ELO : Alone In The Universe

Jeff Lynne has become a universe unto himself in the last 40 years. A Beatles freak that created his own unique brand of power pop through studio inventiveness and the sheer love of melody. He did his fair share of radio love in the 70s. Is there anyone that grew up in the 70s that […]

Mark McGuire : Beyond Belief

Mark McGuire’s Beyond Belief is a behemoth of an album. It’s an epic double LP, nearly 80 minutes of expansive tracks that feel like the soundtrack to some existential, futuristic film. Though it’s largely an electronic instrumental album, Beyond Belief doesn’t fall into the usual electronic music category. While most synth-filled albums of late tend […]

Pinkish Black : Bottom of the Morning

Pinkish Black is a gothic synth band that came out of the ashes of the Denton, TX experimental rock band The Great Tyrant. That band’s bass player Tommy Atkins killed himself in a bathroom and left keyboardist Daron Beck and drummer/synthesizer player Jon Teague to carry on. Instead of carrying on as The Great Tyrant Beck and […]

Martin Courtney : Many Moons

There’s something about Martin Courtney’s voice that just gets me. He has one of those voices that no matter what he’s singing he always just sounds like him. There’s no grandiose accenting or histrionics when he sings songs like “It’s Real” or “Talking Backwards” with his main gig Real Estate. You get the impression when […]

Beach House : Thank Your Lucky Stars

While I consider Beach House to be a special sort of band, I’d never consider then to be particularly prolific. This is a band that takes a good couple years in between albums in order to cultivate and organically grow a Beach House record. That sort of melancholy and malaise doesn’t just grow on trees(unless […]

Zombi : Shape Shift

Listening to the heavy synth band Zombi is like zoning out to the opening credits of some imaginary sci fi or horror film. As you listen to the synth strings well up and overpower the mix, and the Neil Peart-like precision of the drums you can almost picture some imaginary scene of intense space flight. […]

Protomartyr : The Agent Intellect

Over the last fifteen years there have been many bands to emerge that wore the post-punk moniker proudly. That’s not to say they deserved to wear that moniker, mind you. That’s also not say they picked that moniker out themselves. It seems music critics(I’m not one as I don’t get invited to their soirees, nor […]

Windhand : Grief’s Infernal Flower

Windhand sound like the kid brother to Sleep’s bleary-eyed, paranoid big brother. They make music that creeps and crawls slowly along. Maybe they’re stoned, or maybe they’re just cautious purveyors of doom. Their dirges of fuzz and thunderous metal would remain in the doldrums if it weren’t for singer Dorthia Cottrell. Her vocals add a […]

Deafheaven : New Bermuda

Never in my life did I ever think I’d like a so-called “black metal” band. Up until a few years ago I didn’t know what black metal really was. The black metal genre was something I looked at from a distance and thought better to indulge in it. I got the Gothic stuff. The sludge-y, […]

Kurt Vile : b’lieve i’m goin down

Kurt Vile comes off as a bit of a mystery at first. You listen to the guy as he mumbles and shrugs his way through a song, surrounded by some really great music. You wonder is this guy for real? You listen some more and little details, shaded nuances, and sly phrases begin to make […]