Chris Carpenter is a 22 year old native of Kentucky who released his sophomore album Falling Out of the Atmosphere and is currently at work on a new record. CookBook released his self-produced debut album I Love the 80s last month. Down With Webster is a 7-piece band from Canada who released Time to Win Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 as 7 track mini-album releases. A quintet from Brooklyn, La Strada released their debut album New Home this past spring. Johnny Spanish is a hip-hop artist from Kentucky.

Chris Carpenter

“One And Only”

This song is syrupy sweet but I imagine it will have a lot of appeal with a younger audience as it’s the sort of idealized version of love you hold dear as a teenager. Despite my initial cynicism, the goal of the music is an attempt to be tender and therefore it has an admirable quality. I much prefer the beautiful shots of Carpenter singing in a field than of the couple together, as he looks a bit uncomfortable, but the addition of the hand-held camera and the switch of production quality was a lovely touch.

Cookbook &. Uno Mas ft. Evidence

“When You Rock & Roll”

I don’t know. I suppose I just get tired of the same banal rap lyrics about how money is the root of all evil and “being in the game” and how artists change once they are popular. It’s almost as if hip-hop artists feel a compulsion to follow the standard pattern out of some feeling of obligation or feel. The track has a catchy hook, but no chorus. The video doesn’t provide much in the way of a stimulating visual. I’m really on the fence about the whole package overall.

Down With Webster

“Your Man”

Well. You have to give a tip of the cap to a band that is willing to get down and dirty and look ridiculous in the name of humor and their video. This is definitely entertaining to watch in an over-the-top silly way. Not too keen on the way it portrays women though.

Johnny Spanish

“Shining”

He has a lot of pride for his home state. There’s a lot of bragging in this song and I’m not quite sure it contains the goods to back it up. (So to speak.) It relies on an awful lot of clichés, but it does have a catchy chorus so it could catch on.

La Strada

“Wash On By”

I love this band’s mix of instrumentation and I dig James Craft’s vocal styling. (I also like that the band was named for a Fellini film.) They remind me of another one of my favorites Fanfarlo. The out-of-focus technique is a bit overused by indie bands these days, often because of limited budget, but I’m enjoying the song so much that just getting to watch the band perform is an added bonus.

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