Philip Bonneau - Brave New Secrets Redux

I've spent the better part of two weeks engrossed and enmeshed in the world that is the mind of Philip Bonneau.  Philip is a visual artist that I have written about before as he has taken his art to a new level and becoming more of a mixed media artist by adding soundtracks that has has painstakingly crafted to his art shows.  His latest project, Brave New Secrets has been something of a transcendental process for Philip as not only have the circumstances of his art changed but on a fundamental level, he has also changed.  When he set out to create this project, he created the soundtrack that would interweave it's way through his photography with the purpose of where he stood in his life at that time.  Now that he is geographically different as well as intrinsically different on a creative level, his vision behind the project is different as well.

In the first iteration of the soundtrack - which was created at the start of the project, there is an overall sense of deep melancholy punctuated with artists like Florence and the Machine, Faithless, Above and Beyond and Placebo.  The direction of the piece has a listless quality that lazily pulls you along with it and it feels as if that can be translated to where he felt creatively.  It feels like all the pressures from the outside world to create something bigger and better than what he had previously done was weighing on him and stifling his creativity.  There are portions thought the journey where everything seems too heavy; too much of a demand to be the artist he needed to be, not only for himself but for everyone else as well but there are glimmering moments of hope peeking through as well.  It's the idea that through all adversity, there can be triumph in which ever form we need.

The second of the two mixes; "Birth, Death, Resurrection Redux" was made sometime later and has a completely different aesthetic to it.  Philip had an opportunity open before him and he took the chance and uprooted his life and moved to a new state, a new experience and a new chapter and all of that is reflected in the choices he made when laying out the musical progression from start to finish.  You are still privy to his thoughts, emotions, and ideas in this version of the soundtrack; there's just a different underlying message and meaning of how the story is told.  His intention has a different merit but it still expresses where he's been and what he's gone through to make him the man that he is now.  There's less strife and turmoil and there is a much more expressive voice to his experience.  Don't misunderstand me, he still as a full range of expressions that are being put out before you, he's just approaching his life and his journey with a different set of eyes and external stimuli this time.

In each of the versions of the soundtrack, he's having a conversation with not only the purveyors of his art but himself as well.  He has laid himself bare for us to see.  His insecurities are out for the world to not only see, but to judge him by as well.  There are stories about disastrous relationships, the kind that you know better from the beginning but because our heart never listens to our head, we still dive headlong into the toxic cesspool of people that aren't there to help us be better people.  We get to hear his successes and his hopes on top of his anxieties and fears and you really get to learn so much about who Philip is without ever uttering a word to him.  He has taken his experiences and combined them ever so carefully with the music that will get you not only to where he needs you to go but to where you need to go as well.  I dare you not to listen to these two mixes and not learn something about yourself in the process.

This man continues to amaze me as he shows continual growth and a desire to seek the truth in the art that he creates.  For someone who's primary medium being visual be produce these mixes in such an elegant way speaks volumes of his understanding of the message he wants to impart and I think that it's one of learning from who we are and being at peace with where we've been and were we are going.  To not rest easy on our laurels and to challenge our own expectations of what we feel is or is not part of our experience.  To make sure that each day we step one foot in front of the next, we are doing it not for anyone else but for ourselves because at the end of the day if not for our own reflection, who are we?

Emily Bell - Hey Baby

This track is just pure fun. It makes me smile and tap my feet with each line, Austin based Emily Bell spits out. From her rapid fire delivery on the verses to the absolutely infectious chorus, Emily slays this track.  It's got a delicious retro vibe on the chorus that just makes me fall for it even more.  Not going to do a lot of talking about it, because it does a fantastic job of doing it itself.  I hope she gets a ton of recognition for this track and the whole album that's only $9 on Bandcamp.  It came out 2 years ago but it's an amazing example of Rock and Roll, the kind that we aren't seeing much of in today's music scene.  She reminds me of ZZ Ward and Amanda Marshall and Serena Ryder as she just owns the hell out of her art.

http://emilybell.bandcamp.com/

Brenda Bennett - Guiltier

Longevity isn't something that is the norm in the world of pop or dance.  And now with home studios across the world, there are new artists popping up like their being churned out of factories so when you actually get a cut from a an artist that's got some history and staying power to their career, it's pretty fantastic especially when that artist is none other than 1/3 of 2 of the most loved girl groups of all time, Brenda Bennett.  You may know Brenda from her time with Vanity 6 or Apollonia 6, both groups created by Prince but what you may not know is that she has had a prolific career as a recording artist throughout the past handful of decades.  She's not stopped recording music and as she's matured, she's only gotten better and better.  Her voice is strong and powerful with a conviction that you don't get out of mass market, over produced, throw away pop stars of today. 

Guiltier, one of her more current singles, is a fantastic confrontation song about a relationship gone bad.  It's amazingly catchy and easy on the ears.  It's got great production and it does an awesome job of showcasing her vocals and her prowess as an artist.  It's a message that, unfortunately, is timeless as we all have had instances in our lives when we may or may not have had cause to think something just isn't right in our relationships and what a better way of expressing those feelings than through music.  You see the changes.  You know the warning signs are there and it's time to do something about it.  You may be angry about the situation, but this song will help express those feelings in a much more energetic manner.

It's a pleasure to hear Brenda singing and I look forward to talking about more of her music in the very near future.

Bean - Wildfire

Nashville raised, Noelle Bean has released one of my favorite inspirational anthems of the summer.  Her voice flows easily across the track as she sings about rising up after being knocked down and going higher than you'd thought you previously thought you could.  Whether it's reinvention, like a phoenix or it's just proving to yourself and others that you aren't one to get pushed around, it's always awesome to have the idea reinforced that the things in our lives that make us stronger are nothing more than bumps in the road.  I think it's easy to forget that the small stuff is just that, small stuff and we get so bogged down in it so often that we forget where we've been and where we're going on our journey.

Bean does an amazing job of reminding us of that in this infectious pop track that it's not about how hard the fight is, all that matters is that you showed up for the fight.  I adore this song and can't wait to hear more from this amazing artist.

Bean on the Web
http://www.beanmusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/noellebeanmusic
https://twitter.com/noellebean
http://instagram.com/noellebean
http://www.youtube.com/TheBigBeann

Kat Graham - 1991

I had the pleasure to see Kat perform back in 2010 when she was promoting "Put Your Graffiti On Me" at Nashville Pride and from that point going forward, I've loved and supported everything she's done musically and theatrically.  I fell in love with Bonnie Bennett and wanted more and more of her each week on The Vampire Diaries but it really wasn't until she released "Power" that I knew she had the potential to be a megastar.  She has a voice that's built to inspire you to great heights and she's got charisma that draws you in so close that you feel like you're talking to an old friend.  Her smile lights up the room and she's got stage presence for days.

I think that the ladies in TLC would have been amazed to play beside and with Kat if this was the 90s.  I feel like she and Left Eye would have been great friends and they would have collaborated on some amazing music so I think that it's very cool that she sampled, "What About Your Friends" on this track.  It's a powerhouse of a song and the rap in the middle eight really brings that Left Eye influence to the track.  I want this woman to do amazing things and blow up bigger than many of the artists you're hearing on the radio right now.  I mean, come on.... have you listened to her kill it on "Wanna Say"? That is, hands down, one of my favorite songs of all time.

Support this amazing artist and show her love because she's worth all of it.

Mørland & Debrah Scarlett - A Monster Like Me

Another example of international music that is simply mind blowing.  Eurovision seems to be able to capture that American Idol and other American competition shows are lacking.  They attract the best and brightest entries and have so many artists that are simply at the top of their game.  I am not familiar with these two individuals but I know they hail from Norway, as this is the Norwegian entry in the contest this year and I know they create some of the most beautiful harmonies I've heard.  The song is rich and full of passion.  It's a darkly drawn version of a duet that traps you and holds you close.  It's got a pungent feeling of sorrow that permeates through the vocals and the production is stellar.  I will be keeping track of this song to see how it does in the competition.