William Russell Wallace – “Just a Little Joy (But It’s a Real Big Deal)”
Genre: Indie Folk, Americana, Indie Rock
The human voice is not always a responsive instrument. Unlike a guitar, it can’t be tuned on command under any circumstances. Unlike the drums, perfect timing isn’t enough to make people believe that a performance was a success. Plus, the voice tends to break down more easily than any of those instruments.
Yet, the human is also a wholly unique instrument. It doesn’t come off the assembly line sounding like all the other versions that the company put together and sold. This is the reason why, despite finding the right formula to potentially reach millions of people, the pop-folk groups that have been scoring advertisements left and right in recent years, sometimes end up sounding phony to a lot of people.
It’s that damn human voice that gives them away. In the case of William Russell Wallace, however, it helps write an entire biography before you’ve had a chance to hear a chorus. Just a Little Joy (But It’s a Real Big Deal) might be a meat and potatoes folk song, but it’s driven by one of the most exuberant vocal performances you’re likely to hear in a while.
aaron joseph russo – N Seoul Tower
Genre: Bedroom / Lo-fi Pop, Psychedelic Rock, Lo-fi Rock
It seems to be our destiny that we should always strive to find a balance between venturing into the unknown and taking comfort in pleasant company with which we are accustomed. Neither one can ensure progress on their own. On their own, neither one can truly make us satisfied.
It’s often said that most music listeners end their search for sound once they’ve finished with their adolescence. The songs they’ll listen to from then onward will be the ones with which they grew up. While this is understandable, it’s also worrying. Ideally, the best kind of music manages to find a middle ground between what is surprising and what is to be expected.
Aaron Joseph Russo’s N Seoul Tower manages to keep one leg in each world. This is pop music for sure, but made by whom? An alien from another world, perhaps? An art-rocker experimenting with sound? These are questions left unanswered, naturally, but they take little away from how enjoyable this song is.
