Singer/songwriter Ariel Arbisser’s music and performances make her audiences feel seen, heard, and offers a unique glimpse into how she experiences the highs and lows of the world. Her music is raw and passionate, a brand of pop that you won’t find in other artists.
She just released her new electro-pop single, with a hint of funk, “Rabbit Hole,” the follow up single to her last release “Bloodshed.” “The core of this song came to me last year and it’s had a chokehold on me since,” shares Ariel. “Thematically there’s some crossover, but ‘Rabbit Hole’ comes down from the rage-filled fever pitch of ‘Bloodshed’ to this which is a more restrained, sexy, slow-burn. Things haven’t settled yet. The ‘dark side’ is still enticing, maybe even more comfortable than it was before. The full song sonically is true, addictive journey downward.”
“Rabbit Hole” has a contemporary meets retro electro-pop sound, almost like a Sara Bareilles meets Harry Styles. Her voice carries such strength, similar to an Alice Russell or Brandi Carlile, or even an Adele.
Through her lens as a white, Jewish, queer woman, she is transparent when learning out loud and participates in ongoing conversations about mental health, body neutrality, sex positivity, social and racial justice, LGBTQ rights, and more. In a world that’s dangerous for far too many and uncomfortable for almost everyone, she creates a touchstone by creating art, appreciating simple pleasures, and taking dedicated and intentional risks for love.
“With love comes inevitable pain– miscommunication, betrayal, heartache, loss… Allowing yourself to be vulnerable enough to experience love, however briefly, is brave. And it’s worth it in the end.”
The Portland, OR-based band, Happy For No Reason, celebrate every single one of life’s precious moments as two of their members are literally happy to be alive. Comprising of Jo Alexis on vocals and percussion, Neil Goldstein on guitar, and Mark Pritchard on flute, the founding members of Happy For No Reason navigate the rich waters of jazzy folk with a pinch of rock, a dash of soul, and even a touch of Bossa Nova.
They just released their album, Take It Higher, a collection of 12 songs that ooze love and life. Each song makes you smile, gets you dancing with the beat, and swaying with their infectious melodies.
Their song “Hummingbird Heartbeat” was actually written by Jo Alexis about a major accident she had. While her vocals soar in every song, something about the delicacy and strength in her voice for “Hummingbird Heartbeat” puts the song on a higher plain. It’s about forced changed and the ability to adapt to the obstacles of life.
With a variety of inspirations that include Hubert Laws, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Ian Andersen, Eva Cassidy, Esperanza Spalding, Camille, Joe Strummer, Bonnie Raitt, Nancy King, Kurt Elling, Milton Nascimento, The Band, Pentangle and Neil’s aforementioned love of 60’s Brit pop and West Coast bands, Happy For No Reason are the very definition of cool intelligent music that fulfils dreams. Embrace their happiness and let them Take It Higher.
Brazil’s biggest artist and internationally acclaimed DJ Alok, known for colossal collaborations with John Legend, Jason Derulo, Tove Lo, and most recently Ella Eyre for the #1 sound of the Summer “Deep Down,” has joined forces with multiplatinum singer/songwriter Ellie Goulding and British DJ/ProducerSigala to release their irresistible new track, “All by Myself.” The dance pop anthem brings the timeless sample of Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy The Silence,” who were notably impressed with the final result of the song and gave it the honor of its first clearance to be released; available on all digital streaming platforms HERE.
A rarity and an honor, Depeche Mode gave Alok, Sigala, and Ellie Goulding the first green light ever to use their “Enjoy The Silence” sample. The sample is used in the drop of “All by Myself,” which concentrates all the elements, including Goulding’s glossy vocals and Alok and Sigala’s flawless production, into a smash hit for the Fall season. The holy grail of samples, Alok wanted to use it with the respect the song deserves, and all artists are very pleased with the outcome, turning this release into a top priority for all.
Brazilian superstar, voted #4 DJ in the world by DJ Mag with a remarkable 70 million social media followers, music producer and philanthropist Alok is best known for global hit singles like “Hear Me Now” and his chart topping remix of MEDUZA’s “Piece of Your Heart,” for which he won “Best Remix” at the 2020 International Dance Music Awards. Alok was recently in New York city to launch his remarkable climate change partnership with the United Nations’ Global Compact and the Alok Institute. “The Future Is Ancestral” project helped kickoff New York’s Climate Change Week with a series of informative, international panels and a historic first-ever performance on the rooftop of the United Nations headquarters. Alok’s newest track “Deep Down” simultaneously hit #1 on Billboard’s Dance chart and is still climbing the streaming charts.
“It was a pleasure to work with Ellie and Sigala on this track and such a huge honor that the electronic music pioneers Depeche Mode liked it enough to give us the legendary “Enjoy The Silence” sample and let us officially release it. We are all so thrilled with how it came out!” – Alok
Ellie Goulding’s empowering vocals have made her a world-renowned artist and have led her to win such accolades as “Best British Female Solo Artist.” Goulding has become one of UK’s best-selling female artists with over twenty-three Top 40 singles, including three number ones. Her biggest single “Love Me Like You Do” quickly climbed the U.K. charts to number one and has over 2.2 billion views on YouTube. Her fearless and ethereal vocals have made her the go-to artist for top charting collaborations with artists such as Calvin Harris, Diplo and Big Sean. The pop superstar also sang at the Royal Wedding Reception for Princess Kate Middleton and Prince William. Her latest album Brightest Blue became her fourth RIAA certified Platinum album. Recently, Ellie performed at The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon with her new single Easy Lover feat Big Sean.
“It was such an incredible experience to work with Alok and Sigala on this new track – they’re both such unique and amazing artists and coming together was a delight. I hope this song gives people the self-love and power that I felt when writing it. We need to make sure we’re loving and taking care of ourselves so we can receive the same from those around us.” – Ellie Goulding
Uniquely renowned for his cheerful dance-pop sound, UK-based DJ and producer Sigala has made a name for himself as one of the most played British DJs on UK radio. Sigala burst onto the scene with his single Easy Love, a Jackson 5 sampled track that has over 150 million views on YouTube, which quickly topped the U.K. singles chart at number one. Sigala continued to release blazing bright tunes with artists such as Hailee Steinfeld, Craig David and Paloma Faith earning him over seven platinum singles, nine gold singles and ten million worldwide sales. In 2018, Sigala released his highly anticipated debut album Brighter Days, featuring collaborations with Kylie Minogue, Sean Paul, and Meghan Trainor among others. Sigala’s album became the highest charting dance album of 2018 and received the honor of a BRIT certified Silver certification.
“Such a pleasure to work with such talented individuals, I’ve been wanting to work with Ellie for a while so it’s great to finally collaborate” – Sigala
Following the recent release ofhis highly-anticipated, thirteen track, audio-visual debut album DRMVRSE , LA-based producer, DJ, and label owner NGHTMRE has just released his fourth and most cinematic music video of the album yet, which is available now on YouTube HERE. Combining his tracks “Fear” and “Love,” the video masterfully depicts an otherworldly experience with the combination of beautiful, psychotropic effects and detailed visual storytelling that further entrench us into the world of DRMVRSE.
Set in a dreamlike alternate dimension, we follow our two leads, Julien and Dani, in an adrenaline-filled space chase. Piloting their manta-shaped craft with desperate finesse, they outmaneuver their multiple assailants in tentacled space crafts and engage in battle, blasting away one pursuant after the other. Diving into the maws of a gargantuan space creature, they are suddenly teleported to the extraterrestrial throne room of a godly being who cryptically announces “Fear is not real. It can only exist in our minds when we think of what lies ahead…Fear is a choice,” and with these words, “Fear” ends and “Love” begins.
Waking up back into reality, the chase continues; this time no longer just in their dreams. The two navigate a maze of industrial crates, once again fighting the private militia from a corporation we now identify as Treadsoft, but as enemy reinforcements start rolling in, the two soon realize that they’re fighting a losing battle. In an attempt to escape, they take to the skies, only to be shot down by our lead villain, Dr. Midnight, via cosmic railgun. Crash landed and with nowhere else to turn, the two embrace and accept their fate together, whatever that may be.
Created over the past four years, NGHTMRE’s debut full-length album DRMVRSE is a masterfully cohesive fictional anthology involving a Neurotech company named Treadsoft that discovers a sonic frequency called Unsound, which leads one through gateways to other physical planes of existence, known as the “DRMVRSE.” Add in portal jumping and epic battles seen via eight long form music video vignettes and you have one of the most imaginative and sonically pristine audio-visual, psychedelic-sci fi album experiences of the year. “Fear & Love” combines tracks ten and eleven from the album and marks the fourth of NGHTMRE’s cinematic videos to be released; the other three being the project’s lead single, “Fall Into Me” with SLANDER featuring Dylan Matthew, its guitar-led emotional second single, “The One” with KLAXX, and its third high octane trap single, “Trials” featuring Maryland rapper IDK.
Ford Photographs – Nashville Architectural Photographer
Josiah Mann is the indie singer/songwriter who’s driven by passion and perfectionism. This is evident right off the bat in his debut single “Angel,” from his forthcoming debut album, Grace. He has an Ed Sheeran and John Mayer quality to his music with that sweet acoustic sound and smooth vocals. The song bursts with new-romance euphoria and the lyrics here poetically hopeful.
The video for “Angel” depicts the message of the song: a love story. He shares the story in the first minute and a half of the video of how he met his first girlfriend. The rest of the video goes on to show a young couple, a younger Josiah and his girlfriend, on a date and falling in love.
We got a chance to speak with Josiah about his video. Let’s dive in:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically in this way?
The music video is literally the actual story of the song. I wrote this song 15 years ago for my girlfriend after our first date. A couple weeks later I recorded the song and then gave it to her for Valentine’s day!
What was the inspiration behind this video?
We wanted to match the visuals to the lyrics of the song. It was important to me that we captured some of the lyrics like “then we watched the stars” by showing a couple watching the stars together outside.
What was the process of making this video?
We booked a great location in Nashville to film at this beautiful wedding venue / barn. We were thinking about having me play the younger version of myself, but a few days before the shoot we decided to hire actors instead. We found two great actors and working with them made the process even more fun. It was super cool and trippy to see this recreation of a real thing that happened in my life so long ago!
Growing up in the backwoods of Kentucky, a county that is consistently listed in the country’s top 10 poorest, Zach Day would skip the bus and teach friends and family to sing in close knit, three part harmony and play the guitar. With a deep love for folk, R&B and pop music with smart lyrics with voices that tell stories, he became enthralled with music and began his pursuit of it.
Working with Canadian radio top charting producer Alex ‘Pilzbury’ Vujic, Zach penned his debut single “If It Kills Me.” Mixed by JUNO Award winner Jason Dufour, this song hits close to home for those who struggle in relationships, often reflecting on their own insecurities. Boasting acoustic instruments and a 50’s vibe with an exhilarating vocal performance, “If It Kills Me” is written about the struggle to let go.
Modern Mystery 
You must be logged in to post a comment.