Robert Delong - "Just Movement" Review

Robert Delong 

Just Movement

1- Just Movement

2- Global Concepts

3- Happy

4- Change (How You Feel)

5- Here

6- Few Years Make

7- Religious Views

8- Complex By Degree

9- ______

10- Perfect

11- Survival Of The Fittest

12- Basically, I

8/10

Here's Why:

Yes, Robert Delong is an electronic singer/songwriter, but if you’re looking for the next Afrojack or Tiesto you wont find him here. If you’re looking for the next game changing performer and producer then I think you might have come across what you were looking for. After finally releasing his debut album, Robert Delong brings us to the depths of his imagination and curiosity. He reveals his genuine interest in the universe through dance music. Usually when dance lyrics are powerful or moving, love is an influence. Love songs are definitely not a priority throughout Just Movement’s track listing. For the most part, the lyrics are in the 1^st person point of view as he describes his own experiences. After hearing the stories and opinions I’ve come to this conclusion: Robert Delong is EDM’s newest unique contributor.

The album, titled, Just Movement, simply describes fundamental reasons of existence. Everything we do is out of energetic movement. Either we feel that we are progressing in our daily lives or back tracking in the things we do, it is only movement. Robert did a wonderful job of explaining that in the opening track. The gentle synthy intro makes room for his voice to lead the song into an eye opening direction. The phrases “We call that progress” and “We call that better” are repeated several times after stating that every one of us wants to continue with out actually knowing why. Usually our motives are to go somewhere new or different.

“Be not afraid it’s just a game” the hook for Religious Views bluntly portrays Robert’s religious/spiritual understanding. Also in the ending “A Few Years Make” a line related to a disconnection with God is added. Robert Delong manages to incorporate serious yet rhetorical questions and statements. He blends his deep thinking within catchy hooks and techno beats. A majority of his writing and work can relate with the average curious thinker. (I thought it was strange to come across an “Awesome God” remix by Robert Delong.)

For those who just move to a good beat and could care less about lyrics this album may be hard to get acquainted with. Sure the beats and instrumentation throughout the album has originality written all over it but the quality of the sounds might no be up to par. Don’t get me wrong, I can dance to a Robert Delong song any day I just feel that for most it might take some getting used to. Like I said in the first paragraph he’s not aiming to be the next Afrojack with his music, if anything he has a chance to stand apart from all of those DJs. Robert has that pop sound that radio stations would want and have been asking for.

The album is strong throughout. 11/12 tracks are full-length songs having the last two sort of over lap for the ending. My personal favorite, “Perfect” sends a lesson that everything you were looking for was perfect. I had been waiting for this album for a while now. Ever since I got into Robert Delong I’ve needed to get a hold of these songs. Now that I finally have I am “Happy”. Though it may seem like I have a biased opinion and maybe I do, I can honestly say this is…really good! Couldn’t ask for a better debut album. Which is why I give it an 8/10.

Buy the album here:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/just-movement/id597691506

February Is Here! (Shows & More)

 (Coachella Lineup, Shows & Monthly Playlist)

February is here believe it or not. January was pretty fun, but what’s not to love about February? The Coachella line up is announced now and Weekend 1 is officially sold out! People are either ranting or raving about the line up, but wow check that bad boy out. With an umpteen number of talented bands and DJs you’re investing those 400 bucks into something great. I already got my Weekend 2 pass and I’m looking forward to it.  

After reading over the lineup, full of big names and such I’ve decided whom I should and shouldn’t see. There are quite a few names really admired among the music lover population. Even the most hipster person has his or her guilty pleasure and will want to catch some well-known acts, maybe even the Stone Roses. For some, the headliners are the main attraction, but there are also many opportunities to witness the talented and deserving up and coming artists.

As always, there are plenty of bands from radio stations, such as The Lumineers, Modest Mouse and Two Door Cinema Club. It’s been this way for years but this year Goldenvoice managed to book some amazing lesser-known artists. For example, Lord Huron, Diiv, Wild Nothing, White Arrows and Robert Delong are all worth seeing and put on quality performances.

Robert Delong performing live

Lord Huron's bright instrumentation (as I talked about in the First Fridays post) is easily danceable for a live band, and gets the crowd moving. The singer’s lyrical beauty is also something to pay attention to. The darker more washed out sounds of Diiv and Wild Nothing keep you mesmerized, as the music seems to absorb the world around you. White Arrows should be interesting. They are the perfect combo of indie/electronica similar to Robert Delong. His moombah/electronic mixture is great for live shows as he plays most of the instruments heard, live. It’s difficult to explain how great the energetic performance is, but if you’re going, I highly recommend checking him out.

 In my opinion Coachella made better decisions while choosing their DJs. Even if the big names aren’t on the list there are still DJs worth seeing. House DJs such as Julio Bashmore, Seth Troxler and Disclosure will be getting down at the electronic tent. Who could forget Knife Party and Baauer with the even lesser known, 3ball MTY.

            If you don’t have tickets or can’t afford them, I understand. If you were intimidated by what everyone said about the headliners, it’s all right. Actually, no you need to find a pair and go to this festival. The experience is unforgettable, unless you’re on drugs, of course. You’ll have a good time either way and maybe even fall in love with some of the artists performing.

Two stuffed animals in love

Speaking of love, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and it’s time to come up with something awesome to do with that special person…or persons. There are a bunch of cool shows coming up this month. First Fridays happened again at the Natural History Museum with Gaslamp Killer and Adventure Time. If you’re local to Los Angeles, here are the shows coming up that you won’t want to miss.

Robert Delong @ Amoeba Music (Hollywood) 2/5

The Vaccines @ The Fonda 2/14

Gigamesh @ King King 2/17

The Orwells @ The Echo 2/22

Gold Fields @ The Troubadour 2/28

            Below, is another monthly playlist I put together with 15 different songs in it. It ranges from indie-pop to rock to electronica and I even threw a hiphop song in there. After going to the Groundislava and Lushlife show at the echo, I wanted to toss in a Lushlife track. So check it out and enjoy! 

Villagers - {Awayland} Review

Villagers - {Awayland}

Track List:

1. My Lighthouse

2. Earthly Pleasure

3. The Waves

4. Judgement Call

5. Nothing Arrived

6. The Bell 

7. {Awayland}

8. Passing A Message

9. Grateful Song

10. In A Newfound Land You Are Free

11. Rhythm Composer

7 / 10

Here's Why:

Conor O’Brien, lead singer and songwriter for Villagers must be on another level of consciousness. His storytelling ability must have something to do with his Irish background. Musically, he’s played with a few bands before Villagers.  Conor creatively sings deep and rather eye opening phrases while painting vivid images with diction. The craftiness is incredible! Their first album, Becoming a Jackal was released in 2010 and had great reviews. I imagine it was because of Conor’s wonderful first impression. His outstanding song writing is a treat to the new listeners.

This album, {Awayland} has so many great moments, chord changes and harmonies. “My Lighthouse” starts off the album by putting it in its place. Poetically, acoustically with somewhat of a dark enchantment, the album continues to carry along like this. It is as if Conor is writing songs which influenced a medieval storyteller. “Earthly Pleasure” like many of the others depicts a haunting image thinly framed with hope. The hope is the uplifting chords brought in after a chilling vocal line. The vocabulary used is spectacular and the rhymes, being predictable at times are pieced together carefully. (Did I just rhyme?)

“Nothing Arrived”, the 5^th track on the album starts off with a Bright Eyes type of feel. (Any one who’s heard Bright Eyes could agree there are a lot of similarities between the two.) This was a single back in December and I can see why. It has the most potential to be liked by a larger crowd. It is comforting to know that Conor is able to put out another album of great songs. The majority of them are cleverly devised tunes. He never goes over the top, or foolishly extends a chorus or verse. When the band’s dynamic changes and briefly becomes louder Conor blends in and continues to contribute to the sound.

I feel that listening to this album will get you to feel like you want to be awakened. You’ll want to think deeper. While listen to the Villagers’ music you need to be fully engaged in the now and he is capable of helping you do that. Your ears will involuntarily perk to the sound of Conor’s voice and the delivery of the lyrics. The piano keyboard makes for a great addition and compliments the guitar nicely.

But after listening, you understand that you don’t really have to think like that to better yourself. For those not able to think and feel deeply some phrases might be frightening. (As frightening as a philosophy teacher could be.) I like to refer to this style as philosophical folk rock. You hear a lot of emotion from almost every folk rock band. New artists attempt to mention deeper ideas, but Conor can easily make them seem like surface thoughts.

“Off goes the bell ringing through my head signifies that all’s been said,” from “The Bell” helps describe why nothing really stuck with me. No specific line was swirling around my head hours after listening to it. Not like “Becoming A Jackal” was. The previous hit was in my head for days after hearing and sharing it on the Internet. For me, “Nothing Arrived” was the closest to that. I’m not going to deny that his vocal melodies flowed pleasantly into my ears and had me following him up and down every melodic step.

The album length was appropriate. I wasn’t left wanting more but the over all beauty of {Awayland} got me inspired and had me thinking throughout. The solid guitar riffs, sophisticated finger picking and chord changes kept me content. This leaves me with the decision of giving it a decent 7 out of 10. 

LookOut2013: (Robert Delong, Django Django, The Orwells & More!)

A new year always needs to start off with great new music! What good is a new year with out the help of the previous one? 2012 brought many different, talented artists along with fresh and interesting albums. It was also the rise of various blog sites competing to bring music lovers the most up to date music. Whether it was Soundcloud or Zippy, Youtube or Beatport, new tunes were spreading fast. At one point my iTunes library filled up my hard drive, forcing me to back it up. I was not alone. Music fans were definitely appreciating the easily accessible tracks. Many of them started looking into becoming DJ’s with all the new music.

New sub genres emerged such as Moombahton, Hipster Dance, Trap and Ratchet. (Most, if not all are still working its way through beginning stages of development.) "Trap Shit" is surprisingly catching on in the club scene and can be heard at certain raves. The combination of hip-hop and electronica make it the perfect crossover genre. 2012 was indeed a year for musical exploration and experimentation. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing bands combine the best of both electronic and analog sounds. With free downloads left and right music finding had never been easier.

Ever since Limewire, online sharing has tremendously affected the way we discover music. Rather than relying on a show to find a good new band, music lovers can come across new sounds in the comfort of their home. Thanks to the online file sharers. Though it isn’t the same type of experience as heading to your local venue it is undeniably more efficient. With the Internet being fed overwhelming amounts of data, I feel many artists are over looked. For people like us it is going to take more web surfing in 2013 to come across something golden. Although, I do have my eyes set on certain artists whom I hope to see thrive this year.

              [Check out this compilation of various artists and songs I was into this past year. I recommend geting the albums for most of them too. You can't go wrong with these awesome new bands. Take a listen...]

Robert Delong

Newly emerged producer/live performer Robert Delong is climbing up charts and getting huge recognition throughout the music scene. The song Global Concepts is ranked number 5 most viral tracks on Spotify. In June 2012, Happy was KROQ’s locals only number 4 song. Aside from the radio stations, he’s been on great line-ups and shared the stages with some unforgettable DJ’s. For example, Snowglobe 2012’s main stage also included Deadmau5 and Madeon catching the later sets. There is also a great possibility that Robert’s rising fame is due to the fact that MTV has featured him on 2013’s artist to watch list. Artists like Zedd and Twenty One Pilots are also mentioned.

Not only does Robert Delong create chart-hitting tunes, his live shows are more of giant dance party than anything. The sets usually consist of indie dance fused with Moombahton. Yes, that means catchy poppy vocals sung over an electro type beat at 110 bpm. Just because the melodies and lyrics are usually easy to follow doesn’t mean the meaning isn’t deep. A lot of his lyrics are very trippy, especially ones coming from the song, "Just Movement". If Robert were to do something else with his time I think he’d make a great philosopher. Let’s hope he sticks with what he’s currently during now! The song I recommend checking out is Big Broom (Robert Delong Remix) originally by Races.

Django Django

After sitting through various songs from new artists on XM 47 I finally came across a great new band. Or so I thought. These four musicians have been around for a while now. They’ve been rockin’ out since 2009 but it seems that the band just made it to the mainstream light this year. After releasing a self-titled album. KEXP had them featured live on the radio stations’ Youtube channel. Missing from the KEXP set list was the one I heard on XM 47, “Default”. This personal favorite keeps me grooving the whole way through. It’s a crunchy cool combo of folk rock with a dash of electronic sounds.

Earlier in January 2013, La Blogotheque recorded an intimate session of the band performing a couple hits. They introduced each song wonderfully and successfully grabbed my attention. The bands vintage, hipster aura, along with catchy folk melodies is so welcoming. I still have yet to attend a Django Django show. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to catch them on their tour at the Fonda. The band’s 2012 success will certainly ripple into the New Year as they continue to establish a unique sound. I also recommend checking out their Soundcloud for some creative versions and remixes of the songs. The song I picked to feature is Firewater, which finally grew on me after watching "La Blogotheque’s" version.

The Orwells

            Who knew that teenagers could make such badass sounds? They know how to completely rock out, each with a different instrument. I first heard them on a Youtube blog site performing 3 songs that really caught my eye. I was instantly drawn to their sound and presence. The stoner front man, Mario Cuomo, can really belt his voice into that poor microphone while the band tightly jams along.  He can maintain control of his voice while dancing and stomping around on the FYF stage. After watching live videos of The Orwells I’m reminded of another band. The liveliness and high energy is very similar to that of Cage The Elephant. (Both great bands to see live sometime.)

After checking them out a bit by going through some songs on Youtube, I had to get the album. I imported it into my iTunes and was without a doubt impressed with the work done on it. The band’s debut album Remember When is strong the whole way through. The modern rock vibe of the album is steady and the music sounds full. The Orwells did a great job of developing catchy hooks one after another. There are quite a few high school related themes mentioned in the lyrics but it never takes away from the bands professional sound. The lyrics are constructed from simple ideas that Mario can easily share with the listener. “12:00 and the town just died” part of the chorus for “Ancient Egypt” is repeated in several clever ways and manages not to feel repetitive. In time these guys’ popularity will grow and we’ll most likely see them at more festivals around LA. I decided to share their song “Mall Rats”