Author: "Scott Janovitz"

Darlingside

Folk-rock? Roots-rock? The gentlemen of Darlingside weren’t too sure about either of those monikers as it relates to their music, and so they became the Northeast’s top “string-rock” outfit. Call it whatever you want, but we took notice of this band after they placed at #1 in the OurStage Rock channel twice, with an additional five Top 10s, four Top 40s, an Editor’s Pick, and a two-week appearance in the Best of the Best Top 20.

But what finally made Darlingside a lasting favorite was stumbling upon a video performance of their song “Blow The House Down,” recorded live back in 2010. “String-rock” starts to make more and more sense, as these guys clearly aren’t just a folky act leaning more heavily on the bluegrass side of things. The strings they employ have a more classical tint to them. The tension created between that proper school of music and their otherwise loose – and indeed rootsy – melodic vibe.

And we’re suckers for frontman-bassists. Especially with that Rickenbacker. So please check out Darlingside, our Artist of the Week.

Brittany Campbell

Instead of “Artist of the Week,” this post should be titled, “Artist You Are Hearing All Over Commercial Pop Radio.” Unfortunately, making that latter a reality is not directly within our powers. It’s also a little wordy, and so we announce that our Artist of the Week is the incomparable Brittany Campbell.

Campbell is a singer, songwriter, and producer from New York. Sure, that describes a hundred thousand people. Campbell is better than them. Her music is the perfect storm of pop, soul, R&B, and rock. She cites Amy Winehouse, Blondie, Joni Mitchell, and Jimi Hendrix as influences. Do you really not want to get on that train? Is that how you want to live your life? Get it together, do the right thing, and listen to these songs.

From time to time, we like to update our community on our adventures in the world of music licensing. We are always working on behalf of the artists in our licensing catalog, looking for opportunities for great placements in television, film, commercials, and more. One of our pluggers, Kate, is working out in Nashville – Music City USA – and sends us this update:

This past week we have been busy pitching songs to hit shows on the CW Network…this week we are gathering new songs for a NYC record label with signed, established artists. Request is for songs much like  Jason Derulo or Justin Timberlake with an upbeat/dance/party vibe.  Please upload your song(s) that fit this criteria to your OurStage account and tweet @OurStage and @katetaylormusic your link.

See a selection of some of our recent placements right here.

Our latest Artist of the Week is The Delorians. We were captivated by this band the moment we discovered their track “Attacked By A Panther,” a track really unlike anything else we’ve heard on OurStage.

The band, out of Louisville, Kentucky, cites a wide range of influences, including but not limited to “‘classical’ music.” It’s not a surprise to see a number of ‘60s acts, from The Kinks to The Crystals, on their list. Don’t think that this is another throwback pop act, though. Their sound is indeed retro, but difficult to pin on a certain era. It’s romantic, spooky, grand, but simultaneously fuzzy and somewhat lo-fi. Yet it’s not garage rock. There are sweeping elements from the pre-rock and roll era of pop, filtered through the ‘60s and into ‘70s glam. In fact, some of their songs evoke very early Bowie, himself a student of the music-hall vocalists of the ‘40s and ‘50s. Perhaps the band has summed it up best in their one-line bio: “The Deloreans are like Sinatra in Vegas, David Lynch, and being at the beach.”

Anyway, the songs are catchy as hell, is the main thing. Check out “Attacked By A Panther” below. Continue reading ‘The Deloreans: OurStage Artist Of The Week’

Click here to donate and download a great playlist to help victims of the Boston Marathon bombing.

OurStage is grateful to be an international hub for musicians and music fans, who are looking to share and connect with something new. But we also have a soft spot for our hometown of Boston, MA, one of the world’s most vibrant music communities. Like the rest of the world, that community was shocked on Monday to learn of, and in many cases to see firsthand, the horrifying disturbance of one of our biggest and best days – Patriot’s Day and the yearly running of the celebrated Boston Marathon.

As readers probably know, there are many victims today, and as a city and a nation, we are reeling. But as many have already pointed out, if someone was hoping to terrify us, they failed. Within moments of the blasts, average people became heroic, rushing to aid the victims, running toward the danger. Runners continued past the finish line to give blood, locals opened their homes to visiting marathon participants with nowhere to go, restaurants and bars sheltered all comers, and police and medical personnel performed at the highest level.

And the rest of us, like you, just want to know what else we can do. Well, what we do is music. Of the many memes that have made the rounds of social media in the last several days, one quote spoke brilliantly to us: “This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more devotedly than ever before.” – Leonard Bernstein.

In that spirit, our friends at the popular Boston-centric music blog Allston Pudding worked quickly to compile a fantastic playlist of local music that could be offered for download to benefit the victims of the bombing. They put out a call for submissions, and the response was overwhelming, and they finally cut it off when they reached 130 tracks. So now, you can donate anywhere from $1 or more to get 130 tracks of eclectic, quality independent music, knowing that 100% of your donation is going to The One Fund Boston. Download it RIGHT HERE.

Felony Fame

It is once again Search For The Coldest time, when our friends at Coors Light® invite MCs from across the country to show what they’ve got for the chance to be crowned COLDEST MC. Naturally, our thoughts turn to last year’s winner, Felony Fame (aka Propane Fame), who made it to the top spot on the strength of his track “Beastie Boy” and, of course, his formidable lyrical skills and ability to deliver in a live performance. Since his win in 2012, Felony Fame has been on the rise and so we’re happy to name him this week’s OurStage Artist of the Week. Coming to us from North Carolina, by way of New Jersey, Fame has a distinct sound, with a gift for rhymes and compelling imagery backed by rich sonic textures and off-kilter beats that keep listeners hooked. No wonder he’s been featured in Hip Hop Weekly, Source, XXL, and on Cam’Ron‘s U.N. presents: Heat In Here Vol. 1 and Funk Master Flex‘s IFWT: Indie Vol. 1. Hear what it’s all about:

The Wallies

Who would suspect that America’s best hope in fending off the vibrant young hordes of Arctic Monkeys, Fratellis, Subways, and Bloc Partys from overseas would spring not from, say, Brooklyn, but instead from Sarasota, Florida? A hopeful nation should be turning their eyes to that city’s very own The Wallies, an indie rock band with the fire, visceral appeal, and goddam great songs to stand up against any frenetic guitar chargers. Singer Neven Skoro (who, okay, originally hails from Croatia) has a casual delivery that compliments the urgency of the band, in contrast to so many singers who struggle to keep pace with the charging, post-punk smash being laid down around them. If The Strokes all took uppers and Julian Casablancas stayed down on Quaalude level, you’d have something like The Wallies.

These guys keep it to three minutes at a pop, for the most part, with songs like “Subtle Romance” and the wonderfully titled “What I Like About You Is You’re Rock Bottom.” A notable exception is “Wrong Way,” which errs on the side of brevity with a 1:44 running time. You’re going to love them all.

Stumbling upon a great new band is nothing new for regulars of OurStage – there are hidden gems all over the place. When we came across The Hush Sound on the site, we were floored by the joy and originality of their music, and then realized that the name sounded so familiar because they’ve been a successful band for about a decade, having released their first record, So Sudden, in 2005. Yes, we had to look in our own backyard to discover a band we’d been hearing about for years. What can we say, sometimes we’re lazy. (Ok, ok, some of us already knew).

Two more records followed, released in 2006 and 2008 by the famed indie Fueled by Ramen, before the band took a lengthy hiatus. In the last year, they’ve been performing together and recording again. Yesterday, The A.V. Club posted their new track, “Not A Stranger,” and today will see the debut of their new digital 7″, titled “45.” Or is it “Forty-five?” The world may never know. No, that’s not true, the world will find out at noon EST.

Check out this teaser/re-cap clip and then get the new song at noon.

In the past six months, OurStage, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and the OurStage community of fans have given three talented, unsigned artists the incredible, career-changing chance to show what they’ve got by featuring them as the musical guest on Kimmel’s hit late-night show. Now go backstage with the artists in these exclusive clips, as they tell their stories and prepare for their moment in the national television spotlight.

Larry g(EE)

Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown

Eclectic Approach

Tom Scharpling, writer, producer, director, Woolery-taunter, and host of The Best Show on WFMU, is hosting his final #TomThon show tonight as part of the beloved radio station’s fundraising marathon. For those unfamiliar, WFMU is a freeform, listener-supported station out of New Jersey. Their programming is dictated entirely by the DJs (imagine that), resulting in some of the last great radio on American airwaves. And, yes, Scharpling’s show is quite likely the best, featuring great and varied music, as well as some strange and subversive comedy sketches, celeb interviews, live calls, and sometimes all of this at once. It is quite often the funniest thing on radio (sorry Mad Pig in the Morning or Whatever) and tonight the host pulls out all the stops with appearances from Patton Oswalt, John Hodgman, and The New Pornographers‘ AC Newman, plus some amazing, one-of-a-kind, prizes.

This pledge drive will literally determine whether WFMU stays on the air for another year, so if you’ve got it in you, tune in (listen online) and maybe give what you can. 9-midnight. And when you have some time, delve into the incredible archives.

Meanwhile, check out Scharpling’s most recent directorial effort, The Postal Service Auditions: