Musical chairs

A lot of new bands constantly vie to stake a claim as champion of “musical chairs,” where winning equates to popularity and sustained success. In order to break away from the pack, bands resort to different methods and gimmicks, often making use of the new technology and getting their names on the public radar by whatever means available. Every so often, a true gem gets through the cracks with genuine talent and musical craft in spades.

Walk Off the Earth — R.E.V.O. (Columbia Records). Hailing from Canada, we first heard of Walk Off the Earth (WOTE) when its homemade music videos became the rage on YouTube. Ready to take on covers of almost any musical genre, and proving the it could also compose its own songs, WOTE is essentially a visual band, and to really appreciate what it brings to the table, go search out its cover videos of Maroon 5’s Payphone and Gotye’s Somebody That I Used to Know.

The latter is the one cover that’s on the band’s first studio album, which is a collection of music that shimmers and pleases like the best summer day. This early, my favorite originals are Gang of Rhythm, Shake, Summer Vibe and No Ulterior Motives.

The band flits across musical genres and boundaries, sometimes sounding like a more pop-ish Mumford & Sons, or a more mainstream Foster the People. What is consistent is its original multi-instrument approach to the arrangement, and how the band’s vocals soar, whether carried by female vocalist Sarah Blackwood or by Marshall.

If you haven’t seen the Gotye song video, be amazed by the band’s five members playing one guitar! The word “unique” doesn’t even come close to describe it.

Jake Bugg — Jake Bugg (Mercury/MCA). A mere 19-year-old from Nottingham, England, Jake shows a maturity and songwriting skill that go beyond his years. The big surprise is, despite hailing from England, Bugg’s songs and voice recall such retro artists as Chris Isaak and a young Johnny Cash, as channeled through a nasal voice that could also qualify him as an Everly Brother reincarnation. Or the next Nick Lowe, given his British provenance.

The hybrid country music comes through in such tunes as Seen It All, Simple As This and Country Song. If you’ve been glued to the NBA Finals, you must have heard his song Lightning Bolt on the Gatorade commercial.

There is this element of being a diamond in the rough that augurs well for Jake, as long as the right audience finds him; for while in the US, this would qualify as mainstream music, but pop-country is more of an acquired taste here in the Philippines.