Year: 2013
Review: Matmos – The Marriage of True Minds
Matmos = The Books + Squarepusher + Throbbing Gristle + Mouse on Mars … read more
Review: Lower Plenty – Hard Rubbish
The Aussie quartet Lower Plenty seem to muster up some characteristically American blues tones in Hard Rubbish. Recorded solely on eight-track reel-to-reel tape, the album has a very raw but warming feel, despite its overwhelming melancholia. … read more
Review: Man… or Astro-man? – Defcon 5…4…3…2…1
This album marks the first time since 1997’s Made From Technetium that Alabama’s favorite sci-fi/surf combo has put out a record with original guitarist Star Crunch. … read more
Review: Luke Winslow-King – The Coming Tide
When it comes to contemporary roots music, the easy route is to punk things up—play it faster or with an edge—but roots music transcends time and period. Luke Winslow-King walks that fine line between slavishly authentic and radical change just for the sake of change. … read more
Review: Lusine-The Waiting Room
I can’t help but dance throughout the entirety of this album while it’s playing, which is a good sign from the start. … read more
Review: Man Made Sun – More A Devil Than A...
Man Made Sun isn’t my particular flavor, but that’s not a bad thing in the slightest. Lead singer Ofer Tiberin has an interesting style that dances between melodic talking and singing, reminding me of another sun-themed band, the excellent Ra. … read more
Review: Louis Matteo – Patchwork Pattern
Louis Matteo = Tired Pony + Brand New – Say Anything
… read more
Review: Lust For Youth – Perfect View
Swede Hannes Norrvide’s third Lust for Youth album is more accessible and more confidently produced than anything that’s come before it. It’s no small wonder that this group is at the fore of the current dark wave of Northern European synth-punk bands. … read more
Review: Lux Interna – there is light in the body,...
The fifth release by Joshua Levi Ian and Kathryn Mary, this beautiful album recapitulates dark neo-folk without dragging along the negatives that subgenre often implies, marrying it to the gothic Americana sound of bands like Munly or Wovenhand (whose keyboardist Jeff Linsenmaier guests here) with touches of 1990s darkwave. … read more
Review: Man Overboard – Heart Attack
With a motto like “Defend Pop Punk,” it shouldn’t be surprising when a band like Man Overboard sticks pretty heavily to the formula. … read more
Review: Ludovico Technique – We Came to Wreck Everything
Aesthetic Perfection took “Dead Inside” and helped it transcend from industrial to synth-pop, leaving me in audio bliss. E-Craft let the vocals shine through in “Heal My Scars” and mixed in their own style of futuristic synth sound and a simplistic beat. … read more
Review: Makoto – Primitive EP
As soon as I played the first song on this album, I was presented with a drum instrumental that was, well, primitive (which only seems fitting since the name of the track was “Primitive”). … read more
