Featured Artist of the Week: Simon Bish
09/25/2011
-Ron Trembath
Simon Bish’s songs are, to say the least, melodic masterpieces. Lo-fi pop has sprouted up extensively throughout the UK, and Bish is definitely the big man on campus in this field. Once a quasi-punk aficionado with his underground sensation of a group known as Thrilled Skinny, Simon has since settled down (had some kids) and now writes pretty little ditties about love, butterflies, and sipping on the sweet nectar called life.
Featured Artist of the Week: Captain Nowhere
09/19/2011
-Ron Trembath
Captain Nowhere is most likely from another planet. Or at the very least, another time in history. This San Jose, CA based pyschedilic mastermind bends and weaves through the insanity and immortality of open space jams. There couldn’t be a better description of a Captain Nowhere listening experience than how his fabulous, label Idiomism Records (idiomism.com) stated: “Recommended Optimum Listening: Alone, loud, late at night, with a bottle of wine and a smoke”.
Featured Artist of the Week: Wyatt
09/15/2011
-Ron Trembath
Brooklyn based singer/songwriter Maddy Wyatt has been charming the skinny jeans off of folk fans for a while now. She made a great splash back in ’08 with her ode to then presidential candidate Barack Obama entitled “Man For Me (Ode To Barack)”. And the years have truly been nothing but fantastic to her. With what started as a simple progression in her solo career, she managed to spawn the group simply known as Wyatt. With two of her brothers Paul and Alex Wyatt, as well as bassist Zach lane and keyboardist Dana Hayes, Maddy has found her beloved sound transformed into a much fuller and well orchestrated version than she previously knew. And with an EP, full length album, and a Southwest tour under their belts this year alone, the world of upbeat indie folk will soon be turned completely around in a wonderful way for many years to come.
Featured Artist of the Week: The Big I Am
09/09/2011
-Ron Trembath
When a group writes a song that is so damn compelling that you simply must start the song over again upon its completion, you know you have found something worth wild. The Big I Am, a soothing folk pop trio from Liverpool, are most definitely worth wild. These guys are so complex in their simplicity, you just might instantly fall in love. Check out their debut album Collecting Skies released early this year from Folkwit Records.
Featured Artist of the Week: Phil the Tremolo King
-Ron Trembath
09/01/2011
With a voice that is rough, yet as smooth as cigarette smoke in the moonlight, Phil The Tremolo King brings a stripped down sort folk pop that is truly hard to come by these days. His preferred genre of music is truly unknown. In fact, the only real common quality in a Tremolo recording is the stripped down and raw sound he consistently uses in contrast to the squeeky clean and polished high definition sound most artists yearn for. Whether he is pulsating his finger tips to nearly bleeding with a little surf rock dity, or he’s plucking away softly on a folk ditty about trains, he keeps it simple, strong, and utterly fascinating.
Phil has plans to tour the Southwest, from New Orleans to Los Angeles, all on a westbound train. He currently has a Kickstarter campaign running to help support this tour and would greatly appreciate your support. And for a low sum, you can actually pick up Phil’s entire recorded works, which includes 4 amazing albums, and his soon to be released, yet currently untitled, album of train songs. A truly original sound like this is rather hard to come by these days. We should cherish artists like Phil The Tremolo King, and in this case…keep him working!
Our featured artist Phil the Tremolo King has a kickstarter fundraiser going to help him tour the country by train. He needs help getting the funds to go on tour. One of the trains he will be taking the Sunset Limited is under threat of being discontinued, so help him keep trains alive.
-Sergeant Sparrow
Information:
Phil the Tremolo King, New Orleans based singer-songwriter and indie musician, is taking the DIY ethos one step further. Combining practical concerns and ecological considerations, he will be touring the Southwestern US by train in the Fall of ’11.
the ‘Tremolo Train Tour’ will take Phil aboard the Amtrak Sunset Limited from New Orleans to Los Angeles, stopping at cities in between to play shows. Planned stops are San Antonio, Alpine, TX, El Paso, Yuma, Tucson, Palm Springs and LA. The tour will be documented extensively through an interactive blog.
Phil is hoping to use the tour to raise awareness about the benefits of train travel, and specifically about the fate of the Sunset Limited. Unfortunately this historic trainline is under threat of being discontinued. Since Amtrak is federally funded, Congress mandates that any non-profitable trainline is to be cut. However, studies have shown that having the Sunset Limited run daily instead of three times a week could make it one of Amtrak’s most profitable lines.
So, besides CD’s and T-shirts expect to find literature about train travel and the Sunset Limited on Phil’s merchandise table. Entertain and educate is his motto!
Phil has mounted a kickstarter campaign to finance the tour. Pledges are starting to come in and even though the deadline is a little under three weeks away, Phil is confident the project will get funded and the Tremolo Train will roll through Louisiana swampland, Texas hill country, and the enchanting Southwestern desert lands to finally arrive at the City of Angels!
Phil needs to raise $2000 by September 20 and needs your help! Pledges start at $1. A $15 pledge gets you a CD of train songs recorded especially for the tour. Higher pledges get you more music, original artwork, and for a $200 pledge Phil will write you your very own song with title and subject of your choosing!
Help keep the Tremolo Train on track, raise awareness about eco-friendly train travel and save the Sunset Limited!
Phil ‘the Tremolo King’ Vanderyken is a singer-songwriter living in New Orleans. Born and raised in Belgium, he moved to New York in the 90ies to pursue his dream of becoming a professional musician. His latest CD ‘11’ is available from Norman Records (UK) and has received press and airplay in the US, UK and Spain.
