Soccer Mommy For Young Hearts Orchid Tapes [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: Not sure if it is the best band name (or maybe it is brilliant) out there but don’t let that discourage you from checking out Sophie Allison’s Soccer Mommy. For Young Hearts is Soccer Mommy’s third record and first for the quality independent … Read more
Mrs. Magician Bermuda Swami Records [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: There is a reason that John Reis (Rocket from the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes) has produced both of Mrs. Magician’s records. You might think that it is because they are on his label Swami and the fact they are from San Diego but … Read more
The Julie Ruin Hit Reset Hardly Art Records [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: When your name is Kathleen Hanna and have a resume that includes Bikini Kill and Le Tigre, do you think it is hard to bring that past energy and punk spirit into another project? The short answer for The Julie Ruin is … Read more
The Monkees Good Times! Rhino Records [2016] Fire Note Says: Good Times! delivers on the joy from the golden era of rock & roll. Album Review: By the mid-60’s, Liverpool, England’s The Beatles had gone from Tiger Beat/Teen Mania “Top of the Pop’s” stars to a credible rock & roll band, buoyed by Lennon & … Read more
Connections Midnight Run Anyway Records [2016] Fire Note Says: Connections perfectly turn up the lo-fi on Midnight Run. Album Review: I don’t think it would surprise anyone to hear that I am a big Guided By Voices fan. Their recent rock out trend is great but I do miss the magic which was found on … Read more
Case/Lang/Veirs Case/Lang/Veirs ANTI- [2016] Fire Note Says: This isn’t just your typical collaboration. Album Review: To borrow a phrase from this record’s boldest rocker, in a world dominated by American Idol Voices, Disney divas and flash in the pan pop star wannabes, the collaboration of k.d. lang, Neko Casa and Laura Veirs proves to be … Read more
Bill Mallonee & The Big Sky Ramblers / Muriah Rose Slow Trauma / Beneath The Clay Self-Released [2016] Fire Note Says: Both experience and new beginnings shine on solo records from husband and wife team Mallonee and Rose. Album Review: Okay, let me climb up on a soapbox for a minute: Sometimes, often it seems, … Read more
Free Pizza Berlin, DE BUFU Records [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: If you have 14 minutes then you have enough time to check out this mini 7 song album from Boston’s Free Pizza. This disjointed slightly off-kilter delivery reminds of classics from The Cleaners From Venus and Television Personalities, as the songs have a very … Read more
M. Ward More Rain Merge Records [2016] Fire Note Says: M. Ward gets back to basics. Album Review: It’s been ten years since M. Ward’s amazing album, Post-War, came out. This was one of my favorite albums, front to back, of the aughts. Three albums later M. Ward returns to near-form with More Rain. Matt … Read more
Kevin Morby Singing Saw Dead Oceans [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: From the surreal instrumentation to a voice that at times sounds like a young Dylan, Kevin Morby hits all the right notes on his third full length Singing Saw. You may question – how do I not know about this guy? Well you might … Read more
Mumblr The Never Ending Get Down Fleeting Youth Records [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: The slow-fast, quiet-loud combo that takes place on Mumblr’s new record, The Never Ending Get Down, creates a fantastic and entertaining dynamic. The Philadelphia foursome try to break some from their earlier punk/emo tag as they incorporate a much more unique … Read more
The Avett Brothers True Sadness American Recordings/Republic Records [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: It is hard to believe that bluegrass-folksters, The Avett Brothers are on their ninth full length. The band which I always thought would be bigger than Mumford & Sons when they both shared the stage with Dylan at the 2011 Oscars, has … Read more
Big Big Train Folklore Giant Electric Pea [2016] Fire Note Says: English Prog band finally deliver on their considerable potential. Album Review: Formed in 1991 in Bournemouth, England, Big Big Train have been flirting with greatness for a while now. 2009’s excellent The Underfall Yard saw the band recruit a new singer (David Longdon, whose … Read more
Guns N’ Roses (w/ Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown): Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio – July 6, 2016 Here in 2016, it’s hard to gauge the significance of bands that were hugely popular in the 1980s after all the time that has passed. Few would argue against the dominance of L.A. band Guns N’ Roses … Read more
Gold Panda Good Luck And Do Your Best City Slang [2016] Fire Note Says: Gold Panda’s new album reveals more secrets after every play. Album Review: Good Luck and Do Your Best feels like an object of value. It’s not that it’s a great album, but it is very good in parts. Nor does it … Read more
The Casket Girls The Night Machines Domino Records [2016] Fire Note Says: Sisters create magical harmonies that question mortality and paradoxically make us feel more alive. Album Review: The Casket Girls are two real life sisters whose harmonies provide a 360 degree panorama for us to get lost in. One gets the sense that we … Read more
Garbage Strange Little Birds Stunvolume [2016] Fire Note Says: Strange Little Birds is, first and foremost, a fine modern pop record. Album Review: It’s always a fun, noisy, modern pop/rock explosion when we get a new record from Scottish vocalist Shirley Manson and her band Garbage, made up of mid-American studio hounds into punk, electronica/techno, … Read more
GØGGS GØGGS In The Red Recordings [2016] Fire Note Says: Watch out – Ty Segall’s new project may require stitches. Album Review: OK – so Ty Segall has released a good number of projects over the last several years but even after his crazier baby face solo Emotional Mugger record in January his newest full … Read more
PJ Harvey The Hope Six Demolition Project Vagrant Records [2016] Fire Note Says: PJ Harvey’s creative musical efforts suggest a hope that springs eternal. Album Review: It’s never quite clear whether PJ Harvey’s latest project – her ninth full-length – is an art project exploring the exploitative nature of poverty tourism for political gain, or … Read more
Honey Radar Blank Cartoon What’s Your Rupture? [2016] Fire Note Says: Lo-fi pop gems that are similar to Guided by Voices, if GBV was part of the Elephant 6 Collective. Album Review: Blank Cartoon continues Honey Radar’s trend of releasing incredibly catchy lo-fi gems at a steady clip. This is their second full length release … Read more
Told Slant Going By Double Double Whammy [2016] Fire Drill Album Review: How about a cross between Modest Mouse, Sufjan Stevens and Hayden? That is exactly what I hear on the new engagingly addicting sophomore record from Told Slant. The band is really the songwriting project of Felix Walworth as these songs capture emotions around … Read more
Paul Simon Stranger To Stranger Concord Music Group [2016] Fire Note Says: Paul Simon continues to bring a certain rhythmic sensibility to life’s more perplexing realities. Album Review: Paul Simon has already had several huge careers as both a songwriter and performer. With Art Garfunkel, Simon contributed numerous classics to the Great American Songbook: “Sound … 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
Red Hot Chili Peppers The Getaway Warner Bros. Records [2016] Fire Note Says: Peppers still like to push the envelope. Album Review: Looking at the list of alternative rock bands that started in the 80’s and were coming into their own — commercially and artistically — in the 90’s, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are … Read more
DMA’S Hills End Mom + Pop Music [2016] Fire Note Says: DMA’S full-length debut is a fond call back to another time. Album Review: DMA’S is a three-piece band from Australia. With an introductory (and very solid) EP under their belt last year, Hills End is the group’s debut LP. Johnny Took, Tommy O’Dell, and … Read more