Whether it be at the local sushi buffet or some of the more upscale Japanese establishments that we here at NeuFutur have been to in the last few years, we have made it a point to check out the sake menus. It was quite a pleasant surprise then to received the Ty Kyu Sake for review a few weeks back, so much so in fact that we had to get…
It’s easy to forget just how long Blur has been around. Thanks to the handy timeline tucked inside the liner notes of the anthology Midlife: A Beginner’s Guide to Blur, you realize that they started before the EU was officially established, before the Soviet Union broke up and just one month after the Internet was opened to the public. The 25 tracks that make up the release – a collection…
You’d be forgiven for taking the Stone Roses for granted a bit. They only had one remarkable album (their self-titled debut) and it was released in 1989, at the beginning of alternative rock’s heyday, forcing them to compete with everyone from Depeche Mode to Nirvana. But thanks to Legacy Records, the Manchester-based band gets another shot. Because of the infectious, if a bit mopey single “I Wanna to Be Adored, 
Despite only having two members, the folk-inspired indie pop duo Smile Smile – comprised of Ryan Hamilton and Jencey Hirunrusme – manage to make some fairly expansive songs on their debut. Blue Roses, originally released in 2006 and re-released this summer, is remarkable in its simplicity.
Wolfenstein was one of the first video games that I remember playing for the computer that was any bit fun (so, titles like the Oregon Trail are exempt). It is not surprising that I was eagerly anticipating the next release in the line, this 2009 release by Activision. The title is based off the same software that both Doom 3 and Quake 4 were couched in, ensuring some form of…
We here at NeuFutur have had the chance of going through a number of different whiskies over the course of the time that we have had the alcohol review section active. Buffalo Trace is the newest of this spirit sent over, and what will immediately hit potential purchasers is the more classic, cowboy-themed feel to the bottle. The rich copper color of the spirit offsets the beige of the label…
On first blush, it would appear that the architect of the new Love and Rockets tribute album was just pulling random names out of hat. How else do you explain one hit wonders Better Than Ezra, alongside more indie-minded artists like The Dandy Warhol’s, Frances Black and up-and-comers War Tapes?
As sometime guitarist for Dayton’s favorite sons Guided By Voices and Robert Pollard’s post-break-up solo work, Doug Gillard delivered album after album of satisfying jangly lo-fi pop. On Call From Restricted, his own latest solo effort, Gillard delivers more the of that familiar jangly guitar pop, but with impressively accessible vocals.
You’d be hard pressed to find any characters as cool as the suit-sportin’, booze-swillin’ ad men (and women) that populate AMC’s incredibly original series Mad Men. The second season, just released on DVD, followed through on all the promises set out in the debut.
Australian novelist Tom Gilling may not be that well known outside of his native Australia, but if his latest book is any indication he surely should be. The surprisingly funny mystery/thriller Seven Mile Beach is far more interesting than any of the last few Grisham and Patterson tomes lining the book shelves.
A live album by a band that’s been missing from radio for a good two decades is usually a bad sign. A gimmicky half acoustic, half plugged in record is even more ominous. But Philadelphia’s once-favorite sons have managed to pull of the difficult, putting out a nostalgia record that is just as good, if not better than anything they have done before. The first disc was recorded live in…
There are certain liberties authors are granted. Only David Mamet can get away with stringing together seemingly unrelated explicatives into believable dialogue the way he does; only Stephen King can make Maine seem like the third circle of Hell; and only Joe Lansdale, Texas born and bred, can get away with the often goofy quotes his duo Hap Collins and Leonard Pine spout off on just about every other page…
The only really disappointing thing about Let Go, The Silent Year’s latest EP is the length. At six songs, the band’s latest is an appropriate follow up to last year’s decent full length The Globe, managing to eclipse those songs both musically and lyrically. The group delivers unpretentious indie pop in the vein of What Made Milwaukee Famous and Vampire Weekend (without the goofy prep school kid attitude). The album…
With each different bottle of the stuff we get, I feel that we here at NeuFutur find a new variety of rum. This time, Gosling (Castle Brands) has provided us with a black rum, which I personally thought was significantly different than dark rum. Turns out, it’s just another term for that version of the spirit.
“So Much Better†is a song that ties together rock and alternative music in a way that touches upon the work of Edwyn McCain, The Eagles, and even early (“A Boy Named Gooâ€-era Goo Goo Dolls). The production of “So Much Better†is important due to the openness that it allows. Each instrument is able to shine, while there is a warmth to the compositions here that will make it…
There’s something about acoustic guitars that draws former punk rockers like moths to a flame. Frank Turner, former member of Million Dead, unplugged after his band dissolved about three years ago and decided to go the route of Billy Bragg, writing lyrically smart, occasionally politically-tinged folk rock songs. On Love Ire & Song, his second full length (he’s also released a couple of EPs and a new LP is just…
Jamiroquai’s perfects at Montreux is impressive on all fronts. First off, for those that may be new to Jamiroquai’s music beyond their (few; “Virtual Insanity†heading them up) hits in America, there are a number of new tracks to sink ones teeth into. For those that wish to see a pre-Dynamite version of the act, this performance seems to give 1999’s “Synkronized†and 2001’s “A Funk Odyssey†much more in…
I know that before receiving “Ride Onâ€, I was knowledgeable about some of Bo Diddley’s work but had no clue exactly how detailed and expansive the set of eir works truly was during this period. To put this in perspective, Hip-O Select is already on the third volume of their Diddley releases, and they are only three years out from Diddley’s debut release (1958’s eponymous album). Considering that Diddley was…
The Hairdresser’s Husband (Le mari de la coiffeuse) is a 1990 film by Patrice Leconte, whom individuals may know as the director of 1978’s Les Bronzés, 1985’s Les Spécialistes and 1989’s Monsieur Hire. Leconte is interesting because of the wide array of genres in which ey works; the aforementioned Les Bronzés is a comedy, 1996’s Ridicule is a period piece, and The Hairdresser’s Husband showcases Leconte’s ability to go beyond…
The Mathilde Liqueur Orange X.O may seem to some to be yet another triple sec on the market, but I feel that the spirit is much more similar to a Grand Marnier than a Combier. Of course, the orange flavor is the focal point of the spirit, but I feel that the taste is much more nuanced than that. While the nose is based off of the orange base of…