The Besnard Lakes are, in a way, everything, and their third album, Are the Roaring Night, is an illustration of this. The songs are dreamy and seem to expand outward, forever, carried by waves of atmospherics. Tracks are draped with falsetto vocals and snippets of distorted classic-rock guitar solos. Some songs build to reverb-drenched climaxes;… Continue reading The Besnard Lakes’ Are the Roaring Night is heavy and dreamy and adequate all around
Tag: Album Reviews
jj’s nº 3 is so Swedish (read: lovely)
I love being the resident Swedish reviewer on Knox Road. Because the Swedes know what they’re doing with pop, period. So it comes as no surprise that Joakim Benon and Elin Kastlander, the duo behind jj, have delivered a stunningly refreshing work of indie pop on their second full-length album, nº 3. You know how… Continue reading jj’s nº 3 is so Swedish (read: lovely)
Liars cordially invite you on a wondrous journey to Sisterworld
I can’t think of a band that revels in changing genre and tearing apart expectations quite like Liars. Since their 2001 debut, They Threw Us All In A Trench And Stuck A Monument On Top, the band has seen changes that have taken them from the dance floor to German witch trials to “Mt. Heart… Continue reading Liars cordially invite you on a wondrous journey to Sisterworld
Frightened Rabbit is mature and refined on The Winter of Mixed Drinks
On 2008’s The Midnight Organ Fight, Frightened Rabbit was brash and blunt. Frontman Scott Hutchison Scottish-ed forth his lyrics (there’s no other way to say it, really), which themselves weren’t particularly rays of sunshine. And, above all else, the music never got too out of control. You had your guitars, keyboards, drums, and vocals, and… Continue reading Frightened Rabbit is mature and refined on The Winter of Mixed Drinks
Rogue Wave is flimsy and unaffecting on Permalight
Where to start? The first single off Permalight, “Good Morning”, was a startlingly not-very-good-first-single-for-a-much-anticipated-album. And by not very good, I mean I was in some disbelief (alright, slight exaggeration) when I first heard it. It’s come to grow on me a bit, but upon that first listen, all hell broke loose (eh, maybe not as… Continue reading Rogue Wave is flimsy and unaffecting on Permalight
Pill Wonder takes tribal music to the beach on Jungle/Surf
The name of Pill Wonder’s debut album, Jungle/Surf, is entirely appropriate. The band seems as influenced by hectic tribal rhythms and jungle noises as they are by chilled out beach music. It reminds me of some old school big game hunter who displays his shotgun and lion head at his California beach house. Boots on,… Continue reading Pill Wonder takes tribal music to the beach on Jungle/Surf
Joanna Newsom puts a lot of herself into Have One On Me
Boy, does Joanna Newsom put herself into Have One On Me. The thing clocks in at over two full hours of music spread over three six-song albums, which is, like many things, a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that it’s over two hours of Joanna Newsom (my wife). The curse is that it’s… Continue reading Joanna Newsom puts a lot of herself into Have One On Me
Efterklang sounds great, but shallow on Magic Chairs
Danish band Efterklang is known for their ever-evolving, hook-free music, and their third album is no deviation. While the band’s first album, Tripper, earned comparisons to the likes of Sigur Rós, and their second, Parades, moved them closer to bands like Arcade Fire, Magic Chairs might be a step toward the string and horn-heavy Sufjan Stevens.… Continue reading Efterklang sounds great, but shallow on Magic Chairs
Shearwater does Shearwater pretty well on The Golden Archipelago
To be honest, at this point in their career, I’m not expecting anything particularly earth-shattering from Shearwater. Figuratively, that is. I don’t expect them to toy with their awesome, awesome formula too much, and on The Golden Archipelago, they deliver. Literally, I want Shearwater’s music to shatter earth, every sustained falsetto from Jonathan Meiburg and… Continue reading Shearwater does Shearwater pretty well on The Golden Archipelago
Electric President’s The Violent Blue strikes at our core
We’re in a dark cellar. The only light we see is rays from the tiny window in the corner that show the floating dust. I can barely catch your image through squinted eyes. I take one step closer, you take one step back. Progress? Maybe. My strides are longer than yours. I take another step… Continue reading Electric President’s The Violent Blue strikes at our core