October 2017 – Music blogger

Live EDM Series: Whethan

October 31, 2017November 13, 2017by Blondie and the BeatLeave a Comment

Whethan (AKA Ethan Snoreck) hugs the border of pop, dance, and electronic. His single “Can’t Hide” sounds like it could’ve been made with children’s toys, but the lyrics (sung by fellow tour-mate Ashe) are way more adult; “come make some love that lasts“. A fun fresh beat is what this 18-year-old does best.

His live show is no comparison to what you hear on Spotify. Playing the best of his discography while also remixing some of today’s hottest tracks like Lorde’s “Perfect Places,” Kendrick’s “Backseat Freestyle,” and even DJ Khaled’s “Wild Thoughts”. This teenager proves his worth in the mixing game putting his own spin (literally, I saw him spinning) on each song.

Although there were no visuals, the light show was unbelievably spastic and just what any good dance show needs. Reds, blues, yellows; the whole color wheel showed up last night, further adding to the high feeling in the theater. Whethan jumped around in an oversized red hoodie grinning ear to ear every time the crowd screamed or sang along.

This Chicago native even brought along some dope friends to open the show. Shout out to SAINT WKND and Ashe (stay tuned for a spotlight on her) for getting the crowd pumped up and ready for a fun night. If you get a chance to see young Whethan (not wheat thin, not Wheatan, WHETHAN) make sure you do it.

Music, New blog post

Live EDM Series: What So Not

October 26, 2017November 13, 2017by Blondie and the BeatLeave a Comment

Australian record producer Emoh Instead shook The Westcott Theatre (Syracuse, NY) to its core last night. He goes by the name of What So Not and he’s an expert at melting faces.

His latest single released in September “Better” follows suit with the rest of his production; tons of bass claps, catchy lyrics, and a punchy drop. The live show goes above and beyond to highlight his unique array of discography. Some tracks are vocal heavy; “Buried”, “High You Are”, and “Trust”, while others keep the insanely eclectic EDM beats we know and get hype to; “Waiting” and “Tell Me”.

Not only was the music trance-like, but the show behind Emoh was just as good. The lights and visuals mirrored each song respectively; showing music video snippets, kaleidoscope shapes, and mixed patterns jolting with each bass drop or vocal dip.

I highly recommend seeing What So Not on tour. You’ll sweat out all the beer you drank in less than an hour.

Make sure you follow me on Instagram to see live concert videos and check back next week for Part 2 of my Live EDM Series with Whethan!

Music, New blog post, New music

Demi: Simply Complicated

October 22, 2017by Blondie and the BeatLeave a Comment

simply complicated

Watching “Simply Complicated” after listening to Demi’s latest album, Tell Me You Love Me just makes sense. The documentary highlights the Disney star turned pop singer as the confident woman she is today. Not only does it chronicle her journey to stardom but features insights from the people who were/are closest to her in her darkest times.

Demi sits down for an interview and admits she’s nervous. When asked why, she says the last time she did an interview this long she was coked out. This statement paves the way for the next hour and 18 minutes; raw honesty about subjects that need to be talked about. Substance abuse, eating disorders, mental issues, violence, Demi remains honest about each topic with no filter in between. She talks about how her eating disorder has come back recently, how working out helped with her anger and mental issues, and how substance abuse almost led to her death.

“The key to being happy is to tell your truth” says Lovato. She talked in depth about her love life when mentioning her six year relationship with actor Wilmer Valderrama. After the breakup she realized she forgot what it was like to be alone. Her latest album touches on this in an emotional yet beautiful way. We see Demi, now in her element, flirting and talking to other people, playing the field and having fun in the dating scene; something she hasn’t been comfortable with for a long time. Tell Me You Love Me does a perfect job at expressing Demi’s pent up lovebird-side.

Now back to why we know Demi in the first place; the music. We see her in the studio thrusting out every note as hard as she can. She goes over and over to make sure every run and verse is perfect. When a studio friend tells her she did a good job, she says “I know…I mean…thank you”. The confident Demi is all over this album; confident in her sexuality, confident in her business, confident in herself. While explaining why “Sorry Not Sorry” should be the lead single off this album, Demi says it’s the fun side fans need to see from her. She didn’t want people to remember her music as “heavy” she wanted to bring fun back, like we saw with 2015’s “Cool for the Summer”. So, she poured her heart out, danced more, laughed more, and created one of her best albums to date.

If there’s one thing I learned while watching “Simply Complicated”, it’s that Demi Lovato is as truthful as it gets. She’ll be honest with herself and her fans, no matter what. It’s only going to get better from here on forward for Demi.

Music, New blog post, New music

Man Crush Monday: Lauv

October 16, 2017by Blondie and the BeatLeave a Comment

“To not know who I am but still know that I’m good long as you’re here with me,” Lauv AKA Ari Straprans Leff sings on his hit track. With over 198,000,000 streams on Spotify, “I Like Me Better” is just the beginning.

It feels like he came out of nowhere. All of a sudden we’re hearing the doo doo’s and slow beat of “Better” and you can’t help but listen to it over and over. His dreamy falsetto makes you say “damn… who is this guy?”

This 23-year-old goes by the name Lauv; Latvian for “lion” and an homage to his mom’s Eastern European roots. Born in San Francisco, music became a huge part of his life from a young age. He played piano, viola, and then mastered guitar; where his songwriting came into play. Lauv recently told Wonderland Magazine, “Honestly, part of me feels like I have this life goal of writing the saddest, most beautiful song possible!”

Recently featured on DJ Snake’s “A Different Way”, Lauv masters the art of keeping an electronic-based song still feel radio ready with romantic pop hues from his unforgettably poised voice. The song touches on how to pick up the pieces of a broken relationship; “I will come running when you call my name, even a broken heart can beat again.” A fun eclectic beat comes in right after the chorus, heightening the power of the track.

Songs like “The Other” and “The Story Never Ends” show his emotional side. Both make you want to sob under the covers and never come out. Lauv’s voice is addicting to listen to; smooth and strong. Each track feels like another story you can relate to on some level. But, his latest present to fans is the snappy “Easy Love”. A hip-hop beat guides this one to be one of my favorite Lauv singles to date.

It seems like the singer/songwriter isn’t slowing down anytime soon; more music is already on the horizon. When asked about new music, he told Wonderland, “All I can tell you is there is way more aspects of my personality and my artistry that is shown through it. And I’m really excited.”