Heavy-hearted in the Midwest since 2011
Reviews of albums, shows, songs and the like.
The artistic and creative trajectory of Fiona Apple was not one you could’ve predicted back in 1996 when she released her debut LP Tidal. Apple certainly showed talent and flair, as well as a knack for writing great hooks. But once she fell into the whole Largo crowd, began her fruitful collaboration with producer/music wizard […]
Read More Fiona Apple : Fetch The Bolt CuttersA new album from Sweden’s Alone 1980 is always something to look forward to. The imagined soundtrack/heavy synth one-man project digs deep into the woozy sounds and shadowy worlds of old school VHS horror. Those b-movies you’d find on the back wall of the video store in the mid-80s. The schlocky sci-fi, the blood-drenched splatter […]
Read More Alone 1980 : The UnknownStephen Eric Bryden, aka Sankofa, is the premier Midwest wordsmith. A guy whose vernacular is that of an Encyclopedia Britannica, and his rhymes are always in-the-moment and of the utmost urgency. He’s a thoughtful lyricist, whether he’s rapping about our failing political system(“Joe Harvey X #doubledownondumb”), social unrest(“Killer Mike For President”), or the best damn […]
Read More Sankofa : Weird SummerYour eyes close and you float off. Somewhere dark but comforting. A strange glow surrounds, keeping you from disappearing into the abyss of space. Or time. Or both. Buzzes and blips of analog origin keep you company on this journey of self-exploration. A journey that feels deep, meaningful, and significant to finding the answers we […]
Read More Portals : A Kosmiche Journey through Outer Worlds and Inner SpaceOccasionally you come across someone that possesses talent and creativity which seems to stretch way beyond their years on this earth. One such individual is Portland’s Elihu Knowles. Knowles is a 21-year old composer, jazz drummer, and vocalist, but he carries the confidence of a seasoned artist. Someone that seems to have stepped into the […]
Read More Aaron Space & His Terrestrial Underlings : FishlandYou can pretty much count on Steve Moore to release amazing music on a consistent basis; whether he’s scoring films, releasing solo work, dropping mind melters with AE Paterra in Zombi, dabbling in dance pop with Miracle, or even giving us something as out there as the groovy Lovelock. Steve Moore is always working on […]
Read More Steve Moore : Frame DraggingBlake Mills is the go-to producer and musical shaman at the moment, but he’s so much more than that. His 2014 record Heigh Ho proved as much, giving us sardonic and breezy songs about life and messing up and falling in love and disappointing those around us. It brought to mind folks like Randy Newman, […]
Read More Blake Mills : Mutable SetUp until a couple months ago I only knew actor Caleb Landry Jones as Banshee from X Men : First Class and the creepy brother of Allison Williams in Jordan Peele’s Get Out. I also thought that he was Irish for some strange reason. Turns out he’s from Garland, Texas, and besides being an amazing […]
Read More Caleb Landry Jones : The Mother StoneLars Meijer has had a pretty amazing song cycle over the last nearly two years. It started in early 2019 with the release of Open Sea on Death Waltz Originals. Then just two months ago he dropped that album’s follow-up, Dead Calm and Zero Degrees on Burning Witches Records. The songs from both LPs were […]
Read More Hunter Complex : Rain In EuropeNew York’s Peel Dream Magazine capture the noise and beauty of late 80s Creation Records better than anyone I’ve heard in a long time. The boy/girl vocals interplay, the wall of Big Muff distortion, and the noise rock squall all come together beautifully. Bands like Lush, My Bloody Valentine, Chapterhouse, and Medicine echo in the […]
Read More Peel Dream Magazine : Agitprop Alterna