Category: Pop Music

Friday New Releases – April 13th

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Welcome to a pretty slow week.  Only one I am interested in this week and there aren’t a ton of others coming out.  Hopefully next week will bring us more.  However, it might be a good week to catch up on earlier releases as I am sure that is what I will be doing.  My choices are in Blue.  Let me know if there is anything you are interested in as well.

  • 81EGj2+qBCL._AC_UL115_  Breaking Benjamin – Ember – (Hollywood Records):  We thought the band was over in 2009, but it returned in 2015 although it wasn’t the original band, just the singer.  Didn’t matter, it was the singer I always liked so glad to hear some new music from him.  This time the new band was involved in the writing so hopefully will add a new layer to the band.  We will see…or hear I guess.

  • 71SLhyrtHdL._SX522_  Metallica – The $5.98 EP: Garage Days Re-Revisited – (Blackened Recordings):

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Calum Scott – ‘Only Human’ – Album Review

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Calum Scott’s debut release, ‘Only Human’, came out on Friday, March 9th. A day surrounded by albums from some Hard Rock artists such as Judas Priest, Myles Kennedy, Three Days Grace and even Jimi Hendrix, how did this pop artist catch my ear?  Easy, two years ago this former Britain’s Got Talent contestant released a cover of Robyn’s “Dancing on My Own”.  That song made me stop and take notice.  It was absolutely fantastic (more on it later).  I have been anxiously awaiting an album from him ever since.

And now, the long wait is finally over.  Calum Scott is a cross between many artists.  I would say he is a little bit Sam Smith (without the depressing ass songs), a little bit Adam Levine (his vocal stylings only), a little Gavin DeGraw (catchy pop love songs) and a little bit of James Bay (his first record and even a little of his guitar sound).  He is the best of all those people rolled into one.

There are 14 tracks on the CD version  of the album (vinyl only has 11) so I won’t go through all the songs in detail, but I will highlight several of my favorites.  First off, there are two types of songs throughout the album.  You get the love song ballads and the upbeat pop songs.  I have to admit, I am a sucker for a good love song and Calum has no short supply.  The ballads are beautiful showcases of his amazing, soulful vocal abilities.

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Friday New Releases – April 6th

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It is already April and I can’t believe how fast time flies.  We just got back from New York City for a family vacation and what a great time we had.  I love that city!!  Now, what do we have new this week you might ask.  Well, we have a lot of different things, Metal, Rock, Southern Rock, Pop, Christian and so much more.  My choices are highlighted in Blue.  Let me know what you want, if anything.

  • 91P3HWlQIsL._SX522_  The Dead Daisies – Burn It Down – (Spitfire Music):  John Corabi and boys are back with yet another Dead Daisies release.  They are pumping out the music and thankfully so.  Since Corabi came on board, I have really loved these guys.  And coming of Corabi’s recent Live album playing his one Motley Cure album in its entirety, I am ready for some more.

  • 31iUJMAkz3L._AC_US320_QL65_  Thirty Seconds to Mars – The New Album – (Interscope):  Jared Leto and company are finally returning with some new music.  He shares his time between movies and music and although I like his movies, he is one of the few actors that actually has some musical chops and Thirty Seconds to Mars rarely disappoints.  Looking forward to this one as I have loved the first song and here it is…

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Kiss – “I Was Made For Lovin’ You” (The 45 Single)

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Disco era Kiss!  Does it get any better than that??  Well, yes it actually does.  Nonetheless, it was still Kiss and still awesome.  I was out at my favorite little record spot and came across a 7″ single of Kiss and of course I had to have it.  It was the 1979 single off the Dynasty album called “I Was Made For Lovin’ You”.

The single was only the band’s second Gold single and it went on to sell over a 1 million copies so needless to say, it was a hit.  Which proved Gene and Paul correct that during the Disco era, anyone could write a disco song.  Speaking of writing, this was the first time Kiss co-wrote a song with Desmond Child and it wouldn’t be the last.  It was also Desmond’s first hit he ever had.  The song was also written by Paul Stanley and Vini Poncia who played piano on the song and did backing vocals.

The really isn’t much to talk about in regards to the song.  Think disco and you know what the song sounds like.  You can get up and dance to it and sing along to the catchy, pop chorus.  It is simple.  One thing I guess I can talk about is that wikipedia has the 7″ single listed at 4:01, but my version has it at 3:57 which might not seem like a lot, but that is a big difference.  The song is already cut down from the album version which was at 4:30.  Not sure if I have a different version or wikipedia is just wrong.

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Friday New Releases – March 30th

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Is it the end of March already?  There have been so many great releases this month that I am almost wore out.  I said almost!  There are several more releases I need to hear before the month ends and those are highlighted in Blue.  This week there is Hard Rock, Metal, Country, Pop and maybe a little for everyone.  Let me know what you want to get a hold of and listen to constantly.  Have a great weekend.

  • 619gKzSrjGL._SS500.jpg  Red Sun Rising – Thread – (New Razor & Tie):  Red Sun Rising are on their 2nd Studio album (not including 2 independent releases).  The first one was a surprise discovery for me.  It flew under the radar but struck a chord and now I am glad they are back for some more.  They are a hard rock/post-grunge style band that just deliver the goods.  Check them out.

  • A1zhKPaFD6L._SX522_  Rob Zombie – Astro-Creep: 2000 Love Songs of Love, Destruction And Other Synthetic Delusions of the Electric Head – (Universal Music):  Rob Zombie and a live album!  That is really all I need to say.  I don’t always like everything they put out on a studio album, but a live album captures are all the classic Zombie sound and with John 5 and band at his side, you can expect sheer perfection in sound.  This one needs to get turned up as loud as it will go.  I didn’t find a video release yet promoting this album…sorry.

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Friday New Releases – March 23rd

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Happy Friday!  Of course, all Friday’s are happy.  The last day of the work week and new album releases.  What could be better…maybe everyday being a Friday.  There are a handful of albums this week for me and one was on pre-order and should be at my door when I get home from work…yes, it will be a great Friday.  My choices are highlighted in Blue.  Let me know what you are interested in or if I missed anything which happens all the time.  Have a great weekend and enjoy any new music you pick up.

  • 51eohOeVCWL._AC_US436_QL65_  W.E.T. – Earthrage – (Frontiers Records):  Jeff Scott Soto is a busy man between his solo album, Sons of Apollo and now a new W.E.T. album.  And it has been too long since the last one, 5 years I believe since the last studio album and that is way too long.  Jeff’s vocals are what keep me coming back to everything he releases.  With W.E.T., he teams up with Erik Martensson and Robert Sall to form this sensational trio.  The bands this trio is from makes up the name…Work of Art, Eclipse & Talisman…all three great bands in their own right.  If this first song is what we can expect, hold on tight!!  Check them out!

  • 51i8VbzMIkL._SS500  Kip Winger – Solo Box Set Collection – (Frontiers Records):  Kip Winger is such an underrated talent…well at least he used to be.  He is now a Classical Composer (Grammy nominated I think)…pretty cool!  This set is a collection of all his solo works (it isn’t classical music though). We get 5 CDs, the 3 solo albums, an acoustic album (with Winger songs included) and some rare demos and an unreleased track.  Pretty damn fine set of music and worth picking up.  This is what I have on pre-order and should keep me busy for awhile!!  Here is the collections trailer…

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New York City Record Stores?

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I have a question for everyone out there that shops for vinyl…I am going to be in New York City in a couple weeks so what are a couple good record stores for me to visit?  There has to be some special place you like to go.

I am looking for old vinyl, bootlegs, anything that is Rock from the 70’s, 80’s and even 90’s.  Maybe even some Punk would be good.  I would even like some old 45’s and some used CDs would also be nice.  I am looking for a cool place to get lost in for an hour or so, I think that is all the time my family will allow me to browse around.

I can look stuff up and see what is out there, but what I want are places people have actually been to or heard about.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated, just leave me a comment.  Thanks in advance.

My Sunday Song – “Whistle for the Choir” by The Fratellis

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My Sunday Song #83 is “Whistle for the Choir” by The Fratellis.  The song is off their debut album ‘Costello Music’ which peaked at #2 on the UK charts and gave us a few hits including “Chelsea Dagger”.  However, I really liked this song the best.  “Whistle for the Choir” was their third single off the albums and it reached #9 giving them their 2nd Top 10 hit in the UK.  I don’t see where they did very well in the States which is a shame.

The Fratellis are a Scottish trio with a very retro feel and garage rock sound.  This song for me is more of the retro feel as it is a slow ballad using only an acoustic, bass and drum (well it’s a trio – what else are they going to use).  The song has a Beatlesque quality to it and even a little Ray Davies vibe.  I think for those reasons, the song struck a chord with me.  The simple sound and hypnotic beat pulled me in and put me in a trance where I swayed back and forth while listening.  It was encapsulating.  There is a little guitar solo, but also a nice whistle solo as well.

The song tells the story of a guy, who after a night out on the town, meets a girl that is way out of his league.  This doesn’t stop him.  He is going to try and get her anyway.  The nice thing is it doesn’t tell you if he gets the girl or not.

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Friday New Releases – March 16th

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Another Friday and another week of some great releases.  There are some re-issues and so old bands back with new singers and some newer bands as well.  Hopefully there is something for you.  The two that really peak my interests are highlighted in Blue as usual.  Leave me a comment on what interests you this week…if anything. Also, let me know if I am missing anything as that is usually the case.  Happy Friday!!

  • 81-7puQHUFL._SX522_  Stone Temple Pilots – Stone Temple Pilots – (Play Pen Music):  The boys in STP are back and with a new lead singer, Jeff Gutt.  The three songs I have heard are great and I am looking forward to the rest.  Jeff sounds a little like the late, great Scott Weilan, but he also has his own sound and style.  The old STP sound is there as well so hopefully the have their groove back and we will see some great things from them.  Give it a try…if for no other reason than my brother-in-law was involved with recording the album.  That makes it worth it right there alone!!

  • 51gscNxcR2L._AC_US436_QL65_.jpg  Dorothy – 28 Days in the Valley – (Roc Nation Records):  A new band on the scene is Dorothy.  The band really delivers some great, heavy, old school blues rock & roll.  The lead singer, Dorothy Martin, is a powerhouse and force to be reckoned with.  Her searing vocals exploded on the scene with “Raise a Little Hell” and can’t wait to hear what she has to offer this time around.

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Rick Springfield – ‘The Snake King’ – Album Review

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Rick Springfield has been releasing music since the early 70’s.  You have the teeny bopper music from the 70’s to the pop hits he had in the 80’s including “Jessie’s Girl” which made him very famous. And now at 68, he brings his 20th studio album called “The Snake King”.

He has done many styles over the years and this time he ventures into the Blues genre.  The album is a mixture of Blues Rock and straight up Blues.  Now, this isn’t Blues like you would think with Curtis Mayfield or Robert Johnson, heck it isn’t even Blues like Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Jonny Lang.  This is Rick Springfield Blues.  He can try different genres, but he will always have that Rick Springfield sound and feel to his albums.  You can’t be around for 5 decades in music and not have your own style or vibe.

The Blues can be very depressing and sad at times and you might think, how is Rick going to honestly convey those emotions.  Well, let me tell you he hits the nail on the head with the blues.  Rick has suffered immensely with depression and he has had many issues in his life.  He digs deep and captures the stories and feelings from those dark times.

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