Introducing a band: City of the Sun

 

https://www.billboard.com/files/media/City-of-The-Sun-Press-Photo-2016-billboard-1548.jpg 

Today I want to talk about one of my favourite bands "City of the Sun".
City of the Sun is a trio from New York, consisting of the two guitarists John Pita and Avi Snow and the percussionist Zach Para.
Their music is completely instrumental which I love. The trio is able to create such a magic atmosphere and convey a story solely through their instrumental music. When you listen to one of their songs you really get emotionally and mentally drawn into their music.

The band was touring this year but since I was in Australia at that time, I sadly missed their concert in Berlin. But since they started their musical journey with busking on the streets of New York, they know how to catch and keep the attention of people walking by. Therefore I imagine their live shows to be very captivating and unique (as you can already imagine when watching one of their live videos).
So if you get the chance to see them play you should definitely go! Their next show will be on February, 23rd 2018 in Brookly, New York.
You can check out their tour dates here.

Their debut album "To the sun and all the cities in between" was released in March 2016 via the American record label "Chesky Records".
Their Album is a mixed genre piece with 13 brilliant songs on it. City of the Sun are best described as an indie-post rock trio, but they don't really fit into one specific genre since they are inspired by many different ones, such as jazz, rock and flamenco. This is one aspect which makes their music so special.

Below you can watch a live video from their "Sofar Session" in New York, covering "Intro" by the XX and find the links to their youtube, soundcloud and spotify accounts.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIdKbSeAueY 

 

Yotube: https://www.youtube.com/user/cityofthesunTV
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4DkYxtaASIKQnk4Gj0TB7k
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/cityofthesun

Album of the Year: "Broken Machine" by Nothing but Thieves

Since the Year is slowly coming to an end, I thought I would look back on the newly released albums in 2017 and pick my favourite for this year.
And the winner is the second studio album of one of my favourite bands: "Broken Machine" by Nothing but Thieves. The Album was released on September, 8th this year via the American record label "RCA Records".

https://www.reddit.com/r/NothingButThieves/comments/6ns9ut/broken_machine_album_covers_standard_and_deluxe/

Nothing but Thieves are a five-member alternative rock band from England that formed in 2012. I was already a big fan of their debut album "Nothing but Thieves" which was released on October, 16th 2015. But compared to their debut album, I feel like "Broken Machine" feels more like an album. On "Nothing but Thieves" the songs stand more on their own whereas the songs on "Broken Machine" are harmonically conected with each other. Don't get me wrong, the songs on the album are all very strong and can easily stand for their own. I just feel like the harmony between the songs is stronger and thus makes it more to a coherent whole.

On the deluxe version of the album are 15 songs. The first 7 songs are very dynamic songs and all have the potential to be a hit single. No wonder the pre publicized singles of the album were songs number 2, 3 and 7: "Amsterdam", "Sorry" and "Not made by Design".
The second half is more quiet and not as easy to get into, but after listening to the songs a few times and finding access to them, you'll notice that they are just as strong as the first half just in a more unique and noncommercial way. This is also great because -at least that's what I felt like- every time you listen to the album, you discover a new song that you love.
Therefore I can say that the album is overall very strong and processes important, political and self-reflecting topics with catchy and some very special lyrics.

If you haven't heard "Broken Machine" yet, you should definitely check it out because it truely is a great album and I see the next big alternative rock band in Nothing but Thieves. With their catchy and yet serious and unique music, they have a high chance of becoming very successful. Especially because they are also a very strong live band and have broadened their fan base by playing on several festivals this summer. They have just toured the US and Canada and are currently touring in Europe. You can find their tour dates here.

At least to me, Nothing but Thieves are already a very important band and their album "Broken Machine" is definitely my favourite album of the year 2017.


Below you can find the links to their youtube, spotify and soundcloud:

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/NothingButThieves
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1kDGbuxWknIKx4FlgWxiSp
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/nothingbutthieves

http://img2-ak.lst.fm/i/u/arO/501244129cf5eee500617b92d0164b24