Tagged: rd81809

Various Artists New Tales To Tell: A Tribute To Love And Rockets Arsenal/Justice Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: What I like about tribute albums is that they give solid exposure to classic bands and help reintroduce them to an entire new audience. New Tales To Tell does just that for Love And Rockets, which of course was made up of former Bauhaus members. There is not necessarily any one cover here that pops out [...]

Pissed Jeans King Of Jeans Sub Pop Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: I can't say that I often listen to harder edged bands like Pissed Jeans but there is something special about this Pennsylvania group which pulls me in. King Of Jeans finds them packing in the same high volume venom into these 12 tracks and carries over the momentum they built on Hope For Men [2007] . They worked with [...]

The Cult Love [Expanded Edition] Beggars Banquet Records [1985; re:2009] (2CD Set) Fire Drill Review: Many may ponder if Love needed an expanded edition but here alone the album has went platinum and across the world almost double. That being said, it may not have the most familiar singles to this side of sea but this version uses the 24-bit master of the original album and contains a bonus disc of all the tracks that appeared [...]

The Cave Singers Welcome Joy Matador Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Indie folk can go a long way with simple vocals, simple instruments and simple song structures. On The Cave Singers sophomore record Welcome Joy, they get this formula right. Pete Quirk;s distinguishable vocal and delivery brings you into each track line by line, that forms an allegiance with its listeners and wins you over by the records end. There is nothing [...]

As Tall As Lions You Can't Take It With You Triple Crown Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Apparently pulling this album together was not easy because the band almost broke up and ended up having three producers, but after taking their third LP for a spin you would never realize it. You Can't Take It With You is easily one of As Tall As Lions best work and it is a solid [...]

MUTEMATH Armistice Warner Bros. Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Not exactly what we expected. Album Review: After the success of Typical [2007] , there was much hype built up for this release and unfortunately it comes off very uneven and tries too hard to be cool. Mutemath venture more into an experimental side here with blips and beats surrounding their repetitive alternative rock throughout the entire record but [...]

Brendan Benson My Old, Familiar Friend ATO Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Album Review: It may surprise some that My Old, Familiar Friend is Brendan Benson's fourth album. Of course those individuals probably only know Benson from being the co-pilot in the Jack White vehicle The Raconteurs but his roots are totally from the realm of power pop singer/songwriters. Now clearly Benson is not going to shy away from his [...]

Third Eye Blind Ursa Major Mega Collider Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: People who could never stand Third Eye Blind still won't and fans of the band will enjoy the groups fourth record and their first album in six years. Ursa Major does a nice job of not trying too hard. The band sounds good, the songs are catchy, and the record has enough pop edge to it without sounding glossed over. [...]

The Lovely Feathers Fantasy Of The Lot Sparks Music [2009] Fire Drill Review: Technically Fantasy Of The Lot is The Lovely Feathers third LP and it finds them very seasoned and confident with a more developed and focused sound. Although catchy, Hind Hind Legs [2006] fell short in some aspects and failed to propel the Montreal group to the sort of praise I feel the band deserved. Fantasy Of [...]

Division Day Visitation Dangerbird Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Visitation is really Division Day 2.0, as the band felt that their debut Beartrap Island [2007] tried to appease everyone and went in too many directions for mixed results. For their sophomore record they decided on a direction and let it roll, which is immediately recognized as each track here flows right into the next with complete cohesion. What stands [...]

Jay Reatard Watch Me Fall Matador Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Definitely worth the wait and it meets our high expectations! Album Review: When we heard Jay Reatard for the first time last year, Watch Me Fall immediately went onto our "most anticipated 2009 releases list". It was his energetic and unique approach to creating musical blends that were instantly appealing and we all crossed our fingers [...]

Nathen Maxwell White Rabbit SideOneDummy Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Nathen Maxwell is the bassist for the Celtic punk rock band Flogging Molly and White Rabbit finds him stepping out on his own in a surprising style but well done laid back record, that has been a decade in the making. It would be easy for Maxwell to fall in line with Molly's sound but on White Rabbit he delivers a folk/reggae [...]

Ramona Falls Intuit Barsuk Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Meticulous pacing and expansive soundscapes highlight this solid debut! Album Review: Ramona Falls is really just Brent Knopf, who is one of the three main songwriters behind the critically praised indie band Menomena. The band moniker versus solo naming fits here as Knopf relied on about 35 of his closest musical friends to collaborate on the record, which notably includes [...]

Joe Henry Blood From Stars ANTI- Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: There is something about Joe Henry's voice that is addicting. His smooth yet gruff delivery style propels each track on his eleventh record Blood From Stars and never once lets you down. Henry has always been hard to tag into one genre but Blood From Stars is actually a bit easier to pin down because of its sophisticated bluesy [...]

Soulsavers Broken Columbia Records [2009] Fire Note Says: This collaboration truly saves Mark Lanegan's soul! Album Review: Mark Lanegan is easily Mr. collaboration as he continues to lend his instantly recognizable chops to projects that more recently have included The Breeders, his duet records with Isobel Campbell and of course his devil work in The Gutter Twins with Afghan Whig Greg Dulli. This list is not near complete, [...]

Broadway Calls Good Views, Bad News SideOneDummy Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Probably the best pop-punk you are going to hear this year! Album Review: If pop-punk was ever going to make a mainstream return, there would be no better album to make it happen then this new long player from Rainier, Oregon's Broadway Calls. The bands sophomore record Good Views, Bad News is a super catchy monster hook [...]