NEW VIDEO: An Acoustic Cover of Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles"

Boyce Avenue recently teamed up with fellow YouTuber Alex Goot for the second time to record an acoustic cover of Vanessa Carlton's A Thousand Miles. The single is available on iTunes (Cover Collaborations, Volume 2) and the video was released today.



I really like this song a lot, so I was excited that Boyce Avenue decided to cover it. Their last collaboration with Alex, an amazing acoustic cover of Rihanna's Only Girl (In The World), is one of my favorite Boyce Avenue covers (easily in my Top Ten.) Alex is an incredibly talented pianist....add Alejandro on an acoustic and Daniel on the Cajon to the mix, and you just know it's gonna be awesome!!

What I love about this cover/video:

I love the sound that the piano and the acoustic create when they play the same notes in unison....I first heard it at about the 1:25 mark, and again at 2:49. you can hear it in other spots throughout the song, but those two spots are where it's most prominent...to my ear, anyhow. In Vanessa's version of the song, the notes are played on a violin, but the sound produced by the combination of the piano and the acoustic is just so different and unique...it's just cool as hell.

One of the things I love about Boyce Avenue is how much they love what they do, and that smile that Alejandro gives Alex at 2:26 is so fantastic....you can tell he's having fun. :)

What do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Another Great Collab from Boyce Avenue and Tyler Ward

Last week, Boyce Avenue released the video for the first of two collaborations Boyce Avenue did with fellow YouTuber Tyler Ward. This week they released the second one....a beautiful cover of Coldplay's "Fix You."

I wasn't too familiar with the original by Coldplay (shame on me) but I went and listened to it a couple of months ago when a friend mentioned it was one of her favorite songs EVER. Great song, but it didn't really resonate with me until I heard Boyce Avenue's take on it....this tends to happen on a pretty regular basis.



This cover is just amazing. It's very quickly moving its way up on my list of favorite Boyce Avenue covers. Alejandro and Tyler sound so good together! But honestly for me, the best part of the video is from about 2:33 on. Alejandro plays that guitar riff so flawlessly (I love Daniel's face at 2:37...you can tell he's very proud of Alejandro)....the control and emotion in Alejandro's voice from 3:55 to 4:22 is amazing.....and Daniel is rockin' that Cajon!! :)

One thing I did notice while watching Coldplay's video for "Fix You" is that they seem to put on an amazing live show, and their fans LOVE them. As an artist, I would think to hear thousands and thousands of people singing your songs would be such an amazing experience. Just for fun, here's Coldplay's video for "Fix You":

NEW VIDEO FEATURING TYLER WARD!!

Boyce Avenue recently collaborated with fellow YouTuber Tyler Ward, who will be opening for them on the upcoming European leg of their Fall Tour. Together, they recorded two new acoustic covers: Coldplay's Fix You and Fuel's Shimmer.

Tyler has said that Boyce Avenue is one of his biggest influences, and fans have been requesting a Boyce Avenue/Tyler Ward collab for quite some time now. (Watch the guys talk about this at the end of the video.)

Today, Boyce Avenue released the video for Shimmer.  Have a look.  And a listen.  :)



I like it.....I had never heard the original by Fuel....or if I had, I didn't remember it. So, I went and looked for it, and while I couldn't find an "official video" for the song, I found this version of it, performed live on VH1's Storytellers....10 years ago. And now I know now why I don't remember the song. It's because I never would have listened to it. It was not then, nor is it now, my kind of music.

For comparison, here's the video of Fuel performing "Shimmer" live.  Notice the title of it says it's the "best version" ...I beg to differ. I assert that the Boyce Avenue/Tyler Ward version DOMINATES Fuel's version, and is therefore, in my book at least, the "best version." But what do I know? I'm biased.  You be the judge.



Once again, Boyce Avenue has taken a song that I would never listen to and made me listen to it repeatedly. They're very good at that. :)

Side note: It just so happens that Tyler Ward & Crew kicked off their first US/Canada Tour two nights ago right here in Seattle, and I went and checked them out.  IT WAS AMAZING!! (More on that later this week in another post.)

What do you think of the new video? And for those of you in Europe, how excited are you that Tyler will be opening for Boyce Avenue in November?

Share your thoughts in the comments below!!

Fix You and Shimmer are now available on Boyce Avenue's Cover Collaborations, Vol. 2 on iTunes.

NEW VIDEO: Maroon 5's "She Will Be Loved" - Acoustic Cover featuring Tiffany Alvord

This cover was released on iTunes a few weeks ago....lots of fans asked for this one, and once again, Boyce Avenue doesn't disappoint.  This collaboration was the second with fellow YouTuber Tiffany Alvord.





Even though I bought this on iTunes the day it was available, I haven't really listened to it as much as some of their other covers, so I haven't gotten lost in the music the way I often do with these guys.  But the videos always make me "discover" something new in the song, and this time it was the guitar at 3:45.  I just love it....the sound, the melody, and of course watching Alejandro play the guitar never gets old for me.

Alejandro has always been so great about talking to fans on his Facebook Wall, and I've asked him so many questions about technique....one thing I've learned from him is that the guitar is a very versatile instrument, and I love all the amazing sounds that can come from it based on how it's being played, or what it's hooked up to.  Delay, reverb, an e-bow, harmonics....each technique produces a different sound and gives the music its personality.

I can't believe they'll be kicking off their US/Canada Fall Tour here in Seattle in less than a week!!  I'm beside myself with excitement and anticipation!!

NEW VIDEO: Taylor Swift - "Mean" (Acoustic Cover featuring Megan Nicole)

Another video was uploaded today from Boyce Avenue featuring Megan Nicole, who will be joining them on their US/Canada Fall Tour for the West Coast (September) shows.

I am not a Taylor Swift fan. AT ALL. So much so that on the rare occasion that I'm listening to the radio, and she comes on, I turn it off. I'm not really sure why....I've just never been a fan of country music. But I do think the lyrics to some of her songs are amazing, and this one has a great message to it.

I really like the way Alejandro and Megan Nicole sound together. I'd love to see them sing something together live.



And....hard as I try, I can't post about this without pointing out the smile at 2:55....

I caught Daniel smiling in the background a few times too. It makes me happy to see them enjoying themselves so much....it's so obvious these guys love what they do. It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes: "A smile is the light in the window of your face that tells people you're at home." (Author Unknown)

Share your thoughts about the video in the comments below. Thanks for visiting! :)

NEW VIDEO: "Skyscraper" - Acoustic Cover Featuring Megan Nicole

I'll be honest. When people first started talking about Demi Levato's "Skyscraper" I went to YouTube to see what all the fuss was about, and I just wasn't feelin' it. I'm not a fan of her voice, and therefore I didn't even give the song a chance. I thought the lyrics were cheesy as hell. When Boyce Avenue hinted at a cover collaboration of the song with Megan Nicole, I thought, "Meh...." and when it became available for purchase on iTunes, I listened to the 60-second snippet and thought, "Well, there it is....the first Boyce Avenue cover I won't own."

When the video was posted on YouTube this morning, I watched it because, well, it's a Boyce Avenue video.

I absolutely fell in love with this song in spite of myself. I went to iTunes. I bought the cover. I've had it on repeat all day. And the more I listen to it, the more I love it.

A little over a year ago, I went through a divorce. It had been coming for a while, but even so, it left me feeling completely shattered. It was one of the loneliest, darkest times of my life. Rather than give in to the darkness, I fought through it. I endured it. I am a better, stronger person for having gone through it. And THAT is what this song is about.



Rihanna's "Only Girl" ....Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" and "Firework" ....P Diddy's "Comin' Home" ....these are some of my favorite covers from Boyce Avenue. But this one trumps them all. I love everything about it.

Once again, Alejandro has taken a song and put his own spin on it, keeping it true to the original but making it his own at the same time. I'm continually impressed by his ability to do this. If I could spend a day just chilling with and talking to Alejandro, I would ask him to take me through this process in great detail. He's so creative in his use of instruments. I really love the Cajon and the tambourine in this one. They are used brilliantly.

Alejandro and Megan Nicole sound great together.

But my favorite part has got to be final chorus....Alejandro singing A capella, the Cajon coming in like a heartbeat, and then the two of them finishing the song together, is pure genius.

In retrospect, I'm not really sure what I was thinking. I should know better by now. Once a song has been Boyced, it doesn't matter how mediocre I think the original is. It doesn't matter how cheesy I think the lyrics are. Without fail, if Boyce Avenue covers it, my entire opinion of the song changes.

Okay....I think I'm done gushing about Boyce Avenue's latest masterpiece. So, what do you think of it? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

NEW VIDEO: Boyce Avenue & Tiffany Alvord cover Christina Perri's "Jar of Hearts"

Boyce Avenue recently got together with Tiffany Alvord and recorded a couple of covers: Maroon 5's She will Be Loved and Christina Perri's Jar of Hearts.

Today, they released the video for Jar of Hearts. Check it out:



I really like Tiffany's voice very much. She was one of two artists that opened for Boyce Avenue in February, and I thought she was really good. She and Alejandro sing well together; their voices compliment each other nicely.

Having said that, I gotta be honest....this is one that I don't love more than the original. I really love Christina Perri's voice, and the lyrics, in my opinion, are meant to be sung by one person, not a duet. So, this isn't a song choice I'm super excited about for a collaboration.

It's always awesome to have new stuff from Boyce Avenue to listen to, and I'm a complete junkie....so, even though it won't ever make it onto my Favorites Playlist, I bought the cover on iTunes. :)

Here's the original version from Christina Perri:



What do you think of the new cover? Do you like it more than the original? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Coming Home - P Diddy Dirty Money (Boyce Avenue & DeStorm) Video & Lyrics

Boyce Avenue recently teamed up with DeStorm Power for their second collaboration, a cover of P Diddy Dirty Money's "Coming Home."  As usual, this version totally dominates the original (sorry, Diddy, but it's a fact.)

The third verse to this song hit me like a brick.  Last February, my marriage ended, and I came home to Washington state, where I grew up, after living in Arizona for almost a decade.  I had no job, no money, and no idea what I was gonna do.  It was one of the scariest times of my life, but I fought my way back, and I'm now happier than I have been in a very long time.

Mad props to Boyce Avenue & DeStorm for taking a song that was mediocre at best and turning it into something uplifting, inspirational, and full of hope.

Check out the video below, and if you like it, buy it on iTunes on Boyce Avenue's Cover Collaborations album.




LYRICS:

I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world I’m coming home
Let the rain wash away
All the pain of yesterday
I know my kingdom awaits
And they’ve forgiven my mistakes
I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world that I’m coming

I said I’m back up in this place
And I’m finally at the front of this race
And I ain’t going back,
I'ma rip this track so the world should remember my face
I said I’m back up in this place
And I’m finally at the front of this race
And I ain’t going back,
I'ma rip this track so the world should remember my face

Yeah, I’ve been away for awhile
I gave my word when I returned
That I'd come back with a smile,
Or don’t come back at all
The world is throwing blows,
But I ain’t backing off
Everybody claim they want to grow,
But they just slacking off
It took a lot of years to put the hood behind me
The best advice I got was that I had to find me
Another day, another challenge
I never thought I’d see the day I’d be rewarded for my talents

I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world I’m coming home
Let the rain wash away
All the pain of yesterday
I know my kingdom awaits
And they’ve forgiven my mistakes
I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world that I’m coming home

And if you ever call up,
And say you fell down
It feels good that I can finally help them all up
I’m doing well now,
Let’s go to the mall now
We ain’t gotta split the bill,
I told you I got all us
Came a long way from those ghettos on the east coast
To 7th letter, 6th number, flying high who needs coach
I miss my son up in my arms, miss my homies, miss my mom
Her home cooking was the bomb
And even though she's gone I'm coming home

I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world I’m coming home
Let the rain wash away
All the pain of yesterday
I know my kingdom awaits
And they’ve forgiven my mistakes
I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world that I’m coming home

This one’s for all my people in the struggle,
Unemployed or working double shifts,
Take your head and lift it in the air,
One fist in the air
Reach for the stars, you’re almost there,
You can make it, I’ve been there,
You can take it, I’ve been there
Even though all the hope is gone,
Find something to focus on,
You need motivation,
That’s the reason why we play this song
To let you know you’re not out in this world on your own,
And the only time you’re going back,
Is when you’re going home

I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world I’m coming home
Let the rain wash away
All the pain of yesterday
I know my kingdom awaits
And they’ve forgiven my mistakes
I’m coming home, I’m coming home
Tell the world that I’m coming home

All Instruments, Beat Box, & Arrangement by Alejandro Manzano
Additional/Original Lyrics: DeStorm Power

Special thanks to Alejandro Manzano for help with the accuracy of the lyrics.