New Beginnings By Keith Fiala

 

New Beginnings

By

Keith Fiala

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The smooth refrains of a smooth Jazz album float over my senses and bath my mind with a soothing pastiche of a great vibrancy of colours, textures and rhythms, and I am glad to say that has all been provided by one of the finest trumpet performers in the business in Keith Fiela, and his brand new album New Beginnings.

This is first full album of his own work and it is stunning, a light funky beat can be found on tracks like Hollywood & Vine and Cityscape, both tracks so very redolent of the subject matter and Fiala’s bliss filled trumpet stands supreme on both very sweet offerings, it’s like a monolith of brilliance in a Jazz filled sky of utter quality.

Fiala’s album is packed with sumptuous classy pieces, oozing luxurious textures and tones, just listen to songs like the latest single on She's So Sweet, a rhythmic pastiche of a light funky nature with some purely pristine percussion contained within, and then with a sublime wave of the brass instrument of opulence, we are gifted a welcome moment in a thunderstorm as we walk on the musical road called How Long Can I Wait, the repeating motifs and Fila’s subtle trumpet manifests something very special here indeed.

This is street wise jazz, bathed in the musical bath tub of magnificent vibrational melodies and stylish compositional structures, take in the magic of pieces like Beyond Infinity, a soul driven piece that reminded me of the Isley Brothers when it first opened, but dropped into a fluency so tranquil and cadenced, it is a simple delicacy that is undeniable.

Hats off must go to his band of musical merry men with sterling efforts of grandeur by Johnny Friday on drums, bass from both Tyler Honsel and Lannie Hilboldt, keyboardists Jamie Hilboldt and Arturo Sandoval, and also Dr. Ben Irom, whilst concluding the album we can also give praise to guitarists Marc Lionetti and Ken Berr, who are simply amazing.

The final offering Wits End, has a symbiotic merging of a multi-instrumental nature that is the finest I have heard on any album for many years, it’s a track that crosses genres, and ticks every single musical box along the way, and is utterly delicious whilst doing it

The artist states that this album took 4 years of incredibly hard work and dedication to bring together, and I for one say, Keith it was most certainly worth it brother, New Beginnings is not only a good place to start, it is a superb album, and without doubt the most chilled and fluent compilation of 10 jazz tracks in one place you are ever likely to hear. 

Send Love to Everyone (Heal the Divide) By The Song Gardeners

 

Send Love to Everyone (Heal the Divide)

By

The Song Gardeners

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The Song Gardeners are a prolific band; some may call their music new age, some new age pop, personally I think they are one of the most inventive and artistic bands around in both of those genres, and with this new single Send Love to Everyone (Heal the Divide), they have trod a path that could well take some of us back to the 60’s.

In a world riddled with war, fear, miss information and ignorance, we need an anthem, and I truly believe that this maybe it, as always on this planet it’s a minority that are spoiling the fruits and glory of life for the majority of us, so yes, lets drop the baggage and send love to everyone.

This new single therefore should be a universal panacea to bring a global truism to Gaia, the flow and energy of the song takes us back to the hippy era with some sublime musicianship, and is the closest that The Song Gardeners have thus far got towards a rock song.

Quality performances can be heard on this mantra of peace and love by Zach Gospe (Mary’s Son) with sublime harmonic vocals; Mike Gospe (Mary’s Husband) on Mandolin, James Butler in the rhythm section, and the guitar from David Scheibner was simply lush and so redolent of the subject matter, and the inter changeable magic that both Gospe and Dunn bring to the table on vocals is of the highest order.

I am totally enamoured with this track and I’m going to play the socks off of it, perhaps we need to hire The Song Gardeners to start a global like event in the same way Geldof did with Band Aid, I’d put my hand up right away to sing on the song, and I am sure Chrissie would too, so please make sure you add this song to a playlist of your choice, better still go online and buy it, it is truly awesome, so make Send Love to Everyone (Heal the Divide) by The Song Gardeners a massive global sensation, it certainly deserves it, and the world needs it now more than ever, this creation needs to be a viral sensation today!

Blue Chill By Douglas Blue Feather

 

Blue Chill

By

Douglas Blue Feather

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

There is always time to relax with music, and a new album is now upon us that it would be prefect to kick back to and enjoy, this one comes from multi award winning Native American flute performer Douglas Blue Feather and his latest album Blue Chill.

This is a soothing collection of fantastic compositions, and all 10 tracks contained within reveal a blissful peace and tranquillity to enjoy in an all too crazy world. The opening creation for example called Heart's Desire, is the perfect starting point for our flute adventure with Douglas, and a more tranquil offering you would not find.

The multi-instrumental nature of this album is also a delight, one can find a balanced well of percussion, fretless bass and pitch perfect flute on tracks like Sweet Feeling and native chants, natural sounds on the harmonic bliss of track four called Lament For a Chief, this one is also emotionally powerful and deeply moving as well.

Douglas has been on our musical radar for some 14 years now and he never ceases to impress with his powerful flute performances, even on the more ambient pieces like Drifting Away, the artist manifests a blanket of tone that is simply delightful and serene, and on the penultimate piece off the release called Bless The Journey, we are given an emotive ride of Native American Flute, with a sensitive and respectful bed of keyboards, then a percussive rhythm takes the offering to a new high on what is one of my favourites from the album.

We can conclude this voyage of majestic flute with the title track of the album Blue Chill, with its chill-out styled beat and its rhythmic bass work; this was a superb way with which to end the album. There is a beautifully light floating mood about this track that will leave the listener in total harmony, and of course bliss!

Blue Chill by Douglas Blue Feather is 10 tracks of soothing calm and chilled flute vibes to ease those stress lines from the face. Douglas has once again manifested a well of wondrous pieces, which anyone who loves really good instrumental flute music will be in rapture with.

This is a superb album and something the world needs right now more than ever time to chill, so why not do so with this great new album, Blue Chill by Douglas Blue feather.

False Memory by Victor Birkan

 

False Memory

By

Victor Birkan

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The king of felt piano is back with another new single and this time Victor Birkan delves into the realm of memory, specifically into false ones, I believe this is something we are all guilty of from time to time, and it is no wonder as our emotions and our ability to recall the actual facts may be influenced by a bias or other psychological matters.

The artist has sent himself a lofty goal here on this new single, but in doing so has risen to the challenge and penned a wonderfully cinematic moment of music, when questions are asked through the medium of the piano, and answers are given in the various keys and chords manifested, within this composition.

One has to admire the ability of Birkan to produce such thought provoking and artistic music; there can be no doubt that he is a prolific composer and creator, and I believe that False Memory by Victor Birkan could well be one of his most reflective creations to date. Regardless the world of solo piano will be better off for it.

One must applaud Birkan’s style and his arrangements, and this new single from the pianist will resonate in the minds of the eager listener as a true memory of a really good piano composition.

Of The Day By Michelle Qureshi

 

Of The Day

By

Michelle Qureshi

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The queen of ambience is back with another beautiful new single, and all that reside within her court of musical splendour will be in a blissful state of tonal happiness. Of The Day by Michelle Qureshi is a crafted new single that could well traverse its own ambience and lead us into a chilled lounge that is as easy on the ears, as a sunny afternoon in July.

This vibrant new offering from Qureshi has an added beat and a pulsating onward drive that raises the rhythms, and a coda so sweet that it drifts into the hazy realities of long and happy summer memories. This is one of those singles that you simply cannot stop listening to, I have it on repeat as I write and its content is truly addictive in all the best ways.

I believe some of the artists fans may be surprised by her direction on this new single, but I firmly believe it is an alternate and natural progression of her music, one that could fit into any Buddha Bar or Chill Out lounge across the world.

This song is masterfully produced and arranged and is a utter pleasure to listen to, if you love keyboard based percussive music with a sensual but vibrant rhythm, then grab a copy of, Of The Day by Michelle Qureshi now, you really won’t regret it.  

Chasing Butterflies By Richard Dillon

 

Chasing Butterflies

By

Richard Dillon

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

I have always thought that the natural world did a great thing when it found the formula to manifest a creature such as a butterfly; I rate their gossamer structure and posture to be one of the most beautiful on the earth, and to have been around for over 200 million years is no mean feat either, here Richard Dillion takes that subject and produces an on the button composition about the breath taking butterfly.

The performance is proud, light hearted and textured, the rhythm behind the composition swirls and moves ever onward and upward in a never ending cycle of life, death and rebirth. For me this is a splendid arrangement, the mastery of Dillion to have captured the energy and radiance of the subject matter alone is a remarkable job well done.

Solo piano never sounded so good, the key changes were cleverly arranged, the passages simply perfection, and the coda a gentle whisper that fades into happiness. Chasing Butterflies is a wonderfully uplifting musical composition, it is a track that one might put on if they feel the weight of the day take control, it is a performance that will lift and raise the energy of the listener and remind them that the butterfly drifts in the air with such ease, because it carries no weight upon its shoulders, this one truly has to be a sure fire hit.

On The Way By Kike de Santo

 

On The Way

By

Kike de Santo

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The sublime nature of texture is of vital importance when constructing an instrumental composition, setting the scene musically and capturing the listeners imagination doubly so, here on this brand new offering from Kike de Santo called On The Way, he does just that and more on an exploratory new single that is deeply compelling.

The start of the composition is felt carefully and with a tentative narrative that literally lures the listener in, this is a crafted mastery on its own, but the added percussion added to the swirling keyboards and synths just added that extra layer of expectation into the weave of the arrangement.

The tempo to this new creation is sublime, and at times reminded me of Vangelis with its imploring keyboard energies and its vast quality of textures, it is also a total pleasure to immerse oneself into a composition of a decent time span of just short of 6 minutes, in these days of micro manifestations, the listener has a real chance within this single of actually getting into the project.

With its ever onward structures and its mysterious tone and timbre, I truly believe that On The Way by Kike de Santo is going to burst into the charts like a musical comet tearing across our skies; if you ever wanted to hear an example of top quality keyboard based instrumental music, then this new single from Kike is going to blow you away.

We Are Angels By Faith Rumer & David Vito Gregoli

 

We Are Angels

By

Faith Rumer & David Vito Gregoli

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

A new genre is manifesting from the devotional and inspirational ranks of musical plenitude, some called it New Age Pop, some New Age Vocal, regardless this is a powerful statement now being made in the business, and one that must be listened to at all costs, We Are Angels by Faith Rumer & David Vito Gregoli is but one of those offerings, and certainly one that stands out with a musical prowess that is very impressive.

Equally as impressive on this new song is the vast array of instrumentation used upon it, but why am I not surprised, as David Vito Gregoli is one of the finest multi-instrumentalists in the business, and on We Are Angels Rumer has that background that has been birthed solidly in the high end of the market, featuring stints with bands like Earth Wind and Fire and Rod Stewart in some of the biggest stages in the world, here is a singer who has power, poise and intent.

The song builds to perfection and Rumer’s vocals that are so passion filled and poignant to lead us to a potential of a promised land called hope, and in doing so they shine like a beacon through the mists of fear that now envelop this globe,. This is a masterful new single that indeed manifests an energy of the so called New Age Pop genre that we foresaw coming a while ago, and even touching on the hem of a soft rock styled opus, not to far removed from bands like Heart and the vocals of Ann Wilson.

We Are Angels by Faith Rumer & David Vito Gregoli is a song that has hit written all over it, and I have every faith that this beauty of an emotive release is going to power up the charts with ease, this is one of those songs that is totally undeniable.

The Ground By Hallvard Godal featuring Richard Burgess

 

The Ground

By

Hallvard Godal featuring Richard Burgess

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

What maybe a little known fact, is that back at the end of the last century I cut my radio presentation teeth by hosting a show on local radio in the UK called One World Party, there weren’t many stations broadcasting World music in 1998 in the UK, now also my first love would happen to be progressive rock, however I would have to wait some 20 years before hosting a prog show on radio, but here today I have the best of both worlds and more, as I take a look The Ground by Hallvard Godal featuring Richard Burgess.

This refreshing new release contains the artistic vocals of Richard Burgess, which at times reminded me of the band Caravan way back in the day, but mixed with an Afro Beat styled percussive rhythm, with regard to that take a listen to the opening piece entitled Hello Hello as an example.

This 9 track album is packed with inventive and exciting new offerings that bridge many styles and cross many genres; Inert takes us into a prog rock manifested global fusion of both Peter Gabriel and perhaps even Osibisa. There are so many eclectic offerings on this album, one that took my ear and eye would be the title track The Ground, a fast paced offering that powers ever onward with the added electronic wizardry that is contained within.

There is literally a multitude of instrumentation upon this stunning album, including, and unusually, the Banjo courtesy of Kim Johannesen on Spinning His Way, this for me was a sublime composition, containing a globally fused manifestation and the ever classy voice of Burgess almost giving us an Ian Anderson moment.

I have to admit being a prog fan and with my back ground, listening to The Ground by Hallvard Godal is somewhat of a guilty pleasure, and its albums like this that keep me going in a world of banality in main stream music, the concluding gift of musical greatness truly reminded me of Gabriel and perhaps Red Rain, the mixture of pop, prog and world vibes all rolled into one gloriously sumptuous offering on the track Not In Range.

The Ground by Hallvard Godal featuring Richard Burgess was just what I needed; its artistically nuanced manifestations were a refreshing and somewhat reassuring collection of craft-fully created compositions for me to hear, we must also pay homage to the band and their incredibly eclectic collections of instrumentations, Hallvard Godal, harmonium, mellotron, saxophone, clarinet, backing vocals and synths, Steinar Nickelsen synth & Hammond B3 organ, Nikolai Hængsle bass, Erik Nylander drums & percussion and of course the aforementioned Kim Johannesen on banjo.

If you are a music lover who simply craves for something fresh, new and exciting, then you must seek out this album, as The Ground by Hallvard Godal featuring Richard Burgess will give you that sense and taste of musical satisfaction you haven’t had for simply years.

Iniciatic Times By NEORACLE

 

Iniciatic Times

By

NEORACLE

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

This is one of those rare singles that might be worth gazing at the art work whilst listening to it, this is indeed a grand opus of great glory by NEORACLE called Iniciatic Times, one that perhaps falls into the bracket or genres of both Neo Classical and Soundtrack, and it is certainly worthy of both.

The powerful mysterious opening and its harmonic ethereal vocals reminded me of the band 2002 back in their early days, the symphonic gestures combined beautifully with the vocalisations were delicious, but as the piece moved on, one could feel the regal nature of this dramatic piece take hold and take us to a different place entirely. The prince and princess come home perhaps, then towards the latter half of the release the tempo ramps up to an almost rock opera status, this I believe must be one of the most unique and exciting new singles I have had the pleasure to review this year, and most certainly is worthy of an opportunity of a movie segment.

Iniciatic Times by NEORACLE is that empowering offering you have been waiting for, if you are a fan of truly splendid symphonic classically style music with a modern twist, then this new single must make its way onto your playlist of choice, or into your musical library at all costs, it is stunning, go get a copy now!

The Lost Tracks By Richard Dillon

 

The Lost Tracks

By

Richard Dillon

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The finding of lost things can be an emotionally charged event, I have done it myself and the memories of their creation can literally take one back decades in mood and in emotion, here on this wonderful new album Richard Dillion has done just that, re-found compositions once thought lost and brought them into the light of a new day for us all to enjoy, and a passionate ride of great feeling from the artist is one we are about to embark upon right now.

Lost Tracks starts with a hymn like beginning on the piece Arlington ft Neil Patton, Neil has joined Richard as a pianist on many of the tracks to support the artist’s physical issues with playing the piano, and on this and many others he has done a remarkable job.

This 15 track album, that in some ways reminds me of Jeff Bjork’s Keepsakes in the Attic release, is a reflective and memorable collection of sublime compositions. Here however the artist has opened a box of musical treasures that were once thought of as lost, and one of my favourite creations would be this next one called Crystal Rain ft Neil Patton, its mournful refrain contains a sense of sadness and reflective genius.

There are a few singles that have broken the landscape this year and come from this very album, the bright and sparkling reverie of Butterfly Dreams being but one, and then the passionate refrains of Cloudburst ft Neil Patton manifest a pouring down of notes from a dark and cloudy sky for us, in a crisp rain soaked offering of great quality.

The beauty of this album is that it literally contains something for everyone within it, different moods and feelings can be found behind every closed door now opened, like the amazing Don’t Go, a plea of a heart felt statement, the pondering and passion filled notes here moved me greatly, while on offerings like Echoes of a Broken Heart ft Neil Patton, we have a more tentative piece, one that is played with such a pristine touch by Patton, but composer Dillon must have been delighted with the deeply touching presentation on this heart-warming opus.

The darkness of late evening falls upon us now, and through the track Twilight we have a steady onward movement into the darkness of the night, a superb progression can be heard here from the artist, then on the following narrative entitled Putting Pen to Paper we can revisit another of the singles released earlier this year on an soundtrack styled composition of grandeur and style.

We now arrive at another offering that touched my heart deeply, and this one is called Faded Memories ft Neil Patton, the minor nature of this track fills me with the energy of memories I too am seeing beginning to fade of my past, as I get ever older and fortunately wiser, with the lessons of life learned.

Goodbye is another one of the singles released in 2024 and is next on our journey, this almost classically style arrangement moves us gently into the arms of Lullaby ft Neil Patton, here is a simply delightful creation, played with such calm and tenderness by Patton, so much so that it’s light and soothing narrative is indeed quietly meditative.

Then the most proud of all moments now as we arrive at the door marked title track, and through Lost we have a sensitive and moving piece that creates a lump in the throat, a flutter in the heart, and a tear in the corner of the eye. I have been lost in my time, and thus this piece of music could have easily have been the soundtrack for that, or those events of sadness and aloneness.

We are truly in the weave of this musical box of many lost treasures now, and as we arrive at this juncture we find a composition called Passage of Time, this has to be the most ambient offering from the album and the artist’s delicate presentation gifts us a moment of measured brilliance, a performance in the forests of evermore, in the very mists of time itself.

The penultimate track once again contains the deft touches of pianist Neil Patton and is called New Earth. I adore this composition; it has something we all need built within its structure, hope. This last but one offering could well be used in a movie segment one day to illustrate new beginnings and lessons learned.

So we are here, knocking on the last door of the album and this concluding creation is called Smokey Mountain Sunset.  If ever there was a sublime piece with which to end an album with this would be it, its energies capture many images and vistas of nature and its overall narrative, a beautiful textured and layered parting gift to thoroughly enjoy.

The Lost Tracks by Richard Dillon is indeed a treasure trove of brilliant music well found, we can all agree that the world of music, and especially the genre of piano will be all the better for it, for me I found this voyage cathartic and at times incredibly moving, this release deserves to be a massive hit and to garner a whole heap of plaudits along the way, so do yourself a favour and grab a copy of The Lost Tracks by Richard Dillon as quick as you can, it’s the album that the piano genre has waited an eon to find.

Spark By Antonija Pacek Written by Steve Sheppard

 

Spark

By

Antonija Pacek

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

Antonija Pacek has proved she is a fine pianist over many years now, I have been following her progress since 2021, and her style has grown and become more melodic with each passing measure, so it is a pleasure now for me to take a look at her latest offering entitled Spark.

The gentleness of presentation is the first of many noteworthy things to say about this new composition, Spark has a slow but soothing musical narrative that flows like a mountain stream in April, in fact as I listen to this arrangement beautiful visions of lush natural landscapes spawn from my mind’s eye.

Pacek’s infused romantic values also come to the fore here in this most tranquil yet heart-warming of creations, perhaps Spark is the first fragile moments of love aspiring to be more, whatever, this is a fine performance from the pianist, one that I am sure will be adored by the solo piano genre and it’s fans as a whole.

Spark by Antonija Pacek is a solo piano single that lifts the mood and calms the soul, at times reminding one of a love theme from a movie, and at other times an almost meditative segment of blissful peace, regardless I believe that this new manifestation is going to be a big hit for the artist, and so it should be.

Pink Moon Magic By Adelynn Shan Lee

 

Pink Moon Magic

By

Adelynn Shan Lee

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

There are times when you need a little solitude, a slice of peace, perhaps a meditative sanctuary that you can reside within and just be solidly in the moment, solo flute tracks of a high quality such as Pink Moon Magic by Adelynn Shan Lee can help you achieve that goal.

I have long adored truly good solo flute artists, from Nigel Shaw, to Rodrigo Rodriguez from Deuter to Hiroki Okano; each have a special place in my musical heart, and for bringing me locations of tranquillity and sanctuaries of the soul, this new single from Adelynn Shan Lee called Pink Moon Magic would fit nicely among those luminaries.

Those beautifully lush tones of the artists flute seem to drift over far away landscapes, and manifest an almost meditative vibrational tone as it goes, this is high class solo flute performed by someone who most certainly feels every nuance of her creation.

Pink Moon Magic by Adelynn Shan Lee is a stunningly haunting, yet riveting composition, and to prove the point I listened to it four times in a row before I had realised. This is music to manifest a place of solitude where the mind can unwind and be at peace and just breathe, this is top notch work from Adelynn and as such deserves to be a huge hit.

Eclosion (Emerging from the Chrysalis) By Craigology

 

Eclosion (Emerging from the Chrysalis)

By

Craigology

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

Craigology is back with a brand new single and this one is as charming as an October sunset, it is packed with uplifting refrains and grows with each passing measure in what must be the artist’s best release thus far and called Eclosion (Emerging from the Chrysalis).

The performance contained within is spot on the subject matter; the slow and cautious start begins to evolve into a more confident piece, the delicacy of the piano is won over by the added orchestration and a symbiosis of tone is created.

This is incredibly well thought out for such a short form release, the course is set for the crescendo to be a victory for the life form, but the progression from chrysalis has to be spot on and Craigology does it with such style and panache, so much so a full orchestral delight herald’s the concluding emergence with an almost regal posture of a truly grand nature, and all in 138 seconds!

I believe this to be the best work thus far from the artist and I believe fans of good instrumental music and emerging neo classical countenances such as this, will be both enthralled and extremely pleased with Eclosion (Emerging from the Chrysalis) by Craigology, it is brilliant.