Kesang Marstrand Choices Her "Bodega Rose"

Born to a Danish mother and Tibetan father, Kesang Marstrand is not your ordinary mixed-origin singer-songwriter. She just out with a music video for her debut album's title track, "Bodega Rose." Grew up in Colorado and she later moved to New York, her interest in music began at an early age, as she discovered her passion for music via a piano in the common room of a schoolhouse in Colorado. Marstrand's music is soulful acoustic that's at once gripping and memorable. Her debut album is a contemplative, acoustic work. Smallish album of great folk songs with catchy melodies.
In New York City, which is where Marstrand live mostly, "Bodega" is just a word for a convenience store. The title song is about the roses you can buy outside most bodegas. The sentiment of the song has to do with the choices we make, and the inevitable sacrifice of choosing something like living in the city as opposed to living in a more natural environment. It's about reconciling a choice and recognizing that there's a sacrifice in everything, but that there's also a beauty in that. I think the entire album is about reconciliation, in different ways.
Marstrand has a relaxed and delicious voice. She tells us about writing "Bodega Rose:" "It started with the image of this bodega on a street corner near where I was living in New York. They have flowers outside, like a lot of bodegas do, and I remember having this image in my mind of the roses on a rainy evening. Then the idea of wilderness came up, the idea of wildflowers, and I found myself thinking about how many people in the city, including myself, often feel this intense longing for nature. The song came from that place, and writing it came very naturally... it just kind of came to me, which doesn't happen that often."
The video was shot in Nashville in August after Marstrand moved from NYC, and directed by filmmaker Jeff Wyatt Wilson, who had to say about working with Marstrand: "When I first heard Kesang's 'Bodega Rose' I simply fell in love with her lyrics as well as her voice. I immediately played the song over and over again and was so excited that this was the artist and song we were going to shoot." He added "Kesang and I worked wonderfully together. She has a beautiful soul and is one of the most kind and talented musicians I've ever worked with. Projects like this are humbling and remind me of just how fortunate I am to get the pleasure to have these brief intimate creative moments where friendships are born that you know will last forever."

The Harters Out A Wonderful Love Song 'If I Run'

Country music Sibling trio The Harters is back with a breezy song of love worth chasing. They released a music video for their latest single, "If I Run," the official lead single from their self-titled debut album which is expected to release in early 2011. This is a very ear-pleasing country music by The Harters. A hyperbolic emotion all encapsulated very well in a simple yet poignant delivery. It could just be a breakthrough for the band.
Family. Love. Harmony. They're three simple words that can mean anything to pretty much everybody. But for The Harters, they embody a way of life that means just about everything. The trio is comprised of two brothers, Michael and Scott and one sister, Leslie, which may be why their harmonies are so meshed with one another. The the family trio started singing together in 2005 after several years of pursuing careers independently. The musically gifted siblings moved from their home in Arizona to Tennessee and quickly connected with producer Keith Stegall to record their unique brand of country chorals and seamless natural harmonies.
Their soaring vocals and family harmonies lend a sound to this song and all of their music that is just incredible. "If I Run" is a slower and softer love ballad with an upbeat rhythm that tells the story of a woman whose heart was once broken, looking to love again but needing to know if her partner will "run" after each other, and accompany her through life's peaks and valleys as she contemplates a long-term future. A strong ballad of patience, understanding, sympathy and everlasting love that grows old together. The family trio sound fantastic with their strong vocals & harmonies making this song one that will hook you right from the beginning.
The siblings produce a distinctive country sound. The songs are not dusty bar tunes carried in a rusty bucket nor are they pop creations disguised in denim and big hats. The harmonies are true and easy and the music is melodious and catchy, and the song is soft but strong in content, harmony and tempo. With the new single "If I Run," The Harters are easy to get-to-know. Just like the song itself asks "If I run would you run after me?" The Harters's music is worth the chase.

Little Big Town Debut "Kiss Goodbye" Video

Country quartet Little Big Town is back in a big way onto the airwaves earlier this year with "Little White Church," a rollicking, sassy, bluegrassy lead-off single from their fourth studio album, "The Reason Why," which hit stores in August, and has brought the band to the top of the country albums charts for the first time. Right in their wheelhouse, the vibrant song re-established the group as a vocal force of nature, once again earning their place on radio playlists.
They say timing is everything, and momentum has now shifted some with the release of their second song "Kiss Goodbye" to radio on October, and have just released their new video on CMT for the introspective ballad song. Producer Wayne Kirkpatrick, sets the initial haunting tone with an icy and isolated triad of piano chords, but band member Phillip Sweet takes it from there, delivering verses with quiet warmth, slowly winding up for the earth-rattling, four-part harmonies that hit hard in the chorus. Sweet's lead vocal is slightly grainy and soulful, contrasting with the layered, slick and surprisingly more pop-oriented production. The lyrics, atypically for a Hillary Lindsey co-write, are simple without being overly familiar.
The video was shot in Adams, Tennessee, where the group worked with director David McClister for the first time. Band mate Jimi Westbrook offers insight into the video's content: "It's about maybe a summer love that is blossoming and happening and for some reason has to end." Over even-keeled light piano melodies and blues-driven acoustic guitar, two-part harmonies and mid-tempo percussion kick off the second verse, followed by the group's stylistic four-part harmonies in the hook as they sing about moving on from a relationship. The simple lyric with a focused message about letting go with love might not be the visually video-ready kind that prevails in country music, but is head-nodding real and relatable all the same.
"The Reason Why" is an interesting single choice, since it's markedly more pop than many of their previous songs. But it's still unmistakably a Little Big Town song, and it's a cut that shows the dynamics of the group's highly-refined sound. It may take a while to get this one going at radio since it's such a slow, downbeat song, but from both an artistic and commercial standpoint, "Kiss Goodbye" is a risk worth taking. A beautifully bittersweet song, carried out in Little Big Town's trademark perfect harmony, makes you believe and keeps you coming back for more. It represents new straight-up pop territory for the foursome, which it does.

Train To "Shake Up Christmas" With Coca Cola

With their popularity on a tremendous rise stemming from this year's hit love song "Hey Soul Sister" and "If It's Love," The San Francisco-based rock band Train has decided to make their mark on the holiday season as well. They wrote another new song for holidays entitled "Shake Up Christmas" which will spread joy and love during hard times. The cool dudes from Train have launched the brand new Video for their new Christmas tune on people.com, and hope to put a smile on the faces of music fans when listening to it amidst the gloomy economy. The Butch Walker-produced track will be released as a single worldwide on December 20.
"Shake Up Christmas," is a jaunty singalong that will appear as a bonus track on the Grammy-winning band's recently released "Save Me, San Francisco: Golden Gate Edition" (a deluxe reissue of their 2009 critically-acclaimed fifth album "Save Me, San Francisco") and if "Shake it up, shake up the happiness" sounds a bit too commercial then you might be on to something, since the song is set to be the soundtrack of the new Coca-Cola commercial campaign this Christmas. Every year, there is always a bid to get a modern tune into the permanent Christmas canon, which is always a bit of an uphill battle. Train's Christmas single "Shake Up Christmas" is probably my favorite of all the 2010 newcomers. It's just happy and catchy!
"The holiday season is one of the best times of the year," said Pat Monahan, the lead vocalist and founding member of Train. He told Reuters the new song is less about commerce and more about wanting to conjure holiday joy during tough times having come across so many people struggling during the economic downturn. "The song 'Shake Up Christmas' is inspired by childhood memories of spending time with family and sharing the happiness and hope that the season brings. Having it be part of the Coca-Cola campaign is a wonderful way to share that sentiment with a bigger audience." He also added that writing a song only for commerce reasons seemed cynical. Approaching a song that way, he said, "you are not going to write inspiring music. I think of what I did with 'Shake Up Christmas' as a 'how can I help' spread some happiness."
Over the course of 15 years, the multi-platinum selling band has traveled a long, successful and sometimes arduous journey. Train has, for all intents and purposes, experienced an epiphany as a whole. Now, with their latest album, "Save Me San Francisco," Train has channeled their early days, revisiting the roots rock sound. "It's really an honor to know that, somehow, our music is affecting people in a positive way," Monahan said. "Shake Up Christmas" provides a fitting backdrop with lyrics that echo the same emotion and Train embraces Santa's spirit for a festive new holiday song that is sure to lift your spirits.

Ke$ha Parties Hard In "We R Who We R" Video

American pop singer Ke$ha throws sexy, dark dance party so hard in just-released clip for "We R Who We R," her first offering and a solid kick off to her new debut EP, "Cannibal," which is upbeat, yet typical and an electronic dance pop party extravaganza, released last month. The track debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, three weeks before the EP's release.
Ke$ha was inspired to write the song in the wake of news that bullying had led to multiple suicides of gay youth. Ke$ha explained that she wanted the song to become a pride anthem: "I wanted to inspire people to be themselves. It's a celebration of any sort of quirks or eccentricities." She elaborated, "I was really affected by the suicides that have been happening, having been subject to very public hatred myself. I have absolutely no idea how these kids felt. What I'm going through is nothing compared to what they had to go through. Just know things do get better and you need to celebrate who you are. Every weird thing about you is beautiful and makes life interesting. Hopefully the song really captures that emotion of celebrating who you are." With its bouncy Dr. Luke beats and her usual bubblegum melodies, it could actually be her poppermost effort to date.
The chart-topping "We R Who We R" is dominantly a uptempo dance-pop song with a trashy edge providing great Friday night party music, that utilizes a synth-heavy backing. Vocally, the song follows in the footsteps of Ke$ha's previous singles, in which Ke$ha uses her "signature" talk-singing vocal style throughout the song. The 23-year-old pop phenom continues to toe the line between offensive and clever, she struck gold again with "We R Who We R." The catchy beat and a party sense applies to most of the general public with "You know we're superstars, we are who we are!" and it will make anyone dance. This really can mean whatever you want it to be.
Glitter, studded eyebrows, and 'sexified' autotune are all present in Ke$ha's new video since she wants everyone to know "We R Who We R." The Good-time girl says that "This video is a little bit sexy time." Directed by Hype Williams in downtown Los Angeles this fall, The hot and dangerous video is presented as an underground party, and centers on Ke$ha having a night out with her crew roll through a tunnel as a fire burns in the background and then she stage dives off a roof. Luckily, the crowd below catches her. The video closes with a smiling Ke$ha dancing her heart out, proclaiming proudly that "We R Who We R." Ke$ha definitely knows how to entertain us and put on a show! She's clearly a performer! When they arrive, Revolucion tequila is on full display at a post-apocalyptic rave. Apparently, Ke$ha has now hit the product-placement stage of her career.

Coldplay Released A Festive "Christmas Lights"

British alternative rock band Coldplay have unveiled the video on Wednesday for their exclusive special festive single, "Christmas Lights," released as a digital download, just in time for the holiday season, and bringing fans some holiday cheer. As previously reported, Coldplay revealed that the cheese-o-riffic new single is "in the key of G", before adding that they hoped fans "have a great Christmas and holidays." The mid-tempo track was originally thought that "Christmas Lights" would be a song from their upcoming fifth studio album, which explains why "Christmas" lights is so mellow, and not the gigantic, sweeping, Hot AC rock that they usually release.
Gwyneth Paltrow isn't the only member of the Paltrow-Martin family to make the holiday season more musical - Coldplay's new Christmas single and it's video was (seemingly) shot in one take. But that's not the most interesting part - we'd say the Elvis string quartet floating in the background nabs that honor. Though it's a Christmas song it still has that Coldplay sound, with the lead vocalist Chris Martin providing his trademark smooth vocals. The track is now available on iTunes.
The Mat Whitecross-directed video, from the colorful piano to the the "waves" and the balloons to fireworks, which was shot on the South Bank of the River Thames on last Thursday (November 25) in London. It begins with the start up of a record player, and the camera pans across a self-playing piano, and then the four members of the band, wherein Martin begins to sing the first verse. The camera pans back to the piano, and Martin has changed his position, the rest of the band nowhere to be seen. He then begins to play the piano, which is now on a stage in front of the Thames. The band play the rest of the song, accompanied with fireworks and violin-playing Elvises. 100 fans of the band also appear in the music video, where they release balloons on a boat on the Thames whilst singing along to part of the song.
with the moving water, dropping confetti, the rockets, stars and a dream-like world in the backdrop of an old time theater. The new video is definitely a lot more whimsical than the song itself. This new sweeping Christmas tune "Christmas Lights," is a reminder why Coldplay is at their best with simple Production and a nice Melody. It's tender and just wonderful. It's not what we were expecting, but it is always great to hear new music from Coldplay. Hopefully that new album comes out sooner rather than later!

Diddy-Dirty Money Are "Coming Home"

Sean "Diddy" Combs picks up his Dirty Money girls, Dawn Richard and Kalenna Harper, in the desert and brings them home in a helicopter. The trio group, Diddy-Dirty Money unveiled the Rich Lee-directed video for "Coming Home" to the world last night via E! News. The song is the fifth single taken from their upcoming star-studded album "Last Train to Paris," in stores on December 14. After the promo at the 2010 American Music Awards and the great take off on US radio, Diddy and Dirty Money are still waiting for that last train to Paris to arrive.
"Coming Home" featuring vocalist Skylar Grey on the hook, which was produced by new 'it' producer, the British Alex Da Kid, and co-written by Jay-Z. The song poses some serious questions, like what happens after partying and Ciroc-drinking ends and it's time for real-life. Diddy and his ladies, Dirty Money, get self-reflective on "Coming Home," the newest midtempo tune starts with a simple piano intro and the beautiful vocals from Skylar Grey (Da Kid's artist) before Diddy raps that he's put his mistakes behind him and is ready to return home, while Richard and Harper take over the rest of the choruses, and soulfully sing about coming home.
"Coming Home" finds Diddy doing some soul-searching in his rhymes as the chorus echoes his need for salvation. The setting of the video is out in the middle of nowhere, and Diddy is shown walking out into the desert, while talking about trying to "go home." Diddy and his ladies are taking a more serious look at life as Diddy returns to his 90s "Puff Daddy" rap flow for the track. Wandering through the arid landscape, Puff happens upon the remnants of a burned house and the shell of an old car, with Richard and Harper trailing behind him. The trio reunites in the end, zipping away in a helicopter.
An electro hip-hop soul funk experience blending elements of UK grime, Mediterranean techno and the 808s of American hip-hop. Withdark, atmospheric beats and a cinematic back story, the new effort, "Last Train To Paris," represents entirely new side of the rap impresario, a sound Diddy calls "train music," new dance music for the new decade. "All our records are gonna be about love, feelings and emotion. It's a love story and the most vulnerable album I've ever been involved in. It's raw emotion - you get a feeling, a vibe." Sure, this album will make you dance, but Dirty Money is more than just dance music. It's a movement. The trio group isn't just more of the same. It's an organic group that grewout of a shared passion for music.