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Messages - Zar-Unity

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Eve's Plum / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 23, 2012, 04:49:24 am »
Introduction to Eve's Plum



Eve's Plum were a grunge rock/pop group that made only two albums in the 90s. They are a extremely underrated, talented band that fronted Colleen Fitzpatrick (Later Vitamin C) on lead vocals. The music relates to teenage life and has a very colorful, fun poppy sound that will bring up feelings of Nostalgia.

"The guitar arrangements are so well done…Colleen lays down such perfect, tight, closely layered harmonies in the studio." ~ A nice description about Eve's Plum by Maukabud66 via Youtube.

Colleen Fitzpatrick sure looks incredibly gorgeous in each of these videos and she is actually a great singer with some smoking attitude and talent!

I also loved her as solo teen pop artist "Vitamin C" later on..

They have many great songs but I will share the four that made it as singles that had a cool music video for each.

First off is a later, very sugar sweet poppy number called Jesus loves you (not as much as I do) from the album Cherry alive 1995..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqbEtABEWto

Next is a slower, more serious sounding tune that is really moody called Die like someone from Envy 1993..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=preBGfeFLDk&feature=relmfu


Now here is a great pop/rock tune with some cool attitude called I want it all from Envy as well. Their first album..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHGhYqAgwh4&feature=relmfu

Now in closing, her is a really good song from Envy called Blue which has that special sound of the glorious 90s in particular..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JmK3Y03flE&feature=relmfu


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Lush / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 23, 2012, 03:56:20 am »
Introduction to Lush



Lush were two very talented songwriters, Miki Berenyi (lead singer, guitar) and Emma Anderson (backing vocals, Guitar) Phil King (Bass) and the very special late Drummer Chris Acland.

They were one of the most unique bands from the 90s and they were the very first band that I got into seriously. When I discovered Lush, on a random whim of genre research on the tag "Shoegaze", I fell in love instantly and you just might as well if you have never heard about them until now and you are already finding this introduction artist passage intriguing.

Without further ado, here are some great songs/music videos by Lush that will get you screaming and falling off your chair in big excitement!

First off, here is For love from their second album Spooky 1992 (produced by Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins!..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2F4aHdMxM0k

Now a very dreamy, hypnotic track also from Spooky..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBkMQsu2iwc

Also from their 1992 album, I bring you one hell of a fantastic shoegaze rocker tune, Superblast!..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKCTWreqR40


Now for something sweet and pretty, Sweetness and light from their first album Gala 1990 (a collection of previously released EP tracks)..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNkG3QFrM64


I could go on all night with this wonderful band but I'll just stop now and share one last great song that is probably their best song that they ever did!

Desire lines from Split 1994..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9tcEuUWuhc

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Black box recorder / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 19, 2012, 02:36:13 am »
Introduction to Black box recorder



Black box recorder are a British band consisting of Sarah Nixey (the vocalist), Luke Haines (of The Auteurs), and John Moore.

With Sarah Nixey's breathy, ice cold vocals and Luke Haines intriguing story telling style in the lyrics; the sound of Black box recorder is certainly haunting, engaging and pulls the listener into a fantastic dark world that will entertain and move you like no other band you've ever heard.

England made me 1998 was their first album and it's got a more raw sound to it than their later, more dancer tunes. It's a haunting, cold and adventurous set of great songs that shows mush potential of what's to come next for the band. It sounds more minimal in production than their later two albums, which incorporate more electronic elements into the music.

I love Facts of life 2000 & England made me 1998 but I think that Passionoia 2003 was their strongest album, which had the most enjoyable consistent flow of good songs. Mostly all dance pop tunes.

This band is very dark but also somehow always sounds uplifting to me. The production is excellent and the singer (although a little weak) is the perfect character to lead Luke Haines masterful job at telling stories. I love their dark, hypnotic sound and rich layers of melodies and creative production. This is a band that you won't get tired of listening to because they have put so much into the making of their songs.

Sarah Nixey has also had a solo career and has released two albums so far as of October 2012. Her second album, Brave tin soldiers 2011 sounds a lot like Black box recorders first album England made me, but with the absence of Luke Haines genius lyrical input.

Here are a few great songs by Black box recorder..

The facts of life from The top of the pops..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1loWFuZveyQ

Here's a great hypnotic tune with a cool video concept from The facts of life 2000 called The art of driving..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm_W4r0Fw5g


Another dreamy song from The facts of life 2000 called The English Motorway..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qC_6ia1NJkg

In closing, here is a great song from England made me 1998..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roG7SfjuAXQ


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About the music I like / About the kind of music I love
« on: October 19, 2012, 12:49:31 am »
If you have already looked threw some of my loved artists, it's probably no surprise to you that I mainly listen to and collect pop music. However, on a closer analysis, it can be revealed that the type of pop music that I usually go for is not the kind that you'd typically hear on the radio. Nor the kind of music that would appeal to a mass quantity of people like in the Top 40 billboard charts for example.

The kind of pop music that really appeals to me is the serious kind where the talent of the artist and the production assigned to them is a perfect marriage. The kind of pop that dares to be more original but is never selling out out of character or with good morals in order to make a bigger amount of quick cash.

I like pop that is generally semi-alternative but holds it's true roots in the mainstream makeup of production. I like lyrics that are cleverly written. A voice that is of top quality and that invokes a really colorful, interesting character within. A artist with enough sense to sing about subjects other than sex or break up winning songs on every single one of their songs.

I usually go for female singers as my favorite type of gender for vocalists. This isn't a sexist influenced preference but rather a special case of what I find works best for my music agenda.

I like artists that observe and tell stories of their life in a colorful and creative way. I love music with a big usage on keyboards because I love the sounds and multiple possibilities for nice touches in the atmosphere for good production. Little nice ideas buried in the background of the music that can really add a lot to the mood and nature of the song.

I can't stand most bad/weak vocalists and poor amateur production in music. Some people love this type of music and consider it to be art and that's fine for them if it's what makes them happy but it just annoys me and makes me feel like I'm really missing out on something that should be there that's absent.

I enjoy lots of music from the 90s. From shoegaze, dreampop, mainstream pop (and some r&b) to anything else alternative pop related that has a ethereal or dreamy soundscape of synthy production.  Especially 90s girl bands with a strong personalty-wise female singer! Some examples are Eve's Plum, The Darling buds and Lush.

Several artists from the 80s have also grabbed my attention as well. I don't listen to much modern pop music because it lacks something major from the production and vocalist quality that I except to hear if I'm going to like the artist at all. Everything is way too sexual and all about the rotten trends of what pop has turned into now so I avoid this stuff like the plague and just continue to enjoy, be inspired and discover new amazing artists from a more gentle world of where pop music has a real name for itself in my world. I go for music with real heart & soul to it. Music that is uplifting, magical and innocent.

My ultimate goal is to combine the major resources of the mainstream production in the pop world with the alternative aspects of pop music that is trying to be more serious and meaningful.

Giving pop music a better name for itself. Shedding the light on wonderfully creative pop artists that are very obscure, but shouldn't be.

We all know that the music industry is a cold environment and that life is unfair, so lets make it more of a pleasant place to live in by sharing and discussing information on real talent in pop that deserves to be heard by more people than it's getting.

Of course, this forum is only about artists that appeal to me and therefore will be limited to a certain kind of talent. I ask that you please respect my musical agenda and don't complain about the lack of artists that you believe should be included on this forum and instead accept discussing only artists that I approve of within this music forum.

If you have studied what kind of music appeals to me and you think you know of a artist or band that I'd like; please feel free to share on the recommend a artist to ZarUnity board. Please note that I will never be insulting to a artist recommendation that I essentially don't like and will only simply tell you weather I like the artist or not with a simple reason why the artist my not be to my liking.

Thank you for reading and taking the time to get to know me better and perhaps we can become good friends.

All members that join here are welcome to discuss anything that they wish, positively or negatively about any of the featured artists on this forum. I welcome good writers, general music lovers and music connoisseurs. However, this forum was created for a very special reason - to only discuss artists that I like, and nothing else. If that bothers you, you can simply leave and find a more broader music forum more suitable to your liking. There are hundreds out there.

Thank you fellow members and guests for understanding and please enjoy your stay.

Please note that every artist featured here has their own introduction for newbies topic to help you get starting being familiar with the given artist that interests you. If later on, you find yourself being a good fan (or already are), please feel free to make a fun topic about them and speak your mind. I love to hear about what folks have to say about the artists that I love.

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Danielle Dax / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 18, 2012, 10:12:26 pm »
Introduction to Danielle Dax



Danielle Dax was a experimental musician and producer genius from the early 80s who quickly found her own style of dark and fun music with an impressive self-taught approach towards her first couple of records. Her voice is charming and adventurous. Beautiful and mystical. Noone sounds quite like Dax! This is a very obscure artist that many missed out on back in the 80s. She is criminally underrated and needs more people to discover how amazing her music is. However, Dax is not for everyone. Some will fall in love with her very unique style of eccentric, colorful and chaotic story telling world. Others will simply be mildly amused and then pass her over as a wannabe artist, and others will really hate her.

I truly fell in love with her music soon after I heard these few songs that she did late in her career.. (when she was changing her music to a more accessible but still really decent pop/mainstream sound)..

The first share is Big hollow man which comes from Inky Bloaters 1987. A cool funky pop tune..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqhym59ypUI

Next is her cover of a cool Beatles song called Tomorrow never knows. I heard the original and I think that she did a great job with this cover. I really like the video and cool Egyptian sound/design here..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fVwVU6Y5jo

Boy does Danielle Dax look sexy in this video! Wow!

I was hooked pretty much after just seeing these first two videos/songs. Since then I became fully obsessed with her music and I spent good money tracking down all of her material. Now I proudly own everything that she has put out.

There's some great live videos here on Youtube that I will share a few of next.

But first, here are a few great tunes from her late 80s pop area..

Where the flies are is a strange and beautiful poppy adventurous tune sure to capture some of the inner imagination..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKqdcSxAYlA

Next is one of my favorites called Flashback! I love the cool way that she sings this one. It's wonderfully bizarre..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOOdkv9hWvU&feature=relmfu

Now in closing, here are two of her entertaining live concert performances from her earlier experimental phase. The percussion and singing here is just madness! So unique and creative..

sleep has no property (from Inky Bloaters in 87..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0-Cr6uMnbE

And if you prefer to hear the studio recording of sleep has no property, since the live recordings here are not the best audio quality..listen to it here..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WL4fVKuilZE


and now hammerheads (from The Jesus egg that wept 1984)..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdjXYtCitWM&feature=relmfu


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Alisha's Attic / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 18, 2012, 09:23:34 pm »
Introduction to Alisha's Attic



Alisha's Attic are a very talented sister duo from the UK who make wonderful pop music with a unique style all to their own. The lyrics are very cleverly written and are told from a female perspective. The sisters voices are amazing, especially when they both sing together over each other. The production is excellent and always perfectly fitting to their world of girly pop with attitude.

There are many magical surprises to be found upon listening to one of their albums fully and they all hold great replay value. Meaning that their pop songs are carefully crafted with very memorable melodies and fun character.

Even though some might say that Alisha's Attic are only for teenage girls to listen to, I believe that their music should be heard by other age groups with a natural passion for good alternative pop in general. Because the music is made from the heart and by two girls with real talent, as opposed to one's who flaunt a fake style of talent just to make big piles of money. These girls really have something interesting to say and a special world to introduce you to.

Their first album was produced by Dave Stewart. The guy behind Eurythmics. D. Stewart was actually the one who discovered the sisters  and who helped them get started. The Poole Sisters had been trying to get a record deal for a long time.

The first song I'm going to share is called Indestructible  and came from their great debut titled Alisha rules the world 1996..

Indestructible]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EQZN3CwydI]Indestructible

The next song is I am, I feel from the debut album as well. This is a live sync recording from The top of the pops (A UK music entertainment show.)

I am, I feel]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NloIg-OZCTE]I am, I feel

Next is a elegant, dreamy tune from The house we built 2001 called Pretender got my heart which was featured in a movie.

Pretender got my heart]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmpA-cN4XaI]Pretender got my heart

The last song I will share is a beautiful relaxing tune with lyrics included called Aire we Breathe..

Aire we breathe]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXKhqwdTWGg]Aire we breathe


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Emma Bunton / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 18, 2012, 05:45:28 am »
Introduction to Emma Bunton



Emma Bunton was one of the spice girls in the 90s. (I was never a Spice girl fan.) However, later on she went solo and released some really great albums!

Particularly Free me 2004 & Life in Mono 2006. That was when I was shocked at how good the production was and how well her angelic voice went together so perfectly & so natural. It sounded like she was made to create beautiful music like this..

unfortunately, there is a major shortage of her really good material from these two albums I speak of on Youtube for preview. But I'll see what I can find nonetheless..

The first song I will share is from Free me 2004 and is a great cover of Crickets sing for Anamaria. It's a fun, charming, upbeat tune with a fast singing samba. A happy song.  ;D

Crickets sing for Anamaria]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ6kKlevpqs]Crickets sing for Anamaria

The next song is a single from Free me 2004 called  I'll be there. Elegant,  dreamy and romantic. This is the sound of Emma Bunton's music..

I'll be there]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S244N8H0WTs]I'll be there

Next is a great song which was the opener to Free me 2004 by the same name..

Free me]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-RxwN9lJ0A&feature=relmfu]Free me

In closing, here is a song which was put on Emma's debut album A girl like me 2001 called What I am which was originally released in November 1 1999.  A cover of the 1988 classic from Edie Brickell & new Bohemians. I love it!

I was unable to find the music video for this cover song single. They must have taken it down on Youtube unfortunately. So hear is the song alone by itself..

What I am (cover)]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_GXQdishrg]What I am (cover)


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Meja / Artist Introduction for newbies
« on: October 18, 2012, 04:20:12 am »
Introduction to Meja



Meja is a Swedish pop singer. The sound of Meja's music is always pop but each of her five studio albums except for her first two Meja & Seven Sisters (which have a more "organic" pop sound) have a different fresh and fun take on another kind of musical style. Like Mellow 2004 sounds like jazzy pop with a hint of bossanova. And Realitales 2000 plays on the genre of rock pop with some attitude and mystical undertones.

Her music is mainly popular in Japan only. It's a shame because Americans are really missing out on a wonderful and highly talented singer and artist. Meja's music isn't for everyone but for those that will find the following introduction songs appealing; she could really change your life for the better! She did mine!  8)

First off, if you have ever heard of her, All bout the money is probably the only song that you'd remember because of it being a hot single back in 98. It either annoyed the crap out of you (or will when you listen to it in a second), or you found it to be a wonderful fresh pop tune that could easily get stuck in your head for days. It's actually one of my favorite songs by her. I also think that the lyrics are great here and so true!

All bout the money]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUYdi43qXHc]All bout the money

The next tune was featured on a Xbox game called dead or alive Extreme Beach Vollyball. I never owned the game but it's probably the way that most people would know this song.

It's called How crazy are you?. From Meja's first album, self titled Meja 1996. One of my top favorite songs by her. The singing, the production. Everything is so great! Even the music video is really cool! Check it out..

How crazy are you?]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvPeCCWNqxM&feature=relmfu]How crazy are you?

Still here? Good. :)

Here is a great lyrical and fun upbeat tune with a magical sound called Pop & Television..One of my favorite songs EVER! From Seven Sisters 1998

Pop & Television]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uO4eyn__30Q]Pop & Television

This last tune is from Meja's third album Realitales and is called Spirits. The song sounds really different from the previous songs that I've shared so far. Realitales 2000 was her attempt at rock pop and I think she pulled it off very well. Enjoy!

Spirits]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSPMyYOo1DI]Spirits


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Saint Etienne / Artist introduction for newbies
« on: October 18, 2012, 02:02:29 am »
Introduction to Saint Etienne



Well if you haven't ever heard Saint Etienne or have heard of the name but never heard any of their music - you are in for a real treat! This is one of those kind of highly innovative bands that has something for everyone and will appeal to all sorts of different kinds of people.

As the time and date stands right now on October 18 2012, they have released eight proper studio albums. All of them are wonderful and very different sounding from each other.

Most beginners would do well to start with their 2009 compilation London conversations as a great introduction. Which is compiled of mostly their more dancer tunes.

The band started off inspired by 1960s pop music and humorous samples from movies and British Television. Their first album closely resembles house music but it's hard to call the music anything other than dance pop. The idea of Pete Wigs and Bob Stanley (the founders of Saint Etienne) in the beginning was to use several different guest vocalist but when they met Sarah Cracknell, they quickly decided to keep her as a permanent member of the group.

The first single (song) Saint Etienne released with Sarah Cracknell as the lead singer was Nothing can stop us. It was the very first song (and music video) that I heard (saw) when I first discovered them a couple of years ago.

Nothing can stop us]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSuxnF8dOPU]Nothing can stop us

Before Sarah joined as their lead singer, they hired Moira Lambert to sing a electro pop smash cover of a Neil Young song, Only love can break your heart

Only love can break your heart (Neil young cover]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZAajrxvDs4]Only love can break your heart (Neil young cover

And now here is one more great song to leave you by Saint Etienne from their second album So Touch, which has a similar sound to their first album..

The lyrics are great and the British models featured on this video are lovely! Sarah looks great too. This song has a very retro 1960 pop vibe to it that I just love.  ;D

You're in a bad way]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEDAGNYYa1o]You're in a bad way

There is a alternate UK version of this music video single which I almost like better than the US version. See it here!

You're in a bad way (UK Version)]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4szHXagmryo&feature=relmfu]You're in a bad way (UK Version)

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Recommend a new artist to ZarUnity / Recommendation methods
« on: October 17, 2012, 02:51:02 am »
You may post a topic here to recommend any artist to me that you think I'd like. Youtube links are permitted.

Another way is if you're already a last.fm member, you can post a shout to me on my profile there to recommend a new artist to me.

Note: I will NEVER speak about any artist that I don't like in a insulting manner. I will simply tell you if I like them or not, with maybe a simple reason why their not my cup of tea if I don't like them, or a simple reason why they might sound appealing to me.

If the artist that you share with me hits a big score and pleases me, I will let you know and I'll add them to my check list. If later on, I end of really loving the recommended artist's music, I may post a topic board for them here on the ZarUinty music forum!

AND..a big thank you, you will receive!  :)

11
Saint Etienne / Words and music by Saint Etienne
« on: October 17, 2012, 02:02:25 am »


I thought that this new album (which only took Saint Etienne roughly 16 months to create) was rather weak at first when it came out. I wasn't too receptive to the first single that was dropped either called "Tonight". However, like usual with me not taking a major liking to their previous albums on my very first listen, I later came to really appreciate words and music by Saint Etienne for how good it is. I still feel that it lacks something of major substance that their previous album all had.

However, it is a decent effort filled with memorable good tunes to put a good feel of warmth in your heart.

My favorite song on words & music was one towards the albums end called "I threw it all the way". It had a very magical atmosphere to it that reminded me of their earlier genius.

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Any artist that you see in my library on last.fm not currently on the boards for discussion yet, you may make a request here to have the artist added.

Please note: If the artist you are wishing to be added to the boards for discussion isn't even in my library in the first place, then you may make a recommendation in the appropriate section, NOT HERE.

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