On the Record
No Hope, No Future left me unsatisfied, plain as that. A few steps behind the Arctic Monkeys, the Kooks, and Franz Ferdinand, the Good Shoes seem to have not yet developed a signature sound. The …
The third album from Baltimore duo Beach House should be renamed Instant Dream, as track one, "Zebra," doesn't waste time in putting you into a hypnotic state. Victoria Legrand's tough but gentle voice is backed …
“760” by Escondido’s hard-rocking hip-hop crew (760) was the most downloaded local MP3 from SDReader.com during January 2010. Bassist Mark Swanger provided some background. The song opens with police and ambulance radio calls. That was …
Communion. That's the one-word take I settled on for Richard Youngs's latest. Not without some mental struggle -- "prayer" covers the feel of the thing, but prayer is usually private. "Meditation" comes closer, but the …
San Diego punk quartet the Postals has finally signed, sealed, and delivered its debut, jamming 17 songs into 26 minutes. On opening, the incendiary instrumental “7.62 Madness” goes off like a letter bomb and sets …
A Chorus of Storytellers is The Album Leaf's fifth studio release, and it’s a refreshing sound. Not one to crank up at a party. The meticulous arrangements require time and attention, that the listener sit …
Florida four-piece Surfer Blood might have spent too much time lying in the sun, listening to '90s indie-rock. On their debut album, Astro Coast, the similarities to Weezer, the Shins, Sebadoh, and Pavement keep crashing …
With the immediate intimacy of her sweet, classically trained voice, Foster sounds nearly as depressed as A. Camp on the Cardigans’ “Step On Me” or “Nasty Sunny Beam.” Lacking A. Camp's sense of humor and …
First off, how normal is blueberry pie? Serious question. As far as Zen koans go, I'm sticking it right up there with “Why has Bhodi-Dharma left for the East?” or “Why are those car wheels …
Although they try to be standoffish and badass, Clipt Beaks are just a bunch of dragged kids dealing with rejected loves and wavering self-esteem. Just like the rest of us. Their second full-length, To Realize, …
Spoon started losing that choppy, melodic, bluesy swagger on their last album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. The band lost that beat that dominated previous albums like Kill The Moonlight. The beat that made me …
With his goatee and hat, smoking a cig for all his photos, the intently hip Kottarashky, aka Nikola Gruev, is a Bulgarian architect by day. On this debut, he's mixed a compelling collage of his …
Some noise, yes, very nice. And that was my only thought on this white-vinyl Sub Pop thingy my brother dragged home. I wish I could tell you I was hip to the game from the …
Two Sunsets brings together lo-fi kingpins the Pastels and Japanese ambient-folk duo the Tenniscoats in a mostly winning collaboration. Part of album's charm comes from its nonchalance, as if the melodies occurred to the musicians …
On their 18th release, Canadian metal veterans Anvil live up to their name. Title track “This Is Thirteen” is a chunky, iron block on which to lay your head for a steady, heavy-handed pummeling. The …