Category: Music Reviews

Posted on: March 23, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

OG Penguin Cry CD Review

Life Fight is a dense track that will yield additional twists and turns with each subsequent listen. OG Penguin’s flow during this track links together 2 Chainz, Killer Mike, and Danny Brown into something that is streetworthy while having enough in the way of hooks to keep listeners firmly at the edges of their seats. Say Yea has a slower, Kid Cudi contemplative feel to the effort that creates dynamic…

Posted on: March 23, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Xavier Toscano Feels So Good CD Review

Feels So Good is the latest album from San Francisco’s Xavier Toscano, a musician that creates his own unique flair by meshing together a wide array of musical styles and approaches. During the course of this 11 track magnum opus, Toscano is able to create something that is cohesive while showcasing a number of Toscano’s idiosyncracies.

Posted on: March 22, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Don Puglisi and Fall Down Pretty Bubbles of Light EP Review

Bubbles of Light begins with Ricochet Girl, a track that links together the alternative rock of the nineties with a more traditional rock (Tom Petty, Warren Zevon) sound. The production allows each element of the composition to shine separately as well as contributing to the track. The track has a hooky, catchy beat that will bury itself deep into the minds and hearts of listeners. Don’s vocals during this introductory…

Posted on: March 22, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Matthew Azrieli Chloe EP Review

Condoms & Razorblades has a tremendous instrumental arrangement that acts as the palette on which Azrieli’s vocals can shine. The vocals on this introductory track do more than please; there is a complex dynamic between Matthew’s voice and the instruments contributing to the track. What is on the surface a very innocuous sort of track is much deeper and varied of a portrayal. Subsequent listens will be necessary to hear…

Posted on: March 22, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Denny Diamond Diamond Mountain / Holly Holly Review

Denny Diamond is an emotive and impassioned performer that is able to reach a considerable range while holding listeners’ hands from the beginning to the end of his latest track, Diamond Mountain. The track ebbs and flows to keep listeners firmly planted on the edges of their seats. The narrative that is weaved through Diamond Mountain is compelling and represents one of the many ways that a listeners can enjoy…

Posted on: March 19, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Jay Mizz We’re On Single Review

We’re On is a Jay Mizz track that builds off of the work of artists like Killer Mike and Jay-Z to create something that works perfectly with the past and present of rap music. It is the ability to link together so many different styles and approaches that allows Jay Mizz the ability to make this a hit.

Posted on: March 18, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

CIKATRI$ Aie ! – le trois 2 x 7” Review

Quand me réveillerai-je ? is a raucous blend of noise, punk, and ultimately comes forth as a mélange of Muse, Radiohead, and Oasis. Qui le fera ? is able to push further, coming forth with a vocal / instrumental dynamic that creates a wall of sound assaulting listeners.

Posted on: March 17, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Anie Lovekill EP Review

Anie ties together a wide variety of styles on their Lovekill EP, with a vocaloid approach yielding to a smart bit of indie rock. The blend of computerized and organic makes for a tremendous introduction to the act. Only Ever This ties together a happy, lounging set of vocals with a scintillating mass of instrumentation that runs the gamut from wide-open skies to a dark, stormy night.

Posted on: March 14, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Dena Taylor Feature

Dena Taylor has created her own style of music from her home base in Austin, Texas that link together jazz, blues, and just enough of a pop hook to have listeners sitting on the edges of their seats. Taylor is prolific, having released The Nearness of You and Lullabies in the course of 12 months.

Posted on: March 12, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

The Frequency – The Frequency EP Review

Contamination is a high-energy assault that still has enough in the way of hooky arrangements and alluring vocals to make a play for heavy rock rotation. An absolutely sickening guitar line tears up the track and allows for The Frequency to provide a wholly different sound for the second half of the track.

Posted on: March 11, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Soulganic Didactic Interstice: Equilibria Vol. 1 CD Review

Soulganic’s third album, Didactic Interstice: Equilibria Vol. 1, showcases a wide array of styles and an evolution of the band’s style over 2010’s From The Storm to the Sun. Spaces Between / In Time Spaces Between / In Time is a compelling composition that will draw listeners in, allowing the constituent elements of the band ample time to shine. The rich tapestry that is created through the distinct elements of…

Posted on: March 10, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

CommonUnion59 Heartbeat Serenade CD Review

CommonUnion59’s Heartbeat Serenade begins with It’s Alright. The track does well in providing a proper introduction for fans, all while the act holds a number of cards close to their chest. There is a dynamic that is created between the two sets of vocals that stand separately from most music played on the radio, while the set of influences that can be discerned during this track ranges the gamut from…

Posted on: March 10, 2015 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Judas Priest – Defenders of the Faith: 30th Anniversary Edition

In the long, sometimes rocky, but almost always impressive career of Judas Priest, there are a handful of albums that stand out from their 20-plus releases that are considered by any sensible group as “Classics”: 1978’s Stained Class, 1979’s Hell Bent for Leather and 1980’s British Steel. Often left off that list though is the equally impressive Defenders of Faith, the band’s ninth studio album.

Posted on: March 10, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Ian C. Bouras Two Sides to Every Sunset CD Review

Ian C. Bouras has released his latest album, Two Sides to Every Sunset. The six tracks that comprise Bouras’ latest effort will take listeners on a journey through new age, reggae, rock, and electronic genres over the space of a half-hour. The album begins with The Light That Swims in the Darkness (A Bird’s Tale), a track that crams in a number of twists and turns over the course of…

Posted on: March 6, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Hollow Ground – Hollow Ground EP Review

Hollow Ground creates some sick and funky riffs with the introductory salvo from their new EP. This sound builds off of the work of acts like Alice in Chains and Corrosion of Conformity, with the tremenedous arrangements that comprise the album tattooing themselves deep into the psyche of anyone listening in. The anguished vocals that kick in after the first minute of A Way Forward provide additional credence for the legitimacy…

Posted on: March 6, 2015 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Texas – 25 (CD)

The Scottish pop band with the American name is yet another example of a great band that does remarkably well across the globe, with the exception of here. Despite some decent attempts over the past two decades, of the band’s eight records, only one (their 1989 debut, Southside) showed up on the U.S. sales charts, only reaching #88 before disappearing. 

Posted on: March 4, 2015 Posted by: Sargeant Comments: 0

Cognitive S/T CD Review

Cognitive is able to immediately kick listeners and fans alike in the ass with the opening salvo, Cut the Fuck Up, from their self-titled album. The production allows for the guitars, vocals, and drums to shine on their own while contributing to a breakneck, take no prisoners sort of attitude.