The Mountain Goats’ singer/songwriter John Darnielle may be thought of by some as the poet laureate of all things nerdy due to entire albums drawn from the world of wrestling (Beat the Champ), Dungeons & Dragons (In League With Dragons), 80’s post-punk art rock (Goths), and obscure Bible verses (The Life of the World to…
Described as a reflection on singer Wayne Coyne’s youthful upbringing in Oklahoma City, The Flaming Lips’ 16th album, American Head steps away from the bombastic sci-fi rock opera visions of 2002’s Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and last year’s King’s Mouth to make a record of more reflective, often tender ballads akin to 1999’s The…
Sometimes simplicity is the key to great music and what you actually don’t hear can sometimes be the highlight. That is exactly what post-punk unit Sweeping Promises delivers on their debut album Hunger For A Way Out. The group’s swagger, controlled intensity and focused detail on the little things has the cup runneth over with…
As influential as UK post/punk rock band The Psychedelic Furs has been in modern music circles, it’s pretty surprising to look back at their discography and realize that the entirety of their studio recordings can be found on seven albums released over eleven years, between 1980 and 1991. The band’s string of hits – “Sister…
After the death of long-time Gang of Four leader and lead guitarist, Andy Gill, in February, the band released the posthumous EP This Heaven Gives Me Migraine. It included a few spoken words from Gibb, a new track that had been slated for their follow up to last year’s full-length Happy Now, another version of…
Like many of the innovative, influential women artists who carved out a name for themselves in the early days of modern rock & roll music – Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Nina Simone, Janis Joplin, Grace Slick, Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, Joan Jett – Chrissie Hynde is practically a force of nature unto herself. As she sang…
This long “lost” Neil Young album was recorded late in 1974, two years after his classic solo, commercial breakout album, Harvest, which contained some of Young’s best known and loved songs – “Heart of Gold,” “Are You Ready for the Country,” “Old Man,” “Alabama,” and “The Needle and the Damage Done.” Somewhat overwhelmed by his…
By now, there are some constants that we can assert about The 1975. They like to dream big, and they love a wide concept with lots of room for experimentation. They come up with cool, often long album titles. Oh, and musically, well, they are all over the map. None of this is news, we…
Drakulas are an art-rock quartet who just recently released their sophomore full-length album Terminal Amusements. The group is made up of several experienced members with frontman Mike Wiebe (Riverboat Gamblers, High Tension Wires), guitarist Zach Blair (Rise Against, Hagfish) and a cast of musicians including bassist Rob Marchant and drummer Ian Walling from Riverboat Gamblers…
Since the band’s beginnings in 1988, founder and consistent member John Andrew Fredrick has now written and released eighteen The Black Watch albums; with Brilliant Failures being the latest. That’s a very long resume of indie rock for a band that still probably will be new to most. Well, maybe that will change if you…
