Idlewild 100 Broken Windows Capitol / Odeon / Food By: Eric Greenwood To say that Idlewild follows through on the “expect good things” promise of its debut full-length, Hope Is Important, is a bit of an understatement. With a focused sense of how to blend melody and noise on its second album, 100 Broken Windows, […]

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The Lies Resigned Kill Rock Stars By: Eric Greenwood The Lies offer a derivative and deliberate rehash of New Order's early organic/electronic dirges, circa 1981. New Order's Movement is one of my favorite albums, so I'm inclined to be excited by anything that would honor it; however, The Lies take things too far- shamelessly and […]

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Lemon Jelly Lemonjelly.ky XL / Beggars Banquet By: Eric Greenwood With a loungey mix not quite as buoyant or upbeat as Fantastic Plastic Machine but equally as kitschy, Lemon Jelly compiles its first three limited edition, vinyl-only EP's on this disc, warning, conscientiously, that if you already own the aforementioned EP's "there is no reason […]

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A.C. Cotton Half Way Down Self-Released By: Eric Greenwood I've never understood bar rock. Does sweating through generic tunes night after night in a shitty dive really appeal to aspiring musicians? Of course, no band would really consider itself bar rock, but sometimes I wonder. Why would a band purposely adopt a style that is […]

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This Busy Monster Fireworks Barsuk By: Eric Greenwood According to the band’s bio, I am lazy if I compare This Busy Monster to XTC. I could accept that criticism if that were all I to convey. Lead singer Christopher Possanza also sounds like Joe Jackson. However, in addition to drawing inspiration from both XTC and […]

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Gorillaz S/t Parlophone/virgin By: Eric Greenwood In his quest to avoid recording a new Blur album this year, Damon Albarn has been knocking off side-projects like he doesn’t have a real job. Gorillaz is Albarn’s latest incarnation, and it’s a rap/dub/punk/electronic collaboration with producer Dan “The Automator” Nakamura (Dr. Octagon, Deltron 3030, Handsome Boy Modeling […]

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Lightning Bolt Ride The Skies Load By: Eric Greenwood Rumored to be one of the loudest and most frenzied live acts on the touring circuit, Lightning Bolt offers this recorded document of its spasmodic, deafening thrashcore, hoping to convey just as much jaw-dropping awe as its live show purportedly does. The Providence, Rhode Island duo […]

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