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Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra – The West Will Rise Again (Ruined City Birdsong Combos)
Shifting back away from the heavier rock of their latest LP, this release delivers some mostly excellent results.
1 February 2012Better Than Something: Jay Reatard
What makes this film special is the rare opportunity to chronicle an emerging punk rock artist on his ride to stardom only for him to fall and never live to see his legendary potential.
30 January 2012pacificUV – Weekends (Mazarine)
The album is supposed to evoke the feeling of the end of a relationship. And since it is not as fun as the start led me to believe, I guess that makes sense.
26 January 2012Young Jesus — Home (Self-Released)
In our jaded times, Young Jesus proves that Home can be where the heart is.
23 January 2012Lacuna Coil – Dark Adrenaline (Century Media)
The album is good on the whole but the band’s celestial aura has faded.
17 January 2012Buck Satan & The 666 Shooters – Bikers Welcome! Ladies Drink Free (13th Planet)
Al Jourgensen’s country alter ego has delivered his best non-Ministry effort in ages.
10 January 2012The Big Pink – Future This (4AD)
While not nearly as bombastically poppy as their debut, there are still moments of big fun but also some surprisingly poignant moments worth experiencing.
11 December 2011Bully In The Hallway – Crooks And Their Castles (Self-Released)
The second coming of Naked Raygun? I don’t know but these guys are good.
5 December 2011I Was Totally Destroying It – Preludes (Greyday)
A collection of shelved material turns out to be a treasure trove.
3 December 2011Turf War – Years Of Living Dangerously (Old Flame)
It’s accessible and relatable because who hasn’t had a few years of living dangerously.
25 November 2011Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings – Soul Time! (Daptone)
Happy Black Friday. If you go anywhere to shop today, head to your local indie record store and give thought to this, the second Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings review of the week.
22 November 2011Brett Netson – Simple Work For The Dead (The New Black)
An album against cheap fuel and capitalism, it actually is indisposable.
20 November 2011White Wives – Happeners (Adeline)
White Wives demonstrate really anthemic songwriting chops with very interesting concepts and influences, mainly from the Provo Movement of the 1960’s.
17 November 2011Chris Connelly – Artificial Madness (Relapse)
This former Revolting Cock reinvents himself by taking a fresh approach to the past.
13 November 2011Immortal Technique – The Martyr (Viper)
It’s important to keep your expectations in check since this is a mixtape but his talent is so much greater than most hip-hop artists that even his leftovers are better than those artists’ singles.
11 November 2011Iced Earth – Dystopia (Century Media)
This is easily Iced Earth’s best collection of tunes since 1998. If you jumped off the bandwagon like I did, now’s the time to get back on.
7 November 2011Atlas Sound – Parallax (4AD)
Like Deerhunter’s debut for 4AD last year, this is my favorite in Atlas Sound’s respective catalog.
6 November 2011Megadeth – TH1RT3EN (Roadrunner)
Take this for what it is: a great band dialing it in to fulfill a commitment. But with some great tracks in spite of themselves.
5 November 2011The Jesus Lizard – Club (MVD)
This DVD is an essential for any Jesus Lizard fan as well as a primer for those who were always curious about the band but too afraid to ask.
30 October 2011Dibiase – Here Comes Forever (Earth Analog)
Sludge riffing combined with atmospheric foreboding makes this an interesting debut EP.
23 October 2011Jane's Addiction - The Great Escape Artist (Capitol)
Mostly gone is the flamboyance that is sure to piss off more than a few diehards. The raw, dangerous, funk element is missing. But with The Great Escape Artist, Jane’s Addiction proved that they can age gracefully and still be relevant.
16 October 2011Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Wolfroy Goes To Town (Drag City)
Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s ninth album is full of unsettling beauty and unabashed emotion. It is not for the faint of heart.
14 October 2011Misfits - The Devil's Rain (Misfits)
This is one of those bittersweet moments where I get to chastise Jerry Only for another lackluster effort but, at the same time, I am panning a Misfits album.
29 August 2011Amen Dunes – Through Donkey Jaw (Sacred Bones)
If this was an EP of the first five songs, it would be magic. However…
27 August 2011I Break Horses – Hearts (I Kill Love)
There are so many shoegazey bands at this point that I don’t feel like I have any room for more in my life. Well, let me squeeze I Break Horses in somewhere because Hearts is wonderful.
14 August 2011Ornery Little Darlings - O Is For Ornery (Bandcamp)
Chicago trio Ornery Little Darlings’ full-length debut is definitely an interesting listen. Nearly every song evokes a different influence. The album is so diverse that it borders on identity crisis.
9 August 2011Cymbals Eat Guitars – Lenses Alien (Barsuk)
Cymbals Eat Guitars’ sophomore album is an even more challenging, rewarding, and enjoyable listen than their debut.
1 August 2011The Flaming Lips with Lightning Bolt EP (Lovely Sorts Of Death)
As an EP, this 12” would have been better off as a 7” split of the NASA tracks.
22 July 2011Lost Sounds – Blac Static (Fat Possum)
While they lacked the garage punk punch of the Reatards and some of Jay Reatard’s quirky catchiness, Jay’s next best band had some gems too.
18 June 2011Follow That Bird - Wooden Bones 7" (Mt. Fuji)
Follow That Bird burst onto the national scene last year with the lead track on Matador Records’ Casual Victim Pile comp and their first 7” whets the appetite even more for a full-length.
8 June 2011Matt Bauer - The Jessamine County Book Of The Living (Crossbill)
Bauer may have cemented himself among the top indie folk acts with this album.
18 May 2011Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts (Matador)
With his third solo effort, Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore makes his most mature effort to date.
12 May 2011Efrim Manuel Menuck - Plays 'High Gospel' (Constellation)
The Gospel of Efrim Menuck (Godspeed You! Black Emperor) is a series of hymns worth preaching.
1 May 2011This Will Destroy You - Tunnel Blanket (Suicide Squeeze)
Some post-rock bands choose to concentrate on bright sounds of hope while others try to capture what doom feels like. This Will Destroy You falls into both categories.
26 April 2011Murder Junkies - Road Killer (MVD)
Misogynistic, crude, racist, and generally offensive. But what did you expect from the final backing band of GG Allin? Did you even look at the cover? If you’re looking for subtlety, look away.
19 April 2011Boogie Monster - Zechimechi (Needs More Ram)
Boogie Monster packs a megaton of sounds, both loud and pleasing, and offers you something more with every listen.
8 April 2011Angel Olsen - Strange Cacti (Bathetic)
With each track, we are allowed a glimpse into a world of heartbreak and honesty, confessions from a journal set to music and shared with whoever dares to hear them. Each song is stripped down to the barest essentials: a woman, her guitar, and her soul.
5 April 2011Lightning Bolt - The Empty Bottle (Chicago, IL) - Monday, April 4, 2011
For those who haven’t witnessed the sheer blitzkrieg of noise that emanates from just these two men, you can’t be prepared for it. The crowd was struck and bludgeoned by the mighty Lightning Bolt.
31 March 2011Robin Bacior - "Man Before Me" b/w "Headless Sheep" (Consonants & Vowels)
A 7” that revels and succeeds in its minimalism and honesty.
29 March 2011Hunx And His Punx - Too Young To Be In Love (Hardly Art)
Hunx And His Punx have captured what I imagined a trip to the corner malt shop in the 1950’s to be like. This is an excellent and fuzzy update of classic 50’s American pop.
15 March 2011V/A - Busted At Oz (Permanent)
Busted At Oz is an essential time capsule of Chicago’s under-appreciated punk scene.
12 March 2011The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - Belong (Slumberland)
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart’s sophomore album would be a perfect soundtrack to a John Hughes teen flick remake.
2 March 2011The Soft Province - S/T (Three Ring)
The debut from Jace Lasek’s Besnard Lakes side project, The Soft Province, strips down the ethereal and some magic is lost. The straightforwardness of the songs will be refreshing to those who find the Besnard Lakes too sprawling.
25 January 2011Lia Ices - Grown Unknown (Jagjaguwar)
Lia Ices’ sophomore is, in a word, gorgeous. It glows warm, so bask in it.
23 January 2011Cowboy Junkies - Demons (Latent)
The Junkies cover the late, great Vic Chesnutt in the second volume of four in their “Nomad Series”.
14 January 2011The Besnard Lakes - Lincoln Hall (Chicago, IL) - January 13, 2011
One hell of a performance filled with amazing songs and movie quotes. The David Koresh jokes were practically redundant since most of the crowd, myself included of course, was already drinking the Kool-Aid.
11 January 2011Minks - By The Hedge (Captured Tracks)
Whether you want to recapture the days of Echo & The Bunnymen or looking to get lost in a daydream, let By The Hedge be the soundtrack. There’s much to enjoy.
10 January 2011Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde (Fat Possum)
Dye It Blonde is wistful, fun, and a great album that sounds perfectly at home on my turntable.
25 December 2010Labirinto - Anatema (Dissenso)
Labirinto weaves a tapestry of strings, clean and distorted guitars, a few drums, and an occasional banjo. Band leader and songwriter Erick Cruxen blends the most pure musical parts of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, the plotting picking of Explosions In The Sky, and a few assaulting moments worthy of Russian Circles. This being their first full-length release also leads one to believe that the band has the potential to rank among these highly regarded groups.
2 December 2010Solvents - Forgive Yr. Blood (Bee Resin)
Half of Forgive Yr. Blood could very easily fit on a soundtrack to a modern western, while other songs come across as soulful deconstructions of tunes from John Hughes teen flicks. There’s some folk, some indie pop, and what could have been a backing track from the Beastie Boys‘ Check Your Head. Even with all of these flavors, there is no hint of pretentiousness.
15 November 2010The (Hopefully) Last Exploitation Of Michael Jackson
On December 14th, Epic Records will be releasing Michael, a collection of 10 songs that had to have been unfinished at the time of the King Of Pop’s death. This is a clear case of “can we” versus “should we”.
11 November 2010Blackest Of The Black Tour - The Congress Theater (Chicago, IL) - November 7, 2010
At BOTB, the openers have largely become unbearable, thereby propping Danzig up further into metal god status because his set is so much better. The issue is that Danzig doesn’t need any propping up. The rumors of his voice deteriorating are mostly unfounded. And at 55, that he can do live what he does vocally is impressive. Live, the songs are better because studio effects are getting in the way of Evil Elvis’s roar.
23 October 2010Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Lincoln Hall (Chicago, IL) - Friday, October 22, 2010
With all of the Shes & Hims out there with their male troubadour leading the non-musician ingenue by the hand, Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan are a refreshing change of pace. Their performance is disarming and captivating.
9 October 2010Bad Religion with Circle Jerks - Congress Theatre (Chicago) - Friday, October 8, 2010
Bad Religion reinforces their legendary status while the Circle Jerks give their critics more fodder.
22 September 2010No Age - Everything In Between (Sub Pop)
I hope fans and newcomers alike can exercise some patience when hearing this. I think the average fan of No Age will be satisfied by the first half of the album but those who want something more will be pleasantly surprised by the second and plenty of Everything In Between.
19 September 2010Titus Andronicus/Free Energy - Anxiety Block b/w I'm Going Down (XL)
Tour-only vinyl single rocks out with covers of the Television Personalities and “The Boss”.
14 September 2010Pavement with No Age - Jay Pritzker Pavillion (Chicago) - September 13, 2010
Pavement‘s money grab should be commended, not condemned. I consider myself lucky that they cared enough to cash in.
8 September 2010Blonde Redhead - Penny Sparkle (4AD)
Blonde Redhead return with their eighth and most listenable album. It comes across as a soundtrack to a movie not yet made or background music to everyday life.
28 August 2010Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Hawk (Vanguard)
Gone are the ominous atmospheres on the third full-length from the team of former member of Belle And Sebastian, Isobel Campbell, and the Screaming (and uprooted) Tree, Mark Lanegan. What is left is a more sparsely textured album that is honest and occasionally beautiful.
23 August 2010Kathryn Calder - Are You My Mother? (File Under: Music)
Are You My Mother? is Calder’s appropriately and off-puttingly titled solo debut. It was recorded at a home studio built so that she could record and care for her ailing mother, Lynn. As expected, there is a ton of emotion. But the album is less a eulogy than a tribute. This New Pornographer strips naked…emotionally.
18 August 2010Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier (Universal)
With their fifteenth studio album, The Final Frontier, Iron Maiden follow their tried and true blueprint of the three aforementioned chords and triplet-heavy riffs. But the album, like the last three, is too slick. Blame Kevin Shirley, blame Steve Harris, blame Pro Tools, the result is the same. This time, the songs just aren’t as good.
16 August 2010Autolux - Transit Transit (TBD)
Six years have passed since Autolux spearheaded a shoegaze revival. But now that the revival is going full bore, is there still a place for Autolux?
10 August 2010Wavves - King Of The Beach (Fat Possum)
Nathan Williams channels his inner Jay Reatard along with Reatard’s rhythm section.
6 August 2010The New Pornographers - Metro (Chicago) - August 5, 2010
The New Pornographers came to the windy city with their full lineup and regaled the crowd with their special brand of indie pop rocks.
23 July 2010Best Coast - Crazy For You (Mexican Summer)
To call Best Coast lo-fi ’60s revival pop is putting it too simply. Imagine Liz Phair is the lead singer of the Vivian Girls and she’s been taking singing lessons from Neko Case and the album was written during heavy listening of Phil Spector-produced works.
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