Charles Stepney : Step on Step

Charles Stepney may not be a household name, but the Chicago-based producer, arranger, and composer was an enigmatic musical mind in the 60s and 70s. First as a staff producer at Chess Records in the 1960s where he was the creative force behind artists like Rotary Connection, Minnie Riperton, Marlena Shaw, Muddy Waters, Howlin Wolf, […]

Kevin Hambrick : Talking Birds

Kevin Hambrick has been a staple in the Midwest music scene for 20 years, leading the indie rock charge in both The Orange Opera and as a solo artist. Regardless of which project Hambrick is writing in and for, the sound is decidedly Hambrick. With his solo work Kevin Hambrick handles all the band duties […]

Cuyahoga Falls Rocks!(Or The Downward Spiral To Ohio)

There’s certain landmarks that a father has with his children. Maybe that first game you take in at the ballpark together, or when your kid finds they love casting lines on the lake with their pops. Or, maybe the first time you show them how to change the oil in the car. The point is, […]

The Soft Moon : Exister

Luis Vasquez’ music project The Soft Moon has made consistently compelling and visceral post-punk/darkwave albums for over a decade now. Starting out with mostly pulsating rhythms, jagged guitars, flanged bass lines, and icy synths, Vasquez made records that felt emotionally raw. Joy Division, Bauhaus, early Cure, and Nine Inch Nails were foundational bands for the […]

Edena Gardens Unleashes “Hidebound”; Debut Album Drops In October On El Paraiso REcords

Listening to Edena Gardens brand new single “Hidebound” I feel as if I’m being carried away in some cosmic slipstream. It’s a slow drift of a song that lives in glorious 70s Komische light; touches of echoing guitar, psychedelic keys, and a rolling, endless groove of percussion. The cosmos passes by as you stare out […]

Fir Cone Children Return With ‘Today There’s No Tomorrow’, out 9/30; Listen To “Pull It Out”

Alexander Donat is a man on a mission. The mission? To fill the world with great music, that’s the mission. Whether it’s in his post-punk/darkwave project Vlimmer or in his dream pop project Fir Cone Children; even releasing music from other like-minded artists via his record label Blackjack Illuminist Records, Donat is a true renaissance […]

The Sounds Of Fall: Albums To Summon The Darkness Part I

Sunday’s high was 90 degrees. Today the high is supposed to be 59 degrees with rain for the next several days and my cold, black heart couldn’t be more thrilled. As I’ve gotten older the heat is becoming less congenial. At first I thought maybe it’s just me getting older, but I think more and […]

Paul Riedl : Ambient Mixtape Vol. 5 [The Water Tape]

Outside of the cosmic metal of Blood Incantation, lead singer/guitarist Paul Riedl conjures deeply meditative, thoughtful, and transcendent electronic music. A man alone with analog sounds and a need to connect to the universe in both an intellectual and spiritual way. Even behind the death metal swells, tempo changes on a dime, and the jagged […]

Preoccupations : Arrangements

Preoccupations, formerly Viet Cong, are a Canadian four-piece that rose from the ashes of indie rock darlings Women. Where Women was more in the vein of bands like Deerhunter and Pavement, Preoccupations went for a more darker, propulsive sound. From their ‘Cassette’ ep debut to their self-titled full-length as Viet Cong to name change to […]

The Black Angels : Wilderness of Mirrors

Austin’s The Black Angels have done quite a unique thing in that throughout their nearly 20-year career as a psych rock band they’ve remained relevant. They’ve never tried being anything more than what they are, which is a dark, looming rock band. No forays into ballads, EDM, pop rock, or the like. Their records are […]