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Dead Emerson Releases ‘Cold Summer’

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Dead Emerson, an LA-based musician, just yesterday released his new single Cold Summer. The spirited vocals and meaningful lyrics drive the song, showcasing the true talents of Dead Emerson.

Cold Summer is the second release by Dead Emerson, the first being Fools Gold.

Talking about the song Dead Emerson stated: “I wrote this one about a situation-ship — not really dating, but hanging out to a point where you start to feel like you need the other person, even if you’re not super romantically involved. After the slow fade of the situation-ship, I was feeling like there was something that I could have maybe done better or differently and was still wondering if the other person with felt the same…. but never got that closure. Here’s to that.

Stream Cold Summer via Spotify here.

Unreal Spaces by Guim Tió Zarraluki

Guim Tió Zarraluki, a painter and artist, based out of Barcelona, Spain, released a magnificent series of paintings back in 2017 named Unreal Spaces. The series showcases just what makes Guim Tió such a fantastic artist, subtilty and consideration. The utilisation of space and colour create a distance from the core objects of the paintings, making the viewer an observer and profoundly absorbed in contents of the canvas.

Find more work by Guim Tió Zarraluki here.

Personal Work by Katherine Lam

Katherine Lam, an illustrator based out of New York, revealed some of her illustrations which explore metaphysical colours and distant spaces. The raw textures and framing of each illustration bring a sense of reflection.

Find more work by Katherine Lam here.

The Stranger I Know by Marietta Varga

Marietta Varga, a photographer out of Hungaria, presented a brilliant and thoughtful series named The Stranger I Know. In this touching series, Varga explores the personal objects of a couple of strangers that she had no connection with.

Writing about the series Varga stated: “A few months ago I had the opportunity to enter the home of a couple that I did not know. A couple that is not on this world anymore, two people I never met. Standing in their home, without their own permission, surrounded by their personal objects, I had such a paradoxical feeling.”

Find more work by Marietta Varga here.

Sound Selection 076: Prospa come back with ‘Control The Party’

Prospa Control The Party

After a series of successful releases including their single Prayer, the beloved Prospa released a four-track EP named Control The Party. The EP continues with the raw and absorbing energy that is present amongst the other tracks of Prospa. A must-listen for club goers.

Justin Christopher Have Had

Justin Christopher, a Memphis, Tennesse born artist, revealed a superb single named Have Had. In this majestic piece, Christopher delivers a wave of irresistible energy through dynamic vocals and a well-produced track.

Mikael Delta Avatarism

Finishing off our 76th Sound Selection is Mikael Delta with his brilliant progressive house track Avatarism. In this warm-synth piece, Mikael Delta explores melancholy through the use of progression and melody. The overall composition is stunning and comes from a twelve-track album named Elation.

Flowers of Abyaneh by Eliza Malkhasyan

Eliza Malkhasyan, a photographer out of Armenia, released an interesting and educational series named Flowers of Abyaneh. In this series, Malkhasyan explores one of the oldest villages in Iran, Abyaneh. Malkhasyan looks into the village’s connection to nature and the “embodiment of lone and silent elderliness.”

Find more work by Eliza Malkhasyan here.

Albums Out Today: Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Celine Dion, Lady Antebellum, Tindersticks

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In this segment, we showcase the most notable albums out each week. Here are the albums out on November 15th, 2019:

Image result for bonnie prince billy i made a placeBonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, I Made A Place: After a series of cover albums, singer-songwriter Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy aka Will Oldham is back with the first album of original material since 2011’s Wolfroy Goes to Town. “What else is a person to do except what he knows and feels, which for me is making records built out of songs intended for the intimate listening experiences of wonderful strangers who share something spiritually and musically?” Oldham said in a statement. “I started working on these songs thinking that there was no way I was going to finish them and record and release them. This was a constructive frame-of-mind that protected the songs until this frightening moment when we let go of them and give them to you.”

Image result for celine dion courageCeline Dion, Courage: This is the 12th studio album from the Canadian singer and her first English-language album in six years following 2013’s Loved Me Back to Life. After the release of that album, Dion postponed her showbusiness duties due to her husband and former manager René Angélil’s worsening health. René Angélil passed away in April of 2016. Later that year, she released ‘Recovering’, a song written by Pink to honour her husband’s death. “I think I went through a lot. And life had given me the tools… to find my inner strength, to find courage, and to keep going,” Dion said, explaining the title of the album. Courage also includes the singles ‘Lying Down’, which features David Guetta and Sia, and ‘Imperfections’.

Image result for lady antebellum oceanLady Antebellum, Ocean: Country trio Lady Antebellum have released their ninth studio album, Ocean, out now via Big Machine Label Group. It was produced by Dann Huff, who helped the band return to their roots, so much so that it “felt like we were making our first album all over again.” Hillary Scott explained in a statement: “Ocean stands for all of the things that we think and feel when we hear the word. It’s parallel with those feelings, much like the songs about barely keeping your head above water and others that make you feel like everything is smooth sailing.”

Image result for tindersticks no treasure but hopeTindersticks, No Treasure But Hope: Their first album in three years, Tindersticks have put out their 12th studio album, No Treasure But Hope, via City Slang. “I felt we needed to be able to make something meaningful,” frontman Stuart Staples said in a statement. “The last two albums were gradually built to a point of being finished in our studio from moments of playing and recording together. When we figured out how to present the songs live, different things happened to them. This time, we wanted to reverse that – to do something that was about being committed to a song together in a moment.”

Other albums out today: Lil Peep, Everybody’s Everything; Molly Burch, The Molly Burch Christmas Album; Pumarosa, Devastation; Fall Out Boy, Believers Never Die – Greatest Hits Vol. 2.

Game by Andrea Koporova

Carrying on with more surreal photography, we have discovered Andrea Koporova, a photographer based out of Vienna, Austria. In this series named Game, Koporova utilises vibrant, oversaturated colours to display athletic-like figures in abstract spaces. This projects brilliance showcases just the remarkable capabilities of post-editing, a genuinely mesmerising project by Koporova.

Find more work by Andrea Koporova here.

St. Petersburg by Ewoud Bon

Ewoud Bon, a photographer out of the Netherlands, released a personal photography series which focuses on the famous city of Saint Petersburg in Russia. In this series, Bon explores the melancholic and tiresome view of the city by capturing the cold weather, rundown architecture and lonesome people of St. Petersburg.

Find more work by Ewoud Bon here.

Review: Michael Ball and Alfie Boe Back Together

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Oftentimes a doctor will prescribe two medications, recommending they be taken together to enhance their restorative powers. Readers, I am your doctor. Michael Ball and Alfie Boe are your medicines.

The release of Ball and Boe’s Back Together has been anticipated everywhere, especially by swooning fans of bearded big-voiced men. Being one of the swooning, my music queue awaited the arrival of Back Together with eagerness. My boys Ball and Boe did not fail to disappoint.

Ball and Boe are brilliant buddies.

Alfie Boe, a.k.a. “he of the operatic voice”, is a highly trained tenor who has conquered Broadway and the West End, while serving as a celebrated Jean Valjean both this year and at Les Misérables‘ 25th anniversary concert. Then there’s Michael Ball, a.k.a “he who miraculously has no need of vocal training”. Ball has built a successful career as soloist and performer, breaking hearts as Marius in the original Les Mis, Alex in the original Aspects of Love, and Raoul in an early Phantom.

Ball joined Boe in this year’s production of Les Mis, this time as the unrelenting Inspector Javert. Their working relationship and adorable Instagram posts identify the two as great friends. But – are buddies Ball and Boe a brilliant vocal team? The answer is a resounding ‘Yes!’

Ball and Boe are kings.

Like its Platinum predecessors, Together and Together Again, Michael Ball and Alfie Boe’s Back Together is a sassy schmorgesborg of music genres. The combination of Boe’s boisterous vibrato and Ball’s punchy insistence has the power to take on musical theatre, easy listening, pop and rock with equal majesty. Teamed up, these champs of stage and soundtrack are mighty vocal kings.

The track list for Back Together demonstrates the boys’ prowess with both big hits and underestimated ballads. There are several songs of which I thought myself thoroughly sick – Apparently, I’m not sick of them! At least not after hearing them rendered by Ball and Boe. Their “Circle of Life” and “The Greatest Show” is heard by fresh and happy ears.

Classic tracks are supplemented by unique and delightful choices, including a brilliantly arranged “Queen Medley”. But among all these, “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again” truly stands alone. Ball and Boe sing the Phantom aria better than any Christine. That is the mark of a successful partnership in music.

Ball and Boe are even better together.

If you’re looking to fall in love, laugh, weep or smile, allow me prescribe Michael Ball and Alfie Boe’s Back Together. The recommended dosage may increase, as more Ball and Boe collaborations occur. And there needs to be more collaborations. Perhaps another album, this time titled Better Together? For in spite of their individual brilliance, “Ball and Boe” is the number one recommended brand, unmatched in effectiveness and strength.

Better Together can be purchased on Michael Ball’s and Alfie Boe’s websites, along with tickets for their 2020 live tour.