This band actually really named itself and this album well, as the music contained on it is really space, with jangling guitars and airy lyrics. This is not to be meant in a negative way, but really is just a description of the band. Think of pop-rock, and you might have an idea of what this act sounds like. Surf rock meets up with strains of indie rock and mid-90s…
Imagine if Jello Biafra was a female. That is what Silverado’s singer, Tracy Lemieux sounds like, and this band continues in the Dead Kennedys vein, attacking each song with an amazing sort of urgency. Screaming is the normal vocal mode for Tracy, and there aren’t any ballads, any slow songs, anything that detracts from the normal rock’n’roll style that opens up the disc. “The Hook”, a song presumably about…
sisterpete-Demo CD-Extreme Records-A very professional sounding band, most likely coming from the 7+ years experience and bring a very interesting sound to the table, and as a comparison I can offer up Silverchair and Bus. sisterpete is a very socially conscious band that devotes time from their busy tour schedule to do shows with Make A wish foundation and Musicians Against Substance Abuse. They are not afriad to include their…
Wait, is it 2006 or is it 1986? Well, with “Everything”, Since Remembered sounds like a band that would have much more in common with acts off of Dischord Records as of twenty years ago. But is this a bad thing? Hell no, as the fury captured by Since Remembered on “Coming Alive” is so much that the production buckles at the gargantuan duty of picking up all the…
The interesting thing about the opening of “Pictures From The Hotel Apocalypse” is perhaps the sheer amount of psychedelic rock that Since By Man inserts into their opening “Emergency And Me”. The disjointed sound cultivated by the aforementioned track and elaborated upon in “Lactating Teens”. “Young America” has a sound that can be heard in a thousand different hardcore bands throughout the United States; the only thing that really…
Unless you’re a student of British hard rock, chances are you probably know little about UFO, but bands like Dokken, Tesla, Megadeth and yes, even Metallica, owe plenty to these heavy metal pioneers. Founded in 1969, London’s UFO started out as first generation headbangers and continued with that sound throughout most of the following decade, but by the time they hit the ‘80’s they had settled into a more mature,…
The introduction to Where Da Cash At is excellent, the instrumentation setting the stage for a gritty street track. The flow that follows forth soon after has hints of Trina, Nicki Minaj, and Princess (Crime Rob). Where Da Cash At is an always-on track, with a high amount of energy and the momentum to blast through to the end. Where the vast majority of female rappers seem to blend into…
Incredibly intense jazz sessions from this band, somewhat surprising to me because most of the looking-back jazz that I’ve heard has been unnecessarily unoriginal. The piano lines that Chris begins “Big Foot” with rival anything speed-wise that such great pianists as Earl Hines could do. The bass lines put down by Simon Fisk during the opening compromise an metaphorical and literal bridge that really bring all three instruments into something…
Ray Tarantino is an exciting musician that we stumbled upon a few weeks back. He has just released a new self-titled album. This 2012 release covers a wide array of different musical styles, genres, and overall approaches to music. It is this eclectic nature that makes this title a must-have. The evolution that has taken place since Tarantino’s debut, Recusant. Recusant benefitted from the masterful production of Simply Red’s Tony…
Sittin’ In My Room is a track that has so much soul to it that listeners will immediately be singing along. The track has it all, whether it is a solid production, a hot flow, or an instrumentation that properly highlights all points of T.O.N.E-z’s output. Where the lyrical content of a great many rap songs are lost in the mix of red-lined synths and guitars, I feel that…
The energy that resides barely beneath the surface on the Silversun Pickups’ “Kissing Families” is something to behold. Lead vocalist Nikki finds the skill to show that ey has the desire to completely snap and lash out against the world, but tempers it to a T and really makes everything fit underneath the Breeders-meets-System Of A Down like sound that “Pikul” has. This is unrepentant, angry indie-rock that breaks…
The hopeful opening of “Carnavas” puts listeners into a good mood. The fact that Silversun Pickups play such an interesting brand of indie rock should keep listeners in that mood. The fuzz present on the guitars is unnatural, but Silversun Pickups can couch it in a compelling way. During tracks when this type of distortion is present, such as “Melatonin”, the guitars (and distortion) are the key emotional force…
The sad thing about this recording in that in no way captures the intensity or impressive nature of the band, especially after one has seen them live three or four time. However, this is a strong step in a direction where a great many of these nascent local scenes need to go in cataloging their music, even if it is only on a CDR (as Nothing Special is). The…
The opening to “Something Pretty Something True” is in the same vein as acts like Fiona Apple and Joan Osbourne, but there is a less bland instrumentation that is flittering behind Silver’s vocals. For this opening track (the title track), there is a heavy Hispanic influence to the track that gives the track a certain international flair. “Flame I Should Fear” has much less of this innovative sound, and leaves…
One of the first acts to be signed onto the Tiberius Records roster that does not personally involve one of the Tiberius owners, Silo the Huskie have a lot to prove with their Tiberius debut, Sons of Columbus. Sounding at times like Jawbreaker, Smoking Popes, Soul Asylum and even early R.E.M., Silo the Huskie plays well with the newly reenergized Tired Anchor-era Thistle. Having the average tempo of any Sons…
In on It begins with Good Kiss (From A Bad Girl), a track that touches upon a wide array of styles and genre. In the course of the first minute, hints of Bauhaus, Tom Waits, and even Soft Cell can be heard. Marc James is able to make this track germane to current listeners due to intelligent instrumentation and an always-catchy arrangement. Out of Touch keeps fans listening, with a…
The drums that start off “Rebirth of the Temple” are tied to a heavy, deep brand of chanting. Imagine if the soundtrack from Xena was mixed with a tribal beat and the Benedictine monks. That is how the opening selection “Call To Arms” starts off the disc, before Silent Civilian starts off the meaty side of the disc with “Funeral”. The track is a blend of classic metal a la…
The title track for “Takk” is very atmospheric, using synthesizers to really add a bold, brooding body to the beginning of this disc. Incorporating melodic, almost-instrumental sounding vocals to “Glosoli”, the most curious thing about Sigur Ros on the track is that everything sounds so experimental but the track is truly beholden to typical tempo and progression (in terms of arrangement). Sigur Ros puts forth a challenging face but really…
The accessibility of this song really made me wonder; all the discussion I had heard about Sigur Ros in the past was that they were a difficult, trying band to truly like. Still, the way that “Saeglopur” opens is nothing less than commendable; where the track begins in a dreamy way, the musical (and rock-influenced) explosions that the band inserts into various intervals of “Saeglopur” shock listeners into a much…
So, New Line sounds like they dug up a early sixties rock band’s long-lost debut and have pandered it off as a rock-revival disc. The presence of very active synthesizers really adds a certain veneer to the early tracks (I’m Going To Live…”, “Circus”) and makes the chipper vocals of Eddies stand up even more. The fact that The Sights have been around for 7 years explains the solid, confident…