The Bellwether

Over the past seven years, Leon Michels has quietly become one of the most sought-after producers in music, the man who can craft a sultry slow jam for the Carters, co-write for Lizzo’s Grammy-nominated album Special, and co-produce Kali Uchis’ global hit “Moonlight.” Though there’s been this notion to associate him with the so-called subgenre of “old soul,” such an affiliation doesn’t capture the full breadth of Michels’ musical artistry. Sure, the mix makes the music sound like the 1960s or ‘70s, but there’s a modern lilt to it, a vast sensibility that works in any era.

Michels’ iconoclastic sound comes from simply following his heart. Despite landing some high-profile work over a decade ago, which could’ve meant immediate commercial fame in the mainstream marketplace, Michels turned inward, focusing instead on El Michels Affair, the group he created in 2000. He released this music through Big Crown Records, the record label he co-founded in 2016 with Danny Akalepse.

Brainstory’s new album Sounds Good, simply put, lives up to its name.

Based in L.A. but hailing from the Inland Empire’s own Rialto, CA, two-thirds of Brainstory, Kevin and Tony Martin are brothers by blood, while Eric Hagstrom is a brother through their music and long term friendship. While the group’s initial connection comes from the heady mixture of jazz-performance-focused music school and the grind of playing local shows, their bond has been strengthened through countless hours on the road touring and the making of two studio records—2019’s debut full-length, Buck, followed by 2021’s Ripe EP. “Being on the road, doing our own tours, and backing incredible people like Lady Wray, has sharpened our skills and really revved us up for this record,” Kevin says. “It’s been four years since our last full length record, and with everything that’s happened since, it’s like we’ve been catching up to ourselves.” That’s one way to describe change: catching up to oneself. Each member of Brainstory has gone through shifts, both personally and musically, and all of that thread through this record.

It’s easy to say that the music industry can be short on lasting, genuine relationships. However, for Brainstory, from day one it’s been about standing by each other, for each other. Their friendship started the group, and now, this expanded brotherhood is supporting them to push it further. The stars have aligned for them to take a big and well deserved step with this new album, and you can hear it in their music—music that just Sounds Good.

Born in Hamburg, Germany to Turkish parents, she grew up influenced by her family’s Anatolian background and the myriad of cultures in the city. Derya’s musical roots started at home playing folk music with family members. Her father pushed her to learn various instruments, beginning with the bağlama, a seven stringed Turkish lute. Then she picked up the guitar, piano, and saxophone.

Although she is a multi-instrumentalist, Derya always felt drawn to the sound of the bağlama – “there’s just something very magical about it”. With her band Grup Şimşek’s forthcoming album Yarın Yoksa, which translates to If There’s No Tomorrow, Derya continues her journey revitalizing Anatolian folk music and instrumentation by infusing timeless melodies with a modern psychedelic flair.

When you first hear Thee Marloes, their particular soul sound may seem familiar enough. There are the weighty drums, a crooning guitar, and a beautiful voice singing about unrequited love or the complications of relationships. But then there is something undeniably different about Thee Marloes and their music, something new and distinct. And while you may be acquainted with soul music, you’ve probably never heard it from Surabaya, Indonesia—the place Thee Marloes call home.

With Natassya Sianturi singing and playing keys, Sinatrya (“Raka”) Dharaka on guitar, and Tommy Satwick on drums, how Thee Marloes came to be is pretty straight forward, but the result is anything but. With early influences from American hip-hop, classic soul, rocksteady and lovers rock reggae.

No matter what language you speak or  culture you come from, Thee Marloes music and energy is so charming that we will all be keeping it close to the turntable for years to come.

None of her friends or family were surprised when Jazmine Alvarado announced she’d just joined a band as the lead singer. Back in middle school she’d walk around with a ukulele under her arm, she was in a class chorus, and she’d sing every opportunity she got — mostly in Spanish.  They weren’t surprised when she told them what kind of music they were playing either — a kind of Chicano soul. Jazmine’s dad had been in a Tejano band when he was younger, and her parents introduced her to ’60s soul singers like Brenton Wood and Barbara Mason. It was, they thought, what Jazmine was destined to do.

The then-unnamed band she’d just joined, with a group of boys, some of whom she’d known from school in Hawthorne, California, would become Thee Heart Tones. Still in their teens when they formed, Thee Heart Tones draw from a deep well of Latin American standards and North American soul ballads but manage to pull something out that sounds fresh and modern.