Just short of 11 years have passed since the last proper full-length from Keigo Oyamada’s Cornelius outfit, and after such a long gap, it’s difficult to determine whether or not his latest effort invokes more than it originates.
Perhaps, it’s an album that would work best without the somewhat confusing concept, but the songs are strong enough to nevertheless stand up on their own.
Before Bruce Dickinson became known as the wailing banshee of Iron Maiden, he fronted Samson, a vehicle for Paul Samson, a guitarist who peacefully resides as an unheard giant of the new wave of British heavy metal.
By the end of the first listen to Out in the Storm, the latest album from Waxahatchee, the tunes already felt familiar. The album is filled with enjoyable melodies, guitar-driven rock, and lyrics that are quite personal. The album closes on “Fade” but not for long as this record screams repeat.
Winn isn’t afraid to dig deep on tracks like “Better Friend,” and consequently, he comes out with something truly inspired and pure.
“When you hear its rich, lush layers, it will seem inconceivable that it wasn’t recorded in an expensive studio. Jen’s music is a technicolor, acid-washed daydream, both trippy and expansive and cinematic in all the best ways.”
In 1989, Ravi Shankar delivered a powerful dance-drama, sort of an Indian ballet, to the Birmingham Touring Opera Company on commission.
Melvins’ first ever double LP combines an eerie film score with a record of their traditional song-based (and naturally heavy) standard fare.
“The Best of Big Star_ makes me wonder what superlatives I can offer that haven’t already been offered by a thousand other scribes. I got into Big Star in the 80s, before reissues happened and when original copies on Ardent Records were fetching big bucks. I remember how difficult it was to find #1 Record and Radio City back in the day, and my resulting delight when I found them in New York City via mail order. Reissues came later and now it’s dead easy to find these tunes, but even so, it’s always a pleasure and a delight to hear these songs, sounding as crisp and clear as the day they were recorded.”
With any luck, Dirt Church will put Groupoem back on the map and introduce them to an even larger fan base than ever before.
Between 1964 and 1968, Loma Records, an imprint of Warner Brothers that began as a commercial enterprise, became the conglomerate’s soul division under label head Bob Krasnow (formerly of Del-Fi, Autumn, and King Records).
Chaz Bear’s acuity for pop showmanship hasn’t ditched out on this record, but along with the themes, the compositions sound vastly darker and more contemplative than ever before.
Mutoid Man’s latest LP, War Moans, opens fast and furious with “Melt Your Mind” and does not slow down much thereafter. Knowing the historical output from the band members’ other bands, namely Cave In and Converge, it is not surprising the 12 tracks comprise a splendid mix of extreme metal and hardcore punk.
Sonically speaking, the band effortlessly combines the folkier elements of The Grateful Dead with the power pop of groups like Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and a harder blues rock edge à la The Rolling Stones.
“This new release is a celebration of the Eighties Indie scene, documenting a golden era when tuneful guitar-based bands made records on shoestring budgets, often issued on small labels with hand-made artwork, with little hope of mainstream exposure.”
“The idea for a B-sides record came when we realized just how many non-album songs had been made over the years, and how hard it was to find and hear many of them. This compilation contains every song we have ever made that does not exist on one of our records.”
Born in Oxford, England, this tender-voiced troubadour expands upon the theme of his last three covers-speckled albums by re-imagining 14 love songs from his “early hero” Bob Dylan’s copious catalogue.
During his lifetime, West Yorkshire, UK-born Alan Sutcliffe (1930-2014) founded the Computer Arts Society, produced animation for Ridley Scott’s 1979 film Alien (seen in the cover art) and acted as part-time director for Electronic Music Studios, creators of the EMS Synthi AKS.
Like staring at the clock and waiting for your ninth period class to come to an end, Jason Loewenstein’s latest effort is a tight, fast assortment of controlled chaos that rings that bell to set you loose.
American High still sound like a band just beginning, which makes this such an exciting and enthusiastic debut.
Sardinia’s The Rippers return with their fifth full-length that shows their blistering freakbeat at full tilt.
Late in the Night is a wonderfully fresh concept, if only a slight addition to the artist’s larger body of work.
Before poet Allen Ginsberg recorded the legendary sessions that would end up on last year’s phenomenal The Last Word on First Blues collection, he paid tribute to his hero and inspiration William Blake by setting the master’s words to music for what would be his debut non-spoken word album.
Wright…has been writing more deeply personal songs on recent albums, just from the greater perspective gained from dealing with all aspects of life over a long period of time. Recently, death in the family more keenly focused this tendency, and the hard-earned result is a touching album of plainspoken truths.
Two and a half years after their beautiful, stellar debut, The Luxembourg Signal finally return with an expanded lineup and a pair of excellent songs.
“The Banditos rock to their own inner rhythms, picking influences and sounds from across both time and genres. Get on board.”
“The band’s sound continues to evolve into a hammering wonder of drones, peaceful passages, and boot stompin’ psych blues.”
“This batch of songs is meant to surround and comfort the listener with fuzzy vibrations and soft tones.”
Ti Amo is the aural equivalent of a by all means successful – and at times particularly elating – booze cruise.
Austin-based musician Eliot Lipp preps the release of Skywave.
“Stutter Steps is a Pittsburgh based jangle pop group who’ve deeply mined the Kiwi pop sound and added a soupcon of Luna and maybe some Go Betweens along the way.”
Photos and a recap of Saturday of Bonnaroo 2017.
“Omnivore has done another outstanding job of reissuing this underappreciated record and it’s worth it for the 13 tracks alone along with the commentary from people who have worked with Scott. The extra tracks are an added dollop to an already satisfying release. Recommended for all Let’s Active, Game Theory, and Loud Family fans, as well as for anyone who appreciates intelligent, well constructed indie rock. “
Compared to the more robust rock crunch of this New Haven, CT Americana/folk-pop collective’s 2014 Farther Out Beyond Today, the production and playing on Dreams is lighter and lither.
New Yorker Edward Rogers returns with his strongest and most varied album to date while examining America’s cultural obsession with the boob tube.
Overall, Cooper’s goal is an energetic one, with the ultimate aim of getting the public to “start engaging with the problems around them in an attempt to make a positive change.”
Coffman’s debut strips itself of any self-pity, granting universal empathy and a countering effect to the notion that it’s a breakup album and nothing more.
Quintessentially British band Saint Etienne takes a leisurely, but keenly observed stroll through the English suburbs on its new album
Kiwis are generally known for being polite, but Auckland’s Cavemen strive to destroy that stereotype with yet another blast of feral trash rock slime.
Seminal UK shoegaze giants Slowdive returns with a resplendent and raved about album over two decades after its previous album.
“This entire collection evokes a lot of memories from my childhood, and features a wide swathe of musical styles and unusual artists. Well worth picking up for collectors and music aficionados alike.”
Now fourteen albums deep, Andrew Rieger, Laura Carter, and company are still endlessly dedicated to crafting power pop via fuzzy, chugging powerhouse or wistful, shimmering acoustic number.
Aetherlight is a mesmerizing LP that demonstrates just how strong Fox is as a lead singer, as well as how haunting and beautiful Mt. Wolf remains as a trio.
Through the ’70s and into the ’80s, Yuri Morozov recorded over 46 albums in numerous genres that were passed around Russian underground music circles in defiance of Soviet control.
English electronic music pioneers Coldcut join forces with the godfather of British dub Adrian Sherwood, aka On-U Sound, for sixteen slabs of heavy dub infusion.
One should hesitate in calling Theotokos a concept record, but drug addiction and how it effects both the user and those around them is a theme that repeats on many of the songs.
Girlpool may have enlarged their sound, but they still possess a nakedness to their performance that is unmistakably their own. If anything, expanding to a full band has strengthened their identity.
“Jane Weaver is progressive rock in its purest molecular form. Fossilised in ferric, the crystal in the concrete. Magnetic, melodic, folkloric, unapologetic and rhythmic in her discipline.”
