Tag Archive: pop

Civil Twilight Rocks The Bootleg in Los Angeles

by Guest Writer
Artist and Show Reviews | January 21, 2012

The Recipe for a great music showcase is simple: first you take a great band, with original tunes, and the chops to play the shit out of ‘em; add a really dope venue, packed with equal parts eastside hipsters and industry decision makers, stir with a generous helping of cheap drinks, and voila!  So it’s no surprise that Civil Twilight’s coming out party last night @ the Bootleg was such a big success!

The band has a full-length release due out in March of this year on Wind-up Records.  For those who are familiar with the Wind-up roster, don’t expect the modern rock sound, they’ve become synonymous with – Civil Twilight is at any given time, rockin’ poppy, psychedelic, heavy, progressive, melodic, and lots more adjectives.

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Last night the trio–turned-quartet from South Africa wove through their 80 minute set pretty flawlessly. I think the key to their versatility in sound and genre, is their versatility as players.  First off, the guitar player, Andrew Mckellar: this dude made a lot of noise for one guy!  With a very modest arsenal of pedals and guitars, Andrew created sounds that were dirty, melodic, and ambient, and truly had the skills to fill up the spaces of a band without a ton of members.  Drummer, Richard Wouters, was tight without being stiff and creative without being esoteric.  He was pretty masterful on the high hats and stayed away from conventional rock beats, but never made the listener work too hard.   Front man, Steven Mckellar, played the role well.  He was engaged, funny, self-aware, but most importantly, talented.  It’s very nice to hear vocals sung perfectly in key @ a live performance!  It’s also very nice to watch a lead singer anchor the band with some pretty serious chops on the bass.  The band, last night, was also fortunate enough to play with a new member on keys, who had two decks and some tracks going, while deftly performing background vocals and taking over on bass, when Steven tried his hand at piano, or acoustic guitar.

** LISTEN To Civil Twilight’s “Soldier” on Earbits Radio! **

In short – I’m a fan.  I’m very stoked for this release and excited to see what sort of success the band may have in the future.  Their label certainly got them off to a great start, showcasing them to a room jam-packed with music supervisors, coordinators, publishers and fans.  Kudos to Wind-up for dabbling with this alternative to their standards (the label has had huge successes with Creed, Seether, Evanescense & O.A.R.)  Check out some of the band’s previous tunes, here on Earbits, and be sure to check the new record in March – SEE THEM LIVE, TOO – THEY KILLED IT!

 

- Scott Feldman, Artist Relations Manager, Earbits, Inc.

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Review of Doran Danoff at Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles

by Guest Writer
Artist and Show Reviews | December 6, 2011

Indie Blues Soul Pop Music with Brilliant Twinges of Folk & Americana is Alive and Well in Hollywood

by Scott Feldman, Artist Relations Manager, Earbits, Inc.

I had the distinct pleasure of catching Doran Danoff and his very large and talented band at Hotel Café in Los Angeles last Saturday night.  It was the last show of a month long residency, and I’m sincerely grateful that I got the chance to see them.  First off, homeboy can play the freakin’ piano, and the dudes that play a smattering of instruments behind him (including bass/drums/guitar/3 piece horn section/sometimes ukulele) have no problem keeping up.

** LIKE Doran Danoff on Facebook **

Doran opened his set with a pretty dirty sounding, almost vaudevillian tune which featured some really grimy and sexy sounding horns, followed it with a pretty classic sounding boogie woogie tune; the piano playing from which would impress the likes of Jelly Roll Morton or Jerry Lee Lewis.

 

After navigating a few more songs in the soul & blues genres, Doran stripped things down to focus on some music from his forthcoming album.  The horn section took a break, and Danoff welcomed his ukulele player and female background vocalist on stage.  The first song was phenomenal; the perfect blend of male and female voices.  Each singer had to bend their individual notes, and stay in tune with themselves and each other – I was quite impressed.

** FOLLOW Doran Danoff on Twitter **

All in all, this dude (based on his overall lack of online presence, label and hype) is, in my opinion, undervalued, underrated and underappreciated.  People go see him, and buy his music.  Record industry: give him a deal of some sort, please.  He’s eclectic and proficient enough to fit on a bill with anyone from The Black Keys to Fitz & The Tantrums to Deer Tick (Listen to Deer Tick on Earbits Radio) and a lot in between.

 

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the, always impeccable, mix from the sound engineer at hotel café.  Vocals were always balanced, whether Doran was soulfully shouting over his horn section or softly blending with a chick vocalist, it always sounded clean and volume appropriate.  A final kudos to Hotel Café: you seem to consistently book exciting, interesting and supremely talented artists, in a city where the dull, uninteresting and mildly talented run amok!

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Album Review: Fun House Of Your Mind by Mark Cote

by Will Hagle
Artist and Show Reviews | November 5, 2011

Mark Cote's 'Fun House of Your Mind'One of the common criticisms of digital music is that it lacks the artwork and, of course, tangibility found on cassettes, vinyl records and CDs, among other forms of music distribution.  It’s a treat, then, when an artist takes the time to craft a visually appealing album.

That’s exactly what singer/songwriter Mark Cote has done with his new album, entitled Funhouse Of Your Mind.  The disc comes enclosed in a visually appealing case, featuring a design style similar to that found on the artist’s website.  The intriguing design adds to Cote’s concept behind the album, which deals with the various emotions contained within the complex “funhouse” of the mind.

Cote’s concept is introduced in the opening track, “Fun House,” which begins with circus-like horns and continues with a jazzy feel throughout the rest of the song.  Cote takes on the persona of ringmaster of the imaginative “Funhouse of Your Mind,” singing lines like “Come lose yourself inside the maze of mirrors / Guaranteed to keep you guessing every time / The question of which one is you / Depends on your point of view.”  Lines like these, coupled with the carnivalesque music, evoke vivid images of an actual fun house.  But they also suggest a deeper meaning, in this case one about a “crisis of identity,” which Cote sings later in the song.  That manipulation of words and imagery, sung in Cote’s melodic voice, is one of the artist’s strongest qualities.

** LISTEN to “Fun House of Your Mind” by Mark Cote on Earbits Radio! **

While “Fun House” is an introductory song that lays the groundwork for the emotional journey to be explored throughout the rest of the album, its musical style is somewhat misleading.  “Fun House” is horn-based and jazzy, but the rest of the album is more akin to The Beatles during their Sgt. Pepper days— upbeat, poppy, whimsical and entirely catchy.  Second track “Gone Gone Gone” is perhaps the best example of that style, as it features bouncing piano lines and soaring, dreamlike vocals.  Many of the other songs on the album follow that pattern.

Cote’s artwork is featured not only on the album’s case and physical CD, but within the enclosed lyric booklet.  The fact that the booklet includes lyrics is a much-appreciated addition, as many bands have been phasing out that formerly common feature with their albums.  Also, with Cote, understanding the lyrics is an essential part of the listening experience.

** FOLLOW Mark Cote on Twitter! | LIKE Mark Cote on Facebook! **

Within Cote’s lyric booklet are drawings by the artist himself, consisting of page-size bright cartoons.  The first one, for instance, features a snowman equipped with an umbrella, melting and crying as the sun smiles at him from above.  Beneath the picture is a quote saying “What is life but one long goodbye?”  The picture would be a thought-provoking cartoon on its own, but it’s included in the booklet as an accompanying visual for fourth track “Snowman In July,” one of the album’s best tracks.  It’s dedicated, meticulous extra steps like that that make Cote such an appealing artist.  He cares about his listeners and takes the time to make his work intriguing on multiple levels.  With Funhouse Of Your Mind, Cote’s work has paid off.

** HEAR an exclusive interview with Mark Cote on Earbits! **

The album was recorded, mixed, and produced by acclaimed producer Michael Frondelli, who managed to successfully capture Cote’s impressive piano skills and vocal ability.  If you have to leave the comfort of your computer screen to purchase one tangible album this year, consider picking up Funhouse Of Your Mind.

 

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An Interview with Saucy Monky

by Joey Flores
Artist and Show Reviews | May 24, 2010

Saucy MonkyAlright fans, we’ve got yet another awesome artist we’ll be featuring soon – Saucy Monky out of Los Angeles.  Chock full of talent and good looks, this band of ladies (and one gent) has a fantastic sound, a great catalog, and a new album out called Between the Bars, available on iTunes.  Saucy has toured extensively in Europe and the U.S., sharing the stage with artists such as PJ Harvey, the B-52’s, The Black Eyed Peas, The Cure, Pink, and Wilco.  Cynthia took some time to chat with us about their extensive international touring experience, for those of you looking to start branching out.

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Hey, Cynthia, thanks for taking the time to chat with us. We’re excited to have Saucy Monky included in our upcoming broadcasts and wanted to learn more about you to share with our audience.

earbits is all about helping emerging artists be successful, so we like to focus on the things you’ve done really well at to give other artists an insight into what they can do to mirror some of that success. It looks like Saucy Monky has had more luck with playing outside of the U.S. than most of the emerging artists out there. Let’s talk a bit about that experience and how you were able to secure those opportunities.

earbits: When and how did you secure your first international performance, and what kinds of live performances had you done leading up to that point?

Cynthia Catania: Annmarie, the other singer in Saucy Monky grew up in Ireland. She submitted our first album CELEBRITY TRASH to some of the big radio stations that had “Indie hour” for local or indie musicians. A popular DJ called Tom Dunne played the record. We got a lot of positive press and momentum from that. It made sense to go abroad and play some shows. It was a fantastic adventure! Up until then, we had only gigged in the USA.

earbits: What kind of preparation did you do before you played your first show abroad, and what did you learn when you got there?

Cynthia Catania: We didn’t really prepare differently for the full band shows. However, Annmarie and I also toured with and opened for some bigger artists as an “acoustic duo”. That was a bit of adjustment as we just had our guitars. The thing we learned was that 1. We LOVE playing internationally and 2. It’s very expensive to do it as an indie artist. (ha!)

earbits: Do you find that your international touring history helps add credibility to Saucy Monky in the eyes of domestic booking agents?

Cynthia Catania: I think the fact that we were able to make a dent in an International market and play some high profile festivals certainly gives credibility to the band in general. Regarding domestic booking agents, I really think they are forced to focus on how many tickets you can sell in their domestic market. I don’t think they would care if we played on the moon, their bottom line is their domestic marketplace.

earbits: What steps would you recommend to an artist or band who has had some regional success and is considering a small domestic or international tour?

Cynthia Catania: My advice is to do some research about how much it’s realistically going to cost and try and keep your first few tours short & sweet. It’s very expensive to tour, especially abroad, now that the dollar is so weak. It’s also a great idea to try and reach out to some established bands and open for them (and share the bill). You’ll expose your music to their fans and hopefully sell merchandise. Selling merchandise (cds, t-shirts, etc) is THE most lucrative part of touring, in my opinion. Moreso than ticket sales.

earbits: Anything else you want to tell aspiring artists about booking important shows or anything else for that matter?

Cynthia Catania: I think it’s sometimes easier to go a little off the beaten track. In the major cities, there is a lot of competition to play at the big venues, and bookers there are very focused on how many fans you can bring to their venue. This is tough if it’s your first time in any given city. Go to the smaller, neighboring towns, play coffee houses, play anywhere you can especially places with a “built in” crowd. Reach out to the local papers. Do your research, do your online (grassroots) promo and have fun!

Thanks Cynthia and Saucy Monky.  Best of luck to you and we’ll hear you soon on earbits.

Joey Flores
CEO, earbits.com
joey@earbits.com
LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/in/joeyjflores
Twitter: @earbits

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