The first time that I saw Julian Shah -Tayler he was at a Los Angeles Music Network’s LAMN JAM at Skinnys in NoHo Arts District.
Shaw was performing his original music with his band “The Singularity” and I remember thinking that his material was dripping with David Bowie all through his set. Tayler is good, very good and at composing his own works he is impeccable. His work has appeared in films such as: Maleficent (2014), Plush (2013) and Riot On Red Church Street (2012).
Tayler has won awards for the music he composed for film such as The 2014 Golden Trailer award for his “Maleficent” and ASCAP’s Homegrown Hits “Talking In Your Sleep” 2012.
I was so impressed that I wrote a column on him a few years ago which focused on his work with The Singularity. This time, I would like to talk about his Bowie tribute act “The Band That Fell To Earth: A David Bowie Odyssey.” This band is so true to the Bowie persona that it’s scary and had me dancing all over the place at The Standard/ Mmhmmm a while back. In fact, Tayler appeared as Bowie on the cover of the LA Weekly’s March 9, 2017 issue that focused on tribute bands and was also Interviewed for the article.
The place was packed with fans that knew every word to every song. My companion, Michele Coombe, was no exception and actually went out onto the dance floor and was bopping around with a bunch of happy fans. even scenester Sal Gomez put in an appearance at this show which blew me away because he had just shown up at the Love-In reunion at Griffith Park by the Merry-goRound. I hardly ever see this photog at any gigs that I go to and now he’s at two. FYI Coombe’s licence plate is “Soul Lov” on a red “Kia.” I should have realized that one of Vicky Hamilton’s favorite acts is Bowie when Coombe and I were on Hamilton’s “Appetite For Dysfuntion” tour in and around Los Angeles/Hollywood and she took us for a pass by of the place he lived in Hollywood when he was first coming up. The parties…oh my.
As I looked around all I could see were happy Bowie fan’s faces dancing all around me which includes my back as back there was Nick Lachey and my friend Vicky Hamilton was wondering if he was producing Tayler these days. We concluded that Lachey must be a fan.
Tayler can be found on Facebook and Youtube as well as his website which is www.singularitymusic.com; Instagram account is “The_singularity_music” and you can listen to his music on “Dropbox.com drop by and say hello to him sometime. A fan has mused: What if Bowie, Depeche Mode and The Cure had a baby? Tayler’s comeback was classic “The Singularity makes music that everybody says is 80’s Revival. It’s not my fault. I just love rock and synth pop and new wave. I try my best to be supermodern and all that good stuff, But it always comes back to what you’re comfortable with, I guess. So I will just leave it at that.”
Another great talent that I met through Tess Taylor’s LAMN is Richard Honig.
He has been crafting songs for children for a few years now and finally has a finished product that he wants to share with the public. His “Be The Change” EP dropped on 9/13/19 and the title is based upon a quote by Gandhi “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” It is a spiritual pop music for children and is meant to inspire, empower and transform them with a positive message.
Although Honig has said that his music is for children, I must admit that I also like it and find “Be The Change” to be very uplifting for anyone that listens to it. Honig hopes to spread the values that he holds dear such as the “Principles of every religion; kindness and Compassion.” “I seek to build people up and not take them down,” Honig adds as he explains his motivation for writing the three song EP.
Honig cites as his influences as The Clash because “They had a political viewpoint that challenged people,” and also Michael Jackson “Due to his ability to create Pop music with a message that can appeal to all ages.” Honig believes that his “Be The Change” is like Jackson’s “We Are The World” in that they inspire people to act in more positive ways. Honig added that he could have written Jackson’s “Man In The Mirror.”
Honig’s background in music began with studying music theory in college and then he took music lessons. “I don’t read music, I allow it to come to me intuitively” Honig explained.
As of September 13, 2019 his EP is available on Spotify, streamed on Apple Music/Beats and Youtube. In addition to this EP, Honig is planning to release an album which will begin in 2020.
Stephen Bray produced this fledgling effort with Honig and is slated to assist Honig with his album next year. Bray is best known for his work with the “Material Girl” herself…Madonna “Get Into The Groove” and “Express Yourself.” Bray is also known for winning a Grammy Award In 2017 for “Best Musical Theater Album” for “The Color Purple.
Honig, an East Coast transplant, has worked as a Financial Production Accountant on film and worked for 11 years at Walt Disney Television Animation on shows for ABC Television, Cable Networks and all Children’s Programming.
“I work in animation and people there have told me that my voice would make a great animated character. A series created around My voice and music,” Honig informs. Honig also added that he has studied at Second City Improv in 2016 and is looking to create Characters and sketches to use his comedy and music in.
What is Honig’s bottom line? “Be The Change was written to empower children to create the world they want to live in. It’s meant to build community and bring people together.” What is Honig’s future plan for his music? He would like to create a “Woodstock” for children where children’s performers such as himself and “Raffi” et al could come together and help empower children to create the world that they want.