Mike D: Thank You

It’s been 14 years since the passing of MCA, aka Adam Yauch, of the Beastie Boys. When one third of the long-running rap group left it seemed like that was it. The Beastie Boys were done. Remaining members Ad-Rock(Adam Horovitz) and Mike D(Michael Diamond) did re-emerge 6 years later with a Beastie Boys memoir and […]

Dinosaur Jr : There Near

There’s something comforting about a new Dinosaur Jr album, because no matter what point you jumped on the J Mascis train the band will always sound like Dino Jr. Sure, the early stuff was messier, noisier, and more in line with the no wave sound of early 80s NYC. But starting with ’91’s Green Mind […]

Hawksmoor : Yclept Thorn

There’s a dank haze that emanates from James McKeown’s latest outing as Hawksmoor. After a couple immense and Komische/Berlin School-heavy records with the great Soul Jazz Records -plus an amazing collaboration with Ivan The Tolerable- Hawksmoor has returned to the crypt of Library of the Occult for Yclept Thorn. This is no ordinary electronic folk […]

John Carpenter : Cathedral

I’ll admit, the first couple things I heard from John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter, and Daniel Davies’ latest LP Cathedral I wasn’t that excited about. It was touted as their “heavy metal” album, and while there were chugging guitars and heavy rock drumming going on, it just didn’t seem like a musical trip I wanted to […]

The Strokes : Reality Awaits

You remember the early 2000s boom of post-punk and new wave bands that came out of the druggy New York lower east side club scene? It was so big there was even a book written about it. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Jonathan Fire Eater, DFA Records, Interpol; as well as bands like The White Stripes, The […]

FATHERS

FATHERS is a unique collaboration, in both the artists involved and the music itself. FATHERS features producer Kenny Beats, keyboardist Kiefer, bassist CARRTOONS, and drummer Nate Smith. Kenny Beats is the man behind the board; engineering these tracks into a chromed-out sheen, bulletproof and dense. Kenny Beats list of production credits is too long to mention, but he’s worked […]

William Adam Jones’ “Intrusive Thoughts”

My first introduction to musician/producer William Adam Jones was with the synth quartet S U R V I V E. He, along with Kyle Dixon, Michael Stein, and Mark Donica built ominous, dark musical worlds with analog machines. Capturing the work of folks like Vangelis, Brad Fiedel, John Carpenter and even Kraftwerk to some extent. […]

Edena Gardens : Quintessence

Edena Gardens, the Danish 3-piece which includes Papir’s Nicklas Sørensen(guitar), Martin Rude(bass and guitar), and Causa Sui drummer Jakob Skøtt, are on a tear. For the last few years this music trio has put out a steady flow of slow-churning post-rock psychedelia. Taking slow groove blues vibes with dystopian cosmic rock and giving us the […]

Jessica Roch : Human Music: Live Improvisations I

Musician, composer, and forward thinking artist Jessica Roch wants to connect to an audience at a human level. She wants her music to feel organic, alive, and connect emotionally as much as it does intellectually. The London-based musician weaves and guides us through everything from jazz to folk to experimental to ambient music within her […]

Kronstad 23 : Dødehavet

There’s something wild going on in Scandinavia, let me tell you. The Scandinavian musicians have tapped into a musical vein that is filled with a creativity, spontaneity, and a spirit of exploration I haven’t seen in any musical scene for a long time. Bands like Fra Det Onde, Lotus and Kanaan; not to mention true […]