Spring Songs: The 2013 Third Quarter -Rock

This is it, the final post of the 2013 3rd Quarter Pool eligible Entries. We are all caught up and it's new stuff until the end of September. Then we begin with judging and voting on these entries while the pool fills for the 5th Platinum Vinyl Awards.

It is fitting that we end with Rock. It is the glory genre. Everyone wants to be a Rock Star. Face it, they make energy drinks called rock star, not country star. And what a way to end, this was a packed quarter. Check it out.

Rock Music

• Audio Adrenaline - Big House to Ocean Floor
• John Elefante - On My Way to the Sun
• Remedy Drive - Resuscitate Acoustic Sessions
• Silverline - Lights Out
• Skillet - Rise
• Sweet Comfort Band - The Waiting is Over

Skillet would be the Veterans of this half dozen, except that a few true veterans are here. John Elefante is a rock music veteran, having got his start with GRAC supergroup Kansas, and then AD and now a solo act. And then there's Sweet Comfort Band. Twenty nine years since their last release and they haven't missed a beat. I guess you can go home again. Plus Skillet and Elefante were perfect 5's and have immediate entry into the finals. This should be an interesting year.

Don't forget to enter the Great WENC Night Beat Third Birthday Giveaway. It's on until the end of the month, and Skillet is one of the prizes. As I said, when four times five equals three. Don't let your head explode making the math work. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The Night Beat Spring Preview

The Temperature is Rising, and so is the pace of the new releases. Winter ended with a bang, not just in the real world, where the biggest snows hit after Punxatawney Phil predicted an early Spring (we know where you live, buddy), but also in the music world. Three perfect albums were released in March. Andy Hunter's Glowing Collision, Audio Adrenaline's Kings and Queens, and JJ Heller's Loved.

April brings promise. The month begins with another reboot, though not as extensive as Audio Adrenaline. Hawk Nelson returns with Made, the first studio release since Crazy Love, and, more importantly, the first release since the departure of Jason Dunn, who was a founding member of the band. Most members of a band are replaceable, but it's always the toughest with the vocalist position. My early opinions of Made are very good.

Two Platinum winners also make their return. Kerrie Roberts says that it's Time for the show, the follow up to her self titled debut, for which she won the inaugural PVA's Best New Artist Award. In between she did an EP called Once Upon A Time for the ABC show of the same name. This should be worth the wait. Silverline was the unofficial winner of Rock Song of the Year that year with "Voices in the Night" (we didn't have a song category until the second year. The song was a great homage to Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The rest of the album gave me mixed feelings, so I will be testing this one. 

April also brings a new "Thread" to The Letter Black. Rebuild comes out the day after my birthday, and it marks the first release of this band without "hanging on" in the title. Previews of songs on youtube are promising.

May brings the return of Texas alternative act Eisley. Their foray into Deep Space wasn't award winning, but it was intriguing enough to make the pool. I expect no less from this release.

Finally, Spring gets closed out and the summer begins on a loud note. Skillet finally returns with Rise. Let's see, Collide, Comatose, Awake, Rise. We seem to be in a day in the life with titles. I guess a rose by any other name.

It will be enough to keep me busy, and the Platinum Vinyl Awards as well. To rip off Kerrie Roberts, Time for the Show. I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The Night Beat Presents: 2010 Songs of The Year

The 2010 Platinum Vinyl Awards are over, and sacrifices had to be made to make sure we beat the Doves to the line. One of the sacrifices was the Song of the Year category, which was genre based. Still, I felt that there should be some recognition to the artists. This post is my solution. The Song of the Year Category will officially be added to the Platinum Vinyl Awards for 2011.

Without further ado, the 2010 Songs of the Year, as determined by The Night Beat:

• Folk/Folk Rock Song: The Apple, Carolina Story, When the River Meets the Sea
• Dance Song: Live it Up, Group 1 Crew, Outta Space Love
• Gospel Song: All the Way, Forever Jones, Get Ready
• Alternative Song: Between Bare Trees, The Choir, Burning Like The Midnight Sun
• Modern Worship Song: Movements, Rend Collective Experiment, Organic Family Hymnal
• Pop Song: 2AM, Poema, Sing it Now
• Hip Hop/Rap Song: The Invasion (Hero) feat. Jai, Trip Lee, Between Two Worlds
• Hard Rock Song: Voices in the Night, Silverline, Voices in the Night
• Rock Song: Desperate, Fireflight, For Those Who Wait
• CROSS/over Song: Broken Pieces feat. Lacey from Flyleaf, Apocalyptica, 7th Symphony

Well That unofficially officially ends the 2010 Platinum Vinyl Awards. I officially ended it on April 21 with the Artist of the Year Award, but I kept going back and forth on recognition for best song. This list finishes that up, and we'll try to have song categories for each genre next year. Now we really do return to our regularly scheduled posts.