With a continuous supply of new music being released, it’s already time for another installment of my Fresh New Tracks series. Today I’m showcasing four songs by, in alphabetical order, Brooklyn, NY-based indie rock band Atlas Engine, Australian rock band Big Wheels, Michigan singer-songwriter Matt Csiszar and English musician and composer Josephine Pascoe. I’ve previously featured Matt and Josephine on this blog, whereas Atlas Engine and Big Wheels are new to me. All songs were released over the past week.
Atlas Engine – “Comfort and Calm”
Atlas Engine is a Brooklyn, New York-based band who make what they call “celestial indie rock”, an appropriate description for their dreamy style of alternative psychedelic rock. Fronted by singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer Nick LaFalce, (who relocated to L.A. in 2023 but still spends time in Brooklyn), the five-piece also includes Garrett Hess on guitar, Patrick Cochrane on bass, Katie Glasgow on synths & vocals, and Brendan McGuckin on drums. Starting with the release of their debut EP After the End in 2016, they’ve since followed with numerous singles and EPs, along with their wonderfully-titled and gorgeous debut album When the Compass Resets, There Can Be No Regrets in 2023.
2025 has been a busy year thus far for Atlas Engine, as in March they released a single “Desert Demos: 1” to raise funds for friends affected by the Los Angeles fires, then followed two weeks later with “(Alternate State)”, consisting of three versions of an interlude at the end of “All I Want Is Everything”, from When the Compass Resets There Can Be No Regrets. In April they dropped the beautiful “New Constellation”, and now return with yet another new single “Comfort and Calm” a thoroughly enchanting song that lives up to its title. For the recording of the song, bass was played by Patrick Cochrane, drums by Jonathan Smith and additional vocals were sung by Sally Hatchet. I love the swirling ethereal synths, shimmery guitar notes, crisp percussion and gentle bass, all of which create a dreamy atmospheric backdrop for Nick and Sally’s captivating harmonies.
Big Wheels – “Lazy Bones”
Hailing from Sydney, Australia is Big Wheels, a modern indie rock band comprised of singer-songwriters Cass Ford and Lawson Doyle, along with guitarist Tyler Buchanan. Formed in late 2021 with a shared love for legendary acts like Fleetwood Mac, Jefferson Airplane, and The Black Keys, Big Wheels write songs exploring the highs, lows and complexities of life, while incorporating a sound that feels both timeless and fresh. Also, Cass is originally from Birmingham, England, giving the band have strong ties to the British music scene. They began releasing music in May 2022 with their debut single “Chain of Fire”, and have steadily dropped a series of outstanding songs ever since. Their previous single, the bluesy rocker “Silver and Black”, landed on several Spotify editorial playlists, including New Noise, All New Rock, Local Noise, and Fresh Finds AU/NZ, as well as garnering airplay on BBC Introducing, Amazing Radio UK, and Triple J.
Their ninth and latest single is “Lazy Bones“, a wonderful sensuous track with strong Fleetwood Mac vibes. I love those bluesy guitar riffs, chugging grooves and the marvelous interplay between Cass and Lawson’s vocals. And in fact, Cass seems to channel Stevie Nicks as she sings with such raw emotion in the chorus, I’m covered in goosebumps. The lyrics speak of letting go of past disagreements and enjoying each others’ company, at least for the night: “It’s been so long why don’t we make up. We can forget it all tonight. I know we said we’d tear the page out but maybe we stay here for a while. So lay down lazy bones, next to me. We ain’t got nowhere we need to be. Baby won’t you be my remedy, and lay down lazy bones, next to me (baby next to me).” Big Wheels will be releasing their debut EP Bury Me in Velvet in June.
Matt Csiszar – “Maria”
Matt Csiszar is an earnest and kind singer-songwriter, musician and composer from Michigan I’ve been following for the past four years. With a lifelong love for music, he started writing and recording his own songs at the age of 13, and over the years has taught himself to play guitar, piano, bass, and drums. His music is pretty eclectic, drawing from a wide range of genres and styles from pop, rock, folk, country and blues to electronic, funk, dance, industrial, jazz and even classical. A prolific artist, Matt released his debut album In The Mind in 1999 while in his early 20s, then played in the band Endless Question for a while before returning to recording and releasing music again as a solo artist in the early 2010s. He’s released numerous singles and an astonishing eight albums, most recently the excellent Many Roads in September 2022. Almost exactly three years ago to the day, on May 7, 2022, I featured his song “Chicago” in another Fresh New Tracks post. After the release of Many Roads, he took the next few years off to focus on his health and emotional well-being.
Now Matt is back with a brand new single “Maria“, a melancholy but lovely track he says “is a song of hope for survivors of childhood abuse. I want the listener to feel like I’m telling their story in hopes that it brings them strength and healing.” Accompanied by just his gentle acoustic guitar, Matt’s plaintive vocals remind me a bit of Jon Bon Jovi as he sings the poignant lyrics touching on Maria’s difficult upbringing, and offering her hope and encouragement for a safer and happier adulthood: “Her mother was so critical, she can still hear her voice calling her pitiful. Now she has no choice but to pick herself apart, breaking her own heart. Her father was a bastard to say the least. She’s triggered by the sound of stomping feet cause he’d come and scream in her face, yeah, that’s all the attention he gave. Maria, are you lonesome tonight? You know you’re getting closer to who you are meant to be. Maria, everything will be alright. you’re beautiful and someday this you will see, Maria.”
Josephine Pascoe – “Llumine”
A favorite musician and composer of mine is Josephine Pascoe, a classically trained pianist, violinist and flautist based in the London suburbs. With a life-long love of music, she studied at Trinity College of Music in London, where she began composing her own music. She also trained to be a secondary school music teacher, but prefers giving one-on-one instrumental instruction on piano and violin. Since 2017, she’s collaborated with Windsor-based guitarist and producer Neil Thom (who she met the year before when she began taking guitar lessons from him) in the creation of exceptional instrumental music infused with elements of jazz, acid jazz, classical, blues and funk. Together, they’ve released an impressive amount of outstanding singles, two of which, “Starfish” and “Odyssey”, I reviewed.
Their latest – and 20th – single is “Llumine“, delivering four minutes of pure auditory bliss. For the recording of the track, Josephine played piano, Rhodes electric piano, keyboard synths, strings and flute, while Neil played bass and drums. As with all their songs, Neil handled production and engineering. Blending acid jazz with classical influences, they create a bewitching fantasia of sound, highlighted by Josephine’s sparkling piano keys, breezy strings and lilting flute, and nicely grounded by Neil’s subtle bass and crisp percussion. I’ve loved every single one of their releases, and “Llumine” just might rank among my very favorites of them all.
Terry Gomes is a composer/guitarist from Ottawa, Canada who’s been involved with music his entire life, both as a musician, singer-songwriter and composer of instrumental music, and as a teacher of rock and classical guitar. (He also taught elementary school for 26 years.) He studied classical guitar/composition at the University of Ottawa, where he graduated with honors. Over the years, he’s played in several rock bands and as one half of a flute/classical guitar duo. After writing songs for others, he began recording his own music in 2006, releasing three albums featuring songs in the singer-songwriter/pop/folk-rock genres. He eventually transitioned toward mostly guitar-based instrumental music.
Of Guyanese heritage, he’s long been drawn to Caribbean tropical influences and began releasing a series of Caribbean-influenced works, starting with his 2014 EP Sand in My Shoes, which he followed a year later with his EP Blue.Green.Aquamarine, then The Tropical Dream in 2018, a delightful concept album detailing a tropical vacation written while he recovered from a back injury. In 2019, Terry released an instrumental single “Rumjaro 360”, in which he combined elements of rumba, jazz and rock, and in 2022, he released two beautiful piano-based singles, “Elegy” and the jazzy “Steen’s Reverie”. The following year he released “Dark Riders“, a six and a half minute long instrumental track inspired by composers like Stravinsky, music scores of early TV westerns, and 60s surf instrumentals, accompanied by a clever and quirky animated video. (You can read my review here.) Last year, he released “Eeza Gomes”, a fun mambo pop song written in memory of his late, beloved Guyanese aunt, along with a whimsical video. The song’s title “Eeza Gomes” is a colloquial Guyanese (creolese) way of saying, “He’s a Gomes.”
Now Terry’s back with a wonderful new instrumental single “A Recurring Thought“, accompanied by a tender and heartwarming video. Composed and arranged by Terry, and recorded and mixed by Steve Foley, the song is the first single from his forthcoming album Some Chunes, scheduled for release on April 8th. For the recording of the track, Terry played the rhythm and classical guitar parts, and Arien Villegas played congas.
Describing it as “a poignant song of longing in which a repeated musical phrase (leitmotif) represents a recurring thought“, Terry elaborates on his inspiration behind the song and accompanying video: “‘A Recurring Thought’ began as a simple musical exercise using a leitmotiv (a repeating musical figure representing a person, situation, place, emotion…In the case of the music, it represents a thought that someone can’t escape from. The video has three elements; the sad musician, a gold sand dollar necklace and a remote tropical island. What exactly happened, what he’s remembering, and how these other two elements relate to him, is ultimately up to the listener.“
“A Recurring Thought” is a really lovely and tranquil instrumental piece, the perfect antidote for these quite troubling times. So sit back, put on your headphones, and let those warm guitar notes and gentle congas envelop and sooth you.
Hailing from the southwest coast of Wales, David Oakes is an imaginative and prolific musician and composer of electronic alternative rock music. Strongly influenced by his love of such acts as Dream Theater, Mastodon, Metallica, Therapy?, Green Day and Smashing Pumpkins, his musical output ranges from gentle synth-driven compositions to aggressive guitar-driven hard rock, though his last several works have trended toward the latter. I really like his music and have featured him on this blog many times over the past eight years (you can read some of those reviews by clicking on the links under “Related” at the end of this post).
David’s been actively involved in making music since his late teens, when he started playing in various bands. From 2001-06, he and his younger brother were members of the rock band KOTOW, for which he played drums. He went on to study guitar and music theory at the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford, England from 2009-12, after which he began composing music as a solo artist, all of which he records and produces himself in his little home studio setup. This drum kit is his pride and joy!
He released his first album The Juggernaut in 2014, and in the years since, has recorded and released an astonishing eleven more albums, the latest of which is Prosthetic Soul, which he released on Bandcamp on February 16th. His first new album in two years, Prosthetic Soul serves up 28 minutes of superb psychedelia-tinged melodic instrumental rock, featuring many of David’s signature electronic and guitar-heavy elements we’ve come to love and expect. But here he’s pushed himself even further, experimenting with new sounds and instrumental techniques, along with what seems to be an even greater emphasis on industrial elements employed by bands like Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein, Dream Theater and Depeche Mode.
Album opener “Minus One” starts off with distant sounds of super-gnarly guitars, which are soon joined by a mix of spooky industrial synths, heavy, razor-sharp percussion and jagged guitar notes layered over an ominous droning synth bass groove. The track immediately segues into “Super Zero”, and we’re off to the races. Though only 1:49 minutes long, the track packs a powerful punch, beginning as a mysterious soundscape of wobbly synths, then exploding into a furious maelstrom of raging grungy guitars and crushing drumbeats.
“The Future Has Begun” is a bit of a musical tour de force, beginning gently with eerie pulsating synths accompanied by a somber piano movement. Forty seconds in, the music abruptly transitions to a rapid barrage of raging guitars and thunderous percussion before calming back down at roughly two and a half minutes to a lovely introspective interlude. Seeming to end at around three minutes, those raging guitars suddenly come roaring back for the next 30 seconds before fading out.
With it’s glitchy sci-fi vibe, infused with both Western and Middle Eastern touches soaked in reverb, the appropriately titled “Dust” would be a perfect fit on the soundtrack for an installment of the Dune film franchise. And David’s skills on guitar and drums are on full display on the marvelous title track “Prosthetic Soul”, as he unleashes a furious onslaught of blistering riffs while beating the hell out of his drum kit. It’s one of my favorite tracks on the album.
“The Dissociation Suite Parts I and II” are a rather intense but melodic couplet, with lots of great keyboards that work quite well with the twangy and grungy guitars that build to a wailing solo toward the end. Living up to its title, “The Reality Bomb” is a glorious little blast of atomic energy, with swirling distorted guitars layered over a grinding bassline, fortified with smashing drumbeats. Halfway into the song, the music calms down to a darkly beautiful interlude of haunting synths, harsh percussion and bewitching stummed guitar notes before exploding into a brief raging torrent in the finale.
“Dirt…” seems to pick back up where “Dust” left off, with more of those mysterious and glitchy sci-fi vibes, only this time accompanied by some really marvelous twangy guitars. The final track is the original version of “The Dissociation Suite Part II”, which David has designated a Bonus Track. To my untrained ear, it sounds fairly similar to the final version, except with a longer lead-in and not quite as many synth flourishes.
Prosthetic Soul is another stellar album by David that ranks among his finest works. It nicely showcases his continued growth as both a composer and musician.
Terry Gomes is a composer/guitarist from Ottawa, Canada who’s been involved with music his entire life, both as a musician, singer-songwriter and composer of instrumental music, and as a teacher of rock and classical guitar. (He also taught elementary school for 26 years.) He studied classical guitar/composition at the University of Ottawa, where he graduated with honors. Over the years, he’s played in several rock bands and as one half of a flute/classical guitar duo. After writing songs for others, he began recording his own music in 2006, releasing three albums featuring songs in the singer-songwriter/pop/folk-rock genres. He later transitioned toward mostly guitar-based instrumental music, beginning with the release of his album Shh., which featured a more jazz-oriented, easy-listening style. In 2015, he released his Caribbean-influenced EP Blue.Green.Aquamarine, which he followed with The Tropical Dream in 2018, a delightful concept album detailing a tropical vacation written while he recovered from a back injury.
In 2019, Terry released an instrumental single “Rumjaro 360”, in which he combined elements of rumba, jazz and rock, and in 2022, he released two beautiful piano-based singles, “Elegy” and the jazzy “Steen’s Reverie”. Now he returns with “Dark Riders“, a rather unorthodox rock guitar soundtrack he wrote several years ago, accompanied by a quirky animated video. For the recording of the track, Terry played all guitars, bass and organ, and Jeff Asselin played drums and percussion. Mixing was done by Steve Foley at Audio Valley Studios in Ottawa, and mastering by Jason Fee at Conduction Mastering.
“Dark Riders” is a six and a half minute long instrumental track with progressive elements, though Terry’s twangy guitars lend a strong Western vibe to the proceedings. I love his guitar work, and the spooky organ adds some great texture to the track. About the video, Terry says “Encompassing a surreal “dark ride” with Old West imagery, it follows an individual’s unexpected and unusual journey. I think of this project as a cross between David Lynch and Scooby Doo–somewhat creepy and surreal and yet, sort of, fun.” The fun and clever video was made with mostly black and white animation images created by Andres Olmos.
leaving richmond is the instrumental electronic music project of exceptionally talented Los Angeles-based composer and producer Jordan Pier. For the past 13 years or so, he’s had success both as a recording artist and as a composer of music for a wide range of TV shows, documentaries, audio books and advertisements. Since 2010, he’s released numerous albums, EPs and singles, including his outstanding most recent album Visions in 2020 (read my review here).
Some of the notable TV programs his music has been featured on include VICE, True Crime (Oxygen), Killer Cases (A&E), Cold Case Files (A&E), Unidentified With Demi Lovato (Peacock), The Toys That Built America (History Channel) and Model America (MSNBC), to name but a few. His works have received widespread acclaim from both music critics and fans alike, with several of his songs garnering airplay on NPR and other radio stations around the world.
Now he’s back with a new EP Radiant Apparitions, featuring six captivating instrumental tracks he describes as “downtempo, chill electronica with dreamy guitars and beats to help you drift off into a relaxed state of mind.” That sounds about right, as he creates lush, magical soundscapes that transport us to exquisite faraway places, and it’s no wonder his compositions are in great demand. All the music was composed, recorded and mixed by Jordan, and mastered by Douglas Reynolds.
The EP opens with the title track “Radiant Apparitions“, an enchanting composition featuring a gorgeous mix of instruments and exotic textures that give the track an East Asian vibe. I love the glittery guitar notes, delicate keyboards, snappy percussion and trill-like synths that sound like a kind of harp or exotic string instrument. Next up is “Tomorrow Sorrow“, a bewitching contemplative composition with dreamy ethereal synths, highlighted by a hauntingly beautiful piano riff and subtle orchestral touches that create a tranquil atmospheric mood.
“My Eyes Your Eyes” has an exuberant retro 80s feel, with soaring melodic keyboards punctuated by somewhat harsher industrial synths, layered over an emphatic percussive beat and accompanied by whisps of a vocal chorus. And though I really like all six tracks, my favorite is “Some Other Sunset“, on the strength of its vibrant Western-flavored twangy guitars, bold percussion and sweeping cinematic synths. Like a lot of leaving richmond’s music, this would make a great soundtrack piece for a film or TV show.
“I Love You” features romantic synths and sparkling guitar notes that seem to meld together in a dreamy sonic dance, and artfully layered over a mesmerizing trip hop groove. The female vocals are from samples leaving richmond found in his sample library and melded into the track. Another favorite is the quietly intense closing track “A Gentle Passage of Time“, with its stunning piano work and lush, cinematic synths drenched in reverb. This track would also be a perfect accompaniment to a film soundtrack.
Radiant Apparitions is a wonderful EP, filled with six outstanding instrumental gems. As I previously noted in my review of his album Visions, leaving richmond’s talent for writing beautiful, compelling melodies is quite impressive, as are his considerable guitar, piano and synth programming skills.
Today I have the pleasure of introducing a wonderful artist named Josephine Pascoe who, together with guitarist and producer Neil Thom, creates exceptional instrumental music with various and ever-changing elements of jazz, acid jazz, classical, blues and funk. Based in the London suburbs, she’s a classically trained pianist, violinist and flautist with a life-long love of music. She began studying piano at the age of five, then violin at eight and flute at thirteen, much of it at Trinity College of Music in London, where she also began composing her own music. She also trained to be a secondary school music teacher, but prefers giving one-on-one instrumental instruction on piano and violin.
According to an article about Josephine on the music blog COOLTOP20, she met Neil in 2016 when she began taking guitar lessons from him. Besides teaching guitar, Neil is a producer and sound engineer with a wealth of experience working with various artists, bands and record companies. One night, after a few rounds of drinks, the two decided to have a go at writing something together, and took some jazzy chords Josephine had been playing with and developed it into what would become their first track “Florescence”, which they released in May 2017. In the years since, they’ve recorded and released 14 more songs, their latest of which is “Starfish“, an exuberant acid jazz tune which dropped May 5th. Josephine and Neil are both big fans of English funk and acid jazz band Jamiroquai, whose influence is strongly evident in their music.
Like most of their songs, “Starfish” was co-written by Josephine and Neil. For the track’s recording, she played piano, Rhodes electric piano, strings and flute, while he played guitar, bass and drums. Neil also produced and engineered the track. As I mentioned at the beginning of this review, their songs incorporate an ever-changing mix of styles that make each one sound unique. Whereas their previous single “Eden” has a mellow jazz vibe, “Zomer” is breezy acid jazz, and “Before The Light Goes Out” is a soothing, contemplative piano ballad, “Starfish” has a more spirited dance-oriented feel, with a strong lively beat. Highlights for me are Josephine’s resonant piano keys, spirited strings and airy flute. Neil’s funky guitars and bass provide a wonderful, edgy counterpoint to the more classical-sounding strings and flute, yet complement both quite nicely. It’s a marvelous track.
Though my feelings about social media are conflicted and complicated – a sentiment I’m confident many others share – one of the things I do like about it is that it’s allowed me to connect with a lot of really talented musicians and bands. One I’m happy to know is NAVE, the solo music project of British singer-songwriter, composer and producer Nathan Evans. Incorporating a broad array of genres and styles, including alternative rock, electronica, trip-hop, ambient, orchestral and dark wave, the hyper-talented Bournemouth-based artist creates dramatic, incredibly compelling music that’s often atmospheric and gorgeous, but sometimes also harsh and disturbing. Nathan is a thoughtful guy who’s unafraid to tackle issues relating to social justice and mental health, calling out the incessant bullshit and hypocrisy we seem to be faced with on a daily basis.
A truly prolific songwriter, he’s released a staggering amount of music over the past 10 years, both as NAVE (also sometimes represented as Nave or N.A.V.E.) and as front man of alternative psychedelic rock band Native Tongue. He’s been on a creative tear since 2021, and from what I can tell, he dropped eight singles last year, including “Broken Record”, a hauntingly beautiful song decrying the addictive nature of social media and its negative impacts on our emotional well-being. I love it so much, it went all the way to #1 on my Top 30 chart and ranks #14 on my 100 Best Songs of 2022 list.
He’s continued to release lots of new music in 2023, and on February 19th, he dropped God’s Waiting Room, a monumental work which I believe is his first full-length album. The words “full-length” are a massive understatement, as the album contains a mind-boggling 31 tracks! Because of its daunting length, it was a few days before I was able to give it my full attention, but once I did, I was literally blown away! The word “masterpiece” is often overused and lightly awarded, but I can say with all certainty that in the case of God’s Waiting Room, it’s well-earned. Listening to this brilliant and stunning album is an immersive experience that takes us on a sonic journey through the many moods, ideas and emotions of NAVE’s creative mind.
In order to gain a bit of insight into his inspiration for creating such an epic work, I asked Nathan to answer a few questions, which he was more than eager to do. Here’s what we talked about:
EML: You’re an astonishingly prolific musician and composer Nathan, and I’m truly in awe of your tremendous output. Not only have you released an epic 31-track album, you’ve also recently released a number of other stand-alone songs. Where and how do you find your inspiration for all this music?
NAVE: First off, thank you for your continued support and kind words. You have been a true rare find in this shallow industry. The lack of camaraderie and true music lovers is scarce and we need more people like yourself who truly care about new music.
My 31 track album is a collection of songs and ideas spanning over 8 years to now. The majority of those songs were never intended to be released, but after going back and listening, I felt it was important because they carry so much emotion. I tend to release stand-alone songs that I spend a lot of time on and have that feeling of “oh this is a single”. The reason I called the album ‘Gods Waiting Room’ is because most of the songs aren’t singles, but more snapshots of moments in my life. What was going on and how I was feeling. I could imagine them all being played in a waiting room because they are so random and odd.
In answer to your question though, the honest response is I don’t know where and how I find the inspiration to have such a high output. Maybe I feel I have something to prove to myself and others who never believed in me. I was written off in school for having ADHD, and was medicated for 6 years with Ritalin so I always felt like an outcast. Maybe my subconscious wants to leave behind a large library of work that I feel is important. Maybe I’m on an autistic spectrum and I can’t stop jumping from one idea to the other, constantly trying to outdo myself and find my “smells like teen spirit” banger. Maybe I am trying to refine my tools and become the best I can be, which is very similar to the mentality I had when I was competing in trampolining from the age 5-11 and had to come 1st in all competitions. If I would come in 2nd ever, it would be crushing. I knew I had the magic and that has translated to music today
EML: Continuing on the theme of inspiration, some of the tracks on ‘God’s Waiting Room’ seem to have titles and/or lyrics dealing with self-assessment, mental health or personal well-being – e.g. “Jealous Little Bitch”, “Passive Aggressive”, “Son of a Rich Man”, “Computer Is My Friend” and “Kiss My Bad Side”. Are any of these songs autobiographical, or a means of addressing some inner demons or conflict?
NAVE: I find my songs either have a personal meaning, a message, or they don’t mean anything to me. Some tracks are blunt, some are cryptic, which means something to me, but to someone else interpreting them, it is completely different (which tends to happen often). Someone will tell me what my song means to them and I’ll be like “whoa, that’s not what I had in mind”. But I love that and it’s become clear from people’s comments that my music/lyrics creates imagery and causes multiple interpretations which I love.
For example, the songs you’ve mentioned. “Jealous Little Bitch” is an instrumental song, but made at a time when I was angry at certain people in my life and patterns of behaviour where I felt jealousy from “friends” or “family” instead of support and love. “Son of a Rich Man” was a dig at certain people that would never know the stress and uncertainty of having no money. They have an easy ride almost in a world where billionaires exist, and shouldn’t. I compare them to cartoon characters in a fairy tale paradise.
My track ‘Rose Tinted Glasses”, which was a stand alone release, was probably the most personal and therapeutic song I’ve ever written, about the loss of my Mum at 26. I put out a music video of it and I would cry every time I’d watch it. I’ve never had that with any song I’ve ever written and it addressed grief, anger and such sadness in me.
Another driving force isn’t so much facing inner demons but a feeling of obligation and duty to spread truth, love and light. Call out corruption, bullshit and lies. I made a tune called “blood thirsty billionaires” and made a video calling out certain people and shone a light on the ridiculous injustice and imbalance. It pisses me off that actors, musicians, sportsmen and whoever don’t use their platform enough to stand up to the lies we are fed everyday. The food we eat is full of harmful pesticides, the water we drink contains high levels of chlorine and the doctors don’t have our best interest at heart. They just read from a script or give us big pharma products. Cancer is 1 in 2 from the water, food and air, yet we freak out over a flu that mainly kills old and vulnerable people. We keep bending over to the government and accepting their lies and obeying without thinking for ourselves and truly questioning. Can you tell I am passionate about all this stuff. Can you see maybe why I make so much music lol?
EML: You certainly have a lot to say!When recording your songs as a solo artist, do you play and record all the music yourself? And besides the piano as your primary instrument, accompanied by what I’m guessing are lots of programmed synths, what other instruments do you play?
NAVE: Yeah, I mostly use the keyboard to write in synths, then programme and edit the drums. Then I finally add vocals. The vocals are always hit and miss. Sometimes they come quick and other times its a slog. I focus on the beat, atmosphere, melody and bass to create a vibe and if it makes me feel something, I quickly know whether to spend more time or move on. There always comes a time when I produce where that moment happens. Its like a magic. A transition occurs when the song comes to life and its amazing. I play drums, piano, guitar, bass and hope to learn the violin one day. I tried once and was terrible. The noise was so bad, I was unable to persist. So big respect to you violin players out there. You truly have to crawl through thorns and stinging nettles to reach the roses.
EML: With 31 amazing tracks, you could have broken them up into two or even three separate albums. Why the decision to include them all in one monumental album?
NAVE: I had considered that, but it felt they were all from a chapter in my life and belonged together. It also shows my progression till now and it was appealing to release a large body of work, particularly under such a poignant album title.
EML: That certainly makes sense. What other musicians or bands do you consider primary influences for your music?
NAVE: I ingested a lot of music as a teenager, but over the years I tend to stay away from listening to music as I find it better to be naive and not influenced by others’ music. The more music I listen to, the more chance I might feel I am copying them or “I cant do that because that sounds like that” if you know what I mean? But obviously Radiohead, Nirvana, Queens Of The Stone Age, Muse, BRMC, UNKLE, Jose Gonzalez, Deftones, Limp Bizkit, Morcheeba, Moby were big influences. Our bass player in my band Native Tongue is a music freak so he shows me a lot of new music and one track in particular that blew me away recently and inspired me to write my track “CONNIFER” is the track “NOT” by Big Thief. Incredible song.
EML: Is there anything I’ve neglected to ask that you’d like people to know about yourself or your music?
NAVE: I have struggled not finding the audience I was hoping to. It hurts when I put my heart and soul into these songs and I can’t reach anyone new or build my fan base, no matter how hard I try. I feel I’m finally coming to peace with that and doing this because I love it, not for people’s validation. My main drive has always been to reach people, and its been a painful road reaching so few people and not building that fan base I hoped for. Obviously there is still time but if it never happens, then fuck it. I still touched you and others, and devoted myself to an outlet which has kept me sane for so many years. Without it, I may not even be here now to answer these questions.
So my final thing to say is to everyone out there, do what makes you happy and try not to seek happiness externally. Think for yourself and question authority. We have been boxed up like objects and we are still treated like slaves working long hours for no money. It doesn’t have to be this way. Seek the truth within yourself and the world will open up like a flower. Independent thought. Love yourself and be kind to others.
Thank you Jeff. You are a star.
EML: Thank YOU Nathan for taking the time to answer my questions, and for all your incredible music. Hopefully, this review and interview will bring you at least a few more fans.
Okay, let’s get to God’s Waiting Room, shall we? Because it contains so many tracks – all of which are outstanding – I won’t be doing my usual track-by-track discussion, as it would take me forever and besides, no one would read it all! Instead, I’ll touch on my favorites, as well as some of the more fascinating and impactful tracks. Of the album’s 31 offerings, 17 are instrumentals, whereas 14 feature lyrics and vocals of some kind or another.
On the unsettling opening track “The Speaker“, NAVE talk-sings in a mysterious whispered voice “Why do you listen to the speaker? Isn’t that, in listening to the speaker, you’re listening to yourself? Is that what is taking place? The speaker is only pointing something out. Acting as a mirror in which you only see yourself. Your own state of mind. Your own consciousness. And if at the end of these talks, you say to yourself ‘I have not changed’, why, it is your fault.” Though I didn’t ask him, my guess is that the song set the overall tone for the album, also serving as a kind of introduction.
As the album unfolds, each new track brings a different mood and vibe, keeping it sounding fresh and holding our attention. The second track “Sleepy Head” is a darkly beautiful instrumental featuring a mesmerizing trip hop groove and rather spooky string synths. And speaking of spooky, “White Witch” is downright chilling as NAVE drones “Never again, will you and I suffer.Never again, will the world go by unnoticed” against a mysterious cinematic backdrop that would make a great opening for a horror film.
Several instrumental tracks, like “Into the Abyss“, “Twilight Zone” and “Watch It Unfold“, are atmospheric and beautiful, with haunting piano movements, sparkling synths and cinematic strings. One of my favorites is the stunning “Linda’s Song“, with its vibrant piano keys, soaring strings and pleasing guitar chords. I also love “Jealous Little Bitch“, with its gorgeous violin notes and eerie synths layered over an assertive skittering beat.
Another favorite (on an album full of favorites) is “Passive Aggressive“, with its trippy hip hop groove, highlighted by menacing industrial synths sprinkled here and there with twinkling little touches that keep the song from sounding too heavy and dark. NAVE does a great job rapping the wonderful lyrics about an encounter with an unpleasant receptionist at a medical appointment: “Walk in the door, time for my appointment. Ignored by a lady unhappy in employment. Making me wait for a good few minutes. Grittin’ my teeth, pushed to the limit. I calm myself, instant reflection dealing with this middle-aged bitch on reception. Stay strong, try not to break. Refrain from explaining, I’m here cuz my balls ache. I’ve come a long way, massive obsessive, passive aggressive.“
“Swim Away With Me” is so quietly majestic and beautiful, it brings tears to my eyes. Then, abruptly changing the mood with “Millions of Wilfully Ignorant Sleepwalkers“, he skillfully uses a droning melody and rather ghostly, dream-like synths to convey a sense of people moving through life like zombies, seemingly unaware of their surroundings. The darkly beautiful “Breath With Me” has a strong Radiohead vibe, thanks in large part to the beguiling falsetto by appropriately-named guest vocalist Ethereal, which seems to channel Thom Yorke.
The terrific “Son of a Rich Man” is a languid and bluesy, guitar-driven song that NAVE touched on earlier as being a dig at people born with a silver spoon in their mouths. I love the pointed lyrics: “I don’t know who I am anymore. In fact, I don’t think I ever did. I’m indecisive, with hindsight bias. Sure, the grass could always be greener./ But who knows, paradise could just be a fairly tale, only fit for cartoon characters and billionaires. Maybe I should make a plan, or wait to reincarnate as the son of a rich man.”
One of the most beautiful tracks on the album is “Infinite Ground“, where NAVE’s dreamy echoed vocals meld so perfectly with the delicate acoustic guitar notes, it nearly takes my breath away. The unusual “Tashi Delek” is a dark song, featuring a strong trip hop beat, deep bass and harsh industrial synths, punctuated by contrasting delicate xylophone sounds. NAVE’s otherworldly vocals add to the song’s edgy vibe as he wails “I looked at your face. I couldn’t help but stare. I got you on my mind. There ain’t nothing wrong. Just a slip of the tongue. Can you feel my pain? And I miss you.”
The album closes with the contemplative piano piece “My Goodbye“, a beautiful and fitting end to this exquisite work of musical art. I’ve probably listened to God’s Waiting Room more than 15 times, and it manages to reveal new sounds, textures and meanings each time I hear it. I love this album, and hope at least some of my readers will appreciate and enjoy it too.
I seem to be on an electronic music kick lately, and today I’m pleased to present another artist making interesting and innovative music in that broad genre – Los Angeles-based John Rojas. The singer-songwriter, engineer, producer and multi-instrumentalist has been a fixture on the L.A. music scene for more than a decade as part of techno-punk band MACHINEKIT (originally founded as Dharma in 2012), whose 2022 album I AM JACK’S LONELY HEARTCLUB BAND I reviewed nearly a year ago, as well as his work with the bands La Bella, Brainfreeze and Badmouth. He created his own recording studio MachineHouse Audio in 2020, and if all that’s not enough, he’s also a terrific writer who does reviews for the website Tourworthy.
In late 2022, Rojas decided to start recording music as a solo artist, and released a two track electronic instrumental EP IN THE THICK OF IT last December. Now he returns with his second EP Amongst The Glass Trees, featuring four new electronic tracks in which he further explores his love for electronics and composition, creating a raw sense of overwhelming tension in the process. As I alluded to earlier, he’s a talented wordsmith with a gift for describing his music in much greater detail and with more colorful language than I possibly could, so I’ll simply quote his own words about the new EP:
“The sequential trip across the instrumental tracks needs no vocals to convey their lyrical and poetic content as the dark ambient tones submit to elegant arpeggiations layered over earworm bass throbs, and succumb to minimalist piano hiding underneath the skittering programmed beats. This EP is split into four-parts as it embraces vicious modalities that indirectly illustrate the fundamental theme of confusion. The only semblance of the subject is the name of each track that surreptitiously creates one elaborate, yet ambiguous sentence to pose as animated thesis. This four-piece epic is an ambivalent mood changer that non-verbally tells the tale of a lonely man lost within the chaos of fake love, while being influenced by his own skepticism and vanity.”
The EP opens with the title track, which starts off tentatively, slowly building with a subtle throbbing synth bass groove overlain with glitches and bleeps, accompanied by occasional gentle guitar strums. At around two minutes, they’re joined by more pronounced sharp percussive sounds as the track evolves into a fully-formed, dissonant soundscape of otherworldly synths, snappy drumbeats and wobbly bass. Late in the track, the music turns more melodic with the addition of haunting piano keys as we transition into “Inside The Rabbit Hole”. A gentle pulsating groove ensues, punctuated by distant horn-like sounds and occasional jarring blasts of harsh alarm-like sounds, giving a sense of impending danger ahead. Halfway into the track, the tempo increases to a near-frantic pace as the industrial synths become darker and more harsh. Everything comes to a dramatic climax as Rojas adds a heavy percussive EDM beat for the final minute of the track.
The third and fourth tracks – “Lovers Paradise Is” and “An Ocean Full of Brains” – are a sort of couplet with a strong Nine Inch Nails vibe. “Lovers Paradise Is” starts off with a quick, head-bopping beat overlain with more of those trippy glitches and bleeps, which are eventually joined by hypnotic pulsating synths that lend a sense of urgency to the proceedings. Around the three-minute mark, some lovely keyboard synths are added as the tempo calms a bit. The music immediately segues into “An Ocean Full of Brains”, which has a more relaxed, introspective vibe, though the glitchy reverb, ominous synths and rather unsettling piano keys still convey an edgy undercurrent. Halfway into the track, the tempo increases to a EDM dance beat as the droning, glitchy synths continue. The tempo calms down in the final minute of the track as the music gradually fades away, leaving us feeling relieved yet still somewhat uneasy.
With Amongst The Glass Trees, John Rojas has created a darkly beautiful and brilliant little masterpiece. In its 20-minute-long run time, he takes us through a sonic journey that’s both beautiful and bleak, filled with an arresting array of sounds and textures to startle our senses and waken our imagination.
The EP artwork was designed by longtime collaborator, graphic designer Jaydee Perales at Wire Mark Design Studio.
Rebel Tramp is the music project of Bob Prince, an imaginative songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist based in Petaluma, California, a bucolic city north of San Francisco. Playing guitar, bass and keyboards, he creates his own unique sound by weaving together elements of blues, hard rock, psychedelic rock and electronic music. In a great interview last August with Marc Schuster for his Abominations blog, Rebel Tramp commented on the vast array of artists who influence his sound: “I’ve played in lots of blues bands and have a huge blues influence. BB king, Albert King, Mike Bloomfield on and on. Also, Hendrix, Jaco Pastorius, John Coltrane, Any Jazz Fusion from the 70’s, Metallica, and Sound Garden are probably my biggest influences.”
In addition to Rebel Tramp, Prince has also collaborated with several other artists, as well as being involved in another music project Amplitude & Frequency, which includes British musician SD Charlton on vocals and Taylor Allum on drums. Together, they put out an EP Urban Frequencies last June.
On February 3rd, Rebel Tramp released his latest EP Intra Dimensional Frequencies, and let me just say that’s it’s a psychedelic trip on steroids! He wrote the EP last year for the Lights And Lines Album Writing Club, a community event in which more than 50 artists signed up for the challenge of writing and recording an album or EP in a month. The brain child of Brighton, UK-based Mike Five, a guitarist, podcaster, and curator of the Off The Record Independent Music Festival, Lights And Lines is a music collective and independent record label whose mission is “to share new and exciting music from the underground with music lovers everywhere.”
Rebel Tramp decided to take part in the competition to – in his own words – “be my weirdest self“, and Intra Dimensional Frequencies was the result. The EP depicts a phantasmagorical songwriting journey, overflowing with wild experimentation and reflecting a strong desire to expand his creative boundaries to their fullest. Well, he achieved that and quite a bit more. Intra Dimensional Frequencies went on to win ‘Best EP’ in the competition, and was later released through the Lights And Lines label.
Most of the tracks are instrumental-only, with sci-fi themed titles like “Deep Space Blues”, “Intergalactic Spies”, “Robotic Fantasy” and “Funky Jupiter”. The lone track with vocals is “Deep Space Blues“, where Rebel Tramp reminds me a bit of Dan Auerbach (of The Black Keys and The Arcs), as he sings “There’s a place in deep space, where the roses are red./ I’m gonna sing my blues away.” Musically, the track is a languid bluesy number highlighted by a dramatic mix of tortured psychedelic riffs, gnarly blues guitar runs, sharp percussion and feedback-infused synths.
“Intergalactic Spies” sounds like it was recorded at a jam session in heaven between Albert King, Frank Zappa and Jimi Hendrix. Rebel Tramp’s double-barreled fusillade of wobbly blues and screaming psychedelic guitars are truly a thing of wonder, layered over a bed of crushing bass and accompanied by smashing drumbeats. “Robotic Fantasy” lives up to its title, with droning industrial synths, discordant guitars, electronically-generated and otherworldly robot-like vocal sounds, and an abundance of snappy drums and crashing cymbals.
On “Funky Jupiter“, Rebel Tramp uses a colorful mix of skittering keyboards, wobbly guitar notes, funky bass, assertive percussion and lots of fuzzy reverb to create a somewhat chaotic soundscape, though he ends things on a gentle, atmospheric note in the outro. “Same Channel” is perhaps the most melodic of all the tracks, with a wonderful soulful groove, highlighted by glittery spacy synths and dual funky and bluesy guitars layered over an assertive drumbeat.
The final track “Wavetashia“, which was the first single released in advance of the EP, is described by Rebel Tramp as “a psychedelic, blues rock electronic rollercoaster we ‘must be this tall to ride‘”. The powerful combination of crunchy synths, wailing psychedelic guitars, deep throbbing bass, snappy drums and otherworldly female vocals create a euphoric and trippy soundscape. The video he created for the track, using royalty-free video clips from Cottonbros, Koolshooters and Pavel Danilyuk, shows an array of glamorous people getting lost in the music being spun by a DJ.
Intra Dimensional Frequencies is a superb EP, and a testament to the impressive creativity, imagination and skillful musicianship of Bob Prince – aka Rebel Tramp. I’m confident we’ll be hearing more great, innovative musical creations from him in the future.
ECLECTIC MUSIC LOVER 