[Show Review] Polo & Pan Rock Their SF Debut at the Independent (6/20)

Polo & Pan. Photo by Priscilla Anna.

Three funky Frenchmen took over San Francisco’s The Independent on Wednesday night. Polo & Pan made their long awaited San Francisco debut, playing to a sold out crowd. Jean Tonique was added in support as a last-minute announcement, further whipping up San Francisco’s frenzy for these groove architects from France. In fact, demand for tickets for this show on resell/music groups was some of the highest I’d ever seen, especially for a weeknight show.

Jean Tonique set the tone for the night.

Those of lucky enough to be in attendance took in quite the show. Jean Tonique started off the night with his old-school funk inspired beats, getting the audience ready to dance. Tonique looped all of his beats and guitar riffs live, showing sleek and polished craftsmanship. Drinking gin and tonics to the tune of Jean Tonique was an absolute vibe. Continue reading

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[Electronic] Khalid & Normani – Love Lies (Medasin Remix)

Khalid & Normani
Love Lies (Medasin Remix)

The Khalid approved remix of “Love Lies” by Medasin has been released on Soundcloud. If you were looking for a major flip with just the right vibe to kick it over Summer, then you’ve found it here.

Medasin is following up from his flip of Post Malone. The two remixes share a somewhat similar sound, but the new take of the Khalid x Normani collaboration is a bit chiller with some more groove. It’s not always that a remix reaches the original artist and then they co-sign it, but that’s just what we’ve got with this hit. As good as this one is and as much as we’d like to rinse it for months to come, expect to hear more from Medasin soon!

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[Electronic] Caden Jester – Vacant Love (feat. Blake Rose)

Caden Jester
Vacant Love (feat. Blake Rose)

The young gun Caden Jester out of San Diego has followed up his single “Fade” with “Vacant Love.” Featuring the vocalist Blake Rose, this single shows a different side of Caden than we saw in his last release.

“Vacant Love” blurs the boundaries between trap and future. The hybrid sound has been done before by a few producers but this is one of the records that truly stands out. With Caden being so young, we’re excited to see just where else he can take his style as the years pass us by. If he keeps up the quality he’s been doing, then he’s got a bright future ahead. For now, grab your copy of “Vacant Love.”

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[Music Video] Midoca – I Don’t Want To Leave

Midoca has been on a hot streak as of late with a few superb releases that come with music videos. He continues that streak with “I Don’t Want To Leave” that also comes with a stunning visual counterpart as has seemingly become custom.

“I Don’t Want To Leave” will have you sticking around Midoca for a long time to come, if you’re not stuck like us already. It’s a majestic indie record with a cerebral, intoxicating tone. With the video we see Midoca step away from the natural landscapes that were central to his previous videos. We’re loving the progression of his music and can’t wait to hear more. We’re guessing you’ll feel the same.

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[Electronic] FRND – Erase

The Crooked Paintings crew have a couple of huge things going on currently. First, they partnered with BMG and the record they’re kicking off the partnership with is a new one from the one and only FRND. The song “Erase” isn’t something you’ll want to erase from memory any time soon and given how good it is, it’s not going to let you forget.

“Erase” is the next step in FRND’s unique pop/electronic crossover sound. Right from the get go he snags you with catchy chords and his subsequent voice that soothes like few others can. For the first minute that’s all we get – and that’s all we need. However, he expands the sound with percussion and ends up building into the chorus/drop. It’s an immensely beautiful record whose slow pace sets you at ease. Once the climaxes hit, you’re let in fully to the world of FRND. We’ve been in love with his records, but this one may be our favorite.

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[Future Bass] Two Can – Got Habits

The Australian brothers Two Can follow up some major official remixes with a hot original on Warner Music. “Got Habits” shifts the brothers’ style a bit to give fans something different from this Summer jam.

Catchy melodies have always been a strong suit for Two Can and they implore that strength here, albeit with a edgy makeover. The future-influenced production is a bit harder than you’d expect, but it has all the right pieces for a beautiful musical puzzle, no matter what genre terms may be used to describe it. Overall, it’s just one killer record among many from Two Can. Get your copy today.

Got Habits started with a piano and a vocal, pop sensibilities meet everything we love about producing electronic music and we’re excited by the fact that this genre-defying song leads to new territory for us – it’s what we believe making music is all about, enjoying the freedom of artistic expression
and breaking new ground.
” – Two Can

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[Interview] TMN Gets To Know Zach Maxwell

It’s no secret that unearthing new and exciting artists is the main vein running through the pages of TMN. Sometimes an album strikes you just the right way, providing our ears with a dose of dopamine, while also signalling a wealth of untapped potential. One such artist and album is Zach Maxwell and his recent Music for Life EP. A songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, Maxwell’s music manages to flit around the edges of multiple genres while offering a completely unique scope to listen through. Recently, Maxwell has been converting his recordings into a live setting behind a highly buzzed about residency in Denver at the eclectic Your Mom’s House venue; building loads of Mile-High hype over the past year.

Zach Maxwell will be playing the final show of his residency this Saturday, June 16th at Your Mom’s House, and we had the chance to sit down and get to know the burgeoning artist a little better before this weekend’s show. Read our interview with Maxwell below, and be sure to listen to Music For Life streaming on all major platforms.

The Music Ninja: First off, thanks so much for taking the time to sit down and chat with us a little bit. We’ve had the chance to listen to Music For Life a few times through, and more layers seem to reveal themselves with each passing listen. With this being your first official release more than a single, can you speak to the writing and recording process? Was your process any different trying to make a cohesive multi-track statement, or were things pretty routine when it came to getting the individual tracks in order for Music For Life?

Zach Maxwell: Thanks so much for the kind words about Music for Life! I’m glad that more and more layers are revealing themselves in subsequent listens.  It’s interesting, the process for making this EP was super nonlinear for me. Before I decided to release this EP, I spent a few years just making music that I wanted to listen to.  Just flowing with whatever vibe I was feeling on whatever day I happened to be making music. After a few years, I had 100’s of songs to choose from and realized it was probably time to put some of them out in the world! In listening to all the material I had made, certain songs seemed to fit together as a unit more than others.  I wanted my first release to be something that was more of an offering to the listener as a complete unit with a message versus a bunch of songs that I happened to like and put together. Additionally, my friend and longtime music Veteran Jayson Jackson helped me curate the songs and put together something that worked together. So the process was more working backward than thinking from the get-go that I was going to put a collection of music together.

’Zach Maxwell – Are You?’

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