Tag: rock
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Scott Collins – Purple Pain LP
Scott Collins Purple Pain LP (independent) There aren’t many artists making music right now who are capable of introducing themselves as clearly having both their heart on their sleeve as well as a chip clearly on their shoulder, but that’s exactly what Scott Collins does on his Purple Pain LP. From the moment stylus catches…
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Trabants – “Mantra” b/w “Surfers On Acid” 7” single
Trabants “Mantra” b/w “Surfers On Acid” 7” (Hypnotic Bridge Records) It’s impressive how engaging Trabants prove they’re capable of being on theirt “Mantra” single, particularly given that the first which tends to hook listeners is the thing that is noticeably absent from the band’s construct: a singer. Usually, a band’s singer is the first thing…
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The Vapids – Revenge Therapy LP
The Vapids Revenge Therapy LP (independent) Beyond a certain point, it’s understandable how fans of any given punk band lower their expectations of new albums, when they’re announced. Part of that might have to do with the age of the band playing a role; whether they admit it or not, fans of four-chord punk expect…
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The Dwarves – Concept Album LP
The Dwarves Concept Album LP (Greedy Media) To say that The Dwarves have been around and weathered a lot of pop cultural storms is an understatement. Since forming in Chicago in the mid-Eighties, The Dwarves have reinvented the concept of the revolving door; they’ve gone through band members (dozens of them – but guitarist Pete…
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Ace Of Wands – Desiring LP
Ace Of Wands Desiring LP (Fortune Stellar Records) It’s hard to articulate how cool this is and how much this statement means but, from moment one of listening to Ace Of Wands’ new album, there is a direct artistic and creative line which connects Ace Of Wands to Heart. Of course, making comparisons between other…
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Kane Brown – Different Man 2LP
Kane Brown Ordinary Man 2LP (RCA/Sony Music) It doesn’t take long, after one begins listening to Kane Brown’s Different Man LP, to realize that the artist is most definitely onto something here that might end up changing everything – if it has a chance. True, country music has been surrounding and absorbing every other type…
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Spitting Image – Full Sun LP
Spitting Image Full Sun LP (Slovenly Recordings) While such things might seem like the definition of logic to those on the outside looking in, some bands feel compelled to lay up when they make their first introduction to audiences rather than making an orgiastic statement the first time a needle drops on their album. For…
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C.C. Voltage – “Berliner Pilsner” 7”
C.C. Voltage “Berliner Pilsner” 7” (SNAP!! Records) Prior to hearing the “Berliner Pilsner” 7” single, I confess that I had never heard any of C.C. Voltage’s music before but, after hearing these two songs, I feel like I know him. More than that, hearing the “Berliner Pilsner” 7” really takes me back to a different…
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Cheater Slicks – Ill-Fated Cusses LP
Cheater Slicks Ill-Fated Cusses LP (In The Red Records) After the last couple of decades (basically, from 1996 forward) which have seen the release of a multitude of great albums recorded with digital platforms (like ProTools, for example), it’s refreshing to hear a band just plug in, put microphones in front of amplifiers and record…
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The Shouldies – 😉 LP
The Shouldies ; ) LP (Graveface Records/Nevernotgoth Records) It’s uncommon enough an occurrence that one can never hope to count on it, but sometimes an album comes along at precisely the moment a listener needs to hear it. In my own case, I’ve been listening to a surprising amount of very moody, very texturally-centred music…