Category: News

Austria-based electro-pop artist BAIBA releases a new EP, which includes her previously published singles, as well as her latest work – the song “Too Cool”. At the end of the summer, BAIBA will also finally perform in Latvia, at the music and art festival “Laba Daba”.

Influencers dressed in the uniforms of fashion brands, flashy and at the same time misleading image of people on social networks, and the fast pace of modern life – these are just some of the topics that BAIBA satirizes in her latest work – the single “Too Cool”. It is accompanied by a catchy melody, a lively beat and contrastingly irritated, even angry vocals. This combination creates an almost perfect piece to sing and dance along to, to forget everything that drives you crazy and makes you sad.

“It [the song] is about people looking just fine and confident, so cool and self-sufficient. But… is it just a facade? Maybe it’s just a cover to protect a very vulnerable soul,” says BAIBA.

“Too Cool” is the fourth single from BAIBA’s new EP “Compulsive”. The mini-album contains four songs by the artist, which were created in collaboration with several well-known artists in Austria, including producers Christoph Holzknecht and Moritz Kristmann. On the other hand, the video of the new song was made in cooperation with the Spanish director Marta Cesar, who lives in Austria, and will be released in mid-June.

Presenting the single “Too Cool”, a video and also an EP, BAIBA will go on a promotional tour this summer, visiting several Austrian cities, Northern Italy, Slovakia, and the she will also visit her homeland Latvia for the first time at the beginning of August, performing at the music and art festival “Laba Daba”.

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About BAIBA:
BAIBA is a Latvian musician (real name Baiba Dēķena), who has been living and playing music in the Austrian city of Innsbruck for several years. She plays self-produced electropop and teaches music production workshops for girls. Until now, BAIBA has already released two albums and her songs are regularly played by radio stations both in Latvia and abroad. The first single of the new mini-album, “Perfect”, got into the regular rotation of the popular radio station FM4 in Austria.

Oskars Gvido Gailitis, a songwriter, producer and performer from Latvia with an artist name “osiits”,  presents to a wider audience the first part of the project “You + Me” called “Eternity”.

Both songs are about time, about eternity. Sometimes time drags on like eternity and sometimes you wish it would stop and stay like that forever.

Project “You + Me” will consist of two parts, two double singles, making a total of four songs.

The artwork for the songs was made in collaboration with the young talented artist/graphic designer “art.utah” (real name Juta Zemlicka).

Summer song “Sapņoju par tevi” was created as part of the ArtifexLV project. The goal of the project is to work with young and experienced Latvian musicians.

Music – Juris Ludženieks, Lyric – Annemarija Moiseja, Producer – Juris Ludženieks

The rapper March (Martins Šimpermanis), known as a rap prodigy, has just published a video for the song “The Man” Come Get It, which also features the US rap superstar Redman. In the video, the legendary American rapper shares his ideas about what he believes to be the true hip-hop sound.

Velvet River is a project by drummer Kārlis Roberts Kalējs (LV) and bassist Tauna Woolfe (UK). The musicians started their collaboration at the end of 2019 when both were studying music in the UK. However, shortly after the formation of the duo, the pandemic halted their ability to collaborate in person for several years until they reunited in 2021.

In music, the role of bass and drums is usually to support and complement other instruments, but Velvet River in their EP experiments with what they can create themselves in such a minimalist context. The duo’s sound and unique concept are inspired by the modern and contemporary world of jazz, combined with both musicians’ personal sources of inspiration.

“This EP was not planned. During the pandemic, we exchanged some ideas virtually. We agreed that we could try to write music using only bass and drums. When we met again, there was such energy flowing through us that we composed 4 tracks in one week”, says Kārlis. The musicians say that the so-called “lo-fi” atmosphere suits this EP, which only adds to the fact that the album was recorded with their own
resources at home.

“I had gone to visit Kārlis at his place in the UK. We played music every day in the living room, where Kārlis had set up a minimalist drum kit. Due to the pandemic, we didn’t have access to a proper studio, and we decided to record the compositions right there in the living room”, adds Tauna.

Perhaps, in unconsciously striving to create new musical forms, the emphasis throughout the EP’s tracks became highlighting the interplay between the bass and drums, as well as the musical freedom and space with which the musicians experimented in their compositions. “In such a minimalist context, there are so many possibilities of what to play, and just as many possibilities to not play anything and leave some vibey space”, says Velvet River.

EP “Casablanca” is produced, recorded and mixed by Velvet River and mastered by Toms Jankevics. Artwork and design by Tīna Alise Drupa. Listen to “Casablanca” on all major streaming platforms starting from 02.06.23.

In this album, DANI RYAN present the collection of feelings of the last 3 years. The world has changed, the people have changed, and this album is like a diary of the band. Its name symbolizes the band members’ ability to find comfort and relief from everyday events in their music. This album connects the riff-filled alternative rock with the already recognizable elements of Dani Ryan’s synthrock, and also includes a couple of synthpop ballads. The songs’ themes connect to life and emotions.

DANI RYAN are getting ready for the album presentation concert, which will take place on March 31st in the “Republika” club. Follow the news via the band’s social networks @daniryanmusic and on the website daniryan.lv.

DANI RYAN is a synthpop project created by Daniel Ravinsky (vocals, guitar, synthesizer). After the debut album “Open” (2019), Daniel was joined by like-minded musicians and the project turned into a real rock band. After the band’s experimental second album, “Party!” (2020) he was joined by Jānis Zariņš (drums) and Angelina Volkova (bass guitar). During the pandemic, the band recorded the concert album “Performance”, thus capturing the band’s energetic multimedia concert performances. During these years, listeners have come to love several songs of DANI RYAN – “Exciter”, “Meloman” and also “Radio Anna”, which entered the list of TOP 3 songs on radio NABA and was regularly on air.

DENISS (Deniss Stepanovs), a member of the hip-hop association “Kreisais Krasts”, rapper and mixed martial artist, has released the song “Stop gamble”. With this single, he wants to draw people’s attention to the problem of gambling, also mentioning examples of well-known people in Latvia.

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The producer association YDJ has released a new song “Netālu no Esplanādes”, featuring musician Oskars Deigelis. The song was sung by Liene Greifāne. Two remixes have also been made for the song.

On 16 March, pianist Andrejs Osokins will launch his new concert programme “Osokins – to Liszt”, which will continue until the end of the year in various venues across Latvia. Alongside the concert programme, a new fundraising campaign for Ukraine has been announced. 

The concert programme “Osokins – to Liszt” is a tribute to one of the most important piano composers and virtuosos of the 19th century – Franz Liszt – his creative work, personality, and life. Liszt – virtuoso, lover, philosopher, monk, priest, thinker, romantic and tragic hero – these are just some of the aspects of his personality that characterise the great composer’s complicated life of and permeate his music. Like Liszt’s life, which began in Hungary but took him to countless places in Europe, his work is interwoven by the theme of wandering, which is also one of the cornerstones of Andrejs Osokins concert programme. The pianist believes that the diversity of Liszt’s life resonates strongly with our times, when everything in the world is changing rapidly and everyone must be able to adapt to these changes.

The new concert programme will also feature Liszt’s Petrarch Sonnet No. 104 from the cycle “Years of Wandering”.

Currently, ten concerts of the “Osokins – to Liszt” concert programme have been announced:

• 16 March at the Daugavpils Unity House,
• 19 March at the Sēja Culture House,
• 1 April at the Mazmežotne Manor,
• 16 April at the Jelgava Culture House,
• 21 April at the Dobele Concert Hall ZINTA,
• 29 April at ZEIT in Līgatne,
• 10 May at the Lielvārde Culture House,
• 7 July at Veselava Manor,
• 14 October at Madona Culture House,
• 8 December at the Krustpils Culture House in Jēkabpils.

Tickets for the concerts are available at the “Biļešu paradīze” box office and online at www.bilesuparadize.lv and www.ekase.lv (concert in Loja).

In cooperation with the Embassy of Ukraine in Latvia and the charity fund Ziedot.lv, a new fundraising campaign initiated by Andrejs Osokins, “Strength Dose for Victory!”, has been launched, during which people are invited to donate for the purchase of universal meal kits, which will be delivered to Ukrainian soldiers at the front in cooperation with the Confederation of Ukrainian Societies “Viche”. Andrejs Osokins has launched the campaign in preparation for his new concert tour, because it is important for him as a musician not only to inspire the audience with excellent compositions and convey a message of peace, unity and hope, but also to encourage everyone to continue helping Ukraine.

“The brutal war in Ukraine is now a year old, which seems absolutely unbelievable. Our support gives Ukrainians not only much-needed resources to continue their fight against evil, but also inspiration and reassurance that they are not alone in this madness. That is why it is extremely important to continue helping Ukraine and its army, because it is this army that is the main force saving Europe and Latvia from the threats and darkness that Putin’s Russian troops are bringing to the whole world. Together we can bring the victory of light closer and thus the peaceful future of Latvia,” says Andrejs Osokins on why he continues to carry out various support actions for Ukraine.

In the campaign “Strength dose for Victory!”, funds are raised for meal kits, which include a complete meal, a bag of reagent that heats up in response to 50 ml of cold water and makes it possible to heat up this meal in frontline conditions without electricity or fire, as well as chocolate and muesli bars, a nut and raisin mix, a portion of oatmeal, bread, candy, tea, coffee, chocolate drink, antibacterial and plain napkins, and a spoon.

You can donate for the meal kit purchase here: https://www.ziedot.lv/maltisu-komplekti-ukrainu-karaviriem-fronte-4479.

This campaign is a continuation of the “Hot Meals for Ukrainian Soldiers at the Front” campaign launched by Andrejs Osokins on Ziedot.lv last October, which is still ongoing and has already raised more than EUR 100 000, enabling 20 000 hot meal kits to be delivered to the front in Ukraine.