Archive for 2010
IGGY POP AND JAMES WILLIAMSON Kill City CD/LP
A mentally ill Iggy and his Keef-ish sidekick, James Williamson, head into an LA studio with the spawn of Soupy Sales on rhythm. What could go wrong? What was hot shit in 1977, when Bomp! saw fit to release the sessions, sounds tepid today in the ever-growing light of the majestic Raw Power and its [...]
LES SAVY FAV Root For Ruin CD/LP
Less than ten years ago, Les Savy Fav were still a cultish name to know for the hipster elite; several years later they grew a fanbase on the merit of their live shows, carried mostly by bear-like but nice frontman Tim Harrington. They’ve lost and added members here or there—this is their second record with [...]
NO AGE Everything In Between CD/LP
No Age has been on a fast run. The SoCal duo, Dean Allen Spunt and Randy Randall, have only been putting out records as No Age since 2007. While their prolific output has slowed over the last year and a half, they have built an impressive discography in such a short period. Everything In Between [...]
GAY WITCH ABORTION Maverick CD/LP
On first listen, this came across as pure Lightning Bolt tribute band type material, just less spazzed out and more… I dunno, congealed? Should mention that it’s Guitars/Drums and not Bass/Drums, but anyway, I’ve come to appreciate Gay Witch Abortion on their own terms and don’t find fault in the remaining similarities. They provide a [...]
CANSEI DE SER SEXY Donkey CD/LP
Brazil’s Cansei de Ser Sexy are prime exemplars of cargo-cult dance-rock: wholly devoted to crowd-pleasing, with catchy tunes, peppy beats and abject surrender to convention and predictability. If latter-day No Doubt need an opening act, then CSS is it. The one deviation from the expected would be the lyrics which are clearly written by people [...]
DRUGS DRAGONS s/t LP
I am starting to suspect that Drugs Dragons might be dabbling in marijuana and/or 4-Loko… but that’s mere speculation on my part. Perhaps they’re simply into macrobiotics and light cardio workouts. Either way, whatever regimen they’ve employed is paying off in dividends of glorious noise-pound skree reminiscent of Touch and Go’s early 90s heyday. And [...]
DANDY WARHOLS The Capitol Years 1995–2007 CD
Dandy Warhols were the first of the MTV-Gen bands to turn the new found formula on its back. Two parts style + one part substance became the reverse, and for three albums, the Dandies aural output was a holy trinity along the lines of Alice Cooper (Love it to Death, Killer, School’s Out), T. Rex [...]
FRESH AND ONLYS Play It Strange CD/LP
Next to their self-titled record, more of a garage album (which was, albeit, good), Play it Strange retains the fuzz but is an improved and poppier record, with layered acoustic and electric guitars, hints of tropicalia, old-fashioned lyrics about G-rated romance. There’s more of a band identity that’s been solidified, it seems. Play it Strange [...]
WITCH Introduction CD
It seems that with most wells poisoned or dry, the only decent things worth drinking are those that have been left untouched for years. Again, we find this to be the case with Witch, circa early 70s, Zambia, Africa. That’s right. Along with the re-release of their masterpiece Lazy Bones, QDK-Media has truly discovered something [...]
WIZZARD SLEEVE: Codeine-Sharting in the Confederate Glue Goth Tard Wave Pool
Wizzard Sleeve is not for everyone. The vast majority of Hipsterslovakian provincials in remote outposts like, say, Brooklyn, aren’t hip enough, or, more to the point, they’re so hip, they’re unhip. Negative and/or condescendingly (“Can you believe these guys are from Alabama? That’s CRAZY!”) dismissive reviews of Wizzard Sleeve’s debut album, written in prose redolent [...]
