Fictionist, formerly under the guise Good Morning Maxfield, is a jazzy little throwback to the 60s, complete with candy-pop keyboards and glockenspiel. With so many pop bands churning out albums that sound like everything else you’ll hear being played on every other station, this group is really a breath of fresh air. … read more
Oh, the smooth, sultry sounds of Jahnre. They soothe the soul and make one think of far-off tropical landscapes and nothing but BTM (big-titty mermaid)s for miles. As much as I feel like the whole no-worries, punk-reggae beach music has run its course, it’s still hard to deny the laid-back attitude of the music. … read more
The Best of All Possible Worlds proves that Lord Mandrake is both talented and interesting, but the album’s overall execution leaves something to be desired. Spooky delayed guitars and reverb vocals lazily flow over each song and each track blends nicely into the next, but the songs all sound too similar and nothing really grabs your attention. … read more
Immediately upon listening to Dust and Daylight, I feel like I have been sucked into an old creepy bordello, drunk on some gnarly booze and cavorting around with ol’ busted-ass skeezers trying to get me to spend my time and money on them. … read more
Salt Lake City’s Monarch have offered up a fairly somber modern post-grunge EP with five tracks running a little over a half an hour. That’s a good number of new tunes for an EP. There are moments on the EP when vocalist Aaron Pulsipher sounds like a dead ringer for the singer of Disturbed. Fortunately for him they’re just moments, and Pulsipher showcases a broader vocal range that is a great vehicle for darkened mid-tempo tracks. … read more
The first reason this release was led into my hands was the fact that it is a cassette ape/ digital release, and seeing how myself keeps it old school with a tape deck in the car, it was only obvious to check it out. … read more
This is the second release of OK Ikumi’s mini CD series. Nano, created using a Game Boy and a program called Nanoloop, sounds amazing. Just close your eyes and hop into any Nintendo video game (preferably ones from the Classic Nintendo that you had to blow on the games and hope to magic the game started). … read more
Yes, it’s true I suffer from white man’s syndrome: I have absolutely no rhythm. That’s what makes critiquing any musicians’ work difficult. If I attempted an instrument I’d fail horribly. All that said, Ravings of a Madman’s self-titled album doesn’t suck or anything, but with any band there is room for improvement. For ROAM it lies mainly in the songwriting. … read more
I was once speaking to some people about local music when guitarist Raffi Shahinian politely interrupted and said he was in a band. That band happened to be Uncle Scam. Shahinian described his band as sounding somewhat like System of a Down. … read more
Apparently, Old News Records has been started in order to either release or re-release recordings, primarily from Salt Lake-based hardcore bands, that were either initially released in small quantities, or never released at all. Not a bad idea. Up.River’s self-titled album, although not necessarily my cup of tea, is certainly deserving of a listen, even if it’s nothing very original. … read more
The Vibrant Sound has some seriously cool jazzy tunes. This four-piece band knows how to lay down the creamy sounds. Then, when the band comes in with their falsetto background vocals, it fits the music like they were born to bone for eternity. … read more
Local band Primitive Programme take listeners back to late-’70s punk music while mixing in their own futurist, minimal-pop sounds. Become a “programmer” and check out their new wave stylings at SLUG Localized on June 29 at Urban Lounge, along with new-wave locals, Civil Lust. … read more
