Burger Records will be releasing the new record from California shamble-rockers Tomorrows Tulips on October 7th. “Glued To You,” is one of the new tunes off the record, When, and it will surly be one of the more interesting songs you will hear from the band. The track is packed full of swagger even though … Read more
Cleaners From Venus Return To Bohemia Soft Bodies Records [2014] Fire Note Says: A stunning return from the legendary lo-fi cult act! Album Review: Martin Newell titled his 1993 album The Greatest Living Englishman, and with Return To Bohemia, he proves that this was no mere cheeky title, he damn well might be the greatest … Read more
Happyness Weird Little Birthday Rough Trade Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Ready for a non-disappointing British Sea Power? Album Review: Here’s something I don’t get to say every day: “That reminds me of Gay Dad!” Or possibly Sonic Youth’s “Antenna.” Or maybe Meat Puppets in their mid-90’s ZZ Top phase. Key word here is diverse. … Read more
Twin Peaks Wild Onion Grand Jury Music [2014] Fire Note Says: Chicago’s Twin Peaks show off their many different sides. Album Review: I like it when a relatively new band swings for the fences. That is how I feel Chicago’s Twin Peaks approached their sophomore album, Wild Onion. Earlier this year the band hinted that … Read more
Mike Adams At His Honest Weight Best Of Boiler Room Classics Flannelgraph/Joyful Noise Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: 60s and 70s style pop is given an electronically-inflected makeover on Best of the Boiler Room Classics. Album Review: As any industry bigwig will tell you, a good pop song is a good pop song. You can … Read more
David Kilgour & The Heavy Eights End Times Undone Merge Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Yet another in a long line of consistently excellent releases from the New Zealand legend! Album Review: David Kilgour has been releasing and performing music since the late 70’s, starting with The Clean before moving on to The Great Unwashed, … Read more
Chris Staples American Soft Barsuk Records [2014] Fire Note Says: A charming and understated indie-pop/singer-songwriter album. Album Review: The penultimate track on Chris Staples’ American Soft is called “Needle Park,” and it’s really great. The instantly catchy chorus of “Well would I ever lie to you? / Of course I would, of course I would,” … Read more
The Proper Ornaments Wooden Head Slumberland Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Anglo-Argentine pair wears influences on sleeves – and scores. Album Review: The Proper Ornaments album Wooden Head seems, at first blush, just a fun way to play a game of Spot the Idiom: Mary Chain/BRMC black-leather-jacket Spector-pop here, “Eight Miles High” jangle there. But … Read more
Kahoots Take To The Fields Telegraph Harp Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Kahoots 12th LP is a great record that rewards listeners with repeated listens. Album Review: I have been listening to Massachusetts-based Kahoots’ new LP, Take to the Fields for about a month now and I think it is just now sinking into skull … Read more
The Muffs Whoop Dee Doo Burger Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The Muffs return with a walloping blast of 60’s inspired rock n roll. Album Review: “Sad Tomorrow” from The Muffs sophomore record, Blonder And Blonder (1995), is still one of my favorite songs from that era. I was always impressed with how tight but … Read more
Black Bananas Electric Brick Wall Drag City Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Electric Brick Wall is likely to be the most unique album you hear this year! Album Review: I confess, I had no idea what I was getting into when the new album from Black Bananas, Electric Brick Wall, hit my inbox. There was … Read more
The Number Ones (AKA THE #1S) hail from Dublin and play a very hazy shade of retro punk. Their self-titled debut is out next week on Deranged Records and it already sounds like a winner with its no frills straight up rock approach. “Girl” is the Friday Fire track today and it represents the more … Read more
Blank Pages Blank Pages Dirt Cult Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Catchy garage rock that is guaranteed to blow your hair back and make you raise a rock fist in the air! Album Review: This self-titled record from Germany’s Blank Pages reminds me of the time ol Marty McFly plugged the guitar into Doc Brown’s … Read more
Stardeath And The White Dwarfs Wastoid Federal Prism [2014] Fire Note Says: For their sophomore release Stardeath and the White Dwarfs tap a sound never heard before. Album Review: When starting a psych rock band a lot of factors could come into play for stardom. Oklahoma’s Stardeath and the White Dwarfs initially had one key … Read more
Band Of Skulls Himalayan Electric Blues Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: With chops and moxie, Band of Skulls soldier on with fun, danceable tunes. Album Review: It’s funny, but a music lover of my prowess should really know more about Band of Skulls. Having come from a background of riffing blues, The Dead Weather, The … Read more
The Fire Note’s July Bandcamp feature keeps summer going with another batch of new artists for you to check out. In this edition you can find some gems from Dayton, Ohio, hypnotics from Paris, a Spanish lyric driven record from LA, a duo from D.C. and some indie pop from Buffalo. As always – Discover, … Read more
Antemasque Antemasque Nadie Sound [2014] Fire Note Says: Mars Volta members renounce their prog pretensions and team up with Flea on their self-titled debut. Album Review: With as many lineup changes as the band went through over the course of their six-album run, combined with Omar Rodriguez-Lopez’s frenetic working pace (rivaling Robert Pollard in sheer … Read more
Joyce Manor Never Hungover Again Epitaph Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Joyce Manor upgrade their sound. Album Review: I like the fact that Torrance, California’s Joyce Manor get in and get out when it comes to records. With two albums under their belt that total about 33 minutes combined it seems that waiting two years … Read more
Do you enjoy electro-infused indie rock along the lines of Animal Collective and Yeasayer? Assuming you said yes, today’s Fire Track, “Flytrap,” from Chicago band YAWN should hit your musical sweet spot. I think you will like how the song ebbs and flows like an electro-smooth gulf wave with its Broken Bells type vocals before … Read more
Sweet Apple The Golden Age Of Glitter Tee Pee Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Sweet Apple invites you to turn it up and rip the knob off! Album Review: I hesitate to call Sweet Apple a supergroup, though some of the members are sort of famous, but that term supergroup has all sort of preconceived … Read more
Zig Zags Zig Zags In The Red Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: Zig Zags’ fire and fury bubble the bong water on their self-titled debut. Album Review: When talking about LA’s Zig Zags a few things need to be mentioned: Ty Segall, Sweat Lodge, Bong-water colored vinyl, Monster Magnet, Fu Manchu, weird early Metallica thrash, … Read more
Army Navy The Wilderness Inside The Fever Zone Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Power-pop purveyors Army Navy’s third LP is polished and professional. Album Review: Los Angeles’ Army Navy is fronted by Justin Kennedy, who has bounced around indie music for quite a while now. Louie Schultz and Dougal Randall round out the band, whose … Read more
White Fence For The Recently Found Innocent Drag City Records [2014] Fire Note Says: White Fence breaks through to the next level and fulfills all expectations on their new album. Album Review: Tim Presley first came onto my radar as a member of Darker My Love, a band that really knocked me out with their … Read more
Bleachers Strange Desire RCA Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Check out Bleachers for an entertaining yet introspective summer album. Album Review: On the surface there are a lot of reasons to not give Bleachers a chance. The “band” is essentially the work and side project of Jack Antonoff, the guitarist for fun. On top of … Read more
The Fresh & Onlys House Of Spirits Mexican Summer [2014] Fire Note Says: House of Spirits wanders a bit, but finds its footing in solid songwriting and production. Album Review: The Fresh & Onlys are a four-piece out of San Francisco, and while the band is often pigeon-holed as a “psychedelic” outfit who are part … Read more