Wednesday, December 07, 2016

New singles roundup: Hollis Brown, elbow, Hurray for the Riff Raff

Happy Wednesday everybody! Ready to check out some great new music? Below are links and information on highly-recommended tracks from Hollis Brown, elbow and Hurray for the Riff Raff.

First up, listen to the latest single from Hollis Brown, "Run Right To You," a rousing and rollicking rocker that is infectious and authentic. It bristles with the spirit and energy of '60s blues rockers such as the Yardbirds and Kinks, as well as modern-day Irish rockers the Strypes. "Run Right To You" is available via a limited edition 7" with the B-Side "She Don't Love Me Now," an affecting Americana track. Listen to "Run Right To You" via YouTube below:



Get more information on New York-based rockers Hollis Brown at http://www.hollisbrown.com/.


It is great to have English alternative rock troupe elbow is back. Earlier this year, it was announced that long-time drummer Richard Jupp was leaving the group and their upcoming 2017 album would be recorded without him. Check out the first single, aptly-titled "Magnificent (She Says)," from the band's forthcoming album Little Fictions (set for release on Feb. 3, 2017) on the band's YouTube page embedded below: 



In other new music news, Hurray for the Riff Raff is set to return with the new concept album The Navigator on March 10, 2017. According to a media release, Hurray for the Riff Raff singer-songwriter "Alynda Segarra tells an interwoven, cinematic story of a wandering soul at a crossroads of identity and ancestral weight. It finds a street kid named Navita traversing a perpetually burning city in search of herself." The first single "Rican Beach" blends Latin rhythms, Kate Bush-styled experimental rock and other sounds with perfection. Watch the lyric video for "Rican Beach" off the upcoming album below:



Robert Kinsler

Tuesday, December 06, 2016

The Recording Academy Announces 59th Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominees

I am happy to see David Bowie's "Blackstar" and Radiohead's "A Moon Shaped Pool" nominated this year, as well as Sturgill Simpson's excellent "A Sailor's Guide to Earth," The Record Company's "Give It Back to You" and Kris Kristofferson's "The Cedar Creek Sessions." In terms of the most high-profile categories, there are many names and records here that leave me scratching my head. When I see so many great albums ignored it cements in my mind that the Grammys are 99% about what is popular, and not necessarily what is great or groundbreaking. It especially saddens me to think a great album like David Bowie's "Blackstar" was nominated so many times (in various categories) only because of the death of the artist earlier this year. Among the albums I would have loved to see be recognized: Cheap Trick's "Bang Zoom Crazy...Hello," the Monkees' "Good Times!," Dawes' "We're all Gonna Die," the James Hunter Six blues-soul standout "Hold On!," Marillion's "Fear," Emitt Rhodes' "Rainbow Ends," and Neil Young's "Earth." Here is the official media release about the nominations for 59th Annual GRAMMY Awards...


David Bowie's "Blackstar" is among the albums
nominated for multiple honors this year.
BEYONCÉ LEADS GRAMMY® NOMINATIONS WITH NINE;
 DRAKE, RIHANNA, AND KANYE WEST EACH GARNER EIGHT 
 
ADELE, BEYONCÉ, JUSTIN BIEBER, DRAKE, AND 
STURGILL SIMPSON VIE FOR ALBUM OF THE YEAR AT THE 
59TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS® ON FEB. 12, 2017, LIVE ON CBS

SANTA MONICA (Dec. 6, 2016) — The Recording Academy® welcomes the class of nominees for the 59th Annual GRAMMY Awards®. Top nominees are Beyoncé (9), Drake(8), Rihanna (8), Kanye West (8), and Chance The Rapper (7). Selected from nearly 22,000 submissions across 84 categories, the nominations reflect the range of artistic innovation that defined the year in music. As the only peer-selected music award, the GRAMMY® is voted on by The Recording Academy's membership body of music makers, who represent all genres and creative disciplines, including recording artists, songwriters, producers, mixers, and engineers.

"Just as we see emerging musicians experimenting, we're also seeing established artists resisting what's expected of them and, instead, embracing the creative freedom they've been afforded through their success, blurring the lines between music's mainstream and artistic edge," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy.

The dynamic range of this year's nominees is exhibited across several awards fields, including American Roots Music, R&B, Dance/Electronic Music, and Rock, but it's perhaps best showcased in the Album Of The Year category, which represents a mix of genres—pop, R&B, rap, and country. Looking at the recordings nominated for Album Of The Year, an even greater degree of musical advancement and sonic experimentation is revealed: the emotion-stirring vocals of Adele, who brings a soulful depth to a collection of classically fine-tuned pop ballads; Beyoncé's ability to paint a picture, layering poignant R&B vocals over a tapestry of sounds that range from blues-rock to hip-hop; Justin Bieber's growth as a songwriter and evolution as a pop powerhouse; Drake's continued genre-bending, which now invites island influences to his signature sound; and the definition-defying Sturgill Simpson who made many of us re-explore the vast territories that country abides.

"Every submission we receive for GRAMMY consideration represents intensely soul-baring, technically exacting creative work—no group understands what each recording embodies better than Recording Academy voters, who are professional music makers themselves," said Bill Freimuth, Recording Academy Senior Vice President of Awards.
 
Final-round GRAMMY ballots will be mailed Dec. 14 and are due Jan. 13, 2017. The Recording Academy will present the GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017, live from STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and broadcast on the CBS Television Network from 8:00-11:30 pm ET/5:00-8:30 pm PT.
The following is a sampling of nominations from the GRAMMY Awards' 30 Fields and 84 categories. For a complete nominations list, visit www.grammy.com. Congratulate nominees by following "Recording Academy / GRAMMYs" on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and use #GRAMMYs to join the conversation.

GENERAL FIELD
Album Of The Year:
25 — Adele
Lemonade — Beyoncé
Purpose — Justin Bieber
Views — Drake
A Sailor's Guide To Earth — Sturgill Simpson
 
Record Of The Year:
"Hello" — Adele
"Formation" — Beyoncé
"7 Years" — Lukas Graham
"Work" — Rihanna Featuring Drake
"Stressed Out" — Twenty One Pilots
 
Song Of The Year:
"Formation" — Khalif Brown, Asheton Hogan, Beyoncé Knowles & Michael L. Williams II, songwriters (Beyoncé)
"Hello" — Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin, songwriters (Adele)
"I Took A Pill In Ibiza" — Mike Posner, songwriter (Mike Posner)
"Love Yourself" — Justin Bieber, Benjamin Levin & Ed Sheeran, songwriters (Justin Bieber)
"7 Years" — Lukas Forchhammer, Stefan Forrest, Morten Pilegaard & Morten Ristorp, songwriters (Lukas Graham)
 
Best New Artist:
Kelsea Ballerini
The Chainsmokers
Chance The Rapper
Maren Morris
Anderson .Paak
 
POP FIELD
Best Pop Vocal Album:
25 — Adele
Purpose — Justin Bieber
Dangerous Woman — Ariana Grande
Confident — Demi Lovato
This Is Acting — Sia
 
DANCE/ELECTRONIC MUSIC FIELD
Best Dance/Electronic Album:
Skin — Flume
Electronica 1: The Time Machine — Jean-Michel Jarre
Epoch — Tycho
Barbara Barbara, We Face A Shining Future — Underworld
Louie Vega Starring…XXVIII — Louie Vega

ROCK FIELD
Best Rock Album:
California — Blink-182
Tell Me I'm Pretty — Cage The Elephant
Magma — Gojira
Death Of A Bachelor — Panic! At The Disco
Weezer — Weezer
 
ALTERNATIVE FIELD
Best Alternative Music Album:
22, A Million — Bon Iver
Blackstar — David Bowie
The Hope Six Demolition Project — PJ Harvey
Post Pop Depression — Iggy Pop
A Moon Shaped Pool — Radiohead
 
R&B FIELD
Best Urban Contemporary Album:
Lemonade — Beyoncé
Ology — Gallant
We Are King — KING
Malibu — Anderson .Paak
Anti — Rihanna
   
RAP FIELD
Best Rap Performance:
"No Problem" — Chance The Rapper Featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz 
"Panda" —Desiigner 
"Pop Style" — Drake Featuring The Throne
"All The Way Up" — Fat Joe & Remy Ma Featuring French Montana & Infared
"That Part" — ScHoolboy Q Featuring Kanye West 
 
COUNTRY FIELD
Best Country Solo Performance:
"Love Can Go To Hell" — Brandy Clark
"Vice" — Miranda Lambert
"My Church" — Maren Morris
"Church Bells" — Carrie Underwood
"Blue Ain't Your Color" — Keith Urban
     
JAZZ FIELD 
Best Jazz Vocal Album:
Sound Of Red — René Marie
Upward Spiral — Branford Marsalis Quartet With Special Guest Kurt Elling
Take Me To The Alley — Gregory Porter
Harlem On My Mind — Catherine Russell 
The Sting Variations — The Tierney Sutton Band
 
GOSPEL/CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC FIELD 
Best Gospel Album:
Listen —Tim Bowman Jr.
Fill This House — Shirley Caesar
A Worshipper's Heart [Live] —Todd Dulaney
Losing My Religion — Kirk Franklin
Demonstrate [Live] —William Murphy
 
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album:
Poets & Saints — All Sons & Daughters
American Prodigal — Crowder
Be One — Natalie Grant
Youth Revival [Live] — Hillsong Young & Free
Love Remains — Hillary Scott & The Scott Family   
 
LATIN FIELD
Best Latin Pop Album:
Un Besito Mas — Jesse & Joy
Ilusión — Gaby Moreno
Similares — Laura Pausini
Seguir Latiendo — Sanalejo
Buena Vida — Diego Torres
 
AMERICAN ROOTS MUSIC FIELD 
Best American Roots Performance:
"Ain't No Man" — The Avett Brothers
"Mother's Children Have A Hard Time" — Blind Boys Of Alabama
"Factory Girl" — Rhiannon Giddens
"House Of Mercy" — Sarah Jarosz
"Wreck You" — Lori McKenna
 
SPOKEN WORD FIELD
Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling):
The Girl With The Lower Back Tattoo — Amy Schumer
In Such Good Company: Eleven Years Of Laughter, Mayhem, And Fun In The Sandbox — Carol Burnett
M Train — Patti Smith
Under The Big Black Sun: A Personal History Of L.A.Punk (John Doe With Tom DeSavia) — (Various Artists)
Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink — Elvis Costello
 
MUSIC FOR VISUAL MEDIA FIELD
Best Song Written For Visual Media:
"Can't Stop The Feeling!" — Max Martin, Shellback & Justin Timberlake, songwriters (Justin Timberlake, Anna Kendrick, Gwen Stefani, James Corden, Zooey Deschanel, Walt Dohrn, Ron Funches, Caroline Hjelt, Aino Jawo, Christopher Mintz-Plasse & Kunal Nayyar), Track from: Trolls
"Heathens" — Tyler Joseph, songwriter (Twenty One Pilots), Track from: Suicide Squad
"Just Like Fire" — Oscar Holter, Max Martin, P!nk & Shellback, songwriters (P!nk), Track from: Alice Through The Looking Glass
"Purple Lamborghini" — Shamann Cooke, Sonny Moore & William Roberts, songwriters (Skrillex & Rick Ross), Track from: Suicide Squad
"Try Everything" — Mikkel S. Eriksen, Sia Furler & Tor Erik Hermansen, songwriters (Shakira), Track from: Zootopia
"The Veil" — Peter Gabriel, songwriter (Peter Gabriel), Track from: Snowden
 
MUSIC VIDEO/FILM FIELD
Best Music Video
:
"Formation" — Beyoncé
"River" — Leon Bridges
"Up & Up" — Coldplay
"Gosh" — Jamie XX
"Upside Down & Inside Out" — OK Go
 
PRODUCTION, NON-CLASSICAL FIELD
Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical:
Benny Blanco
Greg Kurstin
Max Martin
Nineteen85
Ricky Reed 
 
About The Recording Academy:
Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, songwriters, producers, engineers and recording professionals dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards — the preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music — The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture. For more information about The Recording Academy, please visit www.grammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, follow @RecordingAcad on Twitter, "like" Recording Academy / GRAMMYs onFacebook, and join The Recording Academy's social communities on Google+, Instagram, Tumblr and YouTube.

Thursday, December 01, 2016

Sights and sounds: Dolly Parton, The Rolling Stones, Chicago

I'm catching up and sharing information that landed in my inbox last night and this morning...




Dolly Parton announces 'My People Fund'

Fund will provide monthly assistance to those who lost homes in wildfires

PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. (November 30, 2016) – In a video message released this evening, Dolly Parton announced a new effort by The Dollywood Company and The Dollywood Foundation to establish a fund to assist the victims of the Great Smoky Mountain wildfires in Tennessee. The new My People Fund will provide $1000 each month to Sevier County families who lost their homes.

“I’ve always believed charity begins at home and my home is some place special,” Parton explained. “That’s why I’ve asked my Dollywood Companies—including the Dollywood theme park, and DreamMore Resort; my dinner theater attractions including Dixie Stampede and Lumberjack Adventure; and my Dollywood Foundation—to help me establish the My People Fund.

“We want to provide a hand up to those families who have lost everything in the fires. I know it has been a trying time for my people and this assistance will help get them back on their feet.”

Anyone who would like to contribute to the My People Fund may visit dollywoodfoundation.org.

More information on the program will be released on Friday, December 2.


‘The Rolling Stones Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America’ to Rock U.S. Cinemas for One Night on December 12
 
Experience the Legendary Tour on the Big Screen Monday, December 12, 2016 at
8 p.m.; Tickets on sale now at www.FathomEvents.com and participating Theater Box Offices
 
A road movie that celebrates the revolutionary power of Rock n’ Roll, “The Rolling Stones Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America” is an exhilarating and vivid documentary that follows the Stones’ tour of early 2016 through 10 Latin American cities. It combines electrifying live performances from across the tour and from their historic tour finale as the first-ever rock band to perform to an audience of 1.2 million in Havana, with an intimate insight into the world of the Rolling Stones. This event also features an exclusive introduction from the band and two full-length bonus performances from the Argentinian tour date.
 
In partnership with Eagle Rock Entertainment, Fathom Events is set to bring “The Rolling Stones Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America” to cinemas nationwide for one night on Monday, December 12, 2016 at 8 p.m. local time.
 
Tickets for “The Rolling Stones Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America” can be purchased beginning Thursday, November 10, 2016 online by visiting www.FathomEvents.com or at participating theater box offices. Fans throughout the U.S. will be able to enjoy the event in nearly 300 movie theaters. For a complete list of theater locations visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).
 
Throughout the documentary, the viewer gets an inside look at the interworking of the creation of the historic Cuba show, through interviews with the tour promoter, management, production and logistics managers, and the band members themselves. Fans will see Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood mesmerize their generations of fans with performances of classic hits from their extraordinary catalog such as, “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” “It's Only Rock 'n Roll,” “Wild Horses,” “Honky Tonk Women,” “Sympathy For The Devil,” “Paint It Black” and “Miss You.”
 
Directed by Paul Dugdale, produced by Sam Bridger and shot throughout February and March 2016, the documentary is produced by JA Digital in co-production with Eagle Rock Films for Eagle Rock Entertainment and Promotone.
 
“Even after 50 years, the Rolling Stones remain one of the most iconic and influential rock bands of all time,” Fathom Events CEO John Rubey said. “We are proud to partner with Eagle Rock to bring this historic documentary to cinemas and fans across the country.”
 





CHICAGO II: STEVEN WILSON REMIX

The Iconic Group's Timeless Classic Has Been Remastered 
To Reveal Unprecedented Clarity And Definition

Available On CD From Rhino On January 27

LOS ANGELES - More than 40 years after its debut, Chicago II still sounds like nothing else. Released in 1970, Chicago's second album brims with confidence and inspiration as it draws on everything from orchestral music to heavy rock. Although it never affected the record's popularity - it peaked at #4 on the album chart and spawned a trio of Top Ten hits - many fans have longed for a more-nuanced mix. That wish is about to come true with a new stereo version created by British musician and producer Steven Wilson.
 
CHICAGO II: STEVEN WILSON REMIX will be available January 27 on CD for $14.98. The newly remixed album will also be released as a double-LP set later next year for $31.98.
 
Chicago II has been remixed before, but never like this. For the first time, a stereo remix from the 16-track multi-track tapes made it possible for Steven Wilson to bring out elements that were muffled or submerged in the mix. The result is a new stereo version of Chicago II that boasts clearness, punch and definition that it didn't have before. 
  
Wilson explains: "Working with high-resolution 96K/24 bit digitally transferred files, I had every element from the recording sessions isolated, which meant I was able to rebuild the mix from the drums upwards, recreating as closely as I could the equalization, stereo placement, reverbs, other effects, and volume changes of each individual instrument or vocal - but at the same time looking to gain definition and clarity in the overall sound."

In 1969, Chicago recorded the band's follow-up to their debut album, Chicago Transit Authority(voted 2014 into the Grammy Hall of Fame). When it arrived in January 1970, Chicago II became an instant sensation. Principal composers, James Pankow and Robert Lamm, emerged further as the band's source of Top Ten hits for the group, including "Make Me Smile" and "Colour My World," as well as "25 or 6 to 4," which peaked at #4 and has become one of the band's signature songs. Terry Kath, Robert Lamm, Lee Loughnane, James Pankow, Walter Parazaider, also Danny Seraphine and Peter Cetera ... somehow found time (while touring the world behind  the success of "CTA") to prepare another double LP album.
  
"So rich was their creative seam at the time that, like their debut, and the album that followed this one, it was a two record set," says Wilson.  "In fact, with unprecedented boldness the run of double albums was only broken by their fourth which was a quadruple (live) set!  I consider all of these albums to be classics, but perhaps Chicago II is the pre-eminent masterpiece. It's got everything: moments of tender beauty to power riffs and scorched-earth jazz-rock, catchy melodies and gorgeous vocal harmonies.  When I first heard it as a teenager I was captivated by the mixture of jazz, blues, pop, classical, progressive and heavy rock styles, including both improvisational elements and intricate arrangements, and by songs written and sung by several different members, all with their own unique personality. How could that possibly hang together?!  But it does, and brilliantly so." 
  
The album, which was certified platinum by the RIAA, soon after its release, also highlighted some of the band's most ambitious work, such as the 13-minute song cycle "Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon," composed by James Pankow, as well as "Memories Of Love," a Terry Kath song, arranged for orchestra by Peter Matz. Chicago's lasting musical impact was recognized in April of 2016, with their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

CHICAGO II
Track Listing:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
"Movin' In"
"The Road"
"Poem For The People"
"In The Country"
"Wake Up Sunshine"
"Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon"
1. "Make Me Smile"
2. "So Much To Say, So Much To Give"
3. "Anxiety's Moment"
4. "West Virginia Fantasies"
5. "Colour My World"
6. "To Be Free"
7. "Now More Than Ever" 
7.
8.
9.
"Fancy Colours"
"25 Or 6 To 4"
"Memories of Love" 
1. "Prelude"
2. "A.M. Mourning"
3. "P.M. Mourning"
4. "Memories Of Love"
10."It Better End Soon" 
1. "1st Movement"
2. "2nd Movement"
3. "3rd Movement"
4. "4th Movement"
11."Where Do We Go From Here"