A collaboration between Magenta’s Robert Reed, vocalist Steve Basalmo, and a revolving cast of prog and rock oriented musicians, Chimpan A have a sound that’s varied and complex, but also often accessible. Although their 2020 debut album favoured longer arrangements, their overdue follow up ‘Music Is Art Vol. 1’ is home to a few much stronger, shorter pieces. There are a couple of epic tracks to be found during the eight song journey that blends pop, rock, electronica and prog influences into a smart and seamless menagerie, but the bulk of this long awaited release centres itself a little more around actual songs.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
BLUE HERON – Emulations
Since their formation in 2018, US desert rock/heavy stoner band Blue Heron have been utterly committed to sharing massive riffs. Although parts of their 2024 full length ‘Everything Fades’ were a little more accessible from a vocal perspective, on a musical level, the album retained the kind of heaviness fans had come to expect, cementing the band’s reputation as one of the underground scene’s best and most intense acts.
Continuing a run of yearly new releases since 2022, ‘Emulations’ is a stop gap affair, combining four newly recorded tracks with a blistering live session, but it shouldn’t be considered a “filler” in any way.
SAM VARGA – The Fallout
On his debut album ‘Shadow Work’, singer songwriter Sam Varga made the juxtaposition of angst ridden, emo-centric lyrics and radio friendly melodies appear very natural. Despite the fact the record took all of about four seconds for him to confront his audience with the revelation that he felt like he was “rotting from the inside out” and another couple before dropping an f-bomb for extra angst, the album remained very accessible. At its best, tunes like ‘Stories We Tell’ and ‘Apocalypse’ played like the natural successor to the Ryan Adams best-selling ‘Gold’; ‘Up Down’ took the poppy heart of Simple Plan’s more commercial work and transplanted it into more of a singer songwriter sphere, while the chorus of the brilliant ‘Live Up To It’ gave a confident nod to the more contemporary pop rock of Bleachers. All the while, Varga still managed to sound like his own man – a songwriter with an occasionally sharp tongue, but in possession of an even sharper ear for a great melody.
SIDE PROJECT SKIP – The Friday Night Detour EP
Helmed by multi-instrumentalist Chris Dicksheid, Side Project Skip’s debut EP ‘Fast Falls & Hard Landings’ – released in 2021 – found the sometime Mediocre Friends musician sidelining the sounds of late 80s college rock and exploring retro sounds of another kind. The recordings presented stripped back semi-acoustic material that had a very DIY feel, but at their best – as heard on the very strong ‘Sunsets On Rooftops’ – a love for bands like Toad The Wet Sprocket was evident, creating an intimate listen that shone a light on Chris’s songwriting in a pleasing way.
Watch: Noah Villeneuve shares new video for solo debut ‘Kneejerk’
When it comes to reaching for a heartfelt sound, Noah Villeneuve isn’t holding back. His debut solo recording ‘Kneejerk’ begins slowly, presenting his rich vocal tones almost unnacompanied. Bringing in slow, acoustic strums, the melody builds, but clearly aims to draw in the audience gradually. Noah isn’t out to wow people with massive hooks, but to make them…listen – a gift that seems to be fading in this world of short attention spans.