Yesterday it was about one of the next great soul singers and today it’s about a seasoned vet just being discovered and unleashed to the world, “The Screaming Eagle of Soul,” Mr. Charles Bradley. Last year he dropped No Time For Dreaming, an album that drew national acclaim and it was well warranted. Having moonlighted as a James Brown impersonator, Bradley has soul in his veins and has made a name for himself after years of being, well, undiscovered. Performing under his name and the moniker, “Black Velvet,” Bradley should bring a little funk to the party in Tennessee this summer. Another artist festival goers should be excited to check out. Viva Bonnaroo!!
Tag Archives: Soul
New Music: Alex Clare – “Too Close” aka Microsoft Internet Explorer Song
27 MarIf you’ve seen the new Microsoft Internet Explorer commercials and wondered what that song is that you find yourself enamored with, it’s “Too Close” by Alex Clare. Yes, me, a person who is not a fan of dubstep actually enjoys this track. But really it is the soulful voice of the British singer-songwriter throughout his record, The Lateness Of The Hour, that has me constantly listening to the disc that dabs all over from soul, dubstep, electronic and jazz. Personally I dig “Hands Are Clever,” “I Love You” and “Whispering” plus he covers Prince’s “When Doves Cry” but what really is a HUGE bonus on the record is it was produced by Diplo and Switch aka Major Lazer. How wicked awesome is that!
New Music: Clement Marfo & The Frontline
13 JanTGIF and this Friday we head across the pond for some righteous new music courtesy of Clement Marfo & The Frontline. The seven member posse led by Marfo is a mixed bag of fun incorporating everything from hip-hop, rock, funk, pop, R&B, soul, ska and more. Think energy and excitement when listening to this London group and look out for big things in 2012.
Below is the video for the current single “Overtime” but click HERE to listen to “Shock & Awe” my favorite so far.
Video: Allen Stone on Conan
27 Oct
Chances are you didn’t catch soul singer Allen Stone on Conan last night. The good news, you can watch it this morning by clicking HERE. The incredibly talented 24-year old killed it last night and is a name you need be familiar with.
New Music: Allen Stone
11 OctThanks to a couple of friends I was turned on to Allen Stone, a really great up-and-coming soul singer. Just last week he released his self-titled record (his second full length disc) and wow, he has a sensational voice. I’ve had the album on repeat the entire day and I’m still loving what I’m hearing. Below is a video for “Say So,” which right now is my favorite track on the record.
If you are a fan of Stevie Wonder, James Morrison, Raphael Saadiq, Ryan Shaw, Matt Nathanson, Matt White, Matt Wertz and similar artists, you will definitely dig Allen Stone.
Added bonus, pick it up on iTunes for $5.99 right now.
Revisited: Bonnaroo 2011
13 Jun
10th anniversary of Bonnaroo is in the books and I’m ready to get tickets for next year. Being a Bonnaroo rookie, it was all about taking in as much of the experience as possible. After an afternoon waiting for everyone to fly in, rent the truck and an off the reservation experience at Walmart, we were on the road. Some 60 miles and one wrong turn later, we arrived. After finding the RV and unpacking enough food and booze to feed the entire stage crew for the festival, it was time to get the party started. Meandering through the festival grounds at night it was hard to capture just how big the Bonnaroo fields are and how over 100,000 people flow in and out. The first time you see it during the day, your jaw drops at the sight of an entire city being created in virtually the middle of nowhere. If that’s what it takes for people to get along, be polite and just have a good time, I can live with that.
I also learned that no matter what bands you plan to see, you can go ahead and throw that plan out, it just isn’t going to happen and that’s a good thing. Getting a chance to pop in and out of shows, listening to some new bands (and some old), wandering around the festival grounds and just kind of going with the flow seemed to be just fine. Photos will be coming soon (I promise) but here are some of my highlights from Bonnaroo X.
My First Show: The Walkmen
My Final Show: Apache Relay
Best What Stage Show: The Black Keys
Best Which Stage Show(s): G.Love/Warren Haynes
Best Tent Show: Ryan Bingham & The Dead Horses
Best Overall Show: Walk The Moon
Biggest Surprise: Childish Gambino
Best Legend Show: three way tie – Robert Plant, Dr. John, Gregg Allman
Random Moment Of Awesomeness: blue blinkers dropping from the sky for Arcade Fire’s set
Overall Stage With The Best Performances: On Tap Stage – shows included Band of Heathens, Apache Relay, Chancellor Warhol, Mat McHugh, Pimps of Joytime, JEFF The Brotherhood, Bobby Long and more
Most Entertaining Show: Lil Wayne for the fact that at least 40,000 festival goers/hippies knew all the lyrics to his songs – you had to be there to understand where I’m coming from
Most Disappointing Moment: Terrible sound quality for the Buffalo Springfield show made it almost impossible to listen to (this saddened me more than anyone will ever know)
Next Big Thing: Walk The Moon and Apache Relay
Top Party: the overflowing sea of madness for Girl Talk at 2:30am
Oddest Show That Was A Blast: Primus
Funky Good Time Show: Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears
Band I Was Sad To Miss: GIVERS
Angriest Performer: Eminem
Best Intro: Lewis Black for Warren Haynes
What Would Have Been Great: a late night set from a headlining DJ
Top Roo’er: Guy trying to make the “World’s Biggest Glow Stick” (if you saw/met him, you know what I’m talking about)
Top Sports Bar Moment: Game 6 of the NBA finals was like the March Madness scene in Vegas (video coming soon).
Best Festival Eats: Bear Creek Farms’ hand cut French fries and Gravy
Best Broo’ers Festival Beer: Ashville Brewing Company’s Ninja Porter
Best Place To Cool Off: the cinema (if no line to wait)
Biggest Waste of Time: anything that involved a line
Shocker Of The Festival: no rain
Worst Part: Dust everywhere and if you didn’t have a bandana, you were SOL
Clutch Move: renting a pickup truck
Tip For Next Year: less junk food and more healthy food, bring laxatives and don’t go off the reservation
More Tips: flip flops are your enemy, dust sucks, that fountain water is filthier than Vegas’ Rehab, expect rain, drink water and more water
