If Mr. Olsen’s quote proves true, then Diablo Blvd’s upcoming fourth album Zero Hour is a perfect musical adaptation of the troubled times we live in. Frenetic. Dark. Brutally frank. Relentless. In the words of front man Alex Agnew, the album is the “…soundtrack for the End Times!”

People's Choice, despite high acclaim within Philly Soul, R&B, Funk and Disco circles are among the most underrated of the soul groups that found their home at P.I.R. Unlike many of the acts championed by Gamble & Leon Huff People's Choice were a self-contained outfit performing on the Philly scene since the 60s. Led by Frankie Brunson the group was formed out of R&B act The Fashions. ANY WAY YOU WANNA… THE PEOPLE'S CHOICE ANTHOLOGY (1971-1981) covers the group's greatest successes.

Not only is Sarah dynamic and simply adorable on stage; Sarah is a singer- songwriter to love. And just when you think you know her, she magically transforms… revealing colorfully, captivating insight that compels the listener and viewer with the desire for more. Childhood drama and psychological trauma; there was none. Unless you consider the fact that my childhood was molded by fairy tales, show tunes and a warped version of the catechism; which only served to engage my highly spirited and overly zealous imagination! Go figure…

In the mid 1980s Mercer Ellington, the son of legendary American Composer/Bandleader Duke Ellington made several attempts to get his father’s posthumous big band in the studio to record albums in order to stay relevant. While recording in L.A., he employed both East Coast and West Coast nuclei, which were utilized for Mercer’s touring band. On Harlem Throwbacks, the focus was to do modern recreations of records made in the Cotton Club days of the late 1920s up to the early 1940s. Several Duke Ellington alumni were present for this outing, such as Harold Minerve, Art Baron, Rocky White, Anita Moore, Barrie Lee Hall, and Chuck Connors. It is quite interesting to hear these classic arrangements re-recorded in digital stereo in 1984.

At the age of three Urs started playing little melodies on the piano. Later he developed a great passion for playing drums. With his teacher Pierre Favre he began to target a career as a jazz drummer. At the young age of 12 he was already touring with the Big Band of Fernsehen DRS, the national TV station, and was soon regarded as one of the greatest young talents of the Swiss music scene. What followed were several years of gigs in the best reputated jazz clubs in Switzerland where he played with his older brother, the jazz pianist Chris Wiesendanger.

Vivian Buczek was born in Malmoe, Sweden with Polish roots. She studied at Malmoe Academy of Music where she graduated in 2003. She already started performing and recording during her studies and has developed into one of Sweden’s foremost jazz singers today. She has a remarkable range and feeling for the jazz idiom and has made a number of appearances with both international and Swedish celebrities.

Hey, Rosemary Clooney fans what say you to 24 completely unreleased radio performances from the ‘50s?! Courtesy of the Rosemary Clooney and Bing Crosby estates, these songs hail from The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric, The Ford Road Show, and The Rosemary Clooney Show, and have never been released in any format, not even on that humongous box set of radio transcriptions issued by Mosaic a few years ago. Rosie was in her element singing on the radio; freed from Mitch Miller’s iron hand (and seemingly inexhaustible supply of novelty songs) at Columbia, she was able to tackle material that was a more suitable match for her effortless, floating voice. This collection of rarities includes selections pre-recorded for radio broadcast on tape for outstanding studio quality and features Rosie in both small group and big band settings. Liner notes by Clooney expert Tom Pickles, rare photos and warm remastering by Mike Milchner at SonicVision designed to capture every lilting note make this a keeper for Clooney aficionados.

Joel DaSilva is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter hailing from Chicago, Illinois, and currently based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. “Joel DaSilva is one of the finest musicians I’ve ever worked with, a true professional. He’s paid his dues and deserves national recognition. The son of traveling musicians from Brazil, DaSilva lost his father at age 3, which had a profound impact on the young artist’s life. At the age of 18, DaSilva joined his first blues outfit as the lead guitarist for “Junior Drinkwater and the Thirstquenchers”. DaSilva went on to put out 5 independent records thus far in a career spanning over 10 years. DaSilva has worked alongside such widely recognized and diverse artists as B.B.King, Ray Charles, the White Stripes, A.C. Reed, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Reverend Horton Heat, Foghat, Los Lobos, Leon Russell, the Black Crowes, Nighthawks, Edgar and Johnny Winter, and Jimmie Vaughan.

Since their triple-Platinum debut album, Horse Of A Different Color, Big Kenny and John Rich have kept the faith, ramped up their groove, taken an occasional break for solo projects and come back with both guitars blazing. Their run as the ultimate good-time country music duo continues with Did It For The Party – a title that pretty much tells their story.

Prospice takes the listener on a progressive trip to the heart of Falloch. With friends Amaya and Paúl (playing together in Maud the Moth) rounding out the lineup, the group have found a new sense of fun and creativity and use this to expand on the solid foundations laid by previous works. Gazing melancholia is replaced by groovy kicks and lush licks while bleak heathen landscapes are left behind as the vast, limitless possibilities of space fill the mind. The artwork by Alberto Sanchez Ballesteros captures the feeling of the album perfectly . It's a colourful smorgasbord of sonic delights ready to feed the ever-hungry ear.

Sammie was a childhood star, starting his career at the age of 12 years old with a gold hit record and album, From the Bottom to the Top. He continued his trajectory of hits with the follow-up, self-titled album, Sammie. He took a hiatus from music while quietly releasing a few things, but triumphantly returned in 2016 with the EP, I'm Him that re-introduced him to the world. This release is him telling his story of love, heartbreak, missed opportunities, and redemption.

Many people know him from advertising. Friedrich Liechtenstein is one of the most versatile performers in the German-speaking world. With Arnold Kasar (piano, electronics) and Sebastian Borkowski (saxophone), the Friedrich Liechtenstein trio consists of many years of musical partners. Their unique musical mix combines pop melodies with relaxed arrangements of piano ensembles, delicate saxophone sounds and electronic sounds. Almost already hit suspect. Liechtenstein's texts form a subtle contrast full of fine humor. And at the latest, when you get caught, how to make a grandiose earworm à la non-singing swimming, girls, girls or the stiff deer trudging into our proximity they can put on us when they are so tired … no more from the head, one has fallen in love with his humor.

Hailing from Chicago, Illinois, hard rockers SOiL formed in 1997 and came crashing on to the scene with their major heavyweight label debut album, ‘Scars’ in 2001. Widely considered by many to be the bands finest hour, the record featured such hits as the relentless opener “Breaking Me Down”, an unconventional ballad at its best with “Unreal” and the undisputed colossal classic, “Halo” to name but a few. Today, SOiL prepare to celebrate their 20th anniversary with the release of their greatest hits, ‘SCREAM: The Essentials’; a collection that catalogues the bands two decade spanning career with a fine balance of the tracks fans know and love as well as some surprises and rarities that will raise the hairs on the arms of those who consider themselves die-hards.

SIMO's new studio album ‘Rise & Shine’ will be out on 15 September 2017 on Provogue. On "Rise & Shine" SIMO widens their sound and is filled with slow-smoked soul ballads, psychedelic desert-rock instrumentals, hard-edged, bluesy barn burners and Stax-worthy funk rockers. "Rise & Shine" began taking shape on the road, where SIMO's three bandmates singer, guitarist and namesake frontman JD Simo; drummer Adam Abrashoff; and bassist Elad Shapiro spent most of 2016 on tour. They played 215 shows that year, leaving behind their Nashville headquarters and traveling to nine different countries in support of their Billboard Top 10 blues album, Let Love Show the Way.

Roman Trekel is a German baritone who has established a firm career from a base at the Staatsoper Berlin during the 1990s. He began his higher musical education in 1980, studying voice with Prof. Heinz Reeh until 1986. He received a position at the Berlin Staatsoper's Opera Studio in 1986, and in 1988 joined the Staatsoper (Unter den Linden) as a soloist member of the company. He entered the music competition circuit and in 1989 won the First Prize in the Walter Gruner International Competition in London.