“Songs of Ascent†starts out with “Modah Aniâ€, a track that has a contemporary sound, albeit one that is tinted with a Middle Eastern flow. When Wilson’s vocals begin, they operate more as an additional instrument instead of going forth and furthering a narrative. This shift in the role of the vocals represents just one of many things that Wilson changes and does differently on “Songs of Ascentâ€, an album…
“Fade†is a perfect introduction to Sweden’s latest export, Leo Nielsen. Nielsen (better known as just “Leoâ€), begins “Fade†with nothing more than a twinkling piano. This simple arrangement tells books worth of narrative, uniting with Nielsen’s soulful, softly spoken vocals soon after. The style of vocals that Nielsen contributes to “Fade†is something pretty unique, coming forth as a blend of Coldplay and Lionel Richie. The choir-like arrangement that…
Chances are if you have been involved in the bar scene in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania over the last decade, you have seen the Cosmic American Derelicts play out. Their brand of rock-cum-country is something that can be appreciated by anyone, and with the opening track “Sleepwalking Killerâ€, Cosmic American Derelicts are poised to increase their fan base considerably. This track is a driving bit of country-infused rock…
I can see Zach Raizman coming forth with the tracks on “Zachâ€, his latest EP, on a path that will ultimately place him alongside the Jonas Brothers and Naked Brothers Band as a king of pop. After individuals hear the first track on this eponymous EP, “Superstar†, they will likely come to the same conclusion. “Superstar†links together the pop tradition of a Jesse McCartney and an Aaron Carter…
“Whisper’s Song†begins Martino’s “A Storyâ€. This track is integral in understanding the range of approaches and styles which Martino is capable: in the space of a few minutes, Martino has really done more than many musicians have done in the course of a disc. The track’s five-plus minute runtime places it at the longer end of “A Storyâ€â€™s tracks, but the calming, serene nature of the track will get…
The band’s newly converted veggie oil-powered bus will take them westward for a week of shows in Texas and Oklahoma with Bear Colony before joining up with Fake Problems and Cobra Skulls for eight days of Left Coast shenanigans. Finally, the boys will conclude their national expedition in the Southeast playing shows with The Winter Sounds.
Denny has put out this zine for a longer time than I’ve even been into zining at all, so ey knows what ey is doing. This issue takes place as a number of journal entries, and details a few key things to happen in Denny’s life. This includes having the Gods of noise punk, PG99, stay at eir apartment, having a fight with the followers of eir’s boyfriend’s band, and…
Montreal space-proggers KOSMOS have been nominated for Metal/Hardcore Album of the Year by the Quebec Indie Music Awards! KOSMOS, featuring members of VOIVOD, PARADISE, TRICKY WOO, and GRIM SKUNK, released their self-titled debut via THE END RECORDS on September 4th of last year.
Individuals might not be familiar with Craig Bickhardt from name alone. For film buffs, however, individuals may know of Bickhardt from the compositions that he contributed to the classic flick “Tender Mercies”, that starred Robert Duvall. If the individual would not know Bickhardt from that linkage, he has also penned hits for stars like Pam Tillis and Martina McBride. Knowing that he penned hits for those individuals does not give…
ARTIST SONG ALBUM Boys Noize Arcade Robot Oi Oi Oi Boys Noize Oh! Oi Oi Oi Dropkick Murphys The Warrior’s Code The Warrior’s Code Fort Knox Five feat. Mustafa Akbar The Spirit of 75 Radio Free DC (lp) From First To Last Worlds Away From First To Last From First To Last Two As One From First To Last From First To Last We All Turn Back To Dust From…
In ‘Girls and Weather’, The Rumble Strips have recorded a truly classic debut album. With their somewhat eccentric origins in Devon, the four young men from Tavistock have fashioned a set of songs steeped with huge, life-affirming choruses all awash with the optimism of youth. This is a band whose sound and look is entirely their own: thundering drums and piano, brass to stir the soul and singer Charlie Waller’s…
Matthew West – DePauw Concert – 2001 This act is actually the singer along with two of his friends in this incarnation of the band. Each song has an independent feel to it that holds so much more in each lyrics then the casual listener can comprehend. One interesting thing about this act is the fact that non-traditional drumming styles re heavily used to give the band a truly different…
Apollo Sunshine’s brand-new full-length, Shall Noise Upon, is out today on Headless Heroes. The album finds the multi-talented trio skillfully displaying their versatility throughout the 16 tracks, from the driving electric “666: The Coming Of The New World Government†to the harmony-laden “Singing To The Earth (To Thank Her For You)†to the deceptively unadorned “Money,†a truly beautiful record that marries the talents of Apollo Sunshine with their energy…
‘Sup is to interviews that Shredding Paper is to reviews. However, interviews can be constructed a myriad of ways and questions can be asked pretty much any way to get to any final point. To keep it short, interviews are a much more versatile way to get to know a band or act, and allow for the act to verify or deny certain things that must be taken as speculation…
With his second album Cantarell, Secret Dakota Ring mastermind Andy Ross steers his project towards beautifully realized stylistic extremes of pop. Each track reveals a bevy of musical surprises. From the multi-layered summer-of-love psychedelia of “Losing Eyeballs†to the stark strings-only arrangement of “They Got The Wrong Guy†to the Hitsville USA pep of “The Fade to Black,†SDR have crafted a uniquely detailed and completely individual half-hour of ultra-catchy…
Over The Rhine is an act that shocked me. I was guessing a much more folksy, classical style out of “Discount Fireworksâ€, but I hear something like a slow-baked version of Sheryl Crow. The opening track, “Last Night On Earth Againâ€, is a very radio-friendly song and only goes into a more musical style when the slide guitar plays at the peripheries. This sound continues through “If Nothing Elseâ€. The…
The Decemberists will embark on the “Bridesmaid Revisited – Tour 2008” shortly after an election eve performance on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien.” A limited number of pre-sale tickets go on sale TODAY to the public on a first-come, first-served basis at http://www.decemberists.tickets.musictoday.com. General ticket on-sales begin on Saturday, September 6th, for East Coast dates and on Saturday, September 13th, for West Coast dates. Portland-based band Loch Lomond will open…
As the Puzzle Quest franchise expands into outer space with new game Puzzle Quest: Galactrix, D3Publisher’s official Puzzle Quest website, www.Puzzle-Quest.com, has relaunched in cyberspace. Fans will have access to a showroom of all current and future games in the franchise including Puzzle: Quest: Challenge of the Warlords and its exclusive expansion pack Puzzle: Quest: Challenge of the Warlords – Revenge of the Plague Lord from Xbox LIVE® Arcade for…
Abacus– This band is pop hardcore in the vein of what the Blitz and WAZU play. Metal with definite influences of Metallica, Pantera, Godsmack, and Sepultura. Most fake hardcore bands like this suck, but Abacus actually has more of a metal edge and is easier to listen to. The guitarist also has some really kickass solos, and the drummer is a speed demon. Fist of Gold- Creed+ New metallica sounding…
Hermosa Beach punk rock icons Pennywise, celebrating its 20th anniversary, raised its collective middle finger in the air to the music industry this spring and did the most punk rock/DIY thing imaginable; they gave away their latest record Reason To Believe for free. In fact, 400,000 downloads of Reason To Believe were recorded during a groundbreaking, two week promotion that gave Pennywise’s MySpace friends the opportunity to download the whole…