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For this instalment of Up and Coming Artists I am going to be talking to you about Tori Kelly, and American singer songwriter. She may be most well known in the UK for her collaboration with Professor Green on a track called Lullaby. She has also toured with Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran. Tori is an artist that I have been following for nearly a year now and is someone I have found to be very genuine with her music. On her track Nobody Love, her vocal sounds as good during an acoustic session as it does on the record. I particularly like artists that I are very honest when recording and therefore sound similar live.
The video below is a performance of Nobody Love for Vevo Dscvr.


I'll admit that I was surprised to like her music because her voice is very good in that, I think, it sounds so good that it's not individual. Now to you that might not make a lot of sense but generally I like artists that have a kink in their voice may that makes them stand out even more to me - that's why I really love Ella Eyre's voice and are not so keen on Ariana Grande's.
However, there was something about Tori Kelly that made me abandon that tradition that I stand by and invest my time looking into her music and I highly recommend that you do the same!

Tori's album is currently up for pre-order in the US and Australia.

Artist: James Bay
Album Title: Chaos And The Calm
Release Date: 23 March 2015
Genre: Alternative
Tracks Standard: 11
Tracks Deluxe: 15
Buy It: 
Amazon (Standard)
iTunes (Standard)
iTunes Deluxe

Artist: PVRIS
Album Title: White Noise
Release Date: 4 November 2014
Genre: Alternative Rock
Tracks Standard: 10
Tracks Deluxe: None
Buy It: Amazon iTunes

I mentioned PVRIS towards the later part of 2014 and featured this album on my 2014 album favourites post. I think that now is a good time to review it. I know when I really like an album when I still listen to it months after its release and still love it an awful lot.
I really love everything this album is - the vocal, production and the music. The album is a mixture of rock, alternative and electronic and this combination is quickly becoming one of my favourite genres. The album features a range of slower songs such as Eyelids and more upbeat such as St. Patrick.
My favourites tracks on the album are Mirrors and St.Patrick - I do love them all though. These two tracks are two of the more upbeat tracks on the album. I normally try to pick songs off an album that aren't singles but St.Patrick is such a good song I couldn't stick to that philosophy. The song never fails to put me in a good mood after listening to it as I feel like I can apply what the song is about to situations in my life. I think the track is the perfect balance between synths, guitar and drums - not too much synth but enough to transform the track itself. Lynn's vocal on the track and the entire album never fails to amaze me as she has a different tone to her voice to other voices on the rock scene and I think this works as an advantage for the band.
Mirrors once again provides a great balance between synth and the rest of the instruments on the album. Despite the track being upbeat, there is a section in the bridge which is much slower and really shows off Lynn's vocal. This also means that when the chorus kicks back in, it has much more impact than the previous times.
White Noise is an album that I highly recommend. I find it so easy to listen to in all situations, each track is different from the previous and it always puts me in a good mood!

Disclaimer: I do not own the image above used for the cover art of this post. It was taken from here

Against The Current are a band that I have been following for a while now and I genuinely love their music an awful lot! I don't know if I would class them as an Up And Coming Artist but I do think that they deserve a lot more recognition for their work.
I came across their covers on YouTube when they collaborated with another artist on YouTube called Alex Goot. The cover was of a track called Find You, originally performed by Zedd, Miriam Bryant and Matthew Koma who are all artist that I love an awful lot. I really liked the cover and what Alex and Against The Current had done to it, therefore prompting me to look them up. The cover is below; Find You Cover - Alex Goot. Against The Current


I then listened to some of their original music as well as their own covers. Against The Current also have an EP called Infinity which I particularly love! I find the EP so easy to listen to, whether that be writing this post, doing homework or walking about.
What I love about this band for starters is Chrissy's voice - main vocalist. I really like the sound of her voice as I find it so different to anything that I have heard before or that I listen to. Another thing I love about the band is how the try and combine pop and rock. For example, they recently covered Uptown Funk with Set It Off, putting a rock spin on what has been a very popular pop song. You can listen to it below; Uptown Funk - Against The Current & Set It Off


I really like what Against The Current did with this song especially as I wasn't overly keen on the original and I've had this on repeat!
My favourite original song by Against The Current is called Another You (Another Way). I really like the lyrics to the track and I think that many people will find it relatable. I also really like the melody and find it incredibly easy to listen to in any situation. You can listen to the track below; Another You (Another Way) - Against The Current


Against The Current Links;
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Facebook

Pre-Order Gravity EP HERE

Artist: Hardwell
Album Title: United We Are
Release Date: 23 January 2015
Genre: Dance
Tracks Standard: 15
Tracks Deluxe: None
Buy It: Amazon iTunes

I wasn't sure what to expect in the build up to the release of Hardwell's album United We Are, especially when previews were being released on his YouTube channel. I do admit having now listened to the album, I was slightly disappointed however I do still have a few favourite tracks from the album.
I firstly want to address a track on the album called 'Sally' which is going to be the first single released from the album. At first I really liked the sound of the track, it had that raw guitar sound that I really love. However then the vocal started...There was nothing wrong with the vocalists voice I want to put that out there now but I didn't like the lyrics at all. The song included large amounts of swearing and I didn't feel like it had much depth to it other then who the vocalist was sleeping with.
On a more positive note my favourite tracks from the album were Follow Me, Eclipse and Birds Fly.
Eclipse is the opening track on the album and as I said in my music favourites, is possibly one of my favourite opening tracks on an album!I love the string section in the opening minute as it isn't something you would expect on an dance album. After this first minute, Hardwell kicks it up a notch with a big drop which he maintains throughout the track with a combination of the strings and beats.
Follow Me is the second track on the album and after the impact that Eclipse had had on me, it would take a lot to top. Admittedly as I am not a fan of Jason Derulo, I wasn't expecting a lot from this track. However, on this particular occasion, I really like the vocal! I think his voice works really well with the track and enables Jason to actually show off his voice. Follow Me is also accompanied by an incredible melody and drops by Hardwell as you would expect.
Birds Fly is the calmest track on the album and I personally think that you wouldn't think it was a track by Hardwell. However, I really love the lyrics to this song - for the most part. I find that the opening verse is a bit strange, maybe I just need to understand is better to appreciate it better. The section I like the most is the pre-chorus which goes like:
When your a star.
And your looking up at the stars.
It just looks like venus or mars
Let's make this universe ours.
Gravity's holding us down.
So let's turn this planet around.
Oh now, don't you worry 'bout how.
Can't nothing stop us now.
Saying that, I am a bit iffy on the break down towards the end of the track - I just don't feel like it was necessary and would have been fine without it!

Album Mini Mix