Yuto Miyazawa  
If more kids had access to electric guitars, chances are they’d still be doing their shredding vicariously through video games. Unfortunately most small children just can’t pick up an axe and summon Black Sabbath, even when they have the good fortune to handle a comically large, custom-checkered Gibson Flying V. 

Enter the fretboard-slaying 8 year old, Yuto Miyazawa, the latest incredibly cute/technologically superior thing to come out of Japan.  In exclusive footage from Relix Magazine, the precocious youngster tears through Sabbath's "Iron Man" and handles Eric Clapton's take on "Crossroads" with the ease and showmanship of an old pro.   Finishing off the mini-video set, Yuto covers Char's "Smoky" and belts out the lyrics, proving that he will be providing  the complete musical package once his  voice drops.  Props go to the bassist on "Crossroads"  for getting so into it, though honestly, who wouldn't be fired up to play along with electric guitar's boy wonder.  

Watch Yuto's amazing video Here!

And check out  our YouTube page for more interesting clips and breaking footage courtesy of Relix Videos.  

Mercury Landing

While there's no doubt that this is a talented group of dedicated professionals, Mercury Landing is at heart a group of friends doing what they love, and as a result you may catch them covering a funky Talking Heads tune onstage or just letting loose and busting out the theme to Tetris midset.  Whatever the formula is, it's working for these guys, and consequently they'll  likely be taking off from planet N.Y. in the near future, and touching down at a venue near you.

Mercury Landing will be playing The Mercury Lounge  on Saturday, April 18th in honor of Earth Day and Green Apple Fest.  If you can’t see them, or can’t wait to see them then, check out some of the band’s live cuts on their video page.   

Redux

Redux (formerly Ripplegroove) is a band in flux, defining themselves through steady growth and constant rebirth .  Still, despite a seemingly endless stream of  physical incarnations, the group remains singularly committed to perfecting a distinctive sound that they’ve been working towards since initially forming in 2001.   Perhaps it’s that very sound, loosely structured and technically sophisticated, that spurs the band’s progress while bucking traditional musical manifestations. 

With a style that incorporates free-jazz, funk and soul with relentless jam sessions, Redux cite acts like MMW and John Scofield as inspiration for their musical development (not to mention turning heads on to jazz-fusion in the first place).  In a sure sign that the group is moving in the right direction, Redux will be sharing a bill with Medeski, Martin, Scofield and Wood at this summer’s 10,000 Lake’s Festival in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. 

 Redux has been putting together some video clips to showcase on the downloads section of their website.    Try and check back at the site often, as the band will undoubtedly be refreshing the archives to reflect their own proclivity towards renewal. 

Colin Lake & Wellbottom

Colin Lake's life came to a crossroads in 2001 when he ventured by motorcycle into Northwestern Canada and Alaska, and he returned home with a newfound determination to start a career as a musician.  While Lake has yet to confirm nor deny whether he actually sold his soul to the devil on a dirt road in the Yukon Territory, we do know that he spent the next 7 years crafting songs, honing his vocals and developing a unique kind of blues with what he calls his "free-style lap-slide-guitar" approach. 

Looking to plunge into the music scene in his hometown of Portland, Oregon, Lake recruited bassist Jason Marcotte and Drummer to form Wellbottom in 2006.   Marcotte and  Stewart's multifaceted musical backgrounds mesh effortlessly with the turntable stylings of  fourth member, Deejay Redi Jedi to create a forceful sound that combines elements of blues, rock, jazz funk and hip-hop.  

Take a moment and watch Colin's promotional video where he introduces his band and talks a little bit about his sound and playing style.  

And be sure to check out his single, Red Cross, featured on  the sampler CD packaged with the April/May issue of Relix Magazine.

Corinne West, Live at Acoustic Long Island

October 31st 2007

Corinne West's music is a bewitching contradiction of ethereal sounds and earthly honest lyrics.  Her vocal qualities, both sultry and sprightly, complement a layered array of lyrical content that speak to a whole spectrum of human emotions and experiences.  Truly West plunges into her musical craft with the same fearless passion that she has employed in spinning her own life's story. 

"She learned about the importance of communication early in her musical career when she joined a nomadic group of artists traveling around the country in a converted school bus. She was 15 and dropped out of school to tour the country. "

Corinne found her voice and developed her sound on the road with her ad-hoc "Partridge Family", and her unique initiation into an age of possibility led to a profound artistic awakening.  She released her debut album, Bound For Living in 2004, following that up with 2007's Second Sight.  Currently touring the UK with plans to hit the States come summertime, Corinne's openness to new experiences continues to enrich her lifestyle and inspire the content and caliber of her music today

 Here Corinne sings, "Amelia" off Bound For Living.  The song, recorded on Halloween night in 2007, offers a window into the range and quality of her sound while showcasing the sincerity of her performance as displayed by her intimate onstage mannerisms.  

  Check out more of her set at  Acoustic Long Island

Finally, the roots-rockers are shooting in HD!  We caught up with the fresh-faced youngsters of Three Legged Fox and they were glad to share some clips they compiled from a couple of gigs back in 2007.  If the name Three Legged Fox sounds familiar to  you, you're in good company.  Between touring and taking classes at the University of Delaware, the youthful bandmates have managed to earn some solid street-cred amongst the Relix faithful by winning a recent JamOff.  

 
In a sure sign that the times really are (a') changing, these videos are shot and showcased in true high-definition, meaning the picture quality is crisper, richer and more cinematic than standard footage.  This bit of tech-savvy videography is great news for the independent music community, as it reaffirms the notion that bands with an average consumer budget can increasingly find ways to produce their own professional-grade content without taking out a second mortgage to pay for equipment.   Surely the alt-rocking originators of the DIY movement would be proud to see what college students are capable of these days!

 Three Legged Fox - Everyone - Live @ Grape Street, Philadelphia PA, 6/9/07

Three Legged Fox - Soul Thief -  Live on Radio 104.5,  Philadelphia, PA, 12/7/07