Introducing California’s indie Americana folk band LA River Bend. Built upon intricate guitar embellishments, indie-folk facets and poetically pop melodies, LA River Bend have succeeded in creating an album of happy nostalgia. The four-piece, made up of Nate Weiner (Vocals, Guitar), Emily Elkin (Cello, Vocals), Branden Stroup (Bass, Vocals, Guitar) and Jacob Seldes (Drums) have honored traditions of Americana folk, by building the walls of their epic soundscapes, embracing the dynamics and ultimately developing an aesthetic unique to their own.

The band began life as backing Weiner’s solo album, ‘Ride The Sun’ where the group spent time rehearsing and touring up and down the West Coast. After spending hours recording and mixing tracks for this project, with longtime friend Stroup and the addition of Elkin’s string arrangements, LA River Bend was born. With the introduction of their now signature three-part harmonies and Seldes on percussion, the new and improved band mastered their authentically rustic, yet beautifully atmospheric sound. Nate explains, “The addition of Seldes to the band is immeasurable, because I think our sound would have been less dimensional without his style of drumming."

LA River Bend’s upcoming EP entitled Run These Hills was entirely self-recorded by Stroup. Mastered by Grammy award-winning Eric Boulanger (Eric Clapton, Iggy Pop, Green Day), the EP has already received the stamp of approval from industry professionals. Focused thematically on the symbolism of nature based imagery, the tracks on the highly anticipated new music depicts an artfully serene feeling, reaching emotional depths. “The calming influence of nature in LA has been a huge musical inspiration to us”, professes Weiner.

Leading single, 'Summer Wind’ is the ultimate feel-good love song. Highlighting the band’s approach of exploring the new So Cal ethereal sound, the single emits a sense of ebb and flow, similar to the motion of waves crashing and sweeping against the beach. With stunning three-part harmonies, driving drum beats and catchy Californian melodies, the song builds into a fast paced, toe-tapping anthemic chorus, where you’ll find yourself incapable of keeping still.

‘Mountain’ is the perfect combination of infectious rhythms, complex layers and uncompromising percussive elements. The track features the bands shared love of world rhythms, with its building crescendos, sensational string arrangements and the complementing vocals of Weiner, Elkin & Stroup, the song is certain to be stuck in your head all day long. The narrative of the song derived from the band's struggle to keep pursuing music, despite the myriad of reasons why they shouldn’t.

Whilst ‘Fighting The Night’ is a poignant and emotional narrative of one trying to cope with deep loss. Struggling with the death of his father, Weiner found himself in a state of turbulence, “I was definitely ‘Fighting The Night’, exercising the demons and guilt I felt over my father’s passing.”

Run These Hills is currently available worldwide.  

Raye Zaragoza is an award-winning singer/songwriter and performer whose multinational heritage (Native American (O'odham), Mexican, Taiwanese and Japanese) deeply informs her music. This perspective can be heard in her anthem ‘American Dream’. The powerful and thought-provoking single is inspired by the destruction of Donald Trump’s election, the lack of mainstream media for Standing Rock and the struggles Zaragoza faced growing up as a female multi-cultural youth in the US. Inspired by numerous elements which have impacted Zaragoza’s life, she tells the tale of her great grandmother and how was forced into a boarding school to be raised by a European woman, separated from her parents and siblings. Zaragoza reveals, "Her story haunts me, because so many people don’t realize the awful things that have happened in this country just within the past 100 years. The only way to move forward is to acknowledge that ‘change is a choice that can start with you”. Her previous release “In the River,” a response to the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in North Dakota. The quiet yet powerful track resonated strongly with listeners and went viral in late 2016, garnering half a million views on the video, national media coverage and a Global Music Award and Honesty Oscar.

Raye’s debut album, Fight For You (independent, 2017), displays her compassion, dedication to justice and equality for all, and keen eye for the seemingly small daily moments that become our most meaningful memories. About the record, Raye says, “This album is about finding yourself and finding your voice. It’s about maturing and realizing that you can make a difference if you so choose.” Raye performs her music all over the United States as well as across Europe, where she spent five weeks touring in summer 2017. She’ll be returning to tour Germany in January 2018. Her music has been featured on Democracy Now! and on numerous lists of the best modern-day protest songs, including those by Paste Magazine, What Culture, and Overblown. She has also performed live sessions for Paste and Daytrotter.

"I love the emotional accessibility of her voice and the socially conscious lyrics.” - Danny Goldberg (Managed Nirvana, Bonnie Rait, Beastie Boys & more)

“In the wake of the scandal of the Dakota Access Pipeline...many protest songs have surfaced. This one in particular stands out, a heartfelt song by Native Americana artist Raye Zaragoza”  - Paste Magazine

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Jimkata’s just released their latest single “Hard Headed." The song, which explores themes such as perseverance in the face of adversity, strength, and how sometimes being too stubborn to give up is a good thing, was inspired when the band’s lead singer Even Friedell learned more about soldiers who were drafted away from their loved ones to fight in the Vietnam War. This deeply resonated with him, and after such a challenging year for everyone, Evan states “we’ve all had to make tough choices, have faith and find inner strength to make it through this.”

The song features deep soulful vocals that effortlessly flow over courageous melody backed by their signature analog synths to create a flawless groove.

The visuals were created by lighting designer and visual artist, Greg Ellis and feature the band performing in an analog video giving off a psychedelic 70s retro vibe. The single and accompanying visuals are off their album Bonfires, set for release this summer.

Zoe Berman is a Denver-based singer-songwriter. She accompanies her sultry vocals on the piano and guitar, often complemented by a hand-built suitcase drum played with her feet. Zoe "combines musicality and lyrical poeticism into a hypnotizing mélange of soul, Jazz, and americana music" to create a unique sonic experience that defies traditional genre classifications.

Her songs are often auto-biographical, brimming with relatable narrative and sensorial imagery; she draws inspiration from both mother nature and human nature, composing song lyrics while traversing trails in the mountains of Colorado, and exploring elements of wordplay and storytelling to "[create] songs that are tender and utterly human" (Off-Kilter Media).

Her latest EP is entitled Freezing Heat and is a collection of songs that carry sensorially rich narratives and self-reflective discoveries she has accumulated over the last five years. Single "Lilac Hour '' was inspired by the golden hour in nature, a time of reflection and beauty.  The whimsical "Luna Lune" was inspired by a friend's long distance relationship that went so sour that her friend could no longer look at the moon because of past memories. "Manuka Honey" is an endearing love song reminiscent of her time living in Wellington, New Zealand. Fused with mellifluous vocals, bright piano and jazz-soaked soundscapes, "Manuka Honey" is a romantic lullaby. The EP reflects the various sonic styles and influences that make up my musical vernacular and as such, offer a little something for listeners of many different musical tastes to enjoy.