Brandon Rice: Press

Tied Up In You
by Brandon Rice
Ringtone for August 7, 2008

Today’s featured artist hails from the Jack Johnson School of singer/songwriters, meaning if you like Jack-- you are most certainly gonna dig you some Brandon Rice! A groovy disposition and a conscious streak make for the perfect combination as Brandon’s tracks swoon and envelope the listener, taking them carelessly adrift. The perfect accompaniment for any beach outing or summertime, kick-back event, the islands beckon through Mr.Rice’s feel-good vocals. Sip some lemonade, break out the shorts, and remember to “always wear sunscreen!”

Brandon Rice, The Middle Man. What smooth silky vocals and cool melodies like a breeze on the ocean. Like an updated Jack Johnson, Brandon takes us on a journey to his soulful deepness in a package of light delicate songs. Tr #1 Tied Up in You, cool romantic heartwinner, with deceptive simplicity, will stick in
your mind. Tr #2: Love and Peace, Political message in a heartfelt song with powerful hook and melody, Tr#6: The Middle Man, Upbeat singalong perfect for radio. Brandon, your music has the melody and clarity for Adult
Contemporary commercial radio

Brandon Rice is a southern California singer-songwriter who shows considerable talent both as a singer and a guitarist. His songs are short and simple (just him and his guitar) and his voice is soulful.
Rice writes some pretty deep lyrics. Get a load of these lyrics from "Love and Peace." "It's all about what we believe / which is fed to us on our TV screens / then we draw the line and fight to the death / without ever knowing if it was real." Pretty good stuff, don't you think?

He follows "Love and Peace" with quite a few songs (including "Summertime" and "The Apple Tree") that remind me of Jack Johnson. It's not terribly surprising that he has a song called "Summertime." He is surfing singer-songwriter from southern California. And it's a pretty good song. It's about being carefree at the beach and looking at girls. In other words, it's a good summer song.

This is a solid CD filled with songs that are real easy to listen to. This is a good CD to play while you're on your patio (or at the beach) on a sunny day. If you are a fan of Jack Johnson, you'll appreciate this album.

I look forward to watching your career blossom, and my door is always open.

.."HOLD ON!!!! I JUST FOUND IT>>>>>>>>NOW I'M GOING TO PUT THE DISC ON AND LET IT RIP>>>>>>>>>>>and the verdict is in!!! your artist will be coming up for air on the colorado wave in a couple of weeks....whhhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...
I'll add you to our weekly newsletter eblast, just so you'll know! because the show is syndicated, if you are on one station you are on all stations! that's the ticket.

Great little songwriter you got there...pure, clean and deep...if you know what I mean..."

.."hi we recieved the album and it is in our library and available to our programmers.thanks! Josh.."

.."your CD is in the playbox where it is getting some good
airtime. We have it filed in the AAA section which gets a lot of
attention from most DJs."...

"A track called Love and Peace was added to our main rotational playlist on
the 20/09/2006, and has been publicised on a regular basis since."...
.."We thought it appropriate to include the song in our main programming and
not specialist shows."...

Brandon Rice’s clean, soulful voice and casual mastery of the six-string go a long, beguiling way. Songs are short and sweet, just a man and his guitar practically skating across the airwaves without leaving a single ripple. The easy, congenial melodies create an atmosphere forgiving of Rice’s lyrical handicap, guiding the listener through territory so uncomplicated it renders critique or scrutiny futile.

Highlights include album opener “Tied Up In You,” a fun, bluesy little ditty about love, and title track “The Middle Man,” in which Rice seems to lay out his innocuous personal manifesto. “Love and Peace,” with similarly unadorned lyrical charm, addresses the eternal subject of our troubled times, while “Summertime” (no relation to the immortal Gershwin aria) celebrates sunshine, hot chicks and hormones with even simpler, completely unaffected flair.

Based on his frequent use of jazzy seventh chords and matching vocal inflections, it would be a pleasure to hear Rice bust out some standards someday, but for now this batch of original material goes down smooth as apple juice, breezy as an April afternoon.

Favorite Track: Track 6, “Summertime”


(Steve Gunn is a hard-boiled suburban New Yorker with a PhD in rockology and the propensity to point with full-throttle moxie up to his ears and unflinchingly declare, “Hey! These things ain’t garbage cans, y’know!” sisterray@myway.com)

This review is a free review I received from TAXI, compliments of DISCMAKERS,(all items in parenthesis are reviewers remarks)

SONG TITLE: Tied Up in You (OK title/a bit common)

STYLE: (Pop Alt Modern/Singer/Songwriter)

MELODY: (Nice mood creation with melody. Chorus can be stronger/ a bit more dynamic)

STRUCTURE:(There is good structure, however added sectional contrast between vocal and chorus can help)

LYRIC:(Vocal is strong, and does convey emotion to the listener. Lyrics are a bit conventional/can be more distinct)

OVERALL COMMENTS:(Your peroformance, vocals, in this song are engaging. We do get the emotion here...it comes across to us as listeners. There is also a nice setting up of the mood with the melody as well. I do feel however, that there can be a bit more sectional contrast as we "release" to your chorus. This can add more of a "dynamic" to this idea. Lyrically this is a bit conventional...we do get that this "special someone" did inspire you to write this song. However, for the idea to stand out from the "pack", added depth, character development, details, specifics, or a twist to the plot, for example. can all help to add an element of uniqueness. Lines, though expresses well, are more common than distinct. I wish you success out there!)

OVERALL RATINGS:on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being best.
(Music=7, Lyrics=6, Marketability=6, Arrangement=7, Production=7, Engineering=7)

Good music is hard to find these days... Especially in a world where a Music Television program plays non-stop re-runs of already tarnished reality shows. Music stores are not much better, catering to large mega movie projects with life sized cardboard cut outs of the artists with the biggest MTV crib that month. I'm not sure how you go about finding music these days, but if you're anything like me - your music collection is a multi-cultural mix of the music your friends have recommended.

The crazy world we live in today is filled with flashy colors, funny smells and highly tuned noises all to bring emotion into your life. It is this emotional feel that we're in search of. An emotion that will make us forget the dailey grind, bring us to a beach and give us the taste of a cold Corona.

Brandon Rice, has been working on capturing that emotion with his music. He has a soulful, Jack Johnson-ie, grab a Corona and 10 of your best friends and chill at the beach, style of guitar and singing. Its easy to listen to, and thoughtful enough to tap into emotions you might not have tapped into in a while..

For those of you that know Brandon, he's looking to break out into the local scene and begin his live performance circuit. I know you will like it!
Cheers,
G-

Please link to myspace and read past "comments" to see what the friends and fans are saying.