Music Review and Giveaway: Malea McGuinness Close as Air CD

** THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED ***

Music has always been a main stay in my life and when I find out about new singers, I want to spread the word among friends and family.


Well ya'll KNOW your friends and family, right?  Hope so!

When I head about a female pop/rock singer-songwriter, Malea Mcguinness, who is has been been garnering lots of attention for 'CLOSE AS AIR', her sophomore album, I wanted to check out her music! Luckily for me (and YOU), Nathalie over at The MuseBox, was a willing enabler! (and yes, I SO want to duplicate her eye makeup from the cover for Halloween-very cool!)

The first song I played on the cd, the lead single, was "Spinning" and boy was I HOOKED! Talk about grabbing you out of the chute! (The lead guitar is a little loud, just bear with it- problem with live video!) Check it out:



Her voice is hard to pinpoint and niche- a slight hint of country twang, a la Linda Ronstadt or Emmylou Harris, mixed with the catchiness of Stevie Nicks, and some R and B flavor a la Roberta Flack. Add in some Celtic lilt from Loreena Mckennitt and the raw emotion from Pat Benatar, and then you've got it. See, HARD to describe!

This summer, Malea has been touring vigorously across the US, in support of 'CLOSE AS AIR' , sharing the stage with Shawn Colvin and Kenny Loggins on their 2010 national tours. Born in Ft. Hood, TX, the exotic beauty is the daughter of an Irish Green Beret Father and a Korean Mother. She attended prestious music programs, and then pursued singing opera at the prestigious Manhattan School of Music, and then landed a featured role in the Broadway revival of The King and I. She decided something was missing and moved to LA, taught herself how to play guitar, wrote her own songs and started appearing at the infamous Viper Room, the Roxy and others. She released her first album, True Believers in 2007. The singles off it were popular, leading to her performing at the Milwaukee Summer Fest with rock legends like BB King and Bon Jovi! 


The songs on CLOSE AS AIR, she says represent a longing for closeness and the kind of extended family Malea feels she missed out on as a child. “It’s about having faith in something you can’t necessarily see or touch,” she says, “a higher calling, a higher being…

On “Stars,” where she sings: “There’s a wild and lonely child in the airport, Standing there with tears in her eyes,” she says, “That was me at five, waiting to be picked up my grandparents.” I think alot of people whose parents divorced will be able to really relate to this song!



“Birthday” is a light country twinged song that will leave you singing the chorus over and over to yourself- "You're like a birthday that's come early this year, heaven made my wish come true, sweet sugar down to the last drop, every day is like a birthday with you". I want to see you get that chorus OUT of your head after you hear it! Not gonna happen!

“Tonight” celebrates finally finding her one true love after the bittersweet romances of “Memories,” about her time as a struggling performer in New York City and is an homage to the city (“You were mine/For a time/And I knew you/For awhile”). Both will have you humming and nodding along!

In “No More,” she gets rid of a troublesome ex (“Crazy doesn’t work no more, the wheels still turn, but the gears are broken, baby it doesn't work with me no more, I have the keys to my own cage, and I can leave it when I please”). It will have you laughing and nodding at the same time- most women will be able to 100% relate to it! It's also the perfect divorce song in a way!

“Falling” and “Time Will Show” are about being able to count on your friends for support in times of crisis. The lyrics will have you thinking of your friends and are very inspirational in their own way! And I love that she says "take a breath and know that you can, .... don't be afraid to fall".

Her cover of the standard “Water Is Wide,” an Appalachian mountain song, sounds like it came from the O Brother Where Art Thou? soundtrack, and really showcases her wide ranging voice, and demonstrates her love for what she calls “real country music”: “Give me a boat, that can carry two, and both shall row, my love and I.” This is a classic song, and Malea gives it her all and makes it hers!



Together the songs blend together and feel like you've stepped into a year of Malea's life as her best friend, and been there to share her pain and joys. I think most women will really relate to her songs, and I think teenage daughters really need to hear songs like"Falling", to inspire them to be strong and take chances.

Malea has her own signature model acoustic and electric guitars with Korea-based company, Peerless Guitars. Malea is an extremely active animal rights activist, and regularly collaborates with humane societies and rescue organizations all over the country. Currently, she serves as a guest blogger on PetLvr.com: http://www.petlvr.com/blog/ 
Talk about a well-rounded person- the type you would LIKE to get to know as a friend- check out her cd and you'll feel the same way! AND Now you can!

GIVEAWAY:

Three readers will win their own  cd copy of Close as Air!

ENTRIES:

Make sure I have an email address, with your comment, 

so I can contact you,if you win!   
If I don't have a way to contact you, you will forfeit your win!

USA /Canada
 

3 day winner's rule : Winner has 3 days to acknowledge they won prize,
and confirm address, if no contact, then new winner will be picked in their place. 

Please post each entry separately, i.e. 2 posts for Subscribing:

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• Tweet about this contest (3 entries), please include @BTHM1 in your tweet!  (this can be done DAILY for 3 entries PER day)  
• Blog about this giveaway (4 entries)

BONUS:   Enter this post link in a Giveaway Linky on another site (5 entries)** MUST provide link to the Giveaway Linky!

Contest will end on September 7th, at midnight. Winner will be picked by Random Number (random.org) on September 8th, and emailed. As soon as winners info are received, I will mail their cds to them during the following week.

Disclosure / Disclaimer:  I was offered this cd, free of charge,from The MuseBox PR Firm, for review on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to review the cd.