Billing herself as “the acid cowgirl” Salme Dahlstrom reportedly doesn’t give a shit about following trends or staying with conventional sound. She is variously heard as a driving, dance-beat type of performer and an artist with a wide range of influences.

Whatever it is she is doing, it works for some judges. She did receive an honorable mention in the International Songwriting Competition and a similar award from the Billboard World Song Contest. That’s something. This listener likes the “welcome to wherever you are sound” that Dahlstrom puts out. She was also a finalist in the Dance Electronica category in Song of the Year competition.

Her latest CD is The Acid Cowgirl Audio Trade (Kontainer Music 2008). Many would-be fans will be drawn to this performer because she rides a Harley Softail and self-produced her latest CD in her own New York studio. She moved to the United States from Sweden, where in her youth she studied classical music. The soul-deep ability comes through, with sharpness and a Bohemian feel. It’s likable.

The latest effort from Dahlstrom continues the quality found on Bible Bombastik from 2006. The album mix for “Wearing The Peace” is nice studio mixing of music, talk-over vocals and dance beat. If you are almost six feet tall, blonde and talented, you should be able to catch the fan’s attention. Seems Dahlstrom does that.

Salme Dahlstrom on MySpace
[tags]Salme Dahlstrom[/tags]

These two lines from the artists own Web site might be enough to draw a significant number of listeners who have not experienced Derren Raser.

• One of Music Connection Magazine’s “Top Unsigned Artists of the Year”

• Award winner at this year’s John Lennon Songwriting Contest

He moved out west to try the California music scene, starting from a suburban base in Kansas. Some magazine reviews insist that he hasn’t lost his focus or his Midwestern roots in making such a change.

Listening to the featured song on his Web site will certainly convince a few listeners that he has heard The Beatles “Eleanor Rigby.” If not, the style of “Warn The World” must have come to him through the ages. Raser certainly isn’t old enough to have lived the Fab Four experience. (Or the Paul Simon experience.) This is an updated version of 60s folk rock.

As the Web information states, the music is “just Derren, mostly.” But he gets help from Daniel Rhine on upright bass; Kelly Bennett on violin (this is a prominent part of many Raser tunes); Josh Hersmeier, drums; Cole Petersen, Cajon. Raser lists as influences: James Taylor, Paul Simon, Indigo Girls, Billy Joel, Radiohead, John Stewart, John Mayer, Blur.

He will be playing in a California location near you. But he is stretching out, with a planned gig in Denver at the Colorado Music Summit.

Derren Raser on MySpace
[tags]Derren Raser[/tags]

As compared to bands such as Kill The King and Power Trip, this duo is definitely in the easy listening/folk realm. Ian Plunkett from the U.K. contributes vocals, guitars, bass and harmonica, while Lara Bartocci from the Mediterranean country (Italy) adds vocals, programming and some careful editing. Their recording efforts go back a few years, to a collection called 14 Days (2005). But their later work Folk Songs from 2007 is still getting some good reviews in 2008.

The two list as influences such varied styles as The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, Crosby Stills & Nash, Leonard Cohen, The Who, Velvet Underground, Neil Young, Jimi Hendrix, Cat Stevens, John Cale….the list goes on and on. But this listener was certainly pleased to see the Thompson Twins and Sigur Ros on the influence list.

The tune called “The River” could have been, and may still be a dynamite tune. I think Gordon Lightfoot would have been proud of this one. The main focus with this duo is, as stated on their Web site, “With a desire to only write songs and move people, Plunkett choose to remain independent artists and work outside of the mainstream music business. Plunkett make Independent music for independent minds.”

[tags]Plunkett[/tags]

Most young artists, no matter the genre, carry the label of “indie,” unless they are among the few who attract the attention of a major label and get an injection of money. Beyond that label, the artists separate themselves into about a dozen categories under the indie umbrella.

Mid-Air Collision is an alternative to many genres, but might gain some new space by performing electronic music live. While this may not be unique, it is refreshing and interesting.

Judge for yourself from this Web site comment, “South Florida’s avant-garde wiz kid is at it again, this time aiming at the ears of Los Angeles. Continuing to cook up his all original blend of toy keyboard timbres and broken cassette tape samples, Mid-Air is a producer in a league all his own.”

Mid-Air says, “I sure can geek out on modifying electronics. I use these in most all of my music, and on many different sound design projects as well.”

While much of the photo information on the Mid-Air Web presence is about Miami, you may have to be in the Hollywood, California area to hear “A Thousand Atomic Fireballs” or “Kill Off Murdoch.” All things considered, it might be worth the time and money to get there.

[tags]Mid-Air Collision[/tags]

This is definitely a south-of-the-border group, as the name might indicate. Mexican Indigo is a London-based trio, putting out some nice acoustic melodies. “The Northern Line” has some 1960s English pop feel. The acoustic-guitar rhythm is very nice, as are the vocals.

The group is composed of Stuart Gullock – vocals and guitar; Matt Kingston – bass and vocals; Phil Kingston – drums. With influences ranging from punk and rock, the Mexican Indigo boys cite The Beatles and Oasis as influences, and then also include The Sex Pistols and Nirvana. It’s an interesting mix, indeed. But then, these fellows are musicians!

For a change of pace from the first song mentioned, new listeners might want to experience Demi God. This is rock/punk, complete with fuzz on the guitar and drums. There seems to be a bit of the intellectual in Mexican Indigo’s music, but then when your Web site starts of with “Welcome to the End of History,” that shouldn’t be too much of a surprise.

They’ll be in a few London nightspots and venues in July, if you happen to be on that Island this summer.

By the way, Mexican Indigo can be one of two things, primarily. There is a Mexican Indigo snake, for example. The term also comes up in Native American rugs and blanket weaving. Check your encyclopaedia for further information.

[tags]Mexican Indigo[/tags]