The Farside:

Singles: “If I’m Being Honest” & “Dizzy”

Up-in-coming artist The Farside hit the ground running with their debut singles “If I’m Being Honest” and “Dizzy”. From the forefront of both of these singles, it is apparent that each track establishes a simple yet inviting groove that will drive the entirety of the work- with slight variations for musical accent and flair. With that foundation, the band is able to provide catchy lyrical lines that grasp the attention of the listeners. The vocal lines that are heard throughout both selections stretch in range to provide contrast in terms of highs and lows. Connecting to this notion, the band provides instrumentals that support the lyrical line; however, they include moments, where the instrumentals take the lead whether that be with walls of sound or moments of strategic silence. Providing these moments of major juxtaposition makes for tunes that are dynamic in nature, which will retain the interest of listeners. The instrumentals that are heard throughout the releases blend the traditional and more modern instrumental timbres of alternative-pop music. As one listens to the two releases, it is evident that the band is taking notes from The Summer Set, Chapel, and even a little dash of The 1975. They mix these influences to create their characteristic sound that balances nicely in-between the alternative-pop and the mod-pop musical genres. In general, these tracks give listeners just enough information, musically speaking, for each tune is intriguing enough to get audience members listening and hyped up, but they also leave them wanting more. This is such a strong start for the band, and I anticipate big things from The Farside.

*”If I’m Being Honest” came out April 10^th, 2020 and “Dizzy” came out May 15^th, 2020 through The Farside, and they can be found on Spotify and ITunes.

 

Westway:

 EP; LY: “Up Late” & “Space Cadet”

As one listens to both of these tracks, it is apparent that the band is rocking their individual point of view in terms of the pop punk scene of music. The band includes catchy lyrical lines within both selections that will grasp the listener’s attention. Additional to that, Westway includes instrumentals that either act as the driving force that keeps their music inherently fresh and innovative or the instrumentals glisten as the tracks keep rolling along. The band provides a strong amount of contrast within these two tracks, for they allow for major amounts of musical juxtaposition to occur. This gives them the opportunity to truly bend and shift the listener’s ear towards what they find to be the most important during each part of the song. Westway finds a way to blend the traditional pop punk approach to music with their own original, modern flair. The best way to put it is: it feels like I grew up listening to these tunes, but I also feel like I’ve never heard anything like them before. In general, I find these tunes to be extremely intriguing, catchy, and sensational. This EP provided audience members with another small taste of what the band can do, musically speaking. With this start, I anticipate Westway taking the world by storm in no time.

*”LY” was released on April 3^rd, 2020 through Westway, and it can be found on Spotify and ITunes.