Check out album reviews from the latest music available!

Rachel Potter / Not So Black and White

If you recognize the name Rachel Potter, it’s probably because you remember her as a contestant on the singing show The X Factor or, perhaps, as a performer on Broadway. But on her first full-length album, the crowdfunded Not So Black and White, Potter really comes into her own with a strong collection of songs.

The majority of the tracks here are co-written by Potter, and while many of the lyrics may tread familiar ground for country music listeners, it’s Potter’s delivery and the way she wears her heart on her sleeve that makes them feel new and important. When she sings about trying to salvage a dying relationship in the heart rending ballad, “Try,” you actually feel sorry for her. Potter’s motivational tone on “Worth It” has her singing “climbing is what mountains are for,” providing a nice light of hope near the album’s end.

Not So Black and White is also a good showcase for Potter’s crossover appeal. There are plenty of down-home vibes and twang on songs like “Jesus and Jezebel” and “Sit Here Next to Me,” but at the same time, Potter isn’t afraid to include her pop sensibilities, too. The appropriately titled “Radio” would sound right at home coming out of your car speakers with its catchy hook. Because of Potter’s pop leanings, Not So Black and White is a country album that is accessible for those who don’t normally listen to the genre. Just check out her cover of Queen’s “Somebody to Love,” and you’ll see how Not So Black and White sets the table for a promising career.

For more, visit rachelpottermusic.com.

By Jason Savio

Gwen Stefani / This Is What The Truth Feels Like

We may have been waiting for what has seemed like forever for Stefani’s third studio album as a solo artist, but we’ll forgive the Hollaback Girl … because This Is What The Truth Feels Like was well worth the wait.

We were teased with her single “Baby Don’t Lie” almost a year and a half ago – and we became obsessed with that song! – only to find Stefani cut it (and others) from her album in favor of new material that was more authentic to her present life experience (read: dissolution of her 13-year marriage and shiny, new relationship with her The Voice co-host Blake Shelton). Well, the authenticity seeping from Truth is evident and abundant – even if we still do miss “Baby Don’t Lie.”

Fresh from her split, Stefani has ramped up the gravitas with gorgeous but heart-wrenching ballads (“Used To Love You” and “Rare”), but she’s allowed herself to be playful with the fresh and upbeat “Make Me Like You” (an ode to her not-a-rebound romance with Shelton). The title track is a perfectly-imperfect amalgamation of emotions and serves as a fitting centerpiece for the album. “Misery” and “Where Would I Be?” may seem like pity parties on the surface, but they’re also highly infectious pop songs that her fans will embrace.

There’s an equal measure of all kinds of emotions on Truth, and the album offers a complete story that’s a real pleasure to listen to because Stefani doesn’t hold back from exposing herself through her artistry.

For more, visit gwenstefani.com.

By Michael Wood

Hunter Valentine / The Pledge

Hunter Valentine, an all-female band from Canada that has been offering us their tunes for over a decade, like a beautiful canvas splashed with sound that incorporates rock, pop and punk, has unfortunately decided that their tour this year will be their last for a while.

Kiyomi McCloskey has the ability to musically grab anyone, with a strong, sultry and powerful vocal that gives you no choice but to pay attention. It’s like Melissa Etheridge met Janis Joplin. The instrumental behind her is just as powerful. You can tell that considerable thought was put into every single detail of every single note, leaving you with a smooth transition from song to song, but where no two songs sound the same.

Their latest EP, The Pledge, is a six-song album that gives us a true mashup of what the band is all about. The title track enters in with a beautiful piano intro and weighs heavy with strong and emotional lyrics, whereas the song “Hurricane” is an energetic ode to a really good, no-strings-attached kind of relationship.

The song “Empire of Nothing” is my easy favorite on the album. It has a great melody, catching you and refusing to let go, and “Black Out Nights” almost sounds like it should be in a Quentin Tarantino movie, and I can’t really pinpoint why.

Their level of talent is best displayed where people can see and hear it, not swept under the rug, where it might be forgotten in the coming years, as fast as the industry moves. Though I am sure they have their reasons for exiting gracefully, I hope that this hiatus is short-lived, and instead of going out with a bang, they come back with a vengeance.

For more, visit huntervalentine.com.

By Jennifer Russo