Cover Story: Wiles Tunes Exclusive
A Declaration of Independents!
By Haili Chin
This month, Wiles Magazine is paying tribute to artists, professionals and every day people who have made it a priority to stay true to their independent spirit in everything that they do!
In keeping with that theme, we’re proud to salute some of the world’s top indie musicians, rappers, singers and songwriters for their individuality, creativity, and commitment to their craft. Through extensive research, we’ve identified talent we consider some of the leading indie artists who should be in your playlist this summer. We’re proud to present this diverse list of voices from all over the world whose substantive music truly speaks to the soundtrack of our lives, passions and concerns of us all.
Ana Tijoux
Ana Tijoux is a Frnech-Chilean musician. She became famous in Latin America as the female MC of hip-hop group Makiza during the late 1990s. In 2006. She crossed over to the Latin mainstream pop due to her collaboration with Mexican songstress Julieta Venegas in the radio hit “Eres para mi.” She is currently promoting her second solo album, 1977. Check out her latest video and get a free download anatijoux.com
Ana Tijoux – Elefant from Caseytography on Vimeo.
Amana Melome
Amana Melome is an international singer and songwriter who was raised in Italy. Her sound is akin to such contemporary artists as Sade, Erykah Badu, Les Nubians and Esperanza Spalding. She is inspired by her Caribbean-American roots and the musical legacy of her grandfather, jazz bassist Jimmy Woode, who recorded with such icons as Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald and Miles Davis. amanamusic.com
Amber Rubath
Amber Rubarth won the grand prize in this year’s New Song Mountain Stage Contest for her song “Letter From My Lonelier Self,” giving her the great opportunity to record her new unreleased album with a musical hero of hers, Jacquire King (Tom Waits, Kings of Leon, Norah Jones, Cold War Kids). Her quirky and endearingly candid songwriting has attracted enthusiasm from NPR’s All Songs Considered, The Huffington Post, BBC Radio, a glowing feature in Acoustic Guitar Magazine, and a Sun Studio Session airing nationwide on PBS. She posted her songs on MySpace and was named one of the “Top 100 Independent Artists with over 1.5 million plays.” amberrubarth.com
Cold Blue Kid
Alex Longoria took a year in his study in a tiny Chicago apartment to write and record ten songs about life. Much to the dismay of his wife and young child, he spent most evenings alone with a cocktail and a guitar, pouring his impressions of his challenging childhood in Indiana, his unexpected parenthood, and his subsequent struggle to balance self-fulfillment and responsibility into his art. To his surprise, he found he had an indefatigable optimism and love for live in spite of it all. The result was the core catalogue of the Cold Blue Kid. The songs immediately drew thousands of fans from around the world on various social networks without ever playing a live show. A series of extremely fortunate events then put Alex in touch with five like-minded musicians and the result is an ever-expanding song book of reflective, affirming, good-timin’ music that reminds us “Life is but a dream. You gotta stay alive.” myspace.com/thecoldbluekid and facebook.com/coldbluekid
Dream Aria
Dream Aria’s creative elements include rock, techno, progressive, classical, new age, Goth, and world music. Powerful raw vocals and guitar, lush keyboards, driving rhythms and inspired lyrics are abundant! Dream Aria is Donald Stagg (composer, lyrics, keyboards, arranger), Garry Flint (producer, drums, engineer), Ann Burstyn (vocals, vocal melodies, lyrics, artwork), Jon Casselman (bass, back-up vocals). dreamaria.com and myspace.com/dreamariacanada
16pac
Between experimental pop, post rock and electronic folk, 16pac’s music meets its influences (Bjork, Portishead, Radiohead, The Cure, Neil Young) and offers a genuine universe in constant evolution. From the electro pop style of the beginning, they’re now exploring a deeper and complex universe (electro folk, electro rock, post rock). 16pac.com