Lovecreek, the new LP from Bay Areamericana darlings Buckeye Knoll, was recorded in a log cabin high in the Sierra Mountains. Indisputably, the group chose the most appropriate environment for Doug Streblow's thoughtful collection of songs about adventure, solitude and discovery of oneself in the natural world.
With help from producer and engineer Cian Riordan, and contemporary music giant Eric Valentine, Buckeye Knoll delivers their strongest and most textural collection to date. Lovecreek inspires listeners to pack up the car and head for the mountains to make some discoveries of their own.
Whoâs an indie rock outfit that strategically meshes the artistic cool croons of My Morning Jacket with the bluesy vintage edge that The Black Keys encompass?
The Heavy Guilt hails from under the red crimson lights of the Southern California venues. They have fabricated a sound that is clearly reminiscent of their influences but, at the same time, is certainly no carbon copy. Despite their influencersâ presence, their sound is intrinsic.
Their third full-length album is born from the dive bar. The sound combines soulful indie stomp with tasteful experimentation.
This coming May The Heavy Guilt are playing two shows in the San Francisco Bay Area. On May 4th they will be playing at the Boom Boom Room with The Voodoo Fix and on May 5th they will be playing at Sweetwater Music Hall with Jerry Joseph.
The Wearies are back with their Self-Titled EP. The Bay Area rock/pop band will be playing Friday April 5th at Neck of the Woods in San Francisco. The band led by singer/songwriter Erik Mullin deliver a guitar driven, dirty pop sensation that will leave you with songs in your head long after the show is over.
Mullin's voice soars with the unique ability to stop an audience in their tracks and elicit an emotion response from the listener. If you are a fan of Rock & Roll, you'll be a fan of The Wearies.
There's been much ado concerning the end of the current 5125 year cycle of the Mayan Long Count calendar on December 21, 2012. Legend has it that the first of seven Mayan prophecies refers to the last 20 years of this cycle as the 'The Time of No-Time.' But far from being the end of the world, evidently the end of the 'Time of No-Time' is party time!
With that in mind, Ancient Future is celebrating with the End of the Beginning of the Ancient Future Sale! From now until 12/21/2012, the latest four Ancient-Future.Com releases are on sale and a complimentary promo copy of 'World Without Walls' by Ancient Future featuring the song 'End of the Beginning' will be sent to anyone who spends $51.25 or more on music from the Ancient-Future.Com store.
Every year we like to cover a Christmas tune for our fans. "Baby Please Come Home" is our fourth year in row, covering a a classic holiday song. This song was originally written by Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry along with Phil Spector. It was originally sung by Darlene Love and included on the 1963 Christmas compilation album, A Christmas Gift for You from Philles Records. There is a guitar solo in the middle to make it more contemporary, the style is in fitting with our indie-dream genre. We hope you enjoy this free download through Soundcloud page ~ sentineldream.
Love from the East Bay, ~Sentinel gang in Oaktown
This album is probably too late to make or break any of your âTop of 2012â lists, but that is not what it is meant to do.
The vibrant and kaleidoscopic indie-folk album âCompanyâ from Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Andy Burrows will find a warm place in your soul - that feeling of returning to your hometown for the holidays and walking through the worn doors of the âold spotâ; knowing that theres no catching up, just carrying on where you left off; and there very well may not be enough drink in the place for all the glasses youâll raise. And at the end of the night, a âsee ya laterâ with a warm embrace and a pat-on-the-back means more than any âgood-byâ.
Drawing parallels to indie folk predecessors Elliot Smith and Badly Drawn Boy, Andyâs plaintive mid-range and falsetto vocals enliven tender and nostalgic lyrics, amidst layers of cinematically arranged orchestral elements; all of which is briskly framed by acoustic guitar strums, banjo plucking, and nuanced rhythms.
Check out the swaggering rhythms, lush orchestrations, and soaring vocals in the acoustic guitar-driven track âBecause I Know that I Canâ
Review from Small Takeover
THE SMALL TAKE OVER
Buzzmutt â Static in the Mindâs Eye â Chapter 1
Earlier in the year I ventured out of the house to see a reasonably well-known American psychedelic band who were really just Black Sabbath clones in different clothes and haircuts, not that thereâs anything wrong with that unlike paraphrasing hit and miss TV comedy shows. The band asked for no photos to be taken and the mirror ball with the lights took care of that anyway because most of the pictures wouldnât have turned out. Listening to Buzzmutt from San Francisco, itâs easy to picture them using the lighting and mirrorball as another instrument or even a separate band member.
Thereâs no faking pscychedelia in Buzzmuttâs music; these guys are not just weekend flare wearers and incense burners. It would be totally incorrect to state that there is a hallucegenic undertone because if Hunter s. Thompson was to be in a band Buzzmutt would be that band. The band conveys a spaced out airiness in songs like âThe Tricksterâ and âAdjusted Sightâ. The rythym section proves their worth in âComing Toâ. If chemical lounge jazz swing isnât a genre yet then âI Donât Remember Painâ sets a precedent. âAfter Thatâ rubs with a Velvet Underground rawness vocally although thereâs a pervading spring of a puppy here too. Stylistically these guys are capable of going all over the map while retaining their own sound and testament to that is when garage punk parks up and yells and sings âSharp like Razorâ. Pleasurable distortion without added weird primal effects sums up âJungle Zombieâ.
These guys sent me an email describing their music as noisy experimental indie rock kind of stuff. The word "expreimental" is often used in musician speak and means only listenable to the band and a few of their friends. Believe me, thatâs not the case here. All too often twelve songs from an unknown band wear out there welcome however Buzzmutt have abided by the review rulebook and followed Rule 1117 section E, which categorically states don't make each song sound the same but if you do then make certain that your band don't sound like shit. Unfortunately most bands don't even read the rulebook past page 3, the forming a band section.
Buzzmutt may have their own sound but one song sounds different enough to another for them to not only get away with it but for the length to make sense. No complaints about this release being too short either from this reviewer. Itâs available from their bandcamp site at a price of your choosing or on cassette from the band.
4.5/5
Review from Small Takeover
THE SMALL TAKE OVER
Buzzmutt â Static in the Mindâs Eye â Chapter 1
Earlier in the year I ventured out of the house to see a reasonably well-known American psychedelic band who were really just Black Sabbath clones in different clothes and haircuts, not that thereâs anything wrong with that unlike paraphrasing hit and miss TV comedy shows. The band asked for no photos to be taken and the mirror ball with the lights took care of that anyway because most of the pictures wouldnât have turned out. Listening to Buzzmutt from San Francisco, itâs easy to picture them using the lighting and mirrorball as another instrument or even a separate band member.
Thereâs no faking pscychedelia in Buzzmuttâs music; these guys are not just weekend flare wearers and incense burners. It would be totally incorrect to state that there is a hallucegenic undertone because if Hunter s. Thompson was to be in a band Buzzmutt would be that band. The band conveys a spaced out airiness in songs like âThe Tricksterâ and âAdjusted Sightâ. The rythym section proves their worth in âComing Toâ. If chemical lounge jazz swing isnât a genre yet then âI Donât Remember Painâ sets a precedent. âAfter Thatâ rubs with a Velvet Underground rawness vocally although thereâs a pervading spring of a puppy here too. Stylistically these guys are capable of going all over the map while retaining their own sound and testament to that is when garage punk parks up and yells and sings âSharp like Razorâ. Pleasurable distortion without added weird primal effects sums up âJungle Zombieâ.
These guys sent me an email describing their music as noisy experimental indie rock kind of stuff. The word "expreimental" is often used in musician speak and means only listenable to the band and a few of their friends. Believe me, thatâs not the case here. All too often twelve songs from an unknown band wear out there welcome however Buzzmutt have abided by the review rulebook and followed Rule 1117 section E, which categorically states don't make each song sound the same but if you do then make certain that your band don't sound like shit. Unfortunately most bands don't even read the rulebook past page 3, the forming a band section.
Buzzmutt may have their own sound but one song sounds different enough to another for them to not only get away with it but for the length to make sense. No complaints about this release being too short either from this reviewer. Itâs available from their bandcamp site at a price of your choosing or on cassette from the band.
4.5/5
Brought together by recording the CD "Arboles y Amores" earlier this year, Trio Florecer will make its debut performance at The Red Poppy Art House in San Francisco on Sunday November 4th at 7pm. Taking an intimate approach to South American popular song, they have received airplay on major radio stations in Spain and Colombia as well as here in the United States.
Trio Florecer plays classic pasillos, bambucos, pasajes and more â South American cousins of the waltz that unite indigenous, European, and African influences. Tenor Mark Baum gives voice to the longing of the lyrics in harmony with clarinetist Zack Pitt-Smith's beautifully improvised counter-melodies, while bassist Jeremy Allen fluidly shifts meter and rhythm, holding down the groove. For this performance, they will be joined by friend and collaborator Rafael Manriquez, master guitarist from Chile.
For concert information, contact The Red Poppy Art House at 415-826-2402.
My Day at SF Music Tech
Letâs kick it off with my favorite moments from the first panel on Artist Tools:
Youâve got David Dufresne from Bandzoogle talking about all the tools his platform provides â and why a website is the absolute only thing an artist can truly own on the internet. You can keep track of your fans, your analytics â you completely control the design and the narrative.
Matt Mason from BitTorrent explaining that its all about media format and how they want to facilitate sharing what you want with anyone you want. Dave Haynes from SoundCloud digs even deeper with teasing The Next SoundCloud â launching soon, which focuses not only on the creator, but also on the listener. Creating an even better experience for listeners who want to discover music on SoundCloud and a more effective platform for creators to share their music with their audience.
Steve Rennie of REN Management consistently brought us back to reality, âthe single most difficult challenge for an artist is to bring attention to what you do,â highlighting that even with every sharing tool the web can offer, youâve gotta bring the magic. âYouâve got a song to inspire, ways to get it out there. Donât over think it. Just do it!â
My second stop of the day was an interview with Pandora Founder, Tim Westergren. In the X theatre, the mood was intense. Mr. Westergren argued passionately against what he calls the current âdiscrimination against internet radio.â Pandora is currently heavily involved in a battle over the royalty rate paid out from their internet radio service. He says the financial market is so hostile that it is suffocating the internet ratio movement â which is ultimately going to hurt artists. Unfortunately, this battle has been playing out in sound bites, says Tim, and it can sometimes be painted to seem that Pandora is anti-artist. Mr. Westergren earnestly said that he believes even though the process may be a painful one, that years down to road people will look back and see that Pandora has always cared hugely about the artist.
Iâve gotta say, Iâm not sure where I stand as an artist on this legislation â but another well known artist, celebrity if you will, Zoe Keating stood up to ask Mr. Westergren a question. Zoe said she makes about $2,000 from Pandora annually, and that she finds it is an incredible discovery mechanism for her music. She said she would even be willing to waive royalties in exchange for certain links to tickets and concert dates, and asked if Tim has ever considered this as a way to reduce the financial burden. He didnât even come close to taking the bait â he believes it is fundamentally wrong to ask downtrodden artists to take it in the chin. He doesnât want Pandora to get anywhere near a payola system. It is inconsistent with their mission â which is to build a healthy industry and pay everyone fairly. Overall, Mr. Westergren has a strong argument, and all those involved should educate themselves on this current battle â as itâs likely to affect our industry one way or another in a profound way.
Another of my favorite panels was actually fairly small, but extremely interesting. The âArtist Revenue Streamsâ panel, featured Jean Cook, co-manager and Director of Programs at the Future of Music Coalition.
The FMC has done an earnings breakdown of the various income streams of a working musician. Professional folk artist, Erin Mckeown participated in this study as well, and spoke in the panel on her own musician income streams. The FMC identified a total of 42 main income streams for todayâs musicians. I would encourage every musician, artist and creator in this industry to check out their study â online at money.futureofmusic.org â and see how they fit in. This panel was particularly interesting as an artist, because it proves in detail that there is a variety of ways to earn a living in the music world. There is room for all of us and we can decide what our income âpieâ ultimately looks like.
An informative, empowering and inspiring day at the SF Music Tech Conference â and if you missed it, donât despair! They happen twice a year, so stay posted at their website, sfmusictech.com and Iâll see you there next time around!
Most bands that succeed beyond the local level eventually do so with the aid of a manager. What does this person do, aside from collect a healthy cut of the money? We interviewed 2 NYC managers and 1 publicist with different experiences in the local scene to help us understand. by Paolo De Gregorio - read the article.
Protect Your Band's Name!
the name is what you are selling
The reputation and recognition of an artist's music is built around the artist's professional name, which is what consumers use to identify the artists they enjoy. Therefore, an individual artist or group pursuing a career in the music industry should take the necessary steps to protect his, her or its professional name. by Christopher R. Chase, Esq. - read the article.
College Radios Promotion
what can they do for your band?
In this day and age, we should be thankful that college radio still exists. While commercial frequencies pump the same boring playlists into every city, college radio provides unique, local voices to the airwaves and internet. - read the article by Liz Schroeter here .
Career Survival Guide
it's not just about the music
A music carreer IS all about surviving - at least in the early stages. This survival guide will help you think of different ways to keep your focus on building your brand and creating a path for success. If you think of yourself as your own small business, then the following information can become your personal marketing plan. - read on. - courtesy of BMI.
1. Recording: Home vs Studio
the question is: can YOU do it?
Indie producer/musician Bruce Kaphan(R.E.M., David Byrne, Red House Painters, American Music Club) analyzes pros and cons of recording the DIY way - r ead the article.
2. Choosing a Recording Studio
pick carefully + things to consider
What do you need to look for in a recording studio? In this article you'll find all the advice you need about equipment, engineers, rooms, rates, and ways of approaching the recording experience. by Paolo De Gregorio - rea d the article.
3. Planning Recordings
be prepared, have a budget
Steven Alvarado, a NYC studio manager provides precious advice on how to approach the recording of your CD. "When you enter the studio, have a plan. Map out what you want to accomplish each day so that you have a realistic idea of how much time you will need to complete your project. It's best to be as prepared as possible."by pdg - rea d the article.
4. Do You Need a Producer?
and: don't waste studio time!
Making a recording is a tangle of pragmatism, technology, alchemy and faith. As is the case with any creative venture, you cannot know what you'll get for your efforts until you go through the process; it's always a gamble. Having a plan and a budget can be really useful.by B. Kaphan - rea d the article.
5. Drums in the Studio
performance and recording tips
Drummers shouldn't miss this article! 4 Top NYC producers answer our questions on how to perform, hit, and tune the drums in recording situation. And... is your drummer tight and can he/she play to the click? by Paolo De Gregorio - read the article.
6. Ten Tips For Recording Guitars
from the pick to the amp
Recording guitars, although easy at first can be a challenge when you really want to achieve a great sound. Here are some helpful tips to improve your guitar recording chops. - by Shane O'Connor - read the article.
7. Recording Vocals
not as easy as you might think
Recording vocals might not seem alike the most challenging task when producing a CD, but this delicate and crucial process often ends up being quite draining and taking longer than expected - by Paolo De Gregorio - read the article.
8. Do You Need Mastering?
what it is and why it is!
Mastering is a process that not many emerging musicians are fully familiar with. One of the most succesfull NYC mastering engineer tells us all about this "secret" art.- by Paolo De Gregorio - read the article.
