Jacob Banks has been going form strength to strength. He is a regular on the live event scene, doing gigs a'plenty and also gaining radio airplay on BBC 1Xtra. Back in June Creative Juice posted a video of Banks doing a live version of his front-runner track, "Kids on The Corner". Now we have the official video for this outstanding track. Banks is kind of, doing a similar thing to Ed Sheeran in that he uses old song- writing and musical techniques to tell new stories- stories of today's youth. The Soul -Motown feel of "Kids on The Corner" is contrasted with images of desolate youth, idle in an inner city. Take a look!
All artists seek to express something of themselves and
their experience within their music. Juliyaa is an artist, whose cultural and social
roots are deeply ingrained in her music. A child of Welsh and Ghanaian parents,
the North London singer, celebrates her rich cultural heritage on her debut EP,
Stars
and dragons.
The EP title is a reference to the national symbols
featured on the flags of her parents’ native countries: ‘Stars’ alludes to the
Black Star of Ghana and ‘Dragons’ refers to the red dragon of Wales. Juliyaa
describes her music as ‘rhythmic soul’ and the opening track, “Thursday Born”, provides the framework
for the EP as a whole. On this track, Juliyaa eulogises her story of growing
up in a multicultural family in London. She lists the varying musical
experiences that have influenced her life, such as singing in a church choir
and listening to Garage music. Juliyaa turns her everyday story into a mythical
sounding tale of musical and cultural discovery. The five tracks that follow
this are an eclectic fusion of cross-beats and polyrhythm played out on songs
that incorporate elements of R&B, Garage, Drum & Bass, Dub-step and
Highlife music.
“Tidal
Wave” is a great example of this. The
track uses water as a metaphor to describe the over whelming effects of love. The
song combines elements of Pop, R&B and Electronica. The
echoic vocals and repetitive bass-line imbue the song with a mood of brooding
intensity. Undertones of Drum & Bass and Dubstep woven into the song become
increasingly intensified. The arrangement on “Tidal Wave” actually imitates the movement of waves: the layering
of different musical strands on the core bass line produces an exciting tidal
wave of sound.
“IWIHIA” (I Wish I Had It All) is a gorgeous piano led ballad,
executed with class and simplicity. It’s
about finding the balance between striving for more in life while still being
appreciative and content with what is current and real in the present.
Juliyaa’s emotive voice rings out with spine tingling clarity over this
poignant song. This track stands out as a moment of calm and stillness on the
EP. The paired down arrangement is contrasted against the other predominantly
up tempo, elaborately layered songs on Stars & Dragons.
The title track “Stars & Dragons” is inspired by West African Highlife music. It’s
an uplifting song that revisits the themes of heritage and identity seen on the
first track, “Thursday Born”. It’s
inspired by Juliyaa’s trip to Ghana and how this experience enriched her sense
of identity. It centres on the concept of home as a state of mind rather than a
physical place. It’s a striking touch to
have traditional African music featured here and in some small way it goes
toward contextualising the Afrobeat music that’s currently gaining commercial
popularity. The intricacies of sounds on this song create a feast for the ears.
The rich opening harmony and the percussion- heavy, cross-rhythm creates
beautiful colour and texture. “Stars
& Dragons” is a celebratory song, which defies you to stand still-
there’s a plethora of rhythms and the songquicklyencourages you to pick a
beat to shake a leg to!
Essentially,
Stars
& dragons is not only a tribute to Juliyaa’s cultural heritage but
also to the diverse music that has helped to shape her life. Everything about
this EP is to do with fusion and unity. Even the name Juliyaa is representative
the union between European and African traditions. There is particular emphasis
on the enhanced unity to be enjoyed from embracing various kinds of fusion- whether
it’s racial, cultural, social or musical. Even the EP’s art work fuses
different patterns, shapes and colours giving a striking visual representation
of the brilliant kaleidoscope of music featured on the EP. Stars & Dragons is a
great debut, it’s an excellent introduction to Juliyaa. Her unique, yet
accessible sound is truly intriguing.
P!nk did a cover of Alicia Keys' hit song for BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. She sings the song effortlessly and even though she keeps the lyrics to hand on an A4 sheet, that's part of what makes the performance so cool. One of the best things about P!nk apart from her amazing voice, is the fact that she doesn't take herself too seriously. She's a comfortable natural performer so nothing ever appears over rehearsed or too contrived. P!nk and Keys actually have very similar voices- I can imagine Keys' voice would sound great on a number of P!nk songs. The cover has had excellent response over the social networks, perhaps this will bring out a duet from these two great singers in the not too distant future, fingers crossed...
Singer M.I.A, who is now infamous for erm, "flipping the bird" during Madonna's Super Bowl halftime performance, has released a new song on Twitter. She leaked the song to a super fan's email in response to a barrage of tweets she'd received from supporters eager to hear something new. Have a listen below. Has it been worth the wait...?
Back in August I posted about JP Cooper's fantastic performance at the bi-monthly Vocals & Verses showcase .The Manchester native’s love of music started from a young
age. He joined a rock band in his teens and then later hit upon a love of
gospel music after joining a choir. Cooper describes himself as an acoustic
singer song writer. His music is a subtle eclectic mix of many music genres
including folk, blues and soul.
His two short EPs (EP 1 and EP2) brilliantly showcase
not only the captivating versatility of his vocals but also his unique
dexterity as a songwriter. Cooper has described his music as a reflection of his
slightly romantic world view. Hope and unity are core themes within Cooper’s
music. He writes songs of love, relationships and redemption and he delivers
them with a gentle self assured expression that carries humility and honesty.
The Only Reason (from EP 2),is a heartfelt love song
which exhibits the transcendent quality of Cooper’s music. His crystal clear
falsetto is instantly stunning. The exquisite chord progression of the strings and
the drop-kick rhythm of the drums are soul stirring. The song is a luscious
musical and lyrical ode to love, faith and romance and it is conveyed with simple
elegance. The Only Reason is entirely gorgeous.
The emotive power of Cooper’s voice can be heard again on
the song, Oh Brother, (from EP 1).This song is just another
example of Cooper’s ability to mesmerize. One moment you’re flying on the crest
of his fleeting falsetto and the next you’re completely grounded by the
trembling resonance of his full voice. This song is about learning to see the
value and equality in human beings and he deliversit with such simple
finesse that prevents it from sounding condescending or over sentimental.
Sure, anyone who has switched on a radio before will have
heard songs about love and togetherness but rarely are they expressed with such
acute insight, heart and humility and without a patronising undertone. There’s
a modern tendency to find music that depicts the harsher realities of life more
believable. And while Cooper’s music is without the anguished shades of
darkness found on a Damien Rice record or the bitter-sweet grit of an Ed
Sheeran track, it is still just as believable. So, although Cooper goes against
the current grain and presents a more optimistic reality- he does so with the
same intense honesty as his contemporaries.
Part of the overall
appeal of JP Cooper is the unassuming charm of his music. He has an incredible
ability to still listeners, lock them into the story and the moment of the song.
So, it doesn’t matter whether you’re listening at a packed out gig or if you’ve
just hit play on your iPod after hopping on the train at rush hour- the
beautiful sounds of JP Cooper will have you entranced wherever you are. It’s
Simple, honest, genius.
Introducing DJ- drummer extraodinaire- Mck Nasty. When you go to a gig, you might only be thinking about seeing great singers or dancers. Mck Nasty offers something a little different: Using, a highly technical looking drum set up, he delivers an electrifying performance of popular Hip Hop tracks accompanied by his unique high energy live drumming. He has worked with a number of artists including Tinie Tempah, Lily Allen, Devlin, and Bluey Robinson. Be sure to catch Mck Nasty at a gig, seeing this man remix and drum out to all your favourite Hip Hip songs is an awesome experience!
London singer Shakka has been working the underground scene with his quirky, charismatic blend of Ska, Reggae, Pop and R&B. His new release 'Sooner or Later' produced by Deany Boy is off Shakka's forthcoming EP 'Foolishness'. It's upbeat, fresh, new music that proves, once again that there is greatness out there on the underground UK music scene. Enjoy.
OK, I've had a change of heart about 'Diamonds'...
Singer/Songwriter, Sia has been on the scene for years but just recently her profile has risen in the mainstream after penning and featuring on a number of chart topping hits including 'Wild Ones' with Flo Rida and 'She Wolf' with David Guetta. No surprise then that hit-chaser Rihanna, summoned Sia's skills for the debut track off her seventh album, 'Diamonds'. It was another number one single for Rihanna, but to be honest, Rih-rih rustling crisps packets would probably also go to number one. But 'Diamonds' is actually a good pop song- here is Sia performing it last night at the Norwegian-American Achievement Awards. Hearing Sia's version you'll notice that Rih didn't really go to any great lengths to erm... "make the song her own", to use an X Factor phrase.
So here's 'Diamonds' sung by Sia in it's original- before it was famous- form
