Music Monday: Kris Allen Letting You In Acoustic

Katie June 5, 2017 1 Comments

Faster Shoes (acoustic)
Move (acoustic)
If We Keep Doing Nothing (acoustic)
Venice (acoustic)
Time Will Come (acoustic)

Kris Allen released an acoustic performance EP of some of the tracks from his latest album, Letting You In.  The great thing about Kris is that a lot of his songs are amazing full band but are just on another level acoustic.  The start of this EP, Faster Shoes, has barely any instruments with it and Kris just sounds out of this world on it.  It helps that he did some of my favorite songs on this EP. There’s also a new track – Venice.  Honestly this EP is one of the greatest releases I have heard in a while and if you’re a Kris fan you have to check it out.

Music Monday: Hanson Members Only EP “In Color”

Katie May 29, 2017 0 Comments

1. Somebody That Wants To Love You
2. Ghostwriter
3. Reach Out For My Hand
4. I Don’t Want To Go Home
5. I Lift You Up

One of the perks of heading to Hanson Day Weekend in Tulsa is that you get to pick up your Members Only EP at registration if you have joined/renewed for the year prior to arriving! This year they did 5 streams of the 5 songs on the EP so I had an idea of what to expect, but was a bit surprised with the final versions of some of the songs.

“I Don’t Want To Go Home” is the new Hanson fan anthem and the most popular line – “All my friends are here, I don’t want to go home” even made it on a Hanson symbol pin in the Hanson.net store.

Most of the songs are poppy and upbeat with the exception of “I Lift You Up” which is the one song that I have been skipping. Not because it’s not good, it is, but because it’s hard for me to get through listening to it.  This one is also interesting because some of the background tracks on it are just the guys breathing into an app on their phone – which Isaac held up to the mic during the live performance.

Music Monday: John Mayer The Search for Everything

Katie May 22, 2017 0 Comments

Finally, Finally, Finally! John Mayer released “The Search For Everything” in its entirety on April 14.  I had previously reviewed Wave One and Wave Two – so here I am again with the full on album review.  It was kind of weird to get a “new” album but already be familiar with most of the tracks on it and that made listening to it all together a little bit strange because I felt totally comfortable and familiar with some and then a little bit like “who are you and what are you doing here?” with the rest of the tracks.  So after listening to it a couple of times all together, I listened to the newer tracks on their own to get a better feel for them. I keep going back to the Wave One and Wave Two tracks as favorites though – Love on the weekend, Emoji of a Wave have been on heavy rotation. To a lesser degree, Still Feel Like Your Man.  I do like how it is more of a throwback to my favorite John albums (Paradise Valley at this point I can take or leave, Born and Raised is alright but I prefer the “older” stuff) and that he worked with the same group from Continuum which is my favorite. (Today. I think. Who knows. We’ll see.)  Very much so looking forward to hearing some of these newer tracks in concert in August since he didn’t debut any of them live until the album came out – an idea which I get but was a little annoyed about as well.

Music Monday: Wertz In Progress

Katie May 15, 2017 0 Comments

If you’re a fan of Matt Wertz, you’ll want to check out the “#WertzInProgress” project that he has been doing. Unfortunately I bookmarked a whole bunch and they disappeared on me before I had a chance to listen to them all – but each week he emails unreleased songs, exclusive versions, and untold backstories on some of his favorite tunes.

You can sign up here: http://www.mattwertz.com/wertzinprogress/ and if you reply to the email with your thoughts on the tracks you may just get a personal reply back from Matt!

Music Monday: O-Town After the Lights

Katie May 8, 2017 0 Comments

O-Town has released the first track from their forthcoming 4th album called “After the Lights”.  Those who donated to the band’s kickstarter got to hear the finished product first.  The song is super catchy and a lot of fun and I am looking forward to their new album coming out as well as their new tour promoting it this summer! We’re going to see them – ON A BOAT!  I think the song showcases all of the band members strength’s – Jake and Dan alternating leads, some EME in the background and a rap from Trevor. I’m not sure it gets any better than that.

Music Monday: Ed Sheeran How Would You Feel (Paean)

Katie March 20, 2017 0 Comments

Ed Sheeran released another song recently, this time for his birthday!  One the one hand, I like the slower releases because I can listen to just the one track without having to carve out a lot of free time but on the other then I feel obligated to come up with something to write for each song on its own for a blog post… and sometimes that’s not easy.  And on the other other hand… it gives me more fodder for Music Monday posts 🙂

How Would You Feel is more of a ballad, which if you know me at all are never my favorites. But John Mayer plays on it and… he is always my favorite. So that is a plus.  And it’s just nice to have Ed back again 🙂  I am looking forward to the rest of Divide from Ed, so far I have been liking what I am hearing and hoping that a tour will be making its way to the US in due time as well.

Music Monday: Zac Hanson “Christmas Ball”

Katie December 19, 2016 0 Comments

With news of Hanson’s 2017 Christmas album spreading around the last week or so, I figured it might be appropriate to post about Zac’s latest “Super Digital Pants” song and clear up what’s going on with the Christmas album.  While recording is done – it won’t be released until Fall 2017 (Which is what they had said since they first announced it was coming out) for the 20th anniversary of the release of their first Christmas album, Snowed In.  The working title is “Wintry Mix” and they never intended to call it “ooh Christmas” , but don’t try to tell the media that 😉

In order to tide us over to next year and since they release a new Christmas song almost every year for the past few years Zac wrote and recorded a song called “Christmas Ball” that he released for sale to Hanson.net members only on his “Super Digital Pants” album which is a compilation of random Zac songs.

While the title could go several different ways, it is a cute song about having a ball!

Music Monday: Hanson “Do You Believe In Love”

Katie September 5, 2016 0 Comments

As I’ve mentioned before, Hanson has an EP called “Play” coming out October 10.  If you pre-order the EP on Hanson.net you can get a download of one of the tracks – “Do You Believe In Love”.  The EP is available as a digital download for $7 or if you are a Hanson.net Member, as a part of an LP set paired up with this years Members Only CD, “Loud” (Get it, L. P. Loud. Play)

Play was recorded both in studio and live in Tulsa as a part of Hanson Day weekend so yes I am in the crowd you hear singing at the end (and you can also apparently see me in part of this video as well!)  I am digging the song, although it started out in a stream of them recording Loud as what seemed like more of a Zac piano ballad so it is kind of interesting to see it go from that to a The Darkness / Queen inspired track – one of the fastest tracks they’ve ever recorded.

I am looking forward to hearing the whole EP in October – it includes a track that we didn’t get to participate on called “Freak Out” and based on the clips of the songs in the Hanson.net store, they’re all going to be pretty great and I hope they make it into the setlists down in Disney!

Music Monday: One Direction Drag Me Down

Katie August 17, 2015 0 Comments

I’ve moved on from One Direction quite some time ago (before Zayn left) but figured I’d take a listen to their first single since Zayn left “Drag Me Down”. A few people have said it had a bit of a Hanson sound to it – and I guess I can hear that at certain points but I have to say overall I just didn’t dig it.  With my love for boybands 1D is probably one great song away from dragging me back in (it’s happened before – with BSB – and now I’d probably be out on them again but I’m in a “take whatever 90s/00s boybands I can get until NSYNC decides to reunite” mode) but this is not the one.