Never Lose Hope (Reimagined) By Matias Bacoñsky

 

Never Lose Hope (Reimagined)

By

Matias Bacoñsky

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

This is a fascinating new single from Matias Bacoñsky called Never Lose Hope (Reimagined), the sheer volume and depth that this new composition exudes is literally impressive. The artist has been on an ever fascinating arc of discovery through his works since Life and Death back in 2016, since then everything he touches is heartfelt and poignant and deeply moving, he is therefore back with another powerful new arrangement entitled Never Lose Hope (Reimagined).

From the off the piano instigates a careful narrative filled with trepidation and concern, but there is an underlying sense of something else being birthed within the deeper weave of the music, it is the one thing that on this currently greed riddled and nasty world, we seek the one thing that we hold high above the hate, and that’s hope.

Here perhaps Matias Bacoñsky is offering up an anthem for a comeback to express that not all is lost, the piano is the masterful force that narrates this film score potential epic, whilst the orchestration and ethereal vocalisations raise the energy of the piece to its highest possible level, as we are treated to one of the most powerful opuses he has thus far created.

Bacoñsky is known for his emotive performances, but here on this new single he may be offering up a symphonic gesture that could speak a thousand words in one musical moment, this is exactly how any good instrumentalist should build and progress a composition, and as such I predict another chart hit for Never Lose Hope (Reimagined) by Matias Bacoňsky. 

Nocturne By James Michael Stevens

 

Nocturne

By

James Michael Stevens

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

My music relationship with James Michael Stevens surprisingly only goes back as far as 2020 and an album called Italian Preludes, Nos. 1-8 - Solo Piano. This seems somewhat remarkable when you consider that some 55 albums later I am delighted to find I am reviewing the most prolific recording piano artist on the planet known to me once more, with his latest soothing release entitled Nocturne.

I don’t know how James does it, but to his credit time and time again he produces something utterly beautiful and tender to listen to, and with Nocturne that pattern continues unabated. The start is a familiar playing ground for the artist as he mixes his major and minor to create a loving composition called Sleep My Love.

Dreamy Nights and Candlelight is a favourite of mine and probably of yours as well readers and listeners of sublime piano based music, there is a gentle increased upscaling on this offering that is fascinating, and the mood it creates is very redolent of the subject matter.

The next composition has a decided mournful repose, but a picturesque one never the less and called 'Neath a Lydian Sky. The Lydian mode is a major-scale-based musical mode distinguished by a raised fourth scale degree, giving it a bright, ethereal, and slightly unresolved sound, and James has it perfectly depicted on the cleverest of compositions from the album.

This next piece felt and sounded somewhat familiar to me, a slight nod to a classical piece I have heard before in the past perhaps, but I still just can’t quite pick out in my mind’s eye, regardless of my memory lapse, this is a stunningly beautiful offering called Musings at Purple Shore, one that offers much to be enjoyed, in what was without doubt one of the prettiest performances from the entire album.

The trickling musical narrative and tonal structures on this next track were some of the crispest I have heard for many a year on the piece Misty Stream, the fluency was a delight and the dreamy chord changes equally so, once again the artist dances with light and shadow on this stylish track.

Nestled in the centre of the album is the composition called Midnight Iris, there was a beautiful dualistic reality forming within the weave of this piece, one that cleverly interplayed with a tone and timbre, giving us a symbiotic mood of music, from the garden to the piano bar and back.

Elegy at Sunset Forest has that delightful regal energy about its composition that you just can’t help but like, this splendid proud performance is like watching the sunset through the trees of the aforementioned Forest, being part of that very experience with the musician yourself whilst listening.

The next track has some interesting nuances with its structure and called Waiting in the Shadows, the melody on this specific offering is utterly outstanding and beautifully crafted, manifesting wondrous juxtapositions of major and minor with utter glee.

Our musical boat has arrived in the deeper waters of the release where we will find the offering entitled Blue as the Midnight Hour. Almost blues, almost jazz, almost a lullaby, perhaps all three but then one can hear within this attractive musical narrative something special taking shape from the place of the heart called love.

The penultimate offering could be described as one of the more reflective offerings from the album, but Stevens is so good at switching to that mode that any of the aforementioned tracks could perhaps be described like that, this one called Somewhere a Serenade is particularly homely and heartfelt, and very warming to listen to.

The concluding tale of tone and timbre is entitled Dreams of Yesterday, a truly easy on the ears piece with which to finish the album with indeed. With the flowing styled arrangement and the thoughtful structures, this parting gift was the perfect end to what once again has been another delightfully heart-warming album from the artist.

Nocturne by James Michael Stevens is one in a long line of quite amazing solo piano albums by the artist, but his ability as a pianist and a composer is so good, he always keeps his fans and listeners in the land of piano love. When a new album is on offer, a warm smile always crawls across my face, because the peace and tranquillity that follows is always remarkable, thus I predict another solid hit is on the cards with ease for Nocturne by James Michael Stevens.

When We Meed Again by Curtis Macdonald

 

When We Meet Again

By

Curtis Macdonald

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

There are few artists who have been so consistent over the many years I have been following them musically as Curtis Macdonald, he has been in the industry for some three decades, even from my first album of his Shadow Crossing in 2002, time and time again he produces upmarket classy work and never fails to satisfy the need of really good instrumental music fan with a tender mood, and this new single continues that lengthy legacy and is called When We Meet Again.

The first few opening bars are a symbiosis of keyboards and pads as the direction of the track kicks in, then percussion adds its rhythm to the proceedings and another TV theme is in the making, there is something about Macdonald’s music that always makes you feel like you have been given a warm hug.

The tender onward progression is a delight, and the tonal backdrop and pads offer an almost 90’s feel to the proceedings, this calm yet moving reverie is like visiting a scrapbook and gazing fondly over all the years of laughter and joy that have flowed between the cracks of time and tide.

Curtis Macdonald is in the foreground of this new movement now called New Age pop without a shadow of a doubt, and long may he remain so, and I think therefore that When We Meet Again will add another notch in his musical belt, and a truly good chat position along the way. 

You can find out more here: https://ampl.ink/GlpMo

More Now Everywhere by Andy Mitran

 

More Now Everywhere

By

Andy Mitran

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

I have been in rapture for years with the releases of Al Jewer and Andy Mitran, my first taking me all the way back to 2003 and the album Two Trees. They produce some of the finest, what could be, and sometimes more than often is alluded to is, as some of the best contemporary instrumental music on the planet in this modern age of ours, but when they go solo that effect doesn’t change one iota, as we are about to dive in deep with Andy Mitran and his solo album More Now Everywhere.

The opening piece of this 11 track release is entitled Shape Shifting, here you will find some of the most dreamy keyboard working you could ever wish for on this oasis of a composition, however one of my personal favourites would be the following offering called Ocean and Sky, with a fretless base and electric piano, magic is made here in a track that reminds of their joint release in 2018 called Transmigration.

That floating feeling stays with us on another favourite of mine called Atmosphere, the synth and guitar combo here, produced for me another incredibly palpable track, one that would stay in your mind for the whole day and take up residence, and in parts reminded me slightly of some of the more ambient aspects of the UK’s synth supremo Kevin Kendle at times.

With tracks like the effervescent Breakers, we have a charming driving offering, adding in a rhythmic drum, whilst on offerings like Emergence, room and space can be easily found for the listener, the delicacy of the harp here added an extra layer of calm, while the brass contained within offered a balanced composition one slowly becoming aware, in the most patient track off the release.

To See is nestled in the middle part of the album and has a truly ambient texture to its compositional structure, whilst Isolata adds a little extra rhythm and guitar into the mix with consummate ease, the synth work here is also clever and crafted well to fit with the overall theme. 

The next track is a far differently styled piece, and I’ll think I will feature it in my smooth Jazz show next month, it is called Memory Road, this is magical, a walking bass starts us off and then a smooth jazz fused piece drives us home with delicate pertinent synths, and a stunning guitar performance from Kraig McCreary, made this piece for me one of the stand out tracks from the album.

In the deeper waters of the release we come across a globally infused creation called More Than Once and this thrilling arrangement of instrumentation manifests something quite enthralling, and utilising a frame drum, talking drum, udu, guiro, Chilean bombo, marimba, synths, guitars, strings, reeds, brass, and acoustic bass, now this is what you call the ultimate multi-instrumentational offering.

The penultimate narrative is entitled The Woven Path, this is where everything becomes interconnected, it is with ease the most spiritual piece of the release, with the ethereal sounds and soothing keyboard, which sets us up perfectly for the final chapter of the album entitled The Last One, how appropriate indeed, this clever and relaxing instrumental composition narrated by a commanding piano concludes things perfectly for the listener.

This is a special album, one can tell with ease that this entire collection of superior instrumental music comes from the heart centre of the musician, and he has to be applauded for that, he also cites one of our personal heroes in his final comments when he says, and I quote, “Lastly, I want to thank Eckhart Tolle for the valuable lessons about the power of the moment and creating a significant change for the better in my life”. I can only add to that saying More Now Everywhere by Andy Mitran is a guaranteed hit, and Andy you are here to enable the divine purpose of the universe to unfold. That is how important you are!

You and I By Jennifer DeFrayne

 

You and I

By

Jennifer DeFrayne

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The second single release from sublime pianist Jennifer DeFrayne is now upon us, and is from her exciting new album Soul Love, which is coming in June. This piece of piano magic is called You and I, a lush and colourful creation that utterly signifies that she is back upon the music scene in a big way, and this tapestry of tonal delight is the bed that we can drift along to in these early summer days.

You and I contains the skill sets once more of her team of superb musicians in their own rights, and the combinations by such artists like Charlie Bisharat on violin and Jill Haley on English horn offer much indeed, as do the others on the piece that with ease raises the bar of beauty for this composition specifically.

The song itself is a smooth carpet of fluent tone and timbre that drifts across the horizon like a sailing ship at sunset, always present, but always steadily moving forward, the mixture of strings and piano here is undeniably creative and deeply moving.

From the inception of the track, one is held and comforted within one of the artist’s warmest piece of all time, the symbiotic impassioned manifestation is beautifully played, and DeFrayne on piano is really finding her way in this brave new world of instrumental music that is now upon us all. You and I by Jennifer DeFrayne isn’t just a guaranteed hit, it is a musical panacea to cure your woes and stresses, and gifts you several minutes of joyful bliss.

What Have We Done to This World by Stacey Lord

 

What Have We Done to This World

By

Stacey Lord

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

A new artist here for me, but with a message that most normal people would think of an anthem, yet politicians would run and hide in the corner of the darkest room, and count there greed filled coffers in the silence of the greed of the destruction that they have caused. Yes this is a powerful song, but I wouldn’t call it a protest song, it’s far stronger than that and it is one that demands to be listened to.

Here on What Have We Done to This World by Stacey Lord, she literally rips the pages out of the book of truth and rams them in everyone’s face, and screams do something about it whilst doing so. As I write I live in a country that is being greatly affected by a manufactured war by the greediest nation on earth, this song needs to be brought to the main stream as an anthem of the voice of the people, to say STOP enough is enough.

Musically this is stunning, and I may say thank you so much for making a brilliant piece of music like this come in at some 6 and a half minutes long, to me this shows conviction and a belief in the narrative. Joni Higgins-Wilson our singer here is outstanding; her tone gives the listener a poignant moment of pause and reflection through her vocal style.

Harvey Summers & the Sing Space (Bexhill) children, form a choir for the chorus, there is something redolent of the 60’s about that chorus, it is so compelling, again anthem like, but their vocals were very powerful and pronounced superbly, which only elevated the entire project further. Harvey Summers wrote, mixed & mastered the music, which is without doubt one the most passionate singles of 2026.

What Have We Done to This World is an environmental and socially conscious song that combines emotional lyrics with cinematic musical elements and in my view is one of the most cogent and intelligent singles I have heard for literally ages. This song is something that should be featured on every TV station around the world, and should be flying up the charts, and maybe more on the horizon can be seem for What Have We Done to This World by Stacey Lord.

Almost Here By Kerani

 

Almost Here

By

Kerani

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

It’s not until I looked, but it had been a while since I had heard from Kerani, in fact back in 2024 and her album Silent Heart, but two strange years have been added to this crazy worlds historical narrative, and in 2026 I am elated to be listening to and writing about the last masterpiece by one of the finest female instrumentalists in the 21^st century Kerani and her latest release Almost Here.

This classy new release is packed with top class items, such as the moody and deep opener entitled Glass Between Us, the elements of tension here are built perfectly by the artist on synths and keyboards, and the distant percussive nuances only add to that. Here is a track which highlights unresolved and hidden issues, which cast a sense of foreboding and suspense upon proceedings.

Kerani is well known for her work in the neo classical genre, but here she seems to meld into many genres, cinematic, soundtrack, a meditative texture at times, then glorious almost full on classical styled motifs, in a very impressive collection of creations. One of my personal favourites was the ambient yet inspiring Frozen Spaces, then onto Ember Morning, that more deliberate classical style is evident here, and introducing a cello solo and hobo, plus of course Kerani’s signature cinematic style on piano in a glorious offering indeed.

The title track can be found next and called Almost Here, for me this is one of the best title tracks the artist has ever manifested, a movie style opus yes, but one that just holds back enough for that resolution to be hinted at as a very real later conclusion, reminding me in context of that of the artist and former Deep Purple keyboardist Jon Lord did, on his classically inspired Pictured Within album many years past.

Of the more classically emphatic compositions this one truly moved me and at certain stages had elements of both Vaughn Williams and Eric Whitacre within the weave of the piece, this track for me is probably the best composition I have ever heard from Kerani, the soaring juxtaposition between flute and strings emphasising release and joy with such beauty, hurrah for Lifting the Veil a dramatically glorious track indeed.

The concluding narrative is entitled High Air, here the artist once more mixes the high notes of release with the darker back drops of a more academia styled manifestation, thus another cinematic piece if born, but here’s one that signifies that the track may have found the final solution to that of the aforementioned piece Almost There, in a dramatic soundtrack styled final offering.

Almost Here by Kerani in my view is one of the finest bodies of work I have heard from the artist since her release Small Treasures back in 2018, this is splendid in every aspect, it is a fine example of utterly transcendent neo classical crosser music, and an absolute must have for any aficionados of the more classy instrumental styled opuses, without a doubt this is top notch and should be a huge chart hit for Kerani and Almost Here.

Fragile By Forrest Smithson

 

Fragile

By

Forrest Smithson

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

I must declare from the very off that I am a huge fan of the work of Forrest Smithson, his electronic and ambient vibes have been thrilling my musical palate for years now, ever since 2013 and the album Dreaming Time and of course my favourite of all releases of his Ooti from 2015, but time flies past, and some 11 years later I am here bathing in the sonic bliss of a new release from the master called Fragile, and this could very well be the artists apex recording of all time.

Speak of vibrant pieces and one will appear, and it does so in the guise of the title track Fragile, there are elements of the Ooti album here with other keyboard sounds, even a guitar deep in the weave, but the up-tempo energetic nuances of this incredible opener certainly set the scene for a wondrous ride indeed.

Fragile is a complex album, but easily accessed by any lover of truly good instrumental music, classy and beautifully organised pieces like August reflect the past brilliances of Smithson’s sheer electronic genius, whilst the offering Auramind gifts the willing listener an almost spiritual moment of meditative bliss with its fluent yet ambient harmonics and tonal delights.

This 9 piece release is packed with some of the best creations within the electronic and ambient genres; the depth of tracks like Within is utterly palpable and deeply moving, one could easily get lost within its mysterious confines, here is a track that could be utilised in a science fiction movie, the synths are a beautiful complexity of a ripeness of sound, and an interwoven narrative of an anticipation of something unfound and perhaps until now unknown, and yes, this is my personal favourite from the album.

As we move from the middle of the album a true electronic gem can be found in all its ambient glories, an ethereal quality can be garnered here that is symphonically amazing and uplifting, and called Voyager, one can enjoy the floating synths and the galactic feel of the creation as we drift ever onward through this incredible cosmos of sound and vibration.

Ambience can be found in another personal favourite of mind, the more new age sounding Everpresent moment. This creative mastery is a veritable mixture of three prolific styles and combinations, just goes to show what a natural and heart felt musician Forrest actual is, on the most moving offering of the release, one that I will play repeatedly on my personal playlist of calm and relaxation, the natural sounds included here were so beautifully recorded and set to perfection, that it lifted the overall texture of the track to a new height.

There are some lighter tonal delights within this release that need to be appreciated by its audience, like the charming almost hypnotic effect of the track Importarium. Then one could drift into the John Carpenter styled manifestation called Prepared location, however Forrest offers us here a more complex creation, and one that varies in its overall narrative to deliver its structure and journey.

The concluding composition is entitled Pinnacles of Awareness and for me it was one of the most spiritually alive moments from the album, deeply meditative and powerfully rooted in the mysterious elements of self-discovery and well-being. At some 17 minutes long it is a true long form opus of grandeur that needs not to be skimmed over, but listened to on repeat; it is truly an epic of gargantuan proportions.

Fragile by Forrest Smithson is in my view the artists best work to date, I don’t say that lightly having been a fan of his music for some 13 years or so, but his compositional structure, the production and balance in both ambient new age and electronic music, make it easier for me to state that here is an album destined for the top spot in the charts, and maybe more, kudos Forrest Smithson. Fragile is simple awesome.