Music
Essays, blog posts, playlists, and more focused broadly on music. For more playlists visit my Spotify profile.
- 21st Century Industrialization: The Gilded Age ()
Lead by the stripped down, honky-tonkless Jimmy Dale Gilmore vocals of Evan Dvorsak The Gilded Age sound straight out of a retrospective time capsule film on the deep south round the turn of the century. There are so many individual pieces of sound that seem handpicked to suit their individual place in the larger picture, […]
- From Brazil to Beck: Eliane Elias ()
Native Brazillian, Eliane Elias takes a curiously formulated stumble through bossa nova influenced jazz numbers and ivory reggae classics, seemingly for fun, while having solidified a solid reputation on the traditional jazz scene. Bearing down for 14 shows over 5 nights at the high profile series “Jazz at Lincoln Center” shows the tremendous passion she […]
- The Morning Benders ()
Berkeley’s The Morning Benders take time to stress the simple sounding bands that laid the groundwork for its sound, showing that even the simplest sounding songs are indeed far from unstructured. Singer/guitarist Chris Chu effortlessly acts as a guiding light as the Benders encompass a genre somewhere in between alt-country and folk-core (that’s right, I […]
- Funky Nashville “Hitch a Ride” Review ()
Funky Nashville. The name alone screams “DON’T LISTEN TO ME!” This coming from the perspective of someone who has listened to countless “funky” country bands in America’s Midwest, all dripping of country-fried arrogance, all finding it troublesome to muster any real sense of musical identity. What if, just what if, this band was an ironic […]
- The Majestic Twelve “Trapped Underwater” Video ()
Directed by Thomas Lien and Joachim Solum and shot on 35mm film in Norway The Majestic Twelve’s new video for “Trapped Underwater” comes as somewhat of a surprise release from an album that holds so many possible singles. The video gives an amazing literal accompaniment to the songs lyrics, proving a harsh beauty beneath the […]
- Edwin “Better Days” ()
What the deuce, Edwin has a new album? While I’ve been living outside of Canada for the last half-decade I haven’t been updated all that frequently with Canadian semi-celebs such as this rocker. With history smacking me in the face, however, the news that he is releasing a new album came as somewhat of a […]
- Listen to the Music With No Fear: Teddybears ()
Jocke, one half of Stockholm’s Teddybears, explains the effect of the band’s formative years on its current sound, “Nowadays, there’s not a lot of punk in our music anymore I guess. We get some outlet for that kind of frustration in other areas of our lives, like painting, skateboarding and Nietzsche-reading.” Though it may not […]
- Who is this, Sufjan Sweden?: Tobias Fröberg ()
Tobias Fröberg’s delightful press release, which presented the quote in the title, shows the light-sounding Fröberg as an absolutely charming, delicious taste of Scandinavia. “Tobias Fröberg is from Sweden. We should all be so lucky. It’s only the world capital of love and smiling and perfect indie pop. It’s also the place where Tobias Fröberg […]
- The Flaming Lips and Sonic Youth at the Minnesota State Fair (St. Paul, MN) ()
It was the opening day of the State Fair and the weather was atrocious. Months we had waited, my sister and I, and up to this point the summer had been one of the hottest and driest in history. But today was one of those days that balanced the averages as nature leveled the score […]
- Massive Attack “Live With Me” Video ()
This beautiful video catches attention as it draws you in further and further through the characters downward spiral which eventually bottoms out, causing what we are to hope is a rebirth. The spirit of the video is enhanced with the slow, brooding, everything-Moby’s-Play-should-have-been type electronica. While I enjoy what has unduly been labeled the trip-hop […]
- Jodi Jett “Revelations” Review ()
When talking with friends that are in bands, does it ever bother you that their taste in music lacks any key influence? Not to discount a friend of mine, who is a skilled guitar player, but he swears by post-nü metal bands that typically dominate much of today’s mainstream rock radio’s playlists. Even though it […]
- “Pet Sounds” 40th Anniversary ()
I fall into a different type of category in terms of Beach Boys listener, I’m a second generation semi-fan. My mom enjoys the band, casually, but my dad hates The Beach Boys with a passion. In some respect, I did too for the longest period of time while my tastes were maturing, horizons broadening, roots […]
- Annuals ()
How much does coincidence and “luck” go into the discovery, acknowledgement and popularity of art? In the Annuals’ case it would seem that a lot of chance played a part in the band’s discovery, despite seemingly having had the whole “music thing” already taken care of. Ace Fu Records discovered the band purely by chance […]
- Isis “The Absence of Truth” ()
Featured on the upcoming album The Absence of Truth is this track that completely surprises titled “Dulcinea.” Proving itself as a complete change of pace for the band, it plays at a radio-friendly length of 3:20 and abuses pitch enhancers to give the track a pornographic look at what should never have been. OK, you […]
- Spencer Dickinson “The Man Who Lives For Love” ()
My boy, Jon Spencer, tag-teamed with some guys, Luther & Cody Dickinson, and rocked out on a collaborative effort which will see its domestic release, like…tomorrow. Spencer Dickinson looks to rump shake it into high gear with a generous amount of Spencer’s high potency vocal juju, but in all fairness, though I shy away from […]
- Deftones “Hole in the Earth” Video ()
After releasing a brief preview of “Beware The Water” from the band’s upcoming Saturday Night Wrist album the boys in Deftones decided to let out a full-blown look at what is to come with this track, “Hole in the Earth.” The band has long since departed from its sound on the 1995 release Adrenaline, but […]
- Mew “Mew And The Glass Handed Kites” Review ()
When comparing Mew to its contemporaries, the Danish quartet findx little similarity within the given realm of modern rock music. Mew And the Glass Handed Kites serves as somewhat of a rock opera in which its characters appear then vanish quickly, only to reappear in its later stages in an entirely different form. It’s main […]
- Neil Young “After The Garden” Video ()
I sat down with a friend of mine when Neil Young began streaming his latest album, Living With War, and critically listened to it. We must have listened to it a half dozen times that night. It is such an emotionally motivating mirror of the status that both our nation and our world is falling […]
- Philip Patrick (of the American Black Lung) Interview ()
Tucson post-hardcore band The American Black Lung combine gritty vocals with a guitar that cuts through any and all nonessential filler. Forming in 2001, the band recently found themselves staring down the sun during its month-long stint at this summers Warped Tour. Recently finishing the band’s latest album …And They Rode Their Weapons Into War, […]
- The Colour “Devil’s Got A Holda Me” EP Review ()
Rather than a slow brooding rock monster, what seems to be at the core of The Colour is a bit of a paranoid, caffeine induced garage-blues. The LA-based band has a funny way about associating its modern sound with traditional rock, especially within the confines of the EP’s lead track “The Devil’s Gotta Holda Me.” […]
- Favourite Sons ()
Rising from the ashes of Rollerskate Skinny and Philadelphia’s Aspera comes Favourite Sons, a remarkable New York-based garage hipster five-piece. Though the band came together in the late months of 2004 it seems to have a adhesion, in which the band wades between tracks looming back and forth between over the top fashion and underdeveloped […]
- Nikki Sudden “The Truth Doesn’t Matter” ()
Do you ever feel like you missed out on something good while you had the chance, but if only you had dug a little deeper… After hearing the Nikki Sudden’s “Seven Miles” I was left with that simple feeling. Beginning his career as the lead singer of Swells Maps, Nikki went on a musical adventure, […]
- Kaki King “Yellowcake” Video ()
Kaki King has been a beautiful musical obsession of mine for the past few months and upon release of her latest album I was delighted to find out that she experimented with her own voice on the recording. That’s right kids, she sings too! Here’s her wonderful new video that combines a unique marionette theme […]
- Kenyata Sullivan (of The Majestic Twelve) Interview ()
One of my favorite albums this year has been the Majestic Twelve’s Schizophrenology. It touches on an absolute select feeling which embraces change in contrast to a voice angrily minimizing those endorsing opposing views. The album inspires through amazing musical experiences with actual feelings of love at the lyrics’ core, coinciding with political rants fueled […]
- Blackpool Lights “This Town’s Disaster” Review ()
Blackpool Lights led by Jim Suptic, formerly the frontman of the now expired Kansas City pop-punkers The Get Up Kids, started as far more of a new beginning for its members than a continuation of old musical habits. For Suptic, This Town’s Disaster will be released on his Curb Appeal Records, and suits itself as […]
- The Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players “Off & On Broadway” DVD Review ()
Hi, this is Jason Trachtenburg, he’s the dad in the band. He sings, plays keyboard, plays guitar and writes the songs. Hi, this is Tina Pina Trachtenburg, she’s the mom in the band. She sings, projects the slides, and keeps the family glued together. Hi, this is Rachel Trachtenburg. She is the daughter and the […]
- Viva Voce ()
Noticing that a band is co-headlining a tour with another that has recently released one of the better rock albums of the year really sticks out as being impressive. Not so much Mötley Crüe and Aerosmith here, but a whole lot of Silversun Pickups and Viva Voce. This duo, Kevin and Anita Robinson, confirms that […]
- Primal Scream “Riot City Blues” Review ()
Primal Scream, a band with a history that precedes it…or does it? In a situation such as this, I find myself just outside of having a mainstream appreciation for the band as I haven’t been following Primal Scream since the groundbreaking days of Screamadelica. Essentially piecing together a timeline that grew out of The Jesus […]
- Priestess “I Am The Night, Colour Me Black” Video ()
This video captures the feeling of one of the craziest live settings around, a Priestess show. I mean, or what I’d imagine a Priestess show to be like, since I’ve never seen the band live. But anyways, you get the picture. The video is pretty cool as it actually captures the songs insane energy. [This […]
- Swan Lake “Beast Moans” ()
Swan Lake, on paper alone, is a blessed band. Dan Bejar (Destroyer/New Pornographers), Carey Mercer (Frog Eyes) and Spencer Krug (Wolf Parade/Sunset Rubdown) comprise the holy trinity of indie. Some people will undoubtedly hate them, “OK, buddy, uh, I was just tryin’ to cheer us up so go ahead. Put on some old sad bastard […]