It takes a confident artist to title their album Shitty Hits . Singer/songwriter Katie Von Schleicher couldn't care less if you're in on the joke or not because, quite simply, her second release contains eleven reasons to the contrary. Think '70s Laurel Canyon on a cloudy day. For this Brooklyn-based artist, it's classic heart-on-your-sleeve songwriting that's justifying raves from the likes of NPR and Interview magazine. [This episode features "The Image" and "Midsummer" from Shitty Hits in thei...
Aug 10, 2017•57 min
Whether on record or in a live setting, composer/multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Finnegan Shanahan's The Two Halves is hauntingly ambitious. The album, based on a Hudson River Railroad map (circa 1852), was released last year and has been performed with Contemporaneous, an ensemble Finnegan helped establish when he attended Bard College. New York's Rite of Summer music festival will feature the latest performance of The Two Halves during its 2017 season on Governors Island. This episode also incl...
Aug 09, 2017•1 hr 28 min
The best creatives often design from a place of not seeing themselves represented in certain spaces. In the case of Mars Dixon, seven years ago he formed the band Aye Nako because he wanted to see a stage populated with people of color, queer people or even trans people like himself performing punk music that shouts from the margins. The Brooklyn-based group recently put out their third release, Silver Haze . It's a vital collection of spiky, melodic songs where Mars splits guitar and vocal duti...
Jul 21, 2017•57 min
It seems highly unlikely to stumble into excellence. There is a pathway to it regardless of an elusive success or ambitious destinations. The procedures to excellence are what yield artists like rapper Akinyemi. The Queens native is consistently honing his craft through a practice of reading, studying great hip-hop records and even sharpening his singing voice with vocal coaching. The 21-year-old is simultaneously wrapping up his final year of college as a computer science major while he pursues ...
Jul 14, 2017•39 min
While everyone is familiar with the term "indie", we just might need more performers like Jazzy Ash to make "kindie" a household word. Independent artists who make music for kids. Over the course of four albums, Ash has been building a thriving audience with originals and covers that appeal to both parents and their offspring. Swing Set is the latest release for the Southern California-native and her band the Leaping Lizards. The new album features Ash singing a selection of songs from the Afric...
Jul 13, 2017•38 min
For singer-songwriter Nick Pope, musical inspiration is often found in memories. Revisiting those moments, those events with perhaps a little more clarity that is only accessible through distance. His perfect new album, Howl and Flood , is a study in sustaining a mood and arrives on the heels of last year's compilation of EP's, the genre-hopping Souvenirs and Astronauts . Howl & Flood 's consistency in sound is no less exciting in its execution, it merely highlights Nick's restless expansive...
Jul 08, 2017•58 min
There's this thing that singer-songwriter Beau Borek does whenever he reaches for his falsetto. His voice catches for a moment and it breaks your heart each and every time. Which is apropos since his debut release, Different Generations , is about familial loss and relationships and how the experiences can shape you. Although the lyrics are highly personal, Beau has discovered a way to translate an intimacy that affects us all. Listening to Different Generations feels more like a redemptive cont...
Jul 01, 2017•41 min
You know you've entered Gabriel Delicious Country when you hear his irreverent lyrics that scream to be rewinded and eight songs with more hooks than a tackle box. The LA-based singer/multi-instrumentalist's new album, I'm Wigging Out But I Feel Patient , is nearly 25 minutes of punk-wave gilded with Gabriel's talk-singing. It makes one wish that he'll quit his "day job" as a sound engineer ASAP, so we won't have to wait for the follow-up. [This episode features "Glossing" and "Stranger Danger" ...
Jun 29, 2017•54 min
New York-based composer Amir ElSaffar has triumphantly found that sweet spot of innovation not reduction when uniting two musical genres. Not Two , his latest release as a bandleader, features his Rivers of Sound orchestra fusing elements of Middle Eastern music with jazz and vocals. The santur and trumpet player's 17-piece ensemble not only reflects the heritage of his Iraqi father but also finds its inspiration in Amir's spirituality. As with most double-albums, Not Two 's ninety minutes are ove...
Jun 25, 2017•1 hr 20 min
Regarding that old adage about asking a busy person if you need something done: well, in the case of bandleader/composer Mary Halvorson it may get completed but you could be waiting a long time. Since 2005 the Brooklyn-based jazz guitarist has released nearly two dozen albums in various permutations including in a duo, trio, quartet and on last year's octet release, Away With You . The avant-garde jazz of Away With You appeared on numerous "best of 2016" lists including number one on Nate Chinen...
Jun 22, 2017•50 min
Multi-instrumentalist Josiah Woodson is an advocate of moment-to-moment thinking; it has served the Paris-based musician well. Instead of preoccupying his mind on matters of the future, he excels at whatever is currently in front of him. Whether it's winning a Grammy for his trumpet playing on Beyoncé's 4 album or as the bandleader on his debut, Suite Elemental , where he also handles the guitar, flute and flugelhorn. Additionally, Suite Elemental is a showcase for Josiah's classic jazz compositio...
Jun 20, 2017•49 min
Who needs the weight of categories when they're all sourced from a strain of creativity that's almost dangerous in its execution? Behind the moniker of Eartheater, Alexandra Drewchin is a musician, performance and visual artist. Whether it's with her pair of 2015 albums ( Metalepsis and RIP Chrysalis ) or her acrobatic live shows encompassing singing, spoken word and dance, Alexandra's art is always on the verge of the future. From growing up on a Pennsylvania farm to Central Park busking to her...
Jun 16, 2017•1 hr 2 min
Since the 1970s, armed with a 16mm camera and his curiosity, filmmaker and artist Charlie Ahearn was a pioneer chronicler of the nascent days of hip-hop and street culture in New York City. He soon migrated to movies including the super 8 kung-fu film The Deadly Art of Survival (1978) and the seminal Wild Style (1983) which documented the excitement of graffiti art and rap music and is recognized as the first hip-hop movie. Not limited to film, Charlie has also published books and created silkscreen...
Jun 03, 2017•1 hr
New York singer-songwriter Marc Cantone ambitiously splits his time. By day he works as a children's TV producer and at nite he crafts perfect pop songs. The City and Horses is the name of Marc's band project and as the frontman he's been releasing impossibly catchy albums since 2009's official debut I Don't Want to Dream. The new release, Ruins , continues the tradition of urbane lyrics and earworms. Marc has struggled with OCD over the past eight years and on this fourth album the South Jersey-...
May 30, 2017•59 min
Under the Vagabon moniker, singer-songwriter Lætitia Tamko built her reputation show by show through New York's indie music scene. The DIY environment was a supportive incubator that nurtured Lætitia from her first performance in 2014 at Brooklyn's Silent Barn community art space to the release of this year's Infinite Worlds album. The critically-acclaimed, full-length debut has garnered praise from Pitchfork, NPR and W magazine. What once seemed like an impossible dream to pursue music has led th...
May 26, 2017•47 min
Picking one art form to express himself has never been an issue for Hisham Akira Bharoocha. Equally adept as a drummer and a visual artist, he's simply followed his muse. Currently based in Brooklyn, Hisham was born in Japan to a Japanese mother and Burmese father. Musically, he can easily shift from the pop-centric sounds of his Soft Circle solo project to the experimental trio Kill Alters' latest release, No Self Helps . As for his art, Hisham is skilled in various mediums including photograph...
May 19, 2017•1 hr 15 min
Consider Brooklynite Jordan Rothlein one of the fortunate few. His life is a complete immersion into his passion for music. Since 2016 Jordan has worked on the production side of Red Bull Music Academy's radio team where he's involved with both the documentary-style and techno/dance music shows. Originally from Orlando, FL, Jordan also writes about music with his recent feature on Preserved Instincts (fka Dope Jams), the legendary New York record store, appearing on RBMA's daily blog. Visit Red ...
May 17, 2017•57 min
Bassist Jon Ehlers has always set music as his primary goal. As one-half of the New York duo Bangladeafy, with drummer Atif Haq, this attitude has produced one rich work after another. Included in the output is Bangladeafy's third release, Narcopaloma (2016), which only clocks in at 15 minutes, but whose seven tracks pack in more complexity and subtext than most double-albums. It's technique without sacrificing melody; agility with a clear plot. Plus, it bangs hard. Although the group name actual...
May 12, 2017•1 hr 10 min
We've all read the endless parade of "Ones to Watch" lists that music magazines trot out regularly. Then you never hear about the subjects again! For your consideration I suggest not another list, but one offering who is too good to be ignored. Benny Oyama. Benny is a singer-songwriter who's been successfully putting his spin on bossa nova music and often finds his inspiration through a long-held mediation practice. The son of a Jewish mother and Japanese- American father, the born-and-bred New Y...
May 05, 2017•55 min
Who wouldn't want to be GENG when they grow up? DJ. Producer. Runs PTP, a boutique music label/collective based in New York consisting of creatives with little regard for boundaries in their art. Formerly known as Purple Tape Pedigree, the imprint was created by GENG to not only give a platform to artists who otherwise might not have one, but additionally to produce live shows, workshops and fundraisers...and merch. There should always be merch. On the album front, 2017 has been an especially pr...
Apr 27, 2017•1 hr 18 min
Five years ago singer/songwriter Natasha Jacobs' band Thelma didn't even exist. But half a decade isn't a terribly long time. Only 60 months. 1,825 measly days! Especially when a long- held dream is conceived. Natasha utilized that period to finally focus on her music. When a fall from a ladder left her bedridden, she took advantage of the homebound solitude to study the guitar and write songs. Spurred by one-part inspiration and one-part tragedy, the glorious result is Thelma's debut LP. Their s...
Apr 21, 2017•45 min
Journalist Emil Wilbekin's name is synonymous with pop culture. A way of life he's been mining personally since his Cincinnati childhood where he once obsessed over magazines to his career working at some of the best periodicals in circulation. A celebrated dozen years at Vibe magazine culminated with his role as editor-in-chief in 2004 plus a National Magazine Award for the urban lifestyle magazine two years earlier. Emil has also helmed successful editorial stints at Essence , Giant and Marc E...
Apr 19, 2017•1 hr 6 min
The road of most musical careers doesn't include both medicine and math in the (ahem) equation, especially when it produces a wonderfully skewed country album. While studying math at Brown University, singer/songwriter Dougie Poole forwent a doctor's life to follow his passion for music. Replacing what's expected for exploration in less reliable waters is the norm for him. The title of his full-length debut, Wideass Highway is perhaps the first clue; the music within is the second. It's country m...
Apr 09, 2017•1 hr 13 min
Suzi Analogue isn't just her name; it's a way of life. Inspired by RZA's audio alter ego, Bobby Digital, Suzi took on her moniker as an emblem to be as free and honest as possible in her art. Suzi has boldly forged a singular path through the male-dominated beat scene in her numerous capacities as a beatmaker, songwriter, vocalist (and much more!). From her Virginian suburban roots to the borough of Brooklyn, Suzi is a consummate tastemaker. With her music label (Never Normal Records), eclectic ...
Mar 30, 2017•59 min
Maddison Murphy has figured out the (seemingly) uncomplicated math of releasing a successful music compilation. Creation can often appear effortless when someone excels at what they do. Puppy Teeth Records, her Brooklyn-based cassette and digital label, recently released its Good Friends, Vol. 2 compilation. Maddison is the Great Curator. A genre-jumping collection of songs she carefully handpicked, culminating in your new favorite mixtape. An ordering of 25 tracks that produce a distinctive expe...
Mar 23, 2017•50 min
Some people have a natural penchant or inclination in regards to their talent. The timeline of their experience doesn't appear to correspond with the execution. File Amy León into this category. Although she is undefinable and hard to pin down. She's been singing for only three years and has recently released her wise and beautiful debut, Something Melancholy . If she must be classified, "instinctive" is perhaps the only proper division. There is an intentional immediacy in Amy's voice and writing...
Mar 17, 2017•1 hr 3 min
Isn't it the greatest gift when an artist shares their interior world through their chosen medium? An objective Nandi Rose Plunkett had decidedly been working towards through the experimental pop music of Half Waif. Half Waif is the solo project of the Brooklyn-based singer/ songwriter in which she eventually realized her intention with lyrics that have became more lucid and unguarded over the span of her recording career. The paring down of barriers to their core innocence. Since the 2011 incep...
Mar 09, 2017•50 min
Carina Zachary's path to being the lead vocalist of post-hardcore band Husbandry was not without its diversions. It was preceded by failed stints with bands of various genres and even a year where Carina had given up singing. The Brooklyn-based Husbandry became a four-piece after she answered a Craigslist post resulting in a 2014 EP and last year's Fera . The full-length debut is an embarrassment of riches: each song an exciting fruition of Carina's clear, powerful vocals intertwined with neck-b...
Mar 08, 2017•1 hr 8 min
The myriad proverbial hats that Tania León wears are a testament to her talent and longevity. Composer. Conductor. Educator. Arts Organization Advisor. Since her '60s emigration from Havana to the States she's accumulated milestone after milestone. A founding member of the Dance Theatre of Harlem with Arthur Mitchell. Grammy nominations. A Guggenheim Fellowship. Her compositions performed at institutions like the Kennedy Center while she has conducted esteemed orchestras around the world. Ms. Le...
Feb 23, 2017•55 min
The history of America is as beautiful and endearing as much its narrative can be ugly and traumatic. Journalist Brian Seibert's What the Eye Hears: A History of Tap Dancing is an exploration of those contradictions as seen through the lens of tap. The talent. The culture. The ups and downs. The indignities. A New York Times dance critic and features writer, Brian's epic tome is both timeless and (sadly) contemporary in its sensitive, incisive portrayal of race in America. Fourteen years in the ...
Feb 18, 2017•1 hr 5 min
