Lorena Leigh

Lorena Leigh and Ethoscope
Live at Bar Chord Far Rockaway, NY
7/12/15
By Miles Hurley



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Tired though I was from a three-night, musical-costume party at The Knitting Factory, I jump at any concert adventure I get the opportunity take (especially when it a free festival on a beach), so Sunday as I headed back into Rockaway, Queens territory and caught a couple of really talented local artists, Lorena Leigh opening for Ethoscope, playing a show at the Bar Chord.

Lorena Leigh
As I learned, Lorena Leigh usually plays with a band behind her, so this show was a call for her to make her music shine from solo play. From what I watched and heard, she had no problem with this. With a ukulele as her melody maker of choice, Leigh swung her way cleanly yet entertaingly through the music that comprises her new, first album, Bella Vista.Lorena Posed Edit UYL - Poster Landscape

“The Water” and “Tired To The Bone” were nice choices of opening tracks for Leigh to introduce what she was all about. And right after these were two definite highlights back to back “Hearts On Fire,” and the “Show Me How,” two songs steeped in pop that boiled over in warm, musical emotion. “Sunday Morning,” the Maroon V favorite, is a tune begging for ukulele treatment, so it was a great throw in towards the end of the set.

Most of the time, her voice nestled between the lower, sultry tones you hear from cool indie singers of today and the higher, prettier reaches of something closer to pop. These two areas alone make for nice vocals to go along with her music. But, at cetain points of a few songs that swelled really awesomely in intensity and emotional power, her voice shot out like a bright bang, punctuating these building musical moments.

Night one of the Recovered series with PIrmate Fiasco and Marco Benevento at the Knitting Factory Brooklyn.

Leigh also showed a good deal of intricacy and subtlety in her ukulele playing too, which was rehreshing. When most people pick it up, especially those in the singer-songwriter tract that Leigh is coming from, all you get is strummity-strum-strum. But here it was plucked more prudently, and sometimes tapped and other times beat, and ultimately woven into the different melodies of each song so as to act as integral part. That’s something many guitar players take lengths of time to learn and master, let alone ukulele players.
She closed out with two more originals, “Right Now” and “Open Frontier,” songs with interesting compisiton but, again, fitting into this composition some room to reach out towards the crowd with a sense of intimacy. All in all, the set made for a really nice solo representation of the beautiful music she has written, but the material also takes on all kinds of cool shades and colors with her power pop band behind her. - Live Music News and Review

One of Italy’s brightest upcoming talents named Blazë has now made his grand return with yet another stunning record. Since starting off his career, this producer has strongly proven his musical prowess with his top-notch tracks such as “Mad” and “Ready”. Keeping the hot streak alive, Blazë just released his brand new single titled “Try (Stand Tall)”, which features the lovely vocals of New York native Lorena Leigh.

Right from the get-go, this track delivers a flurry of uplifting deep house sounds that can certainly refresh our ears and provide the blissful vibes suitable for this summer season. Its astounding melodies and luscious chords blend impeccably with Leigh’s striking vocals, altogether assembling into a remarkable listening experience. The heavy dose of flute sounds is also the perfect icing on the cake that completes this beautifully produced track from Blazë.

“Try (Stand Tall)” is out now and you can download your copy here. -