Brooklyn based singer-songwriter Elizabeth P.W. has a new single out now called “Brooklyn.”
A song packed with meaning, “Brooklyn” came to Elizabeth suddenly after the death of her aunt in Manhattan who was involved in a car accident:
“With my Aunt Amy´s death, I had a sudden realization: after over 100 years of Brooklyn being the hub of our family, I was the last living person in the Phillipson family who remained. The chorus of the song popped into my head one day and the rest of the song came soon after.”
With the Americana folk chorus and key instrumental violin and accordion solos, this song is memorable and full of emotion. As a multi-instrumentalist, Elizabeth´s music has been nominated for various composer awards as well as being premiered in films at Tribeca Film Festival, DOC NYC and more.
“Brooklyn” combines various synth sounds with organic instruments like the folk violin to create her signature sound.
Elizabeth released her debut folk album “Haven´t Found It” back in 2019, to much critical acclaim and she has been busy ever since composing music for film scores such as the 2021 NAACP Image Award nominated short film “Gets Good Light”.
Her music influences include Fleetwood Mac, Jackson Browne and Glen Campbell. With such an eclectic sound and great musical talent for both songwriting and performing, we can´t wait to hear more of Elizabeth´s music both on screen and future single releases.
Stay current with Elizabeth Phillipson-Weiner on her Website and social media channels Instagram ,Twitter and TikTok.
Happy For No Reason is a band that is the antithesis of their name. The band based out of Portland Oregon celebrate every single one of life’s precious moments as two of their members are literally happy to be alive. Comprising of Jo Alexis (vocals and percussion), Neil Goldstein (guitar), and Mark Pritchard (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.
Their jazzy folk rock single “Canaries (Hot Summer Night)” was revived from Neil and Jo’s early music careers. Neil wrote this chord progression with a jazz band in 1974 and Jo wrote the lyrics in 1991. They put them together one night in 2015 to make the song we hear now. It’s an example of how many of their songs came together.
“The lyrics are about my boyfriend who was working in Harlem at the time and I went to visit him knowing we might break up,” says Jo. “Breaking up when you are still in love is painful but the song has turned into a raucous uptempo sing-along, like the rat pack with a female lead!”
They finished recording, mixing, and making the music video during the pandemic. A friend of Jo’s told suggested the lead vocals were initially too aggressive. So, Jo bought a new microphone and redid her parts, also learning how to use Logic, the DAW (digital audio work station) and spent many hours comping the flute and piano solos.
Their video for “Canaries(Hot Summer Night)” depicts the band on a steampunk style ship, captained by Jo. They are on a mission to catch a canary. The ship and crew are eventually wrecked and never catch the canary. It’s a metaphor for self-destruction, you want something so bad that you’re willing to ignore red flags.
We spoke with Jo Alexis about the video:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically in this way?
We didn’t actually choose it but trusted the animator to come up with something fabulous! I saw one of his videos on YouTube and looked him up. He does a combination of live action and animation and I thought it would be amazing for this song!
What was the inspiration behind this video?
Honestly, we gave Christian Bolorinos, our director/animator/producer complete creative freedom on this so all of the ideas were his and we showed up in costume and followed direction. He is SUCH a joy to work with and has an incredible sense of humor! I was delighted with the result and so was the wonder world. The video has acquired 136k views on Facebook and is also a favorite on my YouTube channel.
What was the process of making this video?
The process was so much fun! We rented a studio in Portland and showed up in steampunk outfits(during the pandemic so we wore masks except when shooting!). We shot the music video in Portland but our director, animator and script writer, Christian Bolorinos, was in Barcelona. So we FaceTimed with him during the shoot which actually worked out really well! He directed us from Spain and we just followed his directions. I rented boat props like a steering wheel and a nautical telescope and of course, ropes. We used a fan to make it look as if we were in a terrible storm. Here are some cool pics of our shoot with the band in steampunk costumes.
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.
Star Goes Nova is the talented new face in the world of Electro Pop, Synth, and EDM. Showcasing a brilliant journey through a sonic starship, the artist spins moving epic stories with instrumental masterpieces. A trailblazer in the genre, Star Goes Nova dispenses cinematic masterpieces, creatively composed for the next generation of musical icons. With electrifying sounds, memorable beats, and pulsating bass lines, her music is reminiscent of Pink Floyd, Swedish House Mafia, and The Glitch Mob.
She just released “Moonlight Beat with Sonic Butterfly,” a cinematic and fantasy synth and EDM single. Sonic Butterfly is a 26 string acoustic, chromatic, long-string harp designed and played by Andrea Brook. The strings are at minimum 60ft long and often strung over 200 feet long, and span out over the audience, transforming indoor and outdoor theaters, buildings, and natural environments into a stunning immersive musical instrument.
The technical incorporation of the unique giant harp into Star Goes Nova’s “Moonlight Beat” was an epic feat in itself with Grammy winning producer John Baffa tracking 16 microphones, mathematically distanced to achieve authentic echo/delay reverberations down the length of 60 foot harp strings. Star Goes Nova expertly wove in gorgeous piano, electronica and powerful growling dubstep beats. The effect is an epic tale of an astronaut discovering an ancient castle on a distant moon.
An imagination captured by the glitz and camp of late 70’s variety show offerings (think Cher) and then consumed by rock and roll, poetry and electronic music, Jane Jensen’s mind and music tend to wander in many directions but her love for industrial music is the thread that weaves it all together.
She just released two new singles, “Changeling” and “Revolution Maker,” with her album Changeling. In tandem, she also released the music video for “Changeling.” The song is about inner transformation and rebirth with an industrial alt rock backdrop. Visually speaking, the video has a 90’s style and visualizes change with glitching.
We spoke to Jane Jensen about the “Changeling” video in this edition of Video Voyager:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically in this way?
The narrative for the song “Changeling” is simple. It focuses on a personal journey that leads to transformation. It’s reflective of past trauma and future possibilities. It’s about transmuting pain into power and figuring out what lessons need to be learned to move on and effect needed change in life. I wrote and worked on this song a lot during the pandemic – lots of time to be reflective.
What was the inspiration behind this video?
The video has a deep seated 90’s vibe and it began as a complete coincidence. I partnered with video director Sean Sweetman and we rented a photo studio for a couple hours to shoot some cool visuals. Initially, we planned to feature a lot of martial arts but we had some glitches on shoot day and weren’t able to get those shots. The studio had a wall of televisions which immediately indicated the 90’s aesthetic and direction for the rest of the shoot and aftereffects. Although Sean did mention early on that he wanted neon crosses like Baz Lehrman’s Romeo and Juliet, which is a 90’s film, so I guess we were steeped in 90’s nostalgia from the start. Also, the chair as a major focal feature is reminiscent of my video from the 90s More Than I Can and my favorite detail is the ms dos font that runs throughout the video. When Craig Kafton and I were working on my first album Comic Book Whore he used a Compaq computer for programming and sequencing. That green flashing font was at the core of every track on that album.
What was the process of making this video?
Sean and I had a pre-production phone meeting. We decided to shoot me with my guitar and a mic stand, rather than the whole band. Sean wanted to incorporate his newly acquired neon lights as neon crosses, and he had lots of photographic ideas that he wanted to capture with that kind of lighting. I like to preplan everything, and Sean is very comfortable just showing up and shooting whatever is available. We did both. There is also planning that goes into clothing, hair and make-up. I discovered Ukrainian brand MDNT:45 and was happy to show my support by wearing some of their clothing in the video. The hair and make-up were very subtle by Alexandra Bayless, and we had one mind-blowing dancer Jahlani Luv. She was really wonderful, and we wished we had more time to shoot her.
After the shoot was complete, Sean started the editing process and presented a rough-cut followed by a few more finessed cuts until we got the one we both were happy with. Then I took the final cut to add some additional 90’s effects and the ms-dos font that is featured throughout the video. The best advice I can give to an artist who is producing their own music video would be not to do it under a strict time constraint. That kind of pressure can lead you to cut corners or not get a visual you are totally satisfied with, because you feel the pressure to stay with the timeline and keep moving forward, even if you are not happy – SO, give yourself plenty of time! And just as important, be satisfied with the quality of the visual. If you don’t love it, you won’t want to share it and if you are an indie artist, you are calling the shots so keep working on it until you love it – even if you have to push back release dates.
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