“Hey, Glance & Smile” by Mishu Hilmy (Folk/Country Artist from New York (NY))

"Hey, Glance & Smile" is the full-length debut from eclectic folk artist Mishu Hilmy. Hilmy is a solo artist and creates all of the sounds on the album, drawing from deep within his instrumental repertoire and laying down tracks with piano, acoustic guitar, accordion, banjo, and ukulele. The tracks are simple, relying maximally on two instruments and Hilmy's vocal performance for the fullness of sound, but it is the simplicity that makes it enjoyable. Hilmy's lyrics are quirky and narrative, conveying the wide variety of emotions that come with sleeping in cars and the redundancy of life. The overall sound, vocally and musically, is experimental folk that sounds like a wild combination of Modest Mouse and Bob Dylan. "Hey, Glance & Smile" was recorded at Hilmy's and his friends' houses, and the album has that raw, four-track sound that fits the genre and Hilmy's do-it-yourself mentality. "Front Door/Back Door" is an acoustic-driven track with some accordion, great lyrics, and a catchy chorus. "Road Kills" is a clean acoustic track about a run-in with a deer and features the memorable lyrics, "The world stayed fat/But who's to blame?/So I said, 'Oh my God.'" "Hey, Glance & Smile" is the result of a workhorse's endeavor to create a do-it-yourself, raw experimental folk album. Fans of the genre, show your support and pick up Mishu Hilmy's debut.

-Chris & the RadioIndy.com Review Team
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"Spit Hot Fire" by Spit Hot Fire (Reggae Artist from New York City, New York(NY))

"Spit Hot Fire" self titled album is a stellar throwback to the reggae dub rock mix that reigned supreme in the 90's. The arrangements are fantastic in the album, with a great mix of reggae styles that feature heavy bass lines and melodic vocals. The album is chock full of upstrokes, head nodding drum beats and creative harmonies. The stand out track is "Good morning" which brings about the urge to want to roam the famous Orange County beaches as these east coasters fill your ears with sounds made famous by bands like Sublime, 311 and The Long Beach Dub All-Stars. Other highlights are the opener "Poet on Payday", which bangs right into it with a big electric reggae riff, and "October Night", with it's gritty bass line and catchy melody. Hey Ska fans, these guys are your new favorite band.

-Ross & The RadioIndy.com Review Team

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“Last Girl On Earth” by Deni Bonet (Rock Artist from New York City, New York(NY))

RadioIndy is pleased to present Deni Bonet with a GrIndie Award for their CD "Last Girl On Earth"

 

"Last Girl On Earth" by Deni Bonet is an adult contemporary rock CD featuring a strong female giving a strong message to the world. Front and center on the CD is Deni's songwriting and her impressive violin work. Deni's songwriting is full of strong thoughts and emotions along with clever and witty lyrics, and catchy choruses. The musicianship and recording quality of the CD is extremely high, and the result of an all-star cast surrounding Deni. "How Far Can I Push You," a duet with the folksinger and author John Wesley Harding, features a strong rock groove with effective, fast-moving lyrics in the verses, and a memorable chorus with catchy chord progressions. With "Word Up," Bonet and well-known girl group BETTY take the R&B classic and give it a funky, feminized twist. "Don't Turn Away from Love" nicely builds to a memorable chorus, and features an oustanding horn counterpart. If you enjoy excellent adult rock songwriting filled with wit, maturity, intelligence, and outstanding musicianship, check out this CD.

-Lea P. and the RadioIndy Reviewer Team
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"Sundayz Child" by Sundayz Child (Rock Artist from New York City, New York(NY))

RadioIndy is pleased to present Sundayz Child with a GrIndie Award for their CD "Sundayz Child"

 

The self-titled release by Sundayz Child is an adult alternative album that demonstrates superb songwriting and highly appealing musicianship. "This Side of Paradise" is extremely catchy and displays the cute and memorable lyrics that give this CD so much appeal. This song also showcases this band's amazing vocals, which excell in all areas – tone, control, pitch, performance, harmonies, and arrangements. Moreover, "Say Goodbye" and "Hop on the Train" are reminiscent of the Beatles-style of well-phrased poetic lyrics set to simple memorable tunes. Song after song, Sundayz Child holds listeners captive to their expressive, highly emotional, and energetic sound. It is no wonder these musicians are in great demand by some of the excellent top name performers of today. To top things off, this CD is produced with the utmost care and quality. This is another musical experience too good to miss.

-Lea PlumierL. Plumier and the RadioIndy Reviewer Team
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“Rise Up” by Dionne Blaize (Reggae Artist from New York City, New York(NY))

RadioIndy is pleased to present Dionne Blaize with a GrIndie Award for their CD "Rise Up"

 

"Rise Up" by Dionne Blaize is an energetic collection of hook-laden reggae tunes. Dionne's emotion-filled and vibrant vocal performances quickly and easily steal the limelight. Moreover, the compositions on this CD display superb instrumentation, especially the electric guitar riffs and drum arrangements. Kicking off this album with contagious energy is the danceable love song "I'm In Love With You Baby." The spiritually optimistic "Rise Up" stands out as particularly honest, expressive, and heart-felt. Moreover, Dionne includes a refreshingly creative reggae rendition of Alicia Key's "No One." All in all, this CD is rich in powerful vocals and groovy beats, and demonstrates great production. This CD will make an excellent addition to the collection of any reggae fan.

-Lea & The RadioIndy Team

 

Check out Dionne Blaize's music on RadioIndy.com with link to purchase and links to popular sites

"Being Visited" by Lo Galluccio (Pop Artist from New York City, New York(NY))

RadioIndy is pleased to present Lo Galluccio with a GrIndie Award for their CD "Being Visited"

 

"Being Visited" by Lo Galluccio is an avante-garge pop album full of delightful oddity. Lo has a wonderful voice and her mixed styles of delivery – both spoken and sung – is delightfully unique. This CD's sound draws from many genres and regions, and stretches the boundaries of traditional pop. Lo's seductive vocals are certainly the centerpiece of these tunes. Also adding to the appeal of this album are some cool harmonies, overlaying of verses, and general weirdness. Moreover, the arrangements take their appropriate place behind Lo's captivating vocals, and successfully accentuate the mood of each song. Highlights include "Black Sun," which flaunts an intense vocal performance and some good tabla work. The cover of "You Go to My Head" is ambiently jazzy, with a powerful build and sultry vocals. "Being Visited" is a spoken-word piece with otherworldly lyrics, nice vocal layers and an array of haunting instruments. If you like Bjork and Patty Smith, you'll like this one.

-William and the RadioIndy.com Reviewer Team
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"Universal Love" by Istan Black & The Sweets & Friends (Reggae Artist from New York(NY))

"Universal Love" by Istan Black & The Sweets & Friends is a smooth R&B/reggae album full of wonderful performances from a healthy lineup of musicians. The album combines the optimistic idealism of reggae with the slick sweetness of R&B. The arrangements lean more toward the reggae end of things, but the R&B elements add a dimension that makes the sound truly unique. The songs have a big full sound, with lots of interesting musical layers and unique instrumentation. The diversity between tracks is also quite noteworthy as each song is a new adventure. The album is very well produced and these songs are definitely radio ready. Highlights include the opener "Universal Love 1," which kicks off the album with a bang and introduces all the elements of the sound, with great performances all around. "Good Feelings" is very stylistic and features a nice range in the lead vocal performance and a creatively quirky arrangement. "Family Ties" hits home right away with a memorable riff and a great message. If you enjoy reggae that has a lot of style put together by talented performers, give this great collection a try.

-William
Check out ROCKSTONE's music on RadioIndy.com with link to purchase and links to popular sites

“Crystalline” by Stephen Johnson (Ambient Artist from New York(NY))

"Crystalline" is a world folk album from talented singer/songwriter Stephen Johnson. Johnson draws from a number of world genres with this album, including Irish and Brazilian music. His sound is unique and he incorporates several rare traditional instruments such as the balalaika, an acoustic instrument of Russian origin, throughout the album. Johnson's vocal performance is comparable to Peter Gabriel, Seal. and Sting. Although, the words he vocalizes is what makes him stand out. "Crystalline" is full of strong lyrics and Johnson delivers them in true storytelling fashion, in a musical narrative, about the issues and aspects of the world he finds most important. The arrangements are all solid as well and show Johnson's talent as a musician. The production quality is also very good, clean and professional sounding. "I Call You" has a nice vocal opening, a good simple arrangement, and captivating lyrics. "Essence of Nardo" closes the album out with a soulful number with a Latin flair, incorporation of the balalaika, and a spoken word vocal. With "Crytalline," Stephen Johnson delivers eight solid tracks with great world-inspired arrangements and a strong narrative lyrical style. Fans of world folk and strong singer/songwriters, give Stephen Johnson a listen.

-Chris & the RadioIndy.com Review Team
Check out Stephen Johnson's music on RadioIndy.com with link to purchase and links to popular sites