Connolly’s Corner

  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Reticent – bigbaldbenmusic, Logan, Wayward Kicks

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Reticent – bigbaldbenmusic, Logan, Wayward Kicks

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™๐™š๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™˜๐™š๐™ฃ๐™ฉ – ๐™—๐™ž๐™œ๐™—๐™–๐™ก๐™™๐™—๐™š๐™ฃ, ๐™‡๐™ค๐™œ๐™–๐™ฃ, ๐™’๐™–๐™ฎ๐™ฌ๐™–๐™ง๐™™ ๐™†๐™ž๐™˜๐™ ๐™จ


    Charles holds backโ€ฆ


    I should probably keep this brief. I probably wonโ€™t, but I probably should. The world is a loud place these days. In the words of Harry Nilsson, โ€œEverybodyโ€™s Talkin’โ€. All the time. People have learnt to speak their mind. All the bloody time. Sometimes this is wise, sometimes very much not. And rarely ever are they asked to be so forthcoming with their thoughts, views and ponderings. But sometimes we do genuinely ask people to open up. In the words of Coldplay, โ€œLetโ€™s talkโ€. In the words of C. Duncan, โ€œTalk Talk Talkโ€. They might, they might not. All depends, really. On whether they trust you, and whether they actually want to talk. But as I said, modern people are wired a different way. Wired to speak their mind. To open up and say whatโ€™s really on their mind. As if we are all dying to know. Typically though, the talkative types tend to have the least to say, while the quieter ones are usually far more interesting. Which I suppose must make me dull as dishwater. I think I am probably known for saying rather a lot. For opening up and being truthful. But while I donโ€™t ever lie, it might not have occurred to you that I donโ€™t (and wonโ€™t) speak about EVERYthing. Some things are best kept to oneself. I would give you an example, but of course that would rather oppose my point.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Panties (Remix) – Charles Connolly, Skinny Dippers

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Panties (Remix) – Charles Connolly, Skinny Dippers

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™‹๐™–๐™ฃ๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™š๐™จ (๐˜พ๐™๐™–๐™ง๐™ก๐™š๐™จ ๐˜พ๐™ค๐™ฃ๐™ฃ๐™ค๐™ก๐™ก๐™ฎ ๐™๐™š๐™ข๐™ž๐™ญ) – ๐˜พ๐™๐™–๐™ง๐™ก๐™š๐™จ ๐˜พ๐™ค๐™ฃ๐™ฃ๐™ค๐™ก๐™ก๐™ฎ, ๐™Ž๐™ ๐™ž๐™ฃ๐™ฃ๐™ฎ ๐˜ฟ๐™ž๐™ฅ๐™ฅ๐™š๐™ง๐™จ


    Charles resolves the new with egotism (of a kind)โ€ฆ


    A fresh start to a fresh year. It is unsealed and the vacuum is broken. Decaying as we speak. But let us not think of decay with a ticking clock. The year is long, and – in the words of The Carpenters – โ€œWeโ€™ve only just begunโ€. It seems so out of fashion these days to make new year resolutions, partly because we are so well trained at thinking in this way throughout the year, that a brand new year suggests we simply continue as we have been. We are simply infallible and frankly a bit perfect these days. Well, arenโ€™t we? Not really, no. But take for example, health. Health seems to be such a major point of interest (and obsession) these days. Gone are the days of โ€œgiving up smokingโ€ for new year. This particular resolution used to continue for at least a decade until you would eventually just stop with these broken promises; give up giving up. You knew it would never happen. But nowadays itโ€™s all so different. The majority of us doesnโ€™t smoke and has a balanced diet – or is at least somewhat conscious of what one consumes, and the โ€œcancer sticksโ€ stopped long ago. We are oh-so aware of our mental state and general wellbeing throughout the year, that a new year has little goodness to bring. Could you GET any gooder? If one were to habitually achieve 100% on a regular test, how could one improve? 101% is impossible. Maybe improve your handwriting? Itโ€™s thin pickings, reallyโ€ฆ The problem is that weโ€™re all just so bloody perfect these days!! Weโ€™re all so kind and caring. All so helpful. All so humble. All so self-effacing. Could THIS be the problemโ€ฆ? It very much COULD be. Is this not maybe the opportunity to try to be a little more selfish? Maybe not selfish, but to be proud of oneself? To show the world how good YOU are, rather than to praise others? Just for a change, how about a bit of โ€œme-timeโ€? I think itโ€™s wise. Youโ€™ve spent the entire year making others feel good, being helpful, kind and considerate. Do NOT stop this! But donโ€™t forget about yourself. Sometimes being selfish can be a good thing.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Pathetic Paradise – CHVRLI BLVCK

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Pathetic Paradise – CHVRLI BLVCK

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™‹๐™–๐™ฉ๐™๐™š๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™˜ ๐™‹๐™–๐™ง๐™–๐™™๐™ž๐™จ๐™š – ๐˜พ๐™ƒ๐™‘๐™๐™‡๐™„ ๐˜ฝ๐™‡๐™‘๐˜พ๐™†


    Charles wastes your time out of vengeanceโ€ฆ


    Would you like some amusement? Would you like to laugh at me and my stupid life? Then letโ€™s begin. I think perhaps a lot of people think I have an idyllic life, free from responsibilities (like children – or blobs), mortgage payments, debt, drug addiction, alcoholism, danger, natural disasters, war and pets. But this โ€œidyllic lifeโ€ of mine is more an idyllic lie. Correction, all of the above is true, but it is not tantamount to paradise. Sure, my job is pretty much my dream job. Sure, I live on the top floor of a lovely house built in 1890, in a lovely leafy area of London. Sure, I live with my girlfriend, and our relationship is just peachy, to say the least. But there are things that make life simply exhausting. The kind of things that would make a stronger, braver (stupider?) man punch a hole in the wall. The kind of things that MOST of us have to deal with.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Ruthless – Bryce Bowyn

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Ruthless – Bryce Bowyn

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™๐™ช๐™ฉ๐™๐™ก๐™š๐™จ๐™จ – ๐˜ฝ๐™ง๐™ฎ๐™˜๐™š ๐˜ฝ๐™ค๐™ฌ๐™ฎ๐™ฃ


    Charles is in the pink.


    Here we are, bang in the middle of the month of June. Happy June, everyone! Another word for โ€˜happyโ€™ that my parents or even grandparents might have used is โ€˜gayโ€™ – another meaning entirely, these days. But this time around I wish to blend both definitions, for we are now in the centre of LGBTQ+ Month! A time to celebrate our differences, come together (if you will) and enjoy this sparklingly garish and wonderfully camp festivity! Itโ€™s time to whoop, get the flags out – a sprinkling of rain makes the skin glisten, and a rainbow sets the scene. Coloured streamers fill the air. Many have dyed their hair the colour of cotton candy. The energy is high. This is not the time for reservedness, nor is it the time to be stuffy or old-fashioned. Free hot-pants for everyone!! This really is the spirit the 60s tried to be, but it was just too early, and most people were just not ready for it – everything was still rather conformist. Times have changed, and I couldnโ€™t be happier! It is time to be proud of Pride.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: ยฟPensar es suficiente para existir? – Adรกn Ramรญrez

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: ยฟPensar es suficiente para existir? – Adรกn Ramรญrez

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ยฟ๐™‹๐™š๐™ฃ๐™จ๐™–๐™ง ๐™š๐™จ ๐™จ๐™ช๐™›๐™ž๐™˜๐™ž๐™š๐™ฃ๐™ฉ๐™š ๐™ฅ๐™–๐™ง๐™– ๐™š๐™ญ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™ง? – ๐˜ผ๐™™๐™–ฬ๐™ฃ ๐™๐™–๐™ข๐™žฬ๐™ง๐™š๐™ฏ


    Charles is tuned to perfectionโ€ฆ


    The humble piano has been around even longer than I. More than 300 years, to be roughly precise. It is an instrument with which we are ALL most familiar. We know its sound intimately. Even if YOU have never tinkled a single ivory in your life, YOU will know that sound. Which is more than most can say about the oboe – an instrument not much older. The period of an instrumentโ€™s existence has little to do with its popularity. The Ondioline was invented as recently as 1939, and have you heard of it? Is it in countless records you know and love? It is not. And yet, our ancient humble piano continues to attract just about every genre – even electronic. Why is this? Well, I still stand strong in my belief that it is the greatest instrument because of one factor. Its versatility. Would you prefer to impersonate Debussy or Rachmaninov, or would you rather don the silly glasses and do an impersonation of Elton John? Either way, you will need a piano. I call it humble, but have you ever actually SEEN what goes on inside a piano? It is so complicated that itโ€™s quite amazing they ever bothered with its completion. Why would such a heavy, immovable, complex and expensive thing attract such a wide audience? Let us travel to Camden Town in London to find outโ€ฆ


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Tea Leaves – Steve Schultheis

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Tea Leaves – Steve Schultheis

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™๐™š๐™– ๐™‡๐™š๐™–๐™ซ๐™š๐™จ – ๐™Ž๐™ฉ๐™š๐™ซ๐™š ๐™Ž๐™˜๐™๐™ช๐™ก๐™ฉ๐™๐™š๐™ž๐™จ


    Charles sits down with a nice cuppa, and attempts to tell your fortune.


    I drink one cup of coffee a day. I say โ€˜drinkโ€™, but it is more like a ritual. In fact, it is the closest I come to religion. I will never have more than one cup, but I would certainly not even try to attempt a dayโ€™s life without that one. Call it habit, routine, addiction, compulsion, itโ€™s just what I do, and it does no harm. Tea however, is a completely different kettle of water. It is something that I enjoy several times a week, with not a hint of schedule. It rarely ever occurs to me but is suggested as an option by my girlfriend, and I usually take her up on the idea. Tea is a great comfort. A simple pleasure. A pastime and an English institution. So why not! And so go the leaves into the shiny sprung infuser, or actually this time loosely tossed into the floral teapot. There are always far more saucers in the cupboard than cups – this is just how it is. Perhaps saucers are more resilient than the elegant slender handle of the receptacle. The teapot is to be filled with boiling water. It must be ferociously bubbling. I wait at least 4 minutes for the brew to brew, pour, et voilร . Actually, I dunk a teabag in a mug for less than a minute, slug in a spoon of brown sugar – yes, brown – and slosh in some milk for completion. But letโ€™s just pretend weโ€™re civilised, for now.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: The Sum of All Colors – Andres Guazzelli

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: The Sum of All Colors – Andres Guazzelli

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™๐™๐™š ๐™Ž๐™ช๐™ข ๐™ค๐™› ๐˜ผ๐™ก๐™ก ๐˜พ๐™ค๐™ก๐™ค๐™ง๐™จ – ๐˜ผ๐™ฃ๐™™๐™ง๐™š๐™จ ๐™‚๐™ช๐™–๐™ฏ๐™ฏ๐™š๐™ก๐™ก๐™ž


    Charles Connolly cries over hueโ€ฆ


    Have you ever had a pet? I haven’t. Never. Of any kind. But I suspect this to be quite rare. I suspect that most of you – if not almost all – have at some point in your life had a pet of some sort. Were my parents thoughtless or cruel in not giving me a pet when I was a child? I would say not. The main reason being, that due to my severe eczema and asthma, as well as various allergies, a pet might have finished me off entirely. I am not sad or regretful though, as having never experienced the sensation, I cannot say my eternal lack of animal really affected me in any way. Personally, I was too busy being immersed in music (little has changed). Most children and teenagers have little to do, and so a pet will most certainly give you some sort of sense of purpose. Could a pet perhaps prepare you in life for being a parent? Or even, for being a partner? To naturally be forced to care for someone so early in life? It could be a lesser pet that is simply around, with less of a presence, that your mother (or nanny) looks after, and that you yourself have little to do with. But I will assume that most pets quickly become very much part of the family.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Tell Me Your Secret – Tricia Lo

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Tell Me Your Secret – Tricia Lo

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™๐™š๐™ก๐™ก ๐™ˆ๐™š ๐™”๐™ค๐™ช๐™ง ๐™Ž๐™š๐™˜๐™ง๐™š๐™ฉ – ๐™๐™ง๐™ž๐™˜๐™ž๐™– ๐™‡๐™ค


    Charles feels he knows you well enough to sayโ€ฆ


    What lurks beneath the surface of a seemingly good soul…? What darker things to discover under cover of a bad egg? This week brings another brand new release from Rich Allen: Lily Flower (his best yet). For a human, he is the epitome of โ€œgoodโ€. But is there a darker side to this bag of positively charged beansโ€ฆ? We will probably never know. My scepticism is what brings me here. I always wonder about people. I always wonder about things. Letโ€™s face it, I wonder about just about everything. Except sport. I very rarely wonder about that. Those who know Rich, will realise that he is in fact perfect in every way, so there are no worries there. But what about me? I am not perfect, in any way at all! But people seem not to entirely loathe my guts. I am apparently a good person. But I even wonder about myself. Am I really a good person? Underneath this fancy linen, am I the devil incarnateโ€ฆ? Do I hide the horns in my hairโ€ฆ? Well, no. Because my hair is far from thickโ€ฆ My natural scepticism always makes me wonder why the good are good. How pessimistic is THAT?? These days I find it hard to believe that people are good simply through morals and a decent upbringing. Or maybe it is a rather dreadful upbringing that has made them good. A sort of mid-life realisationโ€ฆ? Teenagers tend naturally to be selfish and pretty bloody awful. But they also tend to grow out of this โ€œphaseโ€. I always wonder though, which is the phaseโ€ฆ Perhaps this โ€œnew youโ€ is actually a very realistic faรงade. You see? I am less an inquisitive questioner, more a paranoid android. First impressions can tell you a lot. Although I am basically a non-believer, I do believe in that. I am sometimes wrong with first impressions, but usually right. Maybe often wrong, but usually right. Luckily, because of my ongoing scepticism, my initial mistaken assumption swings the needle to positive after realisation that I was wrong. Very rarely do I instantly trust someone from first meeting them. Even more rare is when I turn around and they stab me in the back. Metaphorically, of course. It has been ages since I was literally stabbed in the back.


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  • ๐—•๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ฑโ€™๐˜€ ๐—•๐—ถ๐˜ – this week: This is How the Story Begins – Charles Connolly, Wilko Wilkes

    ๐—•๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ฑโ€™๐˜€ ๐—•๐—ถ๐˜ – this week: This is How the Story Begins – Charles Connolly, Wilko Wilkes

    This week, Brad (aka Mercury Teardrop) takes over ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ to pay homage to Charles, the man, the myth, the legendโ€ฆ and to dive into โ€œThis is How the Story Beginsโ€, his latest single featuring Wilko Wilkes.


    ๐™๐™๐™ž๐™จ ๐™ž๐™จ ๐™ƒ๐™ค๐™ฌ ๐™ฉ๐™๐™š ๐™Ž๐™ฉ๐™ค๐™ง๐™ฎ ๐˜ฝ๐™š๐™œ๐™ž๐™ฃ๐™จ – ๐˜พ๐™๐™–๐™ง๐™ก๐™š๐™จ ๐˜พ๐™ค๐™ฃ๐™ฃ๐™ค๐™ก๐™ก๐™ฎ, ๐™’๐™ž๐™ก๐™ ๐™ค ๐™’๐™ž๐™ก๐™ ๐™š๐™จ


    Brad does his bitโ€ฆ


    My early memories of music are some of the most vivid memories I have from my childhood. I was one of those kids who grew up surrounded by music. I remember sitting for hours in my parentsโ€™ living room, records all over the shag carpet and giant headphones hanging on my tiny ears, listening to album after album. There was the typical โ€œpopโ€ of the day in the house, but for the most part, I would listen to anything I could get my hands on. From ABBA to ZZ Top, I couldnโ€™t get enough. At about eight years old, I started to buy my own records. For you kids out there – โ€œkidsโ€ being operationally defined as anyone born after 1985 – this was not as easy as it sounds. It was an entire coordinated effort to save the money required, curate a list of albums you wanted, decide on the pinnacle of that list to spend your life savings on, and then, find someone who would take you to the record store. I would often wait for months before I could buy a single record. One of the first records I bought was โ€œOut of the Blueโ€ by The Electric Light Orchestra. I remember the day like it was yesterday.


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  • ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Tethered To The Hidebound – Bryan Cooper

    ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ – this week: Tethered To The Hidebound – Bryan Cooper

    Welcome all to ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐˜†โ€™๐˜€ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, 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 ๐™‰๐™š๐™ฌ ๐˜ผ๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ฉ๐™ก๐™ž๐™œ๐™๐™ฉ playlists.


    ๐™๐™š๐™ฉ๐™๐™š๐™ง๐™š๐™™ ๐™๐™ค ๐™๐™๐™š ๐™ƒ๐™ž๐™™๐™š๐™—๐™ค๐™ช๐™ฃ๐™™ – ๐˜ฝ๐™ง๐™ฎ๐™–๐™ฃ ๐˜พ๐™ค๐™ค๐™ฅ๐™š๐™ง


    Charles is bound to hideโ€ฆ


    So Track 1 of my โ€œHands Up!โ€ album is now released, and the journey has begun. The wheels are in motion, and I forgot to attach the brakes. Yes, this is what I am going to be talking about this week. Me and my music. Ow, ow, OWW!!! That HURTS! Stop hitting me with that, that, what IS that?? Oh I see. You wish me not to talk about me and my music. Well fine then. I wonโ€™t. Huh! Iโ€™ll have to cry later, wonโ€™t I. But I had it all planned! It was nice and simple – I didnโ€™t have to sift through the hundred new releases from members of the New Artist Spotlight. I didnโ€™t have to excruciatingly choose just one of the no doubt fabulous singles released in the past week or so. There was simply mine, and that was good enough for me. I mean, why bother listening to other artistsโ€™ music when I can listen to my own?? I mean, REALLY. Well okay. Fine. If thatโ€™s what you want. If you want me off my high horse, then so be it.


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