Little Dragon is back with a new album in Ritual Union and I couldn’t be more excited. I’ve followed Yukimi Nagano and her crew of Swedish masterminds for a few years now. After my first exposure I noted that it is only a matter of time before LD “blows-the-fuck-up” to quote myself exactly. They possess [...]
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah blew me away with their debut album. They were able to create fun, heartfelt rock with the rhythm of Talking Heads and jangly melancholy of Modest Mouse. Their second album, Some Loud Thunder, showed signs of growth, but failed to capture some of the magic of the first. Then they [...]
The Besnard Lakes are good. They are able to create grand, atmospheric alternative rock music and disguise it within the indie genre which, for some reason these days, earns it more street cred. A big reason TBL is able to achieve this is the dreamy vocal pairing of the husband-and-wife team of Jace Lasek and [...]
The first time I shared this song with someone they said they dug it. Then asked whether this band would perform live in a dark chamber or long hallway. I answered, “dark chamber.” Apparently this was a rhetorical question. Yes “Montana” by Youth Lagoon – aka Trevor Powers – sounds very dark, but it is [...]
Now that the fervor over the chill wave has receded maybe we can sit back and evaluate the music for what it is (or isn’t). Whatever chill wave was – or is – it really only turned out 3 “bands” that I can recall: Toro Y Moi, Neon Indian (maybe my favorite), and Atlanta’s Ernest [...]
The Smashing Pumpkins have never been the best visual artists. None of their videos are particularly cool. “Rocket” is one of my favorites because it is whimsical and kind of strange. “Tonight Tonight” gained all the acclaim and it does look pretty good, but its not my favorite song. “Stand Inside Your Love” is most [...]
OK, so the Tiger Lillies aren’t exactly “party” “music.” In fact, I routinely get yelled at by present company any time a TL song comes up in rotation. I can see how one might find the shrill falsetto of Martyn Jacques a bit grating, but they are so eerie, so macabre, and so darkly funny [...]
At first listen, this sounds like a Zeppelin / Sabbath inspired southern rock band: power riffs, whiskey-soaked and blues-y vocals, and a bare bones, retro presentation. On further inspection these dudes are Swedish, which explains the glib band name. The fact that they’re Norwegian (actually most of the defunct stoner metal band, Norrksen) and totally [...]
Following my recent enchantment with Skysaw’s Great Civilizations and subsequent interview with Jimmy Chamberlin and Mike Reina I was itching to hear this band live. It was odd to see Jimmy’s trademark drum kit positioned in the area of the opening band with Minus the Bear’s kit behind it on a riser, but that unique [...]
What a cool concept; a music festival on the vast sugar sand beaches of the Gulf Coast. A near perfect backdrop set in the redneck Riviera was the stage for some great music in Foo Fighters, My Morning Jacket, Dead Confederate, Ween, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Flaming Lips, Widespread Panic, Girl Talk and tons [...]