It Came From ReverbNation #15: Featuring PJ, Blackfoot Gypsies, Molly Foote, Nate Weiner, The Hawkeyes, and Spoonful of Sugar
From April 4th to June 4th The
Ripple Effect ran a campaign on the excellent online music website ReverbNation
(www.reverbnation.com). This campaign allowed any artist or band
registered with ReverbNation to submit their music to The Ripple Effect for
possible review on the site and airplay on The Ripple Effect radio shows. When all was said and done we had received
4,799 submissions! Incredible! The purpose of this column is to highlight
those artists and bands whose musical submissions I accepted as being worthy of
consideration. While these are not
reviews per se, I’m going to provide a brief rundown of what to expect from
each artist/band, a sample when available, and a link to check out more on
their corresponding ReverbNation page.
PJ – Ah,
yes. The sweet sound of an electric bass
laying down some funk. This gentleman
from Chicago, IL is a very talented bassist whose song submission got my head
bobbing almost instantly. The song has
some wonderful interplay between the bass and horn section to start things
off. Then a rapper enters the mix around
1:30 and the song transforms completely before returning to earlier form about
a minute later. Impressive!
ReverbNation Page – http://www.reverbnation.com/pennalpjjohnson
Song Sample – PJ & Soul Trailer
Blackfoot Gypsies
– Good lord! This dazzling duo out of
Nashville, TN is determined to put the rock back in Southern music. A glorious mash up of vintage country and classic
blues rock with a bunch of added distortion, their song submission nearly
caused me to blow out my computer speakers I liked it so much! Similar artists include The Rolling Stones,
Howlin’ Wolf, and Willie Nelson. You’ve
got to hear this band!
ReverbNation Page – http://www.reverbnation.com/blackfootgypsies
Song Sample – “Don’t Know About You”
Molly Foote – What
we have here is a seductively voiced R&B/soul singer from Portland,
OR. Her song submission is silky smooth
and suitably laid back with only a subtle electric guitar backing up her
singing. Did I mention that I found her
voice to be very agreeable? She clearly
has a significant range and notably she doesn’t utilize annoying vocal runs at
every turn. Take a listen.
ReverbNation Page – http://www.reverbnation.com/mollyfoote
Song Sample – “Valerie”
Nate Weiner – I’ve
got to say this gentleman from Redondo Beach, CA plays some fairly invigorating
folk rock. His song submission easily
got my toe tapping along to its insistent rhythms. I can’t quite express why I find his vocal
performance so interesting, but there is something unique about the way he uses
his deep voice to add an extra layer onto the music. Similar artists include Mason Jennings, Josh
Ritter, and Devendra Banhart. See what
you think waveriders.
ReverbNation Page – http://www.reverbnation.com/nateweiner
Song Sample – “You Were A Child Once”
The Hawkeyes –
My first thought when listening to the song submission from this Pittsburgh, PA
quartet was that this sounded like some lost John Mellencamp song. It sounded great to my ears! Pure Americana rock and roll. Further analysis brought distinct ties with
The Rolling Stones into focus as well.
Similar artists include Drive By Truckers, Neil Young, Lucero, and The
Black Crowes. This is earnest, honest
sounding music. I bet you’ll like what
you hear!
ReverbNation Page – http://www.reverbnation.com/hawkeyes
Song Sample – “Double E”
Spoonful Of Sugar
– Another ear pleasing band coming to us from Australia? That’s right!
This quartet based out of Perth chose quite the appropriate name
considering how sweet their wonderful folk pop song submission sounds. Lovely vocals, elegant instrumentation,
lighthearted atmosphere, this song has it all.
Similar artists include Missy Higgins, Crowded House, and Feist.
ReverbNation Page – http://www.reverbnation.com/spoonfulofsugar
Song Sample – “The Vagrant”
--Penfold
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