All the Latest Music News on Nagamag

Authenticity & Consistency, two key words that immediately come to mind when we’re talking about Loxy and Ink.
As music and creative culture at large hurtles towards an abyss of ‘likes’ as currency and vacuous validity, the job of musicians who stand for authenticity and consistency has become ever more important and it is at this juncture where Loxy and Ink become indispensable.

Two titans in UK breakbeat culture, Loxy & Ink were both present at the inception at the birth of UK dance music culture and continue to be torchbearers. One glance at the CV of both artists will show you everything you need to know. They were both residents & recording artists at three incredibly important clubs & record labels: Metalheadz at Blue Note, Speed at Mars Bar and Renegade Hardware at The End. These three clubs and associated labels are important to mention as they innovated, pushed and later came to define drum & bass culture. Loxy and Ink were, in part, responsible for that.
It’s not an accident that Loxy and Ink were linked to these behemoths. Between the aforementioned camps and our protagonists, there was a mutual understanding for the need to push the envelope and there was a shared love of reinterpreting musical genres- a free form approach to music that changed the landscape of what is possible creatively, Loxy & Ink have always implicitly understood this way of thinking and have exercised this thought process to this day via their own record labels, Cylon (Loxy) and Architecture (Ink).

Throughout their careers, as collaborators and individuals, Loxy & Ink continued to make and play music that connected with them on a deeper level rather than just for the sake of functionality, they both saw success as rappers and individually played and made music that stretched from dub techno to hip hop to house.
The journey outlined above, the understanding of cultural innovation and the pledge to authenticity & consistency as mentioned leads us to the Manifested Visions EP on R&S Records. A five-track release that traverses genres with ease, a release that speaks to Loxy & Ink’s love for collaboration- we’re presented with multiple vocal contributions from Tha Lion, Jody Lulati, Miriam Safo and Loxy & Ink themselves. Finnish producer Resound continues his long-standing production partnership with Loxy on ‘Give Me a Dubplate’. Genre wise we’re given hip hop, dubwise roots reggae and drum & bass.
R&S continues to show that it’s a force to be reckoned with by releasing this EP, a project that crosses countries as well as genres, a project from Loxy and Ink that feels like it was always going to come to pass since the pair found common ground way back when.

After considering all of this, it comes as no surprise that the EP is titled ‘Manifested Visions.’

ALL SOCIAL MEDIA / WEB LINKS

Loxy
Instagram = https://www.instagram.com/loxycylon
Soundcloud = https://soundcloud.com/loxy_x
Twitter = https://twitter.com/Loxycylon
Facebook = https://www.facebook.com/LoxyUK
Spotify = https://open.spotify.com/artist/5Cs0SJYrr8XUtlZWtkoian
Youtube = https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnGopWKdIMVEBhtBkU4QQig

Ink
Instagram = https://www.instagram.com/architexink
Soundcloud = https://soundcloud.com/architexink
Twitter = https://twitter.com/DJINKARX
Facebook = https://www.facebook.com/architexink
Spotify = https://open.spotify.com/artist/37JsC7B8cn5BkNzFrV9Px4
Youtube = https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnxTsKybaKWNACSViRR7t5Q

Australian expatriate singer-songwriter Larissa Tandy now calls Vancouver home and after moving to the city 6 years ago, she tuned in to the sounds of her new neighbourhood to write her new single ‘Sirens’,which is out today on all digital streaming platforms.

“I wrote ‘Sirens’ while living on the Downtown Eastside during the opioid crisis with sirens constantly blaring around me,” says Larissa. “It’s in the key of E, which kinda works for most sirens in Vancouver and makes them a kind of background harmony. I started writing a lot about emergencies, drawing on my experiences with them back in my hometown in Australia. It has a population of 600 or so, a rural environment, so there’s a lot of what I think of as ‘natural drama’. As in, nobody seems to die peacefully in their sleep. It’s always some tragic, violent accident, or people just head out to work one day and don’t come home at night.”

‘Sirens’ is the first in a series of singles set for release in 2021, recorded during an extended stint of living and working in Nashville: “I recorded these songs at my friend’s studio, and we pulled the session together in less than 24 hours,” says Larissa. “I just wanted to get good, vibey players in a room together, and especially wanted a bass player and drummer who work together a lot, so we invited the Jons (Estes and Radford), then tapped Dan Knobler and Ryan Brewer for guitars and keys. We tracked the songs pretty much live.”

The following day, Tandy drove to Memphis and recorded Motown legend, Jack Ashford (Funk Brothers, Marvin Gaye), adding his iconic tambourine sound to the songs.

From her humble beginnings in rural Australia, raising herself on stolen Aretha and Patti Smith records, Larissa has mined her difficult life for potent stories and spun them into songs that made their way onto radio in America, the UK, and Canada where the CBC ordained them as “songs you need to hear”. Within a few short years, she has doggedly beat a path for herself, touring relentlessly across Canada, Australia, and the US, and playing official showcases at Kansas City’s Folk Alliance, and Nashville’s Americanafest.

Larissa’s debut album, The Grip, was released in 2017 and spent 4 months on the US Americana charts, reached #2 on the Canadian college radio chart, and attracted praise from almost every corner of the globe. Awards followed, namely the prestigious Nashville Songwriter Residency, which she used to carve out a place for herself in Nashville’s competitive writing scene. Tapped by artists for her tough affect and muscular writing, she jagged a number of cuts in her first year in the game, which secured chart positions in Australia and the UK.

Larissa Tandy’s new single ‘Sirens’ is available now on Spotify, Apple Music/iTunes, and other digital retailers and streaming services worldwide. For more info, please visit https://www.larissatandy.com/

https://www.instagram.com/larissatandy/
https://www.facebook.com/larissatandyofficial
https://twitter.com/larissatandy

https://www.instagram.com/jaymarwaha/

Free of Inhibition is explosion of funk sounds and empowering writing, released by RTGAM.

https://saah.lnk.to/WeAreLikeStars

https://www.bigfeetrecords.com/

Becoming Young’s Brandon Calano grows wiser on exhilarating, epiphanic, and episodic pop album, The Songs I Wrote You

The popular saying goes: People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. There are also those people who saunter into your life for one night, but you spend a lifetime reeling from the connection. For award-winning pop artist Becoming Young (Brandon Calano), one crisp and cool summer Colorado night he met someone who seismically shifted his superficial bro-ish trajectory. The fallout from this millennial fairytale of emotionally reckless romance became his sophomore album, The Songs I Wrote You.

“All of the songs are letters to ‘her.’ The record follows a jovial, funny, turbulent, draining, haunting, and, ultimately, hopeful story about two people who never should have met, but ended up in love,” the Nashville-based artist says with a good-natured laugh.

The eight-song collection was written as the captivating drama played out. The Brandon of the album opener, “Reverie,” isn’t the same Brandon as the closer, “Stand Down.” “I could never have imagined or planned the twists and turns this album takes. It’s one hell of an emotional roller-coaster,” he says.

The listener savoring the salacious saga from the sidelines can immerse themselves in the excitement via the record’s experiential episodic release schedule as a series of singles that begin releasing in January 2021. These one-song installments boast liner notes on the cover artwork—seemingly, the first of its kind—revealing the story behind each song’s lyrics and how every track fits within the overarching narrative arc.

Parallel to chronicling a period of intense growth and introspection, this body of work also marks artistic maturation. This is the album where Brandon defined the Becoming Young aesthetic. It’s a vibe best described as the feel-good folk-pop of Vance Joy and the dark grandeur of Dermot Kennedy, injected with the euphoric pop sensibility of Lauv and the fiery emotionality of Matt Maeson.

Brandon worked with three different producers on The Songs I Wrote You, including Ryan Hadlock (Lumineers, Vance Joy), Austin Shawn (Sony/BMG), and producer John McVey (Yonder Mountain String Band). In addition, Brandon co-produced and produced some of the tracks himself. The Songs I Wrote You was mixed by John O'Mahony (Matt Maeson, Coldplay).

The story goes that in the summer of 2018, at the apex of Brandon’s Feeling Single fury, he threw a welcome-home party for a close friend. She brought along a mysterious and intriguing girl. The new pair didn’t hit it off at the party, but spurred on by alcohol and late-night antics, they kissed in the backseat of their mutual friend’s car.

It was a blurry opening salvo, but the duo clarified their connection the following week with a proper date. The romantic reconnaissance was a success, and Brandon subsequently wrote the folk-pop gem “Reverie.” With emotive keyboard atmospherics, stately string touches, and back-porch acoustic guitar strums, Brandon sings, bursting with joy. One choice redemptive romantic passage is: But I saw the light in her face, the love in her heart and the way she made/One of my darkest days turn to a memory of grace as she kissed me and said, Boy I think you'll be okay.

The drama begins on the second song, “No Strings Attached,” where the weary and reluctant twosome decide to redirect their connection to something of a casual encounter. The song’s chill verses are offset by explosive choruses, reflecting the pent-up energy from sublimating feelings. On the haunting emotional centerpiece, “Addicted,” he shares his forbidden love struggle with rich and sensual low-register vocals. On the very next song, “Silent Words,” Brandon has a powerful moment of clarity, realizing he’s in too deep.

The record concludes with “Stand Down,” a poetic and courageously vulnerable pop track that manages to be moody and anthemic, without being sappy. During the song’s bridge, Brandon sings: Say it now, say it now, won’t you let in, let me in/Say it now, say something now, won’t let in, let me in. Here, he’s at the gates of her heart, boldly confessing his feelings. The camera pans out, and credits roll. We don’t know if there is a happily-ever after resolution, and it’s a little maddening. When prodded, Brandon candidly shared: “I’m already writing the aftermath record. I can’t reveal the title as it gives away the cliffhanger that comes at the end of TSIWY.”

https://becomingyoung.band/
https://www.instagram.com/becomingyoung

Lie Awake is the debut solo release of singer-songwriter Hilary Watson, also known as vocalist/guitarist of the duo, Hilary and Kate. Aretha meets Patsy Cline in her sassy, powerhouse roots sound. Recorded at Laurel Lane Studios in San Luis Obispo with Damon Castillo and featuring The Rainbow Girls on background vocals. More tracks and videos at HilaryWatsonMusic.com

https://www.facebook.com/hilwatson
https://www.instagram.com/hilarywatsonmusic/

Bursting back onto the scene in 2021 with an exquisitely addictive new single that expertly combines his empowered attitude, bold lyricism, and stunning vocals with an immaculately bright, catchy sound, Rushil is set to take over playlists worldwide with the release of his latest single ‘Hold This’ featuring Abi Sampa. Having recently signed a sync deal with Coca Cola Pakistan and featured on Nitin Sawhney’s new record, Rushil’s new single is as shocking as it is soulful; he’s never been one to hold back when it comes to his music, and ‘Hold This’ reveals the confident performer he’s become over the years.

It’s hard to place Rushil into a box. The London-based singer’s ability to sew subtle strands of his Indian heritage into the melancholic sincerity of his songwriting has set him apart and placed him in an entirely new category of writers.

After spending his early years in India, Rushil grew up in Cyprus where he signed his first record deal at 16. He then went on to study at the University of Oxford which is where he first encountered Indian Classical Music. It was here that Rushil began seeking a sound that could embrace the entirety of his heritage. Drawing on influences such as Bon Iver and Damien Rice, Rushil sought to expand upon their styles by including elements of Indian Classical and Sufi instrumentation.

https://www.instagram.com/rushilmusic/

Focus track of Matthias Gusset's album 'Inbetween Birdsongs'.

https://www.instagram.com/matthiasgusset

Matthias Gusset composes and interprets neo to post classical piano music. With its fine melodies, soft harmonies and clear structures one can hear a resemblance to minimal music and film score.

Luke Kohen has given us a wonderful gift to start out 2021 right.

His new single “This day was made for you” is for sure to become an anthem for thousands of entrepreneurs, artists and go-getters out there.

This is a “Crush your day” so you can crush your year kind of song.

Luke Kohen has a mastery in bringing super positive energy and messaging without being cliche, preachy or cheesy.

This neo-soul hip-hop fusion integrates smooth hooks, a dope beat, harmonies and raps that uplift your spirits. It will smooth out the wrinkles of 2020 and get your in the mood to rock your purpose.

Seriously. This song is the equivelent of benevolent bulletproof coffee mixed with tonic herbs for those dedicated to their mission.

Give yourself this gift. Start you day with this one.

https://www.instagram.com/lukekohen/
https://lukekohen.com/