ALBUM REVIEW: Huge change in what we'll call "introverted" Elvis Costello for right now on National Ransom. This music is free in form with the it's subtle blues and that driving rhythmic bass pounding found on earlier Costello releases...
For the rest of Elvis Costello National Ransom Review please visist the new Review Stalker Music and mp3 Blog!
Get a sample after the jump.
ALBUM REVIEW: Working too much. Too tired to write or listen to music most of the time. I am so pathetic but i did just manage to pick-up Phosphene Dream by the Black Angels...
Get the rest of the Thank You Black Angels Album Review after the jump on the all new ReveiwStalker.com Music and mp3 blog.
Lots of awesome stuff on the other side. Won't you come over to the other side. If you stay in the boat it's up to you but if you get off the boat, you will dip into the other side. I promise the water is fine.
ALBUM REVIEW: Harmonious bec from Japan's record Her Strange Dreams is a winner. All the comparisons are true amongst the light sprinkling of traditional instrumentation. Her Strange Dreams is brought to you by Monotreme Records and offer a mix reminiscent of those glorious DJ Shadow record bin finds and that weird techno music present in the sound bed of Lost in Translation (at least in my imagination) for those round eyes that are paying attention. Get the rest of this Harmonious bec post on all new ReviewStalker.com Music Blog site!>>
ALBUM REVIEW: Tame Impala's InnerSpeaker is a jam band like no other in love with guitar effects, rubber soul and the mysterious retro parts of the Flaming Lips. Ok maybe they are more Pink Floyd but the thing is with the distortion and big drums things get like an ocean engulfed by pixies on the top with these spacey vocals that just make this album work. Right see key is here I said album. All of these tracks are woven together with guitars to create a great soundscape for that old black velvet 70's nude psychedelic poster you have.
Tame Impala_02_Desire Be Desire Go
ALBUM REVIEW: Something brilliant about how simple good songs can make the recording process sound deeper than it actually is. Joe Pernice's latest effort Goodbye, Killer has horns and some 12 string strumming held together in a easy and balanced mix. Think Harvest but not as reverb drenched as previous Pernice Brothers records but with equally Honest lyrics make up the crackle in this home schooled american pop-music. The harmonies are as decent as the lyrics. Guitar play is what you would expect; and that is what you get. This Pernice record is like sober and clean shaved Whiskeytown.
The End of Faith - mp3
ALBUM REVIEW: Good and hearty tunes from Brian Fallon and the boys on American Slang. No doubt about The Gaslights Anthem's 4th release is a winner. Could be it's own reality show taking place in the suburbs of Jersey and spilling out across America. RXP is going to be playing the crap out of them no doubt. Classic diddling guitar riffs backed up by a solid rhythm section. Jersey bar bands needs to take lesson from these guys and they need to take some more risks too in my humble opinion but then again I always say that. A few too many rebel Clash punk cliches but ready made they are for mass consumption at your local Cheesecake Factory bar. I think I know "The Queen of Lower Chelsea", she works at Bis.Co.Latte perhaps? The lyrics are the meat of this New Brunswick band, like a well planned tattoo, with a voice which is straight from the souls of rebellious youths who really don't stand a chance. The bar is really high especially when you're one of them kicking it up in the air.
ALBUM REVIEW: I like my 90's rock and love it when bands take slices and load squealing droning distorted guitars and paste them up in their songs in a melodic format. This is not your monotone indie rock-band and I wouldn't dare call Free Electric State's - Caress retro in the least but there are hints of undeniable dark influences like Sioux and the Banshees backed with the equal nod to pop sentiment of The Breeders; mixed in there when the band breaks it down and turns the fuzz-off, you get a blast of warm vocal air. Holistically it's raw enough to please your shoe-geezer crowd and way better than most ironically groomed facial hair bands.
The dueling guitars are led by David Koslowski and Nick Williams which are complimented gracefully by the vocals of Shirlé Hale. Koslowski and Hale are North Carolina transplants who had played previously together in Baltimore's Gerty! and Ex-Members. Koslowski foremerly fronted local grungesters Liquor Bike and made infamous Melody Lane their home. Needless to say these folks can be my DJ's anytime and that is saying a lot.
Check out:
"Six is one" By Free Electric State
Catch them live in 2010:
May 20th CAT'S CRADLE w/ Silver CARRBORO, NC
May 28 THE WINDUP SPACE w/ Hammer No More The Fingers BALTIMORE, MD
May 29 The RED & The BLACK w/ Hammer No More The Fingers WASHINGTON, DC
Jun 4 NEW FRENCH BAR w/ Hammer No More The Fingers ASHEVILLE, NC
Jun 5 Annual Daniel Festival w/ Hammer No More The Fingers PULASKI, VA
Jun 10 RESERVOIR CARRBORO, NC
Jun 11 THE SOAPBOX WILMINGTON, NC
Jun 12 Art Bar COLUMBIA, SC
For more Free Electric State Shows go here | Fan them on Facebook
Because it's relative man:
Free Electric State vs Panther
Ten North Carolina Bands You should hear right now
Album Relistening Review: the Good Earth by Feelies is like returning to memories of your first love. Thanks to Bar/none for this on cd! Featured on vinyl all the time on my podcast it's nice to have a shiny version. Thanks to Amoeba in Berkeley for having a copy for me this xmas. This record was originally out on cayote records in 1986 and remember picking this lp up because Peter Buck(REM) was involved somehow with this jersey based band. Years later I had the pleasure of catching them live at a super club in Princeton in the early 90's before disbanding and now apparently reuniting for awhile. All you wanna be folk crooners should aspire to this level of melody with out too much emphasis on the poetics. Their debut in Crazy Rhythms is great too don't get me wrong but this softmore release was a lot smoother production wise for me and not as derivative to their obvious influences. What makes it really grea still to this day is that the vocals don't over ride the simple and fast open riffs like bad pop music does. The guitars remind me of jersey fields somehow (maybe it's the artwork). When the jams kick in it's at the sonic level of the velvet underground for sure without being too noisy and just using mostly clean and well toned guitar melodies. ahh bliss.
If you this you might dig new bands like:
Point Juncture, WA (folky and handmade sounding one of the singers Amanda has killer sense of melody | choice mp3 link coming | last.fm
The Librarians (more smiths sounding in a coctue twins kind of way) | mp3 link coming
BUY SOME FEELIES
DID YOU FRIEND ME(daviso) ON LAST.FM YET?
Album Review: Glowing Bird by the band known as Arizona. I had a dumb idea for a comp the other day which would feature 50 bands from 50 states. Probably do-able but you would end up with some crap. Although we're a little late to the game we are always weary of a band falling through the cracks. The good news is that these guys would be a good opener for said project. No doubt about it.
Studio geeks beware of the state of the band Arizona currently 3/4 parts Asheville North Carolina and 1/4 part of course Brooklyn. One band guy is still holding on apparently. Pretension aside, this band has none, this review is about the art of making an album. Something that is missing these days in 9/10 of the releases out there. More than likely because it's so easy to make a record on a computer but composing one like this is a whole other level. It's obvious they worked hard at the knob twiddling to create the ear candy on this shinning release borrowing
some from the reverb playbook with their brand of folk-electronica guitar rock and things that sounds like a melotron and um' talent? Yes, it's a damn fine release put out by echo mountain records with so many layers of feel good harmony in the vain of yes the Beatles (on the McCartney side), Sunny Day Real Estate, and contemporaries Okkervil River. A complete pleasure to listen to the two singers trade the lead role seamlessly that they seem as one. At times they get a little proggy and southern rock with their guitar jamming but it's ok we forgive them for thinking big and letting it rip on the title track. They are best on the last couple simple ditties like "The Fairly Light" and "Whiskey Or Wine" which is mollusk-esque(Ween) but I say just go for it all. You can't go wrong.
Mp3 Heath - BUY SOME
Mp3 The Fairly Light
