I Started To Live When My Barber Died is the initial offering on Grubbs’ similarly-named title, and it immediately hits listeners with a frantic and dense arrangement. Grubbs comes off as a more polished Steve Lieberman, a hectic mélange of different elements and styles that will immediately draw attention. Ornamental Hermit is a track that slows things down to provide a complex set of arrangements that are extraordinarily smooth. Grubbs…
U2 may come to mind first when you think of 1980’s political rock bands, but Australia’s Midnight Oil were just as strident about filling their songs with strong political point of views – not exactly the norm in a music decade obsessed with inane lyrics (lest we forget, hair metal was born and raised in the 80’s and killed in the early 90’s). Their biggest hits were about the mistreatment…
These guys are a 5 piece band from Norfolk, VA. They began 1996 out as the Pimps, are no strangers to a microphones, as they have released 3 7 inches, I EP, and 1 full length album. To add to this, they also have toured nationwide. I love bands that actually include lyrics sheets, and this album was made in 2000, has twenty five songs, and is on the World…
Straitjacket is the closest thing that I’ve ever heard to the UK ’82 brand of oi! that has been recreated successfully in the US with only one band previously: Patriot. Straitjacket feels as if they were pulled through a time rift and forced to play in Oregon for the entirety of their career (which is running on 7 years right now). The tinny yet impressive guitars and bouncy beat is…
Keep You has a retro flair that looks back at sixties pop and rock, while having a pointed and angular flair that is similar to Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party. The melodies do well in worming their way into listener head, a trend that is continued with It’s Too Late. It’s Too Late has a funkiness that is built off the work of EDM and ska music, with sizzling horns…
To say that “Alpha Ram” is not influenced heavily by the psychedelic and rock music of the mid to late sixties would be to lie outright. The style is fresh enough and Straight Dope Cherry does not suffer from the limited sound that a great many of the albums from that era have. There are some more diverse sounds than those previously mentioned during “Alpha Ram”; Straight Dope Cherry throws…
For their second full length, Philly power pop band The Fleeting Ends seems to have dug deep into the crate of vinyl for inspiration pulling out everything from XTC and The Features to Cheap Trick and Material Issue – never a bad combo. The result, Our Eyes Are Peeled, is quite impressive. Songs like the strings-laced “Operator” and the slow-build goodness of “Poor Gloria” highlight a band that’s found…
Black and Blue opens up Undertow, and this bit of stronger singer-songwriter is able to provide listeners with a style wholly unique yet familiar. Lovelie’s vocals blend perfectly with the precise instrumentation that bounces through pop, rock, and even alternative music before the track ends. Fire & Icicles shifts Lovelie’s vocals into a more rock style, while the quality of the instrumentation continues to impress. Every guitar line and drum…
Left of the Right Direction begins Ain’t That A Shame, establishing Winslow as an incredibly taut act. Nothin’s Easy further solidifies the technical ability of the band. Quarter Life showcases the emotional intensity of the band. While the CD has focused on their deft blend of pop and soulful rock, I feel that there is considerable emotional content that will increase the replay value of this album considerably. While listeners…
The Iowa music scene was pretty diverse in 1995. Sadly, the band a majority of the world most commonly associates with the music scene there is Slipknot, the ridiculous costumed metal kids whose shtick is only rivaled in goofiness by the Insane Clown Posse. It’s strange to imagine then that a gimmick-free band, with actual musical talent like The Nadas, was formed in the same year just 30 miles apart.…
The cohesiveness of Costa’s new album will bring a number of new fans aboard. The album opens up with Loving You, a track that looks back at 2010’s Mobile Chateau while allowing Costa to shift things considerable. Lyrical intensity melds perfectly with an approachable instrumentation to give the album the momentum it needs to succeed. Early November is the shortest effort on the title, but Costa utilizes the 2:30…
Shugo Tokumaru has continually evolved eir music to create something substantively different each time out. In Focus? is Tokumaru’s latest album, and the compositions that issue forth are some of the most complex efforts we have heard outside of full-blown concertos. The combined efforts of In Focus? provide listeners with a darkly emotive look into Tokumaru’s psyche as ey moves through indie to twee and even world music. Circle…
Don’t Go Messing With My Heart is the introductory track on Castles in the Sand, with an instrumentation that shines while highlighting Stockert’s imitable vocals. Stockert and the Como Brothers are able to make a very contemporary track built off the doo-wop and country traditions; a wide swath of listeners will be able to find something to appreciate. What They Say is a track that is destined for radio…
6 song EP, were founded in Finland in 1993. This is the sixth release by these guys, and the first on Necropolis records. They are a five piece band, and the CD Is definitely too short, as there are six songs in a 16 minute block. That comes out to about 2:40 a song. Very fast tempo on these songs, with unintelligible lyrics and killer guitars. Rotten Sound practically rivals…
The second part of Into the Rising Sun provides listeners with a considerably different set of instrumental elements than the initial one: Gandalf is able to link together the two through sheer ability, setting up listeners for Reaching for the Sky. Reaching for the Sky weighs in at 9 minutes (the disc’s longest), providing fans with an epic composition. The different movements in this track allow Gandalf ample opportunity to…
Param Sukh begins Path of the Divine; the narrative qualities of Teredesai’s Bansuri flute provide a cogent and coherent story that is weaved throughout the entirety of the composition. Shakti Dhyana is able to keep close stylistically, despite possessing an outward sound that represents a distinct facet of Teredesai. The tracks on Path of the Divine provide listeners with a brief glimpse into Teredesai the human just as they do…
Anders & Kendall may be a new band, but it’s comprised of a duo of music vets: Anders Parker, a solo artist and also former member of the Indie experimental band Varnaline, and Kendall Meade from Sparklehorse, Mascot and a handful of other groups. Wild Chorus, their debut, is a beautiful, bordering on precious (but not quite there thankfully) collection of nearly a dozen mellow, brushed drum, melody-drenched folk rock…
Cappadonna has continually been crafting music through eir career, with 1998’s The Pillage being a modern classic. Fifteen years have passed, but Cappadonna’s flame and desire to create stellar rap music has not faded. Eyrth, Wynd & Fyre is a two disc effort that does not suffer from the same problems that multi-disc albums have. This means that there is a good array of distinct efforts that touch upon…
Fat or skinny, Elvis put on one hell of a show and nowhere is there a better example of just how great he was as a performer than the Aloha From Hawaii via Satellite recorded in 1973 (ok, maybe with the exception of his 1972 Live from Madison Square Garden shows). It’s an amazing example of just how bad ass a performer he really was (for the record, despite the…
So Many Times Before is a cool effort, linking together Lynyrd Skynyrd-quality guitar riffs with a tremendously introspective and emotive set of vocals. For those that would doubt that this style would work, the honky-tonk strut of Right in Front of Me will convert. The style created by Hornyak on Marigold is something that is striking, in that it takes hints of Tom Petty, Hank Williams Jr., The Wallflowers…