LOS ANGELES (Wiry Pulse Records/ www.justinconnor.com) - Justin Connor releases his debut album, Kaliyuga, on his own record label, Wiry Pulse Records, to rave reviews, while selling out on the first day of release.
CDBaby.com – the independent distribution arm for independent musicians – sold out of all of Justin's copies of Kaliyuga by lunch in it's first day of release. Additionally, they selected Kaliyuga out of thousands to be the featured Album of the Month, comparing Connor to the likes of Elliot Smith and Beck, while declaring it 'a vivid arrival of male pop with each track sounding like the only song he ever wrote, a collection of one-track wonders he slaved over. Unbuckle yourself and let him toss you around the stratosphere for awhile.'
'The album title, Kaliyuga is a Vedic reference to the age that we're all currently living in – an age defined by war, greed, consumption, decadence, and an overall deterioration of human existence. After months of pouring through various Vedic texts,' Justin says reflectively, 'I began to sense a strong correlation between what I was exploring in my own life, to the many obstacles that this time period reflects…so I guess this album evolved in an attempt to elicit consciousness, while remaining aware of the many pitfalls that Kaliyuga may present along the way.'
Written and recorded in Los Angeles over the past two years, Kaliyuga showcases Justin's knack for crafty songwriting, sonic landscapes, and spacey mantras that seek to soothe the senses with a common collective thread of consciousness. Justin puts his own stamp on defining an original, idiosyncratic lo-fi aesthetic that's contemplative in both style and sound, while in the process, creating not only an accessible singer-songwriter pop album, but a genre defining sound with style to spare.
With such a unique sound in tow, Kaliyuga caught the ears of Nic Harcourt, legendary host of KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic in Los Angeles, who has recently culled some of Justin's tracks into his program's rotation. Additionally, the title track 'Kaliyuga', is currently ranked No 26 on the Alternative charts at www.garageband.com.
Melodic.net most recently described Kaliyuga as 'a journey into a saga of musical mind ghosts and psychedelic colors…Kaliyuga could be the 2004 soundtrack for a possible sequel to the cult movie, 'Clockwork Orange'. To soak in all the impressions from Connor´s subtle piece of work, turn back the time to 1974 and the year between Pink Floyd´s classic "Dark Side of the Moon" and "Wish You Were Here".....well, Kaliyuga is the album Pink Floyd never released 30 years ago.'
Aiding&abetting.com called it 'gorgeous post-apocalyptic pop music ...the songs exude a kind of cheery melancholy and tragic beauty that's hard to describe any other way. These are songs for the end of the world – and end that you won't mind at all.'
In addition to being a musician, Justin is also an accomplished actor, recently appearing on such TV shows as Six Feet Under, Monk, Judging Amy, Angel, Boomtown, and Boston Public, while starring alongside Wilford Brimley in the independent film, Resurrection Mary, which premiered earlier this year at The Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
You can listen to Kaliyuga at Justin's website, www.justinconnor.com and purchase the album at www.cdbaby.com.
For more information, please contact Justin at [email protected]
