As a songwriter, Stephin Merritt’s legendarily busy muse is certainly not newsworthy – we are, after all, talking about a man who’s Magnetic Fields once released an album entitled 69 Love Songs, a sprawling, three-disc behemoth that offered up exactly what its title promised. Merritt’s also the man behind The 6ths, The Gothic Archies, Buffalo Rome, and Future Bible Heroes, and responsible for several operettas bearing his own name. He’s been involved in more projects than Dave Grohl; in terms […]
Posts tagged "album reviews"
Spin Cycle: Beirut’s “The Rip Tide”
Zach Condon’s been a tough nut to crack since way back in the yesteryear of 2006. He earned a lot of fans back in that bygone era, sure, attracting listeners to the old-world flourishes and kitchen-sink aesthetics of early Beirut albums Gulag Orkestar and The Flying Club Cup; he also was targeted by a (much quieter, granted) contingent of detractors accusing him of stuffing his merely-okay songs with so much offbeat instrumentation that the non-discerning listener simply falls prey to all […]
Spin Cycle: Mike Doughty’s “Yes And Also Yes”
There are not many artists in 2011 as prolific as Mike Doughty . He’s just unleashed his first entirely electronic album (Dubious Luxury: check out the review later this week), there’s a book due next year, oh, and a little thing called Yes And Also Yes which you are reading about right now and hopefully buying after finishing this. Of the music that is thrown at consumers/listeners year after year, it’s very rare that you find one single album that is consistently […]
Spin Cycle: Lil’ Wayne’s “Tha Carter IV”
Rapper Lil’ Wayne once said, via an album title, I Am Not A Human Being. Listening to his new album, Tha Carter IV, it’s not difficult to see where Wayne was coming from – it’s not difficult to envision the rapper being dropped from a UFO into someone’s Hollywood backyard on a quiet, chilly night. The objective? To ruin hip-hop by turning it into an exaggerated version of its worst stereotypes, to behave in a deliberately bizarre fashion to court […]
Killer Sounds from a Killer Band (Hard-Fi come back hard!)
The UK’s Hard-Fi are somewhere in the realm of The Clash and Big Audio Dynamite mixed with The Police. They definitely bring the groove with some horn and synth flourishes but overall, Hard-Fi just rock. Their third album, Killer Sounds, is out this week and it is well worth the 4-year wait. Teaming up with producers Stuart Price (Madonna, Seal, The Killers), Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen), Alan Moulder (NIN) as well as production from frontman Richard Archer, Hard-Fi have managed to […]
Spin Cycle: “Newermind”
Nirvana’s breakthrough album turns 20 this year (we can’t believe it either). Although the official commemoration won’t occur until the anticipated reissues this fall , culturally we’re already reflecting on the album’s music and impact. Much like it’s celebration of Prince’s Purple Rain two years ago, Spin magazine’s latest edition has a feature on Nevermind that includes stories behind the album and reflections from a veritable who’s who of rock on what Nevermind means to them. Also included is a free download of Newermind, […]
Spin Cycle: Blue October’s “Any Man in America”
The average listener can’t, I have to imagine, want to be recommended a Blue October album on purpose. After all: no one but a connoisseur of angst (and, maybe, guyliner) is scouring the ‘net for Blue October reviews. But stranger things have happened than Blue October turning into a sorta-artistically viable band, right? Right? Regardless, Blue October’s new record, Any Man in America, is a late-career upswing in quality for this band. For once, lead singer Justin Furstenfeld sings and writes […]
Spin Cycle: Hercules & Love Affair’s “Blue Songs”
In 2008, a like-minded friend hipped me to the self-titled debut from Hercules and Love Affair. That album’s electropop sensibilities, along with vocal contributions from Antony Hegarty made clear that this was a group to keep an eye (or ear) on. Since that debut disc, they’ve been busy remixing for other artists, including Chromeo, Poly Styrene, Cut Copy and Goldfrapp among others.Finally, Hercules and Love Affair took some time to focus on their own work, and the result is Blue […]
Spin Cycle: Jay-Z & Kanye West “Watch The Throne”
I’ll admit to having a fair share of trepidation prior to hearing Kanye West & Jay-Z’s Watch the Throne album. Let’s face it, Jay-Z’s had a pretty rotten track record when it comes to collaborations. How many of you still bump those Best of Both Worlds albums with R. Kelly? What about that Collision Course thing with Linkin Park? No? Me neither. Actually, my copies of all three of those albums (yes, I bought all three) are now in the […]
Spin Cycle: Mariachi El Bronx’s “II”
I remember when The Bronx first appeared on the scene that there was a tremendous amount of buzz surrounding them. Not being one to dismiss things because there is hype around it (as sometimes the hype is well deserved), I decided to check them out. Quite simply, I didn’t get it at all and stopped paying attention. I have a lot of friends who enjoy the band and when they made their transformation from The Bronx into Mariachi El Bronx, […]