In modern art, it’s a fine thing to splash about in melancholy, but sometimes you just have to don your scuba gear and dive deep into pathos. (Hello, HBO’s “The Leftovers”!) If this is how you like your music, then get your long dark night of the soul on with the austere études of M. […]
A few too many hard ciders into a weeknight evening, this is a voice you could fall in love to… or with. On their debut album, Big Thief leads campfire songs into loud-soft-loud territory, armed with slashing guitars and hip-loosening rhythms. Full-throttle rockers like “Humans” and the title track “Masterpiece” present the unexpected meeting of […]
If it’s accepted dogma that Jerry Garcia and Lou Reed symbolize opposing poles along the rock spectrum, then the astonishing music of Steve Gunn reminds us we live in remarkable times. A prolific recording artist, Gunn moves up to the majors (well, Matador Records) with Eyes on the Lines, which makes a powerful case for […]
Take a load off, Annie, with the deceptively down-home indie-pop of Whitney. Fresh off the break-up of celebrated Chicago group Smith Westerns, Max Kakacek and Julien Ehrlich mine the soul-searching feel of After the Gold Rush-era Neil Young and Van Morrison’s cosmic R&B to express the universal melancholy of being out on your own in […]
One of the more interesting lessons of the on-going popularity of “Game of Thrones” is that the kicks to be had from the aesthetics of dark fantasy aren’t just for kids. Mellisandre’s shadow baby, the red wedding, the secrets young Arya Stark has still to learn about the Many-Faced God — these stoke a modern […]
Jody Stephens seems pretty grounded for the musical history that follows him. He was the drummer for Big Star, the early-70s power pop group that arguably laid a foundation — jangly guitar, killer hooks, the no-frills pop stance of Britain’s beat groups — for what later became alternative rock. Currently in his 60s and still […]
Norwegian musician Susanna Wallumrød — you can call her Susanna — offers a subdued, elegant track of art-pop on her latest single “Hole.” A veteran recording artist of some dozen albums, Susanna sounds remarkably alert on this track to the artistic possibilities of fusing acoustic and electronic into a highly personalized expression. “Hole” hints at […]
For the review of the new album by Neil Michael Hagerty & The Howling Hex, I’m joined by psychedelic lifer and professional moocher Funky Donny Fred. FDF: Hey man, thanks for sharing your bagels and letting me give my two cents about this killer record. You know we go way back with Neil Hagerty, beginning […]
Out of nowhere, a new album is pushing all the buttons that MTV’s “120 Minutes” once did back in the 1990s. Tancred play the relentlessly catchy alt-rock that was once the province of so many college-radio bands fronted by smart, ambitious American women. No need to name those bygone groups here — bandleader Jess Abbott […]
Some of us remember traveling in the backseats of family cars on long road trips, leaning over to punch the radio pre-sets and dial in a goldmine of early 1970s soft rock. “Jackie Blue,” “I Want to Make It With You,” “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace),” “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head”: the playlist […]