Album Reviews

Debby Friday 2023 press photo
Artists You Should Know: DEBBY FRIDAY Shocks New Life into Electronic Pop Music on Debut Album “GOOD LUCK”

If there were any qualifications to being a multi-hyphenate, producer/singer-songwriter DEBBY FRIDAY would fit the bill. Born in Nigeria and raised in Canada, she began as a DJ in the Montreal club scene before shortly leaving in hopes of other endeavors. One of those endeavors was her own music, something she’s using to pave a […]

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Kamal. 2023 press photo
Artists You Should Know: Kamal. Emerges From Hidden Waters into High Tides on Newest Mixtape “so here you are, drowning”

It started in 2021 when multi-instrumentalist Kamal. picked up the novel “Open Water” by Caleb Azumah Nelson. Although the Northwest London native had been releasing music online since 2019, he had yet to drop a complete project. But after being inspired by the novel, a semblance of an idea quickly formed as he submerged himself […]

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Ella vos
Ella Vos Bends the Elements to Her Musical Will on New Album “SUPERGLUE” — Confirms Microdose Tour in May

Coming after a long line of singles and news of a US tour set for May, Ella Vos comes into her own on her third album, SUPERGLUE. Created alongside husband and producer Tommy English, her newest effort finds the singer-songwriter paving a path for herself in the electronic-pop landscape that’s gradually become the new norm […]

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meet me @ the altar
Meet Me @ The Altar Herald A New Generation of Pop-Rock With Debut Album “Past // Present // Future”

Meet Me @ The Altar has finally unveiled its explosive debut album with the release of Past // Present // Future, they’re also currently on tour with dates scheduled at The Observatory in Santa Ana on Mar. 22 and The Echo in Los Angeles on Mar. 23. Over the course of 11 spectacular tracks the […]

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Steven Ward |
adi oasis
Adi Oasis Rejoices In Rebirth On New Album “Lotus Glow”

Across the sprawlingly verdant soundscapes of her newest album Lotus Glow, artist/producer Adi Oasis (f.k.a. Adeline) cultivates an ardent vision of herself. She has also announced new tour dates including a night at the Lodge Room in Los Angeles on Mar. 25. Her reinvention began with a change in moniker but has since assisted in […]

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Steven Ward |
Okay Maya press photo
Artists You Should Know: Okay Kaya Glues Her Own Gooey Path on Latest Album Sap

It wasn’t until recently when Norwegian-American singer-songwriter and actress Okay Kaya broke big when her song “Mother Nature’s Bitch” went viral on sites like TikTok. But three years after that song’s release, Kaya has an astounding five albums under her name, with the latest release, 2022’s SAP, widening her scope creatively and musically. And after […]

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moonlight Benjamin
Moonlight Benjamin Bewitches by Way of Gothic Blues Rock on New Album “Wayo”

Blues music has a long, long history. A music genre over 100 years old, its roots go deep in American soil, and the formative artists all serve as a touchstone for multiple genres that would soon follow. For France-based singer and self-proclaimed Punk Vodou Queen Moonlight Benjamin has brought it to her home of Haiti […]

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Jenny O.
Jenny O. Returns With A Reminder Of How To Love On Fourth Album “Spectra”

Los Angeles singer/songwriter Jenny O. has returned with her fourth album Spectra, a lush indie-pop album dedicated to loving fully and unabashedly the world around you. She’s also announced a string of tour dates that include a stop at the Come What May Festival in Santa Inez Valley, CA on May 26-27. In a lot […]

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Steven Ward |
Tianna Esperanza
Tianna Esperanza Travails Catharsis on Debut Album “Terror”

We might only be two months into the new year but regardless Tianna Esperanza has released undoubtedly one of the top albums of 2023 with the release of their debut Terror. After teasing its release via a string of superb singles that revealed the resolute and stunning depths of her music, the full collection is […]

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Steven Ward |
mui zyu 2023 press photo
Artists You Should Know: mui zyu Harnesses Hong Kong Heritage on Debut Album “Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century”

Although born and raised in the UK, Hong Kong British artist miu zyu is returning to her roots after years of denying her heritage. “I am Chinese and I am owning it,” she said, explaining the inspiration behind her new conceptual album, Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century. “Before, I would resent it. I tried […]

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steady holiday
Interview: Steady Holiday Finds Her Second Wind on “Newfound Oxygen”

There is a palpable longevity to the songs that populate Steady Holiday’s new album Newfound Oxygen, one that’s owed in no small part to Dre Babinski’s attempt to kindle within (and outside) herself a sort of self-sustaining optimism. Arriving on the heels of Take the Corners Gently — her cautionary appeal for empathy and connection […]

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mhaol
M(h)aol Unleash Debut Album “Attachment Styles”

Irish post-punk five-piece M(h)aol have finally released their debut album Attachment Styles, a long-simmering collection of songs fueled dually by the band’s virulent empathy and acerbic wit. Across ten songs led by vocalist Róisín Nic Ghearailt, the group wrangles all their biting woes against the suffocating cloud of patriarchal aggression into explosive and slow-burning anthems […]

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Steven Ward |
destructo
Destructo Gives the Past Some Futuristic Polish on “Future Funk” EP

Los Angeles-based DJ and producer Destructo gives the nostalgic past a futuristic spin on their new EP Future Funk. It’s the first new collection of music from the prolific collaborator and promotor of HARD festivals since their 2017 EP Renegade. Since the 90s he’s worked with a litany of iconic tastemakers from Basement Jaxx and […]

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Steven Ward |
Elle PF
Stream the Energizing Third Album “After the Snow” of Los Angeles DIY rockers Elle PF

Elle PF has finally unveiled their third album After the Snow, a sonorous and tenaciously joyful collection of songs from the DIY Los Angeles four-piece. Composed of band members Ranelle Labiche (lead vocals/piano), Jenessa LaSota (backup vocals/bass), John Acarregui (drums), and Doc (guitar) the group has a definite talent for coalescing their versatile influences in […]

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Steven Ward |
youngfathers
Young Fathers Traverse (and Celebrate) Humanity’s Contradictory Multitudes on Fourth Album “Heavy Heavy”

Across their fourth album Heavy Heavy, Scottish trio Young Fathers offer a sweeping self-portrait of the human race in all its contradictory wonder. Over the course of ten gloriously anthemic tracks, Alloysious Massaquoi, Kayus Bankole, and Graham “G” Hastings captivate via their characteristically mosaic soundscapes and spiritually humanist lyricism. Rendering the album’s blazing energy and […]

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Steven Ward |
Biig Piig
Biig Piig Dances Against the Laurels of Love and Pains of Heartache on Debut Mixtape “Bubblegum”

As Biig Piig, singer/producer Jess Smyth creates invigorating electro-pop that finds ecstatic fruition on her debut mixtape Bubblegum. It all began with the release of last year’s single “Kerosene,” a track that helped reveal to the artist that she had a whole lot more to say than could be contained in just one song. Against […]

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Vanessa Zamora
Vanessa Zamora Shares Final Piece of Third Album with “DAMALEONA VOL. 3”

Vanessa Zamora has finally shared in full their third album with the release of DAMALEONA, VOL. 3. It’s the first collection of new music that she’s shared since their 2018 sophomore release Tornaluna and their 2014 debut Hasta la Fantasía. On her newest project, which was released in three volumes over the last year, culminates […]

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Artists You Should Know: Half Gringa Guides Through Gloom and Misery on New EP “Ancestral Home”

Midwestern folk and Latin American pop are not two genres commonly mentioned in the same sentence. But for the Chicago-based music outfit Half Gringa, it’s the two foremost genres widely associated with singer-songwriter Isabel Olive’s current output. Her most recent EP, Ancestral Home, is no different, offering melodies that remedy the trauma of family grief […]

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Little Sims press photo 2023
ICYMI: Little Simz Returns With Her Most Transparent Record Yet on New Album “NO THANK YOU”

After her past two albums opened up to universal acclaim, it might seem like the only way is up for an artist like Little Simz. But soon after the release of Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, the reality of being a serious player operating outside a major label began to seem more apparent. In April […]

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David Sosa |
Artists You Should Know: French Indie-Pop Artist BLOWSOM Releases “BLOWSOM & friends” EP

From Paris comes indie-pop peddler BLOWSOM who just released a new EP titled BLOWSOM & friends, as well as a new music video for one of the songs on it “Love! love! love!” And he arrives wielding the kind of upbeat lo-fi and luxuriously textured pop that is impossible to shake once it becomes an […]

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