Confusionaires show their rock ’n’ roll heart, Sebastien Lacombe takes a ride to the good old days, Chris Ning finds love blowing up in his face, Jason Nkanga gets acquainted and more in today’s submissions from Groover, a platform that connects artists with critics like me for a small fee. You can (and should) subscribe to my Tinnitist Groover Top 100 playlist HERE, or you can listen to it via the widget at the lower right of every page on this site. If you want to be in an upcoming playlist, click the link just below the widget or go HERE. But first, get a load of today’s lineup — topped by a fine clutch of homegrown talent.
The Confusionaires | I Got A Heart
HOME BASE: Canada.
GENRE: Rockabilly.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “The Confusionaires are an Edmonton rock ’n’ roll trio that touts themselves as a ‘rockabilly band’ and, although their ties to traditional rock ’n’ roll are strong, their music and delivery are a few steps away from the old school. The Confusionaires are a rockabilly band for the modern era, and have more than just a firm grip on the spirit of rock ’n’ roll. Not long after guitar player & vocalist ‘Fat Dave’ Johnston’s previous band The Fuzz Kings wound down, Dave figured it was time to turn up the heat, based on some musical conversations he’d had with bass player Jayson Aschenmeier and drummer Adam Stark. With the spirit of ‘onstage reckless abandon’ in mind, the formation of The Confusionaires was inevitable. Their sophomore album From The Headache To The Heartache (2020) demonstrates the band’s desire to find their own modern-rock sound within the traditional rockabilly genre. The latest track is I Got A Heart, with upbeat rock ’n’ roll energy contrasting with thoughtful and emotional-rollercoaster lyrics.”
Sebastien Lacombe | My Thousand Dollar Car
HOME BASE: Canada.
GENRE: Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Sebastien Lacombe is a Montreal-born bilingual singer-songwriter. Over the past 10 years, he has released four solo albums, toured extensively throughout Canada, Europe and the United States and won various prizes for his work. In 2016 he was invited to join the cast of the musical The Wall Live Extravanganza as Pink. After two years and more than 100 shows in Canada and the U.S., Lacombe began a new collaborative friendship with Erik West Millette. Together, they began working on Lacombe’s fifth studio album Fly. My Thousand Dollar Car, the second and latest release from Fly, tells the story of Lacombe’s quest to find the old, beat-up car that once brought him so much joy and freedom. The video was shot in the Montreal area this summer and was directed by Alejandro Cadilla Alvares.”
Chris Ning | Explode
HOME BASE: Canada.
GENRE: Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Toronto alt-pop artist Chris Ning has played Carnegie Hall, studied opera, released an album with his dad and fronted a punk band. But his first solo album, Digital God, due later this year, is the piece of art that is entirely his story. Produced by Dajaun Martineau (Moist, Priya Panda), the album is about “codependency and the extreme outcomes and circumstances of being reliant on external influence,” Chris says. “Every one of these songs is a love song in different ways, whether it be people or substances.” The single Explode is about falling in love with someone who is not in love with you. “Love is like suicide,” he says. “It’s like a part of you dies when you finally let someone go.”
Jason Nkanga | Know You Better (feat. theMIND)
HOME BASE: United Kingdom.
GENRE: Hip-Hop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “This is a classic type of love song! It has the early 2000s vibe. This is for those who love a good love song. Something you can replay on and on again. Looking to push it as far as possible because I still believe there are people out there who have not heard this song before and will love to hear it.”
https://youtu.be/F5kO8CefBKI
Panaviscope | Tigers As Friends
HOME BASE: Switzerland.
GENRE: Synth-Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Panaviscope is a one-man band formed by Alex, who composes all the music, plays all the instruments and sings. His new single Sham possesses an apparent joyfulness that hides an intense reflection on false pretenses. The video for Sham and its multiple mirror effects denounce the huge gap between the images that people project on others and their reality. The lyrics make us discover the darker aspect of the song while the video plunges us into a black-and-white universe showing catastrophic events as if they were part of the daily life. It’s a journey of exploration both visual and musical.”
Pierre-André | C’est Pas Ca (Qui Va M’arrêter)
HOME BASE: France.
GENRE: Ska-Pop.
THE TRANSLATED BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “”C’est Pas Ca is my second single. A title that speaks of the adversity of life. On a lively rhythm that evokes Madness, The Specials and also Selecter, the brass, organ and accordion have a blast. Three minutes of good humor!”
Dolche | Criminal Love
HOME BASE: Italy.
GENRE: Folk-Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Dolche is the new project of Italian/French singer-songwriter Christine Herin, whose musical career boasts five albums and more than 500 concerts around Europe. She worked on her new album over the last two years. Multi-instrumental and multicultural, Dolche’s music is a dreamy and powerful voyage inside her very personal and unique universe. Her music has often been compared to the works of Feist, Peter Gabriel, Bjork, Joni Mitchell and Aznavour. The horns and the flower crown she wears on stage are an homage to an image from her childhood when cows, descending from mountain summer pastures, were adorned with flowers and celebrated until nightfall from all the inhabitants of the valley. Criminal Love is a simple emotional tune about a love so big is has become criminal.”
Nipazen | Exodus
HOME BASE: Switzerland.
GENRE: Orchestral.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Discover the Nipazen universe — inspirational & emotional orchestral music, relaxing music, instrumental pop and progressive music. Get ready to relax and start dreaming.”
Seuil Optique | Sycomores
HOME BASE: France.
GENRE: Electronica.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Seuil Optique, the duo of Sig Valax and Nicolas Tourney, offer a unique listening experience. Immersing the stage and audience in constant darkness, Seuil Optique create soundscapes where electronic transmissions, acousmatic landscapes and refined drones intersect. By jostling the boundaries between listening, blind manipulation of machines and immersive experience offered to the audience, the two musicians explore new sound tracks in permanent dialogue with hybrid musicalities and the practice of singular instruments: Persephone, field recording, electro-acoustic devices, matrices and samples. Oaks, their fourth album, tells the story of an eyeless camera, of a journey beyond the screen. An ephemeral present filled with the memory of this interior film that everyone projects on their eyelids in the evening, sublimating at night into an absolute composed of expectations.”
Mututom | This Way Or That Way
HOME BASE: France.
GENRE: Electronica.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Born and raised in the Parisian suburbs, Mututom discovered the piano and the guitar in his younger years. Erik Satie would become a major influence, followed by metal, hip-hop and Russian classical music. In 2008, accompanied by sidekick Vinxi, he released the rap album Vampayas, which is a storytelling in a vampiric context. In 2015, a long road trip in Asia gave birth to the album Other Lands, each track being either a mark in one of the countries visited, or an overall impression of the trip.”
Ernesto Blanco | Sigue Rescatandome
HOME BASE: Cuba.
GENRE: Pop-Rock.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Sigue Rescatandome is about music as a medicine. No matter what happens in life, music is there for me. The song tells the story about how it saved me in times of difficulty. As a man from Cuba, living through the pandemic in Havana, music has been my anchor.”
KNGT | Scarlett
HOME BASE: France.
GENRE: Rock.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “KNGT returns with new single Scarlett. Catchy rhythm, piano and guitars, a powerful but sensitive rock voice — that’s what Scarlett gives you. KNGT modernize rock in French once again with this ballad. In the torments of Gauvain Ardrino, singer and songwriter are expressed the follies of love and hate: Scarlett.”
CiteMe | Criminal Aftermath
HOME BASE: United States.
GENRE: Synth-Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “L.A. songwriter-producer Natalie Gould is trailblazing a new sound in pop music with her artist project CiteMe. Her unique melodies, compositions and versatile approach to songwriting have been described as experimental, anthemic and honest. Natalie is unabashedly authentic and has accumulated acclaim from a growing number of accomplished songwriters, producers and engineers. CiteMe is an artist project Natalie has been diligently working on in 2020. Inspired by a powerful movement, she speaks her truth and communicates her message in the way Natalie knows best. Addressing issues that personally affect her, and the masses, with the intention of bringing various topics to the forefront of conversations that need to be widely discussed. Natalie takes her listeners on a journey through each release to paint a full picture of what it means to be inside the mind of Natalie Gould.”
Chiara Foschiani | Queen of Disaster
HOME BASE: France.
GENRE: Electro-Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “In May 2020, Chiara Foschiani locked herself in the studio with Valentin Larbre to record her first EP Trouble Maker, a mix of dark pop and electro, which she wrote and produced by herself. Her atmospheric pop, driven by basslines and intense beats, shows a unique sound, full of emotions. Chiara tells us stories with powerful, sometimes disturbing lyrics. With her charismatic and confident voice, she brings us into her both mysterious and sharp world. She is the voice of a committed, conscious and powerful generation. Chiara is inspired by Taylor Swift for her writing, Billie Eilish for her minimalism and Lana del Rey for her poetry. “Queen of Disaster is the first track of my EP Trouble Maker which will be released in 2021. It’s a project that I’ve been carrying for two years, even though I’m only 17 years old. I composed, wrote, produced it myself.”
Ryan Eiffel | Top
HOME BASE: Belgium.
GENRE: R&B/Soul.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “Ryan Eiffel is an innovative urban music visionary based in Brussels, Belgium who is pioneering a new style and sound that’s been called Trap Soul and Alternative R&B. He blends singing and rapping across a multi-octave range with inventive flows and skillfully crafted lyrics that describe the human existence. He deals with its beauty and its flaws portrayed through chaotic, sometimes extreme states, mixing love, hate, peace, and violence. His tracks are atmospheric, built on melodic beats with heavy bass. He performs in English with touches of French and draws inspiration from the U.S. and Canadian hip-hop scenes, French rap, and electronic music.”
Clide | Blank Space
HOME BASE: Germany.
GENRE: Pop.
THE BIO & PRESS RELEASE: “At 16 years old, Clide started fiddling around with a computer, a microphone and a piano — and didn’t stop since. He’s an outspoken aficionado of pop music, likes modern & fresh sounds that build bridges between the genres of international pop, urban and R&B. Although still pretty young, Clide knows exactly what adjectives he wants his music to be associated with: Authentic, innovative and raw. Clide’s new single Blank Space is about his search of identity in a world where you can be everything. The chill and “feel-good” production, combined with Clide’s distinctive vocals, make it an easy listen that hooks the audience from the first line. With Blank Space, Clide keeps pushing musical boundaries, developing his unique style.”
https://soundcloud.com/clidemusic/blank-space-1/s-OPO9VvbLSXJ?in=clidemusic/sets/in-my-mind//s-bo7I4q1lceh
