooks and their first single "Bridge and Tunnel" is quite catchy. You can hear some tracks here or check out the video for "Bridge and Tunnel" here. The album came out in June of last year and they've been playing the video on Fuse lately. Great stuff. Buy the cd.

Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Butterfly Boucher

Butterfly Boucher

Butterfly Boucher's from Australia and her album is called "Flutterby", of course (butterfly, flutterby, get it?). She's not exactly new - her album came out in October of '03 - but I don't think most people have heard of her. The record's quite great and doesn't particularly remind me of anyone, but it's definitely in the vein of female singer-songwriters like Tori Amos and Fiona Apple. She's an original though. Check out some songs and a couple of videos on her website. There's more songs and a short film here. It seems she toured with Sarah McLachlan last year and came to Dallas in July, but I was so disappointed with Sarah's new record (and the one before that) that I didn't even consider going (plus, it was at American Airlines Center, which is huge). I'm sure she'll be back and come to a smaller venue next time. Buy the cd.

Monday, January 10, 2005

Citizens Here and Abroad

Citizens Here and Abroad

Citizens Here and Abroad is a band from San Francisco that has a beautiful female vocalist named Adrienne Robillard. She is quite soft-spoken and the rest of the band backs her with an emo sound as well. Check out their website where you can check out a couple MP3s and look at their video for "Appearances". The video is pretty cool with some interesting light trail effects. If you want to check out some samples of all the songs go to Allmusic. Buy the cd.

Saturday, January 08, 2005

Eisley

Eisley

Eisley is a band from Tyler, Texas, that is releasing its debut cd on February 8th. The band is comprised of three sisters, a brother, and their best friend. They've actually been making music together for quite a long time and have a couple of EPs out. The EPs are available on iTunes and pretty much every other cd-selling website out there. Check out some MP3s here. The sisters have beautiful melodic voices and their sound has been compared to Tanya Donelly of Throwing Muses, The Breeders and Belly. Launch the player. Buy the cd.

Friday, January 07, 2005

Kasabian

Kasabian

Okay, here's another great band you probably haven't heard of. They're called Kasabian and they're kind of electronic pop meets British rock a la Lo-Fidelity All Stars. They will be at SXSW this year, so if you're anywhere near Austin on March 18th, you should check them out. They're coming to one of my favorite clubs, the Gypsy Tea Room, with The Music on March 17th, so it looks like I'll be able to check them out. You can listen to all of the tracks off of their self-titled album here. Buy the cd.

Thursday, January 06, 2005

Astaire

Well, I'm back. Of course, no one remembers me, so I don't know why I'm even mentioning it. I used to post using this url about movies, music, tv and my life, but I've decided to focus on music this time out. I really want to share the music that I think is fabulous with the world. If you're a fan of female singer/songwriters, straight-up rock, r&b/soul, or music that mixes genres and seems indefinable, then this is the place to come for something you might not have heard before.

Astaire

My first band is called Astaire and they were actually featured on allmusic.com (one of my favorite music search engines). They're two siblings of Brazilian descent that currently reside in NYC. Astaire is poppy with a hint of a Brazilian groove sound and I think they're fabulous. You can actually listen to their full EP "Don't Whisper Lies" using the Quicktime player on their site. Just click here, go to the Tracks link and launch the player. My favorite songs have to be "L-L-Love" and "Any Other Day", but they're all good. Also, check out their live performance of "L-L-Love" which is here (I actually think this live version is better than the album version). I'll be back tomorrow to post about another great band and links to their music. Buy the cd.

UPDATE: All of those links are outdated because Astaire has changed its name to Blondfire. Check out their myspace page or their official site.