02.Feb.2012 Moving Pictures: “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings” by Father John Misty
It’s not that there’s anything inherently wrong with soft rock indie rock. It’s just that there’s so much of it and so much of it gets such grand praise when it’s all really, kinda boring. That’s all. That’s why soft rock has been my mortal enemy for my listening lifetime. Consequently, one may expect me [...]
11.Jan.2012 “Whithering Soul” by Bill Fox
Cleveland singer-songwriter Bill Fox is a bit of a legend around these parts. Initially known as the frontman for the power-pop band The Mice in the mid ’80s, Fox would later make a name for himself on the strength of his two stripped down, acoustic albums for SpinArt Records (Shelter from the Smoke in ’97 [...]
29.Aug.2011 The Rockometer: Slave Ambient by The War On Drugs
The War on Drugs Slave Ambient Secretly Canadian The roots of Slave Ambient, the new album by Philadelphia musician, Adam Granduciel, and his band, The War on Drugs, can be traced back to Bob Dylan and classic albums like Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and Grandaddy’s Sophtware Slump. If album reviews were based on references alone, [...]
23.Aug.2011 Moving Pictures: “I Love my Label” by Wilco
When Nick Lowe originally penned the track, “I Love my Label,” it was a showing of gratitude to Stiff Records, the small English label with a wicked sense of humor, that proved influential in launching the career’s Lowe, Ian Drury, Wreckless Eric and Elvis Costello amongst others. The song takes on a different, somewhat confusing [...]
08.Aug.2011 The Rockometer: Our Blood by Richard Buckner
Richard Buckner Our Blood Merge Records Working with a quiet confidence, a naturally smooth and deep voice (one like Evan Dando’s, but with a lot less crack damage), and deceptively attentive arrangements brimming with details for the patient ear, it’s no wonder Richard Buckner has never risen to a larger profile. His brand of downtrodden [...]
The Rockometer: Marble Son by Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter
Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter Marble Son Station Grey Records Considering how Marble Son has been billed as Jesse Sykes’ electric rock album, it’s surprising how little its opening track, “Hushed by Devotion” does to further this story line. Yes, Sykes’ voice is as brilliant as ever — Husky, smoky, and a little rough [...]
02.Jun.2011 Moving Pictures: “Only in My Double Mind” by Centro-Matic
The art of Texas artist Will Johnson is on full display in the video for “Only in My Double Mind,” the first single from Centro-Matic’s forthcoming album, Candidate Waltz. The song is classic Centro-Matic, burly and brooding, rustic Rock ‘N’ Roll with Johnson’s soulfully, gruff voice providing the punctuation marks. The song, however, is only [...]
18.May.2011 Moving Pictures: “Windshield Wipers” by The Black Swans
“Windshield Wipers,” the first single off of The Black Swans forthcoming Misra Release, Don’t Blame the Stars has this nice old-timey Wilco feel to it, like something Jeff Tweedy would have written back in his boozier and bluesier days on an album like A.M. or Being There. Jerry DeCicca’s voice, while filled with sadness and [...]
