Here is the latest edition of Fresh Tracks, featuring artists from Australia California and from Indiana to Oregon. The team continues to sift through and listen, as well as prepare to post, only the best 2016 music and songs of DIY and indie artists and bands, some known, most yet unknown.
Coming Up/On Deck: Best DIY of 2016; Bands That Rock; 7 Bands You’ve Gotta Hear; Radar Love; and more playlists. We’ll also be updating the Top 10 Songs playlists for 2016.
In this installment:
7Horse – Los Angeles, California
Press on Randy – Bend, Oregon
Evan Mix – Floyds Knobs, Indiana
Alan Chapell – New York, New York
theKI – Los Angeles, California
Old New York – Brisbane, Australia
7Horse – Livin’ in a Bitch of a World
The Los Angeles blues rock band 7Horse dropped their debut video, ‘Two Stroke Machine,’ last week ahead of the release of their new album, Livin’ in a Bitch of a World , set to officially drop on April 15th.
7Horse is perhaps best known for having their blazing track, “Meth Lad Zozo Sticker,” (still love that song!) on the official soundtrack for the blockbuster movie, Wolf of Wall Street. The band’s new album also includes a cover of “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees.
The band members, Phil Leavitt, who lives in LA, and Joie Calio from Seattle, are also the previous members of the art rock pop band Dada (comic hit “Dizz Knee Land”).
View the cities and dates for their April cross-country tour which kicks off Monday, April 11th at The Viper Room in LA. The duo’s next show is their album release party at Bowery Electric in New York.
Press on Randy – A Ghost with a Fish Eye Lens
Press on Randy is the one man electro pop outfit of Bend, Oregon, musician Seamus Tomkins. We love his sound, which is finely produced for a young DIY artist, and ranges from upbeat synth pop goodies to guitar based songs with deeper lyrical content on the new LP A Ghost with a Fish Eye Lens.”
The songs on A Ghost with a Fish Eye Lens combine acoustic and electric elements to create playful indie electronica music with dark lyrical content such as on the fantastic synth pop gem, “Please Get Up.” POR’s music can be catchy, clever and even deranged.
The album, while light in its musical vibe, is about depression. The results should be inspirational for anyone, especially DIY artists who are discouraged at how difficult it is to get any recognition.
Tomkins self produced, engineered and recorded the album in a gardening shed last year. Stream even more tracks from the album via Press on Randy’s Soundcloud below or get a copy via his Bandcamp. This is fire!
We asked Tomkins how he came up with the moniker Press on Randy: “It came from seeing the phrase, ‘press on Randy!’ spray painted on the side of a bridge and I found it inspirational in the moment. I later named my looper pedal Randy.”
Evan Mix – Chips Forboy
The musical and lyrical influences and forays of young Indiana artist Evan Mix are expressed fully on his DIY release, Chips Forboy, a compelling and fascinating album that features a fusion of all kinds of sounds and stories, featuring components of rap, hip-hop, trance, experimental, dance, rock and instrumental. At times, a listener may feel a little tripped out as well.
Mix emerges as a contemplative and intelligent lyricist and vocalist – taking great measures to make the lyrics discernable while still being respectful to the artform itself, and not playing it safe by just mixing out the same beats, rhythms and overused words that everyone has heard a thousand times in various reincarnations for the past 25 years.
Evan Mix answers the call for everyone that wants something totally unexpected and fresh, maybe even a bit crazy too – that offers something different and special even if it’s not for a mass market, it still exists and triumphs as its own, and that’s good enough for a young dude with a lot to say.
Alan Chapell – The Redhead’s Allegations
NYC musician and songwriter Alan Chapell‘s new single, “Heroes,” is a fitting track for the political, environment and security woes in the world today. Who are our heroes? Where are they in our greatest time of need? Donald Trump? Psst. Billary? Ahhh, no thanks (done with the Clintons).
Moving on, the song is catchy and dripping with melodies. The song is from Chapell’s new release, The Redhead’s Allegations, which was produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads. The CD release party was held at New York’s legendary Mercury Lounge.
After a couple of years living in Mumbai, Indian, writing jingles for Indian TV and playing in the cosmopolitan fusion band Kalki. When he returned to the states, Chapell began to write and record his new album, pulling together veteran musicians from the NYC music scene to create an impressive album featuring all different kinds of instruments as well as styles and stories about the good and bad of living in the city.
theKI – theKI
The self-titled album of a new Los Angeles duo, theKI (pronounced ‘the-key’), spent all of March and February on the official CMJ College Radio Top 200 Airplay Chart, thanks to a Kickstarter campaign that raised $25,000 to mix and master the album. The creative members of theKI are vocalist Roxie Sakura and bassist Lucas Francis.
The songs on the album display a remarkable fusion of rock, funk, and neo-soul with such a magical touch. In fact, a collective of LA musicians, who assembled to record the album, seek, and wish to spread, spiritual self-awareness and a one-ness with all life, which, in Japanese, is ‘Ki.’ The duo market the album as a concept album featuring lyrics that are taken from ancient teachings of spiritual guides, including Eckhart Tolle & Buddha. For example, the song, “Dirty,” is apparently a song from the perspective of a prostitute who is crying out to be “cleansed.”
Old New York – Before We Hit The Ground
Down Under there is a terrific rock band called Old New York who made their name in the Brisbane live circuit over the past five years. The band will drop their third release, Before We Hit The Ground, on May 23rd.
The album, which was successfully funded through Pozible, is a trip through the sonic universe of 60’s like vocal harmonies together with 80’s and 90’s rock, twisted with a pop sensibility and a contemporary edge to create their own style of indie music that is bold, exciting and fresh. The first song from the album, “Washed Hands,” is a driving pop rock track that is perfect for a beautiful spring day.
Old New York members each bring their own musical experience and talents to the overall sound of the band, and are committed to their DIY roots, taking great pride in being personally responsible for all their own recording, mixing, publicity, artwork, filming and web design.