Album Review

Jonathan Brenner’s “Instagram Success” LP

Filled with the sort of earthy tonality that some would just as soon come from an uncompromisingly passionate live performance in a quaint venue somewhere, the guitar parts that are fired at us from start to finish in Jonathan Brenner’s Instagram Success are perhaps the most charming element to behold in this second album from the singer/songwriter, but they’re not the only component vital to the creation of the record’s one-of-a-kind harmonies.

With the help of a potent vocal from Brenner, these strings will form a boldly colorful melodicism unmatched in his first album, whether it be in “It’s a Dyin’ Art” and “Key to My Heart” or deeper cuts like “Hangin’ on the Edge over You” and “Silly Little Habit,” it’s as strong an entity as they come. This is a player who makes communication feel like more of an art form than it has for a long time in pop music, and more than a couple of critics are making note of it.

I love the production quality here, especially with regards to intricately melodic songs like “Not Gettin’ Drunk, Not Gettin’ High,” “Ride That Money Train,” and “The Balla of Orson Jones,” but I can’t say that all of these tracks wouldn’t sound even better in a live setting than they do in this capacity. There’s no dispute as to whether or not the bones of the aforementioned compositions could withstand the pressure of a stage environment; contrarily, I get the impression that they were designed specifically with the energy that an audience’s emotional reaction in mind.

Brenner has the energy of an old-fashioned troubadour in Instagram Success, and I for one would love to see and hear how it translates in person sometime. Although he benefits quite significantly from the way everything in this mix was seemingly tailored to his needs as a songwriter and a vocalist, there’s something more unrestrained lying in these poetic verses that makes me yearn to hear what he can do when there aren’t any studio walls around to restrict his output.

Jonathan Brenner isn’t playing by major label rules in his second album; from my assessment, he’s going out of his way to establish himself as an outside of the box-style of songwriter who cares more about making a big harmony than he does forming a familiar but catchy hook riddled with the usual indulgences we hear virtually every five minutes on the FM dial.

His spirit and his dedication are pretty refreshing to come by in 2024, and if he can continue to refine his sound moving into this new chapter in the history of alternative rock and crossover Americana particularly, I think he’s going to make a considerable impact on his scene sooner than some would expect him to. This is a record that lives and dies by the spaciousness of its concept, which, isn’t what a lot of critics are going to be left raving about this April. To me, Brenner is quite the methodical singer/songwriter, but at the end of the day, it is his moxie at the microphone that gives me the biggest thrills in Instagram Success.

Loren Sperry

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Album Review

With “The Rhythm of Mandolay” album, Eye Travel finds beauty in the space between memory, melodies, and moments

With “The Rhythm of Mandolay,” Gothenburg singer-songwriter Christoffer Andersson, known from his musical project Eye Travel, reveals a deeply personal world. It is an 11-track album forged in time, reflection, and creative discovery and a crossroads between past and present.

The project was recorded with Charles Storm at the Cloudchamber studio on the island of Hisingen, and it turns individual songs into a linked collection where raw emotion, acoustic beauty, and vintage influences coexist. The album kicks off with “Holly,” a dramatic opener built on an Omnichord foundation and expressive vocals that have a theatrical quality. Next up is “Birdsong,” a more delicate affair with breezy melodies that recall the charms of 90’s pop.

For “Verona,” Eye Travel strips everything back and creates an intimate acoustic moment that captures feelings of distance and quiet longing. “Going Under” takes a different direction, using heavy Moog bass and lush string and flute arrangements to create a boisterous, vintage-inspired sound with lots of movement. Meanwhile, “This Planet” takes a bright, catchy pop approach that brings a playful energy, and “Beech Street” is a warm, reflective acoustic folk-pop memory trip.

“Castle” slows the pace to a gentle European folk feel, establishing an intimate, personal atmosphere. “Scientia” is a nicely placed instrumental lullaby that helps the album flow, and “Surface” is a quick but poignant glimpse of a fleeting feeling. “Pauline” is one of the album’s most powerful moments, a grand, emotional performance that captures its drama.

The last song on the album, “Comforting Hell,” leaves a bittersweet taste, exploring the tricky places where sadness and comfort can coexist. “The Rhythm of Mandolay” is an album carefully constructed on the rhythm of contrast. Eye Travel delivers a timeless record that is so very human, drawing on vintage influences, acoustic storytelling, and emotional honesty.

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Album Review

CMD.EXE unveils “Red Giant Protocol,” a bold journey through machine consciousness and cosmic evolution

Electronic music has always been a playground for imagination, but “Red Giant Protocol” takes that to another level. The 14-track synthwave experience from CMD.EXE is a journey through fading stars, awakening machines, and the unknown future of intelligence.

This album is about creating an ever-expanding universe where artificial consciousness is on the rise and humanity questions its own role in a shifting universe. It starts with “Consciousness in the Void,” a lonely signal in the silence, then “Signal Burst” heightens the tension with a surge of energy and purpose. “Beautiful Prison” is about the concealed pleasure of control, while “E.V.A.01” is the first evidence of self-awareness in an artificial mind.

The next track, “Madame E.V.A.,” also appears intelligent, mysterious, and almost alive, not just programmed. “Ghost Process” goes a step further, suggesting that awareness can survive the loss of its original system, and this is one of the album’s most thought-provoking moments. The middle of the record, moving through “Binary System” and “Accretion Disk,” reaches for the stars, using cosmic events as metaphors for attraction, dependence, and inevitable change.

The emotional center of the album is the title track, “Red Giant Protocol,” a description of the point of no return, when change can no longer be halted. “Mors Machina” presents a bleak portrait of death trapped in a luminous digital realm, and “Thanatophobia” takes you inside for a direct and visceral confrontation with the fear of dying.

The last movement takes the album’s vision beyond the individual, as “Type III Civilization” is about an intelligence capable of manipulating a galaxy. followed by “We Are All Mother,” a track about giving up your individual identity for something bigger. CMD.EXE closes with “Organum Spatii Sacri,” leaving you with a finale that makes the emptiness of space something almost sacred. “Red Giant Protocol” is an immersive concept record that invites people to reflect on technology, existence, and what comes after people.