Album Reviews
A collection of album and EP reviews written and published from 2004 onward.
- Q-Tip “The Renaissance” Review ()
I like Q-Tip. Even at what many considered his worst (his “Vivrant Thing“-era), I liked him. So it’s without shock that I think The Renaissance is fantastic. Prior to the album’s release, with the videos for “Gettin’ Up” and “Move,” it was easy to hear that Tip was falling back on what made him relevant […]
- Eagles of Death Metal “Heart On” Review ()
In a promotional video released weeks before Eagles of Death Metal‘s new record, singer Jesse Hughes exuded joy as he described the current state of his hometown: “Hollywood feels like this opening sequence to Saturday Night Fever. Everyone seems like they’re ready for action—and the action is go.” If only that sort of abundant energy […]
- Shawn Hewitt “Spare Hearts” Review ()
The booming pop spectacle “Keep Them at Bay” opens Torontonian Shawn Hewitt’s debut album, Spare Hearts. Above all else, the record showcases Hewitt’s vocal potential, his range expanding and contracting throughout each of the album’s 11 tracks. Produced by Dave Newfeld (Broken Social Scene) and John O’Mahoney (Coldplay), Spare Hearts continually teases depth but ultimately wades in a […]
- Ryan Adams and The Cardinals “Cardinology” Review ()
As an artist Ryan Adams has often displayed characteristics suggesting struggle within his own reality, something that many have faulted him for. Even through times of relative insanity however, he still continued to offer examples of sensibility within his music. But on Cardinology, the music is almost too sensible. As matter of fact, to some […]
- of Montreal “Skeletal Lamping” Review ()
There is a high degree of whimsy that accompanies each new of Montreal release, one that is evidenced by the overwhelming sexuality of the records, and one that is certainly apparent in the band’s new album, Skeletal Lamping. Driven by a sexual freedom, singer Kevin Barnes’s lyrical candor can often be as overwhelming as his […]
- AC/DC “Black Ice” Review ()
With Black Ice, AC/DC returns with a release full of typically straightforward songs about fighting, women and rock ‘n roll; the band’s fourth record since 1990 and its fifth in a row to kick off with the album’s lead single. Not being one to break out of the mold that it’s created for itself the […]
- Kings of Leon “Only by the Night” Review ()
Not to say that it would be right to be expecting Only By The Night to sound like a string of “Molly’s Chambers” or “King Of the Rodeo”-sounding songs, but if you were – it may be helpful to brace yourself ahead of time. The album is far glossier than anything heard from the band […]
- TV on the Radio “Dear Science” Review ()
It seemed that whenever I was talking to a fan of TV on the Radio about Return to Cookie Mountain, they would always revert to “I liked (either) Young Liars (or) Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes better.” I, on the other hand, felt that the album was amazing — truly one of the year’s best […]
- Metallica “Death Magnetic” Review ()
As Death Magnetic slowly begins, an interesting similarity arises between the introduction of “That Was Just Your Life” and that of Slayer’s “South of Heaven,” the first song from the second of the band’s albums produced by Rick Rubin. Both songs build slowly before commencing with an album’s worth of commercial thrash — a slower […]
- N*E*R*D “Seeing Sounds” Review ()
Seeing as how Fly or Die was what it was (a fairly poor album) Seeing Sounds should be considered a triumphant return for NERD…but…in reality it’s not too distant from its predecessor. Sporadic, over-reaching and inconsistent – Seeing Sounds is exactly what NERD should be distancing itself from. There are songs that make sense on […]
- A Night in the Box “Write A Letter” Review ()
Having singer Clayton Hagen previously decried a savior in sake of his hate on “The Hustle” (from The Hustle, The Prayer, The Thief) there is a tremendous weight on A Night in the Box to follow up its debut album with something as equally thoughtful and compelling. With Write a Letter the band has done […]
- Coldplay “Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends” Review ()
Long live life proclaims the title of Coldplay’s recently released album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. The album was recently released using the same repetitious iTunes marketing campaign that helped propel Bob Dylan’s Modern Times to platinum status, and while it too will eventually reach that level of commercial popularity, it […]
- Girl Talk “Feed the Animals” Review ()
Attempting to explain Girl Talk‘s Feed the Animals and identify what succeeds or fails with the set can’t be done on the level of an album in its entirety, it’s hard to even approach each track on an individual basis considering what they are. Mashups aren’t anything new, nor is Gregg Gillis’ mix-heavy approach, but […]
- Lil Wayne “Tha Carter III” Review ()
Granted, some of the bangers on Tha Carter III have been out there for a while; “A Milli” dropped on Da Drought is Over 5, “Lollipop” has for weeks been on heavy rotation on just about every pop-based radio station, “Mr. Carter” leaked a few weeks back, etc. – but there is still an unequivocal […]
- Hercules and Love Affair “Hercules and Love Affair” Review ()
That little part of my heart that still has a soft spot for Slayer inevitably gawks at the idea of even remotely enjoying an album like Hercules and Love Affair. The album’s songs, which almost continually neglect any sort of climactic high, blend seamlessly into a single epic pile of retro-reaching Euro-trash waste…but, they kind […]
- Santogold “Santogold” Review ()
The initial draw of Santogold’s eponymous debut is heavily based on that of the album’s lead single, “L.E.S. Artistes,” a song that has enough widespread appeal to own up to the title of being this year’s “Crazy.” Having said that, the appeal of the remainder of the album comes from its ability to inflate various […]
- Death Cab For Cutie “Narrow Stairs” Review ()
Hypothetically speaking – the most beautiful, smart, vibrant woman could approach me by saying that Death Cab For Cutie were a good band and I’d still have scoffed. Not just at the idea that someone would enjoy a second-rate Weezer knock off (at least the Weezer that still made albums worth a damn) but more […]
- Nine Inch Nails “The Slip” Review ()
Whereas one must turn off their phone, email and instant messenger services in addition to making sure their pet and/or child has been fed and appropriately sedated before even considering making it through Ghosts I-IV in a single sitting, Trent Reznor artistically departs from that vision with The Slip. In doing so however its ten […]
- My Morning Jacket “Evil Urges” Review ()
A friend admonished his suggestion to listen to Evil Urges, hinting that My Morning Jacket was set to release something twisted and absolutely uncharacteristic, “It’s almost like MMJ thinks they can do whatever they want now;” my response, “they can’t?” I thought it fitting that the gravity of a sound that has nestled the band […]
- Gnarls Barkley “The Odd Couple” Review ()
The same lopsided disparity between St. Elsewhere’s “Necromancer” and “Smiley Faces” is paralleled throughout Gnarls Barkley’s second album, The Odd Couple. Its unique balance between the obscure and digestible suggests an attempt at parity, but to hear Cee-Lo growl “Say fuck me, well fuck you too” prior to a surfsteady homage tends to imply otherwise. […]
- Moby “Last Night” Review ()
“Disco Lies” reads a picture included as an insert with Moby’s latest album Last Night. The announcement is a bit misleading as many fans have felt quite the opposite since Moby’s departure from his role as an almost strictly club DJ following 1995′s Everything is Wrong — as for the albums that followed it almost […]
- The Raconteurs “Consolers of the Lonely” Review ()
Booking a release within a month of the album being mastered, Jack White gave news that The Raconteurs’ new album Consolers of the Lonely would see a blanket release in a matter of days of his surprising announcement – online/radio/retail…everyone would get their taste at the exact same time. It didn’t take long for one […]
- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds “Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!” Review ()
Age is only important when numbers are empowered, it is the knowledge and depth of a spirit which embodies true substance. All the same, having crossed half a century, the idea behind who Nick Cave is leans increasingly closer to that of an ageless poet. The Guardian‘s Alexis Petridis concluded his thoughts on Dig, Lazarus, […]
- Portishead “Third” Review ()
What has been roughly 10 years in the making finally sees release in the form of Portishead’s Third, the aptly titled release from the Bristol-based trio largely known for helping standardize trip hop in the mid ’90s. With the exception of a few scattered contributions and a Beth Gibbons solo album, the group has been […]
- Dead Meadow “Old Growth” Review ()
In 2005 I was introduced to Dead Meadow as the group opened for Sleater-Kinney, the band epitomized neo-psych with its no-nonsense hazy drab. At the time the band’s music came across as something terribly powerful while the makeup of its sound was tastefully cautious, the group never fully realizing the massiveness it sought. Cut to […]
- Drive-By Truckers “Brighter Than Creation’s Dark” Review ()
On “Not Everybody Likes Us” Hank Williams III lays into modern country music, grumbling “Well I think I’d rather eat the barrel of a double-barrel loaded shotgun, than to hear that shit they call pop-country music on ninety eight point one.” To some degree such sentiments could never be thought of when considering the path […]
- Cat Power “Jukebox” Review ()
For someone who finds her music often preceded by her reputation, various stages of Chan Marshall’s second covers album Jukebox are dominated by the reputations of both those who came before her as well as those who accompany her throughout. From Sinatra to James Brown, Joni Mitchell to Billie Holiday, Jukebox is meant to be […]
- The Battle Royale “Wake Up, Thunderbabe!” Review ()
The first release in two years from The Battle Royale combines the abundance of rock bands attempting to fuse electronic overtones into rock ‘n roll with the skill of musicians who can actually combine the two ever merging genres appropriately. The Battle Royale’s Wake Up, Thunderbabe! capitalizes on the group’s youthful fervor while scantly sounding […]
- Black Mountain “In The Future” Review ()
A few weeks back, during a discussion on what makes LCD Soundsystem’s “All My Friends” such a fantastic track, a friend of mine fell heavily into the details underlining his enjoyment of the song. “Patience eludes me,” he said, “I strive for patience, I so desperately want to learn musical patience.” “The beginning of ‘All […]
- Chairs in the Arno “File Folder” Review ()
Chairs in the Arno’s debut, File Folder, is strikingly smooth in comparison to the band’s electronic-driven rock counterparts, focusing on casual lyrics and vocal harmonies rather than attempting to struggle towards making each track 2004-chic or danceable. The eight song set serves as a short-playing scrapbook of stories and inside jokes amongst the band, each […]