Matt Pond PA: The Lives Inside the Lines in Your Hand - The title of Matt Pond PA’s new album may be a mouthful, but don’t let that distract you. The Lives Inside the Lines in Your Hand is, in a word, resplendent. Matt Pond PA was formed in Philadelphia by singer-songwriter Matt Pond . He is the only consistent member, and has been collaborating with numerous musicians since 1998. He has regularly released records since then, and The Lives Inside the Lines in Your Hand is one of the best to date. [...]
Thao and the Get Down Stay Down: We The Common - I have to confess that when I’m confronted with folk music, I get a little apprehensive. I like a good jangly guitar line as much as the next guy, but when that “too much of a good thing” starts kicking in, I find it a little grating. That sentiment aside, or perhaps even because of it, Thao and the Get Down Stay Down have got folksy indie rock down pat. I don’t mean they’ve found a complacent niche to occupy; I mean they have [...]
STRFKR: Miracle Mile - It seems that from the very beginning STRFKR has been having an identity crisis; changing the band name three times, losing members and releasing wildly different albums and EPs, the band clearly does not wish to be labeled. Their latest album, Miracle Mile is no exception. With obvious influences from 70’s Funk, Dream Pop, Electro Synth Experimentation, and Indian fusion the sound of the band is indescribable. ‘While I’m Alive’ starts the album with a simple message: “while I’m alive, I live my life.” Not hard to interpret, the upbeat, club-friendly song [...]
Gold Panda: Trust EP - I found Gold Panda ’s new Trust EP to be a very short, well rounded collection of experimental songs. It starts off with a great intro: Two sweet chords switching back and forth amid a distorted haze dressed with motion picture samples. Then we get to ‘Trust’, putting you in hip, bobbing trance fashioned from soothing arrhythmic loops and textures overtop a steady bass beat and the fast eighth-note percussion. It’s a very chilled piece, and though it may have the passing appearance of any static, minimal techno song, [...]
Yo La Tengo: Fade - Thirty years is an incredible amount of time for anyone to be doing anything. If Yo La Tengo were union workers they would be eligible for retirement with full pension. However, this band is doing no such thing. After such a long and storied career, Yo La Tengo is still producing new music; Fade is their thirteenth studio album. While the title brings about a somber notion of a band that may be in their twilight years, the content contradicts those notions immediately. Fade is not an experimental [...]
I first came across 'No Compromise' by Profound Perceived a month ago while sifting through a stack of recommendations. The unusual beats and synths instantly grabbed my attention and soon after, the vocal samplings and catchy melodies kept me where I was; speechless. It came as no surprise to me that he'd been signed to Synth Records , but every other aspect of his music continued to keep me guessing. To say I'm excited for his full length, doesn't really cover it. Our vision for 'No Compromise' may not include any football, but it does [...]
Beach Fossils: Clash The Truth - I have seen too many screen versions of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. It's ruined boorish Sunday afternoons, a perfectly good Thanksgiving evening in 2005 and it whispers around my sisters home even as she lays dead asleep, her couch covered in cat hair. They serve bread in these movies and no one eats it. They interact with one another and the chemistry, the reaction fails to excite conversation. So much of the film is spoken through panoramic staring and bizarre starchy costuming. These characters are supposed to be in love [...]
Everything Everything: Arc - In 2007 Jonathan Higgs, Jeremy Pritchard, Michael Spearman and Alex Robertshaw started Everything Everything. Releasing their debut album in 2010, Man Alive , they then forced the world to wait nearly three years for their next album. Arc not only escapes the “sophomore slump” associated with numerous second album attempts, it shatters the preconceived notion. ‘Cough Cough’ is the first track off Arc and is the kind of track other bands should take note of. It is in fact, the perfect way [...]
Peter Peter: Une Version Améliorée De La Tristesse - I had originally promised myself that I’d stay away from soft, pretty male vocals this week for fear of reviewing too much of the same type of music. That promise went straight out the window when I heard the first track on Montreal native Peter Peter 's Une Version Améliorée De La Tristesse , and frankly, I’m not sorry. And if you like slightly anachronistic synth, gorgeous French vocals, and a slight sense of melancholy in your music, I’m guessing you won’t be, either. [...]
Local Natives: Hummingbird - When Local Natives first hit the scene in February 2010, they were younger and more carefree. Although they had a well-packaged record with a number of pop cross-over options, it is now clear that they refuse to be boxed into an indie pop corner. Where the first album, Gorilla Manor , strives to fit into some preconceived notion, the second breaks those bonds to go its own way. The first song, ‘You & I,’ may confuse their Gorilla Manor [...]
Nosaj Thing: Home - You press play and become surround by eerie textures, followed by what feels like a standard hip-hop beat- but no, as you venture on you discover this music is far more intelligent than that. The enigmatic feelings are draped over your shoulders in a way that makes you curious and unsure of who’s behind it all. There’s a sense of mystery that emanates from the unpredictable forms, pulling you deeper into a new place you’ve never seen before; a dark tunnel with no end in sight. And you venture on... It’s [...]
FIDLAR: FIDLAR — The self-titled release from FIDLAR feels a little off with a January arrival, considering the record sounds like a house party in the summer. The band hails from L.A. playing unimaginative surf rock with some punk, power pop, and garage elements awkwardly mixed in. Punk, by nature, is oftentimes associated with repetition and imitation, but the recycling done by FIDLAR feels careless. The start of the album is deceiving, with an electrifying intro of guitar buildup that completely lets you down once the screaming vocals come in to disappoint on the opening [...]
Many things have happened and are still happening since TEEEL released University Heights last winter. After a brief tour and round of interviews that included yours truly , Jim Smith aka TEEEL began a remixing tour de force wherein he mixed tracks for artists ranging from Brothertiger to Toro y Moi . While still currently working on his next record (TBA), he decided to do one more before embarking on a brief tour that includes parts of the Northeast U.S. and SXSW . [...]
New Order: Lost Sirens - New Order is one of the iconic bands left from the indescribable eighties era. Their influence changed the way music was listened to but moreover the era’s impact on the sound of the band's music is undeniable. The band has been through numerous break-ups and make-ups and has been teasing about an album release for years. Made up of the remaining members of Joy Division and a few member additions, Bernard Sumner, Steven Morris, Gillian Gilbert, Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman have not missed a beat since their formation. [...]
Air Review: Low Wishes - “When we were kids we believed in everything.” So says the warm, wistful tune that is 'Rebel', a standout track off Air Review’s upcoming album Low Wishes that starts listeners off with a taste of the sincerity and gentle nostalgia that is to come. Low Wishes is an album full of strong tracks. Some of the melodies aren’t extraordinarily complex, but the sweet harmonizing, folksy instrumentation, charming xylophone work, and obvious sincerity all work together to render them something special, especially during some of those [...]
It's a new year and with every new year comes a rush of artists releasing videos and albums at an alarming pace. While we mostly stick to posting artists' videos on our Twitter or Facebook pages on a daily basis, lately it seems that they're coming in far too quickly to keep up. What we're left with is an ever-growing pile of material that you may never hear... and we can't let that happen, can we? You may remember our [...]
When I found out way back in November that Geographer was coming back to the city, I was over the moon. I had the pleasure of seeing them last March while they were opening for Miniature Tigers and knew firsthand how great they were in concert. So, when I got to Schubas , it felt a bit like coming home. The first band that came on was The Hudson Branch , which I found unimpressive. They were a four-man group who were trying too hard and not hard enough at the same [...]
I was given the opportunity to see Hooray for Earth perform live last Wednesday and, having listened-to and enjoyed their 2011 LP, True Loves , made plans to see them play at Schubas Tavern . I had never been to Schubas before, but I can see why I’ve heard only good things about the venue: You walk through the bar, past the Harmony Grill , and into the main stage area which was occupied by a small crowd; a cozy place with paneled floors, jacket hooks on the walls, and a long bench to the right of the [...]
Chris Dave: Chris Dave and The Drumhedz Mixtape - Hip hop, jazz, soul and some abstract sampling that remain undefinable, Chris Dave is most famously known for his work as a touring and studio drummer. He has worked with everyone from Adele, to Beyonce, Sonny Rollins, Robert Glasper, Lupe Fiasco, and A Tribe Called Quest just to name a few. His dynamic and unique approach to his instrument has earned him the accolade of being one of the top drummers alive. After about two decades of working with some of the music industries top artists, [...]
Danzig-S/T There is an unforgivable amount of kindly, sickly anemic man rock today, right now! These guys gather in some art space downtown somewhere and let loose on their modified banjos and sitars and sing about what it was like to have once been loved. It's disgusting, it's everywhere and as time goes on the thinner these men become. When did it become the dream of young boys to become terry cloth? A gentle elixir for mouth sores and cankers? In 19782s movie adaptation of Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band [...]
Violent Success
Luce, Silvia Capasso: testo e video della finalista di The Voice of Italy
Ta-ku – Love Lost (Daughter edit/cover)
Sam Thomas – I’m Gonna Be A Witch (Alt-J Remix)
