Last night belonged to Ashley Arrison as she performed to a sold out crowd at Nashville’s 12th & Porter. The party served a duel function, to celebrate the release of Hearts on Parade, her first full-length album, as well to celebrate her very own birthday.
The bill included the who’s who of Nashville’s young singer-songwriters club including the incredibly talented Shane McAnally, who co-wrote numerous songs with Ms. Arrison for Hearts on Parade, the ultra cool bass-wielding Rachel Loy, and the peppy Jill and Kate, who double as background singers for Kelly Clarkson.
Ms. Arrison made the songs from Hearts on Parade come to life backed by a full band which included the album’s producers Chad Copeland and Aben Eubanks. The singer kicked off her set with “Winter” followed by “Favorite Thing,” a solid 1-2 punch to warm up the crowd. She then sang “You’re Gone,” one of my favorite songs off her EP Talking Circles, while concluding the song with a little mashup of Justin Timberlake’s “Dead and Gone.”
About midway through her performance, Ms. Arrison dismissed her band and launched into a beautiful acoustic set, which truly showcased her vocals. This type of intimate setting where she’s only backed by an acoustic guitar suits her best as she projected confidence and poise with just enough vulnerability while she connected with her audience. She must’ve felt the love in the room as an impromptu sing-a-long occurred thanks to her cover of Oasis’ “Wonderwall.” (more…)
What do we say about Ashley Arrison that we haven’t already said in the last 12 months? All the talk, all the promise, all the hype we’ve fed you has led to this moment – the release of her debut full-length album Hearts on Parade. And she delivers, captivating her audience from the album opener, “Trying To Help You Out,” featuring Kelly Clarkson on background vocals, to its lullaby-esque closer, “Breathing.”
Hearts on Parade plays like a musical journal thanks to mixture of autobiographical elements and imaginative lyrics in each song that are representative of the ups and downs Ms. Arrison has faced in life, making the album truly authentic and easy to relate to on multiple levels.
Indie rockers The Dig are set to release their debut album, Electric Toys, on June 8th (pre-order here). The band has their sights set on bringing catchy power pop songs to masses. If you happen to live in or around the Manhattan area, The Dig would like to cordially invite you to attend their album release party, this Saturday, June 5th at the Mercury Lounge. You can purchase tickets to the party by visiting Mercury Lounge’s official site.
Are you a fan of The Dig, but don’t live in the NY-Metro area? Don’t fret. We have something special for you too. We’re giving away a copy of the band’s debut album Electric Toys right here.
To Enter:
1. Tell us why you deserve the The Dig’s Electric Toys CD.
2. Be sure to fill out the Name and Email fields in the comment area so we can reach you if you win!!
Yup, it’s THAT simple.
ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED UNTIL June 6th @ 7PM EST
Note: Contest limited to North American residents.
It seems Rihanna is ready to focus solely on her upcoming album, Rated-R, after a week long media blitz, which capped off with a full interview with Diane Sawyer on 20/20 last Friday. She’s now teaming up with Nokia to live stream her album release party from London on November 16th. The singer will also take the stage to perform some of her newest songs.
In conjunction with the online party, Nokia is releasing its new X6 smartphone, which is packed with Nokia’s new Comes With Music features. Comes With Music allows you to download as many tunes as you want to your Nokia device with a 12-month membership. Additionally, if you sign up to watch Rihanna’s release party online, you’ll get special access to an exclusive version of Rated-Rwith bonus tracks. You can enter to win tickets to attend the exclusive party by visiting Nokia’s site.
Last night, Chris Garneau hosted a CD release party for his new album, El Radio, at Le Poisson Rouge here in NYC. I was one of the lucky few who was treated to an intimate performance by Garneau, which included cuts from the new album including “
No More Pirate
s,” “Fireflies,” “The Leaving Song” and “Over and Over.”
If you’re unfamiliar with Garneau, the easiest way to describe his sound is by calling him the male Fiona Apple. He’s a pint-sized (seriously tiny) musician with pure power vocals whose songs tend to air on the side of misery, regret and of course being an outsider. Throughout the performance Garneau looked incredibly nervous, but managed to try his hand at some witty stage banter, which he pulled off albeit at times awkwardly — much like Fiona Apple does.
The setting was dark with minimal lighting. The crowd was rarely treated to a front-facing Garneau who (perhaps) deliberately requested his piano to be angled just right – so that the bulk of the crowd would see nothing more than a profile view.
We started as a three friends having conversations about music during lunches together at the office. Since then we have expanded to seven members, including a Chi-town native, and the conversations have gotten bigger and better. The Round Table has grown into a casual setting where music aficionados can gather to discuss all things music. Topics include (but not limited to) artists and bands, new music releases, concerts, recording industry news and concerns, and the occasional nugget of entertainment gossip. We have tastes that cover the entire music spectrum and love to share them (and our opinions) with each other. We are The Round Table! Come join the conversation!
