Alt- rocker Michael Snellings releases new EP 'To Be Determined'

The singer and songwriter of alternative rock music known as Michael Snellings has released his new EP album, “To Be Determined.” The record contains four original tracks for an approximate total listening time of 20 minutes. It is being proudly published as an independent release without the financial or managerial support of the corporate music industry. Written with the creativity of the alt-rock movement and played with the exceptional skill of the classic-rock guitarists, “To Be Determined” is a lo-fi dose of sonic adrenaline fans of pure alternative rock shouldn't miss.

Michael Snellings cites as main artistic influences a broad swath of different artists.

“Every single well-played artist from the 1940s to present has had a huge influence on me,” Snellings writes. “From the crooners to BB King to John Denver to Black Sabbath to Radiohead to Slash … Most of my guitar influences are from the great guitarists of the classic-rock era. But a few modern guys slip in.”

Snellings has found much popularity making his music available to listeners online.

“With the advent of YouTube,” he writes, “suddenly I became more of an influencer than the influenced. Go figure.”

Fans of the Los Angeles punk rock sound will find the raw power of Snelling's album to their liking. Those more interested in guitar chops will also appreciate his obvious talent and precision. Music fans with an interest in songwriting will note that “To Be Determined,” largely autobiographical, is a work of rock composition that manages to be catchy, fluid and memorable without being predictable or derivative at all.

“To Be Determined” isn't Snellings' first release, but he isn't interested in his old material these days. He writes of this, “I've taken [the old albums] down because I had problems with a previous distributor so you can't find 'em. Some inconsequential mishmash of stuff that isn't worth mentioning.”

Snellings began his music career singing solos in the family church and playing guitar by ear. He rehearsed for hours, fingers blistering and sometimes even bleeding. Years later, in the military, he formed “barracks bands” and kept up his chops. Not satisfied with what he could do as an autodidact, he eventually went to college for music theory. He performed on guitar and as a vocalist in several musical theater productions before dedicating himself to writing and recording in the studio.

Today, Michael Snellings is a self-described “semi-famous social media musician” who has described his considerable and enthusiastic fan base as “Thousands of people across the planet listening not only to my music but my inane ramblings as well.”

“Come join me in my world of wild 'n' Crazy Ponies and Suicidal Squirrels,” writes Snellings of his latest album, “where you'll find both Poodle Boys and Sparkly. Eyed. Girls.”

“To Be Determined” by Michael Snellings is available online worldwide beginning 7 November 2015.

-S. McCauley

Lead Press Release Writer

www.MondoTunes.com

“To Be Determined” by Michael Snellings –

http://www.amazon.com/Be-Determined-EP-Michael-Snellings/dp/B016L5AS1I/

Website –

www.youtube.com/michaelsnellings

Alt-rocker Cheryl Boutz releases new LP 'Blackout'

The singer and songwriter of alternative rock music known as Cheryl Boutz has released her latest LP album, “Blackout.” The record contains 13 original tracks for an approximate total listening time of 50 minutes, making for a roundly comprehensive introduction to this evocative and powerful singer for music fans not yet acquainted. It has been proudly published on the Tate Music Group independent record label, who also released Cheryl Boutz's “Evolution” LP in spring 2014. Heartfelt, verve-charged and packed with exceptional songwriting, “Blackout” by Cheryl Boutz is a clear sign that alternative rock is very much alive and just as heavy hitting as it ever was.

Cheryl Boutz cites as main artistic influences Heart, Red, Hinder, Nickelback, and songwriter-producer Kish Moody. Her own style is aggressive without being macho, passionate without being dramatic, and often shadowy without being overtly dark. The resulting blend strikes the listener as lush, stormy and intimately personal rock music.

The intimacy of Cheryl Boutz's “Blackout” LP is one of its most-striking characteristics, one of the attributes which causes songs by Boutz to stand out among the throngs of independent alt-rock musicians today.

“My music is about life,” Boutz writes. “I write music that reaches out to people, touching their heart. My songs tell stories. I have been told by many people that they feel my heart when they listen to my songs.”

Whether the listener is a fan of the alt-rock genre or no, he or she will attest that truly Boutz is inside her music speaking out from it, sharing it with the listener, not just playing rock for its own sake.

“I've always felt that what makes a good singer is when a person can listen and feel the emotions and meaning of the message in the song,” she writes. “If a person cannot feel the message in the song, they are not going to believe it.”

Much of the emotional impact of the songwriting on “Blackout” stems from its roots in cold, stark reality. As a survivor of domestic abuse, Boutz laces her songs with truths that are sometimes painful, but punctuates these with uplifting currents of encouragement, perseverance and ultimate victory.

She writes of this, “Some of the songs on 'Blackout' express awareness and the things I experienced. I use my personal experience as a way to help others. So many people experience domestic abuse and often wonder how they got there, or are looking for a way out. 'Blackout' also talks about some of my dark side, feelings and experiences I've had that words couldn't express.”

Cheryl Boutz is a Poze Productions VIP Artist, hand picked from a thousand other performers in 2012. She has been featured on Poze Radio's Sat. Night weekly rotation and in Poze Magazine. Having been showcased so prominently, Boutz was picked up by Oklahoma City's Tate Music Group in 2013. Her debut LP, “Evolution,” won Best Album at both the Akademia and X-Poze-ing Music Awards, as well as X-Poze-ing's Best Alternative Album and Best Song for her “Breathless” single.

“It's always been my nature to use music to express my feelings,” Boutz writes. “In a sea of mixed emotions, while I spent a lot of time away from home, friends and family, it came natural for me to start writing songs about the way I felt. I've been writing now for over 20 years.”

“Blackout” by Cheryl Boutz is available online worldwide.

-S. McCauley

Lead Press Release Writer

www.MondoTunes.com

“Blackout” by Cheryl Boutz –

http://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Cheryl-Boutz/dp/B00IPJZ2JW/

Website –

www.cherylboutz.net

The Wrong Windows release new LP 'Days of Yore'

The rock crew known as the Wrong Windows have released their highly awaited debut LP, “Days of Yore.” The full-length album has been proudly published on the Quagmire (Sparky) Productions, Inc. independent music label. It comprises five original tracks and three cover tunes, one each from the Helium, PJ Harvey, and Divinyls repertoires, for an approximate total listening time of 40 minutes. Evocative, groovy, occasionally sentimental and often full of sonic optimism, “Days of Yore” from the Wrong Windows is an alternative-rock record with a ton of character and all the heart and soul in the world.

The Wrong Windows is a rock project informed by a kaleidoscopic variety of the world's best singer-songwriters. Their cited influences include legends such as Jeff Buckley, Elvis Costello, Mary's Danish, Alice In Chains, Jethro Tull, Jack White, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin. Still, much of what gives this male-helmed band their inimitable tone is a penchant for the work of females in music.

Wrong Windows mastermind Billy Z. Duke writes of this, “Chelsea Wolfe, Gemma Hayes, Sarah Slean, Fiona Apple, and many, many more … I have a great fondness in general for female vocals and distorted guitars, and I've integrated hundreds of names of the women whose work has inspired me on the artwork for the record.”

As it happens, “Days of Yore” is a debut LP that emerged almost of its own volition.

“This project originated with a much humbler scope,” Duke explains. “It was intended to be a quick and dirty demo tape, just to get something released, get our band name out there, have something to sell at shows… But as the recording process progressed, more and more ideas began to flow in, and after a year and a half of collaboration with the band and other musical and visual artists in my social circle, it began to approach monolithic status.”

As playful and casual as the album feels to the listener, it's deceptively complex and highly textured in terms of musical composition and lyrical depth, also.

“I would say that the album is a time capsule of sorts, an attempt to express in artistic terms my take on the current state of affairs in our world,” writes Duke. “As a songwriter, I tend to create creative curricula for myself, concepts around which I can compose material, and the Wrong Windows is perhaps the broadest possible such concept I've yet attempted: I want to write the 'American Standards' for the 21st Century.”

Longtime fans of rock 'n' roll and of songwriting in general will feel paradoxical when listening to “Days of Yore.” It manages to be both cutting edge and nostalgic at the same time by sewing older, somewhat neglected musical threads into new patterns. This results in uniquely creative sounds which trick the ear into feeling somehow familiar with the material.

“Our debut album is both a throwback and a look forward,” Duke writes, “dealing lyrically with issues including the bittersweet temptations of nostalgia and sentimentality, government corruption and institutionally sanctioned discrimination, the great divide between our wishes and their fulfillment… It's a tall order, to be sure. I could go on for numerous paragraphs, but I know from experience that I'd be better off finding a way to distill my message for those with less abundant attention spans. Thus… the music!”

“Days of Yore” by the Wrong Windows is available online worldwide. Fans of alt-rock and great songwriting should get in early. This record is going to grow on you.

-S. McCauley

Lead Press Release Writer

www.MondoTunes.com

“Days of Yore” by the Wrong Windows –

http://www.amazon.com/Days-Yore-Wrong-Windows/dp/B00UQTT3VW/

Website -

http://wrongwindows.net