At Ease (2010)
Poised, polished and on the precipice of a breakthrough: Easy Evans is the total package, from his velvety tenor, above-average lyrical range and mature, yet modern material, which is neatly showcased in his debut EP, At Ease. A drummer and play-by-ear pianist, Easy discovered his affinity for music as a youngster in church during […]
All I Want Is You (2010)
Los Angeles native Miguel Jontel Pimentel spun his childhood pain (his parents’ divorce) and creativity into a burgeoning career in the music biz, signing his first deal at 14 and going on to pen hooks (Asher Roth’s "His Dream") and lyrics for Usher ("Pro Lover") and Musiq ("If You Leave"). Nine years later, having already […]
A New Beginning (2010)
If careers were like highways, Frank McComb’s would be a rough backwoods Indiana trail, unpaved and with constant bumps and turns. An immensely talented singer and songwriter, McComb’s recording history plays like an episode of Real Housewives of Atlanta – except with more drama. Unsatisfying record contracts and long unreleased music dominated the first decade […]
These Days (2010)
Fabio Toriano leads the Italian soul team Soul Basement through sophisticated AC-soul and jazz pop on These Days. This nine-track voyage allows the band to play with atmospheric quietude. "Wonderful" plays with pop strings and breezy acoustic piano and "Still One," using Bruce Hornsby piano and light drum brushes, does a decent job in shifting […]
Just Charlie (2010)
An old show-biz saying posits that when all other life ends, there will still be cockroaches and Cher, and with what all Charlie Wilson has endured, maybe his name needs to be added too. It’s been a long and jagged road for the performer, who enjoyed years of success as a member of the legendary […]
Merry Christmas II You (2010)
At the peak of her powers, when Mariah Carey was being compared only to Whitney Houston, Mariah dropped her illuminating 1992 holiday album Merry Christmas. Because of her glowing presence in pop music, the album soared to the top of the charts, went platinum a number of times and quickly became one of the best-selling […]
Lions, Fires, and Squares (2010)
As the great granddaughter of the renowned, spirited jazz pianist, John Malachi, Carolyn Malachi proudly carries the family tradition by taking his legacy into the twenty-first century. Her interest in music began as a child as an aspiring lyricist. But it was a sound design class at Shepherd University in West Virginia where she first […]
Faith, Hope, Love (2010)
There is a temptation to assume that a talent like John Stoddart came from nowhere. The surname Stoddart sounds a whole lot like Studdard so maybe people will get him confused with American Idol winner Rueben Studdard. Stoddart’s latest album Faith, Hope, Love will prompt people to try to learn a little more about this […]
Good Things (2010)
To hear Aloe Blacc discuss his music and literary influences is to hear a little Jimi Hendrix philosophizing mixed with a lot of Berkeley liberalism, even though the Southern California grad matriculated far south of that progressive hub. Blacc’s left-leaning politics coats his co-penned soul tales with a male-centric, working class social consciousness that owes […]
Let Freedom Reign (2010)
Did you know Chrisette Michele’s new album was coming out? Well, neither did we. Of course, this lack of label push on a marquee act only fuels suspicions. With so little marketing push on the third project following a #1 Billboard 200 and #1 Billboard R&B gold album with at least one Top 20 R&B […]
