SubmitHub – Page 170 – Queen City Sounds and Art

Tommy Strauser’s “At Least I’m Moving” is a Song About Embracing Life’s Uncertainties and Reconnecting With Your Own Rhythms

TommyStrauser_AtLeastImMoving2_crop — Tommy Strauser “At Least I’m Moving” cover

If not for the steadily flowing evolving soundscape of “At Least I’m Moving,” the touch of autotune on Tommy Strauser’s processed vocals might have be reminiscent of a lot of modern electronic pop music. But in that context it perfectly suits a song seemingly about uncertainty in life and the pressure to conform to a kind of shallow agenda of personal progress. Strauser’s vocals sit back from that treadmill of dubious and meaningless achievements and takes in the ambient sounds, the aspects of the world that are easy to ignore if you’re in too much of a hurry, impelled by someone else’s agenda at the expense of one’s own. It’s not a song celebrating self-indulgence and empty hedonism. It’s about being patient with yourself and live life at a human pace and not one pushed on to you by a social and economic context that places a premium on efficiency over quality. The line “Maybe I’m not moving fast, but at least I’m moving” illustrates the ethos here of recognizing the need to move forward with your life but while cultivating your humanity and that of others. The myriad of sonic details make the song from Strauser’s creatively produced vocals, the percussion going along at a walking pace, the synth swells, the points of tone shining in the background, the minimal keyboard work abstracted in another layer of melodic mood, the playful synth lines flitting through the song—all build slowly to a climax at the end that feels like you’ve had a chance to take a nap and wake up a little refreshed and not needing to get right to work or some chore. Though not explicitly stated in the words, it is a song about taking the time for yourself and the people and things you care about because it’s all going to matter more than another contribution to the gods of productivity and the culture that surrounds it. Listen to “At Least I’m Moving” on Spotify and connect with Tommy Strauser at the links provided.

open.spotify.com/artist/0otSLs7dsdsyFFP2sg0vMd
soundcloud.com/tslk

Elli K’s “The Shadow of Your Smile” is a Lushly Vivid Emotional Portrait of Romantic Melancholy

ElliK_TheShadowOfYourSmile1_rop — Elli K, photo courtesy the artist

Elli K is an artist from South Korea but her single “The Shadow of Your Smile” sounds like it has some roots in 60s and 70s French pop. The lush production with light strings and subtle bell tones, brushed percussion and K’s dynamic, breathy vocals is an aural time machine—but one that takes you out of normal reality into an alternative existence where the time to take a deep dive into the depths of where one’s memories and emotions can be experienced through the lens of having had the time to process and untangle those especially strong connections in your mind and extract what seems most important for you in the present. The effect of the track shares some of the same enveloping aesthetic, conceptualization and integrated execution of a Sofia Coppola film. This bears out especially in the music video for the song where every element, every texture, nuance and cadence builds to a powerful if gentle whole. Watch the video for “The Shadow of Your Smile” on YouTube, connect with Elli K at the links below and look out for Elli K’s latest album of vivid emotional portraits, Love Collage.

open.spotify.com/artist/61jfFcTUGxZ0YPvYeqeiNJ
youtube.com/c/ElliKMusic
instagram.com/ellik_music

“The Hole In Your Head” Finds Impostor Syndrome Diving Headlong Toward the Cultural and Political Event Horizon Facing Us Today

ImpostorSyndrome_HoleInYourHead2_sm — Impostor Syndrome, image courtesy the artists

Impostor Syndrome’s video for “The Hole In Your Head” was created and filmed by the band. And somehow the group managed to nail an aesthetic like something by an independent band offering on public access television in the 90s. Musically it’s similarly eclectic and not overly beholden to a prevailing trend. With its urgency and intensity paired with distorted atmospherics the song sounds like something that might have come out of a group of musicians who listened to a whole lot of Deftones, Failure and Jane’s Addiction growing up. It’s melodic, has a shimmer but driven by an aggressive energy and seemingly willing to go outside even its own conventions with unpredictable dynamics. The song is about coming to the realization that maybe the pillars of your understanding of society and the world was always resting on a crumbling foundation of conceptualizations, models and assumptions that do little to address the needs of actual people in service to outdated ideologies. In the face of this self-illumination you can either hold on tight to what you’ve always known or dive headlong into new possibilities. Seems like Impostor Syndrome has chosen the latter. Watch the video for “The Hole In Your Head” and connect with the band at the links provided.

geo.itunes.apple.com/nz/album/id1470565393
open.spotify.com/artist/1XCZteGmBNfCK6pVhLT2OY
youtube.com/channel/UCOsJ-cye0oH6XafeuJ2Ebxw
facebook.com/ImpostorSyndrome
instagram.com/impostor_syndrome_music

Fós Invokes Primeval Musical Forces to Disentangle Our Minds From the Conditioning of Toxic Modernity on Debut Album Rinne mé iarraidh

Fos_AnRaibhTuArAnGCarraig1_crop — Fós “An raibh tú ar an gCarraig?” cover (cropped)

Experimental metal project Fós from Dublin, Ireland is a fusion of drone metal and a traditional music style called sean-nós. On its four song debut album Rinne mé iarraidh (Fós album) released on March 14, 2020, the results of that alchemical mixture is in the realm of the way certain atmospheric black metal acts and the likes of drone legends SunnO))) and sonically adventurous death metal band Dark Castle draw upon the resonances of ancient spiritual rhythms, tonalities and organic, almost intuitive, song structures to take you on a listening journey to some deep, primeval part of your mind to help disentangle the way our minds have been warped to adhere to the values of a mechanized form of social organization and consciousness. On the lead single “An raibh tú ar an gCarraig?” female vocals luminously intone melodically in presumably Gaelic as though mourning the loss of something or someone important but making way for new beginnings. The voice hits your ears vividly but unobtrusively while distorted drones drift and hang in layers behind like the fog obscuring Avalon. Listen to “An raibh tú ar an gCarraig?” on Soundcloud and connect with Fós at the links provided.

fosmetal.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/fosmetal

They/Live’s “Foreigner” Channels the Feels of 80s Synth Pop to Illuminate the Ways We Navigate Mixed Emotions

TheyLive_Ablation_cover2 — They/Live *Ablation* cover

“Foreigner,” They/Live’s second single from her forthcoming debut LP Ablation (out on Born Losers in May 2020) is reminiscent of something Tina Turner might have released during the period of her 1984 comeback album Private Dancer. The lightly distorted guitar, the lush, soulful vocals, the scintillating tones that sound like they’re hazy with soft lighting. Also parallel with Turner’s gift for articulating the nuances of a troubled relationship, conflicted feelings and yearning for meaningful connection, “Foreigner” acknowledges that the relationship in question is fraught with mixed feelings that you cast aside in hopes of finding something genuine, real and reciprocated. The line “Baby come a little closer, I’m a foreigner to this feeling” poetically and succinctly illuminates the tension of uncertainty and a will to take a chance in case maybe you’re undermining something that might be good by overthinking it. It seems like a song that says better to take a chance than live with unnecessary regret. Listen to “Foreigner” on Bandcamp and connect with They/Live on Instagram.

Nomadic Odyssey Bridges Everyday and Mystical Experiences Across Cultures on “$hooting The $hit”

NomadicOdyssey_ShootingTheShit1_crop — Nomadic Odyssey *Disgruntled* cover

The reverse delay on the keyboard loop on“$hooting The $hit” by Nomadic Odyssey gives a touch of the otherworldly to a song that bridges the gap between contemplating regular life and more cosmic concerns, normalizing mystical concepts by grounding them in everyday experiences. What makes it work well is the California accent of one of the rappers and the South UK accent of the other, especially when they come together in the last third of the song. Both rapping about similar concerns and interests with a striking unity of conceptualization and purpose. That is putting high concepts within reach of anyone willing to think and talk about universal connections and concepts without losing sight of your specific context and how there is no inherent barrier between either. The minimal drum pattern, percussive piano and sax sample lend a soulful backdrop to words that cover a lot of ground from the aforementioned big picture considerations and indulging in cannabis as part of that connection and shared experience of both vocalists. Listen to “$hooting The $hit” on Soundcloud and connect with Nomadic Odyssey at the links provided.

soundcloud.com/nomadicodyssey
instagram.com/nomadic.odyssey

Treasure Takes Us Into the Drift of Nighttime Contemplation on the Dreamy, Downtempo “Strength”

Treasure_Strength2_crop — Treasure, photo courtesy the artist

An ambient shimmer eases you into the incredibly mellow moods of “Strength” by UK artist Treasure. His softly spoken lyrics float amid echoing keyboard minimalism, lingering, ethereal guitar work, spare percussion and near the end of the song a more energetic synth line that guides us into the song’s conclusion. The overall effect is one of waking up in the dark of fall weekend evening after a nap and taking the time to reflect before getting up and getting to anything because you can take your time. It’s a fascinating blend of sounds that could be downtempo, dream pop, vapor wave and moody R&B yet isn’t really defined by specific genre considerations. At times it’s reminiscent of a lo-fi “Exchange” by Massive Attack and how that song seems to drift in circles before pausing and repeating that drift in what feels like a slightly different mode, a subtle shift in tonality or pacing that works as a hypnotic loop. It’s the kind of song that could be left on repeat and seem like it’s changing every time because of that almost intuitive, organic sense of rhythm. Listen to “Strength,” the third and final single from Treasure’s project “Suffocation & Air,” on Spotify and connect with the artist at the links below.

https://open.spotify.com/embed/album/6JyBhsMnhP50TqF3NQ3VVK

soundcloud.com/treasuretheband
open.spotify.com/artist/12tQ1YGmb2jzMds6LOCuiZ
facebook.com/olwhkb
instagram.com/treasuretheband

The Organic Ambient Jazz of Voyager II’s “Shape of Light” Conveys a Deep Sense of Pastoral Tranquility

VoyagerII_ShapeOfLight1_crop — Voyager II “Shape of Light” cover

“Shape of Light” by UK duo Voyager II develops in what seems like an organic fashion with soft percussion and impressionistic breezes of tone and melodic, wordless vocals that seem to flutter about in an invisible breeze. Electronic bass pulses in sync with the all but non-linear dynamics and like witnessing a natural phenomenon like the local weather or footage from deep space there is an elegance and easiness to the composition that may not follow conventional rules of music but is accessible by a kind of logic that transcends that which we impose on our environment everyday that can cause us to miss details. Thus it’s the kind of song that if you take in its ambient textures and fluid atmospheres as a whole rather than dissecting it for its component the listening experience is parallel to the ineffable sense of tranquility one gets from a bucolic landscape or a field of stars that the satellite Voyager 2 may be transmitting back to Earth. Listen to “Shape of Light” on Soundcloud and connect with Voyager II at the links provided.

soundcloud.com/user-444470767
youtube.com/channel/UC9Rc40KiT5Yzkzs1Cy9_ETA/videos
voyagerii1.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/VoyagerDuo

Jenny Dee Sings About Closure With an Unrequited Youthful Crush on “All These Words”

JennyDee_AllTheseWords2_crop — Jenny Dee, photo courtesy the artist

Musical brushstrokes of strings drift in the backdrop of Jenny Dee’s single “All These Words” like the haze of a cherished memory even if that memory is one of regret and opportunities lost. Accompanied by electronic and acoustic drums hitting a soft beat, a spare organ line and a touch of guitar, Dee lays out a kind of confessional about her feelings for someone for whom she has harbored feelings even though she never really expressed those feelings, just silently assuming the feelings were shared. Then she finds out the object of her affection was in love with someone else and the sense of deep disappointment in self and in circumstance is expressed in the lines, “I was foolish, I felt you were mine. We were nothing, so far from loving.” Years pass and Dee, or at least the narrator in the song, meets up with her crush again and talks like they had so often and so freely before to the point where she feels “like a kid again” and gets up the nerve to express how she felt even if it doesn’t result in some kind of fairy tale reconciliation into an ideal relationship. Sometimes being able to express your truth with no expectation is the best and most realistic way to accept that your feelings were valid. Less overt in the song is the implied bravery and self-honesty that conversation had to take. “All These Words” is from Dee’s most recent album Dancing From a Distance, produced by Copeland’s Aaron Marsh, released March 6, 2020. Listen to the song on Soundcloud and connect with Jenny Dee at the links provided.

open.spotify.com/artist/2zM8FcOLP924ypUODNi27S
youtube.com/user/Jennydee32
twitter.com/Jennykdee
instagram.com/jennykdee

Jan Echo Delves Into the Dystopian Standardization of Thought and Culture Through Social Networks on the Industrial Post-punk Song “Our Lies”

JanEcho_OurLies1_lg — Jan Echo, “Our Lies” cover, image courtesy the artists

With its new single “Our Lies” Jan Echo delves into the phenomenon of social media and the media in general and their impact on not just the narratives floating about in society and influencing public opinion but often our sense of ourselves and our place in this new social universe. The brooding synths and lingering vocals is reminiscent of a more industrial Depeche Mode. Guitar accents work like impressionistic tonal motes in the flow of slowly arcing melodic drones and meditative percussion. But unlike entirely too much modern music the song goes beyond one mood and a single, narrow dynamic particularly in the last half of the song when the band indulges a tasteful guitar solo that traces a line out of the dullened and even norm that is that increasingly internationally standardized modes of thought, expression and conceptualization that widespread interconnectivity has spawned. “Our Lies” suggests it needn’t be this way, and it does not, with the sheer potential of sharing diverse ideas, perspectives and experiences but as it is all being administered by a few corporations for their profit, the monetizable aspects of these interactions are most rewarded. A different kind of flattening of the curve to benefit the technocratic class at the expense of human independence of thought by increasing our dependence on being plugged into the network for communication, information, engagement with society and more so than ever the economy. Listen to “Our Lies” on Soundcloud and connect with Jan Echo at Instagram.