Enjoy Your Pumas find Commonality February 1st

Enjoy Your Pumas are ready to break out of the ice of their native Winnipeg and bring their powerful pop to the rest of the world. A big step in this direction is the release of their debut LP, Commonality which will be out February 1, 2011. The album, which is filled with great hooks, layered guitars, a tight, poppy rhythm section and Rosie Blais’ strong diverse vocals, is sure to remind listeners of Metric, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Bloc Party.

Blais and guitarist, Josh Benoit, began Enjoy Your Pumas as a bedroom project and soon expanded the lineup to include a bassist, Marc Gomez and Ian Jeffrey (keyboards/guitar). After a few lineup changes, the band in its current form emerged: with Luke Janzen (drums) now a part of the tight rhythm section and Zach Allard on guitar. The band’s signature dichotomy: lilting and ethereal/aggressive and rhythmic first began to show itself on Ink: The EP which was released in 2009. Now with Commonality, they’ve gotten more cohesive as a band, challenging each other to do better and better.

Weight Of The Circles by Enjoy Your Pumas by greenlightgo


Commonality was recorded primarily at Private Ear Recording Studio in Winnipeg. Death Cab for Cutie, Matt Epp, and The Waking Eyes have all recorded there. Enjoy Your Pumas appreciated the relatively lengthy time they were allowed to spend recording (six days) and put it to good use. “Working on the band for five straight days was like a vacation. A working vacation. It was a pleasant taste of what music as a career would be like,” says Janzen. Josh Benoit felt the album reflected this time well spent, “It sounds like a band that has put time and thought into the execution of their music.”

Enjoy Your Pumas has enjoyed a few other pleasant tastes of the music business this year. They made national headlines when they won the OurStage.com contest to open for Bon Jovi and Kid Rock on the Regina, Saskatchewan stop of their world stadium tour. The lead single from Commonality ,“Weight of the Circles” reached the Top Ten on Winnipeg indie station Kick FM and has received heavy airplay on Winnipeg stations Curve 94.3, Hot 103, as well as CBC Radio.

Commonality
Track Listing
1. Setback
2. Do It Every Day
3. Weight Of The Circles
4. Sister Rose
5. He Was A Fly
6. Like Animals
7. When It’s Over
8. It’s Not A Loss
9. We Aren’t Cowboys
10. No Man’s A Failure
11. Walk It Off
12. Initiative
13. Lucky Number Seven Click Here to Read More..

NPR's Frannie Kelley Gives GLG Insight to Women in Music, Including Gwyneth Moreland and Sara Radle

In March, NPR Music started a "project" called Hey Ladies – Being a Woman Musician Today, that began from a conversation surrounding booking a showcase at SXSW. This idea blossomed into a beautifully massive and uplifting online database of female musicians. NPR Music now has this incredible collection of information for journalists, and fans of all types of music, that we can all benefit from.

GLG's Gwyneth Moreland of Gwyneth & Monko and Sara Radle were just two one of about 700 women, including Grace Potter, Exene Cervenka (of X) and Patty Larkin who responded positively and honestly to Hey Ladies.

NPR's Frannie Kelley talked to GLG about how the idea for this substantial adventure came to their attention. "As we were booking for the events NPR Music produced at SX this past year, which we do as a group," said Kelley, "all of us kept questioning the diversity of our lineups and looking to book more bands that employ women."

Kelley initially sent out seven questions to hundreds of female musicians. "We honestly had no idea what we would get when we started," said Kelley. "We tried to write the questions to be as open as possible, to leave room for the musicians to tell stories about whatever their most pressing concerns and biggest triumphs were." NPR asked ladies (such as Gwyneth & Monko's Gwyneth Moreland) a variety of queries ranging from "Describe your gear," "What type of music do you play?" and the hefty, "Do you think being a woman and a musician is different from being a man and a musician? If so, how? Was there a moment that made a difference clear to you?" That was the question that really got to how these women felt, and even though they all play different kinds of music, many had the same difficult feelings to admit.

Moreland responded proudly to the questionnaire: "It is a tricky subject, because I am cautious not to sound as though I am complaining....Even though there are so many professional female musicians, it is still such a male dominated industry. I feel as though sometimes it is more of a challenge for me to gain respect for my craft, than some other male musicians I know. It also seems like some folks find it easier to approach me after a show, as opposed to male band mates, to give me 'advice' or 'constructive criticism.' I have even been told by a fan that he would have really enjoyed the show better if I had danced a little. I told him 'I am a musician, not a dancer.' My male band mates got a real kick out of this! I also feel that I get a lot of positive attention because I am a woman...some of which I enjoy, and some of which is a little overwhelming."

From one genre to another, from different cities, instruments and backgrounds, NPR found a few overall conclusions that a great deal of the participating women voiced, very similar to how Moreland feels, "...The musicians say they feel pressure to outperform men just to be accepted as equals...," said Kelley. "But one of the most interesting was the power that seeing a woman perform on stage for the first time has on influencing musicians to start playing... Again and again, women said they didn't think they couldn't be a musician before they saw a woman play – they just didn't consider the possibility until then. I think that moment is so simple but transformative."

Hey Ladies also asked the women "Do you see differences between generations of women musicians?" Radle, had an inspiring answer to the changing eras of music. "The main thing I think about is the fact that women starting out today won't have to deal with as many struggles to be taken as seriously as their male counterparts," she said. "That's an awesome thing to realize."

NPR Music now has an amazing catalog of information on female musicians that can work as a database or encyclopedia for any fan or journalist to find out more about a specific singer or drummer, and how it can be discouraging, yet more so, how empowering it can be as a woman in music. "I was most surprised," offers Kelley, "and touched by how much thought and time the musicians gave to the form." And we are all thankful for that. Click Here to Read More..

Ex-Rentals Vocalist, Sara Radle, Releases Solo Album on September 14th

When you’re involved with as many successful projects as Sara Radle, it's hard to get back to the studio to work on your own music. But the former Rentals vocalist has finally done just that, the result being Four, a full-length album due out September 14th. Filled with beautiful, darling pop songs, complete with 60s-girl-group-inspired background vocals, string arrangements and clever lyrics, Radle’s musical career comes full circle. "…It's been a long time coming," says Radle. "It’s special to me…it feels like I’m back on track in my path as a musician. It’s like coming back home."

Playing in handfuls of bands, including the current project Walking Sleep, pop-punk band Lucy Loves Schroeder, and The Rentals (re-formed with former Weezer member Matt Sharp), Radle has acquired a whole new arsenal of skills and experience to bring to her solo material. Working at her home studio (Good Kitty Studios), as well as with Grammy-winning engineer, Dennis Moody, Radle was able to work with her songs whenever she liked; trying out new sounds and styles. "The whole recording process was a perfect mix for me – a little Los Angeles, a little Texas, a little studio, and a little home studio," muses the singer/songwriter.

On Four, Radle's precious and pure pop voice is showcased in ten gorgeous songs that tug at the heart (and sometimes punch) with strings and lush layers of vocal harmonies. Every song is like a peek into her personal diary; however Radle does not fit into the simple category of girl and her guitar. She is a well-versed musician and arranger who knows how to work with Americana or folk and meld them into one another with pop magic and wonderment. Radle admits she was a bit cautious about re-launching her solo career in Los Angeles (after spending years establishing herself in Texas). But with Four, it’s not so much a re-launching, as it is just the beginning.

Four Track Listing
1. Fooling Nobody
2. The Baxter Hill
3. The Lonely King
4. Morning Light
5. A Reason To Stay
6. Lucy
7. Convenient Again
8. Song For Adam (free mp3)
9. Crossroads
10. A+K
11. Chicago
12. Over Now
13. Superstar
14. It Won’t Last
Click Here to Read More..