Indie Music

Pop Music Reviews Artist: Team Rockit Title: Rockit Science Official Site: http://www.teamrockit.com Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/teamrockit Style: Power Pop/Indie Rock Label: Fire Tone Records By Staff Writer Samantha Landis Team Rockit can best be described by their tagline, "4 releases, 4 videos, 4 European Tours" which will change with the release of Rockit Science, Team Rocket's fifth release on Fire Tone Records. Team Rockit have just finished up a 5th European Tour and will be rocking across Illinois next. Some of Team Rockit's musical influences include: Jim Morrison, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Ween, The Hives, The Kinks, Foo Fighters, Johnny Cash, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Queens of the Stone Age. Joe Sanzeri's raw vocals shine throughout this album while Team Rockit remain fiery and rough. One of my favorite tracks off Rockit Science is track 8, "Out Of This" with an electronic sound and ear-catching bass line. Meanwhile tracks like "Rough Rider" keep the tongue-in-cheek way of Team Rockit, rolling. Rockit Science is the perfect album for a wild night out or a drive cross country. Check out: "Rough Rider" and "Out Of This" Sounds like: "The Hives meets the Foo Fighters meets The Figgs meets AC/DC." Artist: Kalliopi Title: Around the World Website: http://www.kalliopi.eu.com MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/kalliopimusic Style: Pop/Rock Rating: 8.2 out of 10 By Senior Writer C.W. Ross Hailing from Greece Kalliopi is a pop/rock, singer/songwriter. She list her musical influences as, Madonna, U2, Blondie, Joan Jett, Garbage, David Bowie, Sting, The Rolling Stones, The B-52's, Alanis Morissette, Led Zeppelin, and The White Stripes. If I had to pick from that list I would say that her sound is a mixture of Madonna meets the band Garbage. Around the World is a CD Single featuring three songs lasting twelve minutes in total. Track-1 "Around the World" and track-2 "Naked" are upbeat pop rockers. While track-3 "Fire and Sea" slows it down going the melodic ballad route. It's hard to take a lot away from a short release but one thing I can tell you is that Kalliopi has wide ranging vocals that grab you attention and don't let go. This is a release that will have you asking ...more please! Artist: Admiral Twin Title: The Center of the Universe Website: http://www.admiraltwin.com MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/admiraltwin Style: Alternative Pop-Rock Label The Pop Collective Rating: 8.4 out of 10 By Senior Writer C.W. Ross Around since 1996 this Oklahoma band's 5th release, The Center of the Universe, is filled with alternative pop-rock music with a tinge of an experimental edge mixture of musical styles. Having been performing live both across the U.S. and Canada the band has built up a loyal following to their music. The guys have been influenced by a wide range of bands from, The Beatles, U2, ELO, Queen, Prince, The Rolling Stones, and The Police to Elvis Presley, The Clash, Radiohead, Wilco, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Rush, Pink Floyd and REM. Being only a trio, Mark Carr (bass, keyboards, noises, vocals), Jarrod Gollihare (drums, percussion, keyboards, vocals), and John Russell (guitar, piano, keyboards, vocals), the band is still able to put out a large sound. The vocal harmonies found in the songs are spot on and melt together like the cheese found in a perfectly done grilled cheese sandwich. The band's songs are smartly written. Also the band's use of unusual noises intermixed with guitars and an always-present drumbeat driving things ahead makes for a mix that works very well together. I think with the nice job that the band has done on The Center of the Universe, that Admiral Twin is ready to take the next step up in their musical career. Artist: Bayard Russell Title: Selftitled Website: http://www.bayardrussell.com MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/bayardrussel CDBaby: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bayardrussell Style: Pop/Techno Rating: 8.1 out of 10 By Senior Writer C.W. Ross Russell, who's from Indiana, grew up listening to The Beatles and Ice Cube. He started playing the piano at age 4 and picked up guitar playing during his high school years. He attended Dartmouth with a major in philosophy and a minor in music. After graduation he moved to NYC to pursue his music. Besides his solo work Russell is also the lead vocalist, bassist, and songwriter for the garage rock band Negative Ken. Selftitled is Russell's debut solo release. On it you'll find a collection of music characterized in his press material as, 'Indie heartbroken pop.' As that description indicates the songs found on this release deal with love and loss, with most of it centering on the heartbroken side of the love scale. The music has an electro-pop style that runs throughout it ala bands like The Postal Service, which is one of the bands Russell list as his musical influences along with, Elliot Smith, John Mayer, Fountains of Wayne, Jack Johnson, and Belle and Sebastian. The release has a lofi, not over worked, raw edge to it that creates a nice feel. With its wide variety of techno sounds and dance beats, intermixed with an alternative meets Indie pop sound, with a dash of playfulness and experimentation added in makes Bayard Russell's Selftitled a release worth buying. Artist: Renee Zawawi Title: Legends Website: http://www.reneezawawi.com Style: Pop Dance Label: Sapines Record Rating: 7.9 out of 10 By Senior Writer C.W. Ross Renee Zawawi's life is fascinating and much of it can be found in this, her debut release, Legends. While still a young child, Zawawi was abducted from her home in Philadelphia and taken overseas. "I sang to release my soul and relieve the heartache of what I was going through," Zawawi explains. "Through perseverance and determination, I was eventually reunited with my family here in the USA." Unfortunately she didn't get the chance to see her mother before she passed away. Renee has girl-next-door beauty with big puppy dog eyes and a smile that can light up a room. She competed in and won several beauty pageants including, 'Miss PA 2004.' Renee's true passion though has always been her music. "I can't imagine living without music in my life," Zawawi explains. "There is no better feeling than sharing touching moments with my audience. I think there are songs on my record for everyone, and I can't wait for people to hear it!" Legends offer up many different offshoots to its main theme of pop dance music. Several of the songs have a Middle Eastern flair to them along with the very Spanish sounding, "Never Knew" with its castanets. The songs alternate from heavy bass pumping dance tracks like "American Girrrl" and "Flirt With Me" to more melodic ones including the final track, "On the Road." That song deals with not letting people pull you down, to live your dreams. Another track worth mentioning is, "Children of the World." This song was written to raise funds to help children suffering from war, violence, and disaster. The chorus of the song was translated into 7 different languages so children listening to the song could enjoy it in their native language. When asked about where the inspiration comes from for her songs Renee says, "...the songs (are) from my heart and soul, about the best and the worst experiences that I have been through-through out my life trip in general and through out traveling to various countries. Each song speaks of dances, cultures, and encounters..." With its club world beats and strong lyrics you should be hearing the songs from Renee Zawawi's Legends pumping from both your local club and favorite radio station. Artist: Anyu Title: Reasons Website: http://www.anyu.net Style: Pop/World Label: Axent Records Rating: 8 out of 10 By Staff Writer Levi Gordon The music, emotional. The production, topnotch. The instruments, well-layered. There's a lot to like about this Axent Records release, and it may surprise you. Anyu has developed a fairly cohesive album that carries even its most elated messages in dark tones, and never breaks the pattern by allowing a cheesy pop love song for the sake of radio play. Thank you, Anyu. Reasons is a meager ten tracks, and that's usually a bad sign. But while some artists stop there because their creativity ends, it at least appears Anyu wanted to spend time making his songs worthwhile, and he did. The only song that seems obvious filler is the last song, "Peace Only," which would have been better placed as an interlude. The CD opens with lonely guitars and distant synths in "Call On Me." Anyu's voice is noticeably mixed well above the rest of the instruments, taking a strong presence. The positive part of that is being able to hear the soft melodies and subtle catchiness of his music, but unfortunately reveals extremely lackluster lyrics. If any part of this release seems dumbed down for radio play, it's the simple lyricism. This includes the rhymes with words like eyes, skies, and lies. However, this album really shines in its instrumentation. The beats and shakers carry the songs well and are aided by well-placed guitars, keeping the songs from falling into boring and monotonous loops. Although he uses the help of many guest musicians, Anyu is credited with much of the instrumentation, which is impressive when you consider the amount of "artists" in his genre who have little more than a good voice. There are no songs on this album that stand out as big radio singles, internet crazes, or one-hit-wonders, and it is far better for it. The production is so phenomenal it borders on being too-good, and one can't help but wonder what this would sound like were it a little rougher. But all in all, listeners are likely to find this album peaceful as the last song suggests, and truly enjoy what it has to offer. The question is, can Anyu follow this up with an album more adventurous and lyrically rich? If he did, it would probably be a masterpiece. Artist: Stealing Jane Title: Say Something EP Website: http://www.stealingjane.com Style: Pop/Rock/R&B Label: BTO Records Rating: 8.6 out of 10 By Senior Writer C.W. Ross The band got started in 2000 under the name HyJinX but later reformed under their current name Stealing Jane. Since then they've been building a loyal fan base playing with such artist as, Spin Doctors, Tower of Power, George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and The Wailers. Stealing Jane is a rare breed these days a full band complete with a horn section. The band's lineup is, Bryce Larsen (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Will Tully (drums), Matt Giordano (lead guitar), Brian Bunce (bass), Pat Iannelli (saxophone), Dave Calzone (trombone), Jesse Sears (keyboards), and Andrew Mericle (trumpet). All of this instrumentation allows the band's music to have a rich and full sound. The band jokes about how many different ways their music has been defined. Let me tell you it's a reviewer's nightmare trying to pigeon hole a band with so many different influences into a specific genre. So I'll let them label their own original sound, and they classify it as, 'groove rock.' On this EP's 6-tracks you'll find songs that deal mostly with relationships and love set against a backdrop of guitar and horn infused music. The band's sound flourishes in its variety with R&B tracks like, "Better Things", to the Latin flavored, "More." It all ends with the final track, "This is Goodbye", a pop/rock number that lets the horn and guitar parts run free and have some fun. One thing that I felt the whole way through this release that the band members are having fun and enjoy what they're doing. If you haven't been fortunate to hear Stealing Jane's music yet then their Say Something EP will give you a nice bite of their music.