Written by bob_vinyl When I was 16, my parents took me on a trip out West. On that trip, we spent three days at the Grand Canyon. Oddly enough, it wasn’t the most striking thing I saw on that trip, not because it wasn’t amazing, but because it was just too much to take in…
Bakers At Dawn: Bakers At Dawn [Album Review]
Folk-pop is the name of the game on the self titled debut of Bakers At Dawn. For the most part, the thirteen tracks contained within meet their mark; they’re melodic and pleasant—everything we know Swedish pop to encompass. Swedish pop is, at least in terms of its homogenous nature, kinda like 90s US alternative—it is…
TK Webb & The Visions: Ancestor [Album Review]
Written by Fense Cracking the Digipak CD case on TK Webb’s (MySpace) Ancestor, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The cover portrays giant wooden gates opening in the middle of either a desert dusk or dawn, and the sparse clouds are starkly white against the deep blue sky. The back shows a similar landscape—but without…
Feral Children: Second To The Last Frontier [Album Review]
Lead singer Jeffrey Keenan has the voice of a younger Isaac Brock (Modest Mouse), if not the wild-eyed nature. His nature is his own and you can see it when he grabs the drum-sticks—that intensely focused look in his eyes. Feral Children have come to be a dominant name in Seattle thanks to these performances…
Umalali: Nibari [Video]
Written by Fense My exposure to true World Music is quite limited and can easily be traced back a single year. Sure, I’ve taken intimate looks at music from around the world, but it tends to fit an alternate category, like pop or rock. True World Music, then, is music that comes from that culture…
Stencil: Chop Suey, Seattle [Live, 08.26.2008]
As a Seattle venue, I respect Chop Suey. Their shows begin at decent hours—something aging individuals like myself appreciate. The bill for this rainy August evening included three artists, opening with Stencil, a band I was unfamiliar with. (The other two artists included my good Austin friends The Lovely Sparrows—stay tuned for an interview next…
The Notwist: The Devil, You & Me [Album Review]
Written by Jon Hegglund The first time I listened to The Devil, You & Me, I put it on the iTunes and walked away from the computer to do some chores around the house. At one point, after I thought the album had played in its entirety, a muted, pretty acoustic guitar came floating out…
Patrick Porter [Feature Band]
Written by Fense I gotta say, CD-R labels sure pull out some great moves. I’ve long been a fan of new up-and-comer Series II Records, a name you’ve likely seen several times over the past few months here on FensePost. But this one comes from the newly (and sadly) defunct Asaurus Records. Take a look…
“Monsters” Means More of the Same from Electric President
Electric President has given us a video for their song “Monsters” off their second LP, Sleep Well. This band could be the lovechild of Postal Service and Page France for the gravely, growly vocals backed by the hyped up guitar-based electro pop that dominates their music. Quick history: the band was formed in 2003 by…
All India Radio: Persist [Video]
Written by Fense The opening to “Persist†reminds me a bit of early Portishead. It’s got the hefty bass and pleasantly depressing strings. But All India Radio (MySpace) is nowhere near the Trip Hop that Portishead’s music fit into. Instead, the band fits a dark and dreamy pop mold that dabbles lightly in folk.