Big Rock Finish… reviews of independent music

The Zoobombs were formed by DON Matsuo (vocals/guitar), Matta (keyboards), and Moostop (bass) in Tokyo in September 1994 and — together with various drummers – have been amazing rock audiences in Japan, North American and Australia ever since. The Zoobombs’ brand of rock and roll is unique: hardcore punk blues spiked with explorations of funk, rap, prog-rock, and even traditional Japanese folk.

The Zoobombs incendiary, live performances quickly shot them to the top of Japan’s indie-rock scene and opening concert performances for The Flaming Lips and Jon Spencer’s Blues Explosion. These Japanese psych rockers have been garnering heaps of praise from major media outlets and industry personalities across the globe for their unique blend of psychedelic funk rock. MTV Iggy saying “Essentially, it’s the band The Stones would be if they’d been forged in the post-punk era” and The New York Times featured their Let it Bomb album as a masterpiece OF the “Japanese Next Wave” rock movement.

www.thezoobombs.com

My genre is difficult to define, but lies on the darker side of electro-pop-rock, with a dash of acoustics and jazz.
I’m inspired by Kate Bush, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Dragonette, 90′s Bjørk, Sia, Fiona Apple, and Fever Ray amongst a zillion others. (All
about the women!)

My debut album ‘Amateur’ was self-released by choice, written, recorded and produced, (and now promoted), by yours truly. Despite the lack of involvement from professionals, the album has received very positive feedback.

Despite the fact I’ve yet to play live, my fanbase has grown to count more than 7000 people from all over the world, (with more than 4000 on my Facebook musicpage alone), I have reached no.1 on the Reverbnation Alternative chart for Denmark, and
remixes are so far being released on various labels in UK, US and France.

www.katboelskov.com

Highway Collection may be Lovett’s debut album, but if it doesn’t sound that way, there’s a good reason. Helmsman Ben Lovett has been at this game for years, producing an impressive collection of albums and award-winning film scores for other artists. So we guess it was only a matter of time, and the wait was well worth it.

The self-released first single, “Eye of the Storm,” showcases Lovett’s uncanny knack for storytelling and production with its haunting vocals and acoustic guitar expertly melded with somber cello and violin into a lush watercolor of sound. The song’s visual counterpart, directed by Chris Alender of Soapbox Films, is a stunning steampunk masterpiece that became a viral sensation, generating over 2 million plays in its first month. But Lovett quickly flipped the table on anyone expecting a slow burning ethereal album and knocked us sideways with “Heartattack,” a wild, danceable, upbeat barn-burner of a love song packed with enough energy to peel paint and stomp through stage floors. The video for “Heartattack,” a colorful panorama of stylized party action, shows us all 12 of Lovett’s circus at their swaggering best. Blow your ears a kiss and check out the MP3 for “Heartattack,” below.

WWW.LOVETTMUSIC.COM

This band was born out of blood, sweat and tears. Adam Rave was looking for solid band members and came across Matt Fox (bass) who strongly believed in the musical direction. Matt joined the ride and has been a part of this band ever since. Rave’s previous project was a hard rock industrial act that quickly evolved into something pop-based with a rock edge to it. The band had a growing following but knew that they had to re-think everything to really break into today’s market.That’s how ‘Roads To Rosetta’ came into existence.

Matt introduced Rave to Ethan Pounds (guitar); the chemistry was perfect and Ethan proved to be ‘the one’- he jumped right in and became a part of the family. The search for a drummer was next. Rave contacted one of his best childhood friends and asked him to give it a shot, and he did. Tom Piso was the final piece of the puzzle. Now fully complete, rehearsed, and armed with killer tunes, the band hopes to begin working on an album this year and plan to tour Canada.

Come see Roads To Rosetta at the upcoming events:
June 23, 2011 – Velvet Underground, Toronto Canada
July 1, 2011 – The Daisy Foundation – Charity Rock Show at the Rockpile, Etobicoke Canada
July 30, 2011 – El Mocambo, Toronto Canada

http://www.myspace.com/roadstorosetta

David is a singer-songwriter from New York who resides in Barcelona, Spain. His music fits decidedly into the Americana genre, blending elements of blues, country and jazz with an intense poetic sensibility.

He has been rapidly building an audience in Barcelona and its environs, where he gigs often with his quartet, The David Cevoli Band.

http://davidcevoli.com/

Her appearance may be at once celestial and disarming, yet Maya Solovey’s music is decidedly sure-footed and grounded. Although her compositions are unique and often unexpected, there is a palpable coherence and confidence to Maya’s music which allows her listeners to recognize the mark of a young musician who seeks perfection. As a result, Maya’s audience is always afforded the pleasure of feeling safe in her music. This is not to insinuate that her music is tamed, subdued, or simple–for it is anything but.

Raised in the Berkshire Hills and schooled in Massachusetts, Ecuador and Spain, Maya began composing and recording songs at fifteen, and released her first album at seventeen. Now, at age 25 Maya has merged the acoustic/folk songwriting tradition into the territories of pop, bossa nova, and even the high drama of cinematic scoring. Her music is a surprising, yet rational marriage between all these cultures–she sings in Portuguese, Spanish and her native English tongue. As a trilingual songwriter, Maya has trained herself in the art of honesty. She recognizes that certain emotions travel through lyrics that could only work sincerely in Spanish, Portuguese, or English because they fit into the languages’ cultural continuum and poetic tradition. Remarkably, Maya is able to successfully guide her different cultural influences and musical perspectives into a refined and studied genre of her own making.

http://www.mayasolovey.com

Lelia do the talking:

My career in bullet points because bios are boring:
- i was an egg, then i was fertilized, then i was born.
- first concert, paul simon age 3 the cajun dome in Lafayette Louisiana. cool
- Cajun Dome again, age 6, I sang Patsy Cline’s “Crazy” in front of 15,000 people, they cheered, that was cooler…

And it goes on from there, covering the next fifteen years in a similar tone, all the way through the recent release of her third full-length album Masquerade. Lelia’s been on a roll lately, with an Artist of the Month nod from The Deli Magazine, and an AOL Music premiere for her adorable new music video “Satellite,” all while her Youtube video cover of “Single Ladies” steadily notches over 2 million views. Her undeniable talent is turning heads everywhere.

In fact, the talented Ms. Broussard has just nabbed the FIRST PLACE PRIZE in RUSSELL SIMMONS’ MYSPACE CHALLENGE. Earlier this month music industry legend and mogul Russell Simmons hijacked MySpace and showcased 10 artists that he hand-picked as the most promising emerging talent for 2011. The public then voted to pick the best of the 10, and it was no surprise Lelia received the honors.

http://leliabroussard.com/