The Takeover UKRunning with the WastersRyko by Al Kaufman The Takeover UK are one of those garage bands with punk attitudes, but enough music sensibility to fill their songs with monster hooks. They're like some of the great British bands that came out in the '70s second wave of the British Invasion. You know, bands […]
MarvelAnn Bad Advice By Eileen Tilson What do Portland, Ore. and Australia have in common? Both serve as the inspiration for duo Marvelann’s sophomore album Bad Advice. Written and recorded by founding members Simon Honisett and Jonathan Jubera, the album is a crafted compilation of dreamy pop recorded entirely in Jubera’s basement. Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Honisett […]
A Shoreline Dream Recollections of Memory Latenight Weeknight Records By Eileen Tilson Recollections of Memory is the second full-length album by Denver natives, A Shoreline Dream. Released on Latenight Weeknight Records, the album is a hypnotic cyclone of sound filled with ethereal effect-laden guitars, haunting vocals and dashes of electronic ambiance. The textures on this heavily instrumental album […]
Bloodkin Baby They Told Us We Would Rise Again SCI Fidelity Records By Eileen Tilson “Let’s take a road trip, its been a while…” swoons Daniel Hutchens on the the final track of Bloodkin’s latest studio album, Baby They Told Us We Would Rise Again. Recorded in their hometown of Athens, this is the band’s […]
Matt Duke Kingdom UndergroundRykodisc By Al Kaufman Matt Duke stares out from the cover of his current CD with a mop-haired head, wide open puppy dog eyes, and enough scruff to make the girls think he has a dangerous side. Or maybe he's been too busy saving drowning kittens to shave. He exudes that kind of sensitivity. […]
Griffin HouseFlying Upside DownNettwerk By Al Kaufman Many a musician has made a living playing music from the heartland. It is a sound that is full and majestic, while simultaneously speaking in the voice of the regular guy. Griffin House has thatsound down, thanks largely to producer Jeff Trott (Sheryl Crow), who called in […]
Lily Allen It's Not Me, It's You Capitol Records By Leila Regan-Porter Lily Allen is one of England's favorite crazy birds. You never know what you're going to get when she turns up, which is what gives her that eccentric charm. She could be sweet and friendly, or drunk and outrageous. And though this sophomore […]
The Morning Benders Bring Sunny Cali-Pop Back to a Wintry Atlanta By Alexandra Edwards The last time the Morning Benders came through town, it was a balmy October and they were the first band of the night, playing in support of Ra Ra Riot. Since then, the four-piece from Berkeley, Calif. has toured the country, had […]
Pierce PettisThat Kind of LoveCompass Records by Al Kaufman Pierce Pettis came out of that '80s folk movement that brought us the likes of Suzanne Vega, Tracy Chapman and Bill Morrissey. Like the three aforementioned songwriters, Pettis does not waste his time navel gazing or spouting platitudes. He writes honest little stories and slices of […]
By Ben Grad Though The Killers are associated with Las Vegas in their album art, promotional materials, and stage props, their sound is more international, purposefully divorced from the little musical gestures that normally add the prefixes "West Coast," "Southern," or "Midwest" to a band's biography. If anything, their musical roots are closer to […]
Funeral Party The Bootleg EP Independent Label Group By Alexandra Edwards Funeral Party, a four-piece from working class East LA, have released a promising three-song EP that showcases their considerable popularity as a backyard-party band. The Bootleg EP may not reinvent the genre, but it definitely proves they have an aptitude for post-punk dance music.
Modern Skirts All Of Us In Our Night Self-released By Julia Reidy Athens, Ga.’s Modern Skirts will never not make pop music, no matter how hard they try. Their sophomore full-length, entitled All Of Us In Our Night, is just that — albeit an exercise in pop with a good bit of the […]
The Virgins January 25, 2009 The Drunken Unicorn By Alexandra Edwards It was LA meets NYC on the staging ground of the Dirty South this past weekend at the Drunken Unicorn, and it was more fun than a crowd should be allowed to have on a Sunday night. Starting things off around 9 p.m. — […]
The Love WillowsHey! Hey!Decca by Al Kaufman It must be the dour economic times that makes people want to listen to unabashedly happy music. Last year we had the Submarines out of LA, and this year it's time for Atlanta's Love Willows. The duo of singer Hope Partlow and multi-instrumentalist and singer Ryan Wilson are […]
Ying QuartetDim SumTelarc **** by Al Kaufman Ah, these Ying kids. Three brothers and a sister make up a classical quartet consisting of two violins, a viola, and a cello. But this is not the classical music your stodgy old grandmother listens to. The CD is named Dim Sum because, like the food, these are […]
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