Magana Delivers Beautifully Crafted New EP, “Bad News”

We recently had the wonderful opportunity to listen to the new EP, “Bad News” , from Magana, the solo project of acclaimed LA-based multi-instrumentalist and photographer Jeni Magaña. You can listen to “Bad News” on Spotify Here Apple Music Here

Best-known as the current bassist and backing vocalist for Mitski (recently performing on the “Coyote, My Little Brother” “Buffalo Replaced” single), Magaña is also one-half of the pen pin pop duo with Emily Moore, and has previously played with Lady Lamb, amongst others.

In March, she returned to the Magana project after a three-year-absence with the critically acclaimed TeethLP, which reunited her with Audio Antihero Records(Frog / CIAO MALZ / Nosferatu D2)who issued her Golden Tongue debut in 2016. Released to coincide with the peak illumination of the Worm Moon, her return was marked with a Witchy Rock” sound that combined Acid Folk, Synth Pop, and Indie Rock. Magaña followed this in October with DREAMS,’ a multimedia project released via the UK’s Hand Drawn Hand label, which combined Ambient Electronic music with a spoken word dream diary and a book of her photography.

The ‘Bad News’ EP is her third release in a ten month period. Teasingly described by Magaña as Cozy Core” and Winter Pop,these four songs see her return to the singer-songwriter focus of works likeGolden Tongueand Teeth but strip away the Rock and Ambient layers, so to emphasize words, meaning, honesty, and change.

The “Bad News” EP from Magana, is a magnificent collection of well crafted songs that gently warm your soul .

The melody on the opening track, “Half To Death “ is both hauntingly beautiful and inviting , it is the perfect opening track to a wonderful collection of music .

Jeni Magaña’s vocal on “Hold On “, is positively otherworldly. Listening to “Hold On” you really feel artistic core of the EP, “Hold On” is by far our favorite track on “Bad News”

The beauty of “Shower Song “ is the authenticity and honesty that is found in the brilliant and powerful lyrics. We were hanging on every word , “Shower Song” is absolute perfection.

The final track on “Bad News”, “I’m Not Doing Anything “, is a stunningly beautifully arranged track , that artfully blends vocals and melodies to create a jaw dropping and memorable song.

This EP is the last of what I think of as an interconnected trio of releases. ‘Teeth’ was made for spring, a period of growth. It was expansive and exploring. ‘DREAMS’ was made for fall. It was about dusk, the dawning of the restful months. ‘Bad News’ is made for that period of time between the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Stillness before movement. Each song is about the period of time right before a transition: the realization that change is coming or that it needs to come. As the most lyrically driven of the releases, it is mostly about storytelling. I think of each track as a vignette of a moment in time for four different stories.” – Jeni Magaña

If music warms your soul then you owe it to yourself, to listen to “Bad News”, from Magana.

Skateland Delivers Big Time With Turbo Charged New Single “Autobahn!”

We recently checked out the amazing new single “Autobahn!” from Austin based bedroom pop artist Skateland .

You can listen to “Autobahn” Here

You can also check out the video below

We were instantly taken by the mysterious and mesmerizing sounds and tones of “Autobahn!”

Dorian Williams II, known professionally as Skateland, is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist based in Austin, TX. After moving from Las Vegas to pursue a degree at the University of Texas, Williams began writing songs and experimenting with various instruments in his bedroom and Skateland was born.

Drawing from a wide variety of musical influences, he combines melancholy lyricism and new wave instrumentation with pop production techniques to create a sound that is equal parts past, present, and future. With Skateland, he often writes about autobiographical experiences, confiding, “I take emotions or feelings that I’ve gathered from certain experiences and package them into a format that’s accessible to anyone who listens. I think that’s why I love writing and recording music in non-traditional places as opposed to a fancy studio, writing a guitar part on my porch, jotting down song lyrics at a bar or cafe, tracking vocals in my bedroom etc., it feels like returning to the scene of that major life event and there’s an emotional power in that!”

His single “Autobahn!” explores the hills and valleys of love and relationships. He confides, “The narrator begins the song with what he presumes is a breakup speech, but somehow along the way concedes that for better or worse he will always love this person, and that the tough parts of loving someone are what make it worth it in the end.”

Skateland is the true definition of an artist, the creative energy that surrounds “Autobahn!” Is absolutely off the charts . You owe it to your ears to give “Autobahn!” a listen, you won’t regret it .