Flavor: Intellectual Lyricists
Intellectually malnourished? Pedestrian lyrics too obtuse? These human-thesaurus lyricists show their appetite for the uncommon expression that will feed your cerebral soul.
STEVIE HARRIS: Black Will Not Hurt You
Urban alternatative acoustic soul, with conscious lyrics.
MP3 price: $12.97
TYLER STENSON AND RHETORIC TUESDAY: The Low Ceiling
Lyrically driven acoustic rock with subtle blues undertones. Makes you cry while you're dancing.
MP3 price: $5.00
RICHARD JULIAN: Good Life
"An impressive, mood-swinging collection of gripping songs and well-placed instrumentation" by the artist whom Randy Newman calls "One of the best songwriters and record makers I've heard in a very long time."
STRYNGS: The Thrill Of Maintaining Momentum
Essentially acoustic, varying from a gentle waltz to fast, almost celtic rock. The lyrics go well beyond the normal fare of popular music, being neither predictable nor clichéd, and possess a poetic quality often missing from modern music.
Recommended if you like Tracy Chapman, The Beautiful South.CD price: $12.00 / MP3 price: $12.00
J. TED POTTER: Straight Jacket Escapes
Eclectic smart-pop with folk, electronica, and a little ska & punk influences thrown in. Strong melodies and witty, literate lyrics overtop everything from soulful acoustic guitar to lush epics. And stuff.
CD price: $8.00 / MP3 price: $8.00
ROCHELL D. HART / RO DEEZY: P-I-M-P (Poetic Intellectual Making Progress)
"Hart reveals the power and beauty, as well as the flaws of her world ... she stands out as an original and intelligent voice struggling free from a crowd of one-dimensional stereotypes." Cris Day, Willamette Week Music Critic
CD price: $7.00 / MP3 price: $7.00
BETTY DYLAN: Flame
Too rockin' for country, too down home for alternative, too bluesy for jazz, too country for blues, too funky for folk. It's only Rock and Roll.
CD price: $12.00
DEEP ROOTS: Deep Roots V
Portland, Oregon area musicians perform songs with words written by local high school students.
CD price: $9.00
ELLIS PAUL: Sweet Mistakes
(“Ellis Paul is now a national folk star and to many the quintessential Boston songwriter: literate, provocative, urbanely romantic.” - The Boston Globe) "Sweet Mistakes" was the title track featured in the Farrelly Brothers film "Shallow Hal"
CD price: $15.00 / MP3 price: $15.00
MATT TAYLOR: Relay
A smooth autumnal blend of folky-jazz and brit-rock.
CD price: $10.00 / MP3 price: $10.00
PAUL BRUBAKER: ...and the pursuit of happiness
A power-pop driven concept album about our least utilized inalienable right.
MP3 price: $9.95
WILL WAKEFIELD: 2nd & Hayes
Story telling rock n' roll about affairs, romance, suicide, faith, substance abuse and other indulgent binges in melodrama.
CD price: $9.99 / MP3 price: $9.99
THE COMA SAVANTS: Coma Savant
Keyboard-based, female vocals -- circus/prog/rock/garage/cabaret with vivid and literate lyrics.
CD price: $14.25 / MP3 price: $15.00
STEFYNIE ROSENFELD: No Second Time Around
Piano-based pop, funk and blues with hard hitting lyrics.
Recommended if you like Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell.CD price: $9.00 / MP3 price: $6.00
