AltWeeklies Wire
Nekromantix: What Happens in Hell, Stays in Hellnew
On their new album, Danish-American psychobilly trio Nekromantix seem content to create music with a tongue-in-cheek horror shtick. Sexy new drummer Lux, a YouTube sensation known for her technical prowess and the fact that she plays the kit in high heels, brings a precise, forceful and metallic wallop, resulting in what's arguably the best-produced and most-aggressively arranged effort by a band that's been doing this for 20 years.
Tucson Weekly |
Jarret Keene |
08-26-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Nekromantix
Bricktop: Broken Bottles and Suicide Throttles (Bulldog)new
You don't expect in this day and age for an aggressive, real punk-rock record to leave you humming along after it stops, but this outfit's sophomore release does just that -- which is a testament to Bricktop's insistent musicality and the catchiness of their shout-along vocals.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
07-28-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Bricktop
Christina Perri: Lovestrong.new
The theme of singer Christina Perri's full-length debut album is clear from its first lyrics.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
07-20-2011 |
Reviews
Generationals: Actor-Casternew
The Generationals play throwback pop of the best kind -- bouncy and playful, melding a variety of vintage sounds together.
Tucson Weekly |
Eric Swedlund |
07-11-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: The Generationals
YACHT: Shangri-Lanew
YACHT's latest is more pop, and more of a party album, than 2009's See Mystery Lights, which was a bit more avant, a bit puckish.
Tucson Weekly |
Sean Bottai |
07-07-2011 |
Reviews
The Rosebuds: Loud Planes Fly Lownew
It's nothing new for a songwriter to turn a crumbling relationship into an album of cathartic reflection. But when the breakup involves both halves of one band, that album becomes a conversation.
Tucson Weekly |
Eric Swedlund |
07-01-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: The Rosebuds
Foster the People: Torchesnew
This Los Angeles band's name reminds me of a similarly-titled James Taylor song ("Shower the People"). But the shiny, insistent dance rhythms on its heralded full-length debut -- featured recently on that bastion of respectability, NPR -- will immediately hip listeners to the fact that this band has little to do with the venerable folk troubadour, except for endlessly catchy melodies.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
06-29-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Foster the People
Okkervil River: I Am Very Farnew
Will Sheff is operating on a higher plane these days. On Okkervil River's stunning I Am Very Far, Sheff revels in ambiguous and evocative imagery that keeps pace with inspired studio wizardry.
Tucson Weekly |
Michael Petitti |
06-27-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Okkervil River, Will Sheff
Dawes: Nothing Is Wrongnew
Thanks to acts such as The John Henrys and Truth and Salvage Co., reviving the 1970s-era Americana rock of The Band has almost become its own subgenre. Los Angeles-based Dawes adds a little Laurel Canyon vibe, evoking the spirits of Jackson Browne and Neil Young.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
06-22-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Dawes
Man Man: Life Fantasticnew
For a band that essentially occupies a niche -- the Beefheart, Zappa, Waits niche -- Philadelphia's Man Man circumvents the easy dip into parody or novelty by making memorable, swaggering music that is somehow simultaneously indebted and unique.
Tucson Weekly |
Michael Petitti |
06-16-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: man man
Fucked Up: David Comes to Lifenew
If hardcore is the music of male aggression -- which, let's be honest, it totally is -- then Fucked Up discovers hidden multitudes of feeling within it.
Tucson Weekly |
Sean Bottai |
06-09-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: fucked up
The Donkeys: Born With Stripesnew
California's rich musical history gives San Diego's The Donkeys plenty to draw from, and stylistically, Born With Stripes is a sampler plate, touching on sunny pop, beach rock, slacker alternative, psychedelic jams and alt-country.
Tucson Weekly |
Eric Swedlund |
06-08-2011 |
Reviews
Kate Bush: Director's Cutnew
For her first release in six years, the reclusive English art-rock genius has re-recorded 11 songs drawn from her albums The Sensual World (1989) and The Red Shoes (1993).
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
06-02-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Kate Bush
Lady Gaga: Born This Waynew
Lady Gaga's new album Born This Way is neo-Nashville pablum and generally incoherent -- though I'm not sure it's fair to expect a coherent album from an artist like Gaga.
Tucson Weekly |
Sean Bottai |
05-31-2011 |
Reviews
Tags: Lady Gaga
The Swigs: Johnson Family Valuesnew
The Swigs' impressive 2010 debut, Let It Come Down, boasted virtuoso playing, well-crafted tunes and a driving energy. But the Tucson rock trio has topped that record by going epic with this audacious sophomore release.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
05-19-2011 |
Reviews
