AltWeeklies Wire
Army of Two: Au’s Dynamic Duo Does the Work of 30new
Verbs, the latest record from expansive experimental pop group Au, pulses with the unbridled passion of an exuberant mass of people, nearly 30 collaborators in all. Its manic keyboards, swooning horns, complex percussion and manifold other instruments combine with Luke Wyland’s voice and at times an ebullient choir to generate a sweeping feeling of propulsion.
New York Press |
Amre Klimchak |
01-22-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tune In to the Turned-On Dropouts, Asa Ransomnew
"I Like to walk to the center of an intersection!" wails Jacob Bills, lead singer and sole guitarist of Brooklyn-based four-piece rock noisemakers Asa Ransom, a touch of whimsy and madcap paranoia in his voice. Playing up on the extreme highend of his guitar’s neck, his bandmates musically swirling around him, Bills's description of playing amidst traffic seems pretty apt.
New York Press |
Greg Burgett |
01-22-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Doll Parts: The Making of Lissy Trullienew
Plenty of models have tried their hands at music; the architects behind Lissy Trullie have done a smooth retro take on hookladen pop. A bisexual teenybopper fantasy is being built, but there are no buyers yet.
New York Press |
Matt Harvey |
01-22-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Flying High with Side Project-Turned-Superstars Department of Eaglesnew
On a break from mixing an album with Grizzly Bear, in which he plays guitar, Daniel Rossen was marveling at the aftermath of his other band's appearance in a recent episode of the teen drama.
New York Press |
Nicole Brydson |
01-15-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
A Hawk and a Hacksaw Does Eastern Europe with an American Accentnew
Jeremy Barnes first heard Bulgarian women's choirs while driving through West Texas in 1996, and he was hooked. He moved to Hungary two years ago to live among and learn from some of the area's masters but has always sought to interpret traditional styles through the contemporary lens of his American background.
New York Press |
Amre Klimchak |
01-08-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Vagabond Opera Sings Outside the Boxnew
It isn't uncommon to be let down by something that comes along calling itself "opera," only to find out that it either has nothing at all to do with opera, or that it's basically a musical. But the Portland, Ore.–based Vagabond Opera actually lives up to its name.
New York Press |
Ryan Tracy |
01-08-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Vagabond Opera
Elliott Murphy's Second Actnew
The literate rocker comes home for a rare U.S. appearance.
New York Press |
David Freeland |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Elliott Murphy
Ben Vida brings His International Noise Convention to Brooklynnew
Like a musical conjurer, Ben Vida coaxes a remarkable array of instruments to take on lives of their own and reveal their extraordinary songs. For his third full-length record under the moniker Bird Show, Vida continues his obsession with an exotic assortment of music makers.
New York Press |
Amre Klimchak |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Indie Rock Capo Damon Che on Don Caballero's Longevitynew
Though Don Cab is said to have pioneered the mathematical, clean-guitar-tone approach that became an indie hallmark in the wake of the band's groundbreaking early work on Touch and Go records, few of the band's peers pursued Che's muse in quite the same fashion.
New York Press |
Saby Reyes-Kulkarni |
12-04-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
The Dresden Dolls' Amanda Palmer Goes Out On Her Ownnew
Palmer released her album this September and has been on the road promoting it ever since, intentionally leaving little time for The Dresden Dolls. "We're taking a break," Palmer says. "We both need some space."
New York Press |
Christine Werthman |
11-20-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Brightblack Morning Light Makes Music Off the Gridnew
The band's latest album title (Motion to Rejoin) refers to the back-to-the-land movement, and Nathan "Naybob" Shineywater and Rachael "Ra Ra" Hughes fully embrace the philosophy, having lived off the grid on a New Mexico mesa 9,000 feet up for almost three years, with four solar panels powering their home recording.
New York Press |
Amre Klimchak |
11-13-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
The Decemberists Take a Working Vacationnew
For The Decemberists, some of the indie-pop world’s most talented practitioners, "time off" this year has meant tackling the grand and unwieldy genre of rock opera.
New York Press |
Amre Klimchak |
11-06-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
New Dad Sam Prekop on the Sea and Cake and His Newbornsnew
This is Prekop's first time back on the road since the birth of his twins, and as much as a handful as two newborns surely are, Prekop admits that leaving them behind for a few weeks will be a touch difficult.
New York Press |
Brian Heater |
11-06-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Ringtones Killed the New York Hip-Hop Starnew
While hip-hop in New York may not be dead, exactly, it is (at the very least) gravely wounded. If you're looking where to lay blame, look no further than ringtones.
New York Press |
Matthew Mundy |
10-16-2008 |
Music
Castanets Built This 'City' on Rock 'n' Rollnew
Castanets nomadic mastermind Ray Raposa, no stranger to fusing his freak-folk with dissonance, noise or near-emptiness, is at his logical conclusion on Refuge. All his signature elements are incorporated, but the spare, hushed nature of his work is intensified.
New York Press |
Greg Burgett |
10-09-2008 |
Reviews
