Jeeni Blog

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Ivy Eye – On My Mind - Single Review

/ By Doug Phillips
Ivy Eye – On My Mind - Single Review

Electronic duo, Ivy Eye makes a formidable case for the wellbeing of disco with their latest revival effort, ‘On My Mind’

In just a short period of electronic anthem creation, UK electronic act, Ivy Eye have steadily been building more and more traction with their disco revival endeavor. Joining the likes of Jessies Ware, Midnight Generation and Róisín Murphy, in the electronic rejuvenation of disco, Ivy Eye have an even more on-the-nose appreciation of the 70s club music. And ‘On My Mind’ is no exception. Consisting of Matthew Benham and Rory Sheppard, Ivy Eye continue to raise the bar of their dance/disco quality with their newest single.

A swirling crescendo opens the track which is met with short, sharp strings, a four-to-the-floor kick-clap beat and a host of synth pads, all joined together as a glittery, shimmering entrance into this electric single. The introductory instrumental takes a rest as the vocals enter for the first verse. A restless synth bass bounces all over the simple, dependable dance beat as various guitar parts stab into the off-beats. Every component of Ivy Eye’s instrumental feels like it’s bursting with energy and personality, almost as though they’re all desperate to be a part of the fun.

After a classic dance riser to elevate the impact and excitement, the first chorus erupts but only for a moment. Almost acting as a teaser for the true chorus, which the twosome still has up their sleeve. This half-chorus is a great way of whetting the listener’s appetite before the main course of funk-dance-disco.

After another verse, the chorus enters in a similar way, except now, most of the instrumental leaves to let the vocals shine to begin with, a classic disco feature. Once the rest of the instruments join in with the celebration, Ivy Eye takes the brave step in picking up where Daft Punk left off with a little help from the vocoder. An iconic sound, made famous by the likes of Stevie Wonder, Peter Frampton and of course, Daft Punk, the vocoder (or similar device, talkbox) manipulates instruments with the help of the performer’s mouth to give the instrument a voice-like quality. This unique and undeniably funky effect is perfect for a song like ‘On My Mind’

The full chorus pay-off delivers in full as the track celebrates in the journey it’s had in the last three minutes. Hinting at the chorus earlier on the track instead of having two main choruses was a stroke of genius and really eases the listen of this disco banger. This perfectly produced track is a promising and exciting sign from an act like Ivy Eye who are so young in their path as artists.

This single acts almost as a love letter to a whole group of styles and eras and Ivy Eye should be applauded for this celebratory triumph of a composition.

Ivy Eye will be performing at Victorious festival this August (26th-28th) get your tickets now and check them out!

How can Jeeni support artists like Ivy Eye?  

JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience. 

• We give creatives, independent artists and performers a showcase for their talent and services. And they keep 100% of everything they make.  
• We empower our audience and reward them every step of the way.  
• We promise to treat our members ethically, fairly, honestly and with respect.  
• Access to artist liaison and a supportive marketing team. 

06
Dec

Artist Focus: Barbudo

If you were to picture yourself at a beach festival, with an Aperol Spritz in hand, the funky sound of Barbudo would be sure to get you moving. The brothers Ben & Harry Stanworth plus their best friend Elliott Salter, hailing from Havant (South of England) have created their own unique blend of modern Funk, Soul and Disco, with some Psychedelic chord progressions throughout their discography. The sweet vibes of Barbudo take inspiration from Michael Jackson, Chic, The Bee Gees and Prince, artists that Ben & Harry’s parents would often play to them at home during their days out on the disco scene. Parliament, Funkadelic and Anderson .Paak are three names they said they would love to support at a live show, and this is hardly surprising considering their style! Their track ‘Realise the Reality’ I found notably brilliant, with the knock of a ‘Thundercat’ beat, but written in a major key. The song encapsulates their playful, joyful identity. You could say they make you want to talk about that ‘Secret Admirer’ (their 2018 single). Ben’s seemingly nonchalant tone is brilliantly confident and elegant, with great vocal licks and kicks that are very original and identifiable. Their track ‘Magnolia Mansion’ is a great flagship to their genre stirring pot. A classic bassline and an excellent, clean drum beat sure to get a crowd moving. Their cool use of chords on a Wurlitzer type electric piano gives a lovely chilled vibe to the verses, before the clearly disco influenced guitar brings us to the front and center stage of the ‘Magnolia Mansion’. Overall, I have been blown away by Barbudo, and await their next release. Their melodies have definitely struck a chord with me (pun intended). How can Jeeni support artists like Barbudo?   JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience.   • We give creatives, independent artists and performers a showcase for their talent and services. And they keep 100% of everything they make.  • We empower our audience and reward them every step of the way.  • We promise to treat our members ethically, fairly, honestly and with respect.  • Access to artist liaison and a supportive marketing team  Check out Barbudo’s Jeeni page: https://jeeni.com/?s=barbudo

10
Jun

Jeeni Live Global Festival on 29 August 2020

Jeeni is proud to announce the next JEENI LIVE - our series of Free Festivals for Independent Musicians and Performers, where rising stars have a golden opportunity to step into the spotlight in front of a global audience, strut their stuff, stay safe and have fun. Best of all, they appear alongside some of our favourite superstar ambassadors. On 29th August 2020 we’ll be streaming the Jeeni Live Festival across music websites and social media. The event will be headlined by Sonique (Brit Award-Winner, Best Female Solo Artist) and Grammy Award-Winner Skyler Jett (hit-maker for Stevie Wonder, Celine Dion and Christina Aguillera) supported by Jeeni chart-toppers from both sides of the Atlantic. Showtimes: 21.00-23.00 GMT - 14.00-16.00 Los Angeles. With guest appearances from multi-award-winner Natasha Watts, the godfather of punk Jesus Hooligan, platinum-seller Daisy Chute, a blues genius we found down the pub, classical electro-diva Sarah Mallock, stadium favourites Filta, and a sensational new band with an average age of eight! More to be announced soon. All our performers will promote the event and share the live streaming to their fanbases, so we expecting lots of engagement. The live stream will also be saved on Jeeni.com, Jeeni Facebook and the Independent Musicians and Performers Group to replay later. This is our first event with our new Californian partners AmplifyX, the only FINRA and SEC compliant platform that allows investors to build a portfolio by directly funding musicians. The partnership was arranged by Kelli Richards, Jeeni Managing Director USA, who was mentored by Steve Jobs at Apple where she launched and managed the Apple music and entertainment division. Co-founder of AmplifyX Bobby Kamaris says, “Our companies run in an adjacent space helping independent artists, and our philosophies and motives are very very close. What you guys at Jeeni have done in putting it together and launching is actually incredible.” • Jeeni Live is a global festival of music.• Covid19 has closed live venues, so Jeeni Live goes out across social media and selected websites.• Jeeni Live gives equal exposure to brand new talent and world-class stars, with an exciting mix of new material and massive crowd-pleasers. • Jeeni Live reaches out across the whole range of styles and ages to deliver new audiences and new fans for our poll-winning artists.• No adverts, no hype, no rip-offs, no fakes. Jeeni - the ethical alternative.

12
Dec

Jeeni IMAP community tops 5,000 new members.

The Independent Musicians and Performers Community (IMAP) was set up by the founders of Jeeni, and recently celebrated our 5,000th new member. Our Community is for everyone and anyone creative: musicians, voice-artists, performers, poets, singer-songwriters ... the list is endless. We connect, collaborate, share and support each other, while we have some fun and make a real difference. We are a completely independent group and have no interest in political debate in this community. We encourage our members to share their original music and performances. Jeeni launched IMAP with the single purpose of helping and supporting fellow artists with relevant news, blogs, stories, videos and top tips on how to cope in these challenging times. We scan the media every day for what support is available for musicians and performers. We make it our mission to wade through lengthy documents and policies so you don't have to, and we grab the main highlights and takeaways to make it easy for you to absorb the plethora of information swimming around. We very much want our members to invite their friends, families and other artists, we are all in this together and your great ideas need to shared. It doesn't matter where you are around the globe, and we would love to hear more about what other community groups are doing to support their members. Take a look at the Independent Musicians and Performers Community and join us today. You will be welcomed with open arms. Click here to visit IMAP.