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PRESENTED BY JOSEPH KELLEY
BROUGHT TO YOU IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE SKYELAB MUSIC GROUP http://www.skyelabmusicgroup.com
Cinematographer: Chris O'Konski
"With a voice that can hang you out to dry, break your heart and welcome you in all in the breath, and a deft touch for songwriting that speaks of wisdom well beyond her years, sami.the.great is one big break away from being a household name" says a reviewer about sami. the. great.
Her new release is a step outside of her comfort zone, employing more out of the box styles that stray far from the acoustic based singer/songwriter archetype that she had assigned herself to for her first EP.
Following in the footsteps of indie-pop princess like Frente, Feist, and Rose Melberg, Sami Akbari has been crafting simple and catchy songs under the moniker sami.the.great.
Her sophomore self titled album hits harder than the first, with singles "Dresser Drawer" and "Hear Me Now", a straight up dance song heavy on the synth. "I've always wanted to have a fun, dancey song" says Sami about Hear Me Now, "but I never had one before because every time I tried to write one, I just didn't like the way it ended up sounding, or I couldn't get the lyrics to where I wanted them to be. Even when we were choosing the songs for the album, I struggled with Hear Me Now and was ready to throw it to the side, but with encouragement from others, I kept it and went for it and I'm so glad I did. I think I was scared of it at first because it is so different than what I'm used to doing." And it totally works!
"Come to my playhouse and have a little fun" Sami croons as the album opens with quirky ballad "Your Only Fool". With upbeat songs like "Dresser Drawer" and "Candyland" she still manages to include her signature ethereal layers of harmonies amidst the synth. She also steps out of her comfort zone with "Making Eyes", a song which is a throwback to music of another time. "For this album I wanted to do something different than what I've done before. I've always been inspired by and in love with music of the late 50's/early 1960's, so I wanted to pay tribute to that on a lot of the songs this time around, while also incorporating more modern sounds. I think Making Eyes is a good marriage of those ideas. My main goal was just try to think out of the musical box that I've put myself in over the years in every way, lyrically, melodically, even the keys I sang certain songs in. I wanted to listen to this album and hear the growth in myself as an artist while still knowing that it was me."
sami.the.great, the Iranian American indie-pop hybrid is both an artist and an album worth checking out as she will be making major strides in the music arena with her daring new sound.
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