The Sandman’s Orchestra is a collaboration between French neice/uncle duo, Léonie Gabriel (vocals) and Pierre Laplace (vocals and multiple instruments). On the latest long-player, Nocturne (March 2013), the two conjure up ghosts and nocturnal events with beautiful musical textures. Don’t be afraid of the dark though, as the songs here are contemplative and introspective and not the sum total of all your bad dreams. Léonie Gabriel, now pushing 18 years old, has a beautiful throaty alto voice which resonates with qualities…
Read MoreEdgy Americana-laced rock-that is an apt description for Bow Thayer & Perfect Trainwreck. Instrumentation can just as easily include an electric banjo or accordion with guitars, bass and drums. The effect is an highly accessible. eclectic sound. Vocally, Bow Thayer and the band come off strong and tight. The latest long-player, Eden (March 2013), is full of rocking edges and mellower moments too. Buffalo Joe is from the 2010 release Bottom Of The Sky. Bow Thayer has a long history…
Read MoreThere’s something unusual and delightful in the sound created by Irish alterna-odd-rockers, Windings. It’s full of twists and turns, key shifts, textural brightening and softening and yet has great fluidity. Here on This Is A Conversation from the band’s October 2012 long-player I Am Not The Crow, you get all of those qualities and more. Former head banging rocker Steve Ryan originally started Windings as a solo project in one-man-band fashion while taking a break from the band Givemeakick back around 2004. Fast…
Read MoreWorldly flavors of rhythm and music flow through the latest long-player Blackbirds Are Dancing Over Me (September 2012-due out world-wide June 2013) from Canadian singer/songwriter Danny Michel. Case in point is the lead-off track, What Colour Are You?. Danny Michel traveled to Belize without a song, guitar or equipment, to create music from the Belize perspective. While there is no mention of how The Garifuna Collective came to record with Mr. Michel, the inclusion of this group certainly fits with making music…
Read MoreUpdate: The video for this track is no more. I’ll be honest, I’m not sure if I like the video for Desert Bird from one of Spring’s Skull alter egos Louise L’Amour, but I love the music. Retro literally oozes from the pores of this song. The website describes the six-song EP, Cowgirl Slop Pop (February 2013), where Desert Bird is from as “loosely influenced by Ennio Morricone’s ‘Once Upon A Time in the West’ soundtrack, 1960′s surf, pop, and girl groups, ‘Gunslinger’ era Bo Diddley, and vocal music” which I can definitely hear. There is little information to be found on the…
Read More