Mandy Rain - "Riot" Single

If you're looking for a song to dance to, a song to unite to, a song to get crazy to - take a listen to pop artist, Mandy Rain.  Her single "Riot" dropped in February, and it's a pop dance sound that will get you dancing to the beat.
One of my favorite parts of the song is the interesting chord degression (if you will) with the lyrics:
"Why don't you move it like you stole it, Take it like you own it, Touch it if you want it."
The way the music and the melody descends in half steps with the music breaking down in the background sounds really good together.
Mandy's got herself a solid set of pipes, but I feel like she could have showcased it more in this song.  There were moments - especially in the bridge - where I felt like her vocals could have soared and pushed the song into its own riot-like break down but they didn't quite make it for me.  Regardless though, the girl is talented and I can't wait to hear more from her!
"Riot" is available on iTunes.

Wrecking Ball Cover Music Video

HELLO EVERYONE!  Been busy with a lot of stuff, but here is one exciting thing happening today!  My release of my cover music video of Miley Cyrus' "Wrecking Ball!"  Check it out and share it with all your friends and family!  (:
BIG THANK YOUS to: Director | Director of Photography | Editor: Myles Beltran
Music | Gaffer: Joshua Duggan
Special Thanks: Matthew Speer

Cody Jasper Self-Titled Album Review

I’m not gonna lie: when I read the name Cody Jasper, I thought of the pop music genre – thank you, Cody Simpson.  I didn’t do any background research or anything and simply listened to the album raw, and to my surprise, Jasper’s got a rock and soul thing going on.

Overall, the tracks blend together and sound similar with the same generic song progression – guitar riffs and drum beats – but Jasper’s vocals outshine them both.  Most of the album exudes a slow rock sound with raspy, rough vocals that are entertaining and sometimes sexy.  However, his vocals really got me in his ballads, “Mona Lisa” and “Holy Water.”  He sings with a nice deep crisp sound that makes you feel the emotion and passion behind his words, which break your heart.

The album shows two caricatures of Jasper.  On one hand he can be the raunchy lustful lover, talking about drugs and sex, but on the other, he can be a sweet and heartfelt lover, yearning for your touch. 6/10

Lucy Hale - "You Sound Good to Me" Single Review

Anyone who knows me knows that Lucy Hale is one of my female crushes, and I’ve been anxiously anticipating her first music single.  I’m not gonna lie: it took me by surprise because I was not expecting a country single.  When I saw her in Another Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song I thought she’d be geared toward pop music.  Usually I’m not a big fan of country, but I love Lucy so I gave it a listen.  I like it…for a country single.  It’s catchy – already got the melody stuck in my head – and I love the overarching metaphor for a guy being like a song that “sounds good to me.”  One of the things I listen for vocally is an outstanding vocal run that usually occurs in the last chorus, but I was a little let down because I didn’t hear anything.  Overall, Lucy sounds like a countrified version of Victoria Justice minus the crazy vocals.  As far as music goes, just like the music video (below), it’s a song you can jam to while cruising down a bare and windy road.

“You Sound Good to Me” is available for purchase and download on iTunes, which I just did, and is already #1 on the country charts!  Check it out!

I See Stars - Murder Mitten Music Video

Alcohol drinkers beware: I See Stars’ music video for “Murder Mitten” will sober you up (see video below).  The Michigan boys never fail to deliver intense and engaging music videos, and this one is no exception.  They incorporate messages with these videos instead of focusing on flashy and ostentatious aesthetics, which I give them much respect for.

When I saw I See Stars on Halloween, Devin introduced “Murder Mitten” with a little bit of a personal background about him and Andrew Oliver’s mother being an alcoholic.  “Murder Mitten” focuses on the repercussions of their mother’s addiction by the interweaving of home video footage of them as kids and camera cuts of their mother drinking and losing sight of what’s important.  It’s an emotionally driven video that will leave you struck by the end.  Everything happens so fast that you barely have time to process everything.  Essentially, the video puts your life into perspective for a moment because at the end of the video, after witnessing an intense rush of emotion, Devin and Andrew leave a post-script message that inspires hope for everything we do, which is a nice ending sentiment.

Breathe Carolina - "Savages"

Breathe Carolina released their first single post-Kyle Evens leaving the group titled "Savages." I was genuinely very curious to see how David Schmitt would progress the band with a new crew behind him.

If you're looking for a song to dance to in your room while you're getting ready to go out for a night of partying, "Savages" is for you. Overall, it is a decent song with a catchy chorus, however, the track unfortunately feels empty without Kyle. The song emulates a pure electronic/dance feel to it, which isn't necessarily a bad thing because everyone loves moving to pumping beats, but it's not the same Breathe Carolina I'm used to rocking out to. In comparison to past musical works, even instrumentally, "Savages" loses the rock and music breakdown vibe the band normally transcends to audiences, which is disappointing.  I can't even picture the song being performed in a concert venue setting because it sounds like another generic club song.

"Savages" can be streamed on Breathe's website and is available for purchase on iTunes.

Album Review: I See Stars - New Demons

New Demons is a treat for old and new fans alike. Old fans will love the progression and growth of the Michigan-natives delivering a promised heavier album while new fans will be delighted to discover an electrocore band with panache. They excel in combining a hardcore and electronic sound to blend well naturally, however, many of the breakdowns interwoven with dubstep sound contrived. The band is notable for their rebellious demeanor, angry at world’s authority, but tracks such as “New Demons,” “We Are Not in Kansas Anymore” and “Boris the Animal” delve into dark depths of the mind and reflect on personal feelings with honest and confrontational lyrics. 8/10

Christina Grimmie - "Tell My Mama" Music Video

On Oct. 4, 2013, my girl, Grimms, released her debut music video for the single, "Tell My Mama," off of her recent album release With Love.  Grimmie doesn't shy away from her love of gaming and comics with the utilization of a comic book theme to unfold the video's narrative.  The video aesthetics include technicolor color schemes throughout, the speech and thought bubbles popping up, and not to mention, characters with hidden super powers.  That's probably what I loved most about the video - it's visuality.

One thing that didn't make sense to me was the lacking presence of Grimm's mama.  The video follows Grimms and the "bad boy," Luke, and their time spent together, which does make sense.  However, the song lyrics make an emphasis on her mom's opinion of the boy and ultimately Grimm's relationship with her mom, so I expected Mom to be more of a major and obstacle-driven character.

Overall, the song is super catchy and easy to sing along to.  It's upbeat tempo will make you wanna dance around and daydream about the cute guy you've got your eye on.  Take a gander at the music video!  It'll be entertaining because you're basically reading a comic book in live action!

Album Review - Travis Garland's Self-Titled Album

After two years in the making, Travis Garland released his self-titled full-length album this week.  A much anticipated album by fans – they’ve been fed small portions of it through singles and his Fashionably Late EP.  Overall, the album goes for a mature sound with a sexy and seductive theme underlying each track – the “explicit” and "Parental Advisory" tags don't lie.  Garland’s strongest suit is the collection of crooning ballads such as “Where to Land,” “Motel Pool,” and “Blue Electric Roses” showcasing his falsetto range and evoking a sense of intimacy felt between two lovers.  The tracks “Easy,” “Pulling My Hair,” and “Neighbor” delve deeper into the sexy/seductive theme with suggestive lyrics that relay feelings of fatal attraction, which make you want to dance.  Garland's sound and voice have been compared to Justin Timberlake, including claims from Entertainment Weekly, and this resemblance can be heard in “AllSheWannaDo” featuring Casey Veggies and “Homewrecker.”  Originally, Garland’s music career began in the pop realm, but I think he’s found his niche in R&B and he should stick to it.  8/10

Selena Gomez - "Come and Get It"

Okay, I found some time to watch Selena Gomez's "Come and Get It" music video AND her live performance of it on Dancing with the Stars (video below).  Anyone who knows me knows that I have ... let's call them "issues" with Selena as a music artist.

Let's start with the music video.  Mission accomplished: Selena managed to pull off sexy without being distasteful about it.  Reminiscent of her "A Year Without Rain" music video with her long flowy dresses and dark alluring eyes, Selena plays on a dark seductive side of herself she wants to unveil to the world - a blossoming beauty emerging from her Disney cocoon.  That's all this video said to me.  Don't get me wrong, the girl is gorgeous (and I wish I could rawwk red lipstick like her) and I'm all for growing up as a maturing young woman, but that's all this video offers.

I appreciate the attempt to bring dancing into the picture with her performances as opposed to standing there doing nothing to engage with the audience, but in all the videos I've seen of her dancing (indirectly bashing the Biebs), she's a stiff dancer.

With that said, I turn my attention to the DWTS performance.  I shake my head as the music overpowered her weak vocals ... or wait, her lip-syncing performance?  I thought the AMAs performance was a lip-sync gimmick but was pleasantly surprised that she sang and danced at the same time - props - but she didn't dance as much at the DWTS performance and she still lip-synced?  Why.

Not the DWTS Performance

I like to give the benefit of the doubt and believe in the underdog to succeed, but sometimes that is hard to do.  Her songs are catchy - why else are they on the radio - but delivering satisfying performances that make me want to care about her music more...yeah, not happening anytime soon.  Although I will admit, whenever I hear "Come and Get It" on the radio, I can't help but sing along...fun fact: did you know that I do an awesome Selena Gomez singing imitation?

We Came As Romans - "King of Silence" Lyric|Music Video

(www.sirisvayphotography.tumblr.com)

This week Vans Warped Tour released Michigan-based We Came As Romans' lyric/music video for "King of Silence," the third single bonus track of the re-release of their last album, Understanding What We've Grown to Be (see video below).  No doubt Vans WT released this video in order to hype up WCAR's debut to the main stage at Warped Tour this summer - stoked!

The main thing I have to say about this video is that it sounds very similar to WCAR's last single, "Hope," which they claim is the song that embodies them and would use to introduce themselves to new fans.  Both songs have similar sounds as far as guitar chord progression and drum patterns and promote similar messages about standing up and screaming your own voice, however, I find "Hope" to be much more convincing.  It has more of an anthem kind of feel to it as opposed to "King of Silence," which embodies more of a story being told.

One thing that I really do like about "King of Silence" is the lyrics, and especially because I'm a huge sucker for metaphorical lyrics - "don't wear that crown."  I'd have to say my favorite lyric from the song is, "You can't feel on top of the world with the weight of the world on your shoulders," because it speaks to me on a personal level.  To be frank, I'm about to graduate college - a great feeling at the moment but now I have to bear the pressures of the real world and start living my life.  This is what WCAR does: they get to you at your level and speak to you; they feel with you.

So far I'm digging the new sound that WCAR is dealing up for their fans.  It's intense without being overbearing or unbearable, and you can easily rock out to it when performed live.  When you listen to their music, you can sense their drive, determination, and purpose.  The trio of new songs all evoke a sense of union, a great feeling to have with other people - uniting under the religion of music.

Demi Lovato - "Heart Attack" Music Video

I'm gonna make this short and sweet.  Just minutes ago Demi Lovato released the music video for "Heart Attack," the first single off of her self-titled album due May 14th 2013.

As much as I love Demi, this video didn't meet my expectations.  I appreciate the edginess in it, but it seemed more like random cuts of her close up.  Don't get me wrong, the girl is gorgeous but it wasn't as entertaining as her past ones have been.  If you watch or have watched it already, you might know what I'm talking about when I say, what's with the black oil?  I understand it's artsy and visually pleasurable, but I also thought that was random too.  It's a mixed feeling - I like it but at the same time I don't get it.  Maybe it's because I'm a screenwriter that I try to make a story out of everything, and I didn't see one in this video.  Take a gander and see for yourself.

But nonetheless, the song is still wonderful.  I listen to it at least once everyday.  I jam out to it in the car whenever I can.  And I still can't wait til it's available at the local karaoke bars around here.  If you haven't yet, go purchase it on iTunes and pre-order her album!