Christopher Tahy 
Jack White Lazaretto Third Man/Columbia Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Does Jack White‘s Blunderbuss follow up deserve the same praise? Album Review: If you know anything about The Fire Note, it’s that most of us here are Jack White fans. Whether it’s subscribing to his record vault, traveling to his home base Third Man Record … Read more
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires Dereconstructed Sub Pop Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires sing it proud and rock it loud on Dereconstructed. Album Review: When I first heard Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires it was on the excellent Alive at The Deep Blues Fest. … Read more
Motorpsycho Behind The Sun Rune Grammofon [2014] Fire Note Says: Built to lofty heights, Behind The Sun might collapse under its own weight—but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Album Review: What do you think of when I say Motorpsycho? An opener for Five Finger Death Punch? A character from the new Mad Max film? … Read more
Tame Impala Live Versions Modular Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: Tame Impala‘s Live Versions offers small twists on some old favorites. Album Review: It‘s a real challenge for bands to become important in their genre. For Australia’s Tame Impala that seems to be no problem. It‘s also an impressive feat because your could consider Tame … Read more
tUnE-yArDs Nikki Nack 4AD Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Merrill Garbus finally returns with the music revolution Nikki Nack. Album Review: There are many things that could be said about Merrill Garbus: I’ve heard her described both as annoying and having fantastic pipes; for my money, w h o k i l l especially is … Read more
Thee Oh Sees Drop Castle Face Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Dwyer loads Thee Oh Sees back into the garage—and there’s a bit of time travel going on. Album Review: To go over John Dwyer‘s catalogue it quite a task: Yikes! And the Hospitals, some Pink and Brown LP‘s, many Coachwhips LP’s, solo recordings under … Read more
Margot & The Nuclear So & So’s Sling Shot To Heaven Mariel Recording Company [2014] Fire Note Says: Adjust your expectations accordingly, Margot’s cyclical warmth has an embrace for you. Album Review: There‘s a reason that I‘m going to see Margot & The Nuclear So and So‘s twice in the same tour. They’re one of … Read more
It’s finally time for Margot & the Nuclear So & So’s to grace us with their new album Sling Shot to Heaven. I have to admit upon first listen some concessions and adjustments had to be made, though not necessarily in a bad way—you might say that Richards and Co. might be a whole new … Read more
Secret Colours Positive Distractions Part I & II Self-Released [2014] Fire Note Says: Secret Colours remain consistent on their two EP split. Album Review: Secret Colours revel in being the bastard seed of the ’60s psychedelia and ’90s Britpop bloodlines. That’s the description given by their Facebook page, and almost a year ago I described … Read more
Skating Polly Fuzz Steilacoom Chap Stereo [2014] Fire Note Says: Skating Polly‘s Fuzz Steilacoom suffers from a pleasant multiple personality disorder. Album Review: Having just finished my review of the bubbly Tweens album, it seems appropriate to get a bit more down and dirty. Oklahoma City‘s Skating Polly seems to handle that role quite easily. … Read more
Tweens Tweens Frenchkiss Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Tweens show solid results on their debut. Album Review: If there‘s anything to talk about when introducing Cincinnati, Ohio’s Tweens, it has to start with the twentieth anniversary of The Breeders’ Last Splash. Once plans for that album’s tour were put into place an opening act had … Read more
Arms Of Tripoli Dream In Tongues Fluttery Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Sonic architects Arms of Tripoli encompass many emotions with Dream In Tongues Album Review: Right out of the gate I have to say that LA’s Arms of Tripoli are a refreshing listen when it comes to instrumental/math rock/post rock bands. But for these … Read more
Cloud Nothings Here And Nowhere Else Carpark Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Cloud Nothings reminds us all over again with Here And Nowhere Else Album Review: It‘s lucky for us that Dylan Baldi was convinced to drop out of college, take Cloud Nothings out of the basement, pursue music full time, and expand the project … Read more
Wolfmother New Crown Self-Released [2014] Fire Note Says: It’s hard to teach an old Wolfmother new tricks. Album Review: Way back in 2006, when I first heard “Woman,” Wolfmother’s self-titled debut took me by storm. I was really into playing guitar at the time, so of course I surrounded myself with heroes such as Cream, … Read more
It’s finally happening and The Fire Note couldn‘t be happier: last week Jimmy Page announced that the long talked about Led Zeppelin remasters are finally coming to fruition. We thought there’d be no better way to celebrate than to knock out a top 10 list of tracks from the first three albums, as those will … Read more
Holy Wave Relax The Reverberation Appreciation Society [2014] Fire Note Says: With Relax, Holy Wave heed their own advice. Album Review: Holy Wave’s last outing, Evil Hits, struck me as a great surprise. Labeled by yours truly as “a water slide of groove driven wonder,” the wide open song structures, authenticity, and fantastic psychedelic momentum … Read more
Cloud Becomes Your Hand Rocks Or Cakes Northern Spy Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Cloud Becomes Your Hand crafts quite the curiosity. Album Review: Here at The Fire Note I‘ve been given some pretty strange albums to review. Of course, that’s fine by me. So when Cloud Becomes Your Hand‘s (their name derived from movement … Read more
St. Vincent St. Vincent Loma Vista Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: St. Vincent returns with a bold sense of confidence. What does that mean for you? Album Review: “I wanted to make a party record you could play at a funeral,” says Annie Clark a.k.a. St. Vincent of her new self-titled album. Being interesting is … Read more
It‘s great that Radiohead has meant so much to so many people over the years as they have influenced a countless number of bands as far as the eye can see. While most everyone knows their great studio triumphs, there are plenty of people that have not tapped into this set of songs that rival … Read more
The Shine Brothers Hello Griefbirds! Cardinal Fuzz Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The bands’ name says it all, Hello Griefbirds sure does shine. Album Review: It‘s funny, searching online I find a fair amount of info on The Shine Brothers. But, where are the reviews for their debut Hello Griefbirds!? There sure is a disservice … Read more
Kishi Bashi Live On Valentine’s Joyful Noise Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: Just in time for Valentine’s day Kishi Bashi reinvents the magic in a live setting. Album Review: When you‘re an artist like Kishi Bashi, stripping out some elements that made his debut 151a so irresistible could be a death sentence. But, when you … Read more
2013 made for an interesting year in music, not that it wasn’t packed full of its own surprises. It only seemed that there were a few stand outs. 2014 seems to be well on its way to fixing that. Fire Note favorites, Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s are primed to release their anticipated … Read more
The Pack A.D. Do Not Engage Nettwerk Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Don’t be afraid to engage with Do Not Engage – it will not disappoint. Album Review: When The Pack A.D. first crossed my radar I was already prepared to approach with a dismissive attitude. But first impressions can be deceiving, because when this … Read more
Jack Name Light Show GOD?/Drag City Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Jack Name creates a musical funhouse with Light Show. Album Review: In a time where anything goes, Jack Name aka John Webster Johns aka touring guitarist for White Fence aka Fictional Boys etc. etc.—you get the idea: unidentifiable and prolific. Described by White Fence … Read more
If you weren’t at this event/show on Saturday night (Jan. 18, 2014), then you missed out. Why do I go with the whole show/event phrasing? Only because of the great idea that led to pairing together the entities of Misra Records, We Care Arts, and The Motel Beds. The “old” Yellow Cab building, a half … Read more