The style of music that The Ruse plays is a more smoothed out version of U2 and Oasis; “Everything Comes With A Price” is a vocal-dominated track. This is not to say that the instrumentation is nothing less than impressive; the guitar lines on a song like “Everything Comes With A Price” is something that can be calm and collected even as they bristle with energy. The Ruse is a…
A little bit of Screeching Weasel, some Queers, Ramones and Misfits, and one has an idea what The Runs sound like on their “Wet Sounds”. The tracks run into each other, making the fourteen cut “Wet Sounds” blast through at a Flash-like speed (it ends before the twenty-seventh minute). The production of the disc is well above another achieved by the early Screeching Weasel albums, and tracks like “Rancho Slutadero”…
Immediately reminiscent of The Postal Service, Phiadelphia’s Run Away From The Humans have created a strong sound and style for themselves only after a year of exist. Everything is sequenced and the first track “Wake Up, Wake Up” gains its energy for dreamy vocals and Aeffect-style synthesizers. The synthesizers, played by also-vocalist Jason, are crisp and clean, sounding at times like “Good News-era Modest Mouse, incorporated with a life act.…
Trying to come up with a shoegazer type of rock band that doesn’t sound pretentious or over-the-top is a hard thing to do, especially since the rapid rise of popularity of The Flaming Lips as a viable band with no talent. The Rum Diary does have talent, no questions about it, but there is virtually no soul behind this music. Take “Killed By The Cowboy President”, for example, a track…
The transformative power of music is something that really transcends boundaries, whether human created or naturally made. This means that what Astrid Williamson does on Pulse is something that speaks more generally to humanity. The specific genre and styles broached during this album do not matter as much as eir honest and earnest approach, something that is refined over the course of the album’s 10 tracks. What results with this…
There have been two distinct forms of country music that have been splitting apart over the course of the last 15 or 20 years. While the line between pop and country has been blurred by a great many of the current wave of country artists, there are still a number of practitioners of the older country and western style. Of current artists, there are not many that attempt to join…
The interplay that is created by Goese and Neill on their Songs For Persephone ensures that the CD will remain in a purchaser’s player for months to come. This is not noticed only in the instrumental side of things, but also through the whole effort that follows from the disc’s initial track, Roma. The stylistic choices that are made during Songs For Persephone are nothing less than inspired; blending together…
Listening to Pink Floyd’s three decade spanning, 14 song catalog, two things are clear; One: they were more than a tad bit pretentious at the beginning. With droning organ solos and album titles like A Saucerful of Secrets and The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, you can almost imagine that scene from Spinal Tap with the little people dancing around the replica of Stonehenge actually came from the acid-soaked…
The type of music that issues forth during Naked Truth’s Shikaru is incredibly interesting, even more so considering the breakdown of the members. Both the Pat Methany Group (Cuong Vu) and King Crimson (Pat Mastelotto) are represented, while Roy Powell is the pianist and Lorenzo Feliciati rounds out the act on bass and guitars. What results on Shikaru is a mélange of the different influences and styles that each member…
The ease in which Fiery Blue moves across different genres is absolutely amazing; it takes just a few seconds for the act to shift gears and link together country, rock, and even pop music into a cohesive and coherent approach. Our Secret is a title that will give something to everyone, no matter what types of music one fancies themselves to appreciate. Our Secret is one of those special titles…
Go-Getter is the first track on Rock & Roll Freedom Show, and it immediately provides listeners with an intimate look into Gonzales’ life and influences. While Gonzales’ overall style on this introductory track will fit perfectly in with pop and rock radio, I feel that there is a much more complex and nuanced sound that is cultivated on this album. The music that is on Rock & Roll Freedom Show…
The different members of Lithium Seven all bring their own blend of influences and styles to the table, and it is thus not surprising that there is a unique, eclectic style that is created in each of this EP’s five tracks. The album starts out with the eponymous track, which ties a bit of rock to a much more emotive feel. “Last Light” is something that gradually grows and increases…
Most the time that we have reviewed a children’s-focused album, the resulting music was at a level below that of similar releases. Where there has been the rare children’s title that has been able to hang with other similar-genre releases, Jeanie B’s newest album Sugar Buzz easily pops to the top of the heap. Each of the tracks on Sugar Buzz do more than delight with catchy hooks and fun…
You know what’s great about a musician like Tom Waits? Aside from being a great songwriter, he has made a musical career out of simply doing his own thing, not content to change his vocals or music style to fit into whatever happens t be the prevailing trend (this is a guy who was signed by David Geffen alongside 70’s country rockers like The Eagles and Jackson Browne, and said…
This is Wolf’s debut recording, but listeners will not be able to tell that with the caliber of tracks that are present. The album begins with 427 Mass Ave, a track that immediately introduces all to where Wolf is from and where ey wishes to take you with the rest of the album. Natural Beauties immediately follows up 427 Mass Ave, and showcases the storytelling skill of Wolf more than…
Clotilde is the first track on Minor World, and it immediately solidifies City of Ships space in with some of the darkest and most intense metal bands currently creating music. The act is able to create some tremendously emotional tracks on the album, all while moderating them with intense guitars and fulfilling drum work. The band is able to blend together equal parts indie rock, metal, and even alternative into…
It is always interesting to hear a band take on a different sound than what individuals may associate with them. Sometimes, it fails (Lil Wayne), but I can say that Not So Loud is a certifiable hit for The Bottle Rockets. Where there was a more punk and rock sound that would issue forth on previous recordings, the acoustic side of this recording ensures that fans of folk-punk and even…
Egypt Central has been around for a minute on the national rock scene, but I believe it is with White Rabbit that they will become the best known. This is because the album is chock-full of solid singles, while the band does a great job in linking together the disparate bits and pieces of their style. “White Rabbit” begins with “Ghost Town”, a track that will immediately capture the minds…
Roll The Bones is one of those Rush albums that was largely forgot. I remember the title being fairly strong, as my father purchased it when it originally came out (1991). Audio Fidelity has picked up the title and is attempting to restore some of the glory that it rightfully deserves. By remastering the original tapes to a current level and placing it onto a 24K gold CD, Audio Fidelity…
The eclectic way in which Cheryl Alexander starts out her Resilience Redefined is a great way to involve a larger subset of listeners than would normally be keyed in to her music. With the opening strains of “My Innocence”, one can hear a tremendous array of different influences that range from pop to female singer-songwriters like Janis Joplin to rock and metal and even to bluegrass and country at the…