25 total search results — Page 1 of 2
Matinee Club – The Modern
Review — September 1, 2008
Synthpop is a funny thing. Most genres to spring out of the electronic explosion of the 1980's are founded on a firm platform of moving forward. Unlike more traditional rock instrumentation, the equipment available to the electronic musician is constantly evolving into new forms, both hardware and software. And if …
Puscifer – V is for Viagra: The Remixes
Review — September 22, 2008
Remix album - blah blah - no one buys them - yadda yadda - only useful for DJs - hamana hamana hamana. Now that that's out of the way, we can talk about this Puscifer release. For anyone not in the know, Puscifer is a solo-ish project by Maynard James …
Glissando – With Our Arms Wide Open We March Towards the Burning Sea
Review — October 14, 2008
I have a confession to make. I love local music. I am seriously biased with regards to it and will shamelessly plug it to whoever is unfortunate enough to be around me when the topic crops up. Fortunately for all of you however, I am currently living in Leeds which …
Cancer Bats – Hail Destroyer
Review — October 21, 2008
Cancer Bats really confuse me. On one hand, they are almost astonishingly derivative and terrifyingly hip. On the other hand, there is something infectious about their brand of sludge-tinged groove metal that makes me want to drink, fuck, and party all night. And I don't even drink. Following the blueprint …
IAMX – Kiss + Swallow (Reissue)
Review — November 25, 2008
When a press pack goes on and on about an artist's former band and all you can remember about them is a single that maybe cracked the Top 20 (but you're not sure), you know they're clutching at straws. So it is with Chris Corner, former member of Sneaker Pimps …
Vessels – White Fields and Open Devices
Review — December 3, 2008
Post-rock is a peculiar beast; it's seemingly very difficult to achieve a unique sound in the field, especially after the pioneers managed to diversify into a set of forerunners creating the inevitable chorus of copyists. Given that the only two real distinctions of the genre are a generally low use …
M83 – Saturdays=Youth
Review — January 7, 2009
The French are good at many things. Food. Art. Aquatic nuclear shenanigans. But despite being one of the cultural centers of Europe, France never seems to have really mastered music. Perhaps it's my brutish Britannic ignorance, but I struggle to name many decent French bands. Air are good. I've heard …
Flight of the Conchords – Flight of the Conchords
Review — January 8, 2009
When a friend sent me a YouTube link for some live Flight of the Conchords footage a couple of years ago, I was very skeptical. "I don't like comedy music!" I screeched, flapping my arms up and down. Which I don't. It's very rarely as funny as it believes itself …
Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip – Angles
Review — January 12, 2009
If you have the good/bad fortune to live in the U.K., you will in all likelihood have a fairly limited view of hip-hop. For many years it kind of bypassed us, only really hitting the charts in the mid-to-late 1990s with the gangsta boom (a term which I am hoping …
Neon Neon – Stainless Style
Review — January 15, 2009
I might be misjudging my audience here, but you remember the 1980's? By "remember" I don't mean "act them out in a horrible retro manner while not letting on that you were born in 1990." I mean remember. Predator. Commodore 64. Endless Mattel toy lines. The entire decade fucking ruled …
iLiKETRAiNS – The Christmas Tree Ship
Review — January 20, 2009
As I write this, Christmas 2008 is receding into days past the decorations hanging guiltily on to the ceiling, the cooking trays full of congealed fat and the gentle disappointment of a thousand ill-received gifts floating in the air. But I'm still feeling festive enough that a limited edition Christmas …
Sleepingdog – Polar Life
Review — April 2, 2009
It's a rare delight when music completely unknown to you pops out of thin air to become one of your favorite releases of the year. Not that I intend to give away the ending of this review or anything. Like most music of genuine quality, the sound of Polar Life …
The Cure – 4:13 Dream
Review — April 5, 2009
A new album by The Cure. This always makes me nervous. One of my favorite bands from old times (my favorite band full stop, according to my Last FM charts), The Cure are pretty damn high in my esteem. Having said that, I am more than aware of Robert Smith's …
Red Stars Parade – Lutine Belle
Review — April 7, 2009
Bands that are difficult to pin down to a particular genre are great. They might have a distinctive sound and there might be comparisons that can be drawn, but you can lose yourself in the safe knowledge of something fresh and abstract. Then some idiot music critic comes along and …
IAMX – The Alternative (Reissue)
Review — April 14, 2009
Well, he still looks like a prick in the ruff but now he's wearing a big stripey kipper tie as well. So it goes. There's a not-so-subtle shift for IAMX on The Alternative, a tweaking of sound from debut release Kiss + Swallow. The first album was noticeable for coasting …
Therapy? – Crooked Timber
Review — April 22, 2009
Therapy? have followed a strange path. From underground industrial punks through to rock and roll-tinged pop punk pioneers to a brief spell as darlings of the British rock scene and now relative obscurity with only other bands and a devoted core fanbase paying any real attention to them. They've flitted …
Matisyahu – Shattered
Review — April 22, 2009
This four-track EP spins the typical Matisyahu sound a little bit from its pop/old school hip-hop/reggae roots, with opener "Smash Lies" bringing out a more modern hip-hop sound and the following track "So Hi So Lo" working a more prominent guitar line in to give a rock edge. It's a …
Clutch – Full Fathom Five: Audio Field Recordings
Review — May 25, 2009
This review is pretty damn pointless. No one is going to buy a live album unless they're familiar with the band, and anyone familiar with Clutch will know whether they want to purchase it long before they read these fevered scribblings. For a long time now, Clutch have been leaders …
Dälek – Gutter Tactics
Review — May 28, 2009
Describing Dälek is always pretty tough. Despite the fact that MC Dälek himself has stated that they should be considered purely hip-hop since the origins of the genre lie in experimentation and breaking down barriers, I would conjecture that whacking Gutter Tactics onto your stereo and playing it to your …
