Issues: Issue 276 - December 2011
Local Reviews: American Hitmen
American Hitmen would be considered a somewhat modernized offspring of 1980s era metal/thrasher tunes. Not so much like the metal creations who have done away with melody and music altogether—the “roll” in “rock n’ roll,” if you will. This EP seems to pay homage to some of the original interpretations of the genre, aligning more with Alice Cooper and Def Leppard stylings. … read more
Local Reviews: Fox Van Cleef
Fox Van Cleef couldn’t have picked a better title for their first full-length album. The five-piece ensemble have blended elements of funk, psychedelic, rock and blues into a overwhelming concoction of music that doesn’t really match any other Utah band. … read more
Local Reviews: J-Real
This is just bad marketing. So much of this album is a waste of time. Not so much the music parts, more the cee-lo instructions, like your target market doesn’t already know how to roll bones curbside. “Million Dollar Swag” is spit over the “Nissan, Honda, Chevy” beat, and still doesn’t hold up to the other 350 artist to spit over it. … read more
Local Reviews: Lalage
Whoa. This is a whole lotta art here. Lara Candland vocalizes her poetry in various stylings over sometimes lovely, sometimes strange and bizarre background sounds, created along with Christian Asplund, her long-time partner and the other member of the duo known as Lalage. … read more
Local Reviews: The Moth & The Flame
As a duo that thrives on the subtlety of ambient and fragile song structures, the presence of percussion on the album was unexpected. The songs definitely benefit from the addition of drums, and some still maintain that gentle, icy sound even with crashing cymbals in the background. … read more
Local Reviews: The Saintanne
The Saintanne is an interesting hodgepodge of styles and a rarity in the Utah scene. Their performance at a recent Localized at Urban Lounge was more thematic than musically engaging, which isn’t a bad thing. … read more
Local Reviews: Spell Talk
Salt Lake City seems like the last place anyone would expect to hear tunes like Spell Talk’s most recent LP, but this combination of minimal, mellow blues and psychedelic haziness feels like a hot summer day in the valley. Punctuated by Jared Phelps’ half-shouted singing, Touch It! sounds like it was recorded in a concrete basement, with every tremulous note aching out of Andrew Milne’s tortured guitar bouncing off the walls in a strange, hypnotic fashion. … read more
Local Reviews: Young Mindz
With The Milky Blaze, Young Mindz aren’t saying anything that wasn’t said 15 years ago. The opening track, “Young Mindz,” features monotonous letter-for-letter chanting of the group name, lyrics about hyping the crowd, dissing other rappers and the usual self-promoting themes. … read more
Local Reviews: Parallax
Mediums and Messages was originally released on CD in 2006, shortly after the tragic death of Parallax vocalist Blake Donner. Five years later, the band is reissuing the album on vinyl and playing one final show in Provo (with Jeff Jensen, who filled in on vocals for a year following Donner’s passing) before laying Parallax to rest. … read more
Local Reviews: The Numbs & Linus Stubbs
What could be better than veterans in their element? This collaborative effort from scene-defining artists The Numbs and seasoned beatsmith Linus Stubbs has it all. The beats are rich, full of classic soul and Motown-sounding samples. Stubbs can make simple boom-bap into a dusty funk soundtrack, tight and gritty at the same time. The lyrics are what you’d expect for a group of emcees who’ve been trading mics for over a decade. … read more