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New York

Seungmin Jung’s ‘Acadia’ Smokes Out Complacency with Sophisticated Jazz Fluidity

Posted on 16 March 2025

For 12 minutes, Seungmin Jung and his virtuosic ensemble take easy listening jazz and give it a smoky revival with Acadia, a composition that reaches the epitome of fluidity. The time signatures refuse to leave room for complacency, locking listeners into a state of mesmerised anticipation. It’s textural tonal alchemy at its finest—low reverberating basslines create a striking contrast against ascending brass notes and the ornate chimes of piano keys, threading together a soundscape as suave as a tailored suit.

Jung’s journey into jazz began in Seoul, where a spontaneous purchase of a double bass at 17 set the course for his future. Now based in New York, he has studied under some of the biggest names in the scene, including Buster Williams and Ingrid Jensen, earning his master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music. His career has seen him grace renowned venues from Korea’s Giwon Art Museum to Dizzy’s Jazz Club in New York, and his talent has been recognised with a second-place win at the Hyunsik Kim competition.

Acadia showcases a musician who understands the elegance of timeless jazz while fearlessly pushing its parameters. Jung orchestrates moments of undeniable intrigue, making every shift in tempo feel like a deliberate seduction.

Stream Acadia on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ramener’s ‘Anything & Everything’ Injects Visceral Emotion into Prog Rock Panache

Posted on 13 March 2025

Ramener, the veritable titans of Long Island’s alt-rock scene, flex their prog-rock muscles in Anything & Everything with an intro that wouldn’t be out of place in Tool’s discography. But it isn’t long before a high-octane melody locks into the monolithic tableau of viscerally expressive hard rock. The vocals don’t just cut through the mix—they soar beyond the riffs, injecting raw tendrils of emotion that twist around the instrumental intensity, making it clear that the aching lyrical delivery is the real driving force behind the crescendos.

Instead of using their technical chops as a means to showboat, Ramener channel their ability into something far more impactful—a sound that tightens around the soul with an iron grip. The sheer force of the track isn’t about volume or distortion; it’s about how much weight they pack into every note, every lyric, every calculated shift in dynamics. The instrumentals are wielded as artistic devices rather than the centrepiece, amplifying the tension until it reaches breaking point.

With a radio-ready sound that sacrifices none of its authenticity, Anything & Everything is a testament to Ramener’s ability to command attention without compromise. Their future couldn’t be much brighter.

Anything & Everything is available now on all major streaming platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ginger Winn Drops the Temperature with ‘Freezing’—A Hypersonic Alt-Rock Storm

Posted on 11 March 2025

Feel the temperature drop with the arcane etherealism oscillating through Freezing, the latest single from Ginger Winn, which was officially released on March 7th. The cinematically shot music video exhibits the NY-residing alt-rock visionary as a creative powerhouse, and the track itself unfolds with superlative emotive tension around pop-pinched vocal lines that toy with pop-punk nuances while lending a sense of maturity to her harmonies rarely found within the genre.

As the single progresses, the momentum seamlessly shifts, pulling you into a tumultuous vignette of bittersweet longing, exposing how carelessly we can be left out in the cold by the connections we cherish most. The hypersonic intensity of the catharsis-laden crescendo compels you to dive back in and take the ride once more. As the first release from her upcoming album Freeze Frame, Freezing sets the stage for a darker, more expansive alt-rock sound, reinforcing why Winn is fast becoming one of New York’s most promising up-and-coming artists.

It isn’t every day you encounter an artist whose sonic signature is as unique as it is exhilarating; it’s only a matter of time before Ginger Winn is revered as the alt-rock supreme she definitively is.

Stream the official music video for Freezing on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Trip Sitter Resurrects the Ghosts of the ’90s with ‘I Love You All’

Posted on 10 March 2025

Trip Sitter teases sonic serenity in I Love You All before dismantling any expectations of a passive listening experience. The hazily psychedelic intro introduces them as a seraphic offshoot of the Happy Mondays, but it’s not long before a wall of scuzz-constructed noise crashes in, revealing their grungy shoegaze stripes. Even as the guitars snarl through waves of oscillation, the vocals maintain a hymnal presence, bleeding over the instrumentals with an ethereal detachment that softens the bite of the distortion.

With no trace of modernity cluttering the mix, I Love You All allows listeners to slip straight into the nostalgia of the ’90s indie and grunge revolution. Every transgression in sound is as sanctifying as the last, proving that Trip Sitter isn’t here to simply recycle the past—they’re making nostalgia malleable enough to forge a new sonic signature from the ashes of a golden epoch.

Taken from their debut LP, Then Again, It Never Was, I Love You All reinforces their ability to straddle the line between chaos and clarity. By embracing pop/emo vocal sensibilities, fuzzed-out grunge chords, reverb-drenched shoegaze tones, and post-rock ambience, they have become unparalleled conduits of innovation in Boston’s indie underground scene.

I Love You All is available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify and Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

JohnnyTheWidower’s ‘My Lady is Gone’ Rains Soul into the Blues

Posted on 8 March 2025
Broken Piano by Johnny The Widower aka The Solar Guy

JohnnyTheWidower, AKA The Solar Guy, doesn’t just touch on loss in My Lady is Gone—he lets it simmer, steeping every note in raw feeling without letting the weight drag the groove down. The Brooklyn-based songwriter, producer, and engineer channels blues, R&B, and afrobeat into a smoky, jazz-kissed atmosphere that feels less like a structured composition and more like a session that caught fire in real time.

With a cohesiveness that gives the impression of a seasoned band rather than a solo project, the track makes space for fluidity without sacrificing precision. The instrumentation carries the kind of ease that can only come from instinct, stripping back the years to a time when music was created for catharsis, not marketability. It’s indulgent without excess, hitting that rare sweet spot where musicianship and emotion are balanced without tipping too far in either direction.

For those tired of surface-level soundscapes, JohnnyTheWidower delivers oceanic depths, leading listeners further out before hitting them with a visceral crescendo in the outro. It’s impossible to walk away unaffected.

 My Lady is Gone is available to stream on all major platforms, including Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Leah Nawy’s ‘ordinary’ Turns Vulnerability into a Cinematic Spectacle

Posted on 5 March 2025

With all the intimacy of an impromptu demo recorded in a moment of creative ignition, ‘ordinary’ by Leah Nawy is anything but. The indie folk-pop progression is cinematically ornate, building crescendos that ooze the golden age of Hollywood while the duality running through the track keeps its emotional weight balanced on a knife edge.

With a vocal range that floats between seraphic and soul-stirring, she lets the narrative unfold syllable by syllable, pulling listeners deeper into an introspective world full of bitter-sweet, close-to-the-bone confessions. Within the abstract poetry of ‘ordinary’, tendrils of insecurity, uncertainty, desire, and regret intertwine, painting a panoramic view of what it means to be human in an era where meaning is something we have to define for ourselves.

A songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist with deep roots in rock and classical music, Nawy’s ability to craft arrangements that feel instinctively right is second nature. From her time playing Jersey Shore venues to earning her Master’s at Berklee NYC, her refined ear and raw experience shine through in every note.

‘ordinary’ is the kind of song you hear once, feel your existence affirmed by, and refuse to let go of.

The single is now on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bronx-based RnB Visionary, BRIEL the Artist, Pulled Listeners Into the Haze of Infatuation with ‘THE BLINDS’

Posted on 4 March 2025

After stepping back from the airwaves following his 2023 debut, QUESTIONS, BRIEL the Artist returns with THE BLINDS, proving just how much sharper his sonic signature has become. The Bronx-based avant-gardist of R&B innovation layers smooth harmonies over syncopated beats and oscillating synth lines that warp into a kaleidoscope of soul. The Lo-Fi production doesn’t soften the impact—it amplifies the emotion, pulling you into a hypnotic immersion where BRIEL lets the leash off his expression, letting it run wild and free in this rich, introspective soundscape.

The track dives headfirst into the push and pull of new attraction—the thrill, the uncertainty, and the way assumptions take the reins before reality has a chance to catch up. Using the metaphor of closed blinds, BRIEL reflects on how we get lost in our own mental stories instead of letting relationships unfold naturally. The lyrical honesty latches onto the ears, while the fluid instrumental textures make sure the hook stays planted deep.

With plans to take THE BLINDS to the stage across New York City, along with upcoming film projects and new releases, BRIEL is clearly playing the long game.

For those ready to get lost in the highs and lows of love, THE BLINDS is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

‘lowkey’ – Rhys Avery Turns Heartache into a Late-Night Confessional

Posted on 26 February 2025
Rhys Avery

Inch by inch, Rhys Avery is carving out a space where storytelling, vulnerability, and early 00s RnB nostalgia collide. The Fort Lauderdale-born singer-songwriter has been commanding stages from Off-Off Broadway to underground venues, bringing his background in musical theatre into the sonic sphere with a knack for raw emotional expression. After refining his craft through a year-long artist development programme, Avery has found his voice in a seamless fusion of pop, RnB, and hard-hitting lyrical introspection.

With lowkey, he paints candour in masterstrokes, unearthing the pain of secret love and the heartbreak of being someone’s hidden truth. The track pulses with euphoric resilience, but beneath the groove, there’s a gut-wrenching exposition of emotional taboo—of breaking your own heart by loving someone who isn’t ready to take that step out of the closet.

His soulful harmonies spill over polished production, igniting the tension between desire and guilt, all while tethering listeners to a reverb-soaked atmosphere where every progression reflects a flicker of light through the darkness.

lowkey is now available to stream on all major platforms, find your preferred way to listen via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Rosemarie Albanese’s ‘Killjoy’ Paints Pensive Alienation in Theatrical Strokes

Posted on 25 February 2025

With each new release, Rosemarie Albanese allows her fanbase to hear the distinction between an artist and an enchantress. The Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter, born to a Haitian mother and an Italian-American father, first found her voice in the world of opera, training at performing arts schools where music became a sanctuary.

Though she briefly detoured into working with major bands like Hinge, her need for deeper self-expression pulled her back into songwriting, where she reclaimed her voice with lyrical candour and evocative vocal performances.

Her latest single, Killjoy, is a session in soul awakening wrapped in her romantically wistful vocal register, which crafts evocative panoramas as she relays her intimately confessional lyrics. The timeless chanteuse has a voice that could just as easily command the grandeur of a West End stage as it could seamlessly fit into the soundtrack of a Hollywood blockbuster. There’s no artifice here—just raw emotion, delicately balanced between vulnerability and power.

Prepare to be theatrically spellbound by Killjoy and swarmed with resonance if you find that you err on the side of melancholy and can’t quite relate to those who walk through life with more answers than questions. Forget Lorde and Lana Del Rey—2025 is the year for Rosemarie Albanese to shine in the spotlight.

Killjoy is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

NYC’s seraphic songstress Eleri Ward reached the epitome of evocative etherealism with ‘Float’

Posted on 21 February 2025
Eleri Ward

Eleri Ward’s latest single, ‘Float’, exhibits how she doesn’t just live up to the hype cascading around her multifaceted creativity; she immortalises herself through arcanely affecting textures and harmony.

Originally from Chicago and now based in NYC, Ward has been immersed in music and theatre since she was five years old, honing her ability to turn storytelling into an emotional force. Known for her critically acclaimed reimaginings of Stephen Sondheim’s work, which The New York Times and Forbes praised for their imaginative indie-folk acoustic approach, Ward has shifted her focus to crafting her own celestial and introspective sonic universe.

With ‘Float’, she moves beyond her acoustic roots into expansive electro-pop territory while retaining the storytelling depth that defines her artistry. The emotive elements ensure that the single never veers towards pure theatre. Instead, Ward enmeshes intensity with intimacy; crescendos tear through you with dramatic potency, only to be followed by ethereal, caressing alt-indie intricacy.

‘Float’ is immersive enough to make you hold your breath, as though you’re being abstracted from oxygen and plunged into a pool of pure unfeigned artistry, its balance of raw emotion and sonic subtlety creating a hypnotic grip.

Float will hit all major streaming platforms on February 21st. Find your preferred way to listen via Eleri Ward’s official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast