Something about The Fratellis put me off the moment I heard them. The music is harmless enough, as they plunder everything that is trendy right now, but it just sounds too contrived in its happy-go-lucky garage-pop facade. The blatant Arctic Monkeys rip-off is just unsettling. I realize the Arctic Monkeys have sold a ridiculous amount […]

[Read more →]

Kansas City’s Anodyne Records has reissued Shiner’s once-limited Making Love EP to give it the full promotional push it missed out on the first time around. Shiner’s been defunct now for four years, so I’m not sure why re-release this EP now, especially with no bonus material. Perhaps, Anodyne just wanted to do this EP […]

[Read more →]

Low needed to get 2005’s The Great Destroyer out of its system. Too many years of turtle-paced rock would wipe any band out, so it’s no wonder Low needed a chance to turn up the volume and flesh out the rock, however briefly. It was the first time the band had ever pushed the beats-per-minute […]

[Read more →]

James Murphy wears his flawless, meticulously organized, hipper-than-your record collection brazenly on his sleeve. He’s a DJ, so this is a matter of course. You expect as much from someone who makes a public display of his ability to amuse you with his records. What’s less obvious is that since Murphy paid such close attention […]

[Read more →]

For years, the self-involved diarrhea-diary-entry-style lyrics of Bright Eyes sent me over the edge, not to mention the fact that Conor Oberst’s affected trembling in and out of key made my skin crawl. I’m not sure of the moment I softened on the subject of Bright Eyes, but I think it was around the time […]

[Read more →]

Anakrid’s follow-up to the heavily percussive Father is a deliberate departure both in theme and substance. Rapture of the Deep is darker and even more claustrophobic, avoiding the former record’s primeval tribalism in favor of a thicker aural landscape that eschews modern techniques. You won’t hear any electronic bleeps or flutters, as Anakrid’s methods are […]

[Read more →]

Having successfully shape-shifted their way onto a major label, The Blood Brothers are reaching a pivotal point in their collective career, where they must decide what it is exactly they want. Is commercial viability a concern or is maintaining the status quo good enough? Confused teenagers are great acolytes and everything, but what is the […]

[Read more →]