Back to top.
Posts tagged album review.
Zoom -MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK- AT THE DRIVE-IN Acrobatic Tenement There’s no doubting the musical legacy left behind by post-hardcore heroes At The Drive-In. The El Paso, Texas five-piece, who formed in 1993 and then broke up abruptly in 2001, were highly influenced by outfits like Bad Brains and Heroin, bands who utilized the spirit of punk— fast rhythms and pummeling grooves—with the harsher elements of the hardcore scene, such as screamed/barked vocals and jack jammer guitar riffs. READ FULL REVIEW HERE

-MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK-

AT THE DRIVE-IN

Acrobatic Tenement

There’s no doubting the musical legacy left behind by post-hardcore heroes At The Drive-In. The El Paso, Texas five-piece, who formed in 1993 and then broke up abruptly in 2001, were highly influenced by outfits like Bad Brains and Heroin, bands who utilized the spirit of punk— fast rhythms and pummeling grooves—with the harsher elements of the hardcore scene, such as screamed/barked vocals and jack jammer guitar riffs.

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

05.18.12 ♥ 1
  Source
Zoom -MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK- CANNONBALL ADDERLEY Somethin’ Else Renowned alto saxophonist Julian “Cannonball” Adderley’s work on this milestone 1958 effort is often overshadowed by the fact that Miles Davis not only played many of the trumpet solos, but was also instrumental in picking much of the included material. Backed by the likes of drummer Art Blakey, pianist Hank Jones, and bassist Sam Jones, the album nonetheless bristles with Adderley’s fusion of rhythm & blues and gospel with his rollicking sax playing, which is often played at dance-like rhythms. READ FULL REVIEW HERE

-MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK-

CANNONBALL ADDERLEY

Somethin’ Else

Renowned alto saxophonist Julian “Cannonball” Adderley’s work on this milestone 1958 effort is often overshadowed by the fact that Miles Davis not only played many of the trumpet solos, but was also instrumental in picking much of the included material. Backed by the likes of drummer Art Blakey, pianist Hank Jones, and bassist Sam Jones, the album nonetheless bristles with Adderley’s fusion of rhythm & blues and gospel with his rollicking sax playing, which is often played at dance-like rhythms.

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

04.10.12 ♥ 1
  Source
Zoom -UNDER THE RADAR- JJ BRINE President of Mozambique 9 out of 10 It’s rare for an album to become so all encompassing that even after repeat listens it still manages to offer new and enthralling surprises. Icelandic singer/actor JJ Brine’s latest LP is just one of these rare listening experiences. Dazzling, immersive, disorienting, and evoking a sensation of auditory rapture that’s nearly impossible to describe, President of Mozambique is the first truly great record of 2012. READ FULL REVIEW HERE


-UNDER THE RADAR-

JJ BRINE

President of Mozambique

9 out of 10

It’s rare for an album to become so all encompassing that even after repeat listens it still manages to offer new and enthralling surprises. Icelandic singer/actor JJ Brine’s latest LP is just one of these rare listening experiences. Dazzling, immersive, disorienting, and evoking a sensation of auditory rapture that’s nearly impossible to describe, President of Mozambique is the first truly great record of 2012.

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

03.29.12 ♥ 14
  Source
Zoom GRIMES Visions 6 out of 10 There’s probably a really great album lurking beneath the busy electro/hip-hop/art pop sheen of Claire Boucher’s (aka Grimes) third LP, Visions. The record has arrived with lots of blogosphere hype, critical raves, and an attention-grabbing music video for the pulsating single “Oblivion”, but is this really a breakthrough work from an artist pushing pop music into the future? READ FULL REVIEW HERE

GRIMES

Visions

6 out of 10

There’s probably a really great album lurking beneath the busy electro/hip-hop/art pop sheen of Claire Boucher’s (aka Grimes) third LP, Visions. The record has arrived with lots of blogosphere hype, critical raves, and an attention-grabbing music video for the pulsating single “Oblivion”, but is this really a breakthrough work from an artist pushing pop music into the future?

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

03.11.12 ♥ 3
  Source
Zoom MOONLIGHT BRIDE Twin Lakes 7 out of 10 Moonlight Bride is a Chattanooga, Tennessee four-piece that benefit from a shift in the past few years toward recapturing the glory of the 1990’s. Bands like The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Yuck have recently gleaned influences from the likes of My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, and Dinosaur Jr. while also ushering in a whole new wave of younger fans who probably weren’t even born when this type of music was at its peak. Similarly, Moonlight Bride might be lumped into the “shoegaze” category (of which My Bloody Valentine are often seen as the forefathers), even though that term can be pretty derogatory and ultimately unhelpful when it comes to extrapolating the actual music on display. It’s not as if Moonlight Bride don’t use effects pedals, guitar fuzz, and dreamy choruses are their new EP, Twin Lakes. They most certainly do, but shoegaze is more of a philosophic construct rather than any one overriding type of sound, which reflects itself not only in the way the instruments are played and recorded, but also in terms of evoking an overall mood. READ FULL REVIEW HERE

MOONLIGHT BRIDE

Twin Lakes

7 out of 10

Moonlight Bride is a Chattanooga, Tennessee four-piece that benefit from a shift in the past few years toward recapturing the glory of the 1990’s. Bands like The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Yuck have recently gleaned influences from the likes of My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, and Dinosaur Jr. while also ushering in a whole new wave of younger fans who probably weren’t even born when this type of music was at its peak. Similarly, Moonlight Bride might be lumped into the “shoegaze” category (of which My Bloody Valentine are often seen as the forefathers), even though that term can be pretty derogatory and ultimately unhelpful when it comes to extrapolating the actual music on display. It’s not as if Moonlight Bride don’t use effects pedals, guitar fuzz, and dreamy choruses are their new EP, Twin Lakes. They most certainly do, but shoegaze is more of a philosophic construct rather than any one overriding type of sound, which reflects itself not only in the way the instruments are played and recorded, but also in terms of evoking an overall mood.

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

02.20.12 ♥ 0
  Source
Zoom PORCELAIN RAFT Strange Weekend 7 out of 10 Let’s get something straight right off the bat. Strange Weekend, the debut LP from Porcelain Raft, is not a ‘chillwave’ record. Sure, there are superficial parallels to some of the genre’s younger pioneers such as Toro Y Moi and Washed Out, but Italian-born musician Mauro Remiddi is nearing 40, and therefore less reliant on laptop-based atmospherics and the need to represent some passing musical fad. The album does indeed exist in a world of hazy dream pop, but there’s also tension in these songs that differs from most of what might be deemed chillwave these days.  READ FULL REVIEW HERE

PORCELAIN RAFT

Strange Weekend

7 out of 10

Let’s get something straight right off the bat. Strange Weekend, the debut LP from Porcelain Raft, is not a ‘chillwave’ record. Sure, there are superficial parallels to some of the genre’s younger pioneers such as Toro Y Moi and Washed Out, but Italian-born musician Mauro Remiddi is nearing 40, and therefore less reliant on laptop-based atmospherics and the need to represent some passing musical fad. The album does indeed exist in a world of hazy dream pop, but there’s also tension in these songs that differs from most of what might be deemed chillwave these days. 

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

02.14.12 ♥ 1
  Source
Zoom -MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK BOOKS ON TAPE Memory/Carnival Lights 7’’ Adam Dishart beautifully captures that feeling between disenchantment and hopefulness on his latest 7’’ Memory/Carnival Lights. Working under the solo moniker Books on Tape, the San Francisco musician has shed the moody post-punk textures of his disbanded band The Catholic Comb in favor of 80’s-era darkwave pop, and delivers two stunning songs that effectively capture the alienation and wistfulness of youth.  READ FULL REVIEW HERE


-MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK

BOOKS ON TAPE

Memory/Carnival Lights 7’’

Adam Dishart beautifully captures that feeling between disenchantment and hopefulness on his latest 7’’ Memory/Carnival Lights. Working under the solo moniker Books on Tape, the San Francisco musician has shed the moody post-punk textures of his disbanded band The Catholic Comb in favor of 80’s-era darkwave pop, and delivers two stunning songs that effectively capture the alienation and wistfulness of youth. 

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

02.01.12 ♥ 0
  Source
Zoom GUIDED BY VOICES Let’s Go Eat The Factory 7 out of 10 Writing a review of the first proper album from legendary Dayton, Ohio band Guided By Voices since 2004’s Half Smiles of the Decomposed is a terrifying task. Not only because founder Robert Pollard has been spitting out an astonishing amount of solo material and side projects in addition to GBV, but also because his impact upon the musical landscape has given rise to some of music history’s most tenaciously loyal fans. Slapping an arbitrary rating on the new album while hailing it as a “return to form” would be far too easy, not to mention disingenuous. The impulse to conversely view the whole thing through a prism of Pollard ‘fanboyism’ and pine for the good old days would also be retroactive. But one cannot sincerely review a new GBV record without conceding to the contextual mythos that Pollard and his ever-revolving band of cronies has amassed for nearly 30 years. READ FULL REVIEW HERE

GUIDED BY VOICES

Let’s Go Eat The Factory

7 out of 10

Writing a review of the first proper album from legendary Dayton, Ohio band Guided By Voices since 2004’s Half Smiles of the Decomposed is a terrifying task. Not only because founder Robert Pollard has been spitting out an astonishing amount of solo material and side projects in addition to GBV, but also because his impact upon the musical landscape has given rise to some of music history’s most tenaciously loyal fans. Slapping an arbitrary rating on the new album while hailing it as a “return to form” would be far too easy, not to mention disingenuous. The impulse to conversely view the whole thing through a prism of Pollard ‘fanboyism’ and pine for the good old days would also be retroactive. But one cannot sincerely review a new GBV record without conceding to the contextual mythos that Pollard and his ever-revolving band of cronies has amassed for nearly 30 years.

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

01.20.12 ♥ 1
  Source
Zoom -MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK- TOTAL CONTROL Henge Beat There’s definitely something in the water over in Australia. Not only did the country produce two of 2011’s best albums with UV Race’s Homo cassette and Kitchen’s Floor’s Look Forward To Nothing, but it also saw the rise of supergroup Total Control. Featuring members of AIDS, Straightjacket Nation, UV Race, and Eddy Current Suppression Ring, the Melbourne five-piece has conjured a completely immersive sound that combines drum machine-fueled electronica and synth-punk with blasts of fractured noise.  READ FULL REVIEW HERE

-MUSIC PICK OF THE WEEK-

TOTAL CONTROL

Henge Beat

There’s definitely something in the water over in Australia. Not only did the country produce two of 2011’s best albums with UV Race’s Homo cassette and Kitchen’s Floor’s Look Forward To Nothing, but it also saw the rise of supergroup Total Control. Featuring members of AIDS, Straightjacket Nation, UV Race, and Eddy Current Suppression Ring, the Melbourne five-piece has conjured a completely immersive sound that combines drum machine-fueled electronica and synth-punk with blasts of fractured noise. 

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

01.17.12 ♥ 1
  Source
Zoom THEE OH SEES Carrion Crawler/The Dream 7 out of 10 Is there any stopping Thee Oh See’s endless stream of spastic garage punk? Carrion Crawler/The Dream is the San Francisco four-piece’s second LP of 2011, a sort of messy sister album to Castlemania, released earlier this year. On that previous record, founder/mastermind John Dwyer and his bandmates threw out short bursts of 60’s-inspired psychedelic folk and weird sing-along anthems. Here they seem to return to the jam tendencies that informed 2010’s Warm Slime, and consequently sprawl with reckless abandon. READ FULL REVIEW HERE

THEE OH SEES

Carrion Crawler/The Dream

7 out of 10

Is there any stopping Thee Oh See’s endless stream of spastic garage punk? Carrion Crawler/The Dream is the San Francisco four-piece’s second LP of 2011, a sort of messy sister album to Castlemania, released earlier this year. On that previous record, founder/mastermind John Dwyer and his bandmates threw out short bursts of 60’s-inspired psychedelic folk and weird sing-along anthems. Here they seem to return to the jam tendencies that informed 2010’s Warm Slime, and consequently sprawl with reckless abandon.

READ FULL REVIEW HERE

12.21.11 ♥ 0
  Source