January 2013 – BILLCSMUSIC BLOG

BILLCS Top 30 #397 – January 28, 2013

You can view the full Top 30 using the link under ***BILL’S PERSONAL CHART*** to the right, or you can click right here. You can hear all of the songs on the chart or watch their videos by clicking on the pics on the chart page. Any free downloads that are identified are sanctioned by the performer. There’s always a tiny place at the bottom of the blog post with tags and the statement “Leave A Comment” – please feel free to do so

The top of this edition’s chart is Matthew Koma territory. The punk-flavoured rocker “1998” (listen to the song up above) replaces his own “Parachute” at #1. For some neat chart geekery ;), this is the first time a performer has replaced himself at the top since Darren Hayes’ “How To Build A Time Machine” replaced his “Me Myself And (I)” at #1 at the end of 2007, though Simon Curtis’ “Laser Guns Up” got to #1 right after he was featured prominently in Ro Danishei’s “Wicked Baby” in Fall 2011.
River Tiber’s “The City” is Matthew Koma’s rival for #1 in two weeks. It’s a beautiful and unique song from the album Synapses, available as free download. If that’s not enough, River Tiber’s “What Are You Afraid Of” advances to #7, and the rockier opening song from the album, “Reverie”, premieres at #25 (listen below). River Tiber is once again playing Canadian Music Week in March in Toronto.
Chris Wallace’s “Time Bomb (Walk Away)” rises to #4, while my #2 song of 2012 “Remember When (Push Rewind)” is still gaining in airplay after four months on the Mediabase chart. This past week, Chris performed on the Jimmy Kimmel late night show on ABC, where he performed “Remember When” and my #15 song “Keep Me Crazy” (video clip below). He also now has over 305,000 followers on Twitter 😮

FrankMusik’s “Fast As You Can” (#8, video below) becomes the latest of the singer’s long line of Top 10 songs on this chart over the past two years. At this point, it looks like you will find the song only as a single on iTunes. Frank has retitled his EP Far From Over, and has revamped the song lineup (also excluding the gorgeous “Hurt You Again” 😦 ) and has set February 14 as the release date.
Passion Pit has sold out its Toronto show with Matt & Kim (missed my opportunity for tickets). The lead single from Gossamer, “Take A Walk”, has long lasting legs and rises to #9 this week. Meanwhile, Matt & Kim continue to climb with “Now” at #14.
The fastest riser on the chart at #10 belongs to Zedd’s emotional dance treatise “Clarity”, featuring perfectly matched vocals by Foxes (video below).

“If I Lose Myself” is One Republic’s best single in a few years, and it climbs to #12, while the uplifting “Let Me Love You” by Ne-Yo also moves up to #13. Ne-Yo’s also featured on Conor Maynard’s most enjoyable “Turn Around” at #21.
Some recent debuts have kicked into high gear: “Reboot The Mission” by The Wallflowers featuring The Clash’s Mick Jones as at #16, while Davis Redfield’s dancefloor stunner “A World Apart” bolts to #17. “Miss Unknown” to me is the better of two recent Eric Saade singles and it rises to #18. Videos for all are below.

Besides River Tiber’s “Reverie”, there are two other debuts. One is “Learn To Love Again” by UK quartet Lawson (video below), which I wrote about recently. The band is in my city and I’ll be checking out their show on February 2. But the highest of these is, not surprisingly, Justin Timberlake & Jay-Z’s “Suit & Tie” at #23. Given that the song is everywhere, I’m looking to see if it lasts or burns out. I’m still quite enjoying its breezy, retro-Motown flare (official lyric video below) – which promotes dressing up in style too. Nothing wrong with that! It’s JT’s first lead billing to chart since “What Comes Around…Goes Around” in mid-2007. He has shared billing since on “Until The End Of Time” with Beyonce, “4 Minutes” with Madonna & Timbaland, and “Hallelujah” with Matt Morris and Charlie Sexton. Of course JT has also been featured on charted songs by Timbaland, T.I., and Ciara. He’s had four #1’s on my chart – “Rock Your Body”, “SexyBack”, “FutureSex/LoveSound” and “LoveStoned/I Think She Knows”).

Rocking On: New Order, David Usher, Magneta Lane, and Final State

New Order, Lost Sirens

I had the pleasure of attending New Order’s October concert in Toronto, my fourth time seeing the now-quintet but the first time since 1993. New Order created some of my most favourite music of the 80s and early 90s – “Blue Monday”, “The Perfect Kiss”, “Temptation”, “Fine Time” among others. While the group no longer had Peter Hook’s one-of-a-kind bass playing in the mix, the diversity of their 30-year repertoire plus the bang-0n addition of bassist Tom Chapman and the return of keyboardist Gillian Gilbert to the fold all took precedence (multi-instrumentalist Phil Cunningham had replaced Gillian for the Get Ready album). It was probably the most entertaining and tight New Order show I’ve seen, with Bernard Sumner a particular joy on stage, the most communicative and appreciative the band has been. They announced at the show that Lost Sirens would be dropping in January, this set consisting of songs that didn’t make the final cut for the 2005 swan song with Hook, Waiting For The Sirens’ Call. There is so much great music out there in storage that none of us will ever hear, so I’m pleased that New Order chose to raid their vaults.

Lost Sirens is more than simply impressive as the group’s 9th album, even though it won’t see the light of the same kind of hype that a brand new album would be given by its record company. While the songs may not have fit into what they wanted in ’05, 8 years later they are highly contemporary while remaining definitively New Order. It doesn’t get much better than “Shake It Up”, which would normally be a New Order song that would take off in dance clubs. “Hellbent” has some driven guitar work and effects, while other songs like “California Grass” and “I’ve Got A Feeling” change up the mood as you might expect in any New Order album. Bernard sounds as fine here as he did in concert. So I hope Lost Sirens isn’t the last we hear from New Order. Peter Hook is also on tour playing songs from Joy Division’s records. Perhaps Bernard and Peter will bury their differences for at least one more album together, who knows? You can stream Lost Sirens in its entirety at Rolling Stone’s website right here.

David Usher, “Operator”/”Répondez-moi”

It’s hard to believe that I haven’t written about David Usher in these pages over the last three years. Having seen him about a half dozen times in concert and heard all of his albums, with many favourites I play regularly (“Black Black Heart”, “Blinded”, “Kill The Lights”, “The Music”, and more) I am having some difficulty connecting with his 8th solo album Songs From The Last Days On Earth. It’s essentially a mellow side of David that reminds me most of his debut solo album Little Songs, recorded in 1998 when he was on a break from his band Moist.

I guess I prefer a mix of edgier rock and soft songs from David, but I’m glad he’s released “Operator” as a single from Last Days On Earth. It has that familiar theme of wanting to call and talk to someone, but not getting through, but with a difference – it’s the end of the world. It’s a song that features one of David’s best vocals on the album and hopefully will help reignite my interest in it. Residing in Montreal and being bilingual, he’s been taking advantage of recording songs in French (most notably “Je repars” – the French version of “I’m Coming Down” – with Quebec chanteuse Marie-Mai two years ago), so “Operator” is also available as “Répondez-moi”. Listen to both below. If David is on tour, you can’t go wrong by checking out his show and his 14 year song catalogue.

Magneta Lane, Witchrock

Savvy Toronto indie scenesters will know all-girl trio Magneta Lane from their three previous releases, which were all recorded when they were teens between 2004 and 2009. When you thought that too much – well too much everything – had done in the band, they have resurfaced with the four song EP Witchrock. Since I hadn’t heard their early material, I’m treating Witchrock anew. Led by singer Lexi Valentine and featuring bassist French and drummer Nadia King, Witchrock is a bona fide throwback to post-punk women of the early 80s like Debbie Harry, Chrissie Hynde, and Joan Jett. The band also cites singers like Courtney Love and Patti Smith as inspiration, but with a three-piece band it’s hard not to think of The Runaways, but with a modern twist. Teaming up with producers Rick Jackett and James Black of Finger Eleven, Witchrock delivers a sparse but highly melodic sound that showcase’s Lexi’s forthright vocals. The best songs within are the scathing “Burn” and the bass-led rave-up “Lucky”. Witchrock is due for release on February 12 and the trio will be performing at Toronto’s The Rivoli on February 14. Watch the teaser trailer below.

Final State featuring Laurence Pagé, “Make Up Your Mind”

Every now and then I come across some bilingual songs from Quebec performers and I wonder why they can’t cross over to the rest of Canada. The latest is “Make Up Your Mind” by Final State, the Quebec City quartet led by singer Rick Pagano. Add female singer Laurence Pagé (noted for a viral cover of Flo Rida’s “Whistle”) and you have this insanely catchy slice of sincere and danceable pop/rock reminiscent of groups like The Midway State that deserves a wider audience. Watch the video below and see why!

Winter Popervescence #1: Gentlemen Hall, Andreas Moe, Adaku, Chloe Charles, Darin, Bastille, and Max Schneider

Two more of my 13 Performers To Watch for ’13 also have new music for us already – Gentlemen Hall and Andreas Moe – making it five (the others being River Tiber, Lawson and Baiyu).

Gentlemen Hall, “Sail Into The Sun”

The sharp melody of “Sail Into The Sun” will come at you from all directions, which is probably why Samsung has chosen to feature it in their 30 second ad for their smart camera. So you’ll be hearing the song for the better part of the year, and thus it’s perfect for pop radio. Aside from that melodic razzle dazzle, the song is as tight as anything you might expect from the Boston sextet, whose When We All Disappear EP continues to be a free download from their website. “Sail” and other songs from Gentlemen Hall’s upcoming album should put them all over the international map this year. “Sail” is also a free download from the band’s Soundcloud page below.

Andreas Moe, “This Year”

Swedish singer/songwriter Andreas Moe continues with the upbeat, melodic, and acoustic-based sound he began with on last year’s Collecting Sunlight EP with “This Year”, also the title of a new EP just released in Scandinavia, with the rest of the world to follow in March. Andreas has the fantastic ability to create music that anyone can relate to, and make it sound unlike anything out there, with sparkling multi-octave vocals, standing out as a rich effort in a crowded playing field. Watch “This Year” and listen to three other snippets from songs from the EP below.

Adaku, “Or You Can”

I first wrote about this song by Nigerian-born singer/songwriter Adaku last July, when its unique sounding take on retro R&B styles (and a catchy, singalong chorus) caught my ears. It’s taken sometime, but a video for the song surfaced last week, and I must say it’s one of the most enjoyable, best-directed videos I’ve seen in quite sometime. Rather than focus on a story based on the lyrics, the video has a 50s/60s look with an easy-going but engaging storyline that simmers along, making you unsure about what will happen until the last few frames. Both the song and video are such winners, watch below and spread the word! Adaku is currently working on a full album release. Fans of Jill Scott, Corinne Bailey Rae, and Norah Jones will particularly enjoy this.

Chloe Charles, “Business”

Canadian singer Chloe Charles has already established a solid following in eastern Europe, particularly Germany. Her classical jazz-influenced pop sound will appeal to those of you who enjoy Rufus Wainwright, Regina Spektor, and Kate Bush in “Business”, from her upcoming album Break The Balance (already on release in eastern Europe). Chloe is also a classically trained guitarist who has already been written up in major press worldwide. Watch for her to make a splash domestically in March (she’ll also be performing during Canadian Music Week). A bit of interesting trivia: She’s a step-sister of Julian Lennon, her mother being Cynthia Lennon.

Darin, “Playing with Fire”

There was a bit of a gap between recent single “Nobody Knows” and “Playing With Fire”, but the latter has now been released in Scandinavia in anticipation of the singer’s new album Exit, due on January 30. Darin Zanyar has been poised for international success since 2008’s Flashback album, but it hasn’t materialized after oodles of hits in Scandinavia and Germany, including “Breathing Your Love” (with Kat DeLuna) and “Lovekiller”. He’s shifted his style from being Europe’s equivalent to Jesse McCartney to a more dance-oriented pop sound this time around. Thematically, “Playing With Fire” is nothing new but Darin’s commanding vocal puts it over the top. I’ll be interested in hearing more from Exit to see if this will be the record to break him outside of Europe.

Bastille, “Pompeii” (Monsieur Adi remix)

Perhaps I’ve missed the initial buzz about this new UK quartet that has apparently signed with Virgin/EMI, but what better way to find out than through an exceptional 90’s sounding house-y Monsieur Adi remix? “Pompeii” scores big with Dan Smith’s Chris Martin-ish vocal and a verse (“How am I going to be an optimist about this?”) as they parallel being in the crumbling title city to the collapse of a relationship. Original version and remix are below for you to hear. Bastille’s album Bad Blood is due in March and they are playing SXSW.

Max Schneider, “Quicksand” and “So Sick” (cover)

Youngins will know New York-born Max as one of the featured cast of Nickelodeon’s now-cancelled “How To Rock” TV show, others will know him from being featured in a prominent Dolce & Gabbana campaign with Madonna a few years back (he also looks a bit like Nick Jonas). Well young Max has a fine, big, soulful voice that stands alone without special effects thank you, and he’s also a talented songwriter, composing songs for his former show, “Shake It Up”, and the TV movie “RAGS”. An album is due this year, and if its songs will be of the same calibre of “Quicksand” and his cover of Ne-Yo’s “So Sick” (with Kurt Schneider and Sam Tsui), then you can look for more about Max Schneider in this space.

BILLCS Top 30 #396 – January 14, 2013

There continues to be a significant one! two! three! punch leading my personal chart. Two of those come in the form of soon-to-be-powerhouse Matthew Koma, whose “Parachute” leads the way with “1998” at #3 and a contender for #1 in the coming weeks. Slotted in-between is “Yeah Yeah” by Willy Moon, which seems to be picking up more fans as the weeks go on. “Play The Girl” by Tao Hypah – who has another new song coming for you soon, glides to #4 (video below, if you haven’t yet seen it), while “Time Bomb (Walk Away)”, my choice for single #2 from Chris Wallace’s Push Rewind album, moves up to #5. Chris seems to be popping up everywhere in the USA; an L.A. show is on deck.

You can view the full chart using the link under ***BILL’S PERSONAL CHART*** to the right, or you can click right here. You can hear all of the songs on the chart or watch their videos by clicking on the pics on the chart page. Any free downloads that are identified are sanctioned by the performer. There’s always a tiny place at the bottom of the blog post with tags and the statement “Leave A Comment” – please feel free to do so

Making news in these pages again but this time on the chart is Toronto band River Tiber (pic at the top of this page), whose second album Synapses is available for free download from their website. In it you will find the song now at #10, “What Are You Afraid Of”, but becoming a huge deal with a debut at #6 is far and away one of the most unique songs of 2013, “The City”. I can’t provide you with a link to hear it online, so you’ll just have to take my word for it 😉 but perhaps Tommy Paxton-Beesley will offer something up in the near future 😀 Nevertheless, it’s a quiet but heartfelt song about moving on, set to a nifty electronic backdrop. River Tiber played an excellent set at The Drake Hotel on January 7 to an unexpected packed room. It’s amazing how far River Tiber has come since I saw them during Canadian Music Week in a 3 a.m. show.

Bim’s gorgeous and emotional “Burn” rises to #9 this week, while “O.V.E.R. U.” by Daniel Bedingfield becomes the second top tenner from Secret Fear-Stop The Traffik at #8. A video is in the works but below is a new official lyrics video that was introduced recently for the song.

I’m currently wading through the complexities that comprise Passion Pit’s sophomore album Gossamer. It has the unusual mix of highly personalized lyrics by leader Michael Angelakos along with an eclectic, fanciful blend of rock and electronica – nothing out there quite sounds like Passion Pit. And when you hear “Take A Walk” (below) it commands attention and heads start to bob. The song advances to #12, and after catching a repeat of Passion Pit’s songs on Saturday Night Live, I’m even more looking forward to seeing them in concert in February. Also playing on that bill in Toronto will be Matt & Kim, whose “Now” rises to #16.

The lower part of the chart is brimming with entries from the last few charts. Ne-Yo’s “Let Me Love You” is up to #17, with more Chris Wallace in the form of album track “Keep Me Crazy” at #18. The fastest riser is the unanticipated electronica-heavy “If I Lose Myself” by One Republic at #19. It looks like more than a smattering of influence of Swedish House Mafia has rubbed off on Ryan Tedder and band – you can kind of hear the melody of “Save (The World Tonight)” inside of “If I Lose Myself”. “Youth In Trouble” from The Presets’ latest album Pacifica lands at #20 (listen to the epic Green Velvet remix below – you can download it with your email addy for free right here), while “Reboot The Mission” by The Wallflowers jumps to #22.

Besides River Tiber’s “The City”, three other songs debut on the chart. Zedd & Foxes team up for “Clarity” at #21, soon to be one of my most played songs of the year, which I wrote about just recently. I also wrote about the dance explosion that is “A World Apart” by European producer/DJ Davis Redfield, featuring a fantastic yet hitherto unknown female voice, and it arrives at #27. At #29, somewhat belatedly but definitely a grower, is “Turn Around” by Conor Maynard featuring Ne-Yo. Conor already has chart experience in these pages with last Spring’s “Can’t Say No”, and this third single from his Contrast album definitely makes ears perk up when you find out how good the voices of Conor and Ne-Yo sound together (despite the weak-ish video below). This young English buck has the vocal chops, and his next album should really tell the tale.

Justin Timberlake featuring Jay-Z “Suit & Tie”

This early morning blog post is brought to you by the new single from Justin Timberlake, “Suit & Tie”, which was finally released today after a lot of online teasing last week. Well, let’s face it, JT is using the newer medium that was just on the rise at the time of his 2006 album FutureSexLoveSounds, when the music fan world was wrapped up with MySpace (which coincidentally he is instrumental in reviving).

“Suit & Tie” is definitely recorded by a guy in love. It’s a breezy, slight dash of blue-eyed soul, highly reminiscent of early 70s songs by Marvin Gaye or Smokey Robinson. I don’t think Jay-Z’s rap adds anything to the record personally. This is really all about JT’s voice, and less this time about the innovation that scored with “SexyBack” in ’06 (both that song and the album were my favourites of its year). So let’s see how it competes with the rest that’s out there!

Kudos to my fellow online music buff Kurt Trowbridge, who guessed both the name of the single and album (The 20/20 Experience) days before release. Well done!

Weekend Roundup: Zedd, Lawson, Martha Wash, George Nozuka, BAKER, Tyler Shaw, and Brian Fuente

Zedd featuring Foxes, “Clarity”

With “Spectrum” as the Billboard #1 Dance Club Play Song of 2012, Zedd wisely follows it with an equally strong song, the title track of his album Clarity. Featuring Foxes on vocals the song ruminates over what people long for if they don’t have it: Someone who will bring perspective to them and their relationship. It’s accompanied by a soaring melody that undoubtedly is filling dance floors across North America (and even the world) as the song rapidly moves up the Dance Club Play chart. Booom!

Lawson, “Learn To Love Again”

Digging four songs deep now into the (soon to be released in North America) Chapman Square album, the talented lads in Lawson perhaps have their strongest single to date. It’s more large-and-in-charge than their other songs, supported by an expensive-looking video featuring some fancy dancing that may detract from the band’s performance. Nonetheless after all of their touring, I expect their February 2 show in Toronto to go over big with any pop music lovers who like guys who can play so well and write great songs.

Martha Wash, “It’s My Time”

It’s fan-tastic to know for a disco/dance music buff like me that Martha Wash has released her first album in 20 years called Something Good, though she’s really never been away from the dance music scene at all. Best known for her classic work with Two Tons O’ Fun (you probably first heard her on Sylvester’s magical “Dance (Disco Heat)”), The Weather Girls, Black Box, and C+C Music Factory with her instantly recognizably powerful voice, Martha has always had an identity with dance music lovers even if she wasn’t seen in the videos. “It’s My Time” is an uplifting, magnetic song to which so many listeners can relate whether it’s remixed and on the dance floor or not. Let’s hope she’s gonna be touring – and maybe she’ll be able to perform some of those megahits along with her new songs, having had 6 solo Billboard Dance Club Play #1’s (most recently in 2007) and 7 others on which she was a featured vocalist. 13 #1’s!! Take that!!

George Nozuka, “Don’t Go”

Let’s say welcome back to New York-born Canadian singer George Nozuka, who under his first name had some significant success in Canada with “Talk To Me”, “Last Time” and “Lie To Me” from his debut album Believe back in 2006/07. He has a smooth-as-silk vocal that pulls emotion from each word. “Don’t Go” continues in that style from his sophomore album Beautiful, and the video features some excellent dance moves from George as well. He comes from an amazingly talented family of brothers (including fave of mine Justin) but has a style all to himself. Hopefully I’ll get to dig deeper into his new album over the next while.

BAKER, “If U Love Me”

L.A. singer BAKER definitely has a strong set of followers, who keep visiting the post where I introduced you to him and his song “Convince Me” back last May. It looks like his first album will drop soon, and it’s being preceded by a winning, summery slice of pop called “If U Love Me”. If you pine for California beaches, you’ll see most of the video for the song is set there. Not sure about why he’s wearing the big boots at the beach in some scenes, nor why the big blue boom box accompanies him most of the time, but the video does prove to be a memorable showcase for BAKER because of his soaring voice. But if you see a guy on an L.A. beach with a blue boom box, well…

TYLER SHAW, “Kiss Goodnight”

The second Much Music Coke Covers contest winner is Vancouver’s Tyler Shaw, whose down-to-earth personality and crisp vocals made him an obvious contender in the contest. As I witnessed this past summer (in a local concert that also featured previous winner Danyka Nadeau), Tyler has the easy-going stage presence, voice, and choice of songs (such as an acoustic version of “Rolling In The Deep”) to command attention. This continues with his first release “Kiss Goodnight”, not by any means an earth shaking in-your-face original, but it’s the perfect song to showcase everything that I’ve described. Tyler Shaw definitely has the potential to gravitate beyond his domestic success.

BRIAN FUENTE, “Sidelined”

It’s not just the finalists that I hear and watch for when I check out TV’s “The Voice”, because winning the whole shebang is only one part of the show. More so in seasons two and three have there been terrific performers who haven’t made it to even the semi-finals for varying reasons. Mississippi-born Nashville-based 29 year old Brian Fuente is one of those performers. To me, the songs that were chosen did not showcase the extent of his vocal prowess nor of course did they showcase what a great guitar player he is. You can hear lots of that U2-Coldplay-inspired playing on his song “Sidelined”. The simple-themed video below helps put Brian’s talent front and centre while telling an interesting story. Brian has recently released independently a five song EP called 1983, on which he played almost every instrument. I think it’s time for his coach Blake Shelton to pick up the phone… Look for more releases soon from Brian and his new band The Shadows.

January Goodie Bag featuring David Bowie, Ed Drewett, Hurts, Stefan Galea, Parralox, St. Lucia, and Davis Redfield

Yes, it’s a goodie bag, because you know when you reach inside one, you will find something that you reeeaallly like 🙂

David Bowie, “Where Are We Now”

It’s now an Internet event when a classic rock star releases new material after 10 years, and as you recall David Bowie was one of the first celebs to embrace the Internet wholeheartedly. On his 66th birthday, David has bestowed us with “Where Are We Now”, a sullen pop song accompanied by an unsurprisingly stylish but static video. It will be interesting to hear David’s voice on other songs on his upcoming album The Next Day due in March. Here it crackles in the only way that age can provide. It has the potential for sounding like a reconfigured David Bowie, while in the same breath making it hard to determine if his dulcet tones of songs like “China Girl” or “Wild Is The Wind” are in the past. If the lyrics pass you by, then the great thing about a David Bowie song is that the melody does stick. It will be hard to keep an objective mind looking back on some of my favourite songs by him like “Fame”, “Golden Years”, “Young Americans”, “Ashes To Ashes”, “Cat People (Putting Out Fire)”, and “Time Will Crawl”. But “Where Are We Now” provides the impetus to do just that.

Ed Drewett, “Good Morning” (Monsieur Adi remix) and “Drunk Dial”

Sometimes it does take a new record deal to get back in the public eye, even if you’re not out of the public ear. For 24 year old UK singer/songwriter Ed Drewett has already had a few slices of fame come his way, first as vocalist on Professor Green’s Top 5 UK hit “I Need You Tonight” 3 years ago, but more recently as a songwriter for The Wanted (including “Glad You Came”) and Olly Murs. The BlogVerse has been touting Ed’s praises from the release of his solo single “Champagne Lemonade” back in 2010. With a new deal with Polydor/Universal in hand, Ed has recently brought us the glimmering “Good Morning” (free from his website), which in turn was given an outstanding eye-popping remix from the creatively reliable Monsieur Adi. Then, we’ve heard a somewhat more produced Ed in “Drunk Dial”, which to me is a supurb song that doesn’t need all of the maddening acoutrements and is the most fun on the subject of drunk calling since Ro Danishei’s “Drunk.Txt”. These are both fine introductions to an album that’s due later this year.

Hurts, “Miracle”

UK duo Hurts return with a huge sound that is razor sharp and one that might make devoted fans wonder where they’re headed. Not surprisingly, the first comments I read about “Miracle” was that it sounded way too much like “Princess Of China” by Coldplay and Rihanna. Well, yes to start… but this song lives its own life quite nicely in all around compelling way that takes you deeper, this coming from someone who appreciated their songs from 2010’s Happiness which alas did not resonate with me. The expressive Bono-ish vocals take first fiddle, even with production that desperately wants to go boom. “Miracle” is a solid release from Hurts that should put Theo and Adam even more on the international map.

Stefan Galea, “Disco Lemonade”

Maltese teen Stefan Galea could be to 2013 what The Netherlands’ Jeronimo was in 2012 for me. Stefan has a unique and highly recognizable voice that could help “Disco Lemonade” find its way onto international dance floors. Despite a middle break that doesn’t really work, Stefan is the star of the show here and I’m sure there will be more coming like this from him later in the year. After all, who needs plain old lemonade when it can be disco-flavoured 🙂 You can get this one on iTunes.

Parralox, “Silent Morning”

If Australian duo Parralox (who I wrote about not long ago, featuring their song “Sharper Than A Knife” as some Autumn Popervescence) have anything to do with it, the evolution and resurgence of Miami freestyle dance music will take place in 2013. What better way to start with their Christmas present to us, a cover of Noel’s seminal 80’s smash “Silent Morning”. This version has a slighter but brighter sound that doesn’t make you forget about the original but instead is clearly a tribute to it. Download it for free at the link below.

St. Lucia, “September”

I might be a little late to the table for this crackerjack slice of dance music, but “September” glides along like a fancy sports car on a hot summer night on the French riviera. It’s a terrific companion to music by the likes of The Presets, Russ Chimes, or FrankMusik, atmospheric without being too big for its britches. Led by South Africa-born, New York-based Jean-Philip Grobler, you can find an upcoming show by St. Lucia on February 11 in Santa Ana, California on a double bill with none other than JMSN.

Davis Redfield, “A World Apart”

Sometimes we have to make choices (like the not-so-subtle lion and lamb imagery in the video), but if you can dance to the song that captures that theme well, then you’ll be all the better for it. Producer/remixer/songwriter Davis Redfield has created an energetic, slamming electronic house track with “A World Apart” that is further enhanced by a stunning female vocal (and who is this mystery vocalist, I do not know). “A World Apart” will surely muscle its way onto international dance floors.

First Out Of The Gate From My 13 For ’13: New Releases from River Tiber and Baiyu

No sooner than the clock struck midnight on New Year’s and two of my 13 Performers to Watch for ’13 are out of the gate with new releases!

River Tiber, Synapses

I’ve been waiting for River Tiber’s sophomore album to drop once I found out it was coming this past summer. Once again, singer/producer/musical whiz Tommy Paxton-Beesley has made it available for free download as he has done with his other releases. While it’s easily recognizable as River Tiber with its unique blend of pop/rock and clear influences from jazz and classical like on the debut From Now On, this time Synapses explores additions of much more electronic experimentation as well as tribal rhythms that sound like they could be African or South American. Radiohead meets Led Zeppelin meets Peter Gabriel meets Jeff Buckley meets Philip Glass meets M83 meets BT in more dreamy landscapes that are clearly soundtracks to something visual that we can’t yet see.

We’ve already been introduced to “What Are You Afraid Of” in advance of the album, a song that takes a little time to brew but is certainly a grower. The other standout songs within are “Reverie”, with vocal bursts that Robert Plant would appreciate; “The Ancients”, with a repetitive guitar refrain that sticks like glue underneath the other elements in the song; “The Star Falls”, whose snappy electronic rhythm ticks away under a soaring vocal backdrop; and “Prophets” which draws from as much early 70’s progressive rock as it might from songs in Buckley’s Grace album. My new favourite might be “The City”, with an almost too-slight, sometimes gradually disembodied, but compelling and haunting vocal set to a slow steady beat. As forlorn and isolated as the music may sound, the lyrics seem to be about resolution and moving on to something better.

Synapses doesn’t hesitate to mess with sounds, incorporating dialogue and other samples as a part of its inherent musicality. Sometimes the notes sound deliberately off-key or too sharp or too flat, but they don’t make the music any less melodic. It takes a lot of talent to pull this off successfully.

Tommy and River Tiber have created an album that will endure throughout 2013 and beyond. Synapses begs for mini-movies; Tommy has already created and directed the videos you’ll find on River Tiber’s You Tube page, so there will be more on the way. Tell your friends about River Tiber and Synapses. River Tiber plays an album release party on Thursday January 3 at The Drake Hotel in Toronto.

Download Synapses right here.

Baiyu “Again”

One of the first songs you would have found online for free after midnight on New Year’s Day was “Again” by New York delight Baiyu. This gal knows how to execute a ballad, and you can feel the finality in the heartbreak at the end of a relationship in both the words and the vocal. Baiyu plans to release something new every month, which is pretty ambitious in a saturated online world, but her talent is unmistakable and each new song is well worth discovering.

Download “Again” for free right here.