The Fiery FurnacesI'm Going AwayThrill Jockey By Ben Grad What do The Fiery Furnaces play on I'm Going Away? They play a lot that you've heard on their previous albums, but dulled, continuing the progression towards a more accessible, less challenging, sound that they began with Bitter Tea in 2006. Within minutes, you're reintroduced to […]

Sister Hazel ReleaseRock Ridge Music By Eileen Tilson It has been a decade since Sister Hazel was “happy, happy;” from divorce, to birth and death, every member of the band seems to have dealt with some sort of personal tragedy in the past few years. This turmoil provided plenty to write about for their seventh […]

The Antlers Hospice Frenchkiss Records By Julia Reidy Pete Silberman’s warbling voice exposes a beautiful but deep-rooted anger throughout Hospice, the breakthrough full-length from Brooklyn’s The Antlers. After a wildly successful self-release earlier in the year, the record is getting a proper reissue August 18 via Frenchkiss records, home of other heavyweights like Les Savy […]

Jeremy AggersWhat It Comes Down ToBrash Music By Al Kaufman Jeremy Aggers has the same carefree, effortless voice that has helped fellow North Carolinian James Taylor pay the rent all these years. When he playfully finger picks through the title cut, or subtly displays his sentimentality about his town (and a certain girl in said […]

Yim Yames Tribute To ATO Records By Scott Roberts A successful tribute record should accomplish at least two things: one, the chosen source material should reveal some historical insight into the musical influences of the particular artist performing the songs, and two, the new performances should pique the curiosity of the listener enough to explore […]

Band of SkullsBaby Darling Doll Face Honey Artist First By Eileen Tilson Never judge a book by its cover, or in this case, a band by its name. Britain’s Band of Skulls are not a bunch of death-metal skeleton-heads. They are actually a frayed-round-the-edges rock trio hailing from Southampton, England. Their debut album, Baby Darling […]

School of Seven Bells Alpinisms Vagrant By Beverly Bryan School of Seven Bells is a welcome refuge from all of the bland pop coming out now. The airy songs on Alpinisms, released last Octobeer, may melt on the tongue rather than stay with you, but they’re still far more than flavorless background noise. Electronic tribal […]

The Delfields Ogres Independent By Chris Homer Listening to Ogres, the newest album from New Jersey’s The Delfields, it is difficult not to compare the band to The Shins. Right away, the group hits you with “A Slippery Slope,” a track that earns the aforementioned comparison with its sunny, psychedelic-tasting guitar riffs and heavily reverbed […]

Jeff MerchantCity Makes No Sound By Al Kaufman Imagine crystalline water flowing down a rocky waterfall surrounded by lush greenery on a blue-skied summer's day. Pretty, isn't it? So is Jeff Merchant's music. Merchant's sound is a mix of the Decemberists and Death Cab for Cutie after they've been listening to a lot of latter […]

Bat for LashesTwo SunsAstralwerks By Micah McLain Natasha Khan used to love telling fairy tales to her students as a nursery-school teacher. Things have not changed much; now she simply goes by the name Bat for Lashes and tells her stories to a growing number of older kids, albeit with a wide range of musical […]

CKY Carver CityRoadrunner Records By Eileen Tilson It was only last year that the future for CKY (Camp Kill Yourself) was left uncertain. After a major feud between band mates, there seemed to be no silver lining for these Pennsylvania boys. Luckily for their fans, they reignited the passion and dedication they have had for […]

Kava KavaForwardsMidnight Swimming By Al Kaufman Michael Hutchence has been gone for almost 12 years now, but his ability to intertwine pop with club has never been duplicated. While Hutchence leaned more toward his pop tendencies, Kava Kava, a six-piece Britpop band making its US debut, tend to start in the club/electronica camp and sprinkle […]

Drug Rug Paint The Fence Invisible Tell All Your Friends Records By Scott Roberts The press release for Paint The Fence Invisible, the second release from Cambridge, Mass.’ Drug Rug, wants you to know that the CD was mostly recorded in a house in the Catskills, but not just any old house — a haunted […]

Black Moth Super Rainbow Eating Us Graveface By Noel Wurst Black Moth Super Rainbow is an interesting bunch.  At one’s first listen to their latest offering, Eating Us, it comes across as a fairly “chill” and simple “background worthy” album that tends to get listened to while cooking, or doing yardwork with a boombox playing […]