The latest musing from LA-based singer/songwriter Stephen Jaymes is the upbeat folk rock single “Tokyo.” Following his impressive debut with “Chief Inspector,” Stephen Jaymes continues to reveal his artistic prowess and ability to craft music that resonates deeply with the soul.
“Tokyo” is just the second in a series of four singles that pave the way for Stephen Jaymes’ debut full-length album. His songs are a search for truth and authenticity, crafting a sonic landscape that refuses to tell big lies but explores the profound depths of human experience. It’s a knock on the window of reality, beckoning listeners to join him on a journey to a magical place that two people create together, even in the face of climate destruction.
From the moment “Tokyo” starts, its rousing guitar riff sets the tone for an invigorating experience. However, this Tokyo isn’t the Japanese city we know but a metaphorical place of transcendence between two people. It’s an escape from the apocalyptic scenes that pervade consciousness, a mythical name from a pre-apocalyptic past. As the singer invites his lover to go there with him, the song feels like a glimpse into a hopeful future.
Stephen Jaymes’ music is a compelling mix of punk poetry, wounded-romanticism, and sonic noir. He weaves intricate narratives reminiscent of Charles Bukowski while infusing his work with psychedelic and introspective elements. His ability to capture the essence of emotion and storytelling makes “Tokyo” a captivating and thought-provoking experience for listeners.
As a self-contained artist, Stephen showcases his multi-talented abilities as a songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. His music exudes the stylish playfulness of Prince, with clever turns of phrases and occasional funk influences, while also channeling the stateliness and mystique of Leonard Cohen.
With his unique blend of folk rock and poetic lyricism, Stephen Jaymes’ “Tokyo” is an exciting glimpse into the talent of this rising star in the music industry.
Deirdre Murphy’s “Sweet and Strong” is a neo-folk gem that captures the magic and exhilaration of falling in love. The song’s heartfelt lyrics and warm, summery vibes create a sense of expansiveness and wonder, akin to the feeling of the golden hour when everything appears vibrant and full of possibility.
The song’s simple yet satisfying groove lays the foundation for the delicate percussion and sweet harmonies that weave together seamlessly. The addition of the striking cello adds a layer of depth and emotion, elevating the song to a truly captivating experience. The instrumentation, expertly produced and engineered by Oli Ryan, strikes the perfect balance between folk-inspired elements and an alt/indie sensibility.
But the real standout centerpiece of the song is Deirdre Murphy’s vocals. Her voice is light and carries a warmth similar to that of Moriarty meets Ani DiFranco. Her poetic and wordplay-filled lyrics add to the song’s charm and authenticity, making it easy for listeners to connect with the emotions she conveys.
As a musician and interdisciplinary artist, Deirdre’s background in various performance genres shines through in her music. Her passion for dance and the body, combined with her skills as a guitarist and ukulele player, creates a unique and captivating musical experience.
“Sweet and Strong” is a demonstration of Deirdre Murphy’s artistic versatility and her ability to craft songs that resonate deeply with listeners. It’s a neo-folk masterpiece that showcases her talent as both a songwriter and performer.
With its enchanting melodies and heartfelt lyrics, “Sweet and Strong” leaves a lasting impression and a smile on the faces of its listeners. Deirdre Murphy’s musical journey is one to watch, and her ability to capture the essence of love and life through her music is a true gift to the music world.
Irish alt rock artist Tadgh Billy King’s (pronounced like “Tiger” without the “er”) earliest memories are of literally living above a beloved New York City music venue, The Local 269, his parent’s owned and operated. During that formative time, he soaked in the rock, punk, jazz, and pop that soundtracked the bar’s existence.
This melting pot of sounds would be a template for his own unbound musical explorations where he often explored the music of the Ramones, Green Day, and Nirvana, alongside studying classical vocal and guitar techniques.
The self-reflective and introspective post punk and alt goth “mirror” is at once ethereal and chaotic, brash and sweet. Filled with chilling guitar ambience, goth-y, thick baritone vocals, and crushing walls of sound, it all leads up to a viscerally anthemic, gazy, wild, final chorus.
The music video reflects the darker, more gothic style of the song. He plays with angles and mirrors to symbolize his internal examination and self-reflection.
We got a chance to speak with Tadgh about the music video for “mirror”:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically inthis way.
Mirror is a song about self reflection. Its me taking a second to examine myself and take stock. At the time of writing it I was looking at where I’d come from, where I am now and how I’ve changed as a person over the last few years. I wanted the video to take the song further in this direction. With the visuals, I wanted to really lean into the goth rock-y style of the music and the introspective meaning behind the lyrics. I wanted to keep everything looking as dark and moody as possible to match the moodiness of the song.
What was the inspiration behind this video (visuals, storyline, etc.)?
I’ve always really liked when artists are able to tell a larger story over a few different music videos. Even if its just a small easter egg or connection between their videos, I always appreciate it. I’m trying something like that with these videos and mirror, like “sit and wait,” is one piece of a larger story that will become clearer as more videos of mine come out.
I wanted this video to feel like a weird dream. I wanted to go a little deeper with this idea of self reflection and examination. This is where the visuals of me with my reflection come in. I wanted it to feel like I was stuck in this liminal space and by filming it on black it allowed me to play around with angles and have me really “examine” myself. I’ve also always been interested in playing around with the idea of reality and how dreams can sometimes feel so real it can sometimes really take a second to discern what’s a genuine memory of something that happened in real life and what’s a memory of a dream.
What was the process of making this video?
There were two main shoots for this video. The first shoot was done in a rehearsal studio here in Dublin that has these big floor to ceiling windows. We hung up some black material and filmed me standing next to the mirror at different angles singing the song and a few takes of me playing some of the guitar parts. Then the second shoot was me in the car. I chose some visually interesting locations around Dublin for me to get in and out of the car and then drove around the city shooting me from the back seat looking into the rearview mirror and the front seat.
I really wanted to play with what was real and what was the dream to try and give a sense that by the end of the video, when I get out of the car, its hard to tell if I’m still dreaming or not. Most of that came down to the editing process. This is the part of the process where I was really able to experiment with the different “mirror-on-black” angles and what meaning and feeling they give depending on the orientation. The car shots were pretty easy to edit, I could visualise what I wanted for them from the beginning of planning the video and was really pleased with how they turned out lighting-wise as that was just a complete luck of the draw.
It was a fun video to make. There will be another one for my next single “breathe out” that will come soon after the single is released on the 21st of July.
Boston’s Best Not Broken has built a reputation for high energy shows and catchy, power pop/rock original songs. Drawing from Brit Pop, Alternative Rock, New Wave, and their own unique brand of singer-songwriter sensibility, the band crafts soundscapes that appeal to fans of artists ranging from The Killers to Ed Sheeran.
Their thoughtful and, at times amusing, lyrics match the upbeat nature of the instrumentation, creating a fresh musical odyssey that is infectiously fun. Their live performances showcase the band’s contagious energy and often evolve into interactive dance parties where the onstage antics compel fans to rock out and let loose.
Their new song “I Don’t Belong,” and the video, explores adolescence and finding where you belong. It’s a tribute to those that never quite fit in in high school, but ultimately find their way. It’s also tribute to the many aspiring rock stars that never quite make it but have a treasure trove of memories to look back on.
We got the chance to speak with Best Not Broken about their fun and relatable video for “I Don’t Belong”:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically in this way?
The song “I Don’t Belong” is a satire of a boy who graduates in the 90s, doesn’t align fully with any particular clique, dreams of being a rock star, but turns out to be just an average guy – which ultimately isn’t that bad! The song is intended to shine a spotlight on our inevitable silly high school regrets. The lyrics inspired the light-hearted, nostalgic video… which kind of wrote itself!
What was the inspiration behind this video (visuals, storyline, etc.)?
This song was dripping nostalgic references to the 80s and 90s and we felt compelled to bring them to life in the video. There was no shortage of visuals to choose from – from the Rubiks cube to the mullets… sadly they all felt to natural!
What was the process of making this video?
We knew we wanted the video to be shot in a high school. So the first challenge was finding a high school that would actually let us do it. We had the good fortune of getting access to Souhegan High School in Amherst, New Hampshire, which really was designed perfectly for our intended scenes. We hired 106 Studios to handle the video production and collectively brought in our actors and built out the drama. We pre-ordered a bung of 80s and 90s paraphernalia, and after two days of camera work, we had enough footage to tell our little story. We were so lucky to find all the awesome actors and contributors. If you haven’t yet tried to shoot an era-specific nostalgia video, we highly recommend it.. ha!
Singer-songwriter Stephen Jaymes might be best described as Charles Bukowski ditching whiskey for psychedelic mushrooms while feverishly ingesting Rumi poetry and Phil Ochs records. The LA-based artist is a punk poet; a wounded-romantic; a sonic noir auteur and a post-apocalyptic hippie. He is a gifted multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, singer, and producer. His music exudes the stylish playfulness of Prince with clever turns of phrases and occasional funk flashes, but it also conjures the stateliness and mystique of Leonard Cohen. Film and television editor Christal Khatib (Scandal, Transparent) hears “both of those ghosts and Johnny Cash too – all visiting the same body.”
His newest song “Chief Inspector,” and the accompanying video, is a noir inspired Jungian tale of a man who once locked up his shadow and is now hunted by it.The video reaches back in time to say a little something about the present moment. Wanting to evoke the LA noir imagery used in the song’s lyrics, the singer and the video’s producer Ross Kolton, were drawn to the iconic 1973 Robert Altman classic “The Long Goodbye” for its visually unique take on noir in the sunshine.
Easter eggs and direct references include a shot of Jaymes leaving the same tower apartment complex where Elliott Gould’s Philip Marlowe eked out a living. The film classic is noteworthy for looking back to the 40s to shine a light on the (then) current 70s culture. Similarly, Kolton and Jaymes look back to the 70s to indirectly reflect a modern Instagramed world, where a noir thriller of dark realities continues to unfold, now through millions of sunny lenses.
We spoke with Stephen Jaymes about the new video for “Chief Inspector,” which you can watch below:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically in this way?
In a nutshell, this is what happens when you start digging deeper into Jung while watching the Inspector Morse series. The song is about the choice we make to lock up a part of ourselves to achieve our (often stupid) objectives, and how that shadow part always escapes and hunts us down later. Morse is a hero of mine, the original “true detective” of modern television who is chased as much by his own ghosts as he is by the flesh and blood criminals. It was a rare instance where the lyrics all pretty much fell out in one go. I’d pay to have that experience every time. And what fell out was a “Cape Fear” scenario: Robert Mitchum is not happy; and he’s out to get you; and he’s you. In my case, I later realized, my shadow was hunting me down to demand I start writing and playing more music.
What was the inspiration behind this video (visuals, storyline, etc.)?
The video is the result of my collaboration with LA-based filmmaker and music video producer Ross Kolton. We both have a deep love of noir, so we were looking for a reference point that we could use. We wanted to literalize the song’s dark noir imagery and psychological tension, but also reflect how noir films frequently juxtapose that darkness against sunny LA. Our eureka moment came in the form of Ross’s idea to use the location from Robert Altman’s 1973 “The Long Goodbye” in the video. From that seed of an idea we found our story, and the video ended up being an homage to that film in many ways (toxic suitcase MacGuffin notwithstanding).
What was the process of making this video?
The goal was to make a tight doppelgänger drama that reaches back to “The Long Goodbye” to illustrate the tension between today’s dark realities and their sunny, Instagrammed exterior. Ross is super organized, so many of the shots were his ideas that we basically tested in the field. He has an approach to film that really synchronizes with my approach to songwriting: both of us leave a ton of room to capture the magical accidents in our creative process. On shoot day we started in the Hollywood hills where we paired a condo interior with the actual exterior of Elliott Gould’s apartment complex. We had a location waiting on the Westside for the “arrival” part of the story, so we literally worked our way east to west through Hollywood, stopping at some planned places and others that jumped out at us as we drove around. By the time we had finished with all the exterior “story” shots, we were exhausted. After he put together the first cut, Ross decided that the lip sync performance shots reflected that exhaustion. So we reshot the performance, weeks later, after I’d buzzed my head. This resulted not only in a treatment that better reflected our “sunny noir” aesthetic, but also emphasized better the doppelgänger theme because I look so different. Just another example of staying loose and allowing experimentation (and some director perfectionism) to work its magic. Thankfully I had no deadline as we hadn’t set a release date for the song yet.
Ray Levier, a seasoned drummer and highly sought-after sideman, unveils his most poignant and personal track to date with “Wig Glue.” This jazz funk fusion composition pays tribute to the legendary guitarist Mike Stern, renowned for his work with Miles Davis and other esteemed jazz and fusion acts. “Wig Glue” is a spirited and groove-filled piece that embodies resilience and determination, inspired by Stern’s remarkable journey of overcoming a devastating accident.
The backstory behind the song adds a layer of depth and inspiration. In 2016, Stern suffered a severe accident, breaking both of his humerus bones and causing nerve damage. This left him struggling to hold a guitar pick, threatening his ability to continue performing. In a stroke of fortuitous creativity, Stern discovered a solution in wig glue—a conversation with fellow musician Etienne Stadwijk led him to Ray Levier, who had been using wig glue on his drumsticks after his own accident.
Levier, a highly skilled drummer, generously shared his unconventional method with Stern, resulting in a remarkable breakthrough. By using wig glue, Stern regained his ability to hold the pick and continue playing. Grateful for the solution, Stern highlighted Levier in interviews and expressed deep appreciation for the fortuitous suggestion. Together, they formed a bond and playfully referred to themselves as members of the “wig glue club.”
“Wig Glue” serves as a dedication to the resilience of both Ray Levier and Mike Stern, embodying the idea that even if something is broken, it can be glued back together, allowing the journey to continue. The track itself captures the spirit of funk, infusing it with elements of jazz and fusion to create an infectious and dynamic sound. Levier’s rhythmic prowess takes center stage, driving the groove and delivering captivating musical moments.
Joined by Etienne Stadwijk, Mike Stern, and esteemed bassist Will Lee, known for his exceptional contributions on ‘Late Night with David Letterman’ and collaborations with renowned figures like George Benson and The Brecker Brothers, Ray LeVier and friends embark on a melodic enchantment with “Wig Glue.” This harmonious convergence of musical talent amplifies the impact of the track, elevating it to new heights.
With its infectious rhythms, captivating melodies, and spirited performances, “Wig Glue” captures the essence of overcoming adversity and pushing forward in the face of challenges. It serves as a testament to the power of music to inspire and uplift, and Ray Levier’s tribute to Mike Stern stands as a powerful symbol of the strong bonds and mutual support that exist within the music community.
Listen to “Wig Glue” and embrace its empowering message of resilience:
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