Coachella Band Preview: Maggie Rogers

We’re almost at the 1 month countdown until Coachella 2019 Weekend One. As per the usual, the hype for me is real! Over the last month or so, I periodically secured my travel plans to the point that I’m almost ready to go. I hope everyone else has done the same. Mostly I just hope you all have been focusing on the music. Today I’m previewing an artist I didn’t initially plan to write about when figuring out my previews. About a month ago, I watched this artist cover a Whitney Houston song on Youtube and I was shook.

Maggie Rogers, from Easton, Maryland, got involved in music from a young age. She played the harp, piano, and guitar while growing up in Easton. While in high school, she attended a Berklee College of Music summer program and won the program’s songwriting contest. She recorded her first album as a senior in high school at the ripe age of 18. She self-recorded her it, The Echo, in a broom closet. She released it in digital format back in 2012. Rogers released a second self-recorded digital album Blood Ballet in 2014 as a student at NYU. Her big “claim to fame” happened in 2016 though when she recorded the song “Alaska” for a master class with producer and artist Pharrell Williams. A video of Williams listening to the song went viral in June of 2016.

Rogers released her first EP Now That The Light Is Fading in February 2017. She began her touring career shortly before that and played the Jimmy Fallon Show in anticipation of her EP release. She also played several festivals in the summer of 2017 including stops at Firefly, Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, and Outside Lands. She continued touring and playing festivals into 2018 playing at Boston Calling, Governor’s Ball, Reading and Leeds. She also joined Mumford & Sons as the opening act on their Delta Tour in late 2018.

She recently released her debut studio album Heard It In a Past Life on January 18th, shortly after she was announced as part of the 2019 Coachella lineup. The album features her hit “Alaska” along with other singles “Light On”, “Fallingwater”, and “Give a Little”. I know it’s early but I’d expect Rogers to get a few Grammy nods in the coming year. She’s that good and her style is unique.

Speaking of that, Maggie Rogers style of music combines dance music, folk, R&B and pop. It’s more art pop than anything. She had a background in folk music, but got inspired by dance music during her college days. Her latest studio album definitely adds a more pop sound to her music though, yet it somehow still stays true to her musical roots. Her vocals aren’t overly powerful like you might hear from pop artists like Adele, Florence Welch, or Banks, but yet it’s still so beautiful. Her vocals are trance-like and dreamy similar to that of Lana Del Ray.

I first heard of Maggie Rogers when I saw that she was opening for Mumford & Sons. I worked one of their shows in December and they brought Maggie out to join them in their song “Awake My Soul”. From that performance I knew she had a killer sound but I didn’t really give her music a shot until hearing her cover Whitney Houston’s “I Want To Dance With Somebody”, which she truly made her own. I started listening to her the next day on Spotify and then purchased her studio debut on vinyl right before I left for my second trip to Mexico.

Maggie Rogers plays Saturday at Coachella on her first visit to the 20 year festival. For the second year in a row, Saturday’s lineup seems stacked. After selling out her headlining tour this spring, I’d expect her set to be late-day to evening on the Main or Outdoor Stage. Even as a Coachella debut artist, I expect her set to be packed. Regardless of the time or place, I’d get there early for a good spot. I need to listen to more Maggie Rogers just as much as you might at this point, so here’s what I’ve been listening to on repeat:

1. Alaska
2. On + Off
3. Dog Years
4. Light On
5. Give A Little
6. Fallingwater
7. Overnight
8. Burning
9. The Knife
10. Retrograde

(Honestly just listen to all of Heard It In a Past Life!)

Hold Tight You’re Slowly Coming Back to Life

Back in 2011 when my music tastes veered towards the indie/indie rock/hipster scene, I continually looked for new music and had no problem finding it. I discovered plenty of bands/artists for the first time like Foster the People, Matt & Kim, Peter, Bjorn & John, The Naked and Famous, Young the Giant, Bon Iver, The Kooks, etc. (the list could go on because I shortened it while typing this). While searching for music during this time, I came across an artist that really intrigued me, but that I also, in a way, overlooked. She sang this incredible cover of Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love”, as well as other indie songs, which I listened to several times over a month to two month period. The coolest part was that she was only 15! I never downloaded any of her songs though and with time I found other music to listen to. Over the past few years I would see her name pop up here and there, but I didn’t pay much attention until about two weeks ago. I heard a new single of hers while listening to a playlist on Spotify and fell in love all over again.

Jasmine Lucilla Elizabeth Jennifer van den Bogaerde, more commonly known to the music world as Birdy, is a 19 year old British singer/songwriter who hails from Lymington, Hampshire in the UK. She began her music career at the age of 7 when she started taking piano lessons. By age 8, she was writing her own music. In 2008 at age 12, she won the talent competition Open Mic UK where she competed against 10,000 others. In January 2011, she released her first single, which was the “Skinny Love” cover. It was her break-out single as the song became a hit on the UK Singles Chart reaching the 17th spot and was the third biggest selling rock single in the UK in 2011. She also released her debut self-titled album in November 2011 which was a compilation of various covers and one original song. The album was a huge success in Europe and Australia.

In 2012 she released an EP of live songs which included her original song “Just A Game” from The Hunger Games soundtrack. The same year she also contributed to the soundtrack of the film Brave with Mumford & Sons, which earned her a Grammy nomination in 2013. Her second full length album Fire Within was released in September 2013. She also contributed 3 songs to The Fault in Our Stars soundtrack which came out in 2014. Most recently, she released the singles “Keeping Your Head Up” and “Beautiful Lies” from her third album, Beautiful Lies,which is slated for a March 25th release date.

Birdy’s music is in the indie pop/indie rock genre. In fact her debut album features mostly indie covers. Along with the Bon Iver cover hit, she covers Phoenix’s “1901”, Fleet Foxes’ “White Winter Hymnal”, The Postal Service’s “The District Sleeps Alone Tonight”, The Naked and Famous’s “Young Blood”, The xx’s “Shelter”, and Cherry Ghost’s “People Help the People” among other songs. Following her debut, her music hasn’t changed much. Of course she’s releasing original music now, but the indie vibe to her tracks still exists. Her voice has a young feel to it as well. It hasn’t changed much through the years either despite getting her braces off which created a distinct sound on the Bon Iver cover.

Although Birdy’s success has mainly been overseas, I have a feeling she may get a bigger following in the U.S. soon for two reasons. First, her two singles from Beautiful Lies are off the hook, especially “Keeping Your Head Up”. That’s the song I heard that made me fall in love again and catch up with what Birdy’s been up to over the past few years. Second, Birdy’s getting older. She’s done shows in America before and toured playing small venues as a guest for Christina Perri, but she predominantly does shows in Europe. Her scheduled dates so far in support of her new album are in Europe. However, she’ll be 20 in May and I have a feeling at some point she’ll want to spread her wings across the pond. Her new album might just give her some leverage to do that too. While we’re waiting to see what else Birdy has to offer with this upcoming third album, here’s some songs you should hear by this talented young artist:

1. “Skinny Love”
2. “1901”
3. “Wings”
4. “People Help the People”
5. “Tee Shirt”
6. “Not About Angels”
7. “Keeping Your Head Up”
8. “Beautiful Lies”

Coachella Band Preview: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

We’re nearing the end of January which means it’s almost February which means it’s almost March which means it’s almost April which means it’s almost COACHELLA! So if you haven’t started prepping, now’s the time. There’s a lot of bands to listen to. The band I’m previewing today has been a band I’ve enjoyed for over 4 years now. Yesterday, they announced the release of a brand new album due out April 15th. Does that date sound familiar to anyone?! Yes, it’s the first day of Weekend 1 of Coachella 2016! Perfect timing for Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.

The story of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros begins with Ima Robot (famed for the Suits (TV show) theme song “Greenback Boogie”) frontman, Alex Ebert. After experiencing problems with the LA party lifestyle and drug addiction, Ebert moved out of his house, broke up with his girlfriend, and entered rehab. It was during his rehab stint that Ebert began writing a book about a christ-like figure named Edward Sharpe who came to earth to heal and save mankind, but ended up getting too distracted by girls and love. Ebert adopted the Edward Sharpe persona as sort of an alter ego, which in a way was something he needed at the time because he felt he lost his identity. When Ebert left rehab, he met and began dating singer, Jade Castrinos. The duo started writing music together as well. They eventually became a group of about 10+ members and played their first show together in 2007 in LA as Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.

The band’s first show in 2009 came at the Marfa Film Festival in Marfa, Texas and their debut album Up From Below was released July 14th of the same year. In 2011, the band joined Mumford & Sons and Old Crow Medicine Show on the Railroad Revival Tour, which was the subject for the film documentary Big Easy Express, which won a Grammy for Best Long Form Music Video in 2013. After spending 2011 on tour, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros went into the recording studio to create the band’s second album, Here, which was released May 29, 2012. Then in 2013 the band released their third album, self-titled Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros. After the release, the band toured across the globe playing shows and festivals. Aside from shows here or there, the band hasn’t really been very active since around the time of the release of their last album. With a new album on the way and two weekends at Coachella, 2016 will be a revival for the group who has since lost founding member Jade Castrinos (she left the group in 2014).

I first heard of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros in 2011 thanks to a song recommendation by a friend. Of course the song recommendation was their most known hit “Home”. It was definitely one of my most favorite songs of 2011 and I played it constantly for months from the time I first heard/downloaded it. I then downloaded the song “40 Day Dream” to add to my very very small collection of Edward Sharpe songs. I should probably say song though because “Home” was the only song in the collection at the time. Since then though, I’ve acquired every album the band has released to date, and I’ll most likely pick up a copy of PersonA when it’s released in April.

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros’ music is mostly rooted in folk, whether that be indie folk, folk rock, or psychedelic folk. You may even call their music Americana at times as well. Overall, their music has a very hippie-like sound reminiscent of music from the 60’s and 70’s.

They play Sunday at Coachella this year and it won’t be the band’s first time to the Indio desert rodeo. However, the last time the band played was in 2010. Their set will no doubt be a fun one filled with plenty of hippies and flower children. It might just be one of the more chill, relaxing sets this year depending on what time they play. Perfect for Coachillin’, if you know what I mean. If you do plan on catching their set though, here’s what you should know:

1. Home
2. 40 Day Dream
3. Janglin’
4. Man On Fire
5. That’s What’s Up
6. No Love Like Yours (**this one is a Brand New single off their upcoming album)
7. Better Days

Fall Playlist

So this week I was pretty stuck on what I should write about. I could have easily made a post about the USWNT and the CONCACAF qualifying tournament, but I feel like I’ve written too much about sports so far (I’ll probably still write about it at some point in the next 2 weeks though). There’s been nothing in TV or movies currently that has really peaked my interest. I didn’t feel like writing about one of the shows I’ve been watching for a while or a favorite movie. I wanted music, but no new bands struck me recently. Plus, I already have something planned to write in 2 weeks about a band I’ve loved for 10 years. Then yesterday as I was driving on what turned out to be a gloomy fall afternoon, just as most of the leaves on the trees have hit their peak to turn colors, I heard a song that fit this time of year so well.

It hit me at that moment. There are tons of songs that remind me of specific seasons including fall so why not make a playlist? Some songs may be totally irrelevant to fall. I most likely associate them with the season because I probably heard them for the first time during the fall and listened to them repetitively. Other songs just sound right to me for this time of year because they either have an eerie tone (that Halloween vibe) or they’re my ideal fall indie folk style music.

So here’s my playlist for you. It’s almost like I made you a mix tape without the whole giving you the actual music thing.

1. Asleep   -The Smiths

2. Coney Island   -Good Old War

3. Come As You Are   -Nirvana

4. So Much Trouble   -Matt Pond PA

5. Blackbird   -The Beatles

6. Mad World   -Gary Jules

7. Ships   -Lady Danville

8. Pretty Girl at the Airport   -The Avett Brothers

9. New Slang   -The Shins

10. Pale Blue Eyes   -The Velvet Underground

11. Follow Suit   -Trent Dabbs

12. The Cave   -Mumford & Sons

13. Freaks   -The Hawk in Paris

14. That’s Some Dream   -Good Old War

15. Gypsy   -Suzanne Vega

16. World Spins Madly On   -The Weepies

17. Skinny Love   -Bon Iver

18. Landslide   -Fleetwood Mac

If you’ve ever heard or know all or some of these songs, you can probably tell that this playlist doesn’t seem very upbeat. It’s not. Musically, to me, that’s how fall is represented. It’s always seemed like a sad time of the year to me because where I’m from, the days get colder, the night’s grow longer, and all the life that was once flourishing seems to be sucked out. The fall also reminds me of long drives to Pittsburgh. I’ve listened to a handful of songs on the playlist on those drives while passing elegant fall landscapes. The fall is Halloween and all things creepy. The fall is my favorite book which I read for the first time in early October as a high school junior. This is what fall is and what my fall playlist represents. So enjoy it. I highly encourage you to listen to these songs. Even more so, listen to them while taking a drive and being immersed in the season.