Now that Coachella and Record Store Day have come and gone, it’s time again for another installment and playlist of Fresh Tracks, featuring talented indie and DIY artists and bands from around the world.
In this edition:
MOSAICS – San Francisco, California
DTHPDL – Findon, England
Dead Day Revolution – Los Angeles, California
The Looking – New York, New York
Voys – Paris, France
Charlie Millikin – Cincinnati, Ohio
The New Apollos – New York, New York
Linda Draper – Brooklyn, New York
Kristaps Locmelis – Jersey City, New Jersey
33 Years – Boca Raton, Florida
Janet Odani – Brisbane, Australia
MOSAICS – “Year of Valor”
San Francisco electronic trio MOSAICS, who built a fairly large following a couple of years ago with standout singles like “Soju,” recently dropped the title track from an upcoming EP, set to drop on May 20th.
On the newest single, “Year of Valor,” the band, featuring founders Devon Kelts (guitar) and Tyler Hill (production), and new vocalist Maryam Sadeghian, fuse experimental electronic music with pop and acoustic guitar elements that guide Sadeghian’s sultry vocals to merge wonderfully with the instrumentation.
“Maryam’s tantalizingly sultry vocal arrangements, her confidence, and her professionalism,” Kelts said, “have been hugely beneficial to the success of the Year of Valor single, and strike just the right balance with the darker aspects of our sound.” Already the track has garnered thousands of plays online.
MP3: “Year of Valor”
MOSAICS on SoundCloud
DTHPDL – “The Future”
DTHPDL, or DeathPodal, first gained attention back in 2009 with the electro pop cassette release of Exu_Wowin. The DTHPDL project is the brainchild of Findon (a village in West Sussex, England) singer, songwriter and musician Alastair J. Chiversand.
Over the past couple of years, he set out to recruit band members D. MacDonald, Humdrum Jetset and Ross Taylor. The band recently completed a tour of Scotland, and have also opened for Team Ghost (ex-M83), YAK, Shield Your Eyes, Paws, and RM Hubbardand Islet, and are due to play the Restless Natives Festival in Glasgow with Blanck Mass, Tim Hecker and Future of the Left.
The band dropped the new EP, The Future, a few days ago in the UK, writing that it is an “exploration of weird, electronic pop, post punk drones and belief,” with the standout title track and their new video.
MP3: “The Future” – DTHPDL from The Future EP
DTHPDL on Facebook
Dead Day Revolution – “Needles”
It’s good to see that there are still plenty of talented bands recording balls-to-wall rock like Los Angeles duo Dead Day Revolution, whose new album, On Our Own, features thrilling rockers like “Vampire Blues”; riveting, stadium-ready tracks like “Children of The Night,” and the Pearl Jam-sounding, “Ghost,” as well as unusually titled blazers like “Dancing on the Corner of Death” (whatever that means).
And yet Dead Day Revolution can also lay down a mean ballad-like slow dancer, “Down The Road,” definitely one of the standout tracks on the album. But it is the more accessible pop rocker, “Needles,” with it’s upbeat rhythm and melodic hooks, that will likely appeal to the much wider audience. Either way, the members of Dead Day Revolution – Skeeter Joplin (drums) and Mike Sandoz (guitar, vocals) – are not rookie musicians, and considering that they have built up a ‘following’ of more than 94,000 Likes, many agree.
MP3: “Needles”
Dead Day Revolution on Facebook
The Looking – “Lead Me To Water”
New York City based musician, singer and songwriter Todd Carter has branched out again with a new band project called The Looking, featuring well-known musicians like bassist Andy Hess (The Black Crowes, Gov’t Mule), Diego Voglino (Marshall Crenshaw) on drums, Steve Elliott (Shooter Jennings) on guitar, and background vocalist Sasha Dobson (Norah Jones).
The band’s debut single, “Lead Me To The Water,” is a driving country rock track (but not like the Billboard cookie-cutter crap) featuring a wailing steel guitar and an upbeat, melodic rhythm. Other songs on the band’s new album include the precisely-picked acoustic gem, “Where Did You Go?” and the contentious “Bone To Pick.” Todd Carter will kick off a week-long tour from Pittsburgh through the midwest ending in Columbus, Ohio on May 23.
MP3: “Lead Me To Water”
The Looking on Facebook
Voys – “Louise In The Clouds”
Voys is the musical project of Parisian artist Patrick Derache. Earlier this month, Voys released a new video, Louise In The Clouds. It is the first video of the musical story of a fantasy world of pop and rock sounds, organ melodies, guitars, rabbit heads and the character, a masked girl who transitions from teenage years to adulthood.
It’s a weird but enchanting world Voys creates in the video, which has garnered more than 14,000 views in three weeks, which isn’t so bad for any music video these days, as well as more than 4K Likes on FB – a heck of a lot more than a lot of artists have. Voys top musical influences include Lou Reed, Neil Young, David Bowie, Sex Pistols and The Clash.
MP3: “Louise In The Clouds” – Voys from single
Charlie Millikin – “Change Me”
A superb mix of soul, funk, rock and some jazz elements, along with infectious rhythm and an array of vocal styles, make up the sounds of Charlie Millikin, an Ohio musician, singer and songwriter who is set to release his self-titled, debut EP on May 6th.
Performing music since he was a child, Millikin has honed his sound over the years, gaining notoriety in the Cincinnati area, where he is also scheduled to perform a number of shows in coming weeks. Fans will be treated to standout songs like “Change Me” and the arresting “Take Control.”
MP3: “Change Me”
Charlie Millikin’s official website
The New Apollos – “In The Shade”
The New Apollos is a brand NYC rock band formed by producer and musician Neill MacCallum, who has worked with well-known musicians like Wesley Schultz (The Lumineers) and Nick Bockrath (Cage The Elephant). With a raw, surfy sound, and a garage—like blend of 60’s experimental pop and 90’s alternative rock, as displayed so expertly on the band’s new single, “In The Shade,” the band will drop the debut album on May 30th, which based on the success of the single, should be something worth checking out. The other band members include Karen Walker (pianist and vocals); Gregoy Morgan (drums) and Isobel Ward (bass and production).
Video: “In The Shade”
The New Apollos Official Website
Linda Draper – “Modern Day Decay”
Brooklyn based musician Linda Draper is set to release her eighth album, Modern Day Decay, this Friday, April 29th, featuring the standout title track. The album was funded through crowdsourcing on PledgeMusic. The funds allowed for only two days of studio time with help from Grammy award-winning mixing engineer Geoff Sanoff (Bruce Springsteen, Green Day, Cat Power), who ended up mixing “Modern Day Decay” at Little Steven’s studio, Renegade Nation.
“This project was a collaborative process,” Draper said. “Every step of the way and I am grateful for the support that has led me to where I am today.”
Draper’s first earned some notoriety in 2001 with the release of her debut album, Ricochet, produced by Kramer, who is famously known for his work with Low, Galaxie 500, Lou Reed and Urge Overkill, among others. Not surprisingly, Draper grew up in a musical family, and has studied everything from Bach to pop before beginning to write her own songs as a teen.
Kristaps Locmelis – “Shelling Out For A Tiki Bar”
It’s always refreshing to hear something completely different. We love being surprised. Jersey City instrumental musician Kristaps Locmelis offers just that on his experimental electronic “Shelling Out For A Tiki Bar,” which might remind some of a cross between space rock and Martin Denny. Another new track released just days ago titled, “Rover,” is a short mix of funk, R&B, psychedelic synths and experimental sounds.
MP3: “Shelling Out For A Tiki Bar” – Kristaps Locmelis from single
33 Years – “Love Don’t Live Here”
The Floridian husband and wife duo of Paula and Kevin Tolly, known as 33 Years, have been performing folk, rock and country for many years and toured with a band around the U.S. In fact, they’re touring right now with the release of the new album and a number of singles, including “Love Don’t Live Here” and “A Case of Whiskey.”
MP3: “Love Don’t Live Here” – 33 Years
Janet Odani – “Make It Alright”
Janet Odani is an Australian musician with a new album, Transparency, featuring songs like the upbeat “Make It Alright,” which is available via YouTube.
Video: “Make It Alright” – Janet Odani from Transparency