Singer-songwriter Taylor Berrett is new to the scene, but he’s been keeping busy. Last year, Berrett toured with Alex Care and now he will be releasing his debut album, Great Falls, on March 10, 2015, via Warner Bros. Records. This is a debut album I can’t wait to hear. He may get compared to Jason Mraz, but Berrett has a more nostalgic, feel-good vibe to him that makes him different. Have a listen to his track “Those Days“ above and you will see what I mean.
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Brika, is an up and coming talent from Miami and her track, “Expectations” will have you hooked. She has almost 700,000 plays of the track on her SoundCloud page and 1.2 million plays between all four of her singles. Not bad for someone who began their career in 2013 according to her Facebook page.
Her other songs, “Gold”, “Option” and “Mumbai” each have a unique sound and her soothing voice blends well with each style. I definitely can’t wait to hear an album. Check out the music video for “Expectations” above and visit her SoundCloud page for more music.
Last year I got introduced to the music of Jaymes Young and it has become an addiction. I absolutely love his voice and his smooth combo of indie with electronic music is perfect. He has this mysterious persona thing going on for him, so here’s a quick wrap up of what we do know about him.
Who: Jaymes Young
From: Seattle, Washington
The Story: Jaymes is a 23-year old singer-songwriter currently residing in Los Angeles, CA. He self-released his Dark Star EP in May 2013 and has since been featured in Nylon Magazine, Earmilk and Noisey. According to Pigeons and Planes, Jaymes has signed to Atlantic Records.
Claim to fame: Did a North American and UK tour with, London Grammar.
Sound: Indie, Electronic, Rock, R&B.
Stand-out tracks: “Dark Star” and “Moondust”.
Up Next: Dark Star EP is out now. His debut album is set to be released this year. Announced on January 29, 2014 via his Facebook page that a music video for “Dark Star” would be coming soon.
Why you should know him: That voice! Listen to his track, “Dark Star” below and you’ll feel his talent.
For more info on Jaymes Young, visit his official website here.
Who: Cameron The Public aka Cameron Rafati (vocals and mastermind), Douglas Showalter (Guitar), Bana Haffar (Bass), Peter Dyer (Keys) and Emmanuel Cervantez (Drums).
From: Cameron is originally from Denver, CO and raised in Salt Lake City, UT.
The Story: Cameron began playing guitar at 13 years old and sang at local events. He attended USC and started a band named Vertices on campus. He released his self-titled solo album in 2011. It was produced by Scott Wiley (Bonnie Raitt, Elliot Smith, Tracey Chapman, Neon Trees). Later he had a residency at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas. As of June 5th of this year, the band decided to shift from Cameron’s solo effort to being a solid band known as Cameron The Public. Together they have toured with acts like Fitz and the Tantrums, Imagine Dragons, Jason Derulo, Goo Goo Dolls, Sean Kingston, Vintage Trouble and The Parlotones.
Claim to fame: Their newest track, “Unstoppable” is featured on ABC’s Summer Lineup promo. Cameron has also worked with Chad Hugo (The Neptunes) and Randy Jackson (American Idol) to write and perform renowned boxer, Manny Pacquiao’s walkout theme song, “Face Your Destiny”.
Sound: Blues and R&B fused rock.
Stand-out tracks: “Apple Pie” (listen below) and “Broken Door”.
Up Next: New EP, Title Needed Here, coming September 2013.
Why you should know them: After listening to “Apple Pie” and “Broken Door” you’ll understand why.
For more info on Cameron The Public, visit their official website here.
THE WANTED
Band Members: Max George, Tom Parker, Nathan Sykes, Jay McGuiness, Siva Kaneswaran
By: Nevra Azerkan
If you haven’t heard of The Wanted in the past month then you have probably been living under a rock. The British and Irish boy band just finished their ten-city tour of the U.S. The London based band is a hit overseas and have proved the same here in the states.
The Wanted formed in 2009 when Jayne Collins (mastermind behind The Saturdays and Parade) held an audition. They were signed with Geffen Records, whose President, Colin Barlow, was looking for five young talented male singers to form a group. He found what he was looking for in Max George, Tom Parker, Nathan Sykes, Jay McGuiness and Siva Kaneswaran.
They quickly got to work and collaborated with producers Guy Chambers, Taio Cruz and Steve Mac on their self-titled debut album. It was released in 2010 and produced three singles: “All Time Low”, “Heart Vacancy” and “Lose My Mind”. Their second album, Battleground was released in 2011 producing four singles including: “Gold Forever” (released in aid of Comic Relief), “Glad You Came”, “Lightning” and their current single, “Warzone”.
In 2011, they began their first theatre tour called The Behind Bars Tour, followed by their U.S. Tour in January and February of 2012 and then they jumped into #TheCode Tour which was their first arena tour visiting the UK and Ireland in February and March of 2012. The Wanted have also been the supporting act for select dates with Justin Bieber and Britney Spears in the past. Currently, they are going back and forth between the UK and US, promoting their EP release in the states. They are now working on their second US album (third for the UK) which they hope to release by the end of 2012. These guys are staking their ground in the music industry and we will probably see them do plenty more tours all over the world. Our review of their Los Angeles performance can be found here.
The Wanted are in a whirlwind of performances, press and award show events. They made their American TV debut on The Ellen DeGeneres show, performing their single, “Glad You Came.” Watch it here. Since then they have performed twice on Jay Leno, once on The Voice US and at the 2012 Billboard Awards. Their latest single, “Chasing The Sun” will be featured in Ice Age 4.
While they have the essence of a boy band, the music they are producing is not cheesy like boy bands of the 90s. The Wanted is edgier, catchier and real. They keep their music fresh by mixing up their sound in each track. It’s unpredictable and fun. But on top of that, what makes these guys so likeable is how genuine they are. Watching them on stage you can see their commodore and how much their fans mean to them. With The Wanted, what you see is what you get.
New Collisions
Band Members: Sarah Guild, Scott Guild, Alex Stern, Zak Kahn, and Casey Gruttadauria
By: Nevra Azerkan
New Collisions is a five-piece power pop band hailing from Cambridge, MA. Consisting of Sarah Guild (vocals), Scott Guild (guitar), Zak Kahn (drums), Casey Gruttadauria (keys) and Alex Stern (bass/vocals), New Collisions is quickly gaining popularity.
The band was founded by Sarah and her husband, Scott in the Spring of 2009. They collaborated on songs with Alex and Zak and later met Casey. They began playing the Boston scene and that got the attention of The B-52s, who asked New Collisions to open for them. The success of that tour led to them opening for Blondie, whom are listed as their ultimate influence. During this time many record labels began to approach them as well as former Cars Keyboardist, Greg Hawkes who is featured on their debut EP, Invisible Embraces. They apparently sent him a message on Myspace and he wrote back (at least Myspace is still alive for musicians!).
Their debut LP, The Optimist was recorded in under ten days and was released in October 2010. It was produced by Sean Slade and Paul Kolderie (The Pixies, Radiohead, The Sounds). The band describes their
music as, “a mixture of raucous, late 70’s punk, some early 80’s influences with some influences like The Pixies, The Jam and The Clash”.
In such a short time, New Collisions have made a name for themselves. Their song “Afterglow” was the lead track for Charlotte Russe’s summer denim campaign. CMJ’s publication included them on a CD sampler that included only 20 bands out of the 1,000 bands who played the festival. Their national tours include opening for: Missing Persons, The Morning Benders, You Say Party! We Say Die! and The Constellations.
The band is finishing 2010 with a tour of the southeast. This marks their sixth national tour. You would think they would take a break, but not this band; they have already booked a studio and have tapped Sean Slade once again to work on a new release, an EP due out March/April 2011. They have also alluded that Greg Hawkes may be featured once again by mentioning on their blog that “a certain famous synth player may also be involved”.
Definitely check out their debut LP, The Optimist and be sure to watch their video for their single, “Dying Alone” on their official website. For more information on New Collisions visit: www.newcollisions.com.
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