Beach House 7 Sub Pop Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Beach House puts out another very good album. Album Review: Seven albums in, it is a challenge for any band to continue to grow and refine their sound. You would never know it from listening to Beach House’s aptly named LP, 7. Victoria Legrand and … Read more
Ari Roar Calm Down Bella Union [2018] Who: Ari Roar is the moniker of singer-songwriter Caleb Campbell and Calm Down is his debut album via Bella Union. Sound: Ari Roar nails the softer indie rock delivery that is in the direct wheelhouse for fans of Rogue Wave, Grandaddy, The Shins, Mac DeMarco and Death Cab … Read more
The Jack Cades Music For Children Dirty Water Records [2018] Who: Warwickshire, England’s The Jack Cades were born in late 2017 when Mike (Lead Guitar, Vocals) and Elsa (Rhythm Guitar, Vocals) decided to record some of their songs at Mole’s (Drums) State Records Studios in Folkestone, Kent. They invited John Gibbs (The Masonics, The Wildebeests) … Read more
Walter Wolfman Washington My Future Is My Past ANTI- Records [2018] Fire Note Says: New Orleans’ blues & jazz veteran steps away from his longtime show-band the Roadrunners for an intimate set emphasizing his inner romantic crooner. Album Review: Walter Wolfman Washington has been a mainstay around the New Orleans music scene playing traditional blues … Read more
Kevin Krauter Toss Up Bayonet Records [2018] Who: Kevin Krauter is best known as one of several guitar players, songwriters, and vocalists in the Hoosier indie-rock band Hoops. Sound: The soft swaying indie rock of Kevin Krauter proudly shows off his 70’s easy listening influences while also sneaking in plenty of other eras. The album … Read more
The Choir Bloodshot Galaxy 21 Music [2018] Album Review: In the economically fragile world of indie alternative rock, career longevity is a rare thing. In that regard, The Choir – who I first saw play at a Chicago music festival in 1984 and have produced 14 full-length original studio recordings, plus at least five live … Read more
Michael Rault It’s A New Day Tonight Wick Records [2018] TFN Final Take: It’s A New Day Tonight is the follow up to Michael Rault’s garage rock debut, Living Daylight, which was released on Burger Records in 2015. The release was actually a combination of two EPs that he previous released in 2014, so It’s … Read more
Courtney Barnett Tell Me How You Really Feel Milk!/Mom + Pop Music [2018] TFN Final Take: After Courtney Barnett’s breakout 2015 record Sometimes I Sit And Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit and last year’s duet record with Kurt Vile, Lotta Sea Lice, it was really a toss-up on how Tell Me How You Really … Read more
Wire Pink Flag (Special Edition Reissue) Pinkflag [2018] Chairs Missing (Special Edition Reissue) Pinkflag [2018] 154 (Special Edition Reissue) Pinkflag [2018] Fire Note Says: Influential British punk band Wire is re-issuing their three earliest albums, including special editions that unearth b-sides, demos, rarities and previously unreleased recordings. Album Review: I think it was Brian Eno … Read more
Remember Sports Slow Buzz Father/Daughter Records [2018] Who: Remember Sports is the new name for the band SPORTS. Slow Buzz is the group’s third LP and finds Carmen Perry (vocals, guitar), Jack Washburn (guitar), and Catherine Dwyer (bass) now relocated from Gambier, OH to Philadelphia, PA, while also adding a new drummer in Connor Perry. … Read more
Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks Sparkle Hard Matador Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Stephen Malkmus’ 7th album with The Jicks continues to explore diverse musical approaches from his own post-punk point of view, with the aid of producer Chris Funk, of the Decemberists. Album Review: If you include the 5 albums Stephen Malkmus made as … Read more
La Luz Floating Features Hardly Art Records [2018] Fire Note Says: The surf is just right with La Luz’s third LP, Floating Features. Album Review: There is a reason that you should always listen to a record more than once before putting it aside. I have been a big fan of La Luz since their … Read more
Dr. Dog Critical Equation We Buy Gold/Thirty Tigers [2018] Fire Note Says: On its tenth band outing, Dr. Dog continues its legacy of indie rock that mixes 60’s style songwriting and harmonies with just enough instrumental psychedelia to keep things interesting. Album Review: Philadelphia’s quintessential indie rock outfit, Dr. Dog has never stretched too far … Read more
Connections Foreign Affairs Trouble In Mind Records [2018] Who: Foreign Affairs is the fifth album, and first for Trouble In Mind, from the Columbus Ohio band Connections that features former members of 84 Nash (Rockathon Records). Sound: Lo-fi indie pop that mixes the sound of early Guided By Voices with the raw rock of The … Read more
Say Sue Me Where We Were Together Damnably/Electric Muse Records [2018] Who: Say Sue Me is a surf-inspired indie rock quartet from Busan, South Korea. Where We Were Together is the bands sophomore album. Sound: Say Sue Me has a surf sway behind their indie jangles and fits right in with artists like La Luz, … Read more
Speedy Ortiz Twerp Verse Carpark Records [2018] Who: Twerp Verse, is Speedy Ortiz’s third album and first full-length in three years. The band has always been politically mindful but after the more recent political climate the band scrapped their early material after Foil Deer and created what they feel is a more relevant and important … Read more
The Bonnevilles Dirty Photographs Alive Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Northern Irish guitar/drum duo, The Bonnesvilles stay true to their “garage punk blues” ethos on Dirty Photographs, with modest accents as a sign of growth. Album Review: The Bonnevilles, the guitar/drum duo of Andre McGibbon, Jr., and Chris McMullan of Northern Ireland, have made a … Read more
Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite No Mercy In This Land ANTI- Records [2018] Fire Note Says: The warm humanity of the songs on No Mercy In This Land with the melding of emotion and technique in the two performers solos leaves a satisfying feeling. Album Review: The last time bluesman Charlie Musselwhite and jam band … Read more
Phil Madeira Providence Mercyland Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Phil Madeira, one of Emmylou Harris’ Red Dirt Boys, delivers an album of piano songs – that mix pop song craft with soulful jazz tendencies – about the town he grew up in, Providence, Rhode Island. Album Review: Phil Madeira is one of those Nashville-based Jack-of-all-trades … Read more
Sloan 12 Yep Roc Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Sloan shows no signs of slowing down on 12! Album Review: Twelve albums with all the original members is a rare achievement in the music world these days but that is exactly what we get here from Halifax, Nova Scotia’s Sloan. The band has returned with … Read more
Yo La Tengo There’s A Riot Going On Matador Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Yo la Tengo have built a sleek mellow album for you to savor. Album Review: It all starts with a tone, a drone sound to appreciate the breath out as much as the breath in. Enter the guitar, that guitar, that … Read more
No Age Snares Like A Haircut Drag City Records [2018] Fire Note Says: No Age hit the mark again. Album Review: The last No Age album, An Object, was released five years ago. What I most appreciated about that album was the significant experimentation with noise and empty space. It was quiet and mellow, encouraging … Read more
Jimi Hendrix Both Sides Of The Sky Legacy Recordings [2018] Fire Note Says: Both Sides Of The Sky will be especially appreciated by collectors and hardcore fans who want to hear everything. Album Review: It is strange here in 2018 to be talking about “new” music from Jimi Hendrix, who died tragically in 1970 after … Read more
The Breeders All Nerve 4AD [2018] Fire Note Says: Kim Deal reunites the Last Splash Breeders line-up for another dark ride around her inner world and she’s All Nerve. Album Review: In 2013, I had the good fortune to be in Nashville for a conference on a night that coincided with The Breeders’ reunion tour … Read more
Roots Magic Last Kind Words Clean Feed Records [2017] Fire Note Says: Roots Magic delivers hard-hitting interpretations of delta blues and free jazz classics. Album Review: Roots Magic is a quartet of Italian musicians: Alberto Popolla on clarinet and bass clarinet, Errico De Fabritiis on alto & baritone saxophone, Gianfranco Tedeschi on bass, and Fabrizio … Read more