There is no shortage of amazing original music being made by artists Born & Bred here in the mountain state. Every week we continue to be amazed by the quality and quantity of artistry created by the talented storytellers of our home.
Listen to all of the amazing West Virginia Music on our Spotify Playlist. More streaming services being added soon.
When an artist uploads music to a distribution platform they are required to select the genre of music so that different streaming sites can classify the music and hopefully push it into a listeners playlist with similar listening habits. We have no clue how Matt Deal selected the genre for his full length album “Drunken, Belligerent Forget-Me-Nots.” The album is classified as alternative but that title does not do Justice to this project. There is an all-encompassing 90’s feel to the sound but it capitulates from gritty grunge to pop driven sensibilities that would give you whiplash if it didn’t work so well. But not only does it work, it’s fantastic. The juxtaposition of the song Too Often next to Moving To Texas is all you need to know about this album. A Bush-esque ballad followed by the pop grunge driven break up song makes this album hard to classify but we know it’s a great listen and at the ends of the day that’s the only category that matters. We are including both below for you to listen to.
And speaking of Matt Deal did we mention he plays kazoo? He does, and we got to witness it when he joined his friends Alabaster Boxer when they recorded the song Lever as part of their forthcoming live album. This pop folk song is the third release from the project and it has us wanting to relive that night at the Raleigh Playhouse over and over. And soon we will be able to when the whole project releases later this year. Prepare to have “Ba-ba-bop-ba-dop-a-dop” stuck in your head as you listen below.
Elements of Us is a synth pop group out of Lewisburg and they have a sound that is taking a break from the norm of a lot of their WV instrument driven contemporaries. With a sound that could easily have them playing shows alongside of Twenty One Pilots, The Killers, Vinyl Theater, Walk The Moon and others these guys stick out from the mountain state music scene in the best way. They just released their EP “A Miscellaneous Collection of Memories – Vol. 1” and it’s a non stop collection of pop ear-worms. Check out The Best Feeling In The World below.
Christian recording artist Zack Simpson has released a single Matchless King. The track is a worship song that would be right at home on project by Chris Tomlin, Hillsong and their contemporaries. The piano driven track could easily be sung by congregations across the state and on bigger stages. Listen to it below.
