This week’s New Music Friday featured artist is Washington D.C. creator extraordinaire HAEZL and her new single, “Werewolves”. This week’s new music Friday fittingly comes to you at the 11th hour. While “Werewolves” may be the only track on the spooky side, there’s a lot of top-notch talent coming your way from Zaleb Brown, Jake Swamp and the Pine, Lālo Parade, Teri Underhill, Jim Cain, and Tiny Party, each bringing their own vibes. You can find all this and more on the Alchemical Records Multigenre Mixture playlist on Spotify.
If you are on the hunt for something spooky to add to your Halloween weekend playlist then “Werewolves” by HAEZL might be just the thing you’re looking for. Lyrics and music are both dynamic; changing and shifting like the subject of the song itself, and perhaps even its writer.
Originally from Los Gatos, California, it was in Los Angeles that HAEZL earned both a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Opera Performance; working professionally and as a freelancer, as well as lending her talents to a number of projects, HAEZL was the lead singer for Armenian metal band, Stryfe, during which time she appeared on TLT’s Brides Gone Styled which featured Stryfe, and VH1’s Bye Felicia. She worked on a number of TV pilots and shows, including a featured role in Erica Jayne’s (The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills) music video for “Party People”. Folks from DC, MD, and VA who were following the scene in 2016 might remember her time as the lead vocalist for indie band, Strum the Fox. Her debut as a solo electronic pop artist came in 2020 with the release of “Indigo” which is still a fan favorite.
HAEZL’s 6th release, she says, “Werewolves” is inspired by the change of seasons and the need for community and shared experience, Werewolves is a metaphor for discovering and thriving with your true wild family. A celebration of all those who have grown up feeling different than the world they found themselves in – Werewolves was originally inspired by my guild members and characters in World of Warcraft.”
Now we just need to find out what server (and faction) she is on and maybe we can dance to “Werewolves” together in game.
“You Never Know” is the emotive new single about cherishing memories by singer-songwriter Zaleb Brown of Houston, Texas. The song contains elements of pop, contemporary R&B and neo-soul while Brown projects outstanding range and emotional delivery that captures the way memories of even a single individual or event might feel erratic.
Discussing the lyrics and feels, Brown suggests, “Whether it’s the loss of a family member or the loss of the love of your life. It’s more about telling that one person you’ve been meaning to tell for so long, and now it’s too late.”
Jake Swamp and the Pine use poetic but familiar imagery to deliver a nostalgic new single, “Empty Stomachs and Bloodshot Eyes”. The track highlights the band’s anthemic folk-rock sound. Songwriter and vocalist Drew Zieff expertly delivers personable lyrics that deliver all the sights and sounds of our past in this nostalgic folk/pop track that “captures the fond memory of having little to no responsibility through teenage years, and the moments in adult-hood when one wishes they could go back and fully appreciate their freedom.” If you are a fan of global citizen and DMV recording artist Eli Lev, or artists like Vance Joy, Ed Sheeran, and The Lumineers, then we think you’ll appreciate the authentic vibes by Jake Swamp and the Pine. The act is garnering some well earned attention in the form of several award nominations in and around Boston and New England.
Lālo Parade delivers a truly sweet thing with “Sweet Thing”, which he describes as a song “about the enduring power of love. It is a song about how, even after years have passed, the love between two people can continue to grow stronger. The song is about reminding someone how much they really mean to you.”
Containing a mix of bass, drums, guitar, keys, piano, and samples, Lālo expertly weaves incredible dynamic changes musically while his sincere and silky smooth vocals seem to just melt right into any available space. I’m impressed by Lālo’s ability to put all these pieces together in a way that fits this well. My senses are immediately intrigued by the odd feel of the guitar riff that begins the song and gets deeper from there.
With the production style of this particular track, It may surprise you to learn that the he’s a bit of a metalhead at heart with a background performing metal, punk and ska; or that his influences range from Beastie Boys, Beck, and Fugazi. He found his sound after opening for everyone from Bob Schneider to Anything Box by the way of The Romantic and The Knack. If you enjoy “Sweet Thing”, be sure to check out “Fasho” released earlier this year, or his 2021 eponymously titled album.
Jim Cain, a.k.a. Michiel Vaernewyck, is a singer-songwriter from Ghent, Belgium, who delivers a romantic, soaring ballad describing “that lovers’ magic at the end of the night, trying to grab hold of that feeling as long as you can” in his latest folk single, “Wrong Way Home”. As you can imagine after a brief listen, he’s inspired by the greats: Dylan, Springsteen, and Van Morrison. I also found myself making some comparisons to Gordon Lightfoot. Either way, I really appreciate Jim Cain’s expressive narrative and penchant for storytelling. His influences would be proud. “Wrong Way Home” is the second single since his 2020 album Streets Before The Fall after “Nightwalker” released earlier this year, and teases that more new music is on its way.
“DREAMING” is the latest self-produced, self-recorded, self-released single from Tiny Party. If you are a fan of MGMT I have a hard time imagining you wouldn’t be a fan of Tiny Party. And, I mean, who doesn’t want a tiny party? If you put Tiny Party on your phone and put your phone in your pocket, now you have a tiny party with Tiny Party in your pocket. Seriously though, Justin Nelson and Joseph Sardella and Nathan Johnson have a full and lush sound that is also somehow deceitfully simplistic. I do mean that in a good way. It defies logic and the senses and I want more, dammit! Tiny Party is capturing some really great vibes and incredible sounds and I truly hope you are as captivated by the warm tones coming from these Arizona/Nashville collaborators as I am.
Teri Underhill and GodIsMikey collaborate in this ‘fight against the power’ single, “Rise”. It has a pep to it that I can’t quite put my finger on, but every time I hear this song it makes me think of “Candy Girl” from New Edition. “Rise” has swagger, confidence, and attitude, without needing to come off as hard or edgy.
Speaking about ‘Rise’, Teri said, “Rise is about reminding yourself you will rise from tough times. To keep fighting during trying times. To stay a warrior, to stay strong and that you will get through this rough time just like all the other rough times before.”
Since the release of her highly-praised debut album ‘Salt ‘n Citrus’ last year, the Des Moines-based singer-songwriter, dancer, poet, creative, and author who uses her platforms to share her stories and advocate towards mental health awareness and autism awareness. Underhill’s diverse family upbringing (Polynesian/Puerto Rican/English/German) exposed her to “all genres of music expanding her mind to be limitless to what she dreams of” and the way she shares these same kinds of opportunities and experiences with listeners is truly inspiring.
Daniel Warren Hill is an American musician, writer, and motivational speaker. He is best known as the frontman for Washington DC area Alternative Rock band YellowTieGuy, as co-founder of Capitol Groove Collective, and increasing the exposure of artists on a global scale through his work with Alchemical Records.
Subscribe to Alchemical Records today to support our efforts online and in print.
Join the Alchemical Records Street Team to promote these and other artists, live music, and music community organizations & events while receiving cool perks from artists throughout the region.
Recent Articles March 21st. A day that I will always think of amazing album releases. DC-based musician, producer, and singer-songwriter, Rachel Levitin, released Witty Banter
Alchemical Records is a Washington, D.C. based music publication. We cover the Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Richmond, VA metro area music scenes, including band interviews, articles about your favorite musicians, new music and concert dates.
