REVIEWS AND PRESS
Recent Press:
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Meet The Sidleys:
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Sugar Kingdom reviews:
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"I love this album! It’s fun and joyful with beautiful harmonies, and also touches on some powerful themes. Personal favorites include Twilight and One That Got Away. Sugar Kingdom takes you on an evocative journey!"
-Lisa Berigan, I Heart Radio
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“Great song…LOVE it!”
- Cerphe Colwell, Music Planet Radio and legendary DJ from the original WHFS
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“Love it Annie, it's got a great feel even before the vocals which are also great as always. You really keep bringing it on so well.”
- Steve Houk, Living On Music
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"Influenced by artists such as Stevie Wonder and The Beatles, and powered by Annie’s soulful voice, The Sidleys write songs that are memorable and modern, yet instantly classic. Operating as a family based collective, The Sidleys are composed of Sean Sidley (drums), Colin Sidley (bass / vocals), Ian Sidley (keyboards / vocals), and are spearheaded by mom and dad Annie and Steve‘s collaborative efforts on production and vocals.
With three critically acclaimed albums under their belt, The Sidleys have become indie rock connoisseurs of the Washington DC area and are ready to further infiltrate the scene with their fourth album, Sugar Kingdom. - Mundane Magazine
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"Out via My Money Records, the new Sidleys album is a timeless testimony towards the sonic treasures of contemporary rock music. Grappling with the changing hands of time and the effects of love, life, and death, the new album's twelve songs rear their way through the psyche of the listener, causing a mirage of introspective feelings to arise as a result. Annie Sidley's vocals are riveting, providing the icing on a sugary sweet cake filled with catchy hooks, mesmerizing melodies, and charisma all bundled together into one sonic existence. Juxtaposed with calm guitar timbres, addictive synths, and oscillating drum patterns, Sugar Kingdom is a wonderful soundtrack for a sunny spring day, and will have you uncontrollably humming the songs you hear." JD-RDFO - https://www.rockdafuqout.com/post/the-sidleys-make-their-triumphant-return-on-sugar-kingdom
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Breathless reviews:
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..."Overall, Breathless by The Sidleys is an exquisite masterpiece. This is one group that has demonstrated what beauty a love for music can produce and use this medium of sound to instill a passion for their lifetime craft in their audience." https://warlockasyluminternationalnews.com/2020/06/23/the-sidleys-new-album-breathless-is-where-we-need-to-be-musically/?fbclid=IwAR1BAq24uLvQYOpNfoLfDNtlGLvGhDr2SODx1X15DrtkV5PCH_sfG6IevD8
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..."The Sidleys create memorably sophisticated pop music. They point to influences as diverse as Stevie Wonder and the Beatles. On the surface, that may seem like much too wide a range. After listening to this eleven-song album, these two inspirations make much more sense. The Sidleys are just as comfortable singing something with a soul groove, as they are with laying something British Invasion influenced down. Their team, consisting of an inventive instrumentalist and a striking led singer, is an unbeatable combination. Indeed, some moments here just might leave you breathless. It is one strong album." https://skopemag.com/2020/06/24/the-sidleys-new-album-breathless
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..." Opening the album up with style is the sweeping gestures of “Lately I Don’t See You Anymore”. Her voice has fire behind it while the whole track races through. Urgently delivered “Break Your Fall” features a great sense of defiance as a sense of optimism reigns supreme. Dreamy and outright beautiful “Lullabies” serves as the highlight of the album. With a poppy spirit that recalls latter day Elliott Smith."http://www.beachsloth.com/the-sidleys-breathless.html
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...There are lively groovers such as the perky pop-rock of Break Your Fall and I Didn’t Know’s bluesy shuffle but their finest moments come when they are dealing with more considered sounds. Lullabies is a suitably lush pop ballad, The Ocean & The Wave an understated snippet of shimmering guitar work and Sweetest Hush is a soul-infused slice of sonic sass."https://dancing-about-architecture.com/2020/06/22/breathless-the-sidleys-reviewed-by-dave-franklin/
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..."Annie's voice is just wonderful, she sings like she's telling a dream story; the technique and rhythmic combinations used by Sean are evidence of his prodigious performance on drums; the enveloping bass sound played by Colin is sensational; and Ian's piano accompaniments denote an advanced understanding of harmony and jazz performance techniques."http://www.flyahmagazine.com/2020/06/music-review-breathless-sidleys-by-yami.html
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The Love You Make Reviews:
"Full of vitality and color is the funky psychedelic rock stylings of the Sidleys 'The Love You Make'. Passionate to its very core the way the songs unfold gives them a majestic tenor. Vocals lead the way and dominate the rest of the proceedings. Everything simply works and the multiple layers collide in a glorious display. Melodies are infectious and the grooves so inviting. Instrumentally rich the songs are a virtual kaleidoscope of textures as the Sidleys rush through them with the utmost of joy." - Skope Magazine https://skopemag.com/2017/06/02/the-sidleys-the-love-you-make
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"The two already accomplished DC-area musicians could have kept going the way they were going, doing well-received solo projects on their own and collaborating on each other’s records, all while using various musicians they know to fill in the gaps. A soulmate duo plugging away to see if they can find that elusive golden road forward in an ever-challenging business.
Sure, they could have chose to stay that course, keep it just the two of them.
But why do that, when you have three talented, energetic musicians you can add into the mix hanging out right in your own home.
Welcome to the band, Sean (21), Colin (19) and Ian (18) Sidley." - Steve Houk, Washington Life Magazine
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"The group cites a wide variety of influences spanning several generations, and the listener can sense both musical kinship and a depth of artistic maturity in the songs, especially on new album The Love You Make, which was released earlier this year. Blending a vintage feel with modern energy, The Sidleys create a timeless, soulful sound that is simultaneously easy on the ears and relentlessly hooky." Squatchful http://www.squatchful.com/featured-artist-sidleys/
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"Oh my goodness, you never heard of the “The Sidleys’? They must be the coolest band on earth right now!...Forever and ever! The Sidleys, the coolest live band in the entire galaxy!" YIKIS online magazine
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“If The Sidleys as a group prove one thing, it’s that inspiration can come from the damned of places. The husband and wife team began as lifelong friends, transitioned to partners, then parents. Then they split. Though they continued to work together within their musical career, they would leave to separate residences. Finally, they decided to put their “selves” aside and the couple reunited. The result is a 13-track album that tells their tale, appropriately named Bittersweet.”
Christopher West - Scope Magazine
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“The 'Intimate' nature of clubs and small venues come across in the production of these tracks and most likely are a result of reproducing the sound they get in those venues. The result is a very 'In your room' production, almost as if your in the control room with the band as they play...The song 'Bittersweet' is a funk/R&B/Pop un-complicated song, catchy, well performed and produced...They are producing finely-crafted songs that should appeal to many people. I could see some of these songs being taken up by producers...I think they should just keep doing what they are doing, because that can be far more rewarding and real. The album 'Bittersweet' is well worth a butchers at."”
Artist Launch - www.artistlaunch.com
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“With the release of “Bittersweet,” The Sidley’s offer up a no-holds-barred look into a crumbling relationship that is striving to find understanding, so that it can be rebuilt on more solid ground. The narrative is set to a rock influenced pop backdrop, filled with smart arrangements, excellent musicianship, and painfully honest lyrics.”
Scott Paddock - Mobtown Music Guide
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"A veteran "DC Diva" with a knock-out voice, Annie Sidley performs original, soulful pop shot through with old-school R&B rhythms. Her husband Steve is her co-writer and co-producer, a multi-instrumentalist...some years in the making, The Sidleys have a new CD out, Bittersweet..."
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“IT DOESN'T take long for singer Annie Sidley to deliver the goods on her new CD, "Diamond in the Sand." Stirring vocals rooted in soul and gospel power the opening track, "Keepin' It Strong," with its themes of unity and affirmation, and spill over into the rest of the album, charging it with strong emotional and spiritual currents. "I'm holding onto faith," a line from the album's title song, pretty much sums up the prevailing mood.Even so, Sidley often turns in her most affecting performances when she appears to be holding on for dear life. That's certainly the case on the back-to-back tracks "What Are We Fighting 4?" and "Bitter River." The latter, a mournfully yearning piano ballad, quietly stands out, displaying both the power and beauty of Sidley's voice. Other cuts, including the hypnotic coda "Marrakesh," reveal cross-cultural influences, but because Sidley's strong R&B ties are always evident, she seldom sounds as if she's drifting too far from shore.”
Mike Joyce - The Washington Post
