AltWeeklies Wire
Roots Album Taps the Sound of Angernew
Incisive lyrics, assertive vocals, ear-grabbing hooks and pummeling beats are the hallmarks of Rising Down.
San Diego CityBeat |
Alan Sculley |
06-04-2008 |
Reviews
Usher's Latest Doesn't Break the Rulesnew
On Here I Stand, Usher claims to be a player no more, making the album a bit of a snore.
Black Angels Sophomore Album Plays It Safenew
Directions to See A Ghost isn't spooky, or inspired.
Los Campesinos! Have Musical Unitynew
British pop-punk band Los Campesinos! brings silliness and general naïvety back to indie rock and do it with all the camaraderie of a band certainly more seasoned than these tweecore lads and lassies.
Eugene Weekly |
Chuck Adams |
06-03-2008 |
Reviews
Bun B's Delivers on 'Ill Trill'new
Back in 1987, when Chad Butler and Bernard Freeman were first writing the rhymes that would become their debut cassette The Southern Way, neither one of them ever would have dreamed that their music would one day echo off the walls of a Louis Vuitton boutique in the Galleria.
Houston Press |
John Nova Lomax |
06-03-2008 |
Reviews
'Lay It Down' is Easily the Right Rev.'s Best in Five Yearsnew
Green and Co. (a crew that prominently includes ?uestlove) make tangible the sound of long-ago church-pew Sunday mornings spent making up for all those sinful Saturday nights.
Dallas Observer |
Robert Wilonsky |
06-03-2008 |
Reviews
Al Green's New Album Will Make You Wish You Were a Better Mannew
If there's one male vocalist who can make the most secure of men feel inadequate about the way he's been living his life, it's Rev. Al. Even after all these years Green still performs with all the authority of a man who has lived, who has accomplishments he's proud of and mistakes he's tried to rectify.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Craig D. Lindsey |
06-03-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Al Green, Lay It Down
Gossip Aims for a Big Crowdnew
In principle, I'm no great fan of the live album, but the Arkansas-born/Olympia-based Gossip is one band where a live album not only makes sense, it even makes sense as a major-label debut presumably meant to introduce the band to a larger audience.
The Memphis Flyer |
Chris Herrington |
05-30-2008 |
Reviews
Roots Drummer ?uestlove Takes Al Green Back to His Classic Soundnew
After two pairings with Willie Mitchell back at his old Royal Studio stomping grounds, Green heads north here, recording with Amir "?uestlove" Thompson and keyboardist James Poyser producing and contemporary neo-soul stars Anthony Hamilton, John Legend, and Corinne Bailey Rae providing occasional support.
The Memphis Flyer |
Chris Herrington |
05-30-2008 |
Reviews
Death Cub for Cutie Offers More Bite on 'Narrow Stairs'new
Plans, the band's previous album and the major-label debut, felt stubbornly inert and practically vanished on contact. Narrow Stairs is a different matter altogether.
The Memphis Flyer |
Werner Trieschmann |
05-30-2008 |
Reviews
Santa Gets Experimentalnew
The second EP from the Champaign, Ill. group solidifies and tweaks the band's brand of infectious, psychedelic indie-pop.
Shepherd Express |
Casey Bye |
05-30-2008 |
Reviews
Madlib's Quest to Blow Out the Borders of Hip-hopnew
The prolific hip-hop producer with some 36 aliases this time dons the moniker Jackson Conti as he explores Brazil.
North Bay Bohemian |
Gabe Meline |
05-30-2008 |
Reviews
Rhythm and Jews: How a Cache of Classic Soul Got Made in the Promised Landnew
The extraordinary story of a group of Black Hebrew expats, whose music is collected on Soul Messages From Dimona, can stand alongside any of the classic myths of funk and soul. And amazingly, the music itself -- a mix of soul, funk, psych, gospel, and Hebrew traditionals -- can match the drama of the musicians' lives.
Washington City Paper |
David Dunlap Jr. |
05-30-2008 |
Reviews
Steve Albini and David Gedge Return to the Roughnew
The marquee bit of news regarding the Wedding Present's first new album in three years is the fact that Albini is again sitting in as producer … sorry, engineer.
Orlando Weekly |
Jason Ferguson |
05-29-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Wedding Present, El Rey
Kathy Mattea Revels in Freedomnew
This series of old-school country songs about coal-mining cuts like a diamond.
Tucson Weekly |
Jarret Keene |
05-29-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: coal, Kathy Mattea
