Victor Wainwright And The Train Memphis LoudRuf Records [2020] Keyboard player Victor Wainwright may have grown up in Georgia, as he suggests in the title from his 2005 debut Piana from Savannah, but as he sings on the title track of his new album he is now Memphis Loud. That track alone goes a long … Read more
2nd GradeHit To HitDouble Double Whammy [2020] With such a heavy world right now the sophomore record from Philadelphia’s 2nd Grade is the perfect dose of indie power pop to brighten any mood. Hit To Hit offers 24 tracks over 42 minutes and if you do the quick math it equals a short song music … Read more
Perfume Genius Set My Heart On Fire ImmediatelyMatador Records [2020] You get the sense listening to the fifth album from Perfume Genius, aka Mike Hadreas, that at heart he’s a torch singer. Whatever the musical direction or production style an individual track takes – and he does just about everything here, from dirge-y electronica to … Read more
Kip & JJ Loui Show Me StateSelf-Released [2020] Show Me State is a country rock/Americana love letter from songwriters and spouses, Kip & JJ Loui to their home state of Missouri, with music support from members of The Bottle Rockets and Loui’s local club band, Diesel Island. Kip Loui has been a significant presence in … Read more
Steve Earle & The Dukes Ghosts of West VirginiaNew West Records [2020] In 2010, the worst mining disaster in American history happened at the Upper Big Branch coal mine in West Virginia, killing 29 miners in the explosion. Early this Spring, an Off-Broadway play telling the story of the victims and their families titled “Coal … Read more
WoodsStrange To ExplainWoodsist Records [2020] Strange To Explain is Woods 11th full length album (not counting collaborations, split LPs, EPs, and singles), and the 99th release on their Woodsist label. That 15 year longevity is a great accomplishment for any indie band and over the years Woods has evolved their sound as they have moved … Read more
Catholic ActionCelebrated By StrangersPalo Santo Records [2020] There is something rejuvenating about Glasgow’s Catholic Action and their style of guitar rock. On their sophomore album, Celebrated By Strangers, the band extends their more guitar driven debut with some synthesizers and finding more of a beat that is very in line with fellow Glaswegians Franz Ferdinand. … Read more
DrakulasTerminal AmusementsDine Alone Records [2020] Drakulas, is an art-rock quartet from Austin, TX, that just recently released their sophomore full length Terminal Amusements. The group is made up of several experienced members with frontman Mike Wiebe (Riverboat Gamblers, High Tension Wires), guitarist Zach Blair (Rise Against, Hagfish) and a cast of Texas musicians including bassist … Read more
GleemerDown ThroughOther People Records [2020] If you are looking for a record to sit down with and just absorb then I highly recommend the new long player from Fort Collins, Colorado group Gleemer. The band has refined their earlier indie rock sound with more driving and pulsating riffs combined with a shimmering shoegaze here that … Read more
Cathedrale Houses Are Built The Same Howlin’ Banana Records [2020] Houses Are Built The Same is the third LP from the French post-punk group Cathedrale. Where I have found their previous releases slightly more gritty, Cathedrale have grown into a much tighter force on this album with clean edge guitars, focused vocals and a multitude … Read more
The Dream Syndicate The Universe InsideANTI- [2020] Generally speaking, I hate it when a press release for a new album suggests something like “this is what all the reviewers will be saying.” (I once reviewed a Meatloaf concert for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and after making a huge gaff, he told the audience what the … Read more
Car Seat HeadrestMaking A Door Less OpenMatador Records [2020] Making new music is always a risk for any artist with a catalog. Stray too far from what your fans know may alienate an entire group of followers while churning out the same type of songs can create a stale and flat arc for a band … Read more
Red Dirt Boys Red Dirt BoysSelf-Released [2020] Emmylou Harris has a way of picking great back-up players for her band. Nevermind that she sang with Graham Parsons, Mark Knopfler and nearly every major country and Americana act in the last b decades, but back in the day she had the Hot Band with James Burton … Read more
Brendan Benson Dear LifeThird Man Records [2020] Brendan Benson has the enviable position of being the other front man in the Raconteurs who shares the stage with Jack White, and the rhythm section of Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler. He shares half the vocals, plays guitar and somehow fades into the shadows every-time White steps … Read more
Andy HampelNightshiftSelf-Released [2020] There is nothing better right now than being able to complete some long overdue projects with the extra time we have staying at home. For Andy Hampel, that solitude has produced his first solo record, Nightshift. Who is Andy Hampel you ask? He is a current member of Columbus Ohio’s lo-fi indie … Read more
The Black WatchBrilliant FailuresA Turntable Friend Records [2020] Since the bands beginnings in 1988, founder and consistent member John Andrew Fredrick has now written and released eighteen The Black Watch albums with Brilliant Failures. That is a very long resume of indie rock for a band that still probably will be new to most of … Read more
Trace MountainsLost In The CountryLame-O Records [2020] In the two years since Dave Benton’s Trace Mountains released its debut, A Partner To Lean On, his life changed. Those changes include multiple big events that can completely alter your course such as the dissolution of his main band, LVL UP, which he co-founded in college, and … Read more
The Strokes The New AbnormalCult/RCA Records [2020] It’s been long enough since the band’s 2016 EP Future Present Past, which was little more than a solid single with a couple of extra B-sides, to have concluded that the return of The Strokes at the top of their game on a full-length release was not in … Read more
Once & Future Band Deleted Scenes Castle Face Records [2020] Progressive rock music in 2020 is still far from the norm but Oakland’s Once & Future Band have a flare to them that brings a modern touch to their classic ELO and Alan Parsons Project sound on their sophomore album Deleted Scenes. For this record … Read more
Wax Machine Earthsong Of SilenceBeyond Beyond Is Beyond Records [2020] Brighton’s Wax Machine comes at you with a full psychedelic sweep on their debut full length Earthsong Of Silence. The band offers a blend of jazz, folk, funk, tropicalia, and exploratory rock which is an accurate description as this record expands on the great singles and … Read more
Ty SegallSegall SmeagolSelf-Released [2020] I can’t name many good things so far that have come out of self-isolation but this new free EP from Ty Segall will be near the top of my list. Segall Smeagol offers 6 cover cuts from singer Harry Nilsson’s 1971 classic Nilsson Schmilsson. Ty states that he has wanted to … Read more
Cable TiesFar EnoughMerge Records [2020] There is one word to describe lead singer-guitarist Jenny McKechnie of Cable Ties – FIERCE! You will get to know her very well on Far Enough, the Melbourne group’s sophomore album and first for Merge Records. The opening track “Hope” is really all you need to hear to get hooked … Read more
Lilly Hiatt Walking ProofNew West Records [2020] Nashville singer/songwriter Lilly Hiatt has known most of her existence that life is rarely just one thing. On her fourth album’s title track, she sings “I could tell you that it’s easy/but that wouldn’t be the truth/if you ever need to call me, well you know that’s walking … Read more
THICK5 Years BehindEpitaph Records [2020] The debut from Brooklyn-based DIY punk trio, THICK, was the perfect record to pick up as our country was shutting down due to the Coronavirus/COVID-19, bringing enough noise, angry energy and musical muscle to make the required lock-down relatively tolerable. No doubt, Nikki Sisti (voice/guitar), Kate Black (voice/bass, guitar and … Read more
The Mr. T ExperienceMTX ForeverSounds Rad [2020] If your were around for the punk rock explosion that was helped along and spotlighted by Green Day in 1994, then you just might know The Mr. T Experience. The band actaully formed in 1985 and has a history that spans over 30 years and eleven studio albums, … Read more