Showing posts with label Self-Titled Release. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Self-Titled Release. Show all posts

12/13/2023

L.A. Alt-Rock Band Make Believe Friends Releases New Single “INTENTIONS” Along with Their New Album “MAKE BELIEVE FRIENDS”

L.A. based Make Believe Friends drops their latest single and new album on Friday, December 15, 2023.  The new single, “Intentions”, is an upbeat alt-rock style song featuring Mindy Milburn on lead vocals and music by guitarist/keyboardist Laura Espinoza and lyrics by Milburn & Espinoza. Legendary Producer Ed Stasium (Talking Heads, Ramones) provided the full mix and Bernie Godwin (whose father Dito Godwin produced No Doubt), was the recording engineer.

“Intentions” releases in tandem with Make Believe Friends’ first album to be called by the band’s name: “Make Believe Friends”.

The catchy 'Intentions' opens Make Believe Friends' new self-titled debut album, with struggling relationship lyrics in parallel to current world issues. Mindy Milburn powerfully declares, 'I'm walking away' and Laura Espinoza echoes that strength with her fuzz guitar in the bridge. 'Intentions' is followed by seven equally great original compositions and an edgy cover of Blondie's 'Rapture' from this talented group who also perform as the Blondie tribute band, Heart of Blonde. Intentions is in my Top 5 Fabulous Albums of 2023”. - Warren Kurtz, Goldmine

The album contains the following songs:
1) Intentions
2) Haunt Me
3) Scream
4) Rapture (Blondie Cover)
5) Somewhere There Forever (ft. Dale Bozzio of Missing Persons)
6) The Truth
7) Thank the Academy
8) Follow Me to the Sun
9) An Act of Love

About Mindy Milburn:
Mindy has a passion for all performing arts- starting out as a ballet dancer and actress, & eventually finding her voice and passion for songwriting and music. She is also the lead vocalist for the Blondie Tribute Band “Heart of Blonde”. Originally from Cleveland Ohio, she has performed in numerous musical theater productions & indie films and was also a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers Dance Team.  Mindy made the move to southern California to follow her dream of becoming a recording artist and feels very blessed by the opportunities that have come her way.

About Laura Espinoza:
Laura is a songwriter/guitarist, playwright, and TV producer. She has performed on stage with Luis Maldonado (Train), Terri Nunn (Berlin), Dale Bozzio (Missing Persons) & Prescott Niles (The Knack) and started her career with Matt Sorum (Guns n' Roses). She has recorded at Capitol Records, Hollywood, Abbey Road, UK and is the host of “The Rock Radio Show” on KBUU-FM, Malibu. Laura is also the recipient of 3 Emmy Awards.

To purchase/listen to the music of Make Believe Friends: https://makebelievefriendsband.com

For more information:
www.MakeBelieveFriendsBand.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/makebelievefriendsband
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MakeBelieveFriends
Instagram: @Makebelievefriendsband

Press inquiries: Glass Onyon PR, PH: 1-828-350-8158 (US), glassonyonpr@gmail.com

6/14/2018

Instrumental Piano Review: Edo Sanz-Self-Titled

Release Date: April 1, 2018
Label: Independent

I have covered a lot of new age music. That is putting it in its simplest terms. There is more to it of course and that is how I am able and willing to cover one piano based instrumental album after another.  That thought brings me to the latest release by Edo Sanz, a self-titled instrumental montage covering 13 tracks.

I can dub this as instrumental piano music but it is much more than that. I heard classical, new age and so many paces and rhythmic changes that this listen kept me engrossed throughout.

Edo is a very talented artist, I stress the term artist. Each track is an artistic impression set to music. It makes you look at the title, the meaning and how the music can fit that description. Instrumental music has a way of becoming more cerebral than a track with vocals added. At least that is how it works for me.

The opening track “The Alien's Dream” is a profound statement. It brought me images of a ballerina or hundreds of butterflies flitting around in an open field. These images are tucked away in our subconsciousness just waiting for something to coax them out and bring them to life. Good instrumental music accomplishes that.

The most intriguing tracks for me where “Muñeca de Trapo” (Rag Doll) and “Per l'acqua” (For Water). I immediately want to find a translation and then see how it can relate to the track. I take it on as another artistic and cultural aspect in music yet to be discovered. Every musical genre has a culture attached to it, and this music is no exception.

I applaud artists like Edo Sanz for putting himself out there offering an entire album of just him and his piano. It takes confidence, the willingness to take the risk and most importantly, pure talent. This is the kind of talent that one is blessed with upon their first breath and continues to blossom with each passing year. 

This self-titled piano excursion is diverse and filled with many colors, moods, and atmospheres. You have my promise it will keep you entertained from start to finish.

4/5 Stars

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck
June 13, 2018

Founder of:

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews



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7/08/2014

Symphonic Prog Rock Review: Falling Edge-Self-Titled

Release Date:  4th April 2013
Label: Indie

Falling Edge is a 4 piece symphonic rock band from Canada, which was initially founded away back in 2004. They are no strangers to this reviewer as one of the band; Chris sent me some of their music to broadcast on the radio show prior to the album being finished. Although formed a fair time ago, personnel problems (bass player and then keyboard player) caused the schedule for recording an album to slide. They had started to record what would be their self- titled debut album in late 2007, but these problems ultimately resulted in the album not seeing the light of day until 2013.

The current line-up of the band is Steve Kubica (keyboards), Chris Rupert (guitars, keyboards, and lead vocals), Kevin Tetreault (drums, percussion, vocals) and Jim Walsh (bass, vocals). The best way to describe the style of the band would probably be to suggest that they have taken a lot of the best “bits” from 70’s symphonic bands and added touches that hint at bands like Pink Floyd and IQ.

Falling Edge(the album) is a 5 track release with a total playing time of around 59 minutes. The album opener, “Social Engineering” is the longest track on offer at 16:40 minutes and the third track, “Not That Far Away” is the shortest at less than 6 minutes (5:39).

The album opening track, “Social Engineering” (16:40) thunders straight into an almost “manic” guitar passage with superb keyboards just behind, and then the vocals take over after about a minute. The track then goes through some simply stunning guitar passages which drift into synth passages and back to the vocals. The constant shifting from the slower quieter passages to the faster, more urgent phases, ensure that the interest is maintained across the entire 16 plus minutes. There is some terrific interplay between the bass/keyboards and guitar/keyboards throughout the track. The build-up to the ending is excellent, as Chris does a “machine gun” guitar fingering few passages to take the track out.

The second track, “Crippled By Fear” (14:34) has a haunting, ethereal keyboard passage behind a simple acoustic guitar. This is an instrumental track, or at least there are no words although there are examples of some vocalization, that goes through time changes and instrument changes seamlessly. The track highlights the skill of the musicians involved, especially the understanding between the guitar and the synths/keyboards. This is a very different track from the opener, but again, a stunning piece of work.

The two shorter tracks that then follow, “Not That Far Away” (5:39) and “Next Time around” are much “tighter” and don’t let the music evolve as do the other tracks, but this is not meant as a criticism. Falling Edge manage to vary the music throughout the album and these tracks highlight another side to the band’s repertoire. The first of these tracks, “Not That Far Away,” is acoustic, with an almost ethnic, tribal drum and bassy synth swirls behind a superb acoustic guitar. Probably not “Prog” in the truest sense of the word, but does remind me a little of a track I recently aired on the radio show in an “oldies” section, “From The Beginning” by ELP. This track is simple, melodic and a very satisfying track to relax to. “Next Time Around” is another acoustic based track along with guitar and vocals that almost drift along gently together, and I must comment on the vocals, which I assume are provided by Chris, as being unique in the way that the voices of Roger Chapman (Family), Peter Hammill ( Van Der Graaf Generator) and Mike Kershaw are. They are all voices that are instantly recognizable.

The final track, “I, Awake” (14:20) starts with more of that melodic guitar before the keyboards appear just behind. The bass and drums provide excellent foundations for this and throughout the album. There is some majestic interplay between guitars and the mighty Hammond organ, which then leads into a solo piano passage that fades away, but just when you think that the track has gone, it changes into something very different. Despite listening to the album many times, I am not convinced that this track works. There are some superb passages in this “new” part, but it is a bit repetitive and I feel it is the weakest track on offer. This track seems to be an attempt to move somewhere different within the music, but it doesn’t gel like the rest of the album does.

Falling Edge, the album, is a great debut, showcasing the skills that Falling Edge, the band, possess and although there is nothing here that will launch them into the stratosphere of prog greatness, they have produced some superb music, some varied music and tried something new, which wasn’t too successful. The album is worth several pounds, dollars or euros of anyone’s money and it will certainly be interesting to see if having a settled band will allow album number 2 to pursue the excellent blueprints that are on show in the opening two tracks of album 1.

4/5 Stars

Key Tracks: Social Engineering: Crippled By Fear: Next Time Around

Tracks:
Social Engineering
Crippled By Fear
Not That Far Away
Next Time Around
I, Awake

Jim “The Ancient One” Lawson-Sr. Reviewer Prog Rock Music Talk

July 8, 2014

Review Provided By Prog Rock Music Talk

Symphonic Prog Rock Review: Falling Edge-Self-Titled

Release Date:  4th April 2013
Label: Indie

Falling Edge is a 4 piece symphonic rock band from Canada, which was initially founded away back in 2004. They are no strangers to this reviewer as one of the band; Chris sent me some of their music to broadcast on the radio show prior to the album being finished. Although formed a fair time ago, personnel problems (bass player and then keyboard player) caused the schedule for recording an album to slide. They had started to record what would be their self- titled debut album in late 2007, but these problems ultimately resulted in the album not seeing the light of day until 2013.

The current line-up of the band is Steve Kubica (keyboards), Chris Rupert (guitars, keyboards, and lead vocals), Kevin Tetreault (drums, percussion, vocals) and Jim Walsh (bass, vocals). The best way to describe the style of the band would probably be to suggest that they have taken a lot of the best “bits” from 70’s symphonic bands and added touches that hint at bands like Pink Floyd and IQ.

Falling Edge(the album) is a 5 track release with a total playing time of around 59 minutes. The album opener, “Social Engineering” is the longest track on offer at 16:40 minutes and the third track, “Not That Far Away” is the shortest at less than 6 minutes (5:39).

The album opening track, “Social Engineering” (16:40) thunders straight into an almost “manic” guitar passage with superb keyboards just behind, and then the vocals take over after about a minute. The track then goes through some simply stunning guitar passages which drift into synth passages and back to the vocals. The constant shifting from the slower quieter passages to the faster, more urgent phases, ensure that the interest is maintained across the entire 16 plus minutes. There is some terrific interplay between the bass/keyboards and guitar/keyboards throughout the track. The build-up to the ending is excellent, as Chris does a “machine gun” guitar fingering few passages to take the track out.

The second track, “Crippled By Fear” (14:34) has a haunting, ethereal keyboard passage behind a simple acoustic guitar. This is an instrumental track, or at least there are no words although there are examples of some vocalization, that goes through time changes and instrument changes seamlessly. The track highlights the skill of the musicians involved, especially the understanding between the guitar and the synths/keyboards. This is a very different track from the opener, but again, a stunning piece of work.

The two shorter tracks that then follow, “Not That Far Away” (5:39) and “Next Time around” are much “tighter” and don’t let the music evolve as do the other tracks, but this is not meant as a criticism. Falling Edge manage to vary the music throughout the album and these tracks highlight another side to the band’s repertoire. The first of these tracks, “Not That Far Away,” is acoustic, with an almost ethnic, tribal drum and bassy synth swirls behind a superb acoustic guitar. Probably not “Prog” in the truest sense of the word, but does remind me a little of a track I recently aired on the radio show in an “oldies” section, “From The Beginning” by ELP. This track is simple, melodic and a very satisfying track to relax to. “Next Time Around” is another acoustic based track along with guitar and vocals that almost drift along gently together, and I must comment on the vocals, which I assume are provided by Chris, as being unique in the way that the voices of Roger Chapman (Family), Peter Hammill ( Van Der Graaf Generator) and Mike Kershaw are. They are all voices that are instantly recognizable.

The final track, “I, Awake” (14:20) starts with more of that melodic guitar before the keyboards appear just behind. The bass and drums provide excellent foundations for this and throughout the album. There is some majestic interplay between guitars and the mighty Hammond organ, which then leads into a solo piano passage that fades away, but just when you think that the track has gone, it changes into something very different. Despite listening to the album many times, I am not convinced that this track works. There are some superb passages in this “new” part, but it is a bit repetitive and I feel it is the weakest track on offer. This track seems to be an attempt to move somewhere different within the music, but it doesn’t gel like the rest of the album does.

Falling Edge, the album, is a great debut, showcasing the skills that Falling Edge, the band, possess and although there is nothing here that will launch them into the stratosphere of prog greatness, they have produced some superb music, some varied music and tried something new, which wasn’t too successful. The album is worth several pounds, dollars or euros of anyone’s money and it will certainly be interesting to see if having a settled band will allow album number 2 to pursue the excellent blueprints that are on show in the opening two tracks of album 1.

4/5 Stars

Key Tracks: Social Engineering: Crippled By Fear: Next Time Around

Tracks:
Social Engineering
Crippled By Fear
Not That Far Away
Next Time Around
I, Awake

Jim “The Ancient One” Lawson-Sr. Reviewer Prog Rock Music Talk

July 8, 2014

Review Provided By Prog Rock Music Talk