AltWeeklies Wire
Are They Battling the Devil, or Music Itself?
Eddie Argos and company return with an album that finds them running out of ideas, but finding just enough new ones to keep things interesting.
California Rockers Make Big Strides with Their Second LPnew
Silversun Pickups break out of the shadows and into their own identity with their terrific second album Swoon.
Meet the New Rock Opera
Colin Meloy and the Decemberists stretch their penchant for story-songs into an album-length piece on The Hazards of Love.
Amadou & Mariam's 'Welcome to Mali'new
From start to finish, the mix of traditional instrumentation, classic rock sounds and forward-thinking clubby production on Welcome to Mali is seamless.
New Haven Advocate |
John Adamian |
04-21-2009 |
Reviews
Danny Schmidt Saves the Best for Lastnew
If the only stupid question is the one not asked, then Danny Schmidt, a Charlottesville expatriate and a founding father of the local folk scene, is thumbtack sharp, a songwriter with the curviest question marks.
C-Ville Weekly |
Brendan Fitzgerald |
03-25-2009 |
Reviews
Titus Andronicus's 'The Airing of Grievances'new
This is either the best band named for a Shakespeare play, or the best album name borrowed from a Seinfeld episode; either way, fans of manic, raucous jangle-pop should take heed.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
02-05-2009 |
Reviews
'Kind of Blue' Keeps Its Cool at 50
Miles Davis' landmark album Kind of Blue continues to sound fresh after half a century.
Q-Tip Beats 'Democracy' to the Punch with 'The Renaissance'new
All this talk of Chinese Democracy finally seeing the light of day has overshadowed another album many of us -- at least those in the hip-hop community -- thought would never come to be: Q-Tip's second album, The Renaissance.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Craig D. Lindsey |
12-08-2008 |
Reviews
Roy Orbison and His Nashville Recordings, 20 Years After His Deathnew
With the 20th anniversary of Orbison's death on Dec. 6, and with the recent release of a career-defining box set, Roy Orbison: The Soul of Rock and Roll, it's an apt time to reflect on how several of pop music's most timeless and artful songs unexpectedly emerged from a small Nashville recording studio on 17th Avenue.
Nashville Scene |
Michael McCall |
12-05-2008 |
Reviews
Kanye West Experiences '808s and Heartbreak'new
West's major achievement here is not in the moments of significant pop-song creativity, but rather the response he's able to get from his listener, the lasting effect that, if previously pondered, seemed a substantially distant possibility.
Chicago Newcity |
Tom Lynch |
12-03-2008 |
Reviews
Inside the The Axl Rose Circusnew
After 13 years of recording, Axl has greatly disappointed Guns N' Roses fans with Chinese Democracy.
Tucson Weekly |
Jon Hobson |
11-28-2008 |
Reviews
Nina Simone Box Set Reveals Struggles of Strong Female Musiciansnew
To Be Free begs to be read like musical literature, telling the tale of a woman who built a sturdy foundation for strong female artists everywhere and makes the listener ask when the rest of the building is supposed to go up.
San Antonio Current |
Abbie Kopf |
10-01-2008 |
Reviews
Examining Re-issued Soul From James and Otisnew
I Got the Feelin': James Brown in the 60s gathers three DVDs of live footage from 1968 and is anchored by a documentary about his historic Boston show on the day after Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination -- a concert many credit with helping to keep nationwide riots from taking hold there.
San Antonio Current |
John DeFore |
09-10-2008 |
Reviews
Brian Wilson is Back With a Triumphnew
Although the word has been used frequently throughout his career, both justifiably and not so justifiably, Brian Wilson's That Lucky Old Sun is an artistic triumph.
Metro Times |
Bill Holdship |
09-09-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Brian Wilson, That Lucky Old Sun
Faraquet Had Novel Ideas About what Guitars Can Do, but Don't Call it Math Rocknew
Of course they could play in odd time signatures. And, yes, they were, at times, willfully obtuse. But at the heart of every Faraquet song is an actual song.
Washington City Paper |
Brent Burton |
07-24-2008 |
Reviews
