Sal Belloise

Artist: Sal Belloise

CD: The South in Me

Home: Clearwater Beach, Florida

Style: Acoustic Rock
 

Quote: " ... infectious guitar hooks, gruff amiable voice, and songs so likeable you’ll want to get in your car and drive around, windows wide open, with his music cranked to eleven, even if you weren’t planning on going anywhere."

I love this guy's infectious guitar hooks, gruff amiable voice, and songs so likeable you’ll want to get in your car and drive around, windows wide open, with his music cranked to eleven, even if you weren’t planning on going anywhere. His acoustic guitar is always at the center, cranking out juicy riffs that lean toward country, funk and with a lot of old-hippie-in-a-VW kinda vibe. His lyrics are clean and fun, and his band is pretty tight too, with harmonica, drums and bass complimenting the songs.

The disc opens with the title cut, a bluesy tome about being a true Southern guy. Some damn tasty harmonica completes it. "This Old Town" is more bitter, and while the title makes it seem like a nostalgic cut, it’s about getting the hell out of Dodge. There’s an ultra-cool guitar riff that glues everything together in "Shadow of Love." It’s cold in that shadow, and he’s sure he doesn’t want to stay. On "This Boat," you HAVE to shake your booty. Tight harmonies a la Crosby, Stills and Nash are featured in "Love Can." "All Your Love" is great party music where he sings "I’m the bank of love and I’m givin’ loans."

In "Bad Man," he tells us he wants to be the guy in the black hat but instead, he rides the bus every day and sits at a desk. There’s a great twangy guitar solo in the middle. It all wraps up with "Welcome to My Dot Com," where he invites us to "get your groove on." I certainly have.

You’ll have to pry his CD out of my cold dead hands, so get your own. You can download all the songs for free from his website but hey, put some dough in the band’s "tip jar." Great music like this is worth every buck and more.

Indie-Music Profile 

By Jamie Anderson
 

Song Title: Get Out Of My Life
Artist: Sal Belloise 
 

Hi Sal, dig the vibe-instantly engaging! Invites the listener in for the ride. Your song has a great & natural pulse- it percolates! The bongos/congas and jazzy guitar wrap around each other in a cool way. The solo section is happening- would consider 2 things: a shorter, simpler, more melodic solo. Another idea is to bring it down in the mix- it feels like it takes over the entire real estate. Not a deal breaker, simply my impression of course. Lyrically, you hit the mark very well. Again, would consider calling the song "I Don't Want To Change My Life" as it does seem to be the concept. With that, it's a cool turn around- the singer is singing this from his lovers point of view. She is saying these things to him. Love the "she said" tag. The arrangement rolls on in a natural way. Verse gives enough information and grooves right into the "channel" or pre chorus. Love the way you use the list-"get out of...", this is extremely effective and builds song well. The chorus brings in more information to complete the idea. Way to go Sal, look forward to more songs from your pen. Peace to you as well!

Style

Groove singer-songwriter. Jazz & soul foundation. Classic upbeat island vibration.

Melody

Very good throughout, builds well in each section. Rapid pace of melody suits song, flows like a river!

Structure

Well done, classic song form. Nice tag at the end. Bittersweet last word- "get out!" Effective.

Lyric

Well told story all the way down. Dig the way it never takes on a "victim" mentality. Believe that will get a lot of people on your side and engaged in the song.

Title

Good title, would consider calling the song "I Don't Want To Change My Life." That sounds like the hook and primary idea to me. Also, "get out of my life" is not given enough, if any, real air time.

 

Song Title: Own Little World 
Artist: Sal Belloise
 

hey there sal -- i really dig this song. my main concern though is how well it will stand up to repeated listens. songs with this much of it spoken rather than sung are certainly not unprecedented but are rare. now, there is some sung lines in the song, and there are others where the melody is not really explicit but is implicit. the vocal delivery is great, hits just the right tone and attitude to get the song across. it really does remind me of Lou Reed, which makes me chuckle a bit because Lou is so quintessentially New York. anyway, the vocal is cool. i would suggest seeing if there was an approach in here that could bring the melody out a bit more. some of the lines that are implicit, maybe they could be more explicit. i just think, like a mathematical equation, the more melody the more durability, and potential, the song has. then, there's the 12 string part. that too is a cool riff that some electric augmentation could help illuminate, and support the tune a little more. the other thing is the story. this is a classically structured lyric for this kind of song, and what is here works real well. for me though, there is no ending here, not even an ending that implies that it's all endless, or whatever. something empirical or something existential that puts paid to the whole concept. there is the recognition idea here, "We all live in our own little world". that's a step closer, still not the big prize, but closer. one of the things that is often found in the best pop music is revelation. something is revealed. maybe something more about why or how we live in our own little world. but, something is revealed that provides an umbrella for the verses, or a box to put them in, or a new way to look at this not-so-remarkable situation. something that makes you go, oh yeah, i get it, or i get something anyway. i hope some of this is useful to you. as i started out saying, i really dig this song, the guitar lick, the vocal, and the melody that is there. i just think it can be stronger, more durable, and have more room to move.

 Style

this sounds to me like what Lou Reed might have sounded like if he came from a more rural environment. the talk/sung approach, the wry intonation in the vocal, and the more explicit melody on the repeat of the chorus line

Melody

melody is more implicit than explicit. i think that if the balance of melody to spoken lines was shifted a bit in the direction of the melody the song would stand up better to repeat listens.

Structure

structure is cool. these kinds of song work with this constant narrative and just some spots of instrumental melody, or some other dynamic device. the verses build in their own way by virtue of accumulation.

Lyric

it's a great lyric. i do think though that there is an underwritten quality to it, and ultimately could be more satisfying. i think what is missing is the perfect last verse, that makes some kind of point, or sense of the whole shebang. something to tie it up, or even not tie it up but in a way that has some finality to it.

Title

title is appropriate, if not especially evocative.
 

Song Title: It's A Wonderful Day

Artist: Sal Belloise
 

It's a unique style Sal, with a somewhat old school approach to the music, which is the best as far as folk and country music is concerned, with an arrangement that shifts between the two feels nicely. Something that Lowell George use to do that he may have gotten from working with Zappa. Just good, fresh arrangement ideas. And the story/lyric is easy/simple in message and conveys the positive feeling. Come on....it's another day above ground. Enjoy life. Good lyric idea and writing. And I have to say, it has a bit of Grateful Dead in the feel of the track . But the playing and arrangement are better. It seems to me that you've got a lot of folk and rock influence in your writing. And that's a great thing since so much of the music of the 60's and 70's drew on those genres for inspiration. Groups like the Lovin' Spoonful and the Rascals and artists like Donavan and Dylan had so many great songs with great melodies and lyrics that you don't hear as much of today. This music is in that same style, with a bit more funk to it. Just the simple/unforgettable music and melodies tied to a simple lyric. Can't lose.If I could make one suggestion, it would be that the production could be a little stronger in terms of basic tracks. If you plan at sometime to pitch your songs to another artist or publisher, it would really help to have great solid performances an the recordings. Not that this is bad, it's not, but it could better in the rhythm section end of the recording. I know I keep repeating this, but it's a sure thing in putting together great recordings. Simple parts in the arrangement make for a solid platform for the music/melody and lyric. Especially in this style/genre. The music is good and song unique and memorable, still, a strong performance can make a big difference in how it's heard/perceived as a song.
But that's just an opinion.
Good writing and arranging.
 
Style

This is great country, or country/blues with some Clapton or Jack Johnson in the mix. It's also has a swampy feel, which is good, especially when it changes to straight time in the middle. The shuffle/swing gives it a roots/country feel, combined with the lyrics, which have a positive, folk style to them, make the song/style very unique/original.

Melody

The melodies are good through the song and the music is engaging.
It sounds as though there might be some John Sebastian in the melodies, which is great, he had the ability to keep it simple and unforgettable.
And the changes remind me little (emphasis on little) of Canned Heat.

Structure

The form seems to work well with this arrangement which has an interesting shift with the shuffle at the top and then to the straight feel for the finish. Good/solid arrangement.

Lyric

Though the lyric is simple in message, it has the imagery/visuals that make the lines memorable. It's good positive lyrics. You could say it's a love song in a certain way. Depends on hows it's perceived. Good lyric.

Title

The title works for the song and at the end of each verse as a tag/hook.
 

 

"Nothing But Love" by Sal Belloise is a blues driven acoustic rock album with a great live/raw quality to it. Sal's vocal performances are the big factor in achieving this sound as they are very clear and nicely produced. The instruments all have a great "Room" sound and the arrangements and lyrics are creative. Throw all of these factors together and you get an album that sounds like it was recorded in a coffee shop....but in a good way. The acoustic guitar work on the CD is impressive. Highlights include the title track "Nothing But Love," which has a catchy chorus, a standout bass line and some nice harmony in the vocals. "Wonderful Day" has some intricacy to it with tricky rhythms and changes, yet it is very listenable. Great blues riff too. "Wave of Life" has another awesome blues riff and more good vocal harmony. If you enjoy adult rock acoustic artists, give Sal a try.