New music for this hot, hot early July

The Arcadian Wild – “Wander. Wonder.”
-One of my favorite finds in the past few years has been The Arcadian Wild. I’ve told nearly everyone about them. So imagine my delight when I got a new track from them; feeling a bit like some of the more experimental tracks from Nickel Creek, this new song from The Arcadian Wild shows off exceptional skills on the strings and “to die for” vocal harmonies. The lyrical theme is excellent about the hard questions of finding ourselves in the experimental years of young adulthood.

Van Common – “Moonlight Blue”
-The textures on this song are as vibrant as the sun. There’s a positive “glow” that emits from the track and I can’t quite put my finger on why. Maybe it’s the tone on the guitars or the 60s era vocal harmonies, but whatever it is I find it infectiously enjoyable. The whole song comes together for this neat and tidy track that is catching on fast.

Laura Jean Anderson – “Love You Most”
-If you’re a fan of classic pop music from the 60s and early 70s, you’re going to fall hard for Laura Jean Anderson. She has the kind of timeless style that your parents, heck even grandparents, would totally like as much as you. Her saccharine vocals are excellent on this track. When you put together the vibey background elements with Anderson’s superb singing, you can’t help but feel some chills up your spine. Barbara Streisand eat your heart out.

Great Lake Swimmers – “Alone but Not Alone”
-Every once in a while we get a submission from a band that we compare other bands to; Great Lake Swimmers are one of those bands. We love the harmonic folk style that GLS bring, so we are always thrilled to get their submissions. There’s not much to say about this song other than the fact that we love the vocal harmony, the timeless easy rock vibe, and the overwhelming sense of sadness that the lyrics convey. It’s definitely a nice juxtaposition to have the glowing summery harmonies with the sad, brooding blues lyrics.

Stephen Simmons – “West”
-Simmons writes the kind of country music that country used to be. I don’t even mean 50 years ago. I mean a decade or two ago… but let’s not talk about what is not. Let’s talk what is here. This great track from Simmons is about the West. It’s about the past. It’s about personal identity and seeing ourselves as part of a larger story, even when we’re silly in love and have trouble knowing where we are. The vocal and production are solid. We’re looking forward to hearing more of this George Strait style country from Simmons.