Sound-Raves of the Week - 4/11/2011

Welcome to the new, and hopefully improved "Sound-Raves of the Week" as it moves to my Blog after about eight months as a Facebook "Note".   As you may have read in my Introduction piece last week, I, at the advice of my longtime good friend Trish Szymanski, decided to create a blog.    Another friend, George Nowakowski, who has known me for close to half a century had observed that I was blogging long before the Internet came along.    Elsewhere in this site you will start to see some of my observations of many events past and present, but hopefully each week in this column it's all about the music.

You'll notice a new name for my music column.    Since the start of the year, I've named it "Top 20 of the Week", but there's really a couple things wrong with that.    First of all, that would mean I'm confined to just listing my current 20 favorites; suppose I wanted to list more than that?   I have listed my entire 100 songs from time to time (including this week).    Secondly, just who's top 20 is it?    I'm a big music fan, but of course, I don't have the ultimate word in what's good or not, just my opinion of it.   I'll leave the definitive stuff to the folks at Billboard.    Sound-raves is a play on the name of my blog Scenes n' Soundwaves, while fully focusing on the music.  

In addition to the discussion and listing of my week's favorites, I will try to add some thoughts on the music scene past and present.     Most of the attention is given to new music releases; but as my Facebook friends know, I'm a fan of music going back to the 1960's, and will try to inject some perspective of this in my writings.

All week I was planning on discussing the music scene since the advent of the Seattle grunge scene almost twenty years ago, figuring that a member of the key band from that era Nirvana would have my number one song this week with "Rope".     Little did I know that a young lady from Sussex County that's about to conclude her studies in Nashville, would yet again, hold them off, but yes, Rachel Allyn fights Dave Grohl and the Foos to claim a third week at the top.    Therefore my column this week will be about some new up and coming artists who are local and close to our hearts and ears.  

I'm not sure what else there is to say about Ms. Allyn, just as that "Getting By" has grown on me each week.   This is a song that should be picked up by country radio; it's that professional.    She'll be back home playing the clubs around Lake Hopatcong again, but she'll also be playing some gigs out of state, including the Zep Fest in Washington DC.    I'll keep you more up to date on that.

As you look at my lists, you will of course notice many 'national acts', or those obscure ones that are on the verge of breaking nationally.    But you've also noticed some that you've probably never heard of.    Ms. Allyn, of course leads that list, but moving up to #4 is another such artist, Leila, who hails from Staten Island.    Her style is much like Norah Jones, or Corinne Bailey Rae.   One friend compared her to Sara Barielles.    I even sense a bit of Maria Muldaur (of  1974's "Midnight At the Oasis" fame) in her style.   Despite the different genre, Leila Hegazy, like Rachel Allyn is an aspiring artist who as the potential to go places.   I have yet to meet her (her aunt, Diane Tarantino Hegazy, is a good friend whom I've known since grammar school), but definitely hope catch one of her gigs soon.     Also watch for her sister Omnia, another nucleus of talent, with a much different style from Leila; she expects to release her own EP soon.

There is one band who currently has two songs in my top 30.  No, it's not The Decemberists, or Arcade Fire, but Downtown Crossing, yet another up and coming band.   They're based on Massachusetts and named after the Boston plaza.  My nephew Jimmy Joyce plays bass for this band, and both my wife Barb and I are very proud of him.    The two songs on my list, "Seventy 4" and "The Translation" are essentially demos (available at their website), but you can tell these guys are special.   More mainstream than alternative, they have this "jam band" mentality whose music grows on you the more you hear it.   

Finally, the Top Debut goes to another group of "locals" which I have a connection with.    Dark Sacrament, whose "Realm of Unlight" leads off at #66, is a heavy metal band (or "melodic black metal", as they describe it) based right here in North Jersey.    The music is reflective of Ozzy Osbourne or Rob Zombie, and although those artists are not really my cup of tea (frankly, I'm not sure what is actually 'melodic' about the screaming vocals), I have found myself getting very addictive to this song, thanks to the guitar and bass work.    And it just so happens that those duties are performed by Phil Alessi and Nick Bazaral, who are co-workers of mine in Solix.   "Realm" is the title track to their EP and it available in iTunes, where you will also find Leila's self-titled EP as well as Rachel's Late Night and Early Mornings

The sky's the limit.








This       Last
Week     Week       Artist - Title                                                       Weeks on List

1	1	RACHEL ALLYN "Getting By (AMA Remix)" Album: Late Nights and Early Mornings (3rd Week)	13
2	3	Foo Fighters - Rope	6
3	2	Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks	12
4	5	Leila - Hush Little Baby	8
5	6	Peter Bjorn & John - Second Chance	10
6	8	Mt. Desolation - Bitter Pill	9
7	4	Adele - Rolling In the Deep	18
8	10	Kings of Leon - Pyro	11
9	7	Cold War Kids - Louder Than Ever	14
10	13	Ra Ra Riot - Too Dramatic	10
11	9	The Decemberists - This Is Why We Fight	11
12	11	Two Door Cinema Club - What You Know	10
13	16	Colbie Cailat - I Do	9
14	17	Yuck - Get Away	8
15	21	TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK THE VACCINES "Post Break-Up Sex" Album: What Did You Expect from the Vaccines	5
16	12	The Airborne Toxic Event - Changing	11
17	19	The Holidays - Moonlight Hours	12
18	20	Jack Johnson - From the Clouds	9
19	26	Sleigh Bells - Rill Rill	8
20	15	The Strokes - Undercover of Darkness	9

21	25	Acrylics - Sparrow Song	7
22	14	The Black Keys - Howlin' For You	15
23	24	Downtown Crossing - Translation	11
24	18	Jenny and Johnny - Big Wave	15
25	30	Tamar Kaprelian - New Day	6
26	32	Lucinda Williams - Buttercup	8
27	56	Florence + the Machine - Dog Days are Over	6
28	27	Fitz and the Tantrums - Money Grabber	19
29	29	Goo Goo Dolls- Notbroken	17
30	41	Downtown Crossing - Seventy 4	8
31	28	Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues	10
32	34	Helvetia - Arise Pt 1	6
33	49	The Cars - Sad Song	3
34	31	Lady Gaga - Born This Way	8
35	22	Weezer - Hang On	9
36	42	Dropkick Murphys - Memorial Day	7
37	38	James Blunt - Stay the Night	7
38	43	Iron & Wine - Tree By the River	12
39	36	Arcade Fire - City With No Children	7
40	23	Deerhunter - Revival	15
41	58	TV On the Radio - Will Do	4
42	64	Devotchka - 100 Other Lovers	5
43	37	The Decemberists - Down By the Water	23
44	83	PRIME MOVER OF THE WEEK   THE RAVEONETTES "Recharge and Revolt" Album: Raven in the Grave	2
45	33	Plan B- Stay Too Long	15
46	44	Twin Tigers - Everyday	11
47	48	Cake - Mustache Man (Wasted)	5
48	52	Cee Lo Green - F*** You (Forget You )	24
49	62	The Band Perry - You Lie	5
50	53	Twilight Singers - On the Cofrner	10
51	45	Michael Franti & Spearhead - Hey Hey Hey	18
52	40	Portugal the Man - People Say	19
53	51	Katy Perry - Firework	21
54	60	Marianas Trench - Good To You	10
55	73	Company of Thieves - Death of Communications	3
56	54	Scars on 45 - Give Me Something	8
57	55	Deluka - OMFG	10
58	66	Lee DeWyze - Beautiful Like You	4
59	72	Rihanna - S&M	3
60	70	He Is We - Happily Ever After	4
61	78	Michael Franti & Spearhead - I'll Be Waiting	3
62	57	Flogging Molly - Don't Shut 'Em Down	10
63	71	The Sounds - Something to Die For	3
64	35	Bad Books - Please Move	17
65	61	Phoenix - Armistice	6
66	-----	TOP DEBUT:   DARK SACRAMENT "Realm of Unlight" Album: Realm of Unlight (EP)	1
67	67	Anberlin - Closer	5
68	69	Mike Posner - Bow Chicka Wow Wow	5
69	-----	Dom - Living In America	1
70	39	The Drums - Me & the Moon	10
71	65	3 Doors Down - When You're Young	9
72	75	G. Love - Fixin' To Die	6
73	47	Zac Brown Band - Colder Weather	11
74	82	Black Eyed Peas - Just Can't Get Enough	4
75	76	Lifehouse - Fallin' In	5
76	85	Chk Chik Chick - Wannagain Wannagain	3
77	89	Superhumanoids - Malta	3
78	46	KT Tunstall - Come On Get In	13
79	91	The Beets - Dead	2
80	50	Arcade Fire - We Used to Wait	16
81	81	Richard Ashcroft - Are You Ready	4
82	-----	My Chemical Romance - Bulletproof Heart	1
83	63	Stone Temple Pilots - Cinnamon	15
84	88	The Kills - Satellite	4
85	59	Awolnation - Sail	9
86	77	Avi Buffalo - What's In It For	31
87	-----	Duran Duran - All You Need Is Now	1
88	95	Freelance Whales - Hannah	2
89	100	Alexander - Truth	2
90	-----	Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi-Two Against One	1
91	93	Johnny Flynn - Kentucky Pill	5
92	97	One Republic - Good Life	2
93	98	Los Lonely Boys - Fly Away	3
94	-----	Death Cab for Cutie - You are A Tourist	1
95	-----	Ben Harper - Rock n' Roll is Free	1
96	-----	Telekinesis - Please Ask for Help	1
97	92	Dan Mangan - Road Regrets	6
98	99	Funeral Party - Finale	2
99	-----	Dinosaur Pile-Up - Mona Lisa	1
100	68	R.E.M. - Discoverer	8