Review: "Death Wish" - Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

by Jordan
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“Death Wish” is both the intro and the leading single to Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit’s new album, Weathervanes. This new album is the first full length LP from the band since 2020’s phenomenal record, Reunions. Though there was a cover album entitled, Georgia Blue that was promised to fans if the state of Georgia voted blue in the 2020 presidential election, Weathervanes is the first collection of new songs from Jason in quite some time. Such a return could not be more welcome. Jason Isbell (pronounced Is-BULL) is known for his eloquent song writing, his deeply Americana sound, and his not being afraid to either get personal, political, or downright depressing. This new album is no different, “Death Wish” being not just the album’s intro, but among some of Isbell’s greatest works. 

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Review: "What This All Really Means" - New Song by Nas

by Jordan
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Certified Hip-Hop legend, Nas and veteran producer, Hit-Boy have been on a constant run of releasing nearly two albums a year, for three years straight. Starting with King’s Disease in 2020, the duo have yet to slow down. So far, we are on our third album in the King’s Disease series and two weeks ago, Nas and Hit-Boy gave us a sequel to 2021’s Magic. This new album, Magic 2, is another great addition to Nas’ already stellar discography, and further establishes Nas as quite possibly the rapper with the greatest longevity in the history of Hip-Hop. Truth be told, Hip-Hop, culturally, seems to have always been synonymous with Nasir Jones. In fact, Nas draws an interesting parallel between himself and that of Hip-Hop on the track “Bokeem Woodbine” where he says, “Hip-Hop 50 celebration, funny we the same age and / We just keep on getting iller, word to Heavy, word to Dilla.” Nas and Hip-Hop being the same age just goes to show how both have grown together, and molded one another. Hip-Hop is everything that Nas breathes and his influence on artists of every generation is undeniable. Nas is likely in your favorite rapper’s top 10, if he isn’t already in your’s. Nas is the only rapper whose career was born and bred in the 90’s and is still releasing consistently in both quantity and quality. As Nas says on “Abracadabra,” “2020, when we did the first one / Five album run, not a cursed one, it's a blessed one / By the time y'all hear this, we’ll be half way through the next one.” Nas and Hit-Boy are producing more supply than we knew we could demand. And I’m all here for it. When it comes to exhibiting his longevity, Nas’ lyricism has stayed top notch, his flows are becoming more creative, and his subject matter stays interesting. One way to truly understand just how far we’ve come on an artist’s journey, is when they take a step back and reminisce on his or her career. There’s a few cuts on this record that do just that, “Slow it Down” and “Pistols On Your Album Cover” are great examples of such. However, my favorite is the 8th track, “What This All Really Means.”

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Review: "In Your Love" - Latest Song by Tyler Childers

by Jordan
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If you’re like me, “In Your Love” might be your first introduction to Tyler Childers. But it’s a welcome one. “In Your Love” is the first single from his upcoming album, Rustin’ In The Rain. It was released just a few days ago with a music video starring Colton Haynes and James Scully. While the song itself is fairly vague and gender neutral, the music video depicts a romance between two male coal miners in the 1950’s. Their occupation may not come as a surprise to those who are familiar with Tyler Childers and his music. Tyler was born in Kentucky and his father was a coal miner. Culture and industry in the Appalachian region, as well as the prevalent issues in those communities, are discussed and explored often in his music. So much so, that all the proceeds from his 2020 album, Long Violent History went directly to Childers' Hickman Holler Appalachian Relief Fund which supports underserved communities in the region. In the music video, we are offered a glimpse into some of the lethal consequences of coal mining including “black lung disease,” a disease that coal miners often develop overtime due to exposure and inhaling of coal dust. Furthermore, Tyler intentionally chose to depict a gay romance because he was inspired to do so by his gay cousin who also grew up in Kentucky, worked as a coal miner, and has had a very close relationship with Tyler. When describing the inspiration behind the music video, Childers (in reference to his cousin) said “He taught me so much about singing; he was my first tough critic. And just thinking about him not having a music video on CMT that spoke to him.” 

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Review: "How Much Is Weed?" - New Song by Dominic Fike

by Jordan
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The name Dominic Fike is likely familiar to a lot of people because of his recent contributions to both the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse soundtrack as well as the Barbie soundtrack. Due to this, though I find it surprising, I believe some people may have missed his most recent release. Dominic Fike is an artist that I don’t often listen to. I have several friends who are always sending me his music when it comes out, and I always listen. Furthermore, I always end up being impressed with his projects, What Could Possibly Go Wrong in particular. He’s ambitious, creative, a skilled song-writer, and incredibly entertaining. For whatever reason however, I have yet to consistently return to his music. A few weeks ago he released Sunburn and I feel foolish for ever having been so neutral regarding his work. With only a 39 minute runtime, Sunburn is an extremely accessible listen. Such a unique and pleasant experience all begins with its opening track, “How Much Is Weed?”

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Review: "MY EYES" from Travis Scott's Latest Album, UTOPIA

by Jordan
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Last week, the world was awarded the long awaited arrival of Travis Scott’s fourth studio album, UTOPIA. This new album from Travis is triumphant, ambitious, wall to wall with features, and a blinding subversion of expectations. Due to such ambitions, the album has had quite a clash of varying reception. Some fans claim it to be his best work yet, while others insist that it’s far from the quality of his previous works, ASTROWORLD being the common standard of comparison. I find UTOPIA to be a breath of fresh air in the world of A-List Hip-Hop. Given its inventive nature and its mixed reception, the album’s title is more than fitting. Such is perfectly captured in the outro of “SIRENS,” performed by Drake and an (as of yet) unknown woman:

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Interview: Obskür Talks Production Process & Success Since 'Bayside' Hit

by Andrew Braithwaite
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Dublin, Dance/Electronic duo Obskür have made their way onto the scene with popular productions like 'Bayside,' which has gathered worldwide attention. Their tracks have gained around 80 million streams collectively on Spotify alone. They’ve played shows with some of the UK and Ireland's biggest clubbing brands, including The Warehouse Project, Creamfields, Reading & Leeds Festival, XOYO in London, as well as Amnesia alongside Sonny Fodera and Danny Howard. They’ve also expanded onto the worldwide circuit. Recently, we managed to catch up with them at the Beat-Herder Festival in Lancashire, UK.

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Review: Aries latest song “SNAKE EYES”

by Jordan
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“SNAKE EYES” is the first single released by Aries since his triumphant sophomore album, BELIEVE IN ME, WHO BELIEVES IN YOU, released back in 2021. Aries has amassed a sort of cult following in the last few years, built off of his unique take on genre fusion between Hip-Hop, contemporary Pop, and a little secret sauce somewhere in the middle. “SNAKE EYES” is no different. With thunderous guitars, incredibly catchy yet soothing melodies, and masterfully arranged production and mixing, this song offers its listeners just over 2 minutes of song length, but a lifetime of replay. “SNAKE EYES” is frankly, quite addicting. Aries pulls no punches with well written verses and an impeccable hook. It was produced by Aries and his two talented friends, Wyatt Otis and Pharaoh Vice. It was written and engineered by Aries as well. “SNAKE EYES” was released independently through DistroKid, a great tool that many up and coming artists utilize to distribute their work. 

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Juliet Lyons releases new, meditative single

by Adam Bailey
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New Age Recording Artist Juliet Lyons of Los Angeles, CA has released her new single, Breathe III.  Breathe III, recently nominated for a Hollywood Independent Music Award, is the third in a trilogy of musical meditations with a focus on the calming, grounding capabilities of focused breathing.  The first two iterations of the Breathe trilogy are available for listening exclusively on Insight Timer Plus.  Breathe III is available in all digital outlets, and features piano, dreamy synth pads, and ethereal vocals. 

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Q&A: Izo FitzRoy talks new music, creative process & live shows

by Andrew Braithwaite
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Izo FitzRoy, the talented gospel, blues, and jazz singer-songwriter, distinguished herself from her peers with her first two albums, 'Skyline' (2017) and 'How The Mighty Fall' (2020). Her music featured uplifting harmonies, powerful lead vocals, and impressive live performances, which garnered widespread critical acclaim worldwide. As a result, she earned plays on various BBC radio stations, including BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music, and BBC London JazzFM. Additionally, she received accolades such as the FIP Selection award and was featured on NPR's 'Heavy Rotation' in the US. On top of that, her Spotify listenership reached almost half a million monthly listeners.

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The Coral Releases 'That's Where She Belongs' from Upcoming Album, Sea Of Mirrors - Listen

by Adam Bailey
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With their creative prowess honed over three decades, The Coral reveals a new addition to their forthcoming album, Sea Of Mirrors. Titled 'That's Where She Belongs,' the song serves as a harmony-rich anthem to ultimate freedom, inspired by the breathtaking views of wheeling seabirds against the blue skies of their coastal hometown. Set within the conceptual framework of Sea Of Mirrors—an Italian spaghetti western filmed amidst unexpected Mediterranean storms—the track beautifully juxtaposes themes of release and redemption amidst a world of truth and fiction.

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Jeff Cohen Releases ‘All The Light’

by Adam Bailey
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On June 30, Grammy and CMT nominated, and six-time BMI award-winning songwriter/producer/publisher Jeff Cohen released the first single off his upcoming artist album project ‘How To Keep The Sky From Falling’ with ‘All The Light’ - a collaboration with his band Pancho’s Lament. 

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Breakout Star Mimi Webb Becomes Maybelline UK's Newest Face

by Adam Bailey
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Maybelline UK is pleased to announce that talented singer-songwriter Mimi Webb has been chosen as the brand's latest spokesperson. Despite being just two years into her career, the 23-year-old artist has already made a significant impact with her music, amassing an impressive 1.2 billion streams worldwide and achieving multiple chart hits, including "House On Fire," "Good Without," and "Red Flags." Notably, she was also nominated for "Best New Artist" at the Brit Awards 2023 and debuted at number 4 on the UK album charts.

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