Monthly Archives: February 2021

London-based Australian singer/songwriter @EbonyBuckle returns with a stunning vocal in “Wonder”

EBONY BUCKLE, “Wonder”

I wrote about “Ghost” by Ebony Buckle last summer, which introduced me to her stunning voice and unique stories.  Based on a 1980’s story about the world’s loneliest whale who would sing at a frequency of 52hz (higher than any species known to humans), “Wonder” quite enchanting indeed.  While the video has great effects and weaves the story well, to me it somehow doesn’t capture the warmth and fascination of the song itself as well. Ebony’s voice will recall Kate Bush and Sinead O’Connor for precision, with Maggie Reilly’s flair for storytelling (co-writing courtesy of husband Nick Burns).  “Wonder”, with its taut, contrasting arrangement, keeps you patiently waiting for what Ebony will sing next, until its long and deliberate fade out leaves the eye-opening story finished, for now.

“Head Over Heels” is a pop delight from Russia-born L.A.-based multi-talent @CooperPhillip1

COOPER PHILLIP, “Head Over Heels”

“Head Over Heels” is a 90’s inspired R&B-flavoured straight up pop confection, courtesy of Russia-born, L.A.-based multi-talent Cooper Phillip. It the song has that seamless vibe that is at the root of a good bop, it’s because Cooper’s talent comes from her pre-teen years and being raised by a family of classical musicians. Her main influence, somewhat surprisingly, is Ella Fitzgerald, and she eventually enrolled at the prestigious Moscow State Classical Academy where she studied classical piano, music theory, harp, jazz, blues, ballet and voice.  She left Russia at age 17 and ended up in L.A. after accepting a life-altering gig. The video has a flirty and fun premise to accentuate the song’s empowering lyrics about seizing the moment when you want to make a go at romance, even if you screw up a bit and have to backtrack.  “Head Over Heels” is a delight and be sure to put Cooper Phillip on your pop radar.

Meet Sweden’s @flycktmusic with the snappy inner battle of “Love Is Overrated”

flyckt, “Love Is Overrated”

Some of you may already know about Swedish singer/songwriter flyckt as a member of Urban Cone or Moodshift, but he has a winner with his snappy solo pop/dance single “Love Is Overrated”.  The song is about the ongoing inner battle about the importance of love in one’s life.  Love can be fleeting, cruel, harsh, and amazing, and it can also be all-consuming.  “Love Is Overrated” questions if you should sacrifice life for love or vice-versa, and how people will feel about this will differ.  flyckt’s voice reminds me sometimes of Justin Bieber in its semi-soulful moments, and at other times Norwegian pop singer Jesper Jenset. The video takes us for a late night brooding walk to ponder the circumstances, providing a strong showcase for flyckt.

Is 90’s house music in comeback mode? Are new releases by @InnerCitydet & @IdrisElba @officialTenCity @Ritontime and @ChrisLake, @ArmandvanHelden and @ArthurhBaker starting a welcome trend?

IDRIS ELBA & INNER CITY and STEFFANIE CHRISTI’AN, “No More Looking Back”

RITON & NIGHTCRAWLERS and MUFASA & HYPEMAN, “Friday” (Dopamine re-edit)

TEN CITY, “Be Free” (Emmaculate and Shannon Chambers mix)

CHRIS LAKE & ARMAND VAN HELDEN and ARTHUR BAKER & VICTOR SIMONELLI, “The Answer”

Are we in store for a big 90’s House Music Party that we don’t quite know about yet?  All signs are pointing to a lot of fun ahead if these four new songs and even the resurgence of Crystal Waters’ classic “100% Pure Love” in recent weeks on RuPaul’s Drag Race are any indication.  So enjoy this digression from my usual blog posts!

Kevin Saunderson and his revamped Inner City project team up again with Idris Elba for “No More Looking Back” in follow up to the Inner City album release We All Move Together.  Using the stellar vocals of Steffanie Christi’an once again, “No More Looking Back” is an amazing marriage of classic house and disco styles with a dash of early 70’s soul meshed with today’s technology and sounds.  Once clubs are back, if they aren’t blasting this one, then they are missing out big time.

“Friday” by veteran British producer Riton reinvents The Nightcrawlers’ smash “Push The Feeling On” as a new theme for the weekend, with fun interjections from Mufasa and Hypeman, making it an easy sell to today’s audiences while still soaking in its 90’s house roots.  Dance music radio is all over it in the US and deservedly so.

Ten City, the always dynamic duo of Marshall Jefferson and Byron Stingily, returns for the first time in 25 years with “Be Free”.  Not to sidestep Byron’s own solo successes, it’s like the pair parachuted in right out of the 90’s and comfortably into today’s slicker sounds to capture exactly what they were best at with sophisticated classics like “That’s The Way Love Is” and “My Piece Of Heaven”.  “Be Free” is breezy, soulful fun that should not be missed by house music fans.

Like the Inner City track, “The Answer” by Chris Lake and Armand Van Helden with Arthur Baker and Victor Simonelli emphasizes a soulful early 70’s-inspired vocal over 90’s house-flavoured rhythms.  Longtime club veteran Chris, surprisingly, is the novice producer, if you will, among the other three heavy hitters, and this collaboration just flows so beautifully. There’s just so much to enjoy about this song and it’s no wonder that it’s bubbling at US dance radio.

I think there will be a lot of happy house music lovers and club DJ’s if these tastes of 90’s house develop into more of a trend.  I also hope these releases serve as inspiration for producers looking for a creative jumping off point in dance music!

Canadian producer @Kayliox returns with the melodic deep house of “Lost Control” with Victor Perry @wallflowerperry on vocals

KAYLIOX x VICTOR PERRY, “Lost Control”

Quebec’s Kayliox cemented himself in the electronic dance music scene in the mid 2010’s with a steady stream of fresh songs and remixes as well as club and festival appearances around the world, including at Tomorrow World and Paradiso.  After a bit of a break and becoming a master sound engineer, Kayliox returns with the soulful deep house of “Lost Control”.  From its piano beginnings till its last sung note, it’s 2:48 of pop bliss – if you’re in the mood for something lyrical and melodic, or a club banger, it’s all tidily rolled into one.  The icing on the cake is Victor Perry’s sweet, varied vocal, which has a few showcase moments unto itself and is decidedly different from his lovely new solo song “Stories”.  The chemistry between Kayliox’s beats and synths and Victor’s singing is of such high calibre that I’m sure we’ll hear it again sometime soon.

Life in lockdown = “World’s A Bitch” by Canadian synthpop project @ChurchofTrees with Rough Trade’s @CarolePope and Spoons/Honeymoon Suite’s @RobPreussx

CHURCH OF TREES and rOb PreuSS and CAROLE POPE , “World’s A Bitch”

Nothing could mirror the truth more right now, for those of us in lockdown, than the sentiments expressed in “World’s A Bitch”.  The song is a total rocking blast from Canadian synthpop project Church Of Trees, and it’s co-written with (and of course sung by) the legendary Carole Pope of Rough Trade, as well as Spoons/Honeymoon Suite keyboard wizard Rob Preuss.  Carole’s patented expressively potent vocal, and the hard-hitting lyrics embody a great release for all of the uncertainty we face during the pandemic.  Rob is now a revered Broadway musical director in NYC, and has worked with Church Of Trees for a few years now (you can hear some of his remixes of their past releases) as well as on Carole’s last album Landfall, so there’s precise, rich instrumentation behind it all.  “World’s A Bitch” is a timely, honest blend of solid Canadian talents.  A video is coming soon!

Meet L.A.-based singer/songwriter Elise Go @nihaoelise with the punchy pop of “Undefined (Don’t Call Me)”

ELISE GO, “Undefined (Don’t Call Me)”

With its bright melodies and punchy lyrics and vocal, “Undefined (Don’t Call Me)” by San Francisco-born, L.A.-based Elise Go will not only catch your attention, but it will stay with you long after you listen.  Elise is a cum laude Berklee College of Music graduate (having won a songwriting scholarship to study there), a veteran of several professional vocal competitions as a teenager, and, most recently, was cast as Princess Pop on NBC’s “I Can See Your Voice”. 

“Undefined” is a blunt, anthemic middle-finger salute to the behaviours in vague social media relationships.  Elise says, “I wrote this song of my frustration in being in a situation like this and because I was gaslit in my experience, music was the safest place for me to voice how I felt”.

If the song sounds fresh and driven, it’s because live instruments were used in its making. Taking its cue from a wicked bassline, you’ll hear an entire horn section, which gives the song a soulful, Broadway-like lift.  Elise’s vocal is crisp and on-point, making “Undefined” a sassy, memorable winner.

The singer has also launched an Instagram campaign with a hotline where fans can even call in and talk about their relationship woes! @nihaoelise on Instagram for details.

NYC trio @JanuaryJane crush it with their version of @HallOates’ “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)”

JANUARY JANE, “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)”

For some people, Daryl Hall & John Oates’ #1 smash “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)” would be untouchable as one of their best classics.  It’s also my favourite Hall & Oates song, so the fact that I’m writing about the recent cover by NYC’s January Jane is a very, very good thing – as readers of this blog know, I’m not one for cover versions in general.  The trio however just crushes it with a straight up pop/rock version with superb guitar work by Mitch Mitchell and a vibrant, on-point and totally different vocal from the original by singer Pat Via.  Not to worry, “I Can’t Go For That” still retains some of the soulful elements that made it such a draw back in the day. January Jane appears to have been mainly a live performing act over the past few years, and is rounded out by the bright notes of keyboardist Peter Scialla. They’ve done Hall & Oates justice by making their own mark on “I Can’t Go For That”.  

“Grow So Cold” by Dublin’s @FourNights atypically pairs a snappy melody with lyrics about a fading relationship

FOUR NIGHTS, “Grow So Cold”

Back in November, I wrote about the debut release by Dublin, Ireland’s Four Nights (aka Tommy Buckley) called “Want You Always”, which brought together a flair for 80’s-flavoured pop melody with a vulnerable vocal and relatable lyrics.  While that catchy song has yet to run its course with me, Four Nights’ latest one called “Grow So Cold” arrived yesterday. Like with “Want You Always”, Tommy definitely has a firm way with a melody and song structure. “Grow So Cold” flows beautifully with straight up pop/rock at its core, as its story about a relationship on the wane unfolds.  A steadfast vocal and hooky syncopated bass line, which is uncharacteristic for a song like this, help make “Grow So Cold” memorable and worthy of your attention.

Miami producer/DJ @Ebaniez returns with tight deep house flavours in “Tonight”

EBANIEZ, “Tonight”

Last year, Miami producer and DJ Ebaniez showed promise with his house track “Here For Me”, which I wrote about.  He’s now back with an even tighter and catchier deep house song called “Tonight”.  This one uses bass synths as highlights to accentuate its snappy vocal chorus.  The song captures a dynamic setting of a neverending evening of fun in a warm climate.  The production has nicely layered instrumentation that is neither understated nor goes over the top.  Ebaniez is also a violinist by profession, so melody comes second nature. Add “Tonight” to your favourite house playlist for some slick nighttime entertainment.