Strength Behind Tears – Bridges Between Us / 2007 Basement / 10 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/sbt / Strength Behind Tears is a band that I have never heard before conducting this review, but apparently they have went on a national tour and have played with acts like Scars of Tomorrow, Undying, If Hope Dies, and As Hope Dies. “November Tenth†is the opening track on the disc, and it shows Strength…
LKN – Postulate II / 2007 Greyday / 13 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/lkn / http://www.greydayproductions.com / About a year and a third ago, I reviewed the predecessor to “Postulate IIâ€, which as some people could guess, was called “Postulate Iâ€. I ultimately loved the album, and likened LKN’s sound to a Patti Smith or other similar artists. This is LKNs new album, and the disc starts out with the same instrumentally…
ALO – Roses and Clover / 2007 Brushfire / 10 Tracks / http://www.brushfirerecords.com / This is the fourth album by ALO. I was not familiar with the act before reviewing this album. The disc starts off with “Mariaâ€, and the song feels as if the Counting Crows and Rusted Root united with the seventies pop stars. This is to say, there is a high amount of focus on the instrumentation…
My American Heart – Hiding Inside The Horrible Weather / 2007 Warcon / 11 Tracks / http://www.myamericanheartrock.com / http://www.warconent.com / My American Heart I’ve heard of before, but I’ve never had the chance to hear until now. “Hiding Inside The Horrible Weather†shows that the band is definitely capable enough to craft a rock sound that has more than its’ fair share of emo influence to it. The tracks on…
Monstrance – S/T / 2007 Ape / 12 Tracks / http://www.apehouse.prevuz.com / Reviewed 24 June 2007 Two former members of XTC are in this act. Obviously, the band is linked to Andy Partridge, but former XTC keyboardist Barry Andrews is an integral part of this act. Andrews was in the band Shriekback with the third member of Monstrance, Martyn Baker. This is a two-CD set, and shows the love for…
Steve Lieberman – Melancholia Falling / 2007 Self / 21 Tracks / http://www.gangstarabbi.com / Reviewed 23 June 2007 Steve Lieberman is pretty much the one constant that I have had in the last three or so years of reviewing. There is not a six or eight month stretch of time where I do not receive a Lieberman CD. One has to give eir kudos for sticking around after so many…
Martians See Red – When All Seems Lost / 2007 Self / 6 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/martiansseered / Reviewed 24 June 2007 “Watercolor†is the first track on “When All Seems Lostâ€, and it blends together a number of disparate influences. This song links together The Beatles, Blink 182, Husker Du, The Replacements, and early Foo Fighters to make a radio-friendly rock track with teeth. For an introduction to the band,…
Jessica Penrose – Words Become Flesh / 2007 Self / 9 Tracks / http://www.jessicapenrose.com / Reviewed 24 June 2007 This sophomore release by Jessica Penrose starts off with police sirens, moving into a strong piano line shortly after. The piano line bolsters the vocals on the track, which are reminiscent of a Tori Amos of an Alanis Morrisette. Unlike these two artists, however, Penrose adds a little bit of electronic…
Go Motion – Kill The Love / 2006 Self / 11 Tracks / http://www.gomotiongo.com / Reviewed 22 June 2007 A number of acts are doing the dance-punk thing, so it will be interesting to see how Go Motion does on their debut album, “Kill The Loveâ€. The band does not sound too terribly different from what has been on the market in the last five years with their opening track…
Damien Dempsey – To Hell Or Barbados / 2007 Clear / 10 Tracks / http://www.damiendempsey.com / http://www.ufomusic.com / Reviewed 23 June 2007 The style of music that Dempsey plays on “To Hell Or Barbados†is an eclectic one. So eclectic, in fact, that it is hard to sit down and actually listen to the disc for any length of time. Sure, individuals will be able to built themselves up to…
Duke and the Drivers – Harder Than Before / 2006 Groove International / 12 Tracks / http://www.dukeandthedrivers.com / Reviewed 22 June 2007 There are a lot of Boston bands that played in the seventies that have came back to prominence in the current era. Duke and the Drivers is one of those bands; The Destroyed is another. Even though the vocals on “Harder Than Beforeâ€, the opening track, are scratchy…
At Dusk – You Can Know Danger / 2006 Popping Open Music / 10 Tracks / http://www.atduskmusic.com / Reviewed 22 June 2007 This is the third album released by “You Can Know Dangerâ€; “In The Background†starts off this effort, and shows that the band has had time to smooth out their sound. What is immediately noticeable with At Dusk on this album is the diversity of sounds that come…
Jana Hunter – There’s No Home / 2007 Gnomonsong / 15 Tracks / http://www.janahunter.tk / http://www.gnomonsong.com / Reviewed 22 June 2007 “Blank Unstaring Heirs of Doom†was the last Jana Hunter CD that I had the chance to review, and while it feels like only yesterday I review it, it is in reality over a year and a half since I heard something from Hunter eirself. “Babies†is a track…
The Lift – It Is What It Is / 2007 Little Red / 10 Tracks / http://www.theliftstation.com / http://www.myspace.com/thelift / Reviewed 21 June 2007 The Lift do not start off their “It Is What It Is†with the most interesting of starts. The band themselves are catchy on their own, but there seems to be too much of a U2 influence early. This hinders the band from crafting their own…
Trail of Dead – So Divided / 2006 Interscope / 11 Tracks / http://www.trailofdead.com / http://www.interscope.com / Reviewed 21 June 2007 I still remember reviewing Trail of Dead a number of years ago for the campus radio station. They were a pretty impressive band back then, and I’m glad I have the chance to see how they have grown since then. The first actual track on “So Divided†is “Stand…
Secrets of the Moon – Antithesis / 2007 Self / 9 Tracks / http://www.secretsofthemoon.org / antithesis.sotm.de / Reviewed 21 June 2007 Secrets of the Moon start out their “Antithesis†with a well thought-out entry in “Nowhere 11.18â€. The track gradually grows in speed and uses repetition to get into listeners’ heads. The band is able to tie together different elements and create something compelling without having to resort to vocals.…
Nox – Ixaxaar / 2007 Earache / 9 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/nox333 / http://www.earache.com / Reviewed 21 June 2007 Nox is a band that plays an absurdly fast brand of metal. In fact, it is my opinion that they are one of the top five or ten fastest acts out on the market. While I have no reason to believe that they use sequencing on any of the tracks on “Ixaxaarâ€,…
Dreadful Yawns – Rest / 2007 Exit Stencil / 10 Tracks / http://www.bomp.com / http://www.myspace.com/dreadfulyawns / Reviewed 17 June 2007 It has been a few years since I have had a chance to hear The Dreadful Yawns. In fact, it was 2005 when I last reviewed a Dreadful Yawns album. For their self titled album on Bomp, I said that the band had a down home and rootsy sound that…
Rio En Medio – Bride of Dynamite / 2007 Gnomonsong / 12 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/daniellestechhomsy / http://www.gnomonsong.com / Reviewed 17 June 2007 “You Can Stand†is the first track on Rio En Medio’s “Bride of Dynamiteâ€, and the slower, more soulful sound created by the band during this track is telling. As it sits at the head of the album, the rest of the disc is tempered by the music…
Johnathan Wilson – Frankie Ray / 2007 Koch / 16 Tracks / http://www.kochrecords.com / http://www.songsofjonathanwilson.com / Reviewed 17 June 2007 The tag that I see Wilson tagged with is “rockâ€. I would have to not agree with that, as songs like “Calvary†rely much more on a country-western and seventies pop sound than anything remotely close to rock music. The walking bass line, the strung-out vocals, everything on “Frankie Ray