Bic Runga

Artist: Bic Runga
Genre: Pop/Folk
Albums: Drive, Beautiful Collision, Birds

Bic comes from a musically talented family and started singing at a very young age. Her music has proven to be extremely sucessful in New Zealand, and she has been nominated and won in numerous categories at the New Zealand Music Awards. She was awarded for: top female vocalist, best album of the year, best music video, and the rising star award. Bic's voice isn't the only thing that makes her so successful- she also writes, produces, and plays much of her own music. Her latest album, Birds, was released in the UK in May and is her third consecutive #1 album (which is already certified platinum). Time South Pacific describes this album to be "a haunting mix of heartbreak, hope, and nostalgia", and there aren't any other words that could possibly describe her music in a better way than that.

The mix that I made for this post contains songs from her two most recent albums. The tracks in purple font are taken from her Beautiful Collision album, and the tracks in pink font from her most recent album, Birds.

Playlist - "B Mix"

• Get Some Sleep
• Precious Things
  
• That's Alright
• Captured

~~~Use the podcast player to listen to the mix or download the mp3 file of the mix here!~~~

Other Links
Bic's Official Website
The Bic Runga Story
Bic's MySpace Page
Merchandise Site
Buy CD at Amazon

Natalie Walker Debut Album Released

Natalie's alum "Urban Angel" was just released on August 22. You can download it from iTunes or purchase a copy from CD Baby. If you want to sample the album, CD Baby also gives you the option to listen to the first 2:00 of each track on the album. You won't be disappointed!!!

I plan to provide a description/review of each song as I become more familiar with the album, so check back for updates to this post and feel free to share your own opinions.






Artist: Natalie Walker
Album: Urban Angel
Genre: Trip-Hop

Tracklist:
1) Urban Angel - I'm slowly starting to love this song... at first I was unsure, but it's just so soothing and peaceful that I made up my mind after listening to it a second time.
2) Rest Easy - I was skeptical because this one is very electronic-sounding in the beginning, but as the song progresses it explores a more unique combination of sounds.
3) No One Else - Completely beautiful.
4) Faith - This track contains a darker tone than the previous tracks, and really shows the range of Natalie's voice and style.
5) Waking Dream - This song is without a doubt, my favorite on the album.. it will be tough for me to find one than I like more than this!
6) Circles - This song reminds me of Natalie's sultry voice in many of her Daughter Darling songs.
7) Quicksand -
8) Right Here - A very quiet, but pretty piece with a beautiful piano background.
9) Red -
10) Colorblind - An absolutely amazing cover of the Counting Crows song.
11) Not The End -
12) Sancken's Doll -


~My Rating System~

• Ewww!
• Eh...it's alright.
• Decent song.
• I really like it!
• Absolutely amazing!

Album reviews from other sites:

• Blogcritics.org
• Philadelphia Weekly
• Download.com

A New Mix for the New Layout!

This mix takes on a girly theme, and consists of more upbeat songs than usual. It's a fun mix, so enjoy!!!


Playlist:

• Black Horse & the Cherry Tree - KT Tunstall
  
• Do It - Nelly Furtado
  
• Headlock - Imogen Heap
  
• Fleur De Lis - Slow Dazzle
  
• Countenance - Beth Orton
  
• Worn Me Down - Rachel Yamagata
• Everything I'm Not - The Veronicas
• Freedom - Bird York
• L-l-love - Blondfire (formerly Astaire)
  

*Click on the links above to find out more about the artist & click on the icons to buy the album!*
~~Listen to this mix using the podcast player or click here to download the mp3~~

Sampler #1

This is a random mix of things... it's mainly downtempo stuff that's great to listen to while chillin on the weekend. Enjoy!

~Playlist~

• Breathe Me - Sia
• Down - Endless Blue
• Destiny - Zero 7
• Falling Down - Laika
• The Rain - Si*Se
• International Dateline - Ladytron
• You Make it Easy - Air ft. Beth Hirsch
• Waiting - Monica Schroeder

~Listen to this mix using the podcast player or download the mp3 here~

Songs to listen to while sitting around & thinking about life

Well, I cheated and put some older, non-female music on the list, but I thought it was appropriate for the theme. Click on the artist links to check out their webpages. Enjoy the music!

Playlist:

• Freshmen - Verve Pipe
• Broken Bridge - Daughter Darling
• Talk - Coldplay
• In Perfect Time - Jill Barber
• A Little Better - Nadine Zahr
• Everything Around Me Is Changing - Sinead Lohan
• Crazy Life - Toad the Wet Sprocket
• Hold Onto Nothing - David Gray
• Lessons Learned - Carrie Underwood
• Times Like These - Foo Fighters
• Recovery - New Buffalo
• Anywhere But Here - Jessi Lynn
• What Can I Do - Ida
• Fade - Madder Rose

~Use to the podcast player to listen to this mix, or click here to get the mp3.~

KT Tunstall

After watching KT Tunstall perform on Conan a while back, I was captured by her talent. She performs solo, and provides as her own band. She uses a looping machine with a foot pedal to record and play back harmonies for the song that she's singing. She also plays the guitar and sometimes adds a tamborine for some of her performances. It's very impressive! I haven't listened to her whole album yet, but I do love the hit song Black Horse and the Cherry Tree. I also really like the first song on the album called Other Side of the World. It's a bit more mellow, and has some really good lyrics. I posted it on one of the previous podcasts, so listen to it if you haven't already! I'll post more about KT after I listen to her entire album.

Watch Her Performance from the Conan O'Brien Show

• Her Website
• More of KT's Stuff
• Tour Dates
• Buy Her Album
• KT in the News