Posts byShane Hoyle

The Jack Cades Debut in ‘Music For Children’

The Jack Cades formed in the UK when husband and wife duo Mike Whittaker (lead guitar and vocals) and Elsa Whittaker (rhythm guitar and vocals) got together with State Records Studios to record some tracks. The result was a blur of varying groups until finally, the Jack Cades were born. Their sound is highly influenced
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Chocolate Watchband Reunites to Release Two New Singles

The legendary psychedelic garage band Chocolate Watchband is coming together again to release two new singles. The band formed in 1965 in San Jose and released three LPs. Each came with critical acclaim in the psychedelic scene before the group disbanded in 1970. Since then, they have come back together in the ’90s, but haven’t made any
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The Mouse Outfit Release a Hip-Hop Collaboration Album

The live hip-hop band The Mouse Outfit released their third album, Jagged Tooth Crook. Over 30 different musicians, producers, and vocalists collaborated on the album. The record is a giant melting pot of talent, and centers around the head bopping beats of The Mouse Outfit. Throughout the album, I get a sense of diversity, yet I’m drawn
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Slowtrip’s Crunch Rock Single Talks Church

The “LA Crunch Rock” band Slowtrip has been working on some new music lately and the result was the release their new album, Blur, on May 18. The album’s first single “Follow,” is a highly confessional song about vocalist/guitarist John Alaimo’s feelings on church. The song struggles with isolation and the idea of faith, while
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Potatohead People Venture Through the Galaxy

With a name like Potatohead People, I hoped to hear music that is fresh, captivating and downright weird. Naturally, Potatohead People give you just that in their new album Nick and Astro’s Guide to the Galaxy. The Canadian duo consists of Nick Wisdom and Astrological, two fresh hip-hop stars taking off on a jazz-filled journey
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Spiral Skies Release an Album from Another World

Blending fantasy, metal, and heavy rock, Swedish band Spiral Skies blends several influences to create a musical cocktail. The listen is definitely an experience on its own. The occult rock group’s debut EP, A Queendom to Come, received lots of attention on Bandcamp upon release. Now, the full-length album, Blues For a Dying Planet, is out.  
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Johnny & the Bootlegs Create a Blues-Punk Hit

In a blend of blues rock and punk, Johnny & the Bootlegs released their new single “Thrift Shop.” The track is the second single from their upcoming EP, NYC Rags. The band is based out of NYC and focus their attitude and sound around the crawling night life of New York. The single itself refers to
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Half Waif’s New Album ‘Lavender’ is Stunning

The indie electronic group Half Waif unveiled their new album Lavender on NPR’s First Listen for an exclusive peek at the album. As a first time listener, I was stunned at the experience that came with listening to them. I was enthralled and sucked into the voice and words of vocalist Nandi Rose Plunkett.   Plunkett
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LANKS Releases Innovative LP ‘twentyseven’

Australian songwriter and producer LANKS creates original music, and is a truly talented artist. He blends pop, electronic, and indie together to create a surreal, dreamy atmosphere.   Gemma Pike from triple j describes LANKS as being a “triple threat” — a supreme songwriter, vocalist, and producer. LANKS is releasing his new album, twentyseven, on April
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Big Something Release Smooth Track ‘Smoke Signals’

Rock, funk, jazz, all mixed together in a splendid array of musical styles and techniques. This is how I would describe “Smoke Signals,” the latest single from Big Something.   The band will be releasing their fifth studio album, The Otherside, on April 20. The album is a conclusion of the album Tumbleweed‘s story of a nomad
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Dana Murray Undermines ‘The System’ in New Single

In a bold, exciting new project, producer, musician, and educator Dana Murray creates an album called The Negro Manifesto. The album is a mixture of jazz, spoken word, and hip-hop, creating a fusion of Black culture and a rejection of “the system.”   The Negro Manifesto is more than a clean proclamation of injustice. It delves into
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Newmen Release Atmospheric Single ‘Delay’

Music is meant to display emotion. It is an art of self-expression and relating to one another through an audible medium. Because feelings are infinite, therefore, music is infinite. Infinite emotion produces infinite styles, lyrics and compositions. “Delay” by Newmen provides a wide spectrum of emotion that evolves and flows through what seems like a
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Neaks Gets ‘Deep in the Soul’ in New Single

LA singer, rapper, and dancer Neaks is an emerging multi-platform artist. He has secured fashion accounts in LA, and as far away as Tokyo, Japan. On top of that, he is beginning to release singles and music videos for his upcoming debut album.   There isn’t much to be known of Neaks’ musical career, although
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Suspect Goes ‘One Way’ in New Single

In anticipation for his new album, Suspect released a new single, “One Way,” following his single “Say It With Your Chest.” “Say It With Your Chest” racked up over 150k views within the first two weeks of release. Suspect is recognized for his curtly aggressive lyrics and a flow spit like bricks. He has a
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UnoTheActivist Remixes ‘Fabo’ with Rich the Kid

Hip-hop artist UnoTheActivist is making huge strides in his career this year.   His 2017 mixtape, Live.Shyne.Die, received over 2 million Soundcloud streams within the first 48 hours of release. All 16 songs took a spot on Apple Music’s Top 50, and the album stood on the iTunes Top 20 Hip-Hop/Rap Albums Chart. UnoTheActivist’s song
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Strange Names Gets Funky in ‘Data’

The delectably exciting indie-pop group Strange Names released Data, a 10-track album. It was released on Frenchkiss Records, the label responsible for artists such as Local Natives, Passion Pit, and Bloc Party. Data is strange, energetic, and full of lovable personality. Strange Names makes sure that no two songs are the same in the record, and each song has
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Future Jr. Debuts in Vulnerable ‘Vacancy’ EP

Future Jr. debuted in his freshman EP Vacancy and it sounds like he’s been in the music industry for years. The new artist shows off his ethereal style with a combination of pop and chillwave. Future Jr. distinguishes himself from other pop artists with his swirling electronica and shoegaze guitars. Both relaxing and beautiful, Vacancy shows promise emotionally
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Little Stranger Shows Us How to ‘Sing it High’

Alternative and hip-hop are two genres that produce some of the most unique personalities and talents in the music industry. The notion of an alternative/hip-hop artist is honestly a little off-putting. How do two distinct sounds smoothly work together? The band Little Stranger demonstrates how these two disparate genres can be blended together and sound
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Dabrye Releases ‘Three/Three’ After 12 Years

Traditional hip-hop and robotic glitch collide in the hands of Dabrye in Three/Three, the Ann Arbor producer’s first full-length album since 2006’s Two/Three and the sonic conclusion to his /Three trilogy.   Dabrye spoke on the stylistic contrasts of his typical techno approach to beatmaking and the new album: “I think the biggest difference is the first two albums had
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SHIRT Reveals the Meaning of ‘PURE BEAUTY’

SHIRT is one artist who should not be taken lightly. He recently released his fourth album, PURE BEAUTY, a skillful blending of hooks and musical finesse. The album tackles an array of hot-button issues while also exhibiting a distinct aesthetic for the album.   SHIRT is a Queens-based rapper who dropped out of high-school with his
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Ecstatic Union Introduces the ‘Desert Queen’

What do you think of when you think about summer? Toasty weather, beach days, road trips, bare feet, laughs with your best friends? Imagine wrapping up that feeling and throwing it into a song. What would it sound like? Chances are, you are thinking of a sound resembling “Desert Queen”, the new single by Ecstatic
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