Simon Workman 
The Explorer’s Club Together Goldstar Recordings [2016] Album Review: The Explorer’s Club are the 2010s equivalent of The Wondermints—Beach Boys worshippers that have done their homework, crafting tunes that may not quite reach the heights of their idols, but get pretty damn close. If their first album (Freedom Wind) was a tribute to the mid-60s … Read more
House Of Heroes Colors BC Music [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: House of Heroes have come a long way from their humble beginnings as a pop-punk outfit in the early 2000s. From the gritty, hook-laden songwriting of their self-titled second album to the epic scope and art-rock concepts of 2008’s The End Is Not The … Read more
Bob Dylan Fallen Angels Columbia [2016] Fire Note Says: Dylan returns with another set of standards. Album Review: When Bob Dylan dropped Shadows In The Night in 2015, it was a confusing move to a lot of casual fans—what is the guy who wrote “Like A Rolling Stone” doing covering Frank Sinatra? But as I … Read more
Guided by Voices (w/DTCV): Oddbody’s Music Room, Dayton, Ohio – June 23, 2016 A Guided by Voices show is a two-faced beast. In one sense, you always know what to expect: the camaraderie of the fans, lots of beer, some Robert Pollard stage-banter, and at least a few “classic” GBV tunes, whether its “I Am … Read more
David Bazan Blanco Barsuk Records [2016] Fire Note Says: Bazan returns to synths and drum machines, but retains his songwriting chops. Album Review: David Bazan fans have come to expect upheaval when it comes his musical output. The longtime singer, guitarist and songwriter for Pedro the Lion—favorite emo-inflected indie rock band of disaffected Christian teens … Read more
Various Artists Day Of The Dead 4AD [2016] Fire Note Says: Day of the Dead is a fittingly sprawling tribute to the Grateful Dead. Album Review: Whether you like them or not, there’s no denying that the Grateful Dead have had a massive impact on both music and American culture. The band blended psychedelia, folk, … Read more
Sam Beam and Jesca Hoop Love Letter For Fire Sub Pop [2016] Fire Note Says: Iron & Wine mastermind Sam Beam and Jesca Hoop take a back to basics approach on their first collaborative album. Album Review: Sam Beam has been a busy guy lately. In addition to putting out the first two entries in … Read more
Guided By Voices Please Be Honest GBV Inc. [2016] Fire Note Says: Guided by Voices return as a one-man band featuring you-know-who. Album Review: The last Guided by Voices album, 2014’s Cool Planet, capped off an impressive six-album run with the “so-called-classic-lineup,” which featured many of the players that appeared on the band’s mid-90s classics. … Read more
Joseph Airport Recording Lake Superior Tsunami Patrol Music [2015] Fire Note Says: Joseph Airport keep things eclectic while upping the consistency. Album Review: Joseph Airport released their first album just about 15 months ago, and in the time since then they’ve kept themselves busy. Several live shows (including an appearance at Heedfest) and the fantastic … Read more
Circus Devils Stomping Grounds Happy Jack Rock Records [2015] Fire Note Says: Stomping Grounds offers up a healthy serving of bizarro-rock mini masterpieces Album Review: Last year Robert Pollard and the Tobias brothers released Escape, an album that pulled off the usual Circus Devils trick of being completely different from the previous dozen or so … Read more
Grateful Dead 30 Trips Around The Sun: The Definitive Live Story 1965-1995 Rhino Entertainment [2015] Fire Note Says: A beginners guide to the Dead live, but with enough surprises to attract long-time fans. Album Review: 2015 is the Grateful Dead’s 50th anniversary, and the band is celebrating their half-century milestone in a number of interesting … Read more
Slow And Steady In Time We Belong Broken Circles [2015] Fire Drill Album Review: In Time We Belong is a conflicted record in many ways—from the way its arrangements feel like they’re being stretched to encompass both modern-day guitar rock and early 2000s emo clichés, to the contrast between lyrical abstractions and generalized platitudes like … Read more
The New Old-Fashioned Low-Down Dirty Summer Nights Self-Released [2015] Fire Note Says: The New Old-Fashioned knock it out of the park on their second album Album Review: Some albums just hit you at the right moment—lyrics, songwriting, and arrangements combine in a way that connects with you, and become more than the sum of their … Read more
Iron And Wine & Ben Bridwell Sing Into My Mouth Black Cricket Recording Co. [2015] Fire Drill Album Review: Sing Into My Mouth is the second release on Sam Beam’s Black Cricket Recording Co., and though a collaborative covers record may seem like an odd departure for Iron & Wine, that’s only the case if … Read more
Chris Staples Cheap Shades EP Barsuk Records [2015] Fire Drill Album Review: Offered as a free download to concertgoers who attend shows on his tour in support of the excellent American Soft, Chris Staples’ Cheap Shades EP is a strong and surprisingly unified release. The two new tracks (“Cheap Shades” and “Cindy, Diana, Janet and … Read more
Vetiver Complete Strangers Easy Sound Recording Co. [2015] Fire Drill Album Review: Complete Strangers is an apt title for Vetiver’s sixth album, as it finds the band (led by songwriter Andy Cabic) moving away from their folk-rock roots. The album opens with “Stranger Still,” a mellow track that features bubbling keyboards, quiet sax additions, trip-hop … Read more
And So I Watch You From Afar Heirs Sargent House [2015] Fire Drill Album Review: Heirs is the fourth album from Belfast natives And So I Watch You From Afar, and offers ten new tracks of their mostly-instrumental math rock/post rock sound. Fans of the genre will find plenty to love here, from the frenetic … Read more
Yonatan Gat Director Joyful Noise Recordings [2015] Fire Drill Album Review: The follow-up to the Israeli-born guitarist’s promising 2014 record Iberian Passage, Yonatan Gat’s Director is largely more of the same—not that that’s a bad thing. Relying heavily on free improvisation and drawing influence from a variety of 60s and 70s acts (think Jimi Hendrix … Read more
Max Gowan Big People Self-Released [2015] Fire Note Says: Big People is a friendly, catchy blend of bedroom rock and pop hooks. Album Review: Despite the number of bands and artists who make it look easy, putting together a homemade record on your own is a harder task than it looks on the surface. Being … Read more
Föllakzoid III Sacred Bones Records [2015] Fire Note Says: Föllakzoid successfully recreate the sound of 1970s German rock via modern-day Chile. Album Review: I’ve been on something of a “krautrock” (more properly called “Kosmische Musik” or “German Space Rock”) kick lately, and the new album from Chilean outfit Föllakzoid fits into my recent listening habits … Read more
The Sonics This Is The Sonics Revox Records [2015] Fire Note Says: The Sonics return after more than forty years to show modern garage rockers how it’s done. Album Review: When it comes to garage rock bands, you’d be hard-pressed to find a group more legendary than Tacoma, WA’s The Sonics. Formed in 1960, the … Read more
José González Vestiges & Claws Mute Records [2015] Fire Note Says: José González’s third album shows why he gives indie singer-songwriters a good name. Album Review: José González has always been on the periphery of my music radar—”recommended if you like” lists, collaborations or tours with artists I’m more familiar with, or just word of … Read more
Iron & Wine Archive Series Vol. No. 1 Black Cricket Records [2015] Fire Note Says: Archival recordings take listeners back to Iron & Wine’s whispery homespun origins. Album Review: Sam Beam has come a long way since his 2002 Sub Pop debut The Creek Drank the Cradle: since those earliest days, Iron & Wine has … Read more
Bob Dylan Shadows In The Night Columbia Records [2015] Fire Note Says: Dylan covers tunes made famous by Sinatra with surprising success. Album Review: Bob Dylan has made a career out of confounding his audience’s expectations. Whether it was going electric at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, going full-blown country with Nashville Skyline when … Read more
Speaking Suns Vanishing Country Great Guys Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Speaking Suns’ debut is a surprisingly mature musical statement. Album Review: Originally hailing from the land of Dave Chappelle and famous liberal arts school Antioch College (a.k.a. Yellow Springs, OH), Speaking Suns is a pretty young band—both in the age of its members and … Read more