EP Review ~ Friar's Lantern ~ The Moments That Define Us: Part 1

Welcome to this weeks EP review, today I have a band who have featured on this blog twice already! They're popular with Love Life, Love Music! They're called Friar's Lantern and they have recently released an EP to follow up from the hype they've received from previous releases. Each release has been reviewed on my blog and a link to those will be at the bottom of this review. 

Friar's Lantern are a electronic ambient duo from Brighton, UK. They have really stepped up their game from their first single release. This EP is one for headphones to really let your ears listen to everything that's going on in the music. The introduction really gives the listener a feel for what is to come. A driving and heavy electronic drum beat accompanied by some quite enthralling bass. 

Friar's Lantern's persona in their music is stamped by the way they use quotes from films as part of the music. A cinematographic outlook on their music is the way to approach this one of a kind style that isn't being done anywhere else. Each quote they use has a very interesting meaning behind it. My favourite quote out of all of them is in the last song "Telos" and the quote is "Music is more than a matter of playing the right notes".   

For the interlude in the EP, they have taken parts from the track before called "Voices". I really like the way they've done this, it takes you back to the track before and makes you remember what was played. They made it sound slightly 'Doctor Who' like within the track that is very atmospheric. 

My personal favourite is the final track on the EP, "Telos". It really displays what Friar's Lantern are capable of and Hayden's guitar skills are demonstrated throughout this song. From simple delicate tones to using pedals to make it sound harsh and brash for what the song needs. Though the song does end quite suddenly, which was a bit of a shock considering it keeps building towards then end, its definitely the stand-out track on the EP. 

I really enjoyed this EP and I'd like you all to go check it out and see what you think of it yourself. Friar's Lantern's music is nothing I've heard out there and certainly has made a long lasting impression on me. I look forward to Part 2 of their EP coming in 2015 and you can be sure there will be a review of it too. 

Thank you very much for reading and until next time. 

Lewis 


Listen to the EP - here


Reviews:

Possessive Voices

Introduction

Links:

Facebook

Twitter

Album Review ~ Philip Sayce ~ Influence

Hello!

Welcome to this weeks main review! Today I have a Welsh born musician from Canada 
who goes by the name of Philip Sayce. Sayce is a blues/rock guitarist who has been rising up in the blues scene ever since his debut album 'Innerevolution'. His songwriting style and performance have had music critics singing his praises ever since.

I wanted to start off with a quote that Sayce said in his album trailer. " Music isn't about winning a spot on The Voice or American Idol, it's a life long commitment. It's paying respects to where this music came from". 

'Influence' is packed full of blues/rock that will have you listening to the album from top to bottom. The record displays genuine triumphs of songwriting from the roots of blues and Sayce is displaying the reasons why all music originated from the blues. The album seems to be teeming with guitar riffs with a helping of grunge on the side too. 

The high quality of the songwriting in the record comes down to being well thought out, crafted and countless amounts of hours spent on each song. Sayce and his producer are lovers of vintage instruments and sounds. For this album they managed to sit down and craft out a sound with every vintage piece of equipment they either owned or could get their hands on to get the right sound for the record. 

The overall sound to the album has all the technologies of today, but with that essence of the vintage sound they have been working on. Philip's sound isn't as clear as it could be, but this is definitely a positive point. It gives his voice that edge when he wants to belt some notes out in songs such as "Green Power" and "Sailin' Shoes".

His guitar tone provides a punch throughout and has definitely pulled out everything for this record. With solid beats and fills from the drums, each instrument used in this record keeps everything tight and exciting. The drums shine through on the song 'Evil Woman', as does Philips guitar skills. Powerfully struck chords and double bass work make this song one of the clear stand outs.

Sayce's guitar techniques and tone are thoroughly enjoyed in the instrumental song "Triumph". The amount of raw emotion and effort that has gone into playing that song reminds me a lot of when Hendrix played. You can sense a lot of passion in that song that gives you excitment and love towards the album. Sayce owes this album to many of the artists he grew up with such as Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton. All of which you need to check out urgently to understand the sound that Philip has created for the album that is very influenced by those artists.

The tracks I would recommend are "Out Of My Mind", "Sailin' Shoes" , "Evil Woman" and "Triumph". These are ones to check out to get a feel of what Sayce's sound and tone is within the album. 

Overall, a blues/rock album that is high up on my list of the best albums of this decade. It displays unique songwriting abilities, the mentality of getting the vintage sounds and dedicating it to some of the best known artists in the business that would all be proud to hear. I was pleasantly surprised when I first heard the album and I hope you will too! Philip Sayce is fast becoming my new favourite guitarist and one that is bringing blues/rock back to the fore-front of music once again.

'Influence' is out now from all good record stores and online for digital download. 

A quick thank you message to Noble PR for hooking me up with Philip's album for this review. Thank you very much for reading and until next time. 

Lewis

Website: http://philipsayce.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PhilipSayceMusic

Twitter: https://twitter.com/philipsayce

Album Review ~ We The Kings ~ Somewhere Somehow

Hello!

Welcome to blog post 36! Today I have an album that I have been listening to since its release last year and a band that I've been following for a good 2/3 years. 

We The Kings are a pop-punk band from Florida, USA and have always been a band I can fall back on for some great music. Their previous albums were a fantastic listen, as it was some ace American pop-punk tunes. Catchy, grungy, rocky with that dose of pop sprinkled on it to make me not listen to them.

We The Kings members are:

Travis Clark - Vocals/Guitar
Hunter Thomsen - Guitar/ Backing Vocals
Charles Trippy - Bass
Coley O'Toole - Keys/Backing Vocals/Guitar
Danny Duncan - Drums/ Percussion

I originally got into the band through Youtuber and bassist of the band Charles Trippy (CTFxC) when he had just joined the band (along with Coley O'Toole). I checked them out and I loved their sound they were producing and was surprised they weren't as well known as they were back in 2011. Releasing albums such as "Sunshine State of Mind" and "Smile Kid" they have just been escalating in their fame which is great to see because these guys deserve it! 

I went to see them live at the beginning of 2013 at Scala in London. Its safe to say, these guys rock on stage. The amount of energy they put into their shows is insane. They even made Hunter disappear with the insane amounts of smoke they were churning out in that small venue. A fantastic night and I was lucky enough to meet the band afterwards (expect Travis). 

So when the announcement of "Somewhere Somehow" was being announced I was really looking forward to some more music from the band. My first impressions on the album was certainly that it was...different. They have definitely matured with their sound, but I can't help but feel its lost its 'punk' side to the other albums and the sound that I was so familiar with. 


Giving the album some time, I have grown to love the album personally. Yes it does sound a lot different to the older albums, but they have always had that 'pop' persona about their sound. Songs like "Feel Alive" and "See You In My Dreams" have great chorus' that you can still head bang to, but not with so much grunge or punk. That doesn't mean they've lost their rock taste or that their live performances have numbed down...oh no!

At points I do personally feel like its moved too far away from the punk sides in songs such as 'Live Young Die Forever'. Purely for the fact that its electronic drums being used and as a drummer myself, I personally think acoustic has such a more powerful effect on songs. This is just personal preference though. 

I think some bands need that change to really make it in the business. This album has given the biggest step forward so far for the 5 piece and its easy to see why. The band have produced a fantastic record full of catchy rhythms, powerful chorus' and an all round lovable record to listen to. 

If I could describe the album in one it would be 'Fun'. The reason for this is just because each song doesn't make me really focus on anything too seriously. Each song has a 'fun' tone and has this vibe throughout to reflects on the bands live performance too. 

I have to give some major credit to the vocalist Travis for his wicked voice and great songwriting. If you look up the lyrics for each of the songs on any album, they have been really thought about and fit with each song We The Kings have released. That isn't easy to do either, but he makes it look easy!

The songs you should go check out are "Find You There", "Feel Alive", "Just Keep Breathing" and "Art Of War". All the others are great, but these are the ones to check out if you don't have time. 

Somewhere Somehow is out now in all good record stores and let me know what you thought of the songs/album if you've heard it! 

Thanks for reading and until next time

Lewis 

Website: wethekingsmusic.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/wethekings

Twitter: www.twitter.com/wethekings

EP Review ~ Scribble Victory ~ Confidence

Hello!

Welcome to blog post 35 and happy 1st October too! Today I have a two piece from Derby called Scribble Victory. These guys have been going through the ranks of the business with numerous tours with some big artists and with the EP coming out next Friday, I'm expecting these boys to go to great heights. 

Recently the business has been overtaken with two piece bands such as Royal Blood and Honeyblood taking over BBC Radio 1 and 6 Music. It still baffles me how such an incredible sound can come from a duo and its the same with this band. 

Scribble Victory are:

Jamie Thompson - Vocals, Guitar
Tomas Ward - Vocals, Drums

Scribble Victory are an acoustic folk-rock duo that blend their harmonies with melodic rhythms and meandering guitar licks. For two people to create such an authentic sound is very impressive. In some stages of the EP it sounds quite minimalistic, but still keeps that aura about the band that they give throughout the EP. 

One of the stand out tracks to me is "Stalemate", its just such a catchy tune from just a few instruments. The acoustic guitar brings a lot to the table with the rhythm that you could hum along to easily. This track is a great example of the harmonising between Jamie and Tomas. Both blend together to make a really nice tone. 

The song writing for each song has been well thought out. I give credit to both members of the band for creating rhythms and tones that keep each song flowing. Give this EP a few listens and you'll start to really listen to the acoustic guitar especially. I think after about 4 runs through the EP I really got to know the songs so I could appreciate and take in the great guitar skills. 

Scribble Victory have been touring with a lot of names to shout about such as Johnny Foreigner, Tall Ships and Laura Stevenson. If they are securing fantastic opportunities such as this before this EP has been released then I am looking forward to following the band in their new adventures. 

The songs I would recommend to you if you haven't got time to listen to all 6 tracks are "You Wouldn't Change A Thing" and "Stalemate". The others are just as good, but these are the clear stand out tracks on this EP. 

In conclusion I really like this EP, I haven't heard a duo sound quite like this before. Its something I can't quite explain apart from saying the acoustic tones and strong drums keep the energy throughout with the distinctive vocals keeping the drive. I hope you all take the time to listen to the EP when it comes out on October 10th because these guys deserve a lot of support!

To get a flavour of the band, I'll leave the bandcamp link which has their last self-titled EP on there. This too is a fantastic edition to their overall music collection. Also a quick special thanks to Angela from Muddy Paw PR who introduced me to the band and asked me to review them. 

Thank you for reading and until next time.

Lewis

This is a song from their last self-titled EP called "Baby Steps"

Website -  www.scribblevictory.com

Bandcamp - http://scribblevictory.bandcamp.com/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/ScribbleVictory

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/scribblevictory (Warning! Profile picture may contain Chuckle Brothers)

Soundcloud - soundcloud.com/scribblevictory

Artist - Magic Drum Orchestra

Hello! 

Today I'll be telling you guys about a group that's a little bit different to the usual music that I like to share with you all. If you know what a samba beat is, you'll know roughly where I'm going with this, but don't worry if not, all will become clear. 

The group I am talking about is called 'Magic Drum Orchestra'. Now, I know you guys knew this from the title. I'm sure you're all dying to hear about their work and what they do that's different to everyone else. The orchestra is made up of 20 percussionists who all have a burning passion and love for drums. The group was formed in 2005 and come from Dorset, UK. I first heard about this group when I worked at Tru-Thoughts for my internship.

Before I start to tell you how a group of percussionists work, there is a reason I am doing this post on this band in the first place. I used to be part of something similar in my school years, it was a fantastic group called 'Spiritus' and we used to create similar Brazilian styled rhythms. When I first heard this band it took me back 2-3 years to when I was really enjoying playing samba. I hope you all can learn something from this magnificent type of music.

The group create obscure and quite creative beats with a drum that I never knew they could do. Surely though just having 20 drums all sound a bit messy and the same. The orchestra isn't just made up of drums. Let me give you the list of the instruments they use;

Caixa

• Surdo 
• Snare/Caixa
• Timba
• Repinique
• Tamborim
• Cowbells/agogo
• Shaker/Chocalho
• Whistle/Apito

I will leave you with some photos of some of the instruments throughout the post and I'll understand if you don't know what these specifically sound like or do. I'll leave a link at the end and you can hear all of those instruments above used in a 20 piece orchestra. A lot of these instruments are used for Brazilian drumming such as Samba or Batucada. 

Timba

You can see this type of drumming at any parade in a city. I used to perform in various parades in Brighton and London, we had to wear ear plugs because this type of music is VERY loud. All in the name for fun though, its something to get your feet tapping and your body shaking.

Repinique

Now here's a little lesson in the art of Brazilian drumming. First of is a 'leader', who posses the whistle and is at the front. Some people who have seen this type of band before live notice that the leader makes certain movements with their arms. This is to signal a break or a change in the rhythm from the main section, because the music is very loud you can't shout. So the next best thing is to make a different arm action for each different break, then the leader will count in and into the section you go. 

Surdo

Each instrument is given its own beat. The surdo is the beat of the rhythm, giving the low sounding pulse throughout with one at a higher pitch and one lower so its easy to distinguish and to count in the group. The Caixa and Repinique's have certain sticking patterns which are usually the main sections that you'll hear most. 

'Magic Drum Orchestra' album

The Magic Drum Orchestra show a fantastic example of all this in many different ways. Although you may think that music would get boring, they're musically talented in creating interesting breaks and uses of the instruments. 


They have even managed to do covers of famous songs with the percussion such as Snoop Dog's "Drop It Like Its Hot" and Cream's "Sunshine Of Your Love". With constant tempo changes and percussion dropping out and coming back in leaves you with no part of boredom. 








I hope you enjoyed this different type of blog, I understand this was more of a lesson in Brazilian drumming, but I felt like I wanted to share my knowledge and love for this type of music. Go to your local parade and see this all for yourself! I apologise in advance now if I get any of the information in the post wrong (sorry)!

Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave your email address for updates on my next post! I update on twitter when the next post will be so don't forget to follow me using my fancy buttons up the top right! 

Until next time!

Lewis :)

Website: http://www.magicdrumorchestra.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MagicDrumO

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magicdrumorchestra

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKAgq5XpLaZ3a2hGxjEMQxQ



A shoutout to Alex Mann too, for all the years teaching me at Spiritus and being one of the coolest people I know.