Crystal

Plying their trade in the fertile San Francisco scene of the late '60s, Crystal Syphon's name was only known to aficionados through viewing copies of old SF gig posters and through the index of bands at the back of Ralph Gleason's book on the rise of Jefferson Airplane. Then both their studio and live 1967-1969 archival recordings were discovered that replaced the imagination with true grooves in 2012 and 2015 with the release of 2 LPs on Roaratorio Records. Trying to find comparison with other Bay area bands from that era has proven a bit fruitless as they don't specifically evoke any of the heavy hitters of the era. They have a bit of a dreamy, stoned vibe with some great harmonies and some have compared their style to Quicksilver Messenger Service (John Cipollina was their idol!!) as well as H.P. Lovecraft. As with so many bands of the era, the draft, time and declining fortunes signaled the end of the band. There is some great guitar work alongside the Farfisa organ in the extended jams, and fans of the west-coast sound should delight in these recordings.

Fans of 80s Metal, Melodic Metal, and AOR will be very satisfied with 2020. Despite drawing from songs spread across two decades, the fresh recordings and production on these tracks makes for one seriously powerful double disc release…

With a voice as powerful as Crystal Shawanda's, it's hard to imagine she would wind up performing anything other than Blues. From deeply soulful ballads to knock-you-on-your-butt R&B, Crystal's energy and love of blues and soul comes out in every performance. As a songwriter Crystal and her creative partner, producer Dewayne Strobel understand how to build a great song around her ability to wring an immersive emotional experience out of each lyric.Following her 2021 JUNO win for Best Blues Album, Crystal Shawanda returns with Midnight Blues coming out on True North Records on Sept 30. Featuring the song of the summer "How Bad Do You Want It" with 6 new original songs and 4 covers, Crystal's take on Willie Dixon's "Evil" and Buddy Guy's "What Kind of Man" twists each into a woman's point of view.

Overall, ‘Crystallizer’ is a thrilling blend of power metal and hard rock, and with its sing a long style choruses, you’ll be singing along from start to finish…

The album "Crysteria" opens a new chapter in Crystal Ball's history. In its third decade, the band is far from just repeating itself and you can find new, fresh and energetic elements in the music…