Isaiah Breedlove – Existential Ache
Similar artists: John Moreland, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
Genre: Folk Rock, Alt-Country
Jean-Paul Sartre once declined the Nobel Prize for Literature, saying it went against his beliefs to accept such an award. Apparently, no one had informed Monsieur Sartre that it also came with a cash prize. Once he was made aware of this, however, he was back on the phone demanding that he be paid what he was owed. It’s hard to be an existentialist philosopher, and much more so when you also demand to be a poor one.
It’s just as hard to accept all of the things that life cannot offer and maintain a sense of humour about it all or about yourself. And, surely, the hardest of them all is to maintain a nihilistic view of everything while managing to get on with business and bringing your A-game. Friedrich Nietzsche is supposed to have fallen ill after seeing a wounded horse and being compelled to hug the animal and scream, “I understand you!”
Being a nihilist isn’t a lot of fun unless you have a great sense of humour and a way to use both those two things. Fortunately, Isaiah Breedlove is blessed with both a desire to laugh and cry about it all. That’s captured beautifully in “Existential Ache,” the kind of blues-rock tune that many masters of the genre wish they could’ve written but never got close to touching. It’s a great poem whose blues groove keeps you coming back to it again and again.
GLIMTVIS – Hurricane Wall
Similar artists: Snow Patrol, Sheryl Crow, The Picturebooks, The Common Linnets
Genre: Americana, Alt Country, Indie Rock
There is just enough of your favourite music out there, and that’s why you keep searching. No, no, that’s not to say that songwriters and musicians are not trying. Whatever genre that you are fixated on, there’ll always be plenty of music for you to sample. And, sure, there’ll always be fresh talent. However, managing to find the right balance between all the elements that go into this is no easy feat.
Once you get beyond the hype, there’s just something about most of the multi-platinum album juggernauts of old. Whether it is “Tuesday Night Music Club,” “Rumours”, or “Jagged Little Pill” (ok, maybe not that one), those collections of songs achieved that harmony between instantly catchy songs and the emotional content that keeps audiences coming back for more.
GLIMTVIS’s “Hurricane Wall” is a song that attempts to achieve the same thing that the great country-pop singles of old have managed. It’s easy on the ears and will make the case for liking it within the first few seconds. Still, the duelling vocals are imbued with emotion. The singing calls out directly toward the listeners, asking to be made part of their lives. It’s likely that many will answer affirmatively and find a new musical companion here.
