There are certainties in this universe and, to cop a phrase from that shaman Donald Rumsfeld, known knowns. Time will accumulate in seconds and minutes and hours. People will be…
Album Reviews
There hasn’t been much to get excited about at the record store this year, until now. On Tuesday, January 21, three of the best full throttle rock records of the…
All of us who have had written reviews have had had the same answer shot back at us by a fan of a band we slammed. ”Oh, yeah?” it starts….
When it was announced that Bruce Springsteen’s new album, High Hopes, was a collection of newly finished outtakes, covers, and studio versions of songs he’s been playing live, I was…
Once again, the venerable Atlanta rockers deliver their fourth new e.p. release since 2012; Songs For The Turntable is a sonic blast that kicks the New Year off in top…
Having been sent this album by Salisbury – created by guitarist/singer/songwriter Eric Lysaght – after listening, I am grateful for something to take away the sting of cold winter nights. …
Though the MonaLisa Twins proclaim themselves carriers of the ’60s torch for a new generation, don’t expect them to hearken back to the Crystals or Ronettes. Instead, the sisters (actual…
I’m not sure how one could describe the music of the French duo Alcest. Maybe “ambient metal” – maybe “nouveau dark metal shoegazers”. Maybe neither is fair. But there is…
Breakneck tempos, the sound of a stuck CD, deep “metallic” bass with old-fashioned hardcore punk guitars – such is the delivery of Japan’s Melt Banana on this, their tenth album,…
This fifth release (hence, titled Moistboyz 5) from Pennsylvania’s Moistboyz (featuring Ween’s Mickey Melchiondo as Mickey Moist) has a great, straightforward ROCK-ness to it. From the opening track “Protect And…
New Jersey “all stars”, Speed The Plough are wonderfully represented here with this retrospective that looks over their now 30-plus years career (courtesy of the fine folks at Bar None…
Music is the Como family business. The name might be a tip-off, but like many musicians before them, these up-and-coming lads inherited their artistry from their father and family members….
The Blank Tapes follow up this year’s acclaimed ‘Vacation’ with a low key cassette release, custom made for a lonely Saturday night.
”Ampersand” showed such promise. But we can’t all be Ian Williams. Mylets, the one-man-band pseudonym of guitar-texturist Henry Kohen, aspires to attain the heights of Williams’ pedal-frenzied, signature-shifting genius with…
The Butterfly Ate The Pearl is the fifth album from English singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Andria Degens, who goes by the moniker Pantaleimon. This is an interesting and riveting collection of soundscapes, melody…
This Jersey Shore trio of power-popsters are another find, courtesy of Deirdre Gilmartin’s The Independent Stage radio program and quite a find they are. It may be inappropriate to say…
Not unlike Steve Marriott himself, life’s too short. The diminutive singer, who died unexpectedly at the age of 44, was known for his fiery, peripatetic personality, so he’s most likely…
Does Ezra Furman ever get tired? No sooner than The Year Of No Returning appears, he (along with the fine folks at Bar None) delivers Day Of The Dog, an…
This double CD compilation by England’s Smoke Fairies – Katherine Blamire and Jessica Davies – is a delightful gathering of early material. Rich with harmonies, guitars, melody and nods towards…
This Portland, Oregon trio – Carolyn Berk, Emily Kingan and Kerby Ferris – bring a strongly rhythmic, atmospheric 7th album. Themes of love, longing and loneliness permeate the lyrics. The…
It’s no secret that Alex Chilton is one of my heroes. So this unexpected release is a happy reminder of what made this late musical giant so great. The story…
It’s a wonderful testimony that not only did Cool Blue Halo strike an emotional chord in many hearts when it first appeared on Passport in late 1987, but it remains…
I’ll start by being concise – this is one of the year’s best albums, hands down. Memphis legends Van Duren and Vicki Loveland team up to release a 12-track gem…
It is nearly impossible for me to distinguish the reviewer from the fan; I will fail miserably in my job as the reviewer but succeed in saying, as a fan…
“Now we’re in a hall of mirrors With my secret fears and terrors” –from “Come The Meantimes” by Elvis Costello and the Roots Wise Up Ghost may be the most…
Sam Phillips has been at this for a long time; a singer-songwriter who knows the value of taking the time to craft her work to a fine polish. On Push…
This album actually came out in 2006, but as it is an undiscovered gem, I wanted to give it exposure. I was hipped to this album by the lovely Deirdre…
I’ll get right to the point: this album is wonderful. Richard X. Heyman, the New Jersey-native/guitar legend delivers on every level with this, his tenth solo album, appropriately titled X. …
This Chicago native makes his solo debut on Bar/None with The Year Of No Returning; a fine effort that immediately made me smile. This is a darkly funny album, intended…
Released on August 27th, Bella Ciao is the fifth album by Barbez, a Brooklyn-based collective, led by avant-guitarist Dan Kaufman. The basis of the music lies in an eclectic mixture…