Panda Bear Panda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper Domino Records [2015] Fire Note Says: Panda Bear’s latest is more accessible and tuneful. Album Review: Animal Collective and one of its core members Noah Lennox have been on the cutting edge of indie music for the past 15 years. Lennox performs as a solo act under … Read more
Luluc Passerby Sub Pop Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Luluc’s Passerby is a perfect album for a quiet wintry day. Album Review: Luluc’s sophomore album Passerby came out in July of 2014 and went unnoticed in some parts (like The Fire Note, for example). In spite of the Australian duo’s pedigree and lush songwriting, it … Read more
Sturgill Simpson Metamodern Sounds in Country Music High Top Mountain Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Sturgill Simpson’s country album transcends the genre. Album Review: Ask someone what kind of music they like and the response is typically I like everything but…. If you, like me, are wont to respond with “country music” please do not … Read more
Cracker Berkeley To Bakersfield 429 Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Cracker still matters 20 years later. Album Review: Okay, let’s begin with a favorite rock star interview moment. Back in 1994, Cracker was on tour promoting its successful sophomore effort, Kerosene Hat, in an opening slot with Gin Blossoms and headliner Spin Doctors in major … Read more
TV On The Radio Seeds Harvest Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Seeds is a profound journey through pain and loss, and ultimately, spiritual recovery and rebirth! Album Review: TV on the Radio were part of that first wave of “blog bands” that hit it big in the early 2000’s based on the promise of their … Read more
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard I’m In Your Mind Fuzz Castle Face Records [2014] Fire Note Says: King Gizzard will give you an entire new perspective. Album Review: Melbourne, Australia band King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard grabbed me earlier this year with just their name but when I heard the double release of … Read more
Circus Devils Escape Happy Jack Rock Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Robert Pollard and the Tobias brothers shift into a calmer gear and create what might be the best Circus Devils album yet. Album Review: Circus Devils never make the same album twice. Whether it’s the claustrophobic horror-rock screeches of the debut, the twisted spaghetti … Read more
Ausmuteants Order Of Operation Goner Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Aussie synth-punks blast out a fun and catchy record. Album Review: Ausmuteants newest release is on par with their numerous past releases. They deliver a frenetic and essential punk album layered in a cool sheen of synth and humor. Australia has a rather booming punk … Read more
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Hypnotic Eye Warner Bros. Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Hypnotic Eye finds Petty & the Heartbreakers continuing to stretch, grow, and inspire. Album Review: For nearly four decades, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers embodied a truly singular American rock band sound (perhaps second on that front only to Bruce Springsteen … Read more
Jeff the Brotherhood Dig The Classics Warner Bros. Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Jeff the Brotherhood drop a killer EP of essential covers with a thick layer of heavy garage rock fuzz and scuzz. Album Review: Nashville natives, brothers Jake and Jamin Orrall, make up the two-piece rock outfit that is Jeff the Brotherhood. The … Read more
Iceage Plowing Into The Field Of Love Matador Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Iceage continue to offer something unique. Album Review: Three albums in and Copenhagen’s Iceage continue to evolve and push the limits of their sound. Their debut of DIY post-punk rock took people by storm and last year’s sophomore effort, You’re Nothing, found … Read more
Death From Above 1979 The Physical World Last Gang Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Death From Above 1979 prove there is such a thing as life after death. Album Review: Jesse F. Keeler (a.k.a. MSTRKRFT) chokes the life out of his bass while Sebastian Grangers fervently pounds away and vocalizes his thoughts. During “Always On,” … Read more
Ex Hex Rips Merge Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Ex Hex debut backs up its album title! Album Review: Ex Hex has quickly become one of the best female power trios on the music scene today. The band is lead by Mary Timony, which through the mid 90′s she fronted the Matador Records band Helium, … Read more
The Wytches Annabel Dream Reader Partisan Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The Wytches first LP is a heavy and spooky debut tailor-made for the Halloween season. Album Review: The Wytches’ debut album, Annabel Dream Reader, is something else. If I had not heard Passenger Peru’s debut earlier this year, it would be the best debut … Read more
Wand Ganglion Reef GOD?/Drag City Records [2014] Fire Note Says: With one wave of Wand, originality and individuality immediately become apparent. Album Review: We live in a world where many artists try to reshape psychedelic music, and a lot of those who try fail. When trying to capturing lightning in a bottle for that crucial … Read more
Ty Segall Manipulator Drag City Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Segall has crafted his first bona fide masterpiece with this shape shifting epic! Album Review: Ty Segall has been riding an incredible wave of creativity that seemed to hit a peak in 2012 with the release of the triple entente of rock, Slaughterhouse, Hair, and … Read more
People 3xaWoman Telegraph Harp Records [2014] Fire Note Says: People’s 3xaWoman is a weird and wonderful clash of musical styles. Album Review: From the opening notes on People’s LP 3xaWoman, you know something strange is afoot and you are in for something that does not stay on the path of convention. Experimental avant-garde jazz guitarist, … Read more
Jenny Lewis The Voyager Warner Bros. Records [2014] Fire Note Says: After six years in the wilderness, The Voyager heralds the resurrection of all things Jenny Lewis. Album Review: Since 2002’s masterful The Execution of All Things – an album which should be handed to girls as they turn thirteen, just as all boys should … Read more
Kahoots Take To The Fields Telegraph Harp Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Kahoots 12th LP is a great record that rewards listeners with repeated listens. Album Review: I have been listening to Massachusetts-based Kahoots’ new LP, Take to the Fields for about a month now and I think it is just now sinking into skull … Read more
Spoon They Want My Soul Loma Vista/Republic Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Spoon’s They Want My Soul is a near-perfect return to form. Album Review: Thank God for Spoon. There were many signs pointing to the demise of the rock band that truly owned the first decade of the new millennium with albums like Girls … Read more
Blank Pages Blank Pages Dirt Cult Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Catchy garage rock that is guaranteed to blow your hair back and make you raise a rock fist in the air! Album Review: This self-titled record from Germany’s Blank Pages reminds me of the time ol Marty McFly plugged the guitar into Doc Brown’s … Read more
Antemasque Antemasque Nadie Sound [2014] Fire Note Says: Mars Volta members renounce their prog pretensions and team up with Flea on their self-titled debut. Album Review: With as many lineup changes as the band went through over the course of their six-album run, combined with Omar Rodriguez-Lopez’s frenetic working pace (rivaling Robert Pollard in sheer … Read more
White Fence For The Recently Found Innocent Drag City Records [2014] Fire Note Says: White Fence breaks through to the next level and fulfills all expectations on their new album. Album Review: Tim Presley first came onto my radar as a member of Darker My Love, a band that really knocked me out with their … Read more
Unicycle Loves You The Dead Age Mecca Lecca Recording Co. [2014] Fire Note Says: Unicycle Loves You is a wonderful blend of shoegaze, 60’s psychedelic pop, and noise/fuzz rock. Album Review: Unicycle Loves You are a Brooklyn-based trio. The Dead Age is their fourth studio LP, but this is the first one I have heard. … Read more
Street Eaters Blood//Muscles//Bones Nervous Intent Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Street Eaters newest LP is a buzz/fuzz rock veritable smorgasbord of sound and attitude. Album Review: I had not heard of Street Eaters until a few weeks ago when I received Blood//Muscles//Bones for a review. I have to say I am pleasantly surprised and impressed … Read more