Music
Reviews: Sleep – Oregon Failure
“Thrift Shop” did more than provide an anthem for white tweenagers who don’t otherwise enjoy hip-hop. It also inspired artists like Sleep (not to be confused with the rock band) to make rap so terrible that Vanilla Ice seems legit by comparison. … read more
Reviews: Rodrigo Amarante – Cavalo
The feel of this album is enchanting and ethereal. Portrayed through several songs being sung in Portuguese, it is also present in the richness and vibrancy of Amarante’s songwriting. … read more
Reviews: The Rich Hands – Out of My Head
This angst-filled power-pop coupled with bubblegum rock n’ roll is catchy and energetic. Bringing on memories of when pop was good, they reintroduce lyrical simplicity, while brandishing the snotty teenager attitude of a rock n’ roller. … read more
Reviews: Red Death – Demo 2014
This DC punk/thrash extravaganza features current/former members of Zoom, Intent, Protestor and Coke Bust. This demo takes gravelly cues from Discharge, the “bandana thrash” bands of the early millennium and even DC coremen of yore … … read more
Review: Prong – Ruining Lives
One might imagine following 2012’s Carved Into Stone—Prong’s most acclaimed and commercially successful album since the landmark 1994 record Cleansing—would put some pressure on the band. … read more
Reviews: The Precious Lo’s – Self-Titled
The Precious Lo’s have established themselves as Circle Research, a DJ/production unit from Toronto. I can understand a pair of DJs wanting to try their hand at songwriting. My head naturally bobs to their down-tempo funk beats, but it’s the vocals that make me feel like I’m listening to the robot from Short Circuit trying his hand at R&B. … read more
Review: Pixies – Indie Cindy
Well, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for: a new Pixies album. … read more
Reviews: Piss Piss Piss – Never Herd of Ambeix
On the title track of Never Herd of Ambeix, Portland’s Piss Piss Piss call out punk elitism, purposefully misspelling and mispronouncing the progenitors of crust punk. Acceptance is not an uncommon sentiment in punk, but a dressing down of the genre’s litmus test ethos is interesting. … read more
Reviews: Peacebreakers – Everyday Battle
Here are some Boston HC rippers who’ve finally committed these songs to wax. PBs get a pass for not monkeying the formula too much (ripsnorting HC punk with no filler) and for irking PC flag-wavers with songs like “Foreign Exchange.” Sonically? Negative Approach is the best reference point I can come up with … … read more
Review: Pacific Mean Time – Self-Titled
There is way too much trying to happen on this album. It sounds like the band wanted to incorporate all the elements that they like from each genre and, unfortunately, it really doesn’t work. While the album is certainly ambitious, it lacks a definitive sound. … read more
Review: NØMADS – Free My Animal
NØMADS are a two-piece consisting of bassist Nathan Lithgow (from My Brightest Diamond and Inlets) and drummer Garth Macleavey, both of whom are set on maximizing the most sound with their limited size—and doing it all in a single take of recording. … read more
Review: Mos Generator – Electric Mountain Majesty
This is a heavy-duty power trio taking a distinctly ’70s boogie route (the “Rocky Mountain Way?”) into newer doom territories. … read more
