Kurt Vile Bottle It In Matador Records [2018] Who: Co-founder of War on Drugs, Vile is a singer-songwriter that is now on his seventh solo record and has been on Matador Records since 2011. He also released a record with Courtney Barnett last year. Sound: Vile has a very laidback and drifting guitar rock approach … Read more
Charles Bradley Black Velvet Dunham/Daptone Records [2018] Who: Charles Bradley’s life is celebrated with this posthumous release. Sound: Bradley’s records were consistent with Daptone records revivalist approach, which offered plenty of funk and soul from the heart. TFN Final Take: It is always hard to say goodbye and when Charles Bradley passed away on September … Read more
Billy F Gibbons & the BFG’s Big Bad Blues Concord Music [2018] Fire Note Says: ZZ Top guitarist goes back to explore his blues roots on his sophomore solo outing. Album Review: Okay, this no doubt shows my age, but there was a time before ZZ Top was best known for “Sharp Dressed Man” – … Read more
Laura Jane Grace & The Devouring Mothers Bought To Rot Bloodshot Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Laura Jane Grace steps away from Against Me! for a more personal, intimate and immediate album backed with her rhythm section, The Devouring Mothers. Album Review: When Laura Jane Grace sang Transgender Dysphoria Blues with her band Against Me!, … Read more
Hippo Campus Bambi Grand Jury Music [2018] Fire Note Says: Hippo Campus’s sophomore LP is a stunning achievement. Album Review: St. Paul’s Hippo Campus has emerged over the past few years on the strength of several singles and EP’s. Bambi is their second LP, and it is a revelation. Hippo Campus takes their base sound, … Read more
Cloud Nothings Last Building Burning Carpark Records [2018] Who: Cleveland four-piece Cloud Nothings has returned with their fifth LP. Sound: Cloud Nothings has always offered a solid indie rock edge and Last Building Burning brings their earlier angst back to the forefront. It has a spirit of Drive Like Jehu, Pissed Jeans, Jesus Lizard, and … Read more
St. Paul & The Broken Bones Young Sick Camellia RECORDS/Sony Music [2018] Fire Note Says: St. Paul & The Broken Bones maintain their soulful energy. Album Review: With their third album in six years, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, no longer satisfied with being appreciated for their status as a world class retro-soul act … Read more
GØGGS Pre-Strike Sweep In The Red [2018] Who: Ty Segall, Charles Moothart (Fuzz, CFM) and Chris Shaw (Ex-Cult) record another rousing fuzz punk record. Sound: GØGGS’ second release proves they are no fluke. Pre-Strike Sweep is a force to be reckoned with. TFN Final Take: I am not a huge Ty Segall fan by any … Read more
Elvis Costello & The Imposters Look Now Concord Music [2018] Fire Note Says: Elvis Costello returns for his second album in the 2010’s, echoing and growing on his previous collaboration with Burt Bacharach, so it turns out that sophisticated pop rock is this year’s model. Album Review: In the 2010’s, Elvis Costello, the iconic punk … Read more
Ty Segall Fudge Sandwich In The Red [2018] Fire Note Says: Ty makes all 11 tracks here his own! Album Review: I typically don’t get too excited about a covers record but Fudge Sandwich from Ty Segall is a template for how to do it right. Ty is not trying here and that is the … Read more
Mercy Union The Quarry Self-Released [2018] Fire Note Says: How “super” does a supergroup need to be? Album Review: Mercy Union – the joint effort of Jared Hart from The Scandals and Benny Horowitz of The Gaslight Anthem, plus Rocky Catanese and Nick Jorgensen – is a New Jersey punk rock dream collaboration. But unless … Read more
John Hiatt The Eclipse Sessions New West Records [2018] Fire Note Says: On his 23rd album, The Eclipse Sessions, continues putting the stories of our lives, loves and families in accessible roots rock Americana. Album Review: In the opening lines of the opening song of John Hiatt’s 23rd album may tell the tale of the … Read more
MC50 “Kick Out The Jams” The 50th Anniversary Tour w/ The Detroit Cobras & Lift The Medium; Bogarts, Cincinnati, OH – Thursday, October 25, 2018 Thursday night’s MC50 concert was a chance for some to revisit history, as the band’s original guitarist, Wayne Kramer, returned with an all-star supporting cast to relive the music of … Read more
Foxing Nearer My God Triple Crown [2018] Fire Note Says: St. Louis band Foxing makes bold, cinematic music, that both invites and withholds, marked by lush instrumentation, with passionate, at times paranoid, stacked vocals. Album Review: The third album from St. Louis band, Foxing, arrives in your speakers with an expected sense of presence and … Read more
IDLES Joy As An Act Of Resistance Partisan Records [2018] Who: Bristol-based joy punks, IDLES have released one of 2018’s finest and vital albums. Sound: Joy as an Act of Resistance is a joyful collection of insightful, important and fun punk rock. TFN Final Take: IDLES were not content to rest on their laurels after … Read more
Patsy Moore What Surprises Us Papa Chuy [2018] Fire Note Says: Patsy Moore brings a very special voice forward on her indie label, Papa Chuy, creating piano-based pop balladry with smart augmentation from African percussive polyrhythms, soulfulness with jazz instincts and artful orchestration that recalls the work of Joni Mitchell. Album Review: Patsy Moore is … Read more
Joe Strummer Joe Strummer 001 Ignition Records [2018] Fire Note Says: This anthology of solo work from The Clash’s Joe Strummer extends his established legacy celebrating his solo years fronting the 101ers, The Mescalerros, and his soundtrack work for films. Album Review: If Joe Strummer had retired from music and public life when The Clash … Read more
Spirit Of The Beehive Hypnic Jerks Tiny Engines [2018] Who: Philadelphia-based Spirit of the Beehive offer us a meandering psychedelic trip. Sound: Hypnic Jerks is a more mellow affair than the Beehive’s last LP. It is also a bit more of a chore to listen to. TFN Final Take: I was amazed by 2017’s Pleasure … Read more
The The Bottle Rockets Bit Logic Bloodshot Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Another fine rockin’ country album from these St. Louis pros. Album Review: If the alt-country Bottle Rockets ever have need for a patron saint, they explain in “Bad Time to Be an Outlaw,” from their 13th album, Bit Logic, their prayer asks “What … Read more
ORB The Space Between ATO/Flightless Records [2018] Who: Formed in Geelong, Victoria, Australia the trio: guitarist and lead singer Zak Olsen, guitarist and bassist Daff Gravolin, and drummer Jamie Harmer have been bringing their riffs from the stars and beyond since January 2015. Sound: ORB doesn’t just live in the fuzz, they were born in … Read more
Wild Nothing Indigo Captured Tracks [2018] Fire Note Says: Wild Nothing is less chill and better for it. Album Review: Jack Tatum (who is the engine behind Wild Nothing’s studio work) toys with his sound on his latest album, Indigo. Wild Nothing was known early on for a dream pop, chillwave vibe. Each release has … Read more
Richard Thompson 13 Rivers New West Records [2018] Fire Note Says: At 69, Richard Thompson, one of the world’s best songwriters as well as one or rock’s greatest guitarists, brings it altogether again on “13 Rivers,” one of the very best albums of his long and storied career. Album Review: Who knew there would be … Read more
Florence + The Machine High As Hope Republic Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Artful and stately from start to finish. Album Review: Early efforts from Florence + The Machine – in singles like “Kiss With A Fist” and “Dog Days Are Over” – came across with enough smarts and depth that suggested Florence Welch was … Read more
Baked Beans Babble Flightless Records [2018] Who: Melbourne/Geelong five-piece (fronted by The Murlocs’ drummer, Matt Blach) who recently signed with Flightless Records. Sound: Psychedelic rock of course! Baked Beans has the Flightless sound that only could come from Australia. TFN Final Take: From the foot tapping opener “Slow” that contains a full-on blast of Hammond … Read more
The New Old-Fashioned Smalltown, Midwest, USA Magnaphone Records [2018] Fire Note Says: The New Old-Fashioned continue to crank out gritty, anthemic heartland rock on their excellent third record Album Review: The name of The New Old-Fashioned’s third studio album, Smalltown, Midwest, USA, is an appropriate gesture toward the band’s roots, both literally and musically. Hailing … Read more