Johnny Quintero – Can I Tell Her?
Believe it or not, there was a time when some of the world’s best-trained and most successful pop-rock musicians were treated with disdain by music critics. I know that it’s a little late, but I apologise. I hope that you will accept this and that from this moment onward, we can work together to make bands inspired by Toto or Journey receive the praise that they deserve.
But how could this unfair marginalisation have happened? It was a mixture of envy and disdain. It was, likely, the opinions of punk-rockers being spread over to the people who could influence popular opinion. Great studio musicians were destined to achieve success and struggle to explain it.
Johnny Quintero’s “Can I Tell Her?” takes a page right out of the book of sophisticated, slightly saccharine, studio boffins. The delight here comes in witnessing how many complex, musically advanced techniques and elements the group can sneak into something that is, certainly, a catchy pop song. It’s a winner, and these skilled musicians deserve your attention.
Moondrive – Fade by Design
There’s so much beauty in the world that it’s just like your heart is going to blow out or, more likely, that you’ll simply stop caring altogether, what with the overwhelming amount of gorgeous things that you’re encouraged to admire. And, of course, pop music is expected to serve as one of the principal distributors of beauty in the world.
But maybe, just maybe, we’ve had enough. Perhaps we’ve heard all the chords that come together in perfect harmony, and enough gorgeous, perfectly crafted melodies to last us a lifetime. This may be the time to hear sounds that speak to our confusion, and that can map out the weirdness of the modern world.
We may just be ready for Moondrive’s artsy, progressive, sweetly atonal sounds. “Fade by Design” sounds like a soulful pop song that’s been taken over by a composer determined to move everything just a little bit off balance. Can you feel yourself slipping into a dream world where not much makes sense anymore when you hear it? Perfect! That’s how it should begin.
