This is the first half of Tim’s new album. It’s available at www.timblane.com/download. I’m still giving it a first listen, but so far it’s great, typical Tim. Jazzy, lot of piano, horns, good melodies. This album just proves what we all know about Tim, he can write, sing and play music, he’s got a voice that enchants the ladies, and it’s needless to say that he’s easy on the eyes. :) This is a great little EP, lots of horns, gives it that old-time jazzy feel, you don’t hear that in a lot of music nowadays. Its great, definitely recommended, so go download some great free music!
Over the past year James, Ky, Taylor, Syd, Mike and myself have put together a little family called Horizons Management. A little background… I met James Kenly in 2006 when he was managing Braddigan. In January of 2008 James started to manage Taylor Carson and Syd. Since then he worked on putting together an indie artist management company with TAC and Syd as its first two active artists. He called this company Horizons Management. Last summer James officially announced Horizons with its first official hire, Ky Winborn. Ky became the point man for Horizons while James was getting married. Ky has stayed on as day-to-day operations man for Taylor and Syd. Mike Hilger also met James while he was managing Brad. Mike has recently become Horizons first official intern. Over the years, I have stuck by James and have watched Horizons grow from an idea to a full fledged company. I guess I’ve always been an unofficial intern for Horizons doing PR and promo for the artists. Over the past few months we’ve gotten close as a team and as a family. James, Ky, Taylor, Syd, Mike and I make up the Horizons Team and we keep our finger on the pulse of the indie music scene.
Who really is That Pack? I’m here to expose the true identities of these 5 super heros. The band Who’s That Pack is made up of five artists, all five just happen to be some of my favorite musicians – Todd Martin, Syd, Tim Blane, Patrick Thomas, and Chad Perrone. Todd is a good friend of mine and Syd is part of our Horizons Management Team. They’re both awesome guys. Todd just released 2 new songs, Syd just released a new EP, which you can get for free at http://www.co-opsounds.com, Tim is in the process of releasing a new album, Patrick has just released a new album, also available at the Co-Op, and Chad put out a great new CD last year. Every so often they all come together for a run of shows as Who’s That Pack. It’s kind of a fake band, but not really. They all play each other’s songs and add something new to each track that isn’t there when the songs are played solo. You should definitely check them all out and check out the WTP at http://www.myspace.com/whosthatpack.
Honor By August had initially said they were going to release their second album, Found, in late April, but instead, it came out today, May 29. HBA is a band that has shared the stage with artists such as Bon Jovi, Third Eye Blind, Vertical Horizon, Peter Frampton, Hootie & the Blowfish, Edwin McCain, Hanson, State Radio and many others. Found is a record that is similar, yet very different from their first album, Drowning Out The Television. I think this album has different musicians playing behind the instruments than the first release. Found makes use of piano, unlike DOTT.
I love HBA because the lead singer has a pretty cool voice. The use of drums and guitars in this release is great. Acoustic guitars are used more on this CD. HBA also has great song writing backing their tunes. In regards to the song writing, I feel like Found is similar to DOTT, but I like it better. Their songs touch on love, loss, survival, the Iraq War… Alive and Awake is the last track on the CD and it is the best ending track I’ve heard in a while for a CD. It wraps everything up so perfectly. It’s a great album. I suggest picking it up.
They did a music video for the first track on the CD, which is also the title track, Found. Here it is.
Kate Voegele’s new CD A Fine Mess, came out last week. I discovered Kate through Braddigan. I’ve watched Kate go from a college singer/songwriter to a TV-pop star. I’ve never watched or got into One Tree Hill, but I think it’s great that Kate has landed that role. It’s really boosting her career. Anyways, the album…
This is a record with a definite independent sound. It’s not typical pop, but it’s not what Horizonsmgmt called “bubblegum pop.” It’s a unique sound. In the grand scheme of things, I don’t think this album will be considered one of the best of 2009, but it stands out in the top 15 at least. It’s a good second record and you can tell that Kate is evolving as a songwriter and musician artist. It is definitely worth a listen. You can steam it all at www.myspace.com/katevoegele.
I hate that question. In reality I love a lot of records. Lately, however, a few albums have really stuck out to me. They’ve either spoken to me in some way or I just can’t stop listening to them.
Chad Perrone - Wake This album was released in 2008. I love this record. In Syd’s Best of 2008 blog, he said this about Chad and this record: “He and his band with Dennis Carroll behind the controls have re-asserted Chad’s role in the power-pop world leaving us all excited that he picked up his electric, turned it up and plugged it in.” Standouts on this album to me are Madison, Awake, Nantucket, Here It Is… I love the whole record.
Tyrone Wells - Remain This album was released in 2008. It is full of songs of hope and life. Songs like More, Remain, Sink or Swim and Between the Lines really stick out to me. The message of this album is so powerful. It is Tyrone’s best work so far and this album is always addicting. Some of the songs on this album were recorded in London, which gives them a very interesting sound. I definitely recommend this record.
Matt Nathanson - Some Mad Hope This album was released in 2007. I got this album when I was at Middlebury for the second time. It was the only thing I could listen to for the longest time. It is what has sky-rocketed Matt to his popularity today. I can’t pick standouts on this record because I love the whole thing. I wrote a separate post about Matt.
Todd Martin - Time For Good Todd is a good friend of mine. This is an older record of Todd’s, but I think it is one of his best. Stand outs are Love Scene, Punchline, Brand New and Save Myself. In reality all of Todd’s music is awesome, in fact, he’s right now mixing two new songs. I find myself listening to this album the most out of Todd’s records. With Boots and Kit providing the backing on this record, it’s a great listen.
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