Charles Connolly

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙄𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧 𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙚 – 𝙆𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙠𝙞

Charles finds the impostor not guilty…

Everyone knows the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover”; but how about, “Don’t judge an author by its book”…? Has it ever occurred to you that I might not be who you think I am? I don’t mean that I quietly identify as a blonde Asian lady or anything like that, because frankly, despite my petite frame I don’t think you’d believe me. But we generally have our thoughts and ideas of who someone is. What someone is like. This is all based on what we have so far managed to gather from whatever they have chosen to show and tell us. Lies are everywhere. Deception is rife. Not necessarily here, and not necessarily in me. But there are many people around today who spend their life pretending to be someone they’re not. This could be to draw attention to themselves and win friends. This could be because they are so ashamed of who they are, that they try their very best to be perhaps even the complete opposite. It could be because they are hiding a dark secret. It could be simply because they are naturally dull. It could be any number of reasons, but I can’t imagine there is much satisfaction in being an impostor. As to me, chances are, I am who you think I am. But I could be wrong. I don’t know how I come across, and I don’t know what you think of me. And the good thing about age…? I don’t really care. I am honest, though. That is one thing I can be sure of.

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙄𝙣 𝘽𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 – 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝘿𝙞𝙖𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙨

Charles is neither here nor there…

Lately, I’ve been trying to work it all out. A new year brings much thought. Much pensing. Much consolidating of life in general. Where am I “at”? Where do I fit in? Who am I? What am I? And although I feel rather good right now, I also feel rather mediocre. Let me explain. Life gallops on like a panicked stallion. I am not a teenager anymore. I am not even in my roaring twenties anymore. So am I to be relegated to the “elderly” (we used to call this “old”) cupboard? Well of course not. I am nowhere near old. Or elderly. I am fighting fit! Well, I am healthy anyway. Not quite the Olympian, but I am not dying quietly in a corner. Or loudly. I may be in my corner when you see me, but this is out of choice, and not for health benefits. My teeth may not be falling out, but I am far from dazzling you with a pearly white Hollywood beam. You won’t see me sprinting a marathon, but if I were to do such a peculiar thing, I am sure I wouldn’t come in last place – if I lived to tell the tale, that is. Both legs are functioning pretty well without the need for a cane or a crutch. So that’s nice. My breathing may be a little tight from time to time, due to my asthma, but I am certainly not yet needing a ventilator. Of course, by the time the National Health Service were to have one available, I would be long dead; but that’s beside the point. What about money? Am I absolutely blooming loaded? Well, of course I am! Why else would I do these reviews every single week? How COULD I afford the time otherwise? Okay, you caught me. I lied. I am NOT absolutely blooming loaded. I fit in these reviews when I can, just like you all show your appreciation for other artists when you can. And if you don’t have time, you make time – simples! So am I stony broke? Well luckily, due to my mixing career taking off, I am not. Thank Christ. I am neither rich nor poor. I am not in the gutter with plastic bags wrapped around my naked feet, trying to stay warm under a bush. And I am not watching someone polish the golden finials atop my vast lavish mansion. These days both situations would probably get me arrested – the latter for “slave labour”, and the former for “wasting plastic”. But it at least looks like I won’t be needing “benefits”, or what I have decided to call the National Wealth Service.

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙄𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝘼𝙗𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 – 𝙅𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙃𝙖𝙬𝙠𝙚𝙣

Charles is filling a void…

There was a song released weeks ago. Let’s call it “wicked song”. I adored it, but I had already opted for a different song to review that week. Still though, this “wicked song” lingered in my head. I really needed to talk about it. The following week occurred in its usual weekly fashion, and I had not forgotten about said “wicked song”, but in my honest approach I still went ahead and listened to all that was new that week. Alas, another great song took its place and “wicked song” was once again put on hold. Another week passed and although I still listened to all the latest new releases, I was determined this time to finally tell the world about this “wicked song”. I went back to the New Artist Spotlight playlists to find it and refresh my memory. I scrolled up, I scrolled down. I could not find it. I even used the search function within the playlists. It was not there. Fortunately, I had written it down, so all was not lost. “Wicked song” had not let me down; it was still wicked. But I was wondering why it was not on the playlists… After delving through the New Artist Spotlight itself, I found to my horror that the artist had left the community!!! By now, you’re probably all wondering who I’m talking about, or perhaps you are sure you know. But let me throw my spanner in your works (I’m running out of spanners)… Before having heard this “wicked song”, I had never heard of this artist. NOW you’re dumbfounded. You have no idea. But the thing is, I very much doubt you had ever heard of the artist. I believe they were one of those “try it for a bit then opt out because they can’t be bothered” types. Which is a huge shame, because this song is just fabulous and so utterly unique. And get this: it’s rap! Well, sort of rap. Feels more like spoken word in rhythm. And you know what’s REALLY going to annoy you? I’m not going to tell you.

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙄𝙣 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙋𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧 – 𝘽𝙡𝙪𝙚 𝙎𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙧, 𝘼𝙞𝙢𝙚́𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙖

Charles listens wherever egos…

Well, THAT was quite a week, wasn’t it! Phew. That big little article I wrote about Fair Play for Independent Artists garnered rather a lot of attention. Ya see, these things take time to put together. That article was not just cobbled together in half an hour with masking tape temporarily stopping it from falling to bits. It took me hours. And days in the planning. I say planning: it was mildly swimming around my mind for a bit beforehand. I needed to gather together all the information that might have been necessary, and then I knew it had to have some sort of structure. So I proceeded to ignore most of that information and just go by what I knew. This was pure laziness, but I wanted this to feel real. To be from the heart; not just a list of statistics and a rant. Tone was vital. It was all rather daunting if I’m honest. Which I am. Honest, not daunting. I mean, yes, I am used to writing weekly articles. But this was different. I am naturally silly. I like doing the humour thing. With humour. I like to pull facial expressions with words. I like to be light but not pointless. No, I like to think there is weight in what I write, but not deep, dark, depressing weight. No, no. Like Queen. I try to write like the music of Queen. Proper and unexpected, but fun and poppy on the surface. Yeah, that’ll do. This article last week was to be something new. Something different. Something to really stretch me. Lord knows, I need a stretch. It got to the point where I was having dreams about it. Not very healthy, but there you go. This is because it was and is important.

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙄 𝙈𝙞𝙨𝙨 𝙔𝙤𝙪 – 𝙀𝙙 𝙀𝙖𝙜𝙡𝙚

Charles is Ed’s brother from another mother…

We are all born much the same. A cute, squidgy blob that dribbles. As time goes by, some of us change little. But for most of us, we all end up different. What makes you, YOU? Now, I’m not talking about your preferred hairstyle or your penchant for baggy flares, but something less tangible. Our being. The way we do things. Our voice, our manner, our gestures. Was it all picked up at school? Was it an obsession with a character from a Netflix production? Maybe you’re NOT so different and you prefer to blend in with the crowd… Even if so, you will still be different. To figure this out, one has to go back to the start. We are all born much the same. A cute, squidgy… Yes yes yes, we’ve done this. The point is, we were born. We were not manufactured on a production line. We were born as the eventual outcome of a couple’s canoodling. Eurghh! I don’t want to even think about it. Despite the severing of the cord, there is (almost) always the strongest connection between blob and makers. Not only is said blob born, but so too is a family. The messy young blighter embiggens the household by one. For many years, this wriggly thing knows nothing outside parent one and parent two. These two “carers” ARE the world of this wispy-haired giggler. And so it is only natural that over time it should start to take on characteristics and maybe even sentiments of its elders.

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙇𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙊𝙪𝙩 – 𝘽𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙨𝙖𝙡𝙖

Charles switches off and on again…

The dreaded “spooky” edition. How rare is it that review day falls exactly on an international celebration day…? What a treat! Shame I don’t really celebrate it or care about it in the slightest. I mean, pumpkins? Really?? Buying a mahusive orange fruit (or vegetable, some would argue), then gutting its innards, to leave only the inedible part (as if the rest was edible). Pumpkin pie, indeed. Well I suppose it’s ONE way of using the remains of the botched operation. I would suggest the bin might be the best place for it however. But if you want to waste more time in making it look appetising, that’s your funeral. Funerals being a popular theme for the day. Weirdly. I mean, aside from ancient tribal times, when else would we celebrate death?? Graveyards go from eerie silence to eerie spectacles. The place to be!! The goths come out to play. The only time they feel comfortable in showing their faces. But one scary shock too many and they might be showing their faeces. You see, it’s SUPPOSED to be scary. And what’s more scary than a load of kids turning up at your front door, making demands of blackmail? Give us sweets now, or we’ll egg your entire house. So Haribo’s sales skyrocket. Especially the extra sour ones. Ever tried dousing them with vinegar? That’ll teach those pesky kids. But beware the backlash…

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙇𝙞𝙛𝙚𝙗𝙤𝙖𝙩𝙨 – 𝙀𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙧 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙨

Charles goes on a day-day…

The focus of late has been on England. Okay, Britain, if you wish. All right then, the Ewe Kay. The Far West of Europe…? Call it what you will, it has been in the press and on the tongues of most, this past week or so. Due of course, to the nature of all things royal. Yesterday gave me such immense pride. It was a sombre and unbelievably moving affair. A day to remember for the rest of time. Truly a fine end to a fine era, on a scale never witnessed before. For more crownly thoughts, have a read of last week’s review, here. For now, though, I would like not to run away from England quite yet. I wish to go back to a time when the Queen still reigned. Or more precisely, Saturday the 6th of August.

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙇𝙚𝙩 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙂𝙤 – 𝘽𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙇𝙤𝙬𝙧𝙮

Charles something something (for want of a better something)…

Another week, another review. Another plod through the same old words in a different order. Sorry to put you all through this ordeal every week. I suppose it could be worse. Death is worse. Yeah, my reviews/articles/musings are better than death. There we go! And who says I’m not a positive optimist?? As opposed to the negative variety… The Easter weekend left me with good vibes. It treated me to family I have not seen in over two years. It also treated me to something else I have not experienced in quite a while. A hangover. This ghastly, heavy, HEAVY feeling. I have tried the English cure of “Plink, plink, fizz”, and I have also tried the American cure of “Plop, plop, fizz, fizz”. Those who know, know. Those who don’t: accept your fortunate lack of pointless knowledge and move on. My brain, however is chock-full of pointless knowledge. Nothing useful whatsoever. I think to an extent, it is what makes me, me. I may have listened to a LOT of songs over the years, and I may ADORE music in general, but I am far from any kind of trained music theorist. There is probably a better term, but like I say – I know nothing useful. Who wants to read that kind of in-depth jargon anyway? It would bore the panties off me. And so I turn to imagination. Usually, anyway. Today, My imagination is snoozing. Deeply. Where it is normally a lithium-charged sparkler, right now it is little more than a twitching twig close to decomposition. I am useless to you now. Lobotomies are us!

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙇𝙚𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙂𝙤 – 𝙐𝙣𝙤𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙

Charles has a black Sabbath…

Unnecessary stress comes to us all. Doesn’t it? You know it does. Why, right now you could be reading without taking it in. I said, right now you could be reading without taking it in. Sometimes a little repetition can help things sink in. But I know; you’re stressed. You’re thinking about other things. You’re worried. You’re concerned. I know how it goes. It happens to all of us. All in different ways. Completely understandable. And usually it’s completely pointless. I had an unnecessarily stressful day on Sunday. A Sunday that should have been pleasant, positive and maybe even exciting. Before I continue, I am fully aware that many of you are going through REAL stress of a serious nature. I bring you my nonsense not to tread on or water down your life-goings-on, but to briefly take your mind off it all. A diversion of a kind. Despite being grounded and level-headed, I am prone to nerves. Nerves from the littlest thing. I think too much. I think too much into everything when I should just ride the wave. Here’s my Sunday. It all started with breakfast. It was the best bit of the day. It was before my mind had started to work. Dopey in the best way. That Sunday feeling. Then I made a quick plan for the day. The plan was thus:

(more…)

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝙄𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝘼𝙜𝙚 – 𝙎𝙩𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚 𝘽𝙤𝙮𝙚𝙨

Charles urges you to stop IT…

Despite the title of this song and article, I will NOT be talking about HAL (my name for A.I.). The topic of HAL is a dull one because HAL-generated music is a dull thing released by dull, unimaginative pretenders. Now on to something more fun.

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