Cash Cash is popping up everywhere. It’s almost hard to believe that this small New Jersey band is rising so quickly in the music world. Vocalist and Guitarist Jean Paul Makhlouf was nice enough to answer a few questions posed by BeatCrave despite his damaged vocal cords from their past tour with Metro Station. We cover the release of their new album, how Dashboard Confessional spurns acoustic shows, and their upcoming stint on Warped Tour.

How would you describe your music?

A sugar rush explosion in your mouth…Remember Pop Rox candy?? It’s kinda like that…but better! ☺ or I guess I could also say if Michael Jackson had a threesome with Britney spears and Daft Punk and somehow had a baby….it would be us!

You just finished your tour a few days ago, but you’re not starting up again in January, right?

We’re actually are starting another tour in Jan. Early January we’re going to be doing a short acoustic Hot Topic in store tour with We The Kings & Hey Monday. That tour will end in California where our next tour with Millionaires begins. Continue Reading

BeatCrave recently had the opportunity to talk with Emil Svanängen, the man behind Loney, Dear.  Originally from Sweden, Loney, Dear worked in his native country writing and creating music from home until he was picked up by Sib-Pop records and provided with a platform to reach a much broader audience.  With lyrics simple yet beautifully complex and a voice which matches such a paradox beautifully, Loney, Dear has been wowing listeners and critics alike.  We here at BeatCrave like him so much he was one of our BeatCrave Favs.

Now, take the time and get to know, Loney, Dear.

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BeatCrave brings you band, Fiasco, as part of our Know Your NYC Bands series. Coming out of Brooklyn, Jonathan Edelstein (guitar/vox), Lucian Buscemi (bass/vox), and Julian Bennett Holmes (drums) all bring a fierce punch to the other bands in the area. They were barely in their teens when they came out with their first album, God Loves Fiasco, and now as they come out with their second record, Native Canadians, they are just reaching the legal age. With this said, it’s even more impressive that their music is completely rad.

With off the wall guitar riffs, chaotic drumming and tight bass lines, Fiasco justify the name they chose. Think they’ve got everything as a band right now? Just think of what they’ll do years from now when they make the right decisions as well as the wrong ones. (The wrong ones are most entertaining.) With titles such as “Oh You Horny Monster” and solid tunes to back up the random names, they’ll be wanted on tour with everyone and everywhere. (When they have contests, send stuff in, people!) They’re just getting started.

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BeatCrave brings you duo, Jen & Abby, as part of our Know Your LA Bands series. Sometimes it takes the complete opposites to make music come together just right. Jen Trani and Abby Miller, who may be day and night, are living proof that two different ideas can beautifully meld. Lucky for us, their peronalities, influences, and skills have intertwined for our listenening pleasure.

Writing folk-pop songs that sell out the most popular singer-songwriter spot in Hollywood, Jen & Abby continue to take advantage of their fortuitous meeting (one lucky flyer was all it took), and extend their talent to anyone who will listen. It’s been working, too. Their attitude is nothing but endearing and one could say their lyrics are an exact carbon copy of that. However, there’s a gumption in there that saves them from being called anything too saccherine-sweet.

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This review might end up with the opinion of every review you’ve read before - probably because this album is bound to sound like every rock album you’ve heard before. Don’t get it wrong - Framing Hanley’s re-release of their 2007 debut album “The Moment” has all the potential to be launched into emo rockstardom. However, there will be constant “sounds like…”s or “feels like…”s  when compared to other contemporary bands, which could prove a bit of a disadvantage to the boys unless they decisively up it a notch.

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Joel Petersen of Omaha, Nebraska, guitarist, bassist and keyboardist for The Faint answered some questions about the band’s current tour and newest album Fasciination. Petersen also is Broken Spindles, for which he writes music for between touring with The Faint.

The tour allowed for a stop at the high profile Lux disco in downtown Lisbon, Portugal on December 4th. With a wide repertoire, spanning almost a decade of hit albums, The Faint smashed even the highest expectations, with non-stop electronic dance rhythms and faithful presentation of their studio quality tracks. The album is available for digital download at their homepage. The full interview is after the break!

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BeatCrave brings you artist, Ivana XL, as part of Know Your NYC Bands series. She may be compared to Cat Power but what’s most enchanting about Ivana is the nakedness of her voice. A little more folk than blues with a style reminiscent of the unusual Mirah, her voice manages to come off as as gentle and unyielding at the same time. Her lyrics are raw and honest as they can get and her soft-spoken lyrics can be heard miles away. Ivana XL is one of the few artists who can beautifully compose music that is stripped down to the core of every hidden feeling.

Constantly traveling with her mother as child, Ivana’s musical influences have helped her become the shy but eclectically talanted songwriter she is today. Performing in the heart of Brooklyn, she is now influenced by a surplus of local talents but still manages to create her own niche of style.

Catch her at an upcoming show! Ivana XL performs at Cake Shop on December 29th and at Pianos on January 8th. If you make it, you can pick up her new EP, EP2. Until then, check out our exclusive interview with her below!

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Comprised of Gary Curran, Decky Hedrock and Gareth Donoghue, The Japanese Popstars are three DJ’s from the UK who are not only big in Japan, they are taking the electronic scene to a whole new level.  This past summer they played at numerous music festivals leaving people drenched in sweat from dancing their hearts out and left awestruck by the three DJ’s who had the foresight to come together and form a truly unparalleled trio.

Now, with the release of their new album, “We Just Are,” (Buy Now!) The Japanese Popstars are making quite the buzz amongst music critics as well with their unabashed creativity and simply enjoyable dance grooves. BeatCrave was fortunate enough to chat with The Japanese Popstars about how they formed, what they are currently working on and much more.

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I can only imagine what it was like to discover Bob Dylan for the first time in the 1960’s, but I think I had a similar experience at Jack Savoretti’s gig at the Hotel Café last week. I was completely lost in the 23-year-old singer-songwriter’s lyrics of evocative travels and lovers lost. His voice is a mixture of joy one moment and then agonizing pain the next. Jack Savoretti’s music takes you on a journey across the world through his eyes. He is like a novel that must be read. It is no exaggeration or misappropriation to say that he is undoubtedly the Bob Dylan of the 21st Century.

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