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Beirut: March Of The Zapotec / Holland [Album Review]

In what could technically be called Beirut‘s third LP, the March Of The Zapotec / Holland double EP sees Zach Condon and company once again delivering a masterpiece. Concerns leading to the release of The Flying Club Cup saw many – myself included – worried that the Balkan orchestral sound would stale and grow old. And while the group’s second didn’t quite hold the power of The Gulag Orkestar, it was a more than solid release. But on Zapotec / Holland, one will find themselves falling truly in love.

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Naama Hillman: In Between The Lights [Album Review]

Naama Hillman

Like most singer/songwriters of original genius, Naama Hillman convinces us that the power of words can subside a natural yearning for easy tones and an uncomplicated beat.  Throughout In Between The Lights, a sense of strong intensity and mobility takes a hold of the eardrums and creates a spectacular level of happiness.  It would not be a stretch to compare this London based beaut’s lyrics to the stories of Carson McCullers.  The power and charisma are undeniable. Read More »Naama Hillman: In Between The Lights [Album Review]

Marissa Nadler: River Of Dirt [Video]

Marissa Nadler

Oh how yee young’ins grow. Way back in my grad school days, I remember picking up a copy of Ballads Of Living And Dying, what I believe was Marissa Nadler‘s first LP, from the KZUU promo rack. At the time she was just another new artist in a sea of new artist albums. What intrigued me to pick up her album was the cover (like various people and animals to shiny things, I’m drawn to catchy album art). Read More »Marissa Nadler: River Of Dirt [Video]

Ivy League [Feature Band]

This Is Ivy League

I discovered Ivy League, as did many outside the New York region, when IndiePages featured them in their Demo of the Week section. And as the weeks passed, I listened to the songs provided for download and I longed to hear more. Shortly after the IndiePages feature, they signed to TwentySeven Records and, other than numerous shows in the New York area, little has been heard since.

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Eula [Feature Band]

Eula

Combining the quirky, awkward-but-sexy nature of CSS with a more defined loud-vs-soft side, Eula (MySpace) is a fun new wave group from New Haven. Their music is packed with the loud, pointed guitar riffs and rapid basslines that would make Northwest pseudo punk proud; think a blown out of proportion and hyped-up Kill Rock Stars release. Read More »Eula [Feature Band]

Vetiver: Tight Knit [Album Review]

Vetiver

To be perfectly honest, I didn’t really care for Vetiver (MySpace) the first time I heard them; at least I thought I didn’t. At the time, they just seemed the standard folk-rock-pop artist blend, fronted by generic vocals. But Tight Knit is none of that. And after listening to it a few times, realization dawned on me that I was thinking about a different band. Vetiver possesses none of the negative terms I associated with the other V band: generic, monotonous, lacking endearment. Instead, Vetiver’s music is filled with traits that make fellow Sub Pop artists like Daniel Martin Moore great. Read More »Vetiver: Tight Knit [Album Review]

Kaada: Music For Moviebikers [Album Reviews]

Kaada

There are two general categories of movie music: the kind that is composed specifically for a film and the already released kind that was selected by someone for the film. As for which works better, it is up to the director or whoever else makes those big decisions (and if you know anyone who needs someone fills that roll, contact me). Then there’s the music that, while not in any film, sounds like it was written for a film—sometimes, better yet, a particular scene in a film. I always thought “Fear Not My Friend For Tonight We Ride” off You Should Be At Home Here by Carissa’s Weird would have fit well in an indie-flick scene of someone driving through the country. Black Heart Procession released their Tropics of Love album as a murder mystery film. Norway’s classically-based, 22 person orchestra Kaada (MySpace) has produced a full album of such music but without the supporting images, allowing the listener to conjue the images themself and making Kaada’s musical imagery a listener-induced audible cinematography. Read More »Kaada: Music For Moviebikers [Album Reviews]

Crushed Stars: Self-Navigation [Album Review]

Crushed Stars by Kristina Hunken

OK, so this album originally came out in 2001, making this a reissue. The official name extends beyond Self-Navigation to include a hidden (Remastered/Expanded). Crushed Stars frontman Tod Gautreau even re-recorded some of the vocals – reasoning that the first time around the group had only time for a few takes. Thus, what’s heard now is the same album, minus the first issue’s “shortcomings”, as Gautreau puts its. Read More »Crushed Stars: Self-Navigation [Album Review]

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