Tiffany Kintzer on “Rose Quartz” and Opening Her Heart
You could teach a songwriting course at UCLA based solely on Tiffany Kintzer’s new single “Rose Quartz.” Co-written with Samantha Margret, it’s a perfectly crafted song with a stunningly lovely pre-chorus and radio-ready chorus. And she accomplishes all this in just a little over two minutes – a feat that would make even Taylor Swift […]
Most Memorable Song Midyear: talker’s “irl”
Photo by Trini Sin Two Story Melody has kindly granted me permission to do a story on the best indie pop song I’ve heard this year. And the winner is…talker’s “IRL” from her new EP In Awe Of Insignificance. talker is the indie rock project of Los Angeles-based Celeste Tauchar. In Awe’s eight songs run […]
Charles on TV: Where Marvin Gaye Meets Gorillaz
Photo by Gus Aronson If you love the music of Marvin Gaye, Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn, Smokey Robinson and other melodic masters, don’t miss Charles On TV’s latest music. He’s like all those artists rolled into one. Like those iconic predecessors, COT also writes great lyrics. You can get halfway into one of his hook-laden […]
nina gala on “we looked like angels,” Her New Album, and Baltimore
I don’t have synesthesia. I don’t “see” sound or music in color, floating out of the speaker in a rainbow mist. But I do strongly associate colors with music, to the point where it’s self-evident in my head; a song can be blue, as plainly and simply as my bedroom walls are gray. A song […]
Lizzerd Kween Unmasks to Share a Healing “Lullaby”
Photo by Niles Gregory Gibbs L.A. indie artist Lizzerd Kween (aka Kianna Znika) has the talent, authenticity and self-awareness of Taylor Swift when I first heard her in 2006 in Nashville. Lizzerd Kween’s acoustic version of her new single “Kianna’s Lullaby” is immediately engaging and honest. Like Taylor, she’s a master at “unmasking” – stepping […]
poolblood on “Twinkie,” Influences, and Inspiration
When you write for an independent music blog, you hear a lot of different independent music. Duh. But you realize that after a while, the stuff that really gets big isn’t soulless or indifferent. Rather, it’s the stuff that makes you a bit emotional or even reminiscent in some way. I like to compare the […]
Kramies on “Hotel in LA,” Collaboration, and Old Letters
“Hotel in LA,” the spellbinding new song by Kramies, doesn’t sound much at all like the Los Angeles of our collective imagination. Even in the darkest and most cynical tales of the City of Angels, there’s always sunshine, if only to better light the terrible things that occur there. But there’s no sunshine in “Hotel […]
Late July Has a “Remarkable” Flair for Music and Cinema
Nicole Simone uses her birth name for acting and performs music as Late July. Her resumé in both worlds is as impressive as her flaming red hair. Yet she’s very unassuming, not haughty, about her many talents. Maybe that’s because she grew up in Canada, where people seldom boast. Late July/Nicole now splits time between […]
Henry Ryeder on “Love Ain’t No Open Door,” Lockdown Isolation, and Julian Casablancas
Henry Ryeder’s newest EP, Boy Image, has this very cool and glamorous energy. The music feels as though it’s something relaxed but refined, and a mirror of dance-glam’s aesthetics with different and interesting sounds. Off of Boy Image, “Love Ain’t No Open Door” keeps this energy with a track that maintains a multitude of moods […]
Lainey Dionne on “2009,” Winning Awards, and European Boyfriends
You don’t hear many nostalgic songs about the good ol’ days of 2009 – mainly because America was suffering the pain of the Great Recession that year. But for high schooler Lainey Dionne, it was a magical time. When the most stressful Monday was hanging out on the couch With our Game Boys and screen […]
