Gigga Music on Blogcritics.org

Giggamusic.com has been accepted to publish articles on Blogcritics.org. This is a very popular blog space that does reviews on many forms of entertainment including Music.

We are really excited about it and have already published 2 articles on the site.

We featured Basic Rock Outfit and The C Elliot project. We are looking to do at least one review each week.

If you would like your band/group/individual artist reviewed, please let me know. It helps all of us !!

Here is our writers page to see all our current articles.
http://blogcritics.org/writer/mike_lewitt

Lee Alexander is not "Out of Place"

In the world of music, there are musicians, singers, and song writers. The ones that truly stand out and succeed are true artists. Lee Alexander is a true and exciting new artist.

His CD "Out of Place" shows that his music is versatile and intense. The sound blends an edgy alternative vibe with folk, storytelling lyrics. He is far from out of place.There are 2 artists I would compare him to and these are 2 of the best. John Mayer and Dave Mathews. Lee is is the ultimate talent who needs to be heard.

I was jammin to his sounds while writing this and I can't get enough of him. He is the bomb !!

Please visit Giggamusic.com and give him a listen ! You won't regret it.

Drue Nelson "Ambient Fixtures"

Looking at the Gigga charts today, I was happy to see Drue Nelson at No. 1 with "Takes My Breath Away". No surprise that this is at such a lofty spot. This is a great song that was the 1 song in progressive rock on Garageband.com for over 1 and a half years.

This band is from Alabama and has been one of the top touring College bands in the Southeast. Their songs are a great blend of ripping guitar solo's and memorable melodies.

Drue and his band release "Ambient Fixture" which is a 11 track with diverse mix of music.

"Our Record deals a lot with self-discovery and breaking out of whatever your parents or your boss or whoever thinks you should be," says Drue. "It's about trying to find out for yourself who you're supposed to be - your purpose while not being afraid to vent against the irritants you know - frustrations."

"Still Sees Stars" is another of those great melodies that builds and offers a unquie Linkin Park kind rap portion of the song. It really grabs just like this band grabs you.

Check out Drue on GiggaMusic.com or their myspace page. As always, be sure to support these artists by going to their shows and buying their music !!

sharif

Sharif's popularity as an artist is rooted in his innovative sound, distinctive airy voice, and electrifying stage presence. His music is smart poetry, an appealingly inventive blend of edgy emo sounds with likable pop rhythms.

Sharif has been performing for less than five years, but he has already established a prominent place within the music world. Not only has the ambitious singer/songwriter been marked as a hot new musical talent, but has also made an impressive showing in both his modeling and acting endeavors.
Sharif's popularity as an artist is rooted in his innovative sound, distinctive airy voice, and electrifying stage presence. His music is smart poetry, an appealingly inventive blend of edgy emo sounds with likable pop rhythms. His voice is frequently likened to that of the late Elliott Smith, and his songs, while fresh and original, contain musical threads of bands like The Lemonheads, Bright Eyes, The Beatles, and Wilco. With high onstage energy and extraordinary sex appeal, Sharif is one of today's most engaging performers. As one reviewer wrote, "He is a talented, musically gifted, ingenious songwriter with a distinct charm, wit, and sex appeal to rival any performer in pop music today."Sharif began his career performing at venues in Charlottesville, VA, where he also earned a BA in Marketing from the esteemed Commerce School at the University of Virginia. After gaining a large following within the University community, Sharif embarked on his first album, "Kiss the Moon," an inventive compilation of original songs. He was invited to produce his album with an impressive cast of musicians and producers who had previously worked with artists such as The White Stripes, Sonic Youth, Dave Matthews Band and Jason Mraz. Sharif celebrated his first CD Release Party at Starr Hill Music Hall, owned and run by world-renowned manager Coran Capshaw. The debut album drew laudatory reviews and large crowds to Sharif's shows. Not only was "Kiss the Moon" a successful musical effort, but also a personal triumph. Sharif said, "'Kiss the Moon' was an actualization of everything I was musically and spiritually at that point in my life. It was very real and pure."Sharif began to tour internationally, playing large venues in Europe, California, New York, Virginia and Washington, DC. He was invited to play at the Friday's After 5 Concert Series in Charlottesville, VA, a hot spot which regularly hosts nationally recognized bands. During the tour, "Kiss the Moon" became widely acclaimed, and was soon receiving substantial airplay on major radio stations.

Sharif was invited to play live performances on the radio, and even landed several television spots performing his hits, among them "Lauren" and "You're my Girl."After touring behind his highly acclaimed first record, Sharif immediately began work on his follow-up. While recording, Sharif invited members of Whiskeytown, David Gray, and Jason Mraz to stop by the studio and contribute to his new record. After months of recording, mixing, and remixing, “Surrogate Lovers” was finally ready for distribution. Sharif once again celebrated the release of his new record at the prestigious Starr Hill Music Hall in April 2004. “Surrogate Lovers” has since enjoyed rave reviews from critics and fans alike. Two of the fourteen new tracks on this record have already been selected to appear on the popular rock compilations “Station Break” and “DecentXposure.”Meanwhile, this multi-talented artist has been building a strong modeling and acting career. Sharif has modeled for industry leaders such as Levi's, FILA, and Neiman Marcus, and has acted in several major television shows and movies, produced by HBO, NBC, Touchstone and New Line Cinema. Most recently, Sharif participated in the FOX Reality Show "Playing it Straight."




Visit Sharif's GiggaPage at
http://www.giggamusic.com/members/43/

California Miles with Lisle Engle

Lisle was born the son of a preacher and a school teacher. He was raised in the bosom of the southern USA... Savannah, GA to be exact. He cut his teeth early as a singer and musician; intent on spreading his thoughts and feelings to a larger, surrounding world. He has taken his experiences, his trials, tribulations and successes; and recorded them in the form of rock and roll songs to find out if there are others out there who are thinking and feeling the same thing.

Lisle has played with a number of groups. The Vital Signs were a bar cover band that helped him to make a little side money during high school and keep from having to flip burgers at the local McDonalds. Upon his arrival in Boston in 1985, he founded a group named The Promise for which he received enough notoriety to keep pressing for more. In 1989, he moved to Los Angeles to try his luck at procuring the ubiquitous “record deal” and found himself in a city mired in managers, agents and A&R reps who really didn’t get what making great music was all about. In 1991, The Promise died an uneventful death... yet was re-born as the hard rock outfit formerly known as HEAD.

HEAD also provided many promising avenues for success, but eventually fell upon the deaf ears of the corporate machine. Their Major Label debut CD was supplanted with a CD of Ozzy cover tunes and their record deal soon vaporized as well. What can you say when the deal-makers are more interested in positive cash flow than releasing good music? Such is the privilege and subsequent downfall of the “Major Label.”

Moving on... Lisle developed his many talents working on a CDROM game called “Welcome To The Future” (circa 1994) which brought a million dollar paycheck. In short order, however; the cash was quickly squandered by an irresponsible business associate and fortunately, Lisle found himself out of the video game business and back on the right track, writing thoughtful music for an enlightened audience.

Lisle is now the singer of a truly great rock band. He plays with some of LA’s finest musicians and recently has released a CD of his songs from the last 10 years entitled “California Miles.” A quick inspection should provide a most original sound and engaging lyrical content for the discerning listener. Combining influences from Pink Floyd to Peter Gabriel to U2; Lisle has composed a collection of works through personal experience that should both convey thoughts and capture emotions that most of us as human beings on planet Earth should find easily familiar.

Relax yourself for a trip down “California Miles.”




Visit Lisle Engel's GiggaPage at
http://www.giggamusic.com/lisle_engle

The Elusive Adrina Thorpe

I discovered Adrina's music a couple of years ago and I must say it was listening to her that inspired me to create Gigga Music. When you hear someone with a sound as beautiful as hers, you want the world to hear it.

So WORLD, here she is. Her soft sound is a great combination of a beautiful melodic voice and music with an edge. Throw in some awesome lyrics and you can't stop listening. Adrina is an accomplished singer/songwriter and performs piano on the album.

A California girl, she released her debut album "Elusive" which is a constant hit on Podsafe.com and one of the top sellers for CD Baby.com. Songs like "Sorry", "More than 17" are incredible musical journey's but my favorite is "Round the Bend". It is plea to her lover to meet her halfway and she will be there. As a guy, I think I've heard this song before but never as wonderful as she shows us in "Round the Bend".

In a Gigga scoop, Adrina has told us she releasing a new album very soon. We are really excited to see what new musical direction she will take us on. We will keep you posted and hopefully have some new music to share with you soon !

Don't take my word about the beatiful Adrina Thorpe. Listen right here !

Vist her Gigga page at
http://www.giggamusic.com/adrina_thorpe

Spread the Word and Support her by buying her music !!

Alona

Our search today has lead us to the sultry sounds of Candice Alona. Her sound is sultry with the right blend of contemporary jazz and alternative.

As you listen to her songs, you can't help but be drawn in by her lyrics as she leads us on her musical journey. An established artist in the Washington DC, Alona has recorded many great songs. Each with its own unique character.

My favorite, "The Missing". A fantastic blend of heartfelt lyrics and down right jamming rock and roll.

Meldramatic is a powerful song with a beautiful opening which blows up into a full blown sound that you simply want to crank up the sound.

Listen:

Check her Gigga page out at:
http://www.giggamusic.com/alona