Indie folkie and one half of She & Him M. Ward is back with “A Wasteland Companion”, his first solo record since 2009’s “Hold Time”. It’s a winner.
Spin Cycle
Spin Cycle: Florence + the Machine’s “MTV Unplugged”
Florence + the Machine are, in theory at least, pretty ideal candidates for an installment of MTV Unplugged. Listening to the official CD releases of these shows, artists like Neil Young hew fairly close to their on-record sound (rendering the discs rather inessential), while artists like Alice in Chains and Jay-Z were forced to operate slightly left of their centers, lending an appealing air of excitement to the corresponding discs. Florence Welch is a naturally gifted singer – always a […]
Spin Cycle: Counting Crows’ “Underwater Sunshine (Or What We Did On Our Summer Vacation)”
The Counting Crows pay homage to Gram Parsons, Dawes, and Dylan on “Underwater Sunshine”, a covers album and their first record since 2008.
Spin Cycle: Taproot’s “The Episodes”
Taproot returns for round three. How does their new album, “The Episodes” fare?
Spin Cycle: De La Soul’s Plug One & Plug Two Present “First Serve”
De La Soul’s Plug One and Plug Two get together for a side project called First Serve. Does it live up to De La’s gold standard? Read the review and find out!
Spin Cycle: Lostprophets’ “Weapons”
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Lostprophets are back with a new album, Weapons. Check out our review!
Spin Cycle: Of Monsters and Men’s “My Head is an Animal”
As I hinted when reviewing Of Monsters and Men’s Into the Woods EP a couple of months ago, the pop and indie universes seem to be on a collision course. This isn’t an entirely new phenomenon – remember all of the hullabaloo surrounding Modest Mouse embracing Top 40 with “Float On” back in ’03? – but we’ve reached a point, culturally, where the dividing line is almost nonexistent. Arcade Fire and Bon Iver have Grammys now, and Gotye and Florence + The Machine are […]
Spin Cycle: Bear In Heaven’s “I Love You, It’s Cool”
If there was a movie based solely on nirvana (the noun, not the band, you sillies), Bear In Heaven would be the artists supplying the score. On their latest, I Love You It’s Cool, Brooklyn’s Bear In Heaven magically meld electronic soundscapes with live instruments to create something, um, magical. Upon first hearing Bear In Heaven you will be transported to a heavenly place where you’ll either want to dance endlessly or stare at your shoes while bobbing your head in a trance-like […]
Spin Cycle: Killing Joke’s “MMXII”
While not as immediate as Absolute Dissent, MMXII is nonetheless just as potent and even more powerful (If that’s even possible) of an album by the ever-evolving lads in Killing Joke . MMXII marks the second time in the 21st Century Killing Joke have produced an album with the original line up intact thus proving that things only getter better with age…and smarter! Especially when you hear them incorporating the softer tones of their youth with the more apocalyptic noise that they […]
Spin Cycle: Nicki Minaj’s “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded”
The conundrum of Nicki Minaj – not Icki Garbaj, pithy Internet detractors – is a curious one indeed. At this point, she’s as inescapable a presence on the pop landscape as any of her peers, so much so that it’s hard to believe that Kanye’s apocalyptic posse cut “Monster” – wherein she contributed an energetic, schizophrenic, scene-stealing verse – was less than two years ago. In the interim, Nicki has hit big-time as both a solo artist and an in-demand […]
Spin Cycle: Adrenaline Mob’s “Omerta”
This is a really good metal album. That may sound like an overly-simplistic statement, but I open by saying that because I was braced for metal supergroup mediocrity. Instead, what was delivered is a nice surprise of competent, aggressive, and often interesting songs that dance closely on both sides of the line between traditional metal and the more commercial metal sound of the past few years. In case metal isn’t your usual primary genre (or you claim to be […]
Spin Cycle: Hawk Eyes’ “Ideas”
The best rock album of 2012? It’s been mentioned. Check out what we think about Hawk Eyes’ album “Ideas.”