Respite, 'Vol. 1' EP Review

Jeeni Blog

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Respite, 'Vol. 1' EP Review

Respite’s ‘Vol. 1’ EP is nothing short of a masterclass in modern alt-rock and the best thing about it is that its title implies that there’s much more to come.

Since re-emerging as Respite, this is the first project from the pop-punk outfit, once known as ‘Finding Argyle’. Respite have been a part of Jeeni’s rock representation for a while now. It’s been an honour for Jeeni to follow and promote the revival of their brutal modern rock sound and the appreciation goes both ways according to their feedback; “Respite are proud to be a Jeeni Artist. Having a platform that supports and actively promotes upcoming artists is truly invaluable.”

This five-track project is a triumphant and proud announcement of a new advancement in their style, synergy and musicianship. Although the group has access to a rich and varied reservoir of influences such as ‘Finding Malory’ and ‘A Day to Remember’, they certainly pave their own path within this rock sub-genre.

The EP’s only single, ‘Chemical Sleep’ was a great choice for a teaser track. Rapid double kick drums and squealing guitars lay down the foundation on which Sam’s anthemic vocals glide. The pre-chorus production choice of layering spirited, but distant vocals over a casually recorded, radio-affected reversed harmony of the same line is a blissful respite before the thrashing resumes for the choruses.

The production value on ‘Vol. 1’ is out of this world. The secret behind their clean and cohesive thrashing rock tone is group guitarist, Andrew Vaughan. Vaughan is Respite’s in-house producer, mastering engineer and manages the recording processes. However, without the impassioned performances in this project, Andrew’s job would be a lot harder. From Reiss Mcleod’s robust drumming, Ross Crawford’s commanding bass, Euan Macqueen’s essential guitar work and Sam Nicholson’s singable vocal melodies, Andrew was spoilt with the sheer talent held in this band.

‘Sincerely, Maybe’ and ‘Change My Mind’ certainly embrace a stronger pop/punk tone and the EP benefits well from its inclusion. Synthesis and brighter instrumentation is used for the lighter and accessible melodies on these tracks. A deliberate embrace of two slight deviations to their sound creates a balance in a natural and impressive way. ‘The Little Things’ and ‘Chemical Sleep’ are the slightly darker and tonally more serious cuts and instead of any kind of clash, the two variations of modern rock subtly contextualises the other and broadens the EP’s sound and style.

The lyrical themes of romance and mental health develops deeper substance to the project instead of surface-level rock music. Something that cannot be faked is how emotion is embedded into the performances, and not just in Sam’s vocals, but in each member’s recordings; it elevates an already excellent project to numerous levels.

If you want to learn more about Respite, check out our Artist Focus blog on them here: https://jeeni.com/blog/artist-focus-respite/

How can Jeeni support artists like Respite

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 Respite’s Jeeni showcase here: https://jeeni.com/showcase/respite-band/

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06
Jun

Portsmouth-based music platform gears up

Jeeni, the Portsmouth-based music tech start-up, has raised over £230,000 to support unsigned artists and performers achieve their dream. Today, Jeeni has returned to Crowdcube to raise more funds and help the cause. Founding director Mel Croucher says, “We are ahead of our original schedule, yet there is still so much more to accomplish. We need to scale our online platform globally, build our mass artist showcases, and achieve our foreign language roll-out. Then we can hit all our targets, and give our new artists the recognition they deserve.” If you want to see our pitch click HERE. Jeeni is launching their next generation platform online, with over 27,500 artists and performers subscribe to their database, and will start trading ahead of schedule. Along with Mel Croucher, who founded the UK leisure software industry, Jeeni was co-founded by Shena Mitchell, who has already raised over £20million for start-up businesses in the Solent area. They have created a formidable management team including Roger Watson, the record-label boss responsible for over 500 million record sales, Kelli Richards, who worked with Steve Jobs for over 10 years and launched Apple Music, Eddie Levy, the founder of ATV Music who owned The Beatles catalogue, and Danielle Woodyatt, former Head of Global Communications at Virgin. Jeeni is also supported by celebrity ambassadors, including John Altman, conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Tony Klinger, producer for The Who, and Dee “Thunderbirds” Anderson. Jeeni’s Shena Mitchell urges Portsmouth-based businesses and investors to take a look at the campaign and support the development and global roll-out of Jeeni. She says: “We are raising £100k for 2.4% with our pre-money valuation at £4M. So if you want to support a Portsmouth-based tech start-up to harness the wealth of genuine unsigned talent, then get in touch.” If you want to see our pitch click HERE. Contact details: shena@jeeni.com

21
Dec

Welcome to Our Annual Round-Up of The Jeeni Project for 2021.

The pandemic has had a devastating effect on independent musicians and performers who are the core subscribers to the Jeeni platform. 83% of our professionals have been unable to find regular work, 33% of our artists have not earned a penny since restrictions were lifted earlier this year, and 20% say they will give up the struggle for recognition permanently. In support of our existing membership, we agreed to suspend paid subscriptions during the lockdown and may do so again in light of the current situation. Our Generation-4 platform was released on schedule, and our Generation-5 platform is scheduled for release on Amazon Web Services in the second quarter of 2022. This year, our pre-market valuation increased by 12.5% to £4.5million. Our awards and grant funding increased to £245,540 since launch and our investment funding increased to £513,734 since launch. The number of members in our musicians and artists community increased to 9,979, of which 5,424 are often active and 4,555 are continually active. The number of artist showcases on Jeeni increased to 2,492 with a global audience outreach to 3,430,790 fans. Team Jeeni increased to 15 core members. We launched our popular channel of Inside Story celebrity interviews, alongside Artist-of-the-Day and weekly News Roundups. Our most recent Jeeni Festival was enjoyed by 27,489 viewers, of which 7,739 were live-stream, plus another 19,750 on catch-up. Our world première of the jazz opera Spring Street topped 67,000 viewers, and for the first time, we achieved 10,000 visits to the Jeeni platform in one hour. Four of our strategic partners have become prominent for mutually beneficial marketing and support: BIMM - Europe’s largest music institute, Gradfuel - with over 10,000 graduates on their books, SeedLegals - the UK’s Number One growth hub, and Chillblast - the UK’s most awarded PC manufacturer. Stay safe and well, The Jeeni team.

15
Feb

Artist Focus: Alana Sukul

Stirring together funk, dancehall and electronic ingredients, Alana Sukul is rapidly building momentum with her unique take on modern pop. Brand new to Jeeni, Alana Sukul has contributed five new tracks to several of our channels due to her music casting such a huge stylistic net. Born and raised in Fulham, Alana is currently studying Popular Performance, Vocals at BIMM, London where she continues to hone her already impressive skills as a vocalist, instrumentalist, producer and songwriter. Only recently, for her more dancehall inspired tracks, has Alana used external talent in the form of a producer to help her capture the tone and intention she has in mind. Aside from that, Alana is a total DIY bedroom pop artist and has done extraordinarily well for herself, particularly with her recent track, ‘Closer’ which currently has over 50,000 listens. Check out Alana’s Jeeni showcase here: https://jeeni.com/showcase/alana-sukul/ The poeticism in Alana’s lyrics is perfect for expressing emotive imagery that plain language simply can’t. ‘Emotions, heavy like water and you let me drown’, this particular line from ‘Healing’ seems reminiscent of the Mexican idiom, ‘blood is thicker than water’ meaning that family bonds are stronger than that of friends or love; the connection between the two adages is especially relevant considering the heart-broken yet regenerative narrative of this stellar track from 2020. Although it would seem that the double single of the aforementioned ‘Healing’ and ‘IDNYT’ is Alana’s first release, she actually created a since-deleted concept project in college, as Alana puts it herself, “I made my first EP called ‘Genesis’ purely based around the struggle of mental health and how it can take a toll on one person.’ Nobly, Alana decided that the EP could be too honest and beak a project for fans to initially be exposed to, “I decided at 19 to remove the EP since I wanted to become a better inspiration for those who listen to my music and encourage them more lightly”. Ironically however, the ‘Genesis’ project and the creative decision that it inspired still formed her origin as an artist as is inspired her to begin again with a new mindset. This is when Alana began to work on ‘Healing’ and ‘IDNYT’ from her bedroom. Alana’s broad sense of style is of no surprise when you consider the colourful collection of inspirations that she collected growing up. Motown, soul and hip-hop have influenced a lot of creative choices from Alana, however Caribbean-originated genres literally run through the veins of her more recent singles. Alana grew up with a variety of Caribbean styles thanks to her parents, “dancehall, soca and bashment have greatly influenced me since my parents are from the Caribbean”. Alana also has an extensive list of artists she looks up to and dreams to collaborate with, “Vocally, my favourite artists nowadays who have impacted me would be Ariana Grande, Jennifer Hudson, Kehlani, H.E.R, Beyoncé and so much more.” Alana specifically credits Korean group, BTS for inspiring more in-depth meaning behind her music and lyrics. The newest track from Alana, ‘Good to you’ is an atmospheric and stunning single and is available on streaming platforms now. Check it out on Jeeni here: https://jeeni.com/good-to-you-alana-sukul/?channel=alana-sukul&rtn=btasc&artist=alana-sukul How can Jeeni support artists like Alana Sukul? JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience. artist biography • 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.

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