nessymon.com

Blog

  • Rachel Austin: Age of Love E.P. Review

    Rachel Austin Rachel Austin‘s E.P. ‘Age of Love’ truly is a thing of beauty. The three track opens with ‘Babydoll’. Think, smoky laid back jazz club and you’re on the right side of town. Simple brushed drums and understated guitar accompany Austin’s vocals until a delightful brass arrangement is added to the mix.  Maybe it’s Austin’s Virginia, USA, upbringing that instilled some sort of magic potion in her. She has managed to here to conjure a timeless piece of music.

    ‘Close’ sees Austin still retain a slight jazz feel but has almost grunged it up, making it dark and dirty, in a good way. Hammond organ, tremelo-ed guitar and ghostly backing vocals add to the feel, making this sound like something from the underworld.  There’s clever production, check out how the double bass is mixed. The track builds up beautifully, using Austin’s vocals for the rise and fall of the track. I like this a lot. (more…)

  • Free Music Monday 11/07/2011: The Civil Wars

    The Civil Wars-liveateddysThis week’s recommended Free Music comes from indie folk duo John Paul White and Joy Williams better known as ‘The Civil Wars’.

    They got a break in 2009 when their song ‘Poison and Wine’ was used in Grey’s Anatomy and more recently they came into my consciousness as James Vincent McMorrow toured with them in America and they also opened for Adele. Check out their album ‘Barton Hollow’.

    This recommended download comes from the Free Section of their website where you can download a full live album ‘Live at Eddie’s Attic’. This should give you a good idea of what to expect when they come to The Sugar Club in Dublin on September 1.

    The download comes in a zip file here or using this link you can then download tracks individually. Any problems with those links? everything is available from the FREE section of their website.

    (more…)

  • Lorraine Maher: Inspire Me Review

    lorrainemaherLorraine Maher‘s name maybe known to many on these shores as a finalist of ‘You’re A Star’. Fast forward a couple of years and the now Los Angeles based singer has released her second E.P. entitled ‘Inspire Me’.

    The title track opens proceedings and immediately captures your attention.  It builds up beautifully and twin guitar tracks keep the production interesting. While the production may be minimalist, just these guitars and percussion, this gives Maher’s voice it’s place in the spotlight.

    Throughout the E.P., Maher shows great songwriting skills and has lovely structure to her songs. ‘For You’ shows this and as the song builds up, Maher’s voice rises to show the intensity of the lyrics. (more…)

  • It’s Miller Time! – The New Social Media Hub

    Miller TonightLast week I was asked if I would be into testing out a new Miller website, itsmillertimeuk.com Basically what Miller have done is come up with a hub that intergrates with Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare, allowing the user to pre-check into venues on their site and then invite their friends for a pint. Basically it’s an online way of getting your mates together in a pub.

    When you first log into the site, you are given the opportunity to login in with Facebook and also Foursquare and Twitter. Once you choose Dublin as your city, you are given a map with some circles. These circles indicate how many locations are within that area. When you zoom in and click on a particular venue, the hub gives you an option to check in, and tell your friends where you’re going that night.

    When you do check in and invite your friends, you do this through Facebook, clicking on their profile pictures as with any invite for Facebook. It also gives you the option of emailing your friends with a note saying where you’re off to that night. I didn’t like this, I’ve already given some Facebook details and passwords to use the hub. The last thing I then want to hand over is the password to my email account thanks. (more…)