About a year ago I was walking down St. Mark’s Place in New York (of course) when somebody randomly stopped me and asked me what I was listening to. What proceeded was a very detailed dissection of just about every song I downloaded and I introduced my new found friend to some new music. I had so much fun I thought “How fun would it be to do this type of thing every month?” and thus this column was born.
A year later and I’m still having as much fun doing this as I did with March 2012’s issue. Let’s see what some of your Musical Acts have been up to since we last checked in.
Lil Kids
Since the release of Slow Rainbow (which has been re-released in rare cassette form) the psych rap duo have released another EP entitled Young Hercules and have been playing numerous shows in and around the Brooklyn area (Lopato especially).
With the release of their latest mixtape entitled Ultimate Grand Supreme still in the works, this won’t be the last time I’ll be writing about them.
Check out the interview I had with the guys last November for MauvaisLangue.com and get as excited as I am for new material.
Underground Mantra
After the release of The Woods, Carmine and Tyler headed back to Berklee and played shows in and around the Boston area, even having an opportunity to open for Soul Hop powerhouse Oddisee in October.
Since then UndergroundMantra.com has been set up. Keeping you up to date with all the happenings of the band, giving insight into upcoming show dates and random ramblings are common practice on the site and I even had a chance to guest write a review of The Woods on the site so check that out when you have time.
I will also be working really closely with UGM on some projects (non-musical of course) that should come to fruition around the warmer months so stay tuned for that.
Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud, Website
The Skins
The Skins just keep getting bigger and bigger. Between being managed by Adrian Grenier, making appearances at Sundance, touring France with The Heavy and working on a full length LP, The Skins have definitely been living the rockstar life.
Throughout all of this, The Skins have constantly been updating their YouTube page with random ramblings, interviews, and live performances. The bands YouTube page is what made me fall in love with these guys in the first place so I was elated to see that they have become even MORE in tune with their fans and are utilizing social media to its full potential.
French Horn Rebellion
The electronic/dance duo of siblings is well on their way to mainstream stardom. After releasing Love is Dangerous late last year, the band has been playing plenty shows in not only New York but around the world.
On top of the strenuous show schedule, they’ve found time to do interviews for MTV, reach number one on Spotify’s “emerging” charts and even got a feature in Rolling Stone. What’s next for French Horn Rebellion? Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s full of synthesizers.
Moon Mirror
Moon’s had quite a busy month. Releasing synth based grooves regularly while working on 2-3 side projects at a
time seems normal for this chick.
In the past two months alone there have been numerous mixes, the release of Naadyn’s Galaxy (to which Moon leads vocals and possible some synths) and release of a new track with That Was Then This Is Now, there is no question this girl has a lot more up her sleeve. Mishka went as far as to call Moon “one of underground’s most favorite female vocalists” in a recent review on their blog. Take notice of this girl, you won’t have a choice soon enough.
The Dean’s List/ The King’s Dead
Ok…so I didn’t write about The King’s Dead but being that they are basically The Dean’s List minus one I figured it was still quite accurate, right?
Since the release of Jerusalem, Sonny Shotz and Alex Mendoza has been pretty quiet; that is…until recently. The duo dropped a single entitled “The Reunion” and are currently shooting a video as well. The song is the first single from the upcoming album Revenge of the Beast set for a sooner release rather than later so be on the lookout.
The New Division
Being that The New Division were the first band I ever wrote about for this column, I thought it would only be fitting that they were last in this instance.
Since the release of Shadows the band took the time to release an entirely new album last November called Night Escape, an album filled with positive vibes and uplifting melodies; a complete contrast from Shadows.
The album was met with extremely positive reviews and the band has had more release parties than one would care to have promoting an album…not that there’s anything wrong with that. Night Escape was also remixed by electronic producer TEEEL only adding to the band’s popularity. With Night Escape exploring such themes as love, growing up and rebirth, it’s interesting to see the guys going through these exact transitions as a band and as human beings.
There you have it!
Make no mistake about it, if I didn’t include a band in this article it isn’t because one band is favored over another, each and every act I’ve written about and or have had the opportunity to meet are all amazing and you’re a fool if you don’t give all of them a listen!
Thanks to all the bands that have read my articles and complimented me on them and if you didn’t compliment me well….I love you still.
Thanks to all my fellow music fans who take the time to check out my blog, it really is an honor to have loyal, open minded readers and it’s all I can ever ask for.
Be sure to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, like the LifeofLito Facebook page AND check out past issues of 5 Musical Acts. Most important of all, be sure to stop by next month for more amazing music!
Later,
Lito
Lito's Life 