AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: ALBERT CASTIGLIA/UP ALL NIGHT

While he may be classified as a Blues artist, Albert Castiglia will certainly appeal to more than just that genre’s enthusiasts. Fans of Alt-Country, Roots Rock and Americana will most certainly fall under the spell of Castiglia and his 2017 album UP ALL NIGHT, which hits stores on October 6. His name may not be familiar to some but he’s been raising the roof since 1990 when he joined Miami Blues Authority. Discovered six years later by Blues legend Junior Wells, Albert became his sideman until Wells’ death in 1998. Working as a sideman for a variety of other artists, Castiglia didn’t step into the solo spotlight until he released his debut album in 2004.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: ZARA McFARLANE/ARISE

British Jazz/Soul vocalist and songwriter Zara McFarlane returns to the scene with her third album, ARISE, the follow-up to her 2014 album IF YOU KNEW HER. Like her first two albums, ARISE is available on the beloved Brownswood Recordings label. Brownswood was founded by Gilles Peterson, the respected French-born British DJ who was also responsible for the Acid Jazz and Talkin’ Loud labels. Anyone familiar with Brownswood’s eclectic roster and Zara’s first two albums will already know that she is a musical force to be reckoned with and that ARISE does not disappoint on any level.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: JON LANGFORD/FOUR LOST SOULS

Jon Langford is a rarity in the music business. I can’t think of another artist that can be called a pioneer of British Post-Punk (with The Mekons and The Three Johns) AND a beloved Americana singer/songwriter. But don’t misunderstand the man: this is NOT a case of an artist changing musical styles to chase fame and fortune! In fact, one can find traces of the American musical landscape in the early Mekons releases although they are buried amongst the many shadows that the band were prone to throw during their inspiring career. Over the years, Langford traveled many different musical roads, all of which lead to the glory that is FOUR LOST SOULS.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: BRUCE COCKBURN/BONE ON BONE

BONE ON BONE is the highly anticipated 2017 album from Canadian singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn. The album is his first in six years and is the follow-up to 2011’s SMALL SOURCE OF COMFORT. His 25^th studio album overall, BONE ON BONE finds Bruce Cockburn at ease as a musician but ill at ease with the world. For those familiar with Cockburn’s work over the years, this may seem like nothing new. However, BONE ON BONE finds Bruce at the top of his game. And for an artist that has been releasing albums for nearly 50 years, this is quite a feat. Mixing Folk and Blues, the album is warm, intimate and filled with songs that are destined to become Cockburn classics. Amongst the Folk Blues stomp of songs like “States I’m In” (the first single) and “Café Society” is “Forty Years In The Wilderness”, one of the loveliest songs he’s ever written.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: CHARLIE PARR/DOG

Singer/songwriter Charlie Parr has returned with an album that mixes his Folk roots with plenty of heart and soul. Although he may sometimes write as an observer, his songs put him square in the eye of the storm. Parr writes songs that are extremely personal yet universal at the same time. Listening to DOG, you’ll stumble across people that you feel that you already know, places that you are sure you’ve been and feelings that you most definitely have experienced. This is a world where both feet are firmly planted on the ground. You can feel the heat of the sun and smell the beer-soaked floorboards. This is an album that pulls no punches. Life is hard and then you die but in between, there is light in the darkness. However, that light may be only fleeting at times. But that is understandable because Charlie experienced some truly dark moments before making the album.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: SHEILA E / ICONIC: MESSAGE 4 AMERICA

SHEILA E. may have become a household name thanks to her work in the mid-‘80s with Prince but she was – and is – much more than that! The daughter of iconic percussionist Pete Escovedo, she began her career in the mid-1970s as a percussionist and singer for The George Duke Band. After leaving the group in 1983, Sheila began a successful solo career that started with her critically acclaimed 1984 debut album The Glamorous Life. More than just a Prince-groomed diva, Sheila E. has continued to amaze and delight her fanbase with albums that blend a potpourri of styles into something that can only be described as ‘the Sheila E. sound’. This multi-talented musician – often referred to as The Queen of Percussion – is back with one of the most important albums of her career- ICONIC: MESSAGE 4 AMERICA.

LINDSEY STIRLING’s Brave Enough is available NOW!

LINDSEY STIRLING

BRAVE ENOUGH

8.19.16

This highly anticipated release features a number of high profile collaborations including Christina Perri, Dan + Shay, ZZ Ward, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Rivers Cuomo, Grammy Award winning hip-hop artist Lecray, and critically acclaimed electronic musicians/producers Zedd and Robert DeLong.

Blending electronic music with a diverse number of musical genres that include pop, country, rap, alternative and rock, BRAVE ENOUGH displays Stirling’s impressive ability to push her own musical boundaries while continuing to embrace her own unique signature sound.

Lindsey Stirling is an American violinist, dancer, performance artist, singer and composer. She presents choreographed violin performances, both live and in music videos found on her eponymous YouTube channel, which she created in 2007.

Stirling performs a variety of music styles, from classical to pop and rock to electronic dance music. Aside from original work, her discography contains covers of songs by other musicians and various soundtracks. Her music video, “Crystallize” finished as the eighth-most watched video of 2012, and her cover version of “Radioactive” with Pentatonix won Response of the Year in the first YouTube Music Awards in 2013. Stirling achieved one million singles sold worldwide by August 2014. As of July 2016, her Lindseystomp YouTube channel exceeded 8 million subscribers and over a billion total views.

Stirling has been named in Forbes magazine’s 30 Under 30 In Music: The Class Of 2015. Forbes notes her quarter-finalist position on America’s Got Talent season five in 2010, a No. 2 position on the Billboard 200 for her second album Shatter Me in 2014, and her 8 million subscribers on YouTube.

Stirling’s debut album was nominated for the 2014 Billboard Music Awards for Top Dance/Electronic Albums. Stirling’s second album Shatter Me won the 2015 Billboard Music Awards for Top Dance/Electronic Album. Both albums are now certified GOLD

FISCHER-Z: An EXCLUSIVE Q&A with JOHN WATTS!

John Watts is one of those rare gems in the music business – a singer/songwriter who continues to reinvent himself with each release and yet manages to retain his unique musical vision. Like any good art, his past releases still ‘feel’ contemporary even though they were created at another moment in time. Best of all, his musical output has continued to reach new heights with each album – he’s never released a bad full-length in a nearly forty year career. Whether he is operating under his own name or the Fischer-Z moniker, John Watts is undeniably the most under-rated artist to emerge from the Post-Punk/New Wave era of the late ‘70s.

MAJOR LAZER take their ‘Mission’ to Cuba!

AMPED’s very own MAJOR LAZER were the first major American group to perform in Cuba “since the U.S. eased relations with the Caribbean’s largest island.” This news caps off a successful 12 month period that saw Major Lazer’s “Lean On” become Spotify’s most streamed song of all time!

You can read about this ‘major’ event HERE.

Check out a short clip of the crowed courtesy of the trio’s Facebook page!

Looks like Diplo, Walshy Fire and Jillionaire are living up to the title of their 2015 album, Peace Is The Mission!

Alliance Entertainment Blog

Tag: AMPED