New Music - Derek And the Darling Debut

How exciting! The very first song and video from the new group Derek and the Darling! Derek is Derek Nicoletto, lead singer of one of my favorite former bands, Telling On Trixie, and Darling is Sammi Garrett. According to the biography on their MySpace page:

Derek Nicoletto 's new, not-so semi-solo project. The former lead singer of Telling on Trixie was gonna start a solo project after the band's fizzle. In the interim, he began the improv program at Upright Citizens Brigade to sharpen the skills he learned a few years ago at Second City in Chicago. There, he met his new partner in crime, vocalist and guitarist Sammi Garett , a recent graduate of Berklee College of Music, and overall hottie. Although they both remain in the Upright Citizens Brigade program, they formed a rock band rather than an improv troupe because it's way less nerdy.

Derek and the Darling are now in the studio with platinum-selling producer Jamie Siegel (Lauryn Hill, Taking Back Sunday, Joss Stone, Whitney Houston) , for a 2010 release.

So, the first song they are working on together has leaked out, and here is Hustler With A Rescue Plan. A Dance/Rock/Pop tune, with Derek's clear and clean vocals on the lead, it had me immediately doing some dance moves in my chair! I can't wait for more from them!



So, get on the mailing list for Derek and the Darling, and you can get this first single free! To sign up, click here. You can check out their MySpace page here, and their Twitter page here.

Great Music - Michael Feinstein - Old Friend

Michael Feinstein often seems perfect for a lazy Saturday morning for me. I've often thought how perfect would life be if you lived with Michael, and on some weekend mornings you would wake up to him playing the piano, a soft love song wafting in the air, working back to the bedroom. Michael, call me.



For more about Micahel Feinstein, visit his official website here.

New Music - Daniel Cartier - Unfinished Business

I am crazy about Daniel Cartier. I wish I could be more reserved and cool about it, but I am not. I have been waiting for some new music for some time, so I am now giddy with the news he has released a new album. In fact, he has three. First, there is a collection of holiday-inspired music, second there is a collection of cover songs, and third, there is an album of new music coming out in the new year. Be still my heart!



I have all his CDs to date, and now I have ordered the new ones as well. I just couldn't help myself. There are several reasons. One is that I just think he has an amazing voice. Whether he is singing a ballad, a rock song, or a seasonal favorite, Daniel makes it work for me. As a songwriter, I really like his artistry. So many styles and genres, yet they are all identifiably Cartier to me. Lyrically, the songs ring so true, so personally. He is also a visual artist, with showings in several galleries in NYC. And I think he is just so damn hot. Part of that is I find talent sexy, but another is just he is so hot.



Daniel just released that video to promote his holiday album, as Unfinished Business will be a bonus track on the offering. To find out more, or to pre-order his music, vidit his website here.

Worth Another Listen - Loverboy

Loverboy Top: then Bottom: Now

Just keep in mind as Friday draws to a close and you have to get through the those last few hours in the office - the weekend is almost here. Working For The Weekend was the most successful song for this Canadian group whose first 4 albums went into multiple levels of platinum.



And here is their first single, Turn Me Loose, also from the 1981 album, Loverboy. Their sound was definitive, and very much their own.



Loverboy is still on the road touring, and you can find out more about them and where thye might be playing here.

Worth Another Listen -Cutting Crew

In 1985, a band formed in England, with singer Nick Van Eede and Canadian Kevin Scott MacMichael working on some demos that lead to a contract and adding bassist Colin Farley and drummer Martin Beadle the following year. They became the Cutting Crew. In 1986 they put out the album Broadcast, and (I Just) Died In Your Arms became an international hit, the first for Richard Branson's fledgling Virgin Records. Cutting Crew had a sound that defined the mid 80s, the husky and masculine vocal with the vulnerable yet touching lyric. It was #1 on the US Billboard Top 100, and topped the charts in Canada as well.



On the heals of that success, Cutting Crew released I've Been In Love Before, which made it into the Top 10 on the US Top 100, and #2 on the Adult Contemporary charts.



Cutting Crew put out another two albums, and both failed to have the success of the first, or a single coming close to (I Just) Died In Your Arms, and they called it a day in 1993. In 2002, co-founder MacMichaels died of cancer. In 2006, singer Van Eede reformed the group with a new members, and toured around Europe. Surprisingly enough, in 2008 the reformed Cutting Crew were signed to Spectra Records in the US. To find out more about Cutting Crew, visit their website here.

New Music - Syd - Upswing

Photos by Evan Cohen 2007

I saw a Tweet from Aiden James that mentioned some musicians he thought his 'tweeps' should take a listen to, and like the obedient fanboy, I did that. One of the suggestions was @SydMusic, so I followed the trail to his Twitter account and on to his website. Right away the music video for The Big Town was playing, and I have to say I liked it.



So I decided to buy the EP Upswing, a four-song collection. Upon listening, I was more than pleasantly surprised. The indie-rock of Syd is has a great retro feel without feeling dated. It is like he has brought forward the feel of Elvis Costello and Marshall Crenshaw, two of my favorite artists, and made some great pop/rock. And there was a bonus, for when I read the liner notes, singer Gregory Douglass is singing background on The Big Town. The second song, Mallory, has the driving guitar of 80s New Wave, combined with a Beach Boys feel to this love song. The Pattern slides back and forth seamlessly between an early sixties feel, kinda early The Who, and something quite contemporary, yet indie-based. Next up is Easier On You, a song that reminded me immediately of The Colourfield, with the clever lyrical content of Terry Hall, and the great Hammond Organ tone. But there was also the great guitar breaks, reminding me of the fun work of Eddie Van Halen on some of the 80s pop songs, you know, the good ones, like Michael Jackson's Beat It and the like. I really liked it!



On Syd's website, you can buy the EP and it is an interesting setup. You are asked what you are paying, with a mandatory minimum of $2 for the EP. I paid $5, cause I think we need to be supporting the artists, not trying to get the best deal, but it can be up to you. So, I paid, got the download, and it also included the music video for The Big Town, which, as you see above, is really very good. So it was a great value, and after listening, I think I shoulda ponied up a little more money.

The following video is from his 2004 release, Fault Lines. It is The Bottom, and it has a wonderful melodic acoustic feel.



If you like what you hear, stop by his website here. I think I might be stopping by soon and getting some more music for myself. And thank you, Aiden James, for the lead on Syd. I can't really go too wrong when musicians I respect give me a lead on music, you know?

New Video - Jay Brannan - Cranberry High

Handsome Jay Brannan went to see The Cranberries in concert yesterday, and I was following his Twitter and giggling to myself as I watched a singer/songwriter go all fangrllllly over a favorite of his.



I remember the first time I went to see Jay in concert, and was so excited I would finally get to see the guy live I had loved on YouTube and on CD. So seeing him so on edge just warms my heart. Once he got home, he did a YouTube video as he basked in the post-Cranberries glow.



For more on Jay, visit his website here.