Monsieur Job - Chilliando Hangueando (2018)

Written by Jason Hillenburg, posted by blog admin

Toby Holguin and his compatriots in Monsieur Job are steadily upping their musical profile with each new single from their album Bass Passi. The rousing success of the debut single “Chow Chow Eyyy Pow Pow” preceded subsequent hits of later singles “Pica Pica” and “Nina Shake Your Body” and led the unit into the final round of Grammy nomination voting. Holguin’s songwriting vision is the foundational power for Monsieur Job, but his musical partners fellow Colombians Charlie Illera and Leo Jaramillo join with European native Stan Kolev to form a kinetic musical attack emphasizing a variety of influences to make their music work. It works tremendously and sounds like a natural synthesis of seemingly disparate musical flavors.

The track runs a little over three minutes in length and begins with terse keyboards and a restrained vocal. The song’s lyrical content isn’t in English, but Espanola/Spanish, but open-minded music listeners will find this isn’t any obstacle to enjoying the track despite any potential language barrier. There aren’t many of the same sonic flourishes we’ve heard from previous Monsieur Job tunes, but this simply proves that the band is more than adept at presenting a number of musical faces for their growing audience. The arrangement is intensely physical and focuses on a relatively spartan musical accompaniment nicely balanced against stylish, intensely rhythmic vocals. The song features the talents of guest Cholo Valderrama in a move that helps push an already fine number further over the top.

It certainly more than fits the bill as a winning pop and dance number, but Monsieur Job are consistently producing music bearing the marks of genuine substance. The rhythmic values of this single are impossible to deny, but there’s also solid melodicism driving the song for audiences and the impeccable construction, likewise, helps make it a winner. The smooth, understated sensuality of the number is another bonus for listeners and further accentuates their talents. It is never brazen, rather suggestive, and cozies up to listeners from the first without ever overwhelming them.

Bands of every stripe come together in all sorts of ways. Monsieur Job has united under a band of creating something familiar, yet distinctive and new for lovers of Latin fueled dance and pop. This new single is more than successful at doing so; it, indeed, raises the bar ever higher for a four piece who are proving to be more than a flash in the pan but, instead, are gradually refreshing and renovating what it means to be an artist in this particular genre. Their stunning cross section of talents and superior production talents frame the song in the best possible way for listeners and there’s little question, after hearing this number, their continued climb in the music world will continue unabated. Colombia has provided our world with a wealth of musical entertainment over its long history and Monsieur Job stand as the new vanguard of Colombian artists ready to further highlight the nation’s substantial contributions to our entertainment lives. It’s music with a positive and upbeat bent that will engage you from the first.

The Real Hooks - Damn You (2017)

Artwork by Odandiee

OFFICIAL: http://www.therealhooksband.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/therealhooks/

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/therealhooks/

ITUNES: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id1227977371?ls=1&app=itunes

Written by Bradley Johnson, posted by blog admin

As far as flawlessly crafted power pop goes, The Real Hooks are the real deal. They bring a masterful command of popular song’s fundamentals, an amusing sense of humor that never comes off as gratuitously sophomoric, and obvious musical talents keeping everything afloat from the first note onward. They’ve built a well-deserved reputation as a winning recording and live unit since their debut a few years ago and have taken all the necessary steps to expand on that initial strong showing. Their family bonds have produced much of the band’s material until recently when they’ve started collaborating with outside songwriters in an attempt to reach an even broader audience than before. It has enriched their songwriting as well – the new single “Damn You” features all of the aforementioned signature elements in the band’s sound, but it goes a step beyond and sports the high end polish that working with decades long veterans of the music world can provide.

The energetic, freewheeling musical character of this song can win over new coverts on its merits alone. It’s tempered in all the right ways however. A band more blindly eager to impress might have played this at an even faster clip, bleeding any hint of nuance out of it, but The Real Hooks achieve a high-stepping swing that makes other elements of the performance all the more contagious. The song’s melodic virtues are ostentatious, but they are quite real. The band’s songwriting has specialized in direct, uncomplicated melodic lines since their debut and this aspect of their presentation hasn’t changed. It’s further enriched by the strength of the singing, substantive harmonies, and a vocal melody that accentuates the humor of the song.

It’s a level of humor that can get over with young and old alike. Despite the expletive in the title, this is never an obscene lyric and, instead, has a lightly sarcastic edge much more intelligent than what we are used to hearing in this genre. The vocal phrasing is confident, loose, and makes great use of the dramatic possibilities in the lyric without ever laying it on too thick. Like a delicate ballad, success and failure with a song like “Damn You” depends much on how much muscle the singing and music exert. If it’s all about the notes you don’t play, The Real Hooks strike an entertaining and compulsively listenable balance on this new single. It goes beyond family though. These are clearly sympathetic musicians with a crystal clear idea of what this band should be doing and how to get there. Such chemistry is rare under any context. “Damn You” ratchets up the stakes with its deft turns of humor and it’s a performance and song capable of being enjoyed by a wide swath of the listening public.

Grade: A

Jerad Finck - New Kids (2017)

Photo by Michael Sparks Keegan

OFFICIAL: www.jeradfinck.com

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/jeradfinckmusic

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/jeradfinck

LISTEN NOW: https://soundcloud.com/jeradfinck/new-kids-master/s-266fn

The newest single from Spokane native Jerad Finck will haunt you. His interest in music from an early age, discipline to work hard, and a willingness to learn from those who’ve come before you set him apart in an age when pop sensations flame out at a faster rate than ever before. “New Kids” has the entertainment value, intelligence, and emotional resonance we associate with extended careers. The discipline propelling his hard work touches on his penchant for writing first class material. It’s his latest collaboration with writer/producer Denny White (The Fray, Tiesto, Usher) and the two have an obvious rapport. Another factor contributing to the song’s success, without question, is the influence jazz music had on Finck’s youth, but it isn’t an influence that readily announces itself. You can hear it in the exquisite textures that make the song so memorable and the attention to style that far outpaces what most modern pop has to offer.

There’s a pleasing inevitability about the way it moves. Finck has certainly hit upon a winning formula for this song and it moves with cool fluidity throughout its entire duration. Groove and melody, more than anything else, makes this work. The drumming has just the right touch and the reverb driven guitar work weaves an evocative web over the top without ever overindulging. There seems to be a little like post-production work applied to Finck’s singing, but it just accentuates his natural greatness thanks to the phrasing he employs in every passage. It’s finesse coupled with feeling and you can hear the conviction he brings to the song. Perhaps some of his early jazz influences come out in the clear way he listens and studies the musical accompaniment behind him. This isn’t a performer who’s trying to take up the entire spotlight. He wants to sing with a band and does so marvelously here.

His musical collaborators are equally focused on serving the song. The guitar work is particularly memorable and, much like his vocal, certainly suffers no harm from the sounds laid over it but has enough melodic merit it could have easily stood clean on its own. It works as a second vocalist, in a sense, and duets with his voice quite well. Finck spends much of his time fixed on working with the six string and percussion alike, but the song never feels cluttered. Everything is streamlined, sleek, but sizzles with undeniable life. Jerad Finck’s steady ascent towards global stardom likely continues with this song. “New Kids” burns with exceptional lyrical content and an excellent musical and vocal presentation and shows his growth is exponential. Jerad Finck clearly has a strong musical DNA that is evolving at an impressive rate and moves with a sure footedness beyond his years.

Written by: Pamela Bellmore

Grade: A+