Music
Review: Van Canto – Dawn of the Brave
While Van Canto isn’t treading new territory with this album, their a capella take on power metal has only gotten more interesting and refined with time. … read more
Review: Tycho – Awake
Hansen has created a blend of organic and digital that isn’t overwhelming to fans of Tycho’s earlier work, but heavy enough that it might even be enjoyed by an indie rock fan. The final three tracks of Awake show how far Hansen has come with not just his understanding of music but his ability to grow and evolve, bringing his listeners along for the ride. … read more
Review: The Tower of Light – Self-Titled
This debut album has all of those things we like to associate with dream-inducing, cinematic doom: dark and brooding soundscapes; swirling, droning guitars; airy, repetitive vocals and drums that burst above the rising haze. … read more
Review: Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra – Fuck Off...
Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra Fuck Off Get Free We Pour Light On Everything Constellation Records Street: 01.21 Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra = Of Montreal + Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Sonic Youth “We live on an island called Montreal, and we make a lot of noise because we love each other,”
Review: The Traps – Boom Pow Awesome Wow
Fans of the old Sun Records artists will find themselves at home in the blues number “Get Up,” both in the lack of pretentious musical build-up and sound quality. But there is a GG Allin brand of perversion here that might repel listeners who like their rock n’ roll with a hint of cute irony, because there’s none of that. … read more
Review: Temples – Sun Structures
Temples falls into a very long line of bands who have traveled down the psych-pop-rock path in an attempt to capture groovy, spaced-out hearts full of love. With a refreshing sound that’s a bit more crisp, they just might be able to do it. … read more
Review: Teenage Bottlerocket – American Deutsch Bag
On “Ich bin Ausländer und Spreche Nicht Gut Deutsch,” they uphold their pop punk style by saying one line throughout the whole song—only this time it’s in German. They then cut to the fast-paced, 60-second, pro-pot track, “I’m the One Smoking Marijuana Motherfucker,” with lyrics emphasizing their juvenile-delinquent mentality. … read more
Review: Superchunk – I Hate Music
It’s a quarter-century since founding the band and starting the Merge Records label, and their rapid-fire pop-punk hasn’t slowed down on this release. The unlikely ode to the Jamaican musician, producer and member of The Skatalites who passed away in 1990 should have been the sing-along pop radio staple of the year. But then, this sound doesn’t have a year—it’s just timeless. … read more
Review: Youth Forgotten – Ghost of A Fallen Empire
Youth Forgotten have a lot of influences: speed metal, thrash, early-’00s metalcore, gothic rock and crossover. When YF combines two genres in one song, it sounds good, but this was quite rare. … read more
Review: Sun Kil Moon – Benji
Mark Kozelek has made a record so confrontational and real, you have to admire it even when it’s a bit much. It’s about how the things that seem “uncool” in life are often what make it worthwhile—a bold, artistic vision that can be a real bummer, honestly. … read more
Review: Spirits and the Melchizedek Children – So Happy, It’s...
So Happy is comprised of deep washes of neo-psychedelic, reverbed-out guitars, spectral folk of a doomed American West and the deep ebb and flow of droning guitars sacred enough to divine gold. … read more
Review: Solander – Monochromatic Memories
If Tumblr had a soundtrack, this would be it. Blending semi-wavering vocals à la Conor Oberst, Solander mixes twangy banjos, majestic cellos and outdoorsy lyrics to accompany all those pictures of skinny, naked girls smoking cigarettes, GIFs from Skins and fog-covered pine trees. … read more
