Tagged: rd92209

Big Star Keep An Eye On The Sky Rhino Records (4 CD Set) Fire Drill Review: Late last year we panned the remastered reissue of Big Star's excellent early albums #1 Record/Radio City due to packaging, so we were happy to get our hands on this new four CD set Keep An Eye On The Sky , which spans 1968 to 1975 and shows the progression of Big Star. It covers members solo [...]

Brand New Daisy Geffen Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Brand New have slowly morphed their style since their early albums and with each record they have reached back more into the group members pre-Brand New hardcore roots. With their earlier records they easily fit into more of an "emo" tag but Daisy shows the further progression of the band that has matured and has many more life experiences to pull [...]

Times New Viking Born Again Revisited Matador Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Another stellar record added to a stellar catalog! Album Review: There are some bands that the casual listener could listen to one time and be so repulsed that they would instantly run back to their adult alternative at top end 40 speed. Clearly it is not because the bands are bad but because they are so unique [...]

Paramore Brand New Eyes Fueled By Ramen Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Brand New Eyes is a record that sets high expectations for Paramore, as it is the follow up to their commercially successful album Riot! [2007] . The record brings several key progressions to the pop-punk group, which is a newer and more controlled power chord from frontwoman Hayley Williams that has a commanding drive over each track and the [...]

Rain Machine Rain Machine ANTI- Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Rain Machine is TV On The Radio's guitarist/singer Kyp Malone new moniker for what really could be called his solo record. It is a much more free form expression of his TVOTR work and six of its eleven tracks cross the five minute mark with the longest being the almost eleven minute "Winter Songs" closer. It is not so much the [...]

Eva & The Heartmaker Let's Keep This Up Forever Sony Music Norway [2009] Fire Drill Review: When you judge a book by its cover you are always in for a surprise and that same rule applies to Norway's Eva & The Heartmaker. Based on the album cover, I assumed they would be another Kills or Raveonettes but the married couple actually possesses the pop sensibility category of The Cardigans or Sheryl Crow. Interestingly enough, [...]

Volcano Choir Unmap Jagjaguwar Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Volcano Choir's debut is interesting listen! Album Review: If you just picked up Volcano Choir on a whim you would be surprised that it is lead by Justin Vernon, who stormed onto the indie seen last year with his spectacular indie folk unit Bon Iver. This is because Volcano Choir is a much more abstract and free floating type of [...]

The Big Pink A Brief History Of Love 4AD Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: London's The Big Pink rekindle the spirits of earlier guitar shoegaze bands, while combining the style with a modern electronic beat background. This makes for a very fresh album that crosses into a multitude of genres but at heart there are three key ingredients that lends to its success: guitar, melody and concise song structures. All of these moments make [...]

Girls Album True Panther [2009] Fire Drill Review: The debut album from San Francisco's Girls is one glorious lo-fi fuzzy direct indie pop hot mess. That translates into - it's good! The record has a lead singer in Christopher Owens that can sound as smooth as Morrissey, sharp as Steve Malkmus, and as vocally powerful as an Elvis Costello. The record has meaning, as many of the songs were written after a tough break [...]

Islands Vapours ANTI- Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Islands third LP rivals the strength of their debut! Album Review: Vapours is the third album from the post-Unicorns duo of Jamie Thompson and Nick Diamonds. The interesting thing about Vapours is that it represents only their second record together as Thompson sat last years overblown Arm's Way [2008] out, but now has come [...]

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart Higher Than The Stars [EP] Slumberland Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart are slowly creeping up our great debut list of 2009 and this new EP release reminds us of why. What makes this release stellar is that you get four new tracks offered here and one killer remix of the title track from Saint Etienne, so these tracks are not merely b-sides [...]

Julie Peel Near The Sun American Laundromat Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: Julie Peel has a great voice, great songs and a stellar new debut album with Near The Sun . Her acoustic indie approach never wears old and you can easily put her up there with some of her influences like Aimee Mann, Beth Orton and Joni Mitchell. Near The Sun [...]

The States We Are The Erasers [EP] Genious Collective Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: NYC's The States have just released their third recording with We Are The Erasers EP , which contains five tracks of modern rock that is both catchy and smoothly delivered. The States have a certain cool ease to them that comes off confident, regardless of song style, like on the sprawling ballad "The Fight" or the Muse meets the Strokes mid [...]

Le Loup Family Hardly Art Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: You might get scared off if you read some of Le Loup's bio that describes their sophomore record Family as finding the middle ground between tribal rock, freak folk, and sonic experimentation but a more fitting and non-threatening description is that they play good ol' organic chamber pop. Family is a complete expansion of members and instruments from the bands [...]

Monsters Of Folk Monsters Of Folk Shangri-La Music [2009] Fire Note Says: The rebirth of the "Supergroup" Album Review: It seems in our current age of music the "supergroup" just doesn't happen anymore. Well Monsters Of Folk changes that completely, as it really joins together four monsters of indie, that includes Jim James (My Morning Jacket), M. Ward (She & Him), well known producer/guitarist Mike Mogis and Conor Oberst [...]

Hallelujah The Hills Colonial Drones Misra Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: On their sophomore full length Colonial Drones , Boston's Hallelujah The Hills sound more focused and creative then ever. Building on the indie song structures of their debut, Hallelujah The Hills show off lyrical wit in every track here that is both humorous and right on point. They offer several different approaches throughout the record that will remind you in parts of [...]

Sea Wolf White Water, White Bloom Dangerbird Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Sea Wolf is officially a band! Album Review: The first thing you will notice about Sea Wolf's sophomore record White Water, White Bloom is its expansive and explosive sound. This direction is the result of recording from the start with a full band even though all ten tracks were once again penned by leader/creator Alex [...]

Weatherbox The Cosmic Drama Doghouse Records [2009] Fire Drill Review: The new Weatherbox record The Cosmic Drama took us by total surprise. First it came to us in a really cool marble blue vinyl only, which automatically made you listen closer and then its solid combination of lo-fi, punk and indie rock output made it one of our favorite records released so far this year! The element of surprise is what pushes [...]

Alberta Cross Broken Side Of Time ATO Records [2009] Fire Note Says: Solid debut with fresh sound! Album Review: Alberta Cross is a Brooklyn band with UK roots that is gaining some momentum in the hype department and was just recently featured in the Breaking Artist section of Rolling Stone. On the groups soon to be released debut, Broken Side Of Time, they successfully blend a slight [...]