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Smoke Season Promotes Female Empowerment With Stylish Cover Video

Los Angeles, CA – Indie-electronic duo, Smoke Season have taken Lionel Richie’s classic 1984 hit, “Hello” and laced it with fashion and empowerment. In the midst of the attention women have received in the media recently, Smoke Season wanted to showcase the importance of finding self-love. “Hello” is available for streaming on Spotify, for download on iTunes and for viewing on YouTube.

For the creation of their “Hello” cover video, the band assembled a group of powerhouse feminists to work alongside them. Critically acclaimed actress, Megan Duffy, known for her role alongside Elijah Wood in the Cannes Film Festival lauded thriller Maniac, directed the video. Duffy’s vision was for a blend of timelessness, empowerment, tension and style. Throughout the video, a distressed woman fights to find her inner peace. As she begins to unwind from a long day, she finds her oasis and reaches a new level of self-love. “The past couple of months have been trying for women, so we wanted to make a video that focused on female empowerment,” says lead vocalist, Gabrielle Wortman. “After a difficult day, this woman comes home weary and burnt out, but picks herself back up and gets ready for the next challenge. By the end, she’s done a complete 180 and has found her inner queen.”

Fashion played an integral part of the visual direction for the video. Zoe Zhou, one of Beyoncé’s stylists and notable contributor to her Lemonade video and Super Bowl performance, provided all the styling for the music video. She handpicked every piece used in the project to create an aura of equal parts modern and 1940’s film noir. The band also enlisted social media icon and Schon Magazine beauty producer, Mynxii White, who has previously worked with everyone from Stella McCartney to Marilyn Manson, to provide all of the hair and makeup styling. Women empowerment and self-love are distinct messages in the video. “Women are complex creatures, so we also wanted to portray the many faces of the female personality through the alter egos you see in the video. This is a Valentine’s Day love story, but instead of pining over a love interest, she’s pining over loving herself — and ultimately does.” Rich with dark imagery and whispering melodic vocals, “Hello” exudes feelings of ecstasy.

Based in Los Angeles, Smoke Season has independently released three EPs (Signals, 2013; Hot Coals Cold Souls, 2014; Ouroboros, 2016), a handful of singles, a bevy of cinematic music videos, and a tour schedule that features frequent national runs and regular appearances on the stages of prominent festivals, such as SXSW and CMJ. Their unique musical style has captured the attention of major press outlets like Buzzfeed, Huffington Post, Clash Magazine, LA Weekly and The New York Times, while earning them over five million streams on Spotify.

“Hello” is available to download on iTunes and for streaming on Spotify. Watch the cover video now on YouTube and keep up with Smoke Season by visiting SmokeSeason.com.

The Voice alum, Emily Keener, Releases Fresh New Album “Breakfast”

Singer-Songwriter With Old Soul Releases New Modern Pop Album

Wakeman, OH – Since her well-received appearance on NBC’s The Voice, singer-songwriter Emily Keener has been busy working on her new album, Breakfast. The fresh, modern pop album is laced with folk influences, and beautifully composed featuring Keener’s pure vocals over unconventional melodies and soft futuristic sounds. Breakfast is now available for download on iTunes and streaming on Spotify.

Produced by Noah Heyman (The Womacks) and Dalton Brand, Breakfast is a beautiful compilation of Keener’s most precious stories that are both quirky and straightforward. The first single off of the album, “Elevator,” captures the feelings of young love and the struggles that come with finding yourself in it. The accompanying music video uses subtle imagery to portray these feelings in a beautifully visual way. “Light & Sound” is the captivating and complex second single that stands out, layered with gorgeous melodies exuding a cool, soothing vibe. Keener prides herself in writing honest and emotional lyrics rooted in simplicity; with a versatile voice that has a way of being bright and clear in one moment, and dark and sultry in another. Many of the songs on Breakfast have stemmed from personal experiences and that is just how she likes it. “This record is the result of the most intense and transformative year of my life,” comments Keener. “After the crazy journey I experienced on The Voice, I’m so ready for my original music to have the spotlight.” The young artist is known for her old soul, as she says her inspiration comes from artists like Norah Jones, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon and Jeff Buckley.

At a young age, Ohio native Emily Keener fully immersed herself in music. At eleven years old, Keener began writing original songs and learning to play guitar. Now at seventeen, she has written over 100 songs and released three EPs and one LP. Her songs are distinctly original, and the ideas she manages to express in them belie a soul that seems to be much older. After releasing her third EP, East of the Sun, Keener made her remarkable debut on Season 10 of The Voice, singing on national television in front of millions of people. After advancing to the Top 12, Keener left the show and gained a newfound sense of self.

With the release of Breakfast and music video for the single, “Elevator,” Keener is excited to prove to the world her career is only just getting started. The album is now available on iTunes and Spotify, and you can watch the video on YouTube. Keep up to date with her exciting journey by visiting EmilyKeener.com.

Smoke Season Drops Game-Changing Ouroboros EP

Electro-Soul Duo Release EP and Accompanying Short Film

Los Angeles, CA – Indie electro-soul duo, Smoke Season dropped their latest EP, Ouroboros. Packed with Jason Rosen’s ethereal guitar work and Gabrielle Wortman’s mountainous vocal range, Ouroboros is without a doubt Smoke Season’s most lush and fully realized work yet. It is now available on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal and limited release physical CDs are available at smokeseason.com/shop.

Smoke Season caught the attention of noted music journalists with their cinematic indie rock and soulful vocals on earlier releases, and the new Ouroboros EP provides us with their most sophisticated sonic effort to date. The EP highlights the layered, ethereal Americana flavor that has become synonymous with Smoke Season, while simultaneously exploring more mature and driving beats as well as their most refined productions and arrangements. The result is a body of work that at times evokes the production styles of Sylvan Esso or The XX and, at others, the psychedelic arrangements and songwriting of The War on Drugs or Tame Impala. In the end, these sonic textures coupled with lead singer, Wortman’s ferocious and dexterous vocals solidifies Smoke Season’s sound in a class all its own.

“The songs on this newest EP really capture the heart and soul of who we are as artists in this moment.” Jason Rosen describes the direction of the songs as “1 part electronic beats, 1 part psychedelic soul and 2 parts whiskey under the Mojave Desert stars.” The first single, “Loose,” is electro-soul at its finest, featuring a driving beat, atmospheric breakdowns and lyrical finesse. In less than 4 minutes, Smoke Season’s “Loose” packs in the versatility and sophistication reminiscent of the best Alt-J or Portishead tracks. The second song on the EP, “When The Smoke Clears,” showcases the duo’s knack for unique vocal sampling off the bat and continues to refine its unique production throughout its length. The third song, “Emilia,” evokes a haunted lullaby with a 1950’s doo-wop-esque chord progression, culminating in a powerful soulful climax. Finally, “Santa Rosa,” drives home Smoke Season’s Americana roots with its Kurt Vile-esque guitar tones and a surprising powerhouse, up-tempo beat. Throughout each song, Smoke Season continually demonstrates lyrical prowess, pulling at our heartstrings with lines like “why can’t simple love me?” “there is gold in our veins” and “leave behind what you can’t chase.” Finally, the EP’s “Intro” and “Outro” serve to further drive home the feeling that the body of work as a whole is a cohesive and emotionally connected feat.

Kyle Draper and Dave Burris of Mateo Sound produced the Ouroboros EP, with additional programming and mix by Chris Mullings (The Neighbourhood, LP).

Ouroboros is, at its core, a concept album and even the EP’s title tells a story, stemming from the Greek symbol of the snake eating itself. “One interpretation of the Ouroboros myth is that destruction is only temporary and we are reborn from the ruin,” Wortman explains. To fully realize this concept, Smoke Season teamed up with Scott Fleishman of APLUSFILMZ to write and develop a short film and story that demonstrates the interconnectedness of the human experience. The duo collaborated with a team of actors, models, writers, producers and crew to create the film. The story plot continues throughout each of the music videos for the EP’s singles. So far, the duo has released the videos for “Loose” and “When The Smoke Clears.” Videos for the remaining tracks will be released later this spring.

Since forming in 2013, Smoke Season has been in a constant state of artistic fervor, independently releasing three EPs (Signals, 2013; Hot Coals Cold Souls, 2014; Bees, 2015), half a dozen music videos, and a tour schedule that featured frequent national runs and regular appearances on the stages of prominent festivals, such as SXSW and CMJ. Their unique musical style captured the attention of major press outlets like Buzzfeed, Huffington Post, Clash Magazine, LA Weekly, and The New York Times as well as earned them over four million streams on Spotify.

Visit Smoke Season at www.SmokeSeason.com and download Ouroboros in digital music stores now.