I think Volume III works best when viewed as part of a bigger whole, right alongside Paris Falls’ previous efforts, Vol. 1 and Vol. II. Going by the band’s choice of titles for the three albums so far, it sure seems like they intended there to be some kind of progression…
What’s most exciting, and most maddening, about Eleni Mandell is that just when you think you’ve got her figured out, she spins off in a new direction. And yet, whether cranking out a roots-pop tour de force like 2004’s Afternoon…
Like Bells is a violin-led, mostly instrumental trio from Antioch, Ohio. The music on their self-titled debut is sort of a cross between Dirty Three and Mono, embracing quieter lyrical moments as well as some louder rock. They borrow more from Mono than anybody else…
You can’t force yourself to like somebody; anybody who’s been through middle school knows that sad little truth. Even if you’re talking with somebody who’s got all the same interests as you, somebody who’s got the same background, somebody who likes the same things, there’s no magic button you can press…
The Ax make a lot more noise than you’d expect a two-piece band to make. On their first album, Our Queen of Dirt, they use a lot of overdubs to flesh out the sound. Their sound is different — it’s a combination of Unwound or Shellac, crossed with a Sonic Youth vibe…
There are only a handful of bands (if that) that have more deluxe, post-career reissue albums than they do actual LPs — and the Vaselines are one of them. The fact acts, if nothing else, as a testament to the true awesomeness and brevity of this kinky Scottish duo…
I love a good lyricist. Poets impress, but much of the time I find myself working at it to get a feeling or image from the words. Call me a simpleton, but that’s why when I first read of The Traditionist, which advertises influences the likes of Bob Dylan and Simon & Garfunkel…
Star Fucking Hipsters are a classic punk band. Their songs rarely clock in over two minutes. Their live shows often involve a couple bottles of Jameson’s and a ton of aggression. Their lyrics are politically charged, awakening calls for nonconformity and awareness…
Okay, so I do like Kylesa’s Static Tensions, but I have to ask: what the hell does it add to your sound, really, to have two drummers? Especially if they’re playing the same damn thing (or minute variations thereof)?…
Invention is from Seattle. Do “electronica” music, apparently. Beyond that, we know nothing about them — nothing really online, no bios, nothing. In crafting their spacey, midrange-y music, Invention use compressed bass and guitar to create very synth-like sounds…
As the first raw, lava-lamp guitar chords of “Laywayed” rolled forth from my headphones, my first thought was that if this CD was about twice as long, it would be great to listen to it on acid. It wasn’t long, however, before I was forced to reconsider…
I’m conflicted on The Intellect of Apes, the four-song debut EP from Hollywood Black bassist/vocalist Ben Ellis’s Framework solo deal. And yeah, what it boils down to…
When “Promised Land State Park,” the first track on Kill For Sport, kicks in, with its fey keys, understated guitars, and brisk drumming, the album seems to be headed straight for Teenage Fanclub…
Do a little research into this band, and you’ll find that they’re quite popular with high school crowd, particularly girls. Will features in CosmoGirl and MTV2.com lead to the inevitable appearance on The Hills…
Where the hell do I start? Just to get ’em out of the way, let’s hit the negatives (such as they are) with Benjamin Wesley’s debut EP, Geschichte, first. For one, the disc sadly can’t compare to seeing the guy live…
The prospect of another concept album from Queensryche will most assuredly cause many a headbanger to roll their eyes. American Soldier, however, is a truly unique album…
So I pick up the case for Palomino; Noush (pronounced New-shh) Skaugen’s first release, and on the front cover is a cute, naked girl posing with a guitar covering her goods…
I can’t think of a decent way to skirt around it, so I’m just going to say it: on their new full-length, Neon Creeps, art-punks O Pioneers!!! truly, seriously remind me of Braid…
It’d be beyond easy to keep referring to listenlisten as “old-timey” in terms of their sound, but the more I hear, the more of a disservice that too-easy tag seems to me to be to this band.
Post-rock quartet Guns Are For Kids may hail from Sydney, the sunny-side Harbour City of the Land Down Under, but the music on the band’s latest release, the P.E.-ref-ing…
Euphoria is an apt title for the sophomore release from Swedish group Dead Man, and proof positive that the resourceful Swedes don’t exist in camps of polar opposites…
With Down The Pacific, City Light have something of a surprise-attack thing going on. When I first put it in the car stereo, nothing really clicked for me in a major way…
Treading heavily on the previous footprints of late turn-of-the-century groups such as The Postal Service and contemporary Passion Pit, The Christmas Lights have released their debut record, Walk Like a Human…
The Soldier Thread may hail from Austin, but the music they make is far, far chillier than any warm Hill Country night could ever be. Rather, they’re distant and detached, like stars in a Northern sky…
Pre-emptive caveat time: the copy of Winter Wallace’s self-titled EP that a friend handed off to me isn’t technically her full four-song EP; all it has is the first two songs on the actual EP…
Ooh, finally an album of inspirational lyrics created (according to the press release) during a “vision quest” in the Mojave desert — the supposed endeavor highlighted in her song “Caves of Possibility”…
Straight out of the hipster bowels of Brooklyn comes possibly the most unassuming yet rawest garage-rock crew you’re likely to hear any time real soon. On I Blame You, Obits churn through…
It’s a daunting task to follow up a classic breakthrough album. Many bands take the route of making a copy of what got them where they are. Or worse, making an album that they think people will like…
Driven by many different muses, from an obvious fixation on the psychedelic occult to the ability to produce straightforward rock ‘n roll, the Fresh & Onlys have provided…
Fair to Midland were discovered by System Of A Down singer Serj Tankian while on tour; apparently, their live shows are sick, with tons of chops and energy…
A full generation after the first release of Culturcide’s Year One, I have the unfortunate ability of hindsight, with all my exposure to synth-powered sound, glam rock…
One of the more intriguing artistic trends in recent years is the reconstitution of the debris of mainstream culture and industry into forms standing at a substantial distance from their original intent. From the sardonic collages of advertising and news broadcasts by Negativland…
At the end of the day, I have to admit it’s the accent that makes Fever Ray’s self-titled debut so strangely, darkly alluring. Fever Ray everything-woman Karin Dreijer Andersson, who’s made her name as half of oddball Swedish electro-pop duo The Knife, has that Scandinavian lilt to her high- (and low-, but I’ll get to […]
Talk about a tailor-made release… Seeing as — obviously — the world naturally spins around yours truly, I’m halfway tempted to think these two bands, The Eastern Sea and News on the March…
Starvin Hungry’s Cold Burns comes across less like an album of individual songs and more like one not-very-exciting song reworked a few times. Sure, it’s okay to have a signature sound, but when everything remains at the same volume and tempo for almost forty minutes…
On Don’t Be A Stranger, Seattle band The Moondoggies aim squarely at what The Byrds tried to do way, way back in the day — grafting a psychedelic haziness onto subtle, rootsty folk/country. They take things a step or three further, though, by injecting a heavy dose of gospel-revival sound…
Mista White has been making a troublesome nuisance of himself in Houston since 1996. Since then, he has released albums, protested, spouted off, and otherwise bothered the people who have suits and pens and things like that. His music, when broken down the way Mista White himself surely will be…
Fucking Awesome. Those two simple words are the perfect description for Wrath, the new release from Lamb of God. Wrath is a return to form that allows the Richmond, Virginia, quintet to reclaim its crown as the new kings of metal…
Popular bands always influence up-and-coming musicians. For every Radiohead or Coldplay, there’s a Starsailor or South to counter them — bands that make decent music but that don’t quite reach similar levels of success…
First thought: dumb, dumb, dumb name. Second thought: damn, this is good; why the hell didn’t I listen to this before now? Tangential (and mostly inconsequential) third thought: what the heck’s up with the weird-ass comic book?…
