Last fall, New Jersey’s Wavefarmer’s – Sean Quinn and Zak Iannitelli locked themselves in a garage studio and recorded material that would eventually become their EP, Noises. With Iannitelli on keyboards and drum kit and Quinn on vocals and guitar, the duo’s influences range from Genesis, Motown, to the Beach Boys. Noises was released last March and features five songs, including our featured number, The Dirty.

In certain cases, writing songs can mean hitting a few bumps along the way and, in some cases, it can take forever to end up with the desired result. However, this wasn’t the case with The Dirty. “The song was written in an afternoon in Zak’s basement,” says Quinn. “It started with a sort of jam messing around with the delay settings on a DL-4 until we landed on a very unique sweep echo sound. After that the song really wrote itself. The sound and the quick Motown playing style steered the drums into the same direction.”

The song was written about someone both Sean and Zak know personally, a young woman who found out the hard way about the viral powers of the internet. “The Dirty is about a mutual friend who took some rather exotic pictures of herself. Inevitably the pictures were posted online for all the world to see. Needless to say everyone’s perspective of her changed drastically and she forever will be seen in a different light, or a different angle. Of course this isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

As for the song’s recording, the band feels like the methods used often end up defining the end result, and this was no exception with The Dirty. “We take a unorthodox approach to recording. We record with no set plans and follow the path of how the song evolves itself during the process of making it. It’s a lot less stressful this way and a lot more fun. This approach lends itself to the creative openness we have when making music, which has really defined the Wavefarmer sound.”

“We never have had strategic, set ways of writing or recording,” they add. “But in this case the song came together with a guitar sound and a drum groove and the lyrics were inspired after the music was pretty much set in place.”

Although the band can’t say specifically which artists inspired this particular song, they feel like 70’s music had a big part to play. “The drums are a sort of Stevie Wonder style, playing with the loose pocket groove and with the frequency filters on the guitars, it again has a very 70′s sound to it.”

The band had their close friend Mike Baldo of Vergetone Productions come in to do the mixing and mastering. They recall a specific moment where the song just came together. “We had Vince Tampio come in on all the trumpets, cornets and trombones. From day one we always envisioned a horn section on this song, and after months of recording the rest of the E.P. while searching for the right player(s) for the part, almost last minute we found Vince and the song came together.”

“All those pictures I saw of you/ they just seem so different than anything I can recall about you,” sings Quinn. The Dirty is ultimately a song about how people’s perception of us can change in an instant. “It came from the idea of seeing a person in a way you weren’t meant to, and how that can change your entire perspective about them. Don’t take naked pictures of yourself, but if you do send them to us, maybe we will write a song about you.”

Keep up with Wavefarmer’s upcoming performances on their official website. www.wavefarmermusic.com

by Nick Backovic

Prior to Feel You’re Different, Lights Resolve released three self-produced EP’s. The band’s debut full-length proves to be an introspective embrace of one’ own individuality. As singer Matthew Reich gives us an inside look on the song With the Pieces, we can’t help but relate on a number of levels.

The track is a highly personal one where Reich chooses to lyrically face his own troubles and worries. “With the Pieces is about denial and the guilt I carry around while I am unable to accept truths. The fact is that I’m stuck with the pieces and remain unwhole while I keep on putting off the inevitable and live in a world of denial and delay.”

As the band traveled the country writing songs in different locations, they tried to capture the essence of different regions. “The musical inspiration (for With the Pieces) came when the band was sequestered in a small house in upstate NY working on new music,” says Reich. “Our publishing A&R guy lets us use his house up there to work on new material and raid his endless DVD/record collection. My bassist and drummer were in the room next to our ‘live’ room working on my drummer’s speech for his sister’s wedding. I grabbed a guitar and for some reason the tune from Adam Sandler’s Big Daddy When I Grow Up by Garbage was on my mind. Not a band or a song or a film that I shared a special connection with, just kind of random. I tried playing something with that kind of drive to it and came up with the main structure of With the Pieces. The songs sound nothing alike, but there was unlikely root of the inspiration.”

Reich describes his lyric writing process almost like speaking in tongues over the music being played. “I try to record the band jamming and me scatting gibberish over that. After that I take the recording home and try to decipher what I’m trying to say. I feel like the subconscious really comes out of me when I let myself go.” Most often, this part comes last, says Reich. “99 times of 100 I start with instruments then layer a melody on top of that then write lyrics last.”

The fact that Lights Resolve is a three-piece is a key factor in the band’s songwriting process. “We made a conscious effort on this record to ONLY use guitar, drums, bass and vocal,” says Reich. “We really wanted to prove to ourselves and the world that you can still make an interesting, progressive rock record using only the basics. Any music I wrote on keyboard I transferred over to the guitar. We were very strict about this rule…also only the 3 of us (members of the band) played on the record.”

Although no other musicians were featured on the track, Reich credits producer Mike Sapone for his contribution to the vibe of the song. “Mike Sapone, besides adding in fantastic grilled lunches/dinners, also lent a sense of experimentation and balls to the project. He helped us step out of our square boxes and into something a little more expansive. We recorded the entire record at his studio, which is in his house. It was a very laid back and comfortable atmosphere that definitely shaped the record. If we went into some big studio and recorded with another producer I’m pretty sure the result would have been drastically different from what we got.”

“The first time we tried out the song was at a Sweet 16 that we were hired to play,” remembers Reich. “It’s pretty easy to tell what works live and what doesn’t. This one passed with flying colors. Thanks to the people there and thanks to our manager at the time for recognizing something good when we were not able to.”

The album Feel You’re Different will be re-released to include With the Pieces on a special limited edition vinyl on April 14th with a special release show in NYC, at Bowery Electric on the same day.

The album/song is also available on iTunes/Amazon.

For more artists updates please visit the official Lights Resolve

via YouTube by lightsresolve

Maybe tells a story in which both delivery and content play a part to convey the feeling. “I wanted to write a song that was in the genre of the great jazz standards,” says Ensley. “Something that had a catchy, timeless feel to the melody.”

She explains that dealing with feelings for a love interest served as the song’s central theme. “The inspiration came from a time when I had a crush on a friend and wanted to tell him how about how I really I felt. I sort of took that idea and ran with it! Well, I think we’ve all been there before when we wanted to express love to someone and weren’t sure if we were going to hear it back! So, the song is about that moment right before you say those words to someone.”

In Maybe’s case, the flash of inspiration came at a very specific moment in Queens. “I was standing on a subway platform,” she recalls. “I had been hanging out with a friend that I had a crush on and he told me he had started dating someone else. So, I took those feelings of unrequited love and went home and started writing a song about it.”

That day on the Queens subway platform, Ensley was so distraught that she contacted a friend to discuss the situation. “I remember calling a friend to talk about how I was upset over this guy dating someone else. Then when I hung up, I started to get this idea of song about maybe I should tell him how I feel and maybe he’ll say the same thing back to me.”

“When the creative juices start flowing,” she adds. “It’s always a bit thrilling and you go on a high.” And the song simply called for something extra to give it the desired special swooping feeling. “I had a group called CNP Horns play on the recording and the horn arrangements were written by my producer, David Amber. The horns added so much to the intensity of the song and I’ve always wanted to record a big lush ballad like this, something that Marvin Gaye or Gladys Knight would have sung.”

Ensley recalls that arranging the backing vocals proved to be an enriching experience that contributed in adding the final touches to Maybe. “I love Motown,” she tells me. “So when I was doing the arrangements, I tried to envision what they would have been like if the song was recorded in the 60’s. This song makes me think of a smoky jazz club back in the day and I’m wearing a really classy dress with a flower in my hair!  All of the band members have suits on and the audience is enjoying a fine wine!”

What is your favorite part of the song?

My favorite part of the song is near the end, after the bridge. I really love how it modulates and the key changes because, in the arrangement, I can really feel the intensity of the song and the emotion of it. It’s kind of like the moment is now and you have to say the words to this person now and I like the way you can hear it happening musically.

What are you feeling when you perform this song?

This is one of my favorite songs to sing! I love getting a chance to sing a song where I can really saaang! Also, it’s fun to play with the emotional build of the song, lots of stuff to play around with and vocal improv on.

Were there any major changes to during the creation process that altered the final product?

There weren’t any major changes, but it’s really fun to hear the original version of the song that I recorded on my iPod when I was first writing it compared to the final recorded version. My demo recording was just myself on piano, singing the basic melody. But after adding musicians who bring their own creativity to it and getting to sit with the song and perform it a lot, it’s grown to be this big, sweeping ballad that I’m really proud of!

Markeisha Ensley’s EP was produced by David Amber for AmberSongs Productions at Flux Studios in NYC (Babyface, Jennifer Lopez), while most of the background vocals were recorded at her home studio.

Please visit Markeisha Ensley for more artist news

via SoundCloud

A few years ago, Canadian songwriter Ken Yates came to Boston to work on his craft at world-renown Berklee College. Attending the school helped Yates perfect his songwriting skills, which ultimately led to the release of his first CD, The Backseat EP. Since, Yates has played a number of shows and is now also on heavy rotation on Sirius XM’s The Coffee House.

It was however a particular song entitled I Don’t Wanna Fall In Love that ended up being a turning point in Yates’ career as an artist. In fact, the piece marked a pivotal point in more ways than one.

“This was actually the quickest I’ve ever written a song,” said Yates. “Usually it takes me a week or even months to finish a song but this one was done in a few hours.”

“My teacher asked me to write the most honest song I could write,” he said. “And not think too much about the lyrics or get too ‘tricky’ with them, which was an issue I was having before that. It was the first time I tried to write a whole song with one single thought and not think too much about what I was writing.”

Yates also explains that the point of the song was to create something listeners could relate to and have a connection with. “I think everyone can interpret it in their own way. The lyrics do have a special meaning to me because it was the first time I felt that I captured a single honest idea in a song.”

Although the title could lead us to believe otherwise, the song actually expresses a sincere desire to fall in love, but facing an even greater fear of getting hurt. “It’s about a guy afraid of committing to a girl because he is scared of the girl being too good for him and breaking his heart later on in the relationship.”

While attending Berklee, Yates had a chance to perform the song for one his major influences, John Mayer. “He (Mayer) actually suggested a change to the song, which I have now made when I play it live. He suggested I cut the first chorus in half. Unfortunately this change isn’t on the Joren Van Der Voort-produced EP version of the song, but I am re-recording it on my full-length album with “The Mayer Change” in it.” Mayer didn’t stop there however: he went on to post the song on his own personal blog, which inevitably led to Yates’ piece being the focus of much positive online attention.

Although different songwriters have different methods, some can seem quite chaotic to those of us who aren’t submerged in the creative lifestyle; however, from the creator’s perspective, there’s often enough a method to madness. “I always start with a guitar part first” said Yates. “Then I write the melody by just singing random words “the songwriter’s howl” over the music. A lot of the times I will get my lyrical idea from some of the random words I am singing because they fit well in the melody. I wrote the guitar part at the end of each verse and already found myself singing “I Don’t Wanna Fall In Love” over it.”

Many songwriters feel the urge to write about their own personal experiences, but not Yates: he acknowledges that he would much rather live vicariously through others to get his inspiration. “I usually don’t write about exact experiences in my life (it’s too boring for that) but I have felt what it’s like to be afraid of falling in love for fear of not being good enough. I know so many people that have shared this feeling and I really try to write about interesting emotion situations that a lot of people might have been through before.”

What is your favorite part of the song?

I personally like the bridge the best. Mostly because the arrangement is really the high point in the song, where I start strumming and the drums come in with the piano part. It just always feels good to play after finger picking the first half of the song.

Did any other artist contribute to this song?

Joren Van Der Voort produced this song on my EP and did an amazing job with arranging the other instruments. Since I write my songs on an acoustic guitar sometimes it’s hard for me to visualize how it will sound on a record. That’s where Joren comes in. Brian Dunne, who plays guitar and sings backup vocals.

Was there a specific moment when the song finally came together for you?

There was one moment when I was going over the song with Joren after just writing it. In the first B section/chorus whatever you want to call it when I say “open door for you to go and break my heart”, on “heart” the chord used to be the 1 chord which was major. It sounded pretty happy so we tried playing the 6 minor chord instead. It made a huge difference and really changed the song. Playing the first minor chord in the song under “break my heart” added way more emotion to it. That was the moment that I really started to consider the song a “heartbreaker”

Any shouts outs to the guys and gals who might have made this song possible?

Definitely. Have to give a shout out to Joren who produced it. The band: Brian Dunne, Vince Delgado and Tyler LeVander. The teachers at Berklee who helped me with developing my songwriting: Scarlet Keys and Mark Simos.  And definitely John Mayer for helping to make the song better and posting it on his blog, which has done so much for me at the start of my career.

Ken Yates is currently working on his first full-length album in New York City.

For more artist news please visit Ken Yates

In preparation for the release of All Those Relays (available next Tuesday, March 27th via Invisible Bridges), Scout has released a new track, titled, “Under Attack,” including a live acoustic video and remix by Michael J.

“Under Attack” began as a sparse demo. In the studio, the band laid down 128 different tracks, including three drum sets, three basses and layers of vocals. The result? One of All Those Relays’ most powerful songs, four and a half minutes of propulsive percussion, haunting piano and singer Ashen Keilyn’s catchiest chorus yet.

For more artist news please visit Scout’s website

via YouTube by invisiblebrigades

Toronto based singer songwriter Kae Sun returns to his homeland after nine years of living in Canada, renewing his drive for creating the raw and non-commoditized artistic experiences that shaped his passion for music.
Outside the Barcode is an authentic and reflective collection of songs that showcase Kae’s growth as a songwriter, storyteller and guitarist. Written while traveling the African countryside and recorded on 2-inch tape on a farm in Ontario the raw acoustic songs recall the sense of community and authenticity that inspired the tracks. Kae’s focus was to create a more shared listening experience rather than dictating his audience’s experiences.

“It’s not about making music to get something out of people, but rather sharing experiences, capturing moments and communicating through music and lyrics”

The result is an EP that conjures the collaborative spirit and culture of sharing that Kae experienced in Ghana.

Please visit Kae Sun for music news

Her hard work and dedication has culminated into a brilliant debut album, to be released later this Spring. After working as a bartender and playing weekly gigs at Piano Bar and Hotel Café in Hollywood, Bunny West was able to pay for sessions out of her own pocket. Friend, engineer and co-producer Geoff Neal lent a hand to get the album done in just four days. The tracks were all recorded live, within three takes and finished with limited overdubbing. Her sound is raw. Her sound is unforgettable.

As an introduction to her beautiful voice, she has recorded the song covering “Run to the Hills” by Iron Maiden. It’s Bunny’s voice that brings out the sincere hurt and pain in the lyrics and gives the song a whole new perspective.

For more info please visit Bunny West

Their debut record, The Late Great Slow Country, spins folky psychedelia into hummable rock. It’s a beautiful, cold-weathered listen that retreats to a simpler time.

For more info visit Slow Country

Kara has played at venues ranging from Chicago’s “Uncommon Ground” to NY’s Historic “Bitter End”. She recorded her last two EPs at Soundwaves Studio in Union, NJ where she worked with former Socratic drummer and bassist, Thomas Stratton. Later, her EPs were sent off to be mastered by West West Side Music’s Alan Douches , who has worked on albums for the likes of everyone from Sufjan Stevens, to Toro Y Moi to Ben Folds, some of Kara’s biggest heroes and influences.

To find our more please visit Kari Ali

Answer: “Strange Bloom” their debut album, the very special fruit of a long-standing friendship disguised as music.

The  album which is due to be  released in the US May 15, 2012 on Kenji Records,  features lush vocals, richly-stacked violins and bizarre forays into electronica, and cameos by cardboard tubes, trash-filled wastebaskets, live trumpets, howling wolves, and Casio.

You can Listen to some of their music here.To find our more please visit Alice and Michi