If I'd found this a few days ago, it probably would have made the Stubby's House Christmas collection. I legitimately love this groove. C-Noch is an Indie R&B artist from just outside Detroit, Michigan. He grew up singing Gospel and, living just 10 miles from Hitsville, USA, he also has that Motown influence. But C-Noch's sound is more contemporary and he blends the Gospel and Motown with Hip Hop. The concept for "To Have A Merry Christmas" is brilliant. C-Noch starts with "My Favorite Things". "Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, la la la la la la la..." What do you suppose a song like that means to a kid growing up near Detroit, Michigan? How could any city kid identify with any of that? Those aren't the images of Christmas they experience. No. Christmas to them looks like much of the rest of the year--broken glass, snow that's gone black from soot, bills in the mail that they can't afford to pay, a little girl gone missing on Christmas Eve, and far too many guns resulting in "blood in the streets". "What does it mean to have a Merry Christmas?" he asks. In the end, I believe he's rejecting both visions--the la-de-da fairytale holiday in the songs and commercials and the harsh reality he sees around him--as distractions from the real meaning of Christmas. Anyway, that's what I'm getting from the tune, which is as musically well done as it is thought provoking. "To Have A Merry Christmas" by C-Noch works for me on every level. Might not be what you want on your Christmas mixtape, but I'd want it on mine. Grab the free download on Soundcloud and drop C-Noch a "like" on Facebook. He deserves at least that much for this great Christmas track.
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Do you know how, sometimes, you're expecting something and the thing you get is so different from what you were expecting? And, unprepared, it knocks you completely on your ass? And, for a moment, you don't know whether you were really blown away or if it was just the surprise that did it? Alright, just pretend for a second that you understand the gibberish I'm spouting and listen to this.
Now if that didn't just knock you completely on your ass, then, just.....get outta here. Go on. Go.
You sort of have to appreciate that probably 90% of what's on Soundcloud is total crap. And the other 9.9999% is Indie Rock and Indie Pop that is, for the most part, good enough to make it worth your while (barely) to go through that other 90%. Jeremy J. King is originally from Georgia. He grew up singing in the church choir. He was recruited by the Columbus Boy Choir and sang with them until he was 12. At that point, he figured he was ready to go solo. He's been recording since then....since the age of 12. Not necessarily releasing anything, but recording. If my math is right, he's 22, now. Jeremy just recently posted an entire EP of Christmas music, "King At Christmas", on Soundcloud. Now, he's still young and learning. So, yes, there are nits I can pik. He can get carried away with that thing Harry Schearer parodied recently, where he tries to fit more notes into a single syllable than he should. And, personally, I think the echo is higher than it should be. But, oh my God, go listen to "Who Would Imagine A King" again. That might be the most beautiful thing I've ever heard on Soundcloud (self produced, mind you). Not every song on "King At Christmas" is in this vein. There's some contemporary Soul ("Christmas Around The World"), and a couple of nicely covered Pop Rock tunes ("Christmas Baby Please Come Home" and "Jingle Bell Rock"), and an Ambient Jazz spin on "Snowfall" that's nice and unique. The one track that doesn't work is "The Christmas Song"; it needs to be thrown overboard ASAP. But you should download the rest. You absolutely should download "Who Would Imagine A King" right now. At the moment, the tracks on Jeremy's "King At Christmas" are all, individually, available as free downloads on Soundcloud. That probably isn't going to last forever (about half of the tracks were included on a Christmas EP last year, which is currently $7 on Bandcamp). While they are free, though, you need to get them. And it would be nice, in return, if you would at least check out Jeremy's current Kickstarter campaign. Pledge if you want to, don't if you don't, but at least hear him out. Solid.
Satchel Jester is an Atlanta journalist and editor, with much of his work coming in the fields of entertainment and lifestyle. But he's more than that. He's also a juggler. Ha! Bet you didn't see that coming. Satchel tries to live life as though any day could be his last, so, rather than waiting for things to happen, he endeavors to make things happen. He loves everything about Atlanta, not least its rich music scene. So, rather than waiting for someone else to do so, Satchel gathered up some of the best young vocalists in his city to record a few Christmas songs. The artists and city get some good exposure and you folks at home get a nice little sparkling soulful holiday EP...for free. What does Satchel get? The satisfaction of a job well done.
Satchel enlisted producers Prem Midha and Douglas Whatley (the GigaBots) to ensure that the young artists would get the best possible presentation--production that would shine the best possible spotlight on their ample abilities. Personally, I wish they'd passed on "Santa Baby" and "Baby, I'm Cold Outside". Oh, they do them great, but I am so over those songs. But on the two Soul classics--"What Christmas Means To Me" and "Every Year Every Christmas"--they absolutely soar. Grab "Soul Holiday Spectacular" at Soundcloud.
This is one of those times when I ask myself, "Why does no one ever google their artist name before they take it on?"
J. Rashad is a Soul/R&B/Hip-Hop artist. OK, we're safe there.....because ALL the J. Rashads are. Performer, writer, producer. Still safe. But I've got one J. Rashad from Ohio, one from Michigan, one from L.A. (although that could be the same one as from Michigan), and this J. Rashad from Oklahoma. Now they could all be the same J. Rashad. Or maybe he's discovered the joys of cloning. But my head is spinning trying to figure out who is who, so I give up. This is the Oklahoma J. Rashad (as in Jamar Rashad Davis) and, from the other songs on his Soundcloud page, it sounds like he's still experimenting with different sounds (which is cool, you know). A recent grad of SWOSU, this is this J. Rashad's first original Christmas song and its a free download (which is also cool). Maybe it was growing up while Motown was king, but I'm a sucker for smooth Soul and R&B. And, as I was digging through the crap on Soundcloud (looking for the ponies), I came across "What I Want For Christmas", my headache went away and I found myself breathing deep and saying, "Ah, that's nice." The cover art he went with is better than most, too. So here's to you J. Rashad...whichever one you are. Certain genres of Christmas music are available in abundance as free downloads. And (I think) that's a very good thing. But I'm always on the lookout for the sounds that are harder to find free. Man does not live on Indie Rock and Folk Pop alone and I try to bring you a more well-rounded buffet to tickle ever inch of your musical tastebuds when I can. Half Mile Home is a Gospel trio from Ohio who have successfully bridged the gap between traditional Gospel and contemporary Soul. "The Gift of Christmas" was released as a single in 2013 and, last year, the group made the song available as a free download via Soundcloud. "The Gift of Christmas", Half Mile Home wants you to know, isn't pretty lights, parties and presents under the tree. The true gift of Christmas is love. And God's love was gifted in the birth of his only son, Jesus Christ. It's a gift that's there for you to be had at any time, even if we officially only set aside one day a year the celebrate that gift. And that's what Christmas is really all about, Charlie Brown. Both soulful and spiritual, "The Gift of Christmas" is a nice change of pace from a lot of the seasonal silliness we revel in (not that I don't love seasonal silliness), so this song is a nice addition to your holiday library and playlist. Grab it from Soundcloud before someone realizes you can still download it free. And pay these Gospel greats a visit at their website and Facebook page to stay current on the beautiful music they make. I'm still kinda waiting (if I didn't miss it somehow) for a full Christmas album from Half Mile Home. I have faith we'll get one, one day. |
The FREE ListHere we hope to direct you to some of the Christmas music on the web that can be yours absolutely free. We will not direct you to mp3 or sharity sites, here, but only to artist sites, label sites, and other authorized and unquestionably legal locations. Archives2010 FREE List Categories
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