Mark Bacino’s 2010 album ‘Queens English’ saw the US singer songwriter moving away from the perfect bubblegum pop he’d shared on his earlier records, but for those willing to invest the time, it was an album rich in character. With a narrative theme concerning home and family, the material was more mature: ‘Happy’ revisited the sounds of Randy Newman; ‘Muffin’ hinted at a love of Billy Joel, and the title cut opted for something a little more direct with a pinch of 70s glam informing its sound. It was the kind of record that worked best as a whole, and yet could still be cherry-picked.
Tag Archives: singer songwriter
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR SUMMER SPECIAL 2024
Over the first six months of 2024, Real Gone received hundreds of submissions for the Singles Bar. Naturally, not everything appealed, and with only eight tracks featured every week, there were various great tracks that also fell by the wayside. Our Singles Bar “Summer Special” rounds up some of the best sounds that didn’t find a previous home. It would’ve been a travesty not to share such good music, but in a couple of cases, we’ve even included material that really should have featured at the Singles Bar around the time of release. Within this batch of twenty top tunes, we’ve pulled together some very retro sounding pop-rock, something with a huge late 60s sound, a couple of gothy bits, a nod to Americana, and even a slice of trad folk. We hope this round up of bits and pieces introduces you to something new, and maybe even inspires you to check out more material.
*
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #58
Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the individual mp3s and other bits that have landed in our inbox over the previous few weeks. This time around, among other things, our popular feature casts a spotlight onto a huge piece of funk, a few singer songwriters, a very commercial slice of goth metal and a welcome arrival on the pop scene…
*
Watch: Fred Abong shares new video for ‘Listening’
Fred Abong’s current album ‘Blindness’ is a bleak affair, but it’s the kind of record that fans of semi lo-fi material will eventually love. Despite being full of low key arrangements, the record’s best songs come with a surprising amount of texture, and a few plays uncovers a variety of dark soundscape that show off Abong’s DIY sound with a genuine strength.
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #57
Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the individual mp3s that have appeared in our inbox over the past few weeks. As we approach the middle of 2024, the submissions haven’t slowed down. This week, we bring you a pop laden treat, a couple of melodic punkers, a really great jazz track, an absolutely gold standard offering from a great singer songwriter, and more besides. As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy. If you do, then why not drop by and tell us? We’d love to hear from you…
*