Chip Raman – Edge of a Song / 2007 Rosebud / http://www.chipraman.com / It has been quite a while since a straight-forward chap with a guitar sounded this was. Individuals will hear a lot of the sixties (Neil Young, Bob Dylan) in Raman’s style. Obviously, Young or Dylan never said anything about opening up their Nokia, but the style of Raman is unmistakenly influenced by these two giants of rock.…
Dave Sasscer – Quiet Mind / 2007 Self / 10 Tracks / http://www.davesasscer.com / Dave Sasscer is the lynchpin of the eponymous project that released “Quiet Mind†this year. Joining Sasscer are the Mojo Conga Jam, a group of talented musicians that have spent time in the supporting acts of the Indigo Girls, Shaun Mullins, Omar Hakim, and Hiram Bullock. The first track on “Quiet Mind†is “(When) She’s in…
Lorrie Ruiz – Chewy / 2007 Self / 10 Tracks / http://www.chewyonline.com / The funk meets jazz sound of “Slipping Away†gives first-time listeners to Lorrie Ruiz a good grounding in the styles that will present themselves throughout “Chewyâ€. While Ruiz does craft a sound that is rooted heavily in earlier music styles, the resulting music does not sound dated in the least. Instead, the allure of a “Slipping Away 
Onesidezero – S/T / 2007 Corporate Punishment / 13 Tracks / http://www.onesidezero.com / http://www.corporatepunishment.com / Onesidezero start off their self-titled album with a musically heavy track in “Carry Your Gunâ€. When the band throws the vocals into the mix, what results is something that does not mesh completely. The vocals struggle to approximate the roughness of the instrumentation. This means that there are two distinct threads present in this opening…
John Phillips – Jack Of Diamonds / 2007 Phoenix / http://www.varesevintage.com / This album marks music from John Phillips’ “Jack of Diamondsâ€. For those that might not know, this was a previously unreleased album that marked music that Phllips created from 1972 and 1973, and was unreleased for whatever reason.  Varese Vintage here has not only committed the disc to the CD format, but has added 5 new tracks, whether…
Judee Sill – Live In London / 2007 Water / 18 Tracks / http://www.runtdistribution.com/water.html / While it is true that some individuals in the current period know who Judee Sill was (Water Records released the demos for Sill’s unreleased third album as “Dreams Come True†back in 2005), chances are still strong that if you were not a fan of eir music when ey released eir self-titled (1971) and “Heart…
Psychic TV – Hell Is Invisible / Heaven is Her/E / 2007 Sweet Nothing / 10 Tracks / http://www.genesisp-orridge.com / In regards to actual full-length albums, and not singles (2002’s Snowflake/Illusive) and live albums (2003’s Live…series, 2006’s Live in Russia), it’s been a few years since Psychic TV has released anything. Genesis P-Orridge’s band’s last foray into studio albums were the triplet of albums that were Breathe, Cold Blue Torch,…
Canvas Solaris – Cortical Tectonics / 2007 Sensory / 6 Tracks / http://www.canvassolaris.com / http://www.lasersedgegroup.com / Despite the fact that “Berserker Hypothesis†is a mere four minutes long, the harder progressive metal played by Canvas Solaris here bends and breaks an individual’s sense of time, with the band’s detailed arrangements being what stretches the perceived runtime of the track to a time much longer than reality. “Sinusoid Mirage†follows up…
Delft – The Brain Is Wider Than The Sky / 2007 Self / 5 Tracks / http://www.purevolume.com/delft / “Declare Your Love To The Person On the Right†is the first track on “The Brain Iss Wider Than The Skyâ€, and it immediately defies categorization. The band is able to go forth and create a rock style that draws influences from Coldplay, Queens of the Stone Age, Muse, and even Interpol…
The Hibernauts – Periodic Table / 2007 Self / 7 Tracks / http://www.thehibernauts.com / While the opening of “Off Key And Violent†does not sound much different from what a countless number of indie rock bands are doing at the current, The Hibernauts step up their game immediately and come forth with a catchy, hooky set of vocals. Of course, the instrumentation is driving and supports the vocals much the…
Botox Party – E.P. / 2007 Upchuck / 6 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/botoxpartyva / http://www.upchuckrecords.com / Aside from some crust punk albums, the runtime of “E.P.†has to be some of the shortest I’ve ever heard. This does not mean that the harder edged punk music of Botox Party is forgettable. In a way, a track like “Problematic Emotions†calls forth bands like Pulley and “Cheshire Cat†or “Buddha†era Blink…
The Hazey Janes – Always There / 2006 Measured / 3 Tracks / http://www.thehazeyjanes.co.uk / “Always There†is the first track on this EP, and it sounds like The Hazey Janes have heard a lot of “Big Meâ€-era Foo Fighters. The opening strains of the track have a high amount of this influence, with only later the band taking a sixties boy band (think a blend of equal part Beatles…
Scene of Action – S/T / 2007 Pop Smear / 5 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/sceneofaction / http://www.popsmearrecords.com / I have to be honest here. When I first the instrumentation at the beginning of Scene of Action’s disc, I heard The Killers. In much of the same way, the first time I heard the band’s vocals on “Daydream Stop hockâ€, I thought they paid off Gerard Way to do the vocals. The…
Caleb Micah – Come Home / 2007 Aux / 6 Tracks / http://www.calebmich.com / http://www.auxrecords.com / “Come Home†starts out with “Juan Shoe is Gonna Rock You!â€, a track that uses a duet of vocals done in a back and forth style that is given the perfect amount of support by the slightly country-tinged sound of the guitars and drums. This style reminds me vaguely of The Anniversary, but don’t…
The Action Design – Into A Sound / 2007 Pop Smear / 6 Tracks / http://www.theactiondesign.com / http://www.popsmearrecords.com / The first track on “Into A Sound†is “The Scissor Game†and it gives The Action Design a rock meets goth type of sound that really brings the band into a Nightwish or an Evanscence sound in my opinion. The second track on the disc is “Eyes On Meâ€, and aside…
Monikers – Eat Your Young / 2006 Kiss of Death / 5 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/monikers / http://www.kissofdeathrecords.com / “Eat Your Young†starts out with “Informationâ€, a track that has a emotional blend of guitar and drums until the slightly snotty vocals of the band kick in in a very Fat Wreck type of style. The production of the disc seems to oppress the guitars and vocals while giving an accurate…
Sleeping Pilot – Panic Sex / 2007 Sonic Deadline / 8 Tracks / http://www.sleepingpilot.com / http://www.sonicdeadline.cjb.net / Sleeping Pilot start off their “Panic Sex†with “()â€, a very dark and brooding track that gains energy slowly, rending individuals with confident and aggressive guitars and at-attention drums, just waiting for the right moment to strike. Despite this deep and dark sound first shown by Sleeping Pilot, the use of brooding arrangements…
Fangboner – A Joke Gone Bad / 2007 Lightning Rock / 5 Tracks / http://www.fangboner.net / http://www.lightningrockrecords.com / “Quiet Riot†is the first track on “A Joke Gone Badâ€, and it shows Fangboner as an act that is very in tune with the punk rock of acts like The Weirdos ad The Dickies. The vocals of Sheamus Carney remind me a little bit of Devo, and the heavily-rock based punk…
Collin Raye – Selected Hits / 2007 StarPointe Records / http://www.collinraye.com / http://www.starpointerecords.com / What Collin Raye does on eir “Selected Hits†is essentially make a Greatest Hits EP. Like many greatest hits albums, there are a few new tracks to whet the appetites of completists (this time, “A Soldier’s Prayer†and “Quitters†make their appearance). Also like many greatest hits albums, there are tracks that everyone that is a…
Karmina – The Kiss / 2007 CBS / 5 Tracks / http://www.karmina.com / http://www.cbsrecords.com / “The Kiss†is the self-titled opener to this pop star’s latest EPs. “The Kiss†has a sound that seems like a more mature version of early Hilary Duff. There are hints of artists like Kelly Clarkson present in Karmina’s overall approach. The instrumentation works well in highlighting all the right places during “The Kissâ€, but…