One of my new year’s resolutions for 2022 is to include a more eclectic collection of music on the blog…but I’ve decided to bring that resolution forward after listening to cutting-edge violinist ASHER LAUB’s single, ‘Dreaming Awake.’
The single showcases the very reason why Asher has generated way over 1.2 million streams across various platforms. The pop/dance backdrop serves as the perfect stage for Asher to create an instantly euphoric feeling with his fleeting fiddle.
Released on October 14, this original song suggests a different way of looking at the world. It is also accompanied by a great music video now available on YouTube – https://youtu.be/voexbyDw19M
Asher Laub started his musical journey at the very young age of 2. Expert in trans-genre improvisation, his skills have led him to venues like Lincoln Center and Madison Square Garden. He has also been featured on major news sources such as NBC, WABC, and CNN.
‘Dreaming Awake’ is now available across various music platforms…Go on, have a listen!
With expertly tracked instrumentals fusing with precisely programmed synthesizers to meet in the dark, award-winning Canadian artist MICHELLE RASKY‘s single creates a substantial electro dance-pop single in ‘Dancing on My Own’
The Folk Music Ontario Songwriter of the Year award-winner’s newest genre-bending release explores how Rasky finds solace in her musical compositions the same way she’s found solace in dancing — especially throughout the recent string of unforeseen worldly events.
“One of the things that’s helped me feel positive and grounded over the past year has been throwing on music, and just dancing by myself,” the Ontario-based multi-talented artist shares. “Losing ourselves in song and movement can be so uplifting… It’s this beautiful form of self-expression and a way to be present –– to enjoy the feeling of being alive and connected.I really wanted to bring that kind of energy into this song.”
With an array of talent at her disposal — from multi-instrumental abilities to her production experience — Michelle Rasky has been on a lifelong journey with music; “I grew up in a musical household and started playing piano when I was three years old,” Rasky recalls. “I was always passionate about a wide variety of music, and I think my love and respect for so many different artists continue to shape my approach to writing and producing.”
Along the way, the Toronto-born artist has found a knack for blending genres to create her unique organic-hybrid-pop sound that fans have come to know and love. While her earlier works are inspired by Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, and other artists of the like, she reveals she has been on a journey recently…
While Rasky has long been developing her sound since first stepping onto the scene, her newest venture into the electro-pop dance scene feels fine-tuned and proficient. Focused on expanding her musical exploration, the dynamic artist has gravitated towards incorporating ambient textures, synthesizers, and programmed beats, ultimately finding a way to merge her deep love of electronic music into her expansive scope of work.
Rasky recorded ‘Dancing on My Own’ in her home, giving the unique production another level of heart and soul. Handling vocals, instrumentation, and production, this adept guitar, and piano performer put together a profound electronic-leaning single for the masses to dance to.
‘Dancing on My Own’ is available now…Why not check out the video for the single below…
Following his indefinite break from music and social media over the summer, UK cloud rap artist, producer NTHN returns with single, ‘REINTRODUCTION’, an announcement of his continuation with music and a recount of his journey so far as an artist.
Delivered as spoken word over a haunting, hazy instrumental, he describes his experiences through a stream-of-consciousness approach, directly addressing the listener. In this intimate monologue, NTHN references his previous releases and describes why he continues to create after nearly giving up on music, detailing his struggles with mental health and as an independent artist in a highly competitive industry. The accompanying video shows the artist in silhouette in his home studio where he wrote and recorded his previous project, Skylight EP.
NTHN – also a member of independent collective eighteenSAINT, founded with close friends Fletcher, James & Teorstan – followed up ‘REINTRODUCTION’ with ‘Apologies’, a Dark R&B/Cloud Rap crossover, exploring feelings of unnecessary self-blame and the journey to overcome them.
After watching The Grammys in 2020, TARAH WHO? noticed the presence of rock acts, particularly female-fronted rock bands, were non-existent, and this weighed heavy on her mind for some time.
Tarah Who? was gobsmacked when she listened to some of the rock band’s views of the changes in the current music industry. This is when Tarah Who? reached boiling point and couldn’t sit on the issue anymore – so she took action.
The result is her upcoming single, ‘Push Me’, which she wrote with YUR MUM, who is also featured in the production. Using her unorthodox and non-conformist style and in-your-face, raw lyrics, Tarah Who? uses this single to call out the music industry by speaking up for the mispresented – rock acts, female-fronted rock bands, and independent musicians who work around the clock to get their music some attention.
A plea to the music industry, Tarah Who? hopes their upcoming single will shake up the misrepresentation within the scene, so rock bands, female-fronted rock bands, and struggling independent and unsigned artists can get fair attention from prospective fans- and also make it to the Grammys!
‘Push Me’ is slated for release next Friday (17th December) on various digital music platforms – so please look out for that. But for now, get a taste of Tarah Who?’s previous releases below…
Following the release of his last single, the soulful and aspirational ‘Up & Up (Heavens Above)’, which was supported by the likes of Capital Xtra, KISS FM, Amazing Radio, No Signal, Wordplay Magazine and GUAP Magazine, among others, British rap artist and producer AKS aka the “three letter man” is back with an introspective and deeply personal new single titled ‘PARITY’, as he continues to tease towards his long-awaited third EP As Plane As Day: Departures & Arrivals, which will conclude the South London wordsmith’s long-running ‘Modes of Transport’ EP series.
Produced by AKS himself, under the veiled moniker #3Letters, with live instrumentation from guitarist Adrian Remedy (Ed Sheeran), bass player Benjamin Muralt (Ledisi, Ill Camille, Pixie Lott) and keyboardist Charlie Stacey (Yussef Dayes), ‘Parity’ is a rich and textured rap track, layered with lush synth keys, glorious melodies and vibrant guitar licks, over which AKS wears his heart on his sleeves in truly captivating fashion. Switching up his rap flow into a bouncy melodic quickfire rhyme iteration that captures your attention, AKS speaks honestly to the pressures and aspirations of a black father.
Speaking about the inspiration behind ‘Parity’, AKS says, “The song is about purpose really. The notion that we do the best we can for our kids so that their starting point in life is beyond where ours was. I’m sure that was also our parent’s aim, and in that from generation to generation, there’s a sense of commonality in that. Parity. I wanted to explore generational differences – both the things that separate us from the generations that came before us, and those points of commonality that unite us. Like, wanting the best for your kids is universal right?”
Unpacking the record further, AKS adds that ‘Parity’ was “born out of conversations I was having with other parents about the hopes and dreams that they had for their kids and the struggles they had with their own parents. More and more, I realised that many of the choices that we’re making as parents are the same choices that our own parents were faced with, and try as we might to step with our best foot forward and usher in a world that we’d be happy for our children to inherit, some of those aspirations don’t come to fruition. We’re all learning on the job. Still, we pour out our best for them”.
Heralded as one of the finest lyricists in the UK by the likes of Hypebeast and Okayplayer, with co-signs from Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Jay-Z collaborator Young Guru, AKS has always had a real sense of palpable excitement around his music from fans and critics alike. While his last EP Train Of Thought earned him two nominations at the inaugural Unsigned Music Awards, and his last single ‘Up & Up’ was championed by DJ Semtex at Capital Xtra and KISS FM’s Ellie Prohan, the South London native is excited for what’s to come as he gears up to close out his ‘Mode Of Transport’ series in 2022.
New Lease Music 