The Singer/Songwriter genre is the one genre on the site that has been greatly underrepresented (Singer/Songwriters, there is your cue to submit some material). That being said, here is another addition to that genre, in the form of Justin Black.

here is a little background on Justin, taken from Justin Black’s Myspace:

What happens when you have an artist who has battled
throat cancer, a removed lung and was told countless
times he may never sing again? The answer: passion,
determination and conviction. Now team him up with an
explosive band and you end up with something real,
something epic, something that could start self revolutions
and inspire hope in people everywhere.

JBLACK is ready to bring a revolution, and with a story like
this and the songs to match he is here to make
positives out of negatives with a sound that is
worthy of your attention.

So, the first thing that can be said from that is that Justin should have all of our admiration for overcoming such huge obstacles. Second, the range of influences is very interesting but seems accurate.

The songs Justin sent to me were from his The Devil Tree EP. The title track channels Gavin DeGraw right from the start. As soon as the song starts, just by the inflection in Justin’s voice, you can hear the influence coming through (I said the same thing about a previous artist featured, Brett Mitchell, so if you like this sound be sure to check out our Brett Mitchell review).

A song like ‘Don’t Think’, on the other hand, has almost a Dave Matthews Band feel to it because of the brass section. However, it is definitely less ‘jammy’ than a DMB song.

I embedded a YouTube video of ‘Don’t Think’ below, but I highly recommend that you visit Justin Black’s website, http://www.justinblack.net/mp3/, because there are about another dozen and a half there.

Also, to anyone in the Texas area, Justin will be playing at the South By Southwest Festival this year – something I have ALWAYS wanted to go to – so be sure to check that out as well. For the specific dates and where he will be performing at, check Justin Black’s Myspace.

Justin Black – Don’t Think

All photos, music, and videos copyright of their respective owners. Used only for promotional purposes and to gain notoriety for the artists featured.

02042010

For those of you who may have felt that our previous Singer/Songwriter posts were too blues-oriented (Jammin’ Jay Morton) or too mellow (Scott Valentine), Hot Streets is your answer.

To be perfectly honest, I’m not even sure that the Singer/Songwriter tag is appropriate for Hot Streets. Brett Mitchell also had a pop/rock sound; so I guess this category will do.

David Amezcua, formerly of indie rock group Under the Influence of Giants, is the singer/bassist in Hot Streets. The group – which releases their full length album in early 2010 – brings a unique poppy, upbeat feel to their music.

Compared to an Under the Influence of Giants song like ‘In the Clouds’, Hot Streets has the same type of upbeat sound; but doesn’t have that dance music beat going on in the background. The only song that has same kind of bass in the background is the first track, ‘Let’s Get Complicated.’

‘Let’s Get Complicated’ sounds lyrically like it could be a cover of a song by one of the popular female artists on the radio. Based on the idea of this site, that probably sounds like a jab at them, but it’s not necessarily a terrible thing. It will definitely help them catch the ear of a wider audience. My friend Casey (who is a huge pop-music fan [insert collective groan here]) has a formula for songs that grab his attention that I can’t crack, and I can see that song passing his test.

Another song that is sure to grab to grab the attention of a lot of listeners is ‘SNL’ (Saturday Night Life). You can listen to that song below. From what Jon of LikeZEBRA told me, they only have four songs finished right now. All of them are on their LikeZEBRA page (see link below).

Overall, if you are a huge Ben Harper fan (of his slower stuff), you might want to steer clear. If you like to dance around when you hear your music and tap your foot to the beat, give Hot Streets a spin.

Casey, this means you.

Hot Streets – SNL (Saturday Night Life)

For more information on Hot Streets, visit their page at LikeZEBRA’s site: LikeZEBRA – Hot Streets

Alternately, you can also visit them at their MySpace page: www.myspace.com/hotstreetsmusic

All photos, music, and videos copyright of their respective owners. Used only for promotional purposes and to gain notoriety for the artists featured. Special thanks goes out to Casey for being a good sport.

12212009

Scott Valentine has one of the more interesting marketing approaches seen in recent memory.

If you join his mailing list (see link at the end of this article for the URL), the newsletter comes with a new song – in MP3 format – each week. He also posts a video of himself performing each song he releases both on Youtube and on his site. In an age dominated by the dollar sign, this is a refreshing approach to spreading your music around to the masses. A very cool idea to say the least.

He is another artist that I was introduced to through Brian Thompson of Thorny Bleeder Records. The other two are TV Heart Attack and Burning Borders.

I’m sure when Brian and Scott see this article they will wonder just what the hell I am talking about with the post title. For those of you who are into rap and hip-hop (especially the mixtapes), you will remember that before the release of The Carter III, Lil Wayne released a slew of mixtapes to build the hype for his albums release. It was estimated that he released about $1 million of free stuff just to release one official album.

The marketing plan worked though, as The Carter III has sold 3.2 million copies as of July 2009. Maybe Scott Valentine is onto something.

Anyways, back to the topic at hand. Scott Valentine has some serious talent. I think that the singer/songwriter genre is one that you either love or hate. I used to listen to it constantly and then began to broaded my musical horizons. With artists like Scott and Brett Mitchell around, it’s a genre I am getting back into quickly.

Scott organized his songs into four albums, entitled Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. Upon registering for the site you can download all the songs. I have personally been listening to the Spring album a lot, since I really like the songs ‘Watch it Grow’, ‘Jukebox’, and ‘Freak in You.’ The song ‘Don’t Break My Heart’ on Autumn is also a great track.

Really you can start anywhere on any of the albums. They are all great efforts from a very promising artist. Brian had initially told me that Scott Valentine was a ‘very talented singer/songwriter.’ He wasn’t kidding. I can see him performing perfectly in a coffee house or his music playing at a Starbucks, it just has that very mellow feel to it. Whereas Brett Mitchell is a little more upbeat, this reminds me of Ben Harper’s more mellow work…which as most people know, is some pretty awesome stuff.

I’m excited to see where Scott takes this interesting free song approach in the future. Unlike Lil Wayne, however, I’m not sure that Brian will be giving Scott a briefcase with a million dollars in it for his birthday like Cash Money’s CEO did to make up for the estimated profits Lil Wayne missed out on.

To get more information on Scott Valentine and join his mailing list, visit http://scottvalentinepresents.com/

Here is the video for his song from Week 4 of the mailing list:

Scott Valentine – Jukebox

All photos, music, and videos copyright of their respective owners. Used only for promotional purposes and to gain notoriety for the artists featured.

10192009

I know a lot of people who like to listen to music as they fall asleep. I would assume that most of what they listen to is very calm and soothing music (sorry to anyone who listens to Slipknot as they fall asleep….or maybe I’m not, actually. That’s a poor decision on so many levels).

Whether you like to listen to more mellow music before bed, just to relax, or if it’s simply your favorite type of music in general, you definitely need to give Brett Mitchell’s Small House a listen.

Not only does he have some slower songs such as ‘Don’t Worry About Me’ and ‘Going Away’ (hence the Jack Johnson reference), he also has some faster paced songs, such as ‘Born Too Late’ and ‘New Disease’ (hence the Gavin DeGraw reference).

While the tempo of the slower songs is Jack Johnson-ish, it should be noted that he still has a full band backing him. Obviously on songs like these, their contribution is pretty minimal though.

Like any good artist, his songs hit on a variety of topics, including the hesitant optimism in ‘Head in the Clouds’:

Head in the clouds
Head in the clouds
I will not let you go
Just so I hope you know
And maybe you and me are just afraid to be
Alone
At least that’s one thing you and me can see
And to be shown

With the potential shown on Small House, I wouldn’t be surprised if we end up seeing Brett Mitchell on a future tour with one of the artists I mentioned above.

Highlights: Born Too Late, Head in the Clouds, New Disease

On a somewhat related note, I have to say that I have been very impressed with the artist submissions that we have received so far. I honestly didn’t expect the quality of music we have listened to. Just goes to show how much undiscovered talent there is out there.

Keep those submissions coming!

Previous artist submissions have included Jay Morton, Burning Borders, TV Heart Attack, and Without Thought. Give them a look if you haven’t already!

To purchase Small House directly from iTunes, click the album artwork below:

To download the MP3 album from Amazon, click HERE

Here is the video for ‘Born Too Late’ from Small House:

Brett Mitchell – Born Too Late

For more information on Brett Mitchell, visit www.brettmitchellmusic.com and www.myspace.com/brettmitchell

09242009