Austin has been a hotbed for the singer-songwriter all the way back to the times of Willie Nelson, so it is no surprise these days when a voice comes along from that time zone that makes you take notice. Today’s video premiere highlights this as Matthew Squires and the Learning Disorders offer up the heartfelt … Read more
If you are a Guided By Voices fan then you have probably been on the hunt for the newly released Dogfish Head Beer Thousand box set. Not only does it come with six 750ml bottles of imperial lager but accompanying the beer release is a Guided By Voices 10-inch record with 10 songs recorded live … Read more
The New Basement Tapes Lost On The River Harvest Records [2014] Fire Note Says: A pleasant exploration of early Dylan through the eyes of some very different songwriters. Of course, the original “Basement Tapes,” were recordings made in Woodstock, NY in 1967, when Bob Dylan, recovering from a motorcycle accident, spent 5 months woodsheding songs … Read more
Welcome to the holiday season and our final Bandcamp feature of 2014. Good things await your ear as The Fire Note spotlights bewitching songs from Miami, lo-fi shoegaze out of Scotland, garage R&B kicking down from Minnesota and thrash metal pop punk from Brooklyn! The Fire Note wishes everyone a festive holiday season and remember … Read more
Christian Bland & The Revelators The Unseen Green Obscene The Reverberation Appreciation Society [2014] Fire Note Says: Christian Bland and the Revelators third album is an homage to past heroes. Album Review: The Black Angels’ Passover just so happens to be considered a modern day psychedelic classic. With its dark titles, imagery, and piercing sounds … Read more
Bush Man On The Run BMG [2014] Fire Note Says: Bush pleases the crowd with the hard-rocking Man On The Run. Album Review: As a child of the 80’s and 90’s there is something comforting about the bands of my youth sticking around and putting out new content. Bush was one of the biggest outfits … Read more
I don’t know about you but a cool jangly indie rock song seems right for today. Brooklyn’s Coastgaard rushes towards you with a fresh neo-surf rock sound that comes complete with early 60’s rhythms, 90’s guitar undertones and stylish arrangements. On “Rose,” Coastgaard displays their waving melodies that fall into a Real Estate vibe or … Read more
The Paperhead Africa Avenue Trouble In Mind Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The Paperhead play the 60’s with a modern pulse. Album Review: If you have been around music long enough (yes I am calling myself old) then the statement “Sooner or later, everything old is new again” seems to ring true with every “fresh” … Read more
Steve Taylor & The Perfect Foil Goliath Splint Entertainment [2014] Fire Note Says: Goliath is a loud, fast, rock & roll record. Album Review: It’s easy to get excited about a bright band of youngsters who appear on the scene with a fresh burst of creativity and energy (see The Strypes), or celebrate a band … Read more
Dads I’ll Be The Tornado 6131 Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Dads brings a grunge aesthetic with a modern twist with I’ll Be The Tornado. Album Review: Dads is a New Jersey-based duo consisting of John Bradley (drums and vocals) and Scott Scharinger (guitar and vocals). Their style can be described as 1990’s-inspired indie rock. … Read more
Flying Lotus You’re Dead! Warp Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Flying Lotus defies description with You’re Dead. Album Review: Flying Lotus, nee Steven Ellison, can be counted on to make interesting music. His latest, You’re Dead!, ups that factor by a degree or two. This is Flying Lotus’ fifth studio album and his experience is … Read more
Kim Deal is in an exciting place right now. Playing shows with The Breeders at LA’s Hollywood Bowl with Neutral Milk Hotel and Daniel Johnston, writing new music with The Breeders Last Splash line up, she’s keeping herself more than busy while somehow finding the time to continue on with songs nine and ten of … 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
Wilco Alpha Mike Foxtrot: Rare Tracks 1994-2014 Nonesuch Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Rarities compilation aimed at the sweet spot of many of Wilco’s hard-core fans. Album Review: Twenty years is a long time. And if you’re industrious or plagued by insomnia you can make a lot of music in twenty years. That seems to … Read more
Radio Moscow Magical Dirt Alive Naturalsound Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Radio Moscow sows seeds of psych while reaping funky blues riffs. Album Review: When I first heard Radio Moscow for the first time, their sound had no problem hooking me. During the very much appreciated live compilation record, Alive at the Deep Blues Fest, … Read more
Prince Art Official Age Warner Bros. Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Prince has arisen from cold storage hibernation to rock a new generation. Album Review: While Prince’s self-released albums of the last decade or so have been strong enough to satisfy long-time fans, there has been real excitement about his return to a relationship with … Read more
Colleen Green’s lo-fi pop punk charm shined on her Hardly Art debut, Sock It To Me, and now we have her first single from her forthcoming 2015 release I Want To Grow Up. “Pay Attention” already gives you an idea that Green has stepped it up sonically this go around, as the song is a … Read more
Ariel Pink Pom Pom 4AD Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Pom Pom is an insanely infectious joyride that seems to take you on a different route each time you listen. Album Review: You probably haven’t heard anything like Pom Pom, the 17 track new album from Ariel Pink (minus his Haunted Graffiti) this year, and … Read more
Lace Curtains A Signed Piece Of Paper Female Fantasy Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Lace Curtains offers a smorgasbord of styles. Album Review: Lace Curtains is the moniker of Michael “Coomers” Coomer. His previous band, Harlem, was known for their catchy garage pop tracks and Lace Curtains debut, The Garden of Joy and the Well … Read more
Pissed Jeans Shallow Sub Pop Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Shallow shows where the wallow rock all started. Album Review: Sub Pop Records has had two important reissues this year with the releases of the Sleater Kinney box set Start Together and the pre-Shins band Flake Music’s When You Land Here, It’s Time To Return. … Read more
Cancers Fatten The Leeches Dead Broke Rekerds [2014] Fire Note Says: Everything is right with the throwback sound of Cancers. Album Review: Crunching guitars, soaring melodies, dreamy power pop girl vocals, and plenty of fuzz. That is really all you need to know about Athens, GA band Cancers. The duo of Ella Kaspar and Lenny … Read more
Cool Ghouls A Swirling Fire Burning Through The Rye Empty Cellar Records [2014] Fire Note Says: These garage-psych revivalists have done their homework! Album Review: Cool Ghouls is a four-piece based in San Francisco, and with their new album A Swirling Fire Burning Through The Rye, they’ve done the near-impossible: they’ve created a full-length LP … Read more
Buffalo Killers Fireball Of Sulk Sun Pedal Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: Fireball of Sulk is the Buffalo Killers heaviest guitar release to date. Album Review: Cincinnati’s Buffalo Killers like to keep busy as Fireball of Sulk represents their second release this year. The six song record follows their Sun Pedal debut, Heavy Reverie, which … Read more
Pink Floyd The Endless River Columbia Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The Endless River provides a closing gesture for a band. Album Review: Depending on whom you’re talking to, The Endless River is the final album from experimental rock band Pink Floyd, ending a recording career spanning 47 years. Of course, for some Floyd fans … Read more
The Flaming Lips With A Little Help From My Fwends Warner Bros. Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The Flaming Lips and fwends are at it again, adding their special flavor of space bombast to a timeless classic. Album Review: “It’s in the realm of the gods,” says bandleader Wayne Coyne, in an interview with Arun … Read more