Newfound Loves

Recently I have come across a few up-and-coming artists that are to die for. The first was Andrew Hozier-Byrne known as Hozier, who I first encountered when Ed Sheeran covered his most popular song "Take Me To Church" in BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge in late September. His self-titled Debut album then released on October 7th. I bought his album immediately was hooked. His unique voice and folk sound landed his album at the top of my playlist. Hozier then performed on Saturday Night Live and his incredible talent was shared with millions of viewers. Some of my favorites from that album are "Work Song" and "Someone New". I see a bright future for Hozier. 

The next artist I encountered was Jesse Ware, who I found on twitter. Her first single off of this album " Say You Love Me" was such a beautiful song, I was immediately drawn to her soothing vocals and lyrics. Ware's harmonies with friend and colleague Ed Sheeran in the single brought this song to its full potential. Her album entitled "Tough Love" Released on October 13. Some of my favorites from Ware's album are "Say You Love Me" and the title track "Tough Love". Jessie Ware is definitely one to look into. 

Next Was James Bay, who I encountered while listening to BBC Radio 1's Breakfast show one morning. The song was "Let it Go" and I instantly fell in love with his acoustic sound. He later performed at Burberry's Show during London Fashion Week. After hearing his performance I was intrigued by his talent. Although Bay has not released a full album I am excited to see what he has to come. 

Finally I discovered Callum Burrows or more commonly known Saint Raymond, who sent me his EP entitled "The Introduction" for free in an email. I had seen the name come up a few times but hadn't looked into him much. After listening to the whole EP I was pleasantly surprised as to how much I enjoyed it. He captured an Alternative sound with what I would label as reggae style. I love the upbeat nature of "Brighter Days" and "Thread" but Raymond also grabbed my attention with the ballad "I Want You". Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the EP as a whole and I can't wait for him to blow up very very soon.

Links to buy the music mentioned are below.

-Tracy

Rant on Taylor Swift

Despite my previous thoughts I was pleasantly surprised with Taylor Swifts new album, 1989. Her previous albums were labeled as Country, even though her songs were pop and far from anything Country. With this album she stopped fooling herself and admitted that this was a pop album. Her previous music was cute and campy and adorable and her songs were catchy. Every album came with a large amount of baggage. There was always some song that was a past boyfriend who had broken her heart and she was getting back at him. It was a huge scandal in the tabloids and created unnecessary drama that kept her name in the press. With this album no one could talk shit. She took a break from country, boys, and relocated to New York City. This change of pace, in my opinion, has changed her album from just another one of her albums to being a genius piece of art. No one can attack Taylor for only creating songs that stem from past relationships because these songs are not about some heartache she has experienced, they're songs that her demographic can relate to easily. She made a damn good album and she worked so hard to make this the best record she could have made, and seeing as it sold 600,000 copies in 24 hours, I can assure you it's paying off. There is no one in the music industry currently who can do what she does, she is making more money than you could imagine and remains humble and grounded. She doesn't flaunt her wealth and fortune and continues to stay detaches from the vortex that is Hollywood. She is literally shitting on everyone in the music industry and this is just the beginning. Now the press has no reason to overlook her music for her promiscuous behavior and has to now fully evaluate her true talent. 

-Tracy