Delta Goodrem
Video: In This Life (Live)
Video: Black Velvet (Cover – Live)
You have got to see and hear this girl to believe her. Delta Goodrem, an Australian singer/actress, has an amazing voice and isn’t shabby to watch, either. I’ve heard her new hit ‘In This Life’ many times on Sirius, but never new about the artist. That changed last night when she appeared on a newsworthy episode of Late Show w/ David Letterman. Delta plays piano in ‘In This Life’, and sings it quite well. I dare say she may become my new favorite female singer, replacing Tori Amos. I’ll have to hear more from her first, and believe me, I’m going to hear more.
After seeing her sing last night, I immediately searched out her album and more information. She has quite the story, it turns out. At the age of 15, Delta signed with Sony. In 2002, she became well known by appearing on an Australian soap opera (Russ just became a fan…). In 2003, in the midst of transitioning from being an award winning actress to an award winning songwriter, her career was put on hold due to the development of cancer. She was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma after developing several warning signs. Her treatment took over her life, but she survived, and went on to release her second album in 2004. Now, her third album, titled ‘Delta’, is becoming a huge hit worldwide. She’s currently touring in the US and traveling the media circuit promoting her album.
Delta, who writes and performs her own songs, as well as playing piano on most, is a gorgeous young lady (Oh, did I mention she’s only 23!) who has the entire world at her fingertips. Her future is bright, and deserves your attention. I highly encourage you to check out her albums Innocent Eyes, Mistaken Identity, and Delta. Also, check out her cover of ‘Black Velvet’, a chart topping hit of 1990. I’ve linked the video up above. Check it out!
Oasis
Video: The Shock Of The Lightning
I’ve been listening to the new album ‘Dig Out Your Soul’ over the last two days. I haven’t heard every song, as I haven’t dedicated an hour solely to this album to listen to it all through, as I’d like to before I review it. However, I am a fan of new single ‘The Shock Of The Lightning’. It’s not the greatest single the band has released, although no one expected it to follow such classics as ‘Wonderwall’ or ‘D’You Know What I Mean’. The album is steady, with a mix of rock and softer, melodic tunes. The last two albums have come to the US with little fanfare it seems, but have been worthy of some press. Noel and Liam, the Gallagher brothers, have been hard at work producing meaningful and worthwile tunes, and this is no exception. I’ll review the album soon here, but I can already suggest you give it a listen.
O.A.R. (Of A Revolution)
Video: Shattered
I recently got back into OAR (Of A Revolution). Now, first let me say that I automatically tend to dislike bands that use acronyms for their name. If they want to name themselves Of A Revolution and stick with it, fine…but acronyms? I’m against them. Nine Inch Nails is fine because they don’t go by NIN. Say it out loud; If they went by NIN, they never would have made it. AFI is in the same boat, however, like OAR, they have managed to overcome this sin by their musical talent.
I’ve been asking around lately for others thoughts on this band. I’ve asked Russ, my roommate Josh, my friend The Boz, and a few other people who ended up saying they never had heard of them…and the general consensus among them was not a positive one. Josh, in fact, dislikes them plenty enough for everyone. I, however, don’t see this hate. Josh’s reasoning was that they weren’t his favorite genre, he’s not big into live specialists, or jam bands in particular. He also dislikes Dave Matthews Band, and OAR is often described as a new, lesser known DMB. Other reviews weren’t so negative of them, though. There is definite potential with the new album, All Sides, to change minds, in my opinion. The newest single ‘Shattered’ is one of the catchiest OAR tunes, as well as one of the catchiest in all of modern rock radio. Already the most successful in terms of chart rankings, new single ‘Shattered’ continues to climb and is heavily featured on XM and Sirius radio’s alternative rock and top 40 stations. It’s already one of my favorite OAR songs, and has been on my playlist over the last week.
Other music I’ve been listening to, and suggest you do also whether you’re familiar with them or not:
1) All Time Low – Especially their cover of Rihanna’s hit Umbrella. This band has quickly taken the place of Taking Back Sunday as a favorite small club, college loved type band with punk/alt goodness. Russ will probably tell you more about them than I could, but I’m a fan.
2) Matchbox 20 – Recently went back and listened to their debut album, which including hit single Push. I got into this band when I was twelve. I remember vividly what started my interest in them. While playing little league baseball, a kid on the team would often listen to this song in his dad’s car while we drove to away games. This was his favorite song, and I quickly became a fan as well. I’m not much a fan of their most recent stuff, and I’m not too interested in Rob Thomas’ solo stuff (including his alleged affair with Tom Cruise), but I do enjoy their first album.
3) Jimmy Eat World – Russ puts over this album more than Hulk Hogan does his daughter, and his high reviews made me a fan again of this band. I’ve listened to Chase This Light and Clarity in their entirety recently, and the improvement and musical growth is refreshing and amazing. Some bands produce record after record, but either regress or stay the same. Not these guys. Better and better every time out, and if you’re not familiar with them, I suggest you become so quickly.
4) Brand New – Of course, never get tired of Brand New. The band plays two sold out shows this weekend in Columbus and Indianapolis. These are their last two shows of the year, and will feature new music that Jesse Lacey (lead singer) has been working on.