Category: Music Reviews
REVIEW: of Montreal premiere first single off new album
of Montreal is the kind of band that wanders in and out of its time. At the height of fame for Kevin Barnes and crew, around the Hissing Fauna era, their sound was modern and fresh. By Paralytic Stalks, the band propelled into the future, prompting the loss of a few unprepared fans. With the…
REVIEW: Look Alive’s ‘Mistakes and Milestones’
Look Alive, an up-and-coming band straight out of Atlanta, Georgia, is kind of like a manifestation of all of your favorite pop-punk bands from 2004. Intrigued? Well, rightfully so. These guys have been at it in some form or fashion for over 10 years now, and now the time has come for them to release…
REVIEW: Heard In The Mountains’ Will To Well
In 2011, Vancouver-based band Heard In The Mountains got together and began shattering the windows of a local church – metaphorically speaking, that is. As their casual jam sessions began to morph into the beginnings of an actual band, their sound transformed into a rock-meets-pop-meets-indie powerhouse, and frankly, we’re surprised they didn’t blow that church’s…
REVIEW: “Palm Reader” by Sonny and the Sunsets
Sonny and the Sunsets’ follow-up to Longtime Companion is entitled Antenna to the Afterworld, and like many indie artists to go before them, Sonny Smith and his band are ripe to tackle death and its aftermath. The band suffered the loss of a close friend, and that tragic experience has led them produce songs like…
REVIEW: Lemuria’s “Oahu, Hawaii”
Buffalo, New York’s own Lemuria is dropping their newest album The Distance Is So Big on June 18th, but prefacing that date, they have decided to release a few sneak-peaks from the album- the most recent being “Oahu, Hawaii”. Upon pressing play, I noticed Lemuria had strayed from the norm in certain aspects, but in…
REVIEW: September Call-Up’s Air And My Sleep
Christian Bitto, singer of the September Call-Up, is a lot like Leonardo da Vinci. How, you might ask? Quite simply, Bitto is a Renaissance Man of vocals, a jack-of-all-moods, you might say. From first track to last on his album with drummer Jesse Gimbel, Air And My Sleep, Bitto switches constantly and effortlessly from a…
REVIEW: Valaska’s Natural Habitat
With the warm, lazy summer months ahead, what could be better than a pensive indie album with fantastic acoustic instrumentals? Enter Valaska’s new album, Natural Habitat. The brain-child of Chicago native Dave Valdez, this record will uplift you with its often cheery acoustic guitar, then force you into a state of reflection with its unabashedly…
REVIEW: Deadstring Brothers’ Cannery Row
Close your eyes and envision this: members from Ryan Adams’ The Cardinals, Willie Nelson’s band, Whitey Morgan and the 78s, and Poco get together to make an album. You’re probably drooling by now, right? Now, open your eyes, grab your keys, and go out and buy Deadstring Brothers’ newest album, Cannery Row. You’re welcome. From…
Review: Luke Winslow-King’s ‘The Coming Tide’
Thank God for Luke Winslow-King. In a musical era in which simple beats and perverse lyrics reign supreme, and enjoying quality music puts you in the minority, Winslow-King brings back a feeling long forgotten: the way your hips can’t help but sway in an almost instinctive way when early 20th century jazz blares from your…
REVIEW: The Flaming Lips’ The Terror
When the Flaming Lips released In a Priest Driven Ambulance, I was a trembling fetus nestled in my mother’s womb. When I was nine, the band was radiating mainstream attention, but I didn’t know because no exceptionally cool third-grader brought The Soft Bulletin to show-and-tell. And when I was 12, Yoshimi was battling the…