The Record Company
The Record Company
The Record Company is an American rock band from Los Angeles. The members are Chris Vos, Alex Stiff, and Marc Cazorla. Their music is influenced by blues musicians like John Lee Hooker, early punk bands like The Stooges, and rock bands like The Rolling Stones. Wikipedia
These rising stars have been riding up the charts with their latest release Play Loud.
Below is an excerpt from an excellent article featured in RELIX…where Music meets Journalism
From Play Loud’s first notes, it’s quite evident that something has changed. The raw, bluesy feel that lined The Record Company’s first two albums is no longer there; instead, there’s a rock[1]and-roll swagger that shines through. It’s energetic in ways that feel more apt for arenas instead of the home-studio recordings that often looked inward. On the album’s opener “Never Leave You,” Vos laments being a bit lost, searching for answers, finding solace in the sun. It’s a simple song about relationship confusion, but it sets the tone for Play Loud: The music here is catchy as hell. The single “How High” is an anthemic number, driven by Stiff and Cazorla’s thumping rhythms. At times, it feels like a pure adrenaline rush, especially when the chorus asks listeners to consider “how high do you want to fly”—in an aspirational way.
That’s not to say that their past is completely devoid on Play Loud. “Today Forever” is a slow, bluesy number that finds Vos passionately declaring to a lover that a great move would be to run away for “a day that will last forever.” It’s grand gesture thinking, but that’s the running thread throughout Play Loud—be yourself, take a chance, do it with some gusto.
Most of the songs were written pre-pandemic, but the Play Loud recording sessions took place in the spring of 2020. Unexpectedly, the lyrics seem to take on a new life once they started laying down the tracks, particularly “How High,” which seems to touch on themes relating to recovery.
“We were in a new, challenging time,” Vos says. “But at my core, as a human, I was back to being a 14-year-old kid sitting on the edge of my bed, playing guitar because I had nothing else to do today. The only thing on my mind was music. It was the only thing that would make me feel better, making the record. It became the absolute focal point of our lives. That was unexpectedly positive in a field of a lot of negativity. That was one area where we did benefit from being isolated. These songs for me were very emotionally profound. We’d written a lot before [the pandemic] but, all of a sudden, you’re taking it into the studio, and you’re singing this song—and this life, it means something different. We all have a relatable struggle. We all didn’t see our moms and dads for a long time. We all didn’t see our friends for a long time. That’s something we all share.”
Iris Dement
Iris Dement
Embedded Video is also featured on her web site.
Included here just in case you missed it. Ergo..don’t miss it.
“Iris DeMent makes music that celebrates humanity’s efforts toward salvation, while acknowledging that most of our time on Earth is spent reconciling with the fact that we don’t feel so redeemed. Grounded in hymns, early country songs, gospel and folk, DeMent’s work is treasured by those who know it for its insight and unabashed beauty.” ~ NPR
Fur Peace Ranch
Fur Peace Ranch
Jorma Koukonen
Pomeroy, Ohio
Jorma and Vanessa’s goal was to create a place where musicians could come together and surround themselves with music for several days and emerge with a new found inspiration. Jorma says he wants to “demystify the process of playing music” for those who attend the camp. For students arriving around noon on a Friday and leaving Monday morning with classes scattered throughout the days, the process of demystifying music may come with ease. Guitar is the main language spoken at FPR.
Alice Merton
Alice Merton
Growing up around the world, singer/songwriter Alice Merton was as influenced by other cultures as much as transience itself. Born in Germany and raised in Canada and England, Alice Merton’s absorption of different styles and sounds helped craft the worldly progressive pop leanings on her debut, which came out in 2016. As a child, she learned classical piano and singing while in Canada. When Merton was a teenager, her family moved to Germany, where she would pick up the guitar and write her first song. While in Germany, she also studied at the Mannheim conservatory of music. Later, the family would relocate again, this time to England. These frequent international shifts would play a key role in the songwriting process for her first output, 2016’s No Roots EP (Paper Plane Records International / Mom+Pop Music). The four-track effort included the groove-heavy title track and “Hit the Ground Running”. Merton won the EBBA award 2018. ~ Neil Z. Yeung, Rovi
Max Allan Collins
Max Allan Collins
is a New York Times bestselling author of original mysteries, a Shamus award winner and an experienced author of movie adaptions and tie-in novels. His graphic novel ROAD TO PERDITION was made into a major motion picture by Tom Hanks’s production company, Playtone.
Joe Rothstein
Joe Rothstein – Author and Political Strategist
“Must read political thriller of 2022”
In his words:
Can democratic government provide the answers? That’s the question at the core of “Menace.”
Three decades ago, a meeting at Kyoto, Japan confirmed the threat of a warming planet and produced a plan for dealing with it. Three decades later, with unprecedented heat, fire, storm, flood, drought, and climate-related migration accelerating even beyond the Kyoto forecasts, governments still have not responded in a manner equal to the threat.
Eight decades ago, atomic bombs were used in warfare. The danger of their use again has not receded. More nations have them stockpiled. Delivery systems remain trigger-ready, and with delivery speeds now approaching hypersonic levels.
Even a technology seemingly as benign as the Internet has been transformed into the beating heart of political turmoil and repression.
I wrote The Moment of Menace and its prequel, The Salvation Project to imagine these threats in the context of fiction. But the question addressed is our reality. How does democracy survive in this age of advanced science?
The irony is that aside from nuclear weapons, much of what is being created can contribute to a golden age—a better life for all who come after us. Far from being bleak, the future can be glorious. Can it be both glorious and remain the democratic system most of us cherish? That’s the question The Moment of Menace addresses.
