It’s time again for another installment in my monthly series, Monthly Favourites. The tracks on this list come from a range of different artists and a variety of genres, showcasing their music to the world. As always, you can find a full playlist at the bottom of the list.
Review by Jane Howkins
Picture by Francesca Guerra
Francesca Guerra – Pathetic
Francesca Guerra is an Italian singer-songwriter and musician, producing dreamy soundscapes that invite the listener into her ethereal world. Pathetic is one such song, starting off with quite a slow tempo as the music in the background slowly builds up around her vocals, with the song also featuring some stunning backing vocals. Her voice soars to some lofty heights on the chorus – check it out below to see what I mean!
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Jade Stanger – The Stranger That Wasn’t Bad
The Stranger That Wasn’t Bad is a pop song of sorts, although it’s more in the alt-pop vibe, also having elements of folk and indie music. Jade Stanger’s vocals are amazing, sounding particularly impressive on the higher notes as the tempo increases into the chorus. The change in dynamics between the verses and chorus help to take the listening on a musical ride into Jade’s subconscious, with the little palm-muted guitar riffs adding a fantastic texture to the track.
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Lewis Poole – Alone 2.0
Lewis Poole is a musician from the South-West of the UK, creating music that is reminiscent of both the modern pop-rock scene and the classic pop-punk world. His vocals are a little distant on the chorus of Alone 2.0, however they have that typical pop-punk sound that we’ve all come to know and love, as the guitars and drums crash around them. The guitar motif that runs through the chorus and the breakdown of the song is also impeccably catchy.
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Lorenzo Gabanizza – I Guess I Am The Only One
Lorenzo Gabanizza is another Italian artist, albeit one with a slightly different sound to the track at the top of this page. I Guess I Am The Only One has quite a surprising sound for an Italian musician, bringing elements of country and folk into this upbeat Americana tune. The guitar licks are bluesy as all hell, reminding me a lot of the rock and roll music that emerged in the 1960s, pushing the music along to its satisfying conclusion.
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Robin Cisek – Zeus
Robin Cisek is probably the only Métis player we’ve ever featured in these pages, so it’s great to be able to showcase her unique instrumental skills. Zeus is quite a mainstream pop song, featuring a steady beat that pulsates through the track like a heartbeat. The vocals sound perfect, melding with the backing synths and bass perfectly. I’m not normally one for mainstream pop, but when it’s this good, who am I to judge?!
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Smith St. Nicholas – Our Storyline
Our Storyline is a little different to most of the other tracks here – whilst it does have its poppy moments, it’s also a little avant-garde, especially in terms of the backing effects used on the track. The music Smith St. Nicholas creates has a great textural quality, making for a fantastic overall atmosphere, as his smooth vocals glide alongside the music, with odd backing vocals appearing every so often. It won’t be for everyone, but those into their more experimental pop music should enjoy this.
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Karen Harding – I’ve Got A Secret
Australian singer-songwriter and musician Karen Harding’s music is one for those more into their acoustic genres, as it’s a folky song with both traditional and modern folk aspects. The guitars act as the main instrumentation on I’ve Got A Secret and are strummed in a rhythmic way, with what sounds like a double bass playing in the background to give this piece a haunting quality, alongside the mystical vocals.
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Lil’ Rubio – Bad All Night
Bad All Night changes this list up once again, as it’s a hip-hop/r&b-based song with a fantastic groove to it. Lil’ Rubio has a smooth vocal style, singing along to the beat as the backing effects create a vocal sound that suits the music well. It’s quite upbeat, with little guitar melodies appearing every so often to give a little more melody to the piece, alongside the piano motifs.
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Ralphy – Wanted
Wanted starts out with the noise of a clock donging, before the synths and bass emerge, exploding into the song with a haze of wild energy. Ralphy’s addition to this list is catchy, yet there’s also a dark undercurrent to the song, making it sound quite different to a lot of other alt-pop songs out there at the moment. The track also has a rocky vibe, especially with the way the guitar lines work their way through the song.
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Kyle Huskey – Villain
Villain brings things back down a little on this stripped back tune, as it’s more of a folk song than anything else, although it’s also got that classic singer-songwriter vibe that has become so popular in recent years. Kyle Huskey’s vocals are full of emotion here, laying over the strummed acoustic guitar melodies and bringing a great energy to the music. The electric guitars are used sparingly, but when they do appear, they soar!
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Juniper Avenue – Bumfuzzle
The interestingly titled Bumfuzzle is a fairly new release from Juniper Avenue, a rock band with a power-pop quality to their music. The raw nature of the song also aligns it well with the garage rock scene, as buzzsaw guitar riffs intermingle with the eccentric sounding vocals and the huge percussion the track brings to the table. The song also has quite a melodic sound, despite the heaviness, containing occasional piano twinkles that hark back to the classic days of rock and roll.
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Paul Vinson – Keep Up
Those into their folk music are in for a proper treat with Paul Vinson’s Keep Up – a folk-pop tune with a beautiful quality to it at times. The way the piano and the guitars work together is incredibly, especially on the chorus, when the music breaks down slightly to highlight Paul’s luscious vocals. It’s a fantastic piece of music and one that sounds expertly pieced together and produced, for your own musical pleasure.
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Susy K – Heal
Heal is groovy from the very start, featuring a funky bassline and a piano organ as the main instrumentation, running underneath Susy K’s soulful vocal style. The song has a classic r&b feel, also including moments of soul, gospel & Motown music, making for a great overall sound. The backing vocals on the chorus occasionally sound like a gospel choir, before the brass instruments appear on the post-chorus, oozing cool throughout.
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Chris Considine – Force Of Nature
The thing that struck me first about Chris Considine’s Force Of Nature was how much the opening guitar melodies reminded me of the 60s power-pop movement, although there’s a lot more here than just a nostalgic throwback. Chris’s vocals have a unique quality that works surprisingly well, especially on the chorus, with its driving rhythm and emotive vocals really helping to bring this amazing tune to life.
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7000apart – No Is A Nice Word
The clean guitar melody that opens up No Is A Nice Word is simple yet beautiful, setting the tone for this haunting song well from the very first moment. 7000apart are a duo made up of married couple Amelie & Jon – Amelie’s heartfelt vocals provide the main vocal line for the music, having a lower pitch on the verses, before her voice glides into a higher range on the beautiful chorus. It’s quite a minimalist tune, but this factor definitely works in its favour.
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Robbie Rapids – April’s Gonna Rain
April’s Gonna Rain starts as it means to go on, with some epic guitar riffs clashing together before the verses appear, giving the music more of a rhythmic quality that makes you want to dance along immediately. This isn’t a pop song though, as Robbie Rapids song has quite a dark vibe – the guitar melodies are eerie when mixed with the bass and the melancholic lyrics and it also sounds like there’s a dark synth section playing in the background of the music.
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Dez Rocksteady – You Don’t Need Much
Dez Rocksteady brings a more positive atmosphere to this list on You Don’t Need Much, both in terms of musical style and the lyrical content of the piece. I found myself reminded a lot of Beans On Toasts’ music, as this song sees Dez bringing positive vibes to the room with his casual style of singing and upbeat alt-folk stylings. It’s a fantastic song for putting you in a good mood, so it comes well recommended from me!
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