patrick o'heffernan | Music Junkie Press

Hana Kim at the Witzend in LA by Patrick O’Heffernan of Music Friday Live!

January 14, 2014

Hana Kim mesmerized a totally packed WitzendLive in Los Angeles Saturday night – even the bar was quiet. I have had Kim on my radio show, Music Friday Live!, and reviewed her new album, Exodo, which is a kind of minstrel tale of her life and international travels. She has steadily built a following in the very tough market of Los Angeles, releasing two EPS’ a single and now a full album so I was looking forward to the evening. The Witzend is an L.A. gem, a listening room designed with a beyond the state-of-the-art sound system for music lovers and emerging musicians with big futures. A gig at the Witzend is a recognition of Kim’s growing popularity and bountiful talent. I knew that her deep soulful voice would take full advantage of the club’s acoustics and that her deeply personal songs would go over very well with the discerning crowd that comes for only the best in live music. Although she has been playing almost constantly in the LA area for two years, this [Read More]

“A Sweetish Tune” by Noctambule: a must have for fans of Irish music – traditional and experimental.

September 1, 2017

Patrick O’Heffernan (Chapala, Mexico) For fans of traditional Irish music, “A Sweetish Tune” by the duo Noctambule is a must have. This long awaited second album by Marla Fibush and Bruce Victor, who produce and record under the nomme de music Noctambule, builds on their previous releases, The Waking and Travel In Shadows, but goes far beyond them with heavenly mandolin and mandola finger picking by Fibish that perfectly blends and harmonizes with Victor’s 6- and 12-string guitar melodies. They create not just music, but a visual adventure through the Irish countryside and the people who have lived there over the centuries. At nine songs, the album seems diminutive on the surface, but Victor and Fibush have slipped a little Irish humor in the arrangement, as most of the album’s songs are combinations of two or even three tunes, giving the album a richness that overflows with emotion, imagery and sparkling cleverness. The album opens with “Patty Canny’ Toast”, a Charlie Lennon composition from County Leitrim, that swirls hypnotically with mandolin and 6-string threads [Read More]

Allison Iraheta and Halo Circus release new video and catch them out on tour

August 1, 2016

Check out the new video from Allison Iraheta and Halo Circus have released for their track, Nothing At All. The amazing video which was directed by Len Rosen will have you ready to catch them live! Allison Iraheta and Halo Circus are out on tour in support of their highly acclaimed debut album, Bunny. In case you missed our review by Patrick O’Heffernan of the album, you can read it here. Patrick comments about the album, Bunny by Halo Circus may be the most important record of the year, and perhaps the decade. I don’t say that easily. I say it because Bunny by Halo Circus is not only a musical triumph, but it uniquely exemplifies and transcends the demographic and cultural change overtaking the United States, the emergence of a new American Latino generation. This change is a revolution of Millennials and Allison Iraheta and her band Halo Circus is both the spear tip of that revolution and its future, present before us. Halo Circus sings in the key of the second largest Spanish-speaking nation in [Read More]

Catch Allison Iraheta and Halo Circus out on tour in support of their album, Bunny

July 19, 2016

We are excited that Allison Iraheta and Halo Circus are gearing up to head out on their tour in support of their highly acclaimed debut album, Bunny. In case you missed our review by Patrick O’Heffernan of the album, you can read it here. Patrick comments about the album, Bunny by Halo Circus may be the most important record of the year, and perhaps the decade. I don’t say that easily. I say it because Bunny by Halo Circus is not only a musical triumph, but it uniquely exemplifies and transcends the demographic and cultural change overtaking the United States, the emergence of a new American Latino generation. This change is a revolution of Millennials and Allison Iraheta and her band Halo Circus is both the spear tip of that revolution and its future, present before us. Halo Circus sings in the key of the second largest Spanish-speaking nation in the world, the USA. The tour is part of a successful crowd funding campaign. The tour has already made history with its successful crowd-funding campaign. Back [Read More]

Ben Jaimen will whisk you away with his new video Satellites

April 16, 2015

Singer songwriter Ben Jaimen will whisk you away with his new video for his infectiously catchy song, Satellites. The song has the perfect blend of rock and dance inducing pop. Check out the video here: In case you missed Patrick O’Heffernan’s review of Ben’s EP, Through The Universe, you can check it out here. As Patrick explains, A pop rocker who writes and performs with the precision of a seasoned professional, he knows how to hold a crowd or lay down popular tracks. Most important, he is also determined to live and sing with integrity and to be his own man. With Through the Universe he is very much his own man; he has produced a musical E-ticket ride and trust me, you will love every twist and bump. Make sure to pick up your copy and also visit his social media sites for all the latest news. If you happen to be in the Los Angeles area, don’t miss Ben performing this Saturday, April 18th at the Four Seasons in Los Angeles. You can [Read More]

Victoria Blythe’s Silver Flyer soars, glides and settles softly in your mind

December 8, 2014

By Patrick O’Heffernan – Host, Music Friday Live! I have known Victoria Blythe for a number of years, but mostly in the context of her band, Calaveras, which she and her husband Greg Beattie founded in 1992. A few years have passed since then – Calaveras has released three album, a number of singles and played many, many concerts. Vickie moved in and out of the biotech industry. Greg went to Harvard Law school and became a nonprofit lawyer. And they became parents. But they never stopped playing music and Victoria never stopped singing. Calaveras remained active and vital and kept getting better and better. And so did Vickie, so much so that, at long last, she has released a solo album and it is a stunning compilation of the experience of years since began singing as a child and writing songs as a teen. Vickie’s stratospherically-pitched, classically trained voice brings a lightness and urgency to blues, jazz and Americana music. Every song she touches in Silver Flyer, whether it is hers, Beattie’s, a [Read More]

Interview with Kenji Williams, Director of Bella Gaia: dance, music and video from space.

May 12, 2014

Interview with Kenji Williams, Director of Bella Gaia: dance, music and video from space. by Patrick O’Heffernan, Host, Music Friday Live Kenji Williams is a genius. That is all there is to it. The idea of combining NASA photography and video from space with music and dance is sheer genius. That’s exactly what he did in creating the live performance known as Bella Gaia – “Beautiful Earth” now on its world tour. Bella Gaia shows how humans and nature are connected, and how art and science are connected while it explores the relationship between human civilization and our ecosystem through time and space in a music and dance performance like no other. The video is stunning, the music is mesmerizing, the dancers and the costumes rival those of major city opera companies. Williams took time from preparations for his performance in Santa Barbara to talk with me about Bella Gaia. Patrick. Kenji, where did the idea to combine video from space with dance and music come from? Kenji. It started with a meeting [Read More]