More about @LucienDante’s album Our Of We

LUCIEN DANTE, Our Of We

Last week was one of those weeks when one song came out of nowhere and floored me, and that is “Black Water” by Chicago-based singer/songwriter Lucien Dante from his album Our Of We.  It debuted on my chart at #21 with its expressive vocal, engaging charm, and gorgeous arrangement.  While it remains my favourite from the album, Our Of We is full of other delights which will keep you thinking as you’re listening.  Lucien’s influences seem to come from all over – I hear pop, classical, folk, EDM, and R&B/soul at various times – and he doesn’t sound like anyone in particular.  Most of his songs seem to be delivered with a shy-sounding vocal that gives perspective from a viewpoint of wonder, discovery, and keen interest.  But when he breaks away from a minimalist sound and heads toward a powerful bridge or chorus, the confidence in his craft really comes out.  Most of the songs are produced by TKANG! who obviously has a good read on what the singer is trying to convey.  I’ll admit the songs aren’t really for everyone but Lucien is very persuasive.  So do yourself a favour and check out the club-worthy “Ivory Toast”, “Spark”, “Light, Love & Chaos” and the hip-hop flavoured “Love Me Lessons (Imma Be)” (nothing to do with the Black Eyed Peas 😉 ) as starting points.  This is a great start from a singer/songwriter who consistently delivers, making Our Of We a personal, sincere, and enlightening experience!  Listen to the album above (and do download “Black Water” for free on Lucien’s Soundcloud page) and pick it up on iTunes.

@Emutemusic rocks out with “Say What You Want To Say”

E-MUTE, “Say What You Want To Say”

After the impressive and haunting “Miracle” from last year, British multi-instrumentalist (piano and drums!) E-Mute (aka Theo Mak) returns with a new EP called I Can Pay For It, featuring the rocking “Say What You Want To Say”.  It’s full-tilt aggressive rock featuring a thoughtful story about a soldier going to war characterized as an exercise of futility, which echoes many sentiments of those of us in the Western world.  Not only does E-Mute craft an interesting set of lyrics but backs it all up with effortless-sounding instrumentation and a vocal that at times reminds me of British singer Edwyn Collins.  Check out the song above and pick up I Can Pay For It (also featuring a new mix of “Miracle”, which got to #12 on my personal chart last year). on iTunes.  

@Frankmusik is back with the early 90’s-sounding “I Remember”

FRANKMUSIK, “I Remember”

After a few rough years of personal turmoil, which did yield some of the best songs of his career so far, Frankmusik is back with the straight-forward 90’s dance appeal of “I Remember” from his just-released album For You, to coincide with his 30th birthday.  For most of the song the singer sits in his lower register to play off the familiar rhythm in this R&B-oriented song that features his usual intricately crafted melody.  But he always has a few surprises for us all which makes listening to every Frankmusik album a unique experience.  As with the previous single “This”, the new songs sound positive in theme and “I Remember” provides the bounce that could land Frankmusik back in dance clubs.  Watch the video above and get “I Remember” and For You on iTunes.  I look forward to delving more into the songs on the album soon!

#BILLCSTop30 #467 – October 5, 2015

It’s Fall in North America and new music is plentiful!  Old favourites exit to make room for six FAB new tunes this week!  And there’s a surprise for you at the top…

The Top 10

  • Brandyn Burnette returns to the top for a 5th non-consecutive appearance (10th week) with “I Wanna Be (Free)”.  This is the first time that a song has spent longer than one chart appearance (2 weeks) to return to the top – and after Years & Years held court for 3 appearances (6 weeks) with “Shine”.  It’s also the first time a song has held #1 for 5 appearances since Darren Hayes did it (and twice in one year!) with “How To Build A Time Machine” at the end of 2007.  Listen and watch for a different take on “I Wanna Be (Free)” featuring rapper Nevelle.  It just goes to show how diverse and open to interpretation the song is – which is a great thing for Brandyn Burnette and his songwriting!

  • Most likely to succeed “I Wanna Be (Free)” at the top now is last week’s high flying debut “Let You Go” by Toronto’s River Tiber, which soars 10-3.  Maybe we will see River Tiber (aka Tommy Paxton-Beesley) in the Top 10 national charts one day with Drake and The Weeknd too, given this week’s Canadian domination of the Billboard Top 10.  “Let You Go”, one of those strange, paradoxical love stories, is culled from River Tiber’s latest and best record to date, When The Time Is Right.

  • Right behind “Let You Go” is our other “Let You Go” – the free download by The Chainsmokers featuring hot R&B/pop band Great Good Fine OK at #4.  Wait for that Tiesto rave up to get going and then it’s non-stop party!

  • Advancing to #5 is “Pain Told Love” by Tribe Society featuring Kiesza.  If you pay close enough attention to this one, you will need a few tissues handy.  It’s a beautiful, idiosyncratic perspective on our opposite sentiments and how they sometimes need to come together to prevent us from losing grip on everything that is good about living.

  • Finally in the Billboard Dance Club Play Top 10 – NERVO/Kylie/Jake/Nile and “The Other Boys” – climbing up to #6.

  • New to the Top 10 at #10 for his first appearance on this chart is the impressive “Dizzy” by British Columbia native – and former MUCHMusic Covers winner – Tyler Shaw!

Movin’ On Up

  • Jane Badler’s dark and slinky “Dead Eyes” (Eel Eye Club Mix) from her latest album Opus is on a roll, rising 18-15.  Could it become her third Top 10 on this chart, following “Yesterday’s Tomorrows” and “Losing You”?

  • While I’m also loving Matthew Koma’s whimsical collaboration with The Knocks on “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)”, his own “So F**kin’ Romantic” continues to climb up 19-17 as we await his new solo album.

  • The remaining debuts from last week are all off to fantastic starts and they follow each other up the chart 6 places – “My Religion” by Toronto pop/soul singer Dan Talevski at #18, “Wildstar” by Giorgio Moroder featuring a vibrant Foxes vocal at #19, and at #20 Adam Lambert’s dance rave-up “The Light”, though his record company has opted to release “Another Lonely Night” as the next single from The Original High.

SIX debuts!!

  • At #22 is a song that’s been around for a while (I wrote about it in September 2014), but now also available for free as a download from Brandyn Burnette’s website as a part of The Bright Side mixtape.  Check out “Life’s A Beach” and revisit the warm-hearted video.  It will help us bide our time till new Brandyn music when his EP Made Of Dreams is released.

  • Sam Smith has managed to claim the latest James Bond movie theme all to himself – and “Writing’s On The Wall” (#23) is every bit as good as Adele’s “Skyfall”, and managed to get to #1 in the UK, which “Skyfall” did not.  Next stop:  Oscar? Grammy?  Who knows.  Sam’s been to #1 four times here with “Stay With Me”, “Money On My Mind”, “I’m Not The Only One”, and his collaboration with Disclosure on “Latch”.  And of course he is at #11 with Disclosure with “Omen”.

  • Joe Jonas is large and in charge with the vibrant “Cake By The Ocean” by his new band DNCE, so the song bows at #25.  Joe has had three previous solo entries on the chart:  “Make You Mine” (#3), “Not Right Now” (#6), and “Just In Love” (#13).

  • I’ve enjoyed every Marianas Trench album since Fix Me bowed in late 2006 for the British Columbia based band.  They’re back with album four called Astoria, also released Stateside by Cherrytree/Interscope, and the latest single from that is a softer song for them that shows off Josh Ramsay’s restraint and range, “One Love”, which arrives at #26.  Of their 9 chart appearances, he Trench’s best showing on this chart to date has been with “Masterpiece Theatre Part 1”, which reached #4 in 2009.

  • Last but by no means least is the fun-tastic “Bow Tie” by Toronto’s 18 year old Diego Gomes which lands at #27.  The winner of Canada’s The Next Star back in 2010 is well on his way with a great song like this.

You can hear me online on http://www.planetradio.ca every Monday at 10:15 pm EST counting down a Toronto Top 10 chart from yesteryear!

You will be tantalized by the expressive @LucienDante’s “Black Water” (Free DL)

luciendante

LUCIEN DANTE, “Black Water” (free download)

Just when I think that 2015 can’t be loaded up with more fine singers and new music, and along comes Chicago-based singer/songwriter Lucien Dante with “Black Water” from his release Our Of We, available for free download right here (I am unable to embed the link).  This is a young man who is able to marry real-life experiences, largely from living overseas in Germany, to his art, and is thus able to touch the listener profoundly.  I still have to listen more to “Black Water” to figure out what it’s all about, but the strikingly subtle production, which becomes quite powerful towards the end, compliments the singer’s refreshingly shy-sexy-confident vocal that has the ability to draw you in and keep you there under musical lock and key.  Think of him being somewhere between Jeff Buckley, Bon Iver, and Matthew Koma… what a unique artistic space to find him in!  I will be delving more into the Our Of We release in the coming release and I expect to rave on further about Lucien Dante.  Below is also the first song I heard from him, “Spark” (also available as a free download right here) which is in a different more EDM setting, but look past a sometimes busy production for the unique vocal performance.  Lucien Dante is one-of-a-kind and you can’t say that about many singers in these contemporary days when so many fine voices pervade social media.  

 

Meet British R&B/pop singer @Ethammusic with hypnotic “Cold Love”

ETHAM, “Cold Love”

I don’t know much about new UK R&B/pop singer Etham but if the preview song from his upcoming Neo-Romance release, “Cold Love”, is any indication, he will not be a mystery for very long.  You will notice the immediate similarity to the arrangement to The Weeknd’s “Earned It”.  If that’s going to be a turn off, then stop right here.  However it’s a pretty potent lead in to a vocal that can not only handle this kind of deep arrangement, but can rise above it and make the song its own!  There is always room for another fine R&B/pop vocalist, and whether you enjoy Justin Timberlake, The Weeknd, Robin Thicke, Travis Garland, or Sam Smith, Etham’s “Cold Love” will not only fit into that mix but stand out on its own.  You owe it to yourself to give “Cold Love” a careful listen above, and remember where you read about Etham 🙂

London, England music goers! Etham plays Birthdays in Dalston on Tuesday October 6.

Enjoy the Prince-ly vibe of “Change The Channel” by #Toronto’s @FrancescoYates

FRANCESCO YATES, “Change The Channel”

“Change The Channel” is a 20 year old Toronto singer’s collaboration with Pharrell Williams from his recent self-titled EP available worldwide through Atlantic Records.  I remember seeing Francesco perform this song in concert in the summer and I saw the heads turning in the audience by people who were wowed by the Prince falsetto and vibe of this song.  It helps, like Prince, that Francesco is a wicked guitar player, and to me “Change The Channel” should be the next song you hear by him on radio.  Pharrell definitely has a way with working with younger singers to bring out the best in their talents.  Do not be surprised if the always busy Francesco amasses a huge following over the next year; I’m sure he will feature prominently at the 2016 Juno Awards in Canada 🙂  Watch the video for “Change The Channel” up top.

Francesco Yates performs on Saturday October 3 on the Cinemark Coke CineStage in The Woodlands part of Houston, Texas.  Watch for him at several “WE DAY” throughout Canada.

The Ms Anonymous EP by MAX @maxgschneider is loaded with variety

MAX, Ms Anonymous (EP)

It’s been about two and a half years since I last wrote about talented Max Schneider, who now goes exclusively by MAX.  But with the always eloquent enthusiasm of major fan My Fizzy Pop, I couldn’t help but check out MAX’s latest EP Ms Anonymous.  It’s a real corker, loaded with variety, which shows how much progress the singer/songwriter has made since 2013.  Plus as you’ll see in his video for “Gibberish” (above), he has also joined the Nick Jonas School for the Buff and acquits himself well as a dancer 😉  While he continues to dazzle You Tubers with covers like Taylor Swift’s “Style”, MAX fuses R&B, hip hop, rock, and pop together quite adeptly.  The production on these songs is first rate, and there is a notable set of guest stars – Sirah, Jared Evan, and Hoodie Allen – all of whom are positioned admirably in their respective songs.  But what is best here?  “Gibberish” (featuring Allen) has a beautifully choreographed and shot video but is reliant on a limited hook which might have a short life span.  That’s why I would delve deeper into the upbeat title song (featuring Evan) or the beauty of a solo ballad that is “You’re Not That Girl” (below).  Sirah is featured prominently on “Hotel Confidential” and adds to the playfulness of that song.  All in all there is more to MAX than these songs would have you believe – catch him on a solo tour next month (he recently supported the likes of Fall Out Boy).  Ms Anonymous is definitely designed to turn heads and fill your ears – and that it will do!

MAX plays Toronto at the Virgin Mobile Mod Club on Thursday, October 22, 2015.

A tropical beach vibe and a @MatthewKoma vocal highlight @TheKnocks’ “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)”

THE KNOCKS & MATTHEW KOMA, “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)”

I’m loving the tropical flavoured vibe that is infusing some pop and EDM songs lately.  The songwriters creating them seem to have found a natural fit for this style.  “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)” by producers The Knocks with go-to-guy Matthew Koma on vocal captures it in a lazy hazy kind of L.A. beachfront way, using the “1989” superstar as point of reference for the girl of one’s dreams.  This is a song that will go down even better after a few drinks in the sun, when it will become an immediate singalong!  Remixes could also turn it into a dance club and rave favourite, since both The Knocks and Matthew Koma are already established in those arenas.  Lay back and set your mind adrift and make your wish! 🙂

Sweeping, uplifting “A Higher High” will swirl Nathalie Archangel @narchangel into dance clubs!

NATHALIE ARCHANGEL, “A Higher High”

Sometimes it just takes a great fit between music, lyrics, and vocalist and voilà! a hit is born.  There should be no question that the latest by veteran pop singer Nathalie Archangel, “A Higher High”, should swirl its way into dance clubs and become a national hit.  That would be a fine achievement for the talented singer whose first releases were back in the 80’s.  After a long hiatus, she released a couple of pop records along with some songs designed for dance clubs (such as 2011’s still glorious “Next To Me” from the Ballroom Remixed compilation).  “A Higher High” is as sweeping and uplifting as the similarly R&B-flavoured Steve Winwood’s “Higher Love” (mashup, please??), owing much to the talents of collaborators, her good friend Charlie Mason, and the amazing Crush Boys (Daniel Volpe and Thomas Lipp).  Can’t wait to hear the remixes, many brought to us by the same kind folks that scored a Top 5 Billboard Dance Club Play hit with remixes of Rozalla’s first chart hit since 1994, “If You Say It Again”.