This probably won’t be that hard for you to believe, but despite the fact I more or less make a living talking about music there are still great new bands that I don’t discover until well after they have made a splash on the national stage. I like to think I do a fairly good […]
best new artist
FEATURE: Stop Making Excuses & Start Listening To Oh Honey
May 14th, 2015 
James Shotwell 
Posted in Editorials, Features, News, Reviews 
Tags: Be Okay, best new artist, discover, editorial, new music, oh honey, opinion, Postcards, Sugar You, you need to know 
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The Next Band To Change Your Life: Empty Houses
January 14th, 2015 James Shotwell If you have been following along to the Twitter chatter in the alternative music realm this week you have no doubt seen someone mention Empty Houses, the Detroit-based trio of Ali Shea, Adam Mercer, and Dave Mackinder (Fireworks). January is a busy time so it’s completely understandable if you didn’t have time to commit to […]
Posted in Editorials, Features, News, Reviews, Streams Tags: 2015, Adam Mercer, Ali Shea, best new artist, dave mackinder, detroit, discover, Empty Houses, ep, fireworks, michigan, motown, new music, pop (genre), review, stream Comments Off on The Next Band To Change Your Life: Empty Houses
Albums and Artists That Will Transcend My Year
December 16th, 2014 Scott Murray I’d like to close out my first year of music journalism with a short list of short lists in typical end-of-the-year fashion. It’s been a wonderful half-year here at Under The Gun Review and I’ve had the pleasure of working with and getting to know some very talented and passionate journalists in my time so […]
Posted in News Tags: 2014, Album of the year, alternative, best new artist, best short release, end of the year list, ep, Independent, indie (genre), pop (genre), post hardcore, rap (genre), rock (genre) Comments Off on Albums and Artists That Will Transcend My Year
Denzel Curry Continues To Gain Momentum With “Zone 3” Video
December 9th, 2014 James Shotwell 2015 may very well be the year of Denzel Curry. The rapper, who was born and raised in south Florida, has been on everyone’s watch list since the release of his album, Nostalgic 64, at the tail end of 2013. Curry stayed on the radar throughout 2014 by touring and building his brand off the […]
Posted in News Tags: best new artist, denzel curry, most anticipated, music video, Nostalgic 64, Zone 3 Comments Off on Denzel Curry Continues To Gain Momentum With “Zone 3” Video
Leon Bridges Is About To Become Your New Favorite Soul Artist
October 26th, 2014 James Shotwell The greatest moments in life are those that catch you completely off guard. Be they big or small, it’s the unexpected occurrences and chance encounters that keep life exciting, and earlier this week I stumbled across someone who has quickly won his way into my heart. If you have a few minutes to spare I […]
Posted in Editorials, Features, News, Streams, Unsigned Tags: .mp3, best new artist, Better Man, coming home, download, editorial, Leon Bridges, new music, soul, stream, Texas, unsigned Comments Off on Leon Bridges Is About To Become Your New Favorite Soul Artist
Ayler Young Offers A Pop-Heavy Take On Funk With “You Can’t Buy Love”
August 4th, 2014 James Shotwell At the beginning of the summer, the editors of UTG held a digital meeting to discuss our plans for the future. At the very top of the list was increasing our focus on in-depth content, and following not far behind was a universal desire to expose more up-and-coming artists to our readers. We like to […]
Posted in News, Streams Tags: .mp3, 2014, ayler young, best new artist, Buzzworthy, discover, funk, nyc, portal, stream, you cant buy love, you need to know Comments Off on Ayler Young Offers A Pop-Heavy Take On Funk With “You Can’t Buy Love”
Fall Under The Spell Of Knuckle’s Dirty Rock With “Living Hell”
July 15th, 2014 James Shotwell I made it a point over the past month to pay more attention to the up and coming artists whose press releases flood my inbox on a regular basis. In a perfect world I would listen to every single promo I received, but with 200+ messages coming in each day, allotting that much time to […]
Posted in News, Streams Tags: .mp3, best new artist, discover, download, knuckle, living hell, new music, stream, you need to hear this Comments Off on Fall Under The Spell Of Knuckle’s Dirty Rock With “Living Hell”
Required Listening: Dizzy Wright Releases “World Peace”
September 3rd, 2013 James Shotwell Even though the long weekend makes the return to work a bit better, there is no getting around the realization that sense of freedom that poured into Monday has now been exchanged for the promise of another paycheck. Still, there is plenty of good in the world to be happy about, and today we’re going […]
Posted in News Tags: 2013, best new artist, discover, Dizzy Wright, music video, review, the golden age, world peace Comments Off on Required Listening: Dizzy Wright Releases “World Peace”
UTG CRUSH: Drop Everything And Fall In Love With Smallpools
July 17th, 2013 James Shotwell Wednesday has shown its soul-crushing face once more, but this week we have a new pop act for you to discover that is going to change the mood of your entire day (if not week). Hailing from Los Angeles, Smallpools is a newly formed quartet that boasts a sound that is both fun and well […]
Posted in News Tags: best new artist, discover, dreaming, music video, pop (genre), review, smallpools 1 Comment »
UTG LIST: 5 Artists To Watch In 2013
January 28th, 2013 James Shotwell One of our biggest goals in 2013 is to bring you even more new and cutting edge artists than ever before. Be it music, film, comedy, or something else altogether that absolutely floor us, we are dedicated to helping usher in the next wave of talent that will soon overtake the industry. Just over a […]
Posted in Columns, Features, News, Unsigned, UTG List Tags: 2013, 5 artists to watch, bad rabbits, best new artist, best new bands, boston, CONDITIONS, Dangerkids, five artists to watch, full length, list, ohio, sign these bands, Squid The Whale, tiny moving parts, top 5, unsigned, We Can Roll 2 Comments »
UTG LIST: 5 Emcees You Need To Know
June 6th, 2012 James Shotwell At the beginning of 2012 UTG released a list of five artists we felt needed to be watched in the months to come. Of these artists, all five have gone on to land record deals, gain more exposure, and slowly but surely take their place as the future of the alternative music scene. While we’re […]
Posted in Columns, Features, News, Streams, UTG List Tags: 5 artists you need to know, artist to watch, best new artist, best new hiphop, best rapper, best rapper alive, club paradise, countdown, discover new hip hop, Dreamon, Drew32, freshman, hip-hop (genre), jimmy hustle, jitta on the track, music discovery, ourstage, Spenzo, the future of hip hop, top 5, top 5 young emcees, top emcee, unsigned, utg list Comments Off on UTG LIST: 5 Emcees You Need To Know
UTG LIST: 5 Bands To Watch In 2012
January 12th, 2012 James Shotwell The new year is here with hope of new albums and bands that will change the face of music for the better. The problem is, modern technology has allowed for anyone with the slightest hint of an idea for a song to record, upload, and annoy masses with their “music.” This has caused an overload […]
Posted in Columns, Features, News, Reviews, Streams, Unsigned, UTG List Tags: 2011, 2012, 5 artists to watch, 5 bands to watch, acoustic, American Opera, bands to watch in 2012, best new artist, best new bands 2012, hot new bands, i can see mountains, Mallory Knox, michigan, mixtapes, music video, new music, new york, ohio, Pentimento, pop punk (genre), rock (genre), stream, unsigned, utg list 1 Comment »