Archive for the ‘Island Music’ Category

One of the more uplifting aspects of being a review publicist is getting to know many of the great artists producing music today on a personal level.  In a recent interview with a musician from the U.K. everyone had a chance to learn he had a recording audition during his interview at the record label music icons The Beatles had founded in 1968 called Apple Records.

Steve Orchard is the musician traveling that long and winding road to 54 St. James Street, London to Apple Records and this story is just one of many he shared during our interview together.  Everything has come together for Steve Orchard since today he is an MG Music Label artist and representative member of the Medwyn Goodall circle of friends highly revered for their outstanding music and integral voice each artist on the label is known for producing.

Steve Orchard is a multi instrumentalist composing and performing original music for many years on guitar, mandolin, harmonica, keyboards, piano and various skin drums.  His prior albums Voyages Beyond Midnight, Salt Water Café & The Consequences of Kisses are great albums too and some earlier songs reveal the fact that Steve is also a fine vocalist.

Sundancer is an emblematic second album in his Trilogy Series and just like first in series Raindancer, nicely reflects the rare qualities of relaxing yet energetic melodies that I felt achieve universal appeal.  Moondancer is the third album in the Trilogy Series, which makes this trio a well timed release during the 25 year anniversary events now taking place with Medwyn Goodall and the artists comprising the United Kingdom based MG Music Label.

Sundancer is a glowing accent to the Trilogy Series and where first in series Raindancer, with deeper tones and synthesized rhythms set the mood, Sundancer has a fun energetic symmetry and feel of Island music by a well placed illuminating atmosphere.  One element greatly uniting the two is their relaxing yet energetic qualities and multiphase array of percussion rhythms.

The first bold impression of beaming radiance appears in energy driven song Soar.  Percussion inscribes an upper tempo outline while keyboards and acoustic guitar imprint pleasing colors by their light but nicely melodic tempering while becoming your first indication the lively sun dancing theme is going to be fun and exciting.

 While Sundancer is centered by a primarily upper tempo and is full of energy set in motion by an array of percussion and instrumentals, there are plenty of laid back relaxing moments too and none more apparent in than what you will hear in Lagoon & Tethered.  This coequal ambiance with deeper rhythms during refrains are likewise found in the sultry oasis song Heat ! 

Many songs are layered midst more moderately timed tempos like Rainman, Unrepentant & Deadly Arrow, where an ensemble of percussion and steel drum accents prepare the harmonic profile for acoustic guitar, flute and keyboard contrasting melodies, with brighter phrasing infiltrating the deeper passages with full solid clarity.

Playing in the Sun & Borboletas are upper tempo songs with wood flute becoming the essential melody producer, and  where single or long drawn out notes are often heard from others playing either the woodwind instrument or by effect, here a free flowing multiple note melody backed by accordion, keyboards and percussion nicely balance the full of energy attribute.

Pacifica is the positive upbeat song rounding out the 11 total on Sundancer.  Knowing Steve Orchard is a bright and serious composer today as he was yesteryear, I’ve got a feeling he had composed Sundancer with a fun and energetic theme in mind all along which is like some of our other all time fun favorites, so for me this is what makes Steve Orchard’s releases memorable eight days a week.

Visit steveorchardmusic.co.uk to sample / purchase the album.  The Trilogy Series is also available in the brand new MG Music USB Format.  You can learn more about the USB Format at MG Music and then sample / purchase the entire Trilogy Series at mgmusic.ltd.uk.  Read our recent interview together on our pages dedicated to Steve Orchard.

Sundancer cover design copyright David Orchard. Picture copyright BigStockPhoto – Albo

In celebration of the summer, David Arkenstone’s Caribbean Nights album has been released on the Green Hill label. I cannot think of an artist better qualified to release an album with such a warm and cozy title – and wow, what a sunny album it is! The sound of real steel drums, marimba, percussion and guitars is as fresh and laidback as a day at the beach.

It is important to point out that this is – and should be – a simple album. If you want more depth and feelings, Arkenstone has many titles for you in his discography. Caribbean Nights is supposed to be uncomplicated. This is, by the way, not David Arkenstone’s first Caribbean music album. In 2004 he released an album called Caribbean Dreams – which was a collection of previously released songs with an “island feel” but not a dedicated album like his new release.

Caribbean Nights is a steel drums album, accompanied by flutes, guitars and marimba. It is needless to say a very comfortable soundscape, that makes your mind drift away. If your are having a grey and cold day, put this on and your living room is transformed into a beach – complete with palms, waves and on the horizon; a setting sun.

Sample the album here.

We love island music here at .nu. On this page you’ll find a list of other new age music titles with island themes. We will now add Caribbean Nights in this music list.

Aloha !  The island state of Hawaii has the unique distinction as a preferred vacation and honeymoon destination in the Continental United States, likewise having visitors from all countries seeking fun in the sun, relaxation, and a memorable vacation experience.

Something to consider is how much more pleasurable this extraordinary vacation stay could be with some great island music to enhance and complete the experience.

New Age artist Kika Kane, residing in Maui is a lifelong resident of this state of islands, atolls, and islets, composing music in the land of what most would consider paradise.

While Kika does enjoy an active lifestyle, much of his time is spent playing the easy to recognize, but harder to perfect style of Slack-Key guitar with the island sunsets as his perpetual source of inspiration.

Slack-Key is a unique finer style that originated in Hawaii during the 19th century and was developed for dancing and entertainment, only recently becoming more popular when the Hawaiian dance craze began during the 1960′s.

Kika Kane has become pretty popular with his 2 projects that are an adaptation of Slack-Key guitar. Ocean Girl is his first project, while his second release, The Sunset Sessions was nominated for Best Slack-Key album of the year at the Hawaii Music Awards.  National Public Radio’s Echoes programming has had several of his songs airing on a weekly basis for some time now.  Local television and radio have also tuned into Kika’s music too, playing many of his songs as background scores in TV commercials and airing in many resorts and hotels on the islands.

The Sunset Sessions is a nicely done blend of Tropical, Ambient, and New Age, with a pleasant mix of mid tempo guitar instrumentals that reward you with pleasant thoughts of island life or in some cases, pleasant memories of your last vacation, if you have ever had an opportunity to visit the islands.

The Slack-Key guitar technique can be loosely defined as a finger style where the musician loosens or slackens the guitar strings by tuning one or more strings, most often upward on the scales until the strings form a single cord, most often in G major.

First on the song itinerary is Here Comes The Rain.  This song’s welcoming melody makes one feel like the approach of an incoming rain event should always be taken in stride.  The carefree feeling of island living is shown in this song by a fluid back and forth movement of strumming guitar, that will likely have you swaying to the rhythm.  Even if it does rain, brief changes of tempo turn the rain event into positive thoughts, taking into consideration the colorful rainbow and magnificent sunset display that will follow a brief period of rain.

The song   A Place In The Sun translates into every fun  attraction available to you during your audible visit to the islands by an energetic opening, blending guitar rhythms in a positive upbeat mood, taking well timed breaks during each refrain to allow everyone to soak in the sun.  The Sunset Sessions reflects the positive feel, relaxing mood, and welcoming atmosphere, for which this island state is highly prized.

Hawaii naturally offers every form of music, ranging from symphonies, orchestras, and every popular genre of music under the sun,    but there is just something special about the authentic home style approach to New Age music Kika has to offer, so be sure to make your next vacation or honeymoon to the islands of Hawaii a memorable one.   Aloha !

Visit kikakane.com - sample the album on CDBaby

Picture copyright Jennifer Keller (above) - and  Bigstockphoto.com – Laurzo (below)

A tropical island is for many the very idea of a paradise on earth. It is a dream about white sandy beaches, clear blue water, palm trees and endless holidays. And if you add a dolphin or two, the image of paradise is complete.

Based on this it is easy to understand why tropical islands also are a frequent theme in new age music. Many of the genre’s most popular artists have created albums with this theme (Medwyn Goodall, David Arkenstone and Deuter to name a few). It is almost like a new age music sub genre. The Nexion Project also has released an album with this theme, which now is available as a digital download for the first time. It is entitled The Isle of Freedom. Here The Nexion Project is as good as any of the before mentioned artists; it might even take the island theme to the next level.

The mastermind behind The Nexion Project is Hungarian Torok Zoltan. There currently are 16 albums released under the The Nexion Project name (see the discography here). Zoltan’s style is somewhere between chill out and new age; it has the classy lounge style of DJ Claude Challe’s Buddha Bar series and the deep, intense emotions of Michael Cretu’s Enigma. It is really like a bridge between two different genres. I must also mention that every album and every song have a sound design that is nothing but impressive; there is this attention to details that you just have to experience yourself.

The Isle of Freedom starts slowly. It is the dawn of the album, and you can almost see how the sun is slowly rising over the tropical paradise, and the day’s first sunlight is glittering in the ocean. Track two, The Hills over the Town, is like an instant classic in the island theme genre. It has a very satisfying build up, a catchy piano melody, strings and great guitar solo conclusion. Marvelous!

From here on you are taken on an expedition around the dream island. You get to see the Flowers (track three), Morning Forest (track five) and enjoy the Dusk – End Sequence (track ten). There is also an Enigma reference in the titles: Towards the Towers of Wisdom (track six). It is the Gravity Of Love lyrics: The path of excess leads to the tower of Wisdom. All Enigma fans will love this Nexion Project track, with its great sample use and dramatic, highly melodic segments.

The Hills over the Town is like an instant classic in the island theme genre. It has a very satisfying build up, a catchy piano melody, strings and great guitar solo conclusion. Marvelous!

Is it possible to make something that already is perfect, like the dream of a tropical island, even better? Yes, the Nexion Project’s The Isle of Freedom is a proof of this. It takes the island theme to the next level, creating a dream sphere that is both relaxing and energizing at the same time.

It is everything and more, just like paradise itself.

Sample and buy the album on CDBaby

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