Posts Tagged ‘Acoustic’

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

Ok, so, if you follow this bloggy (which I assume you do, if not, get on that pronto, butthole), then you would know that I’ve always had an itsy bitsy teeny weeny hole in my heart that belongs to Lights. Tiny because honestly, that’s all she needs. She’s like a toy doll. But real and stuff. Almost kinda anime-ish, but you know what I’m saying!

Back to the point…

Lights creates original pieces of music that clearly come from the heart. In one listen, it’s apparent that she’s more than a quirky girl with a guitar, she’s a quirky girl with a guitar and a fractured wonderland of a soul.

In her latest vlog, the 24-year-old Canadian singer/songwriter performs a new song, a gem by the name of In The Dark I See.

Check out the new tune + another beautiful acoustic Lights jam following.

Love her!

[Related Post: Quirky Quirkerson: Lights Edition]

By: Caitlin Hoffman
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

He Is We is a colouring book that fills in itself. Boy + girl = music.

They are the chewy slab of vegan brownies on the dessert table of indie pop. If Automatic Loveletter and Boys Like Girls had a saucy one-night stand, He Is We would be their lovechild. They’re charming, delicate, and honest. They work well with the simplicity in a smile, the heat off flower petals. Usually a band needs to grab me in a choke hold before I take notice of them, but He is We comes over you like a cup of tea, a bubble bath, anything with a definable cozy element. All headbanging is replaced with gentle toe taps on the window sill. Their songs remind you to slow down, step out and enjoy the sun.

A great band for people in love or looking to fall in love. A great band for summer, a great band for snoozing in the afternoons. Plus, they’re streaming their album for free download. All about the music, none about the money.
　

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

[Download the entire album for free by clicking here.]

Words cannot explain how much Bryce Avary’s music has affected my life. During every high and low I’ve faced over the past couple years since discovering his music, the sound of his voice has been there, creating a beautiful backdrop to the bittersweet bliss that has been my 20s.

I usually like every single record The Rocket Summer releases and play it on a loop for months on end. It’s incredibly honest and filled with a substance that makes ordinary pop seem lackluster: heart.

God bless you, Bryce! I freakin’ love your music!

Please never stop. Puhlease.

Watch a video from Bryce explaining the new free acoustic album + two of my favorite tracks from his previous discs — the stunningly heartfelt Walls + the music video for Do You Feel following.

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

When I first met Max AKA Freddy Marx Street, I was running late & pissed by the fact that I was waiting on the train. Then, I looked across the platform and suddenly felt the need to remove my headphones. There against the tile wall underneath one of the busiest cities in the world was a scruffy boy in his 20s, stroking his guitar with a voice and emotion so honest it cut like glass.

I struggled for change to put in his guitar case but only found a piece of Orbit Maui Melon Mint gum. As I placed the gum in his case I asked for his info, and the rest is history. For the record, Max is a musician from the Ukraine who came to NYC to pursue his dreams, living off the money earned while playing the streets of New York City.

He is amazing and needs to be signed ASAP!

He is currently back in the Ukraine (damn you, rules of America), but should be back for his second round of NYC domination in June.

This is a look at his story.

[Sidenote: Please keep in mind that English is not his first language.]

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ROB BRAYL: I have to say that out of the three years I’ve lived in New York, you’re probably the best subway artist I’ve heard. No joke. Immediately, when I heard your music, I felt a strong connection to it. Would you agree that your music often carries an emotional weight?

FREDDY MARX STREET: Well, emotions and feelings are the power that makes me turn to music. Even more, music talks to me with the help of those emotions. For me, if there are no emotions then it’s not music. Yeah, music exists to show the depth of feelings. Can’t imagine anything else.

RB: You’re from the Ukraine. You dropped everything that you’ve always known to move to New York to perform on the streets for a living. Can you tell us a little about what was going through your brain the day you left your country behind?

FMS: Tons of lie, there was just the lie in my head. I didn’t and I do not want my mother and sister to know the entire truth about my trip to the US. So I needed to lie. They still think that I am an art-manager in one of the Ukrainian galleries as I was before. And we have some international projects in NYC. So my family has no worries about my living here. I hope so. Barely a couple of people in Ukraine are aware about my real trip.

And sure, at the same time with that lie I felt the truth: Ok, man! You have no shelter, no friends in NYC. Nothing! Just your dreams. And definitely it’s not gonna be a movie. So I was a bit scared. But that was my choice. My decision. I was given some skills in writing and singing and not for wasting them. Feel that I need to prove that was a mistake. This thought is always with me, especially when I have hard times.

RB: I know we’ve talked about the struggles you’ve faced along the way, one of them being the times you’ve crashed in Penn Station, but besides the financial aspect, have there been any other struggles you’ve faced while being in New York?

FMS: Our Ukrainian terminals are not as safe and peaceful as yours. Oh, I have not been to Port Authority for a whole month already. Are they doing well? Must go and check. They are like my family.

And about struggles… Every day is the struggle. Even in my country, all the time I had to fight. I don’t mean financial things, but music and dreams and the real purpose of my life. Why am I here? Why do I face all these problems? And it doesn’t depend on what you are – musician, physician, or politician, there’s some truth everyone must find in his life. You can easily find this theme in my music.

RB: The fact that you moved here with raw talent and a guitar and just went for your dream, refusing to give up, shows incredible passion. Where do you think this passion comes from?

FMS: First of all I must believe, believe in my lyrics and music. If you don’t this music will fail. And if you believe then it’s true. And you are ready to fight for it for its truth. I guess the passion we are talking about comes from right here, from this truth.

RB: It’s apparent when you listen to your music that you pour out every ounce of your heart into it. What’s the ultimate goal?

FMS: Sharing… I don’t feel that all this music is mine. Sometimes I use other people’s stories, experiences… Let’s call them co-creators. I mean, yeah, that’s my luck, that my skill is in music. But it doesn’t make me better for you or for anyone else. We all are sisters and brothers. My music is my happiness and it’s wonderful that I’m able to share it with people.

RB: So, you’re leaving for the Ukraine soon to update your visa. You’re definitely coming back to perform in New York though, right?

FMS: I am. There’s no way back. I must fight till the end. Hope to meet NYC in June again.

RB: I almost forgot, can you give us the scoop on the origin of the name?

FMS: Long time ago one guy in Ukraine found on my face some familiar features with Freddie Mercury. One letter was changed. That’s how Freddy appeared. Marx… My name is Max. We added one more letter to this word to make it, to make it not so obvious. During some years only FREDDY MARX was used as the band name. But I felt that there was a great lack of something. I was walking down the street one late night thinking about a new song. Got back to that street the next day to finish the lyrics. Suddenly all my songs’ characters rushed to that street. And they still live there. The name of this place is FREDDY MARX STREET.

RB: My friend recently joked, saying that we should all hope that Adele gets her heart broken again because her latest CD is a masterpiece because of it. How do you feel about pain and how it can create beautiful music?

FMS: Pain can easily get your heart, your real heart where you don’t pretend and play no fake role. So pain gets your truth. And if you don’t miss this moment, this truth will be in your music for sure. I feel music just wins from this.

RB: If I were to steal your iPod right now, what’s on your current playlist? Can you give us a few artists, songs, or albums? Any guilty pleasures?

FMS: Sigur Ros, Beyonce, Tori Amos, Peter Gabriel, Atmasfera (a cool Ukrainian world music band) and of course some mantras.

RB: And to wrap this up where can readers find out more/stay connected with Freddy Marx?

FMS: Email: freddymarxstreet@gmail.com, Reverb Nation: www.reverbnation.com/freddymarxstreet, or on the FMS website: www.freddymarx.com.

Listen to my favorite Freddy Marx Street song, the hauntingly beautiful Sorry, below.

‘Sorry’ by Freddy Marx Street (Audio)

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

[Photo by: Bauer Griffin]

“For about a week he was calling and was deadly serious about it. Finally, I said, ‘Well, you made my life hell, so I lived it and now I deserve it.’ He really thought he’d had some input into the creative process by being a p****. I’ll give him this credit – he made me an adult and put me on the road that I’m travelling.”

-Adele / The Sun
[On her ex claiming he deserved royalties for her musical success]

Donate to Comic Relief and help change lives by clicking here.

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

ROB BRAYL: So, tell us about Brian.

BRIAN MACKEY: I defy main-stream. I’m the kind of guy that shows up to a gig without a guitar case, and just a guitar strapped around my back, I jump on stage and do my thing. I’m not really into being hip or what’s cool at the moment, I kind of just do what I feel, and if it makes other people feel in the process, then that’s a good thing, good or bad, happy or sad, doesn’t matter. (But I would like to make them feel good.)

RB: Your video for ‘Honest Love’ was just released and it carries a pretty heartfelt message. Can you take us back to the moment you started writing this song, what was the driving force behind this record?

BM: The song, ‘Honest Love’ came out of a conversation with myself, to try to make sense of what Love really means. The waiting, the wanting, the abandonment, the moving on, the changing of the heart, the mind, and still being able to sum it all up in one word, and putting Honest in front of it, which seems like a contradiction, but a beautiful one at that. The record was supposed to be a full-length album, but I didn’t really have the money to do it. So I made it an EP, and put together the songs that I truly wanted to get out there with the limited resources I had at the time. I just needed to get the song ‘Florida’ on there, because a lot of people came up to me at shows and said they could really relate to that song. So I figured if enough people told me they could relate, I felt it was a good fit for the album.

RB: Your song, ‘Sunshower’ (off the ‘Honest Love’ EP), was chosen to be on the official ‘Songs of Love for Japan’ compilation (among great artists like Sara Bareilles and others). Can you tell us a little more about this project?

BM: Yes, this one came to me last minute, and it’s really just a super great cause for the ravaged country of Japan, which is just going through so much turmoil. It was strange because I was saying to myself, what could I do to help, I’m only one person. And then there was this opportunity to help, so I took it. It’s a 100 song compilation of not so well-known songs, but by really great artists. 100% of the proceeds go to Shelterbox, the charity committed to helping the victims and their families in Japan. Also, Ani DiFranco will be on there too, and many more.

[To learn more click here.]

RB: Any current pop culture addictions? Ones that may have influenced your music in any way?

BM: Pop-culture addictions… there are some, mostly in the film world. I love certain TV shows like ‘True Blood’, or anything where someone is ripping their neck off, all done in the name of love. I love this great UK show called ‘Doc Martin’, I discovered it on Netflix. So what I do is go to the British TV section on Netflix, dim the lights, get out my chutney and talk like Sherlock Holmes the whole night. I’m not sure how any of this influences my music, but I love all kinds of music, for example, I love piano, and classical music like Beethoven privately, but never play it on stage.

RB: Finally, where can new listeners keep up with your work? What new tricks do you have up your sleeve? Oh, and thank you for chatting with us.

BM: They can find me in all the usual places, like Facebook, Myspace (when it was popular), Reverbnation, iTunes – oh and by the way I have a Brian Mackey App releasing this week, so for all of you who have iPhones and iPads, so if you are somewhere lost and the GPS drops out, the only thing that comes in will be Brian Mackey, you’ll surely be pissed off, and want to break your phone. Also, I will be the featured artist in the launch issue of Rising Magazine, they will be featuring new photos taken by their photographer on location “behind-the-scenes”-like candid stuff, so keep a lookout for that. In May I’m shooting my next video, ‘Sunshower’, with the brilliant director Nick Cavalier, to be released in the summer, and have some new tour dates coming out for the summer/fall.

Thank you so much for the time, and letting me ramble on about stuff!

Watch the just-released video for ‘Honest Love’ below.

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

As I’ve mentioned before, if Jessie J’s charisma and powerhouse vocals could be sculpted into car form, the result would definitely be a hot pink Cadillac. That, or an 18 wheeler. That’s the kind of force that’s steering Jessie J into superstardom.

And with the release of her debut album, JJ’s left a mark as unforgettable as seeing a freakin’ UFO. Honestly, this might be the best mainstream pop record I’ve heard all year. If you haven’t picked up a copy, do it now.

Besides Who You Are (I know, I know, I’ve raved about this track way too damn much), my favorite tracks are Rainbow and Stand Up.

Listen/watch below.

By: Maria Ciezak
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

It seems like every day someone else is jumping on the Adele train, and I say, all aboard! Rolling In The Deep is such a beautiful song, so why shouldn’t we get as much as we can? It’s so nice to see such a talented, true artist getting recognized by so many. Her album, 21, is a must have if you haven’t already picked up a copy.

Check out two new awesome renditions of Rolling In The Deep, performed by the new Irish girl group, Wonderland & BTB favorite, the PS22 Chorus.

By: Maria Ciezak
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

This girl never seems to fail to impress me. Christina Perri has dropped another track entitled Penguin and I can’t get it out of my head. I loved Lonely and Jar of Hearts and can barely stand the wait; the album needs to drop! Her vocal talent and lyrical content can be greatly appreciated and respected as real, raw music. Homegirl has talent.

This song is light, fluffy, and done right. Cute and poignant, this track can relate to almost everyone. Give it a listen.

By: Caitlin Hoffman
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

I dig musicians with soul. And not just the kind of soul that gives magic to the groove. I mean the soul beneath the skin that so many philosophers debate about. The spark that wants to make a difference in the world.

Jack Johnson is a musician with that kind of soul. Part musician, part surfer, part family man, but all about the love. He has promised to donate $50,000 to the Japan Tsunami Relief Effort, and that’s a move that deserves a pat on the back. Jack and his band were actually in Japan when the earthquake hit, mid-way through their To The Sea tour. The experience was so rattling for him that it awoke his inner philanthropy. He describes it as such: “My family and I were in our hotel room on the 29th floor in Osaka when the earthquake hit. Although it was an extremely nerve-racking experience, it was nothing compared to what those closer to the epicenter are going through. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the families that have been affected by the earthquake and tsunami. We are making a donation to help with the relief efforts and hope to be back in Japan soon to reunite with friends and play more music.”

What’s more, all of the moolah he’s making from his tour is going directly to charity.

I only hope that more men like him get out into the world and keep on making music. He has an attentiveness that comes through his music’s mellow vibes.

Let’s all have a round of applause for Jack Johnson, a man who uses his music to make a difference, not as an excuse to hit on groupies and throw up backstage.

By: Maria Ciezak
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

One of my beloved powerhouse groups, Halestorm, are back with a new EP entitled ReAnimate: The Covers. Lead singer, Lzzy Hale, blares notes so high, things may possibly explode. Her voice is truly one of the best out to date, with a range that’s purely epic. Halestorm covers a diverse collection of greats such as Skid Row, The Beatles, Guns N’ Roses, and modern day diva Lady Gaga (among others).

This disc has a little bit for everyone, while putting a unique, rock and roll touch on each track. This group never disappoints, live or on the airwaves. See the video below in case you need a reminder.

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

Someone teach this boy how to dougie!

[The dougie comment will not make sense until you watch the 2nd vid.]

Adam Lambert has dropped a remixed version of Aftermath specifically as a charity single to raise awareness/benefit the Trevor Project. If you live under a rock, the Trevor Project is an organization that focuses on the prevention of youth crisis suicide in the LGBTQ community.

Recently, the organization posted some of Lambert’s inspiring Aftermath lyrics via Twitter, tweeting to their followers: “Anytime anybody pulls you down, Anytime anybody says you’re not allowed, Just remember you are not alone, In the #Aftermath ~@adamlambert”

Lambert performed the track last night on the Idol stage and the result was nothing short of dandy. Yes, dandy! I said it. It just felt appropriate. His vocals were amazing (as always) and he showed nothing but grace and humility (as always).

Lambert’s a good guy!

Be sure to purchase this track to support a wonderful cause.

Check out Lambert’s interview with Ryan Seacrest + his acoustic performance of the track via American Idol following.

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

Recently, I had the pleasure of seeing Joshua Radin (with opening acts Justin Nozuka & Andrew Allen), live in concert via the Best Buy Theatre in Times Square…

The general consensus is that Joshua Radin is a cutie pie, an A+ type of man dipped in whip cream and covered in rainbow sprinkles. Because honestly, let’s face facts: the guy’s sweet. Yet after seeing him perform live, I think that statement is only partially true. Missing from that statement is the fact that Radin’s substance isn’t sugar coated or sugar based at all. It’s apparent when Radin takes the stage and tells his often quirky stories of past ex-girlfriends and awkward moments in baby making, that Radin is a man whose heart has been shattered and put back together time and time again with a guitar pick and a microphone.

The man comes across absolutely genuine and real on stage and that aura of energy is one of the reasons he is so beloved. The minute he starts to strum, the audience is mesmerized and captivated by his marshmallow voice — his lyrics and emotion as comfortable as peanut butter and jelly — yet as beautiful and exotic as white sand.

Ok, I’m gonna take a moment to step away from the writer mentality and quickly say that my favorite moment of the whole damn show was when Radin — who works with the amazing organization Little Kids Rock – brought three kids on stage from a public school in the Bronx (which he had visited earlier as a part of the organization’s mission to save music programs in public schools), and had the three students play along with him as he performed Brand New Day, all three of the girls strumming along on their acoustic guitars. The audience went wild — not only for the heart that seems to bleed from this artist — but for the utterly normal, giving, non-egotistical being that he comes off as being.

Radin’s low-fi sound is one that shouldn’t be missed live.

Opening acts Justin Nozuka and Andrew Allen were also incredible. I have seen Nozuka in concert before and he always delivers and packs a punch. One exciting note on Nozuka’s behalf is that he mentioned his plan to record with India Arie. Something I definitely look forward to hearing in the future.

Canadian singer/songwriter Andrew Allen comes off as quirky on stage, wrapped in a package that is full of a marketability factor that should ultimately be used as an advantage for him as he tries to make a splash in the States.

Go.see.this.tour.

The end.

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

Sorry, Kris — Zorro takes the crown!

Aside from his serious work with the UN Foundation and Haiti relief, Kris Allen is usually a nut. Someone got hit with the looks stick and was also served a big fat bowl of lucky luck charms. He ain’t just a pretty face, he’s got a sweet soul’d out voice and quite the witty wit wit to boot.

Check out Kris Allen and his French Bulldog pup, Zorro, in action below + a live acoustic cover of MJ’s classic Man In The Mirror following. (Notice the comedic commentary before the song begins. Love this guy!)

By: Rob Brayl
For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

Seriously random!

I saw Posner in concert this past October (see related post below) and the new kid on the block definitely delivered. As expected, his show was an intense sucker punch of energy. However, in a new live performance clip, Posner pulls the plug on the romp and intimately strips down.

Call me blind but when I started to watch the performance, I noticed that something about Mike Posner slightly reminds me of Macaulay Culkin. One google click later and I realized it’s the freakin’ droopy eyes! Do you see what I see? Or do you think I’m batshit crazy?

Aiight, back to the goods…

Watch Posner’s stripped performance of Falling (via Rolling Stone) below.

[Related Post: Gettin' Slizzard with Mike Posner]