Los Angeles Police Department Los Angeles Police Department Forged Artifacts [2014] Fire Note Says: LAPD’s self-titled debut is a concentrated dose of swirling, fuzzy psych-pop. Album Review: Los Angeles Police Department aren’t from California, nor are they a law enforcement agency—and neither is LAPD a “they.” Instead, it’s the name Ryan Pollie (who’s from Philadelphia, … Read more
The Fire Note’s August Bandcamp feature is closing out the summer with another batch of new artists to put an ear on. In this edition you can find some elegantly-wasted country from LA, harder edged music from Germany, folk and brass from Greensboro and good old indie rock from Bloomington. Make sure you Discover, Support … Read more
The Skygreen Leopards Family Crimes Woodsist Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Family Crimes is steeped in easygoing 60s folk-rock vibes. Album Review: On paper, Skygreen Leopards’ new record Family Crimes looks like something out of the Elephant 6 camp: a strange album cover, fourteen songs in barely over thirty minutes, straight-to-tape recording, and titles like … 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
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
Eno & Hyde Someday World / High Life Warp Records [2014] Someday World: Fire Note Says: Someday World’s slick electro-pop contrasts nicely with High Life’s hypnotic, groove-heavy jams. Album Review: These days Brian Eno is probably most well-known as that guy who invented ambient music (even though there are certainly others who deserve such an … Read more
Phish Fuego JEMP Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Phish return with the laidback, quirky Fuego. Album Review: Jam bands are a kind of love ‘em or hate ‘em proposition—at least on the surface. The term is so loose that it doesn’t really mean anything, signifying only that a band likes to improvise and stretch songs … Read more
Yonatan Gat Iberian Passage Joyful Noise Recordings [2014] Fire Note Says: Iberian Passage is light on quantity but full of (mostly) instrumental psych-guitar freakouts! Album Review: If you’re like me (and you probably are in this respect), you’ve never heard of Yonatan Gat. The Tel-Aviv-born New Yorker is guitarist for the band Monotonix (who have … Read more
Tigers Jaw Charmer Run For Cover Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Tigers Jaw’s transitional new record finds the band trying to charm a new muse. Album Review: I (very) briefly jumped on the emo bandwagon back in high school—mainly because it was the kind of music most of my friends at the time listened to … Read more
The Donkeys Ride The Black Wave Easy Sound Recording Co. [2014] Fire Note Says: The Donkey’s fourth album is a great summer record with subtle nods to the past. Album Review: The dog days of summer are upon us, which—if you’re like me—means a shift towards listening to some warm, sunny music to go along … Read more
The Fire Note’s June Bandcamp feature heats up the summer with a handful of new artists. In this edition you can find some sibling harmonies from Santa Cruz, psychedelic rock from Italy, lo-fi rock straight from Brooklyn and some solid indie from Phoenix. As always – Discover, Support & Share! Lost Boy? Brooklyn, New York … Read more
Cardinal Cardinal Flydaddy (Original) / Fire (Reissue) Released: 1994 Producer: Tony Lash Length: 30:32 (Reissue 57:01) Appearing as it did in the middle of the grunge era, Cardinal’s debut LP was definitely an anomaly. Instead of gritty guitars and gruff vocals, Cardinal is full of quieter sounds: acoustic guitars, strings, piano, even the occasional trumpet, … Read more
Peter Bradley Adams The Mighty Storm I Me Mine Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Peter Bradley Adams offers up 10 tracks of Dylan-tinged folk pop. Album Review: Recorded in Nashville with several multi-instrumentalists/producers, Peter Bradley Adams’ fifth album The Mighty Storm doesn’t exactly sound the way its title would suggest. Over its forty-five minute span, … Read more
Death Cab For Cutie Live 2012 (Featuring Magik*Magik Orchestra) Barsuk Records [2014] Fire Note Says: A solid set list and effective orchestration makes Live 2012 worth hearing. Album Review: While their studio albums have always been produced in ways that are sympathetic to their half-somber/half-optimistic indie-emo stylings, Death Cab For Cutie have never been a … Read more
Roof Doctor Mobile Freedom House Mutt Tapes [2014] Fire Note Says: Quirky indie pop/rock tunes from Philly. Album Review: A five piece hailing from Philly, Roof Doctor already have several releases under their belt, the most recent of which is this short (29-minute) ten track LP Mobile Freedom House. There’s nothing about their sound that … Read more
The Shilohs The Shilohs Light Organ Records [2014] Fire Note Says: The Shilohs let the sunshine in on their summery second album. Album Review: The Shiloh’s debut (last year’s So Wild) was an impressive record that brought together a plethora of ramshackle 60s rock sounds, from The Kinks to The Velvet Underground to The Beatles. … Read more
July July Rhino Records (2014 Reissue) Released: 1968 Producer: Tommy Scott Length: 36:12 Part of what we hope becomes a regular reissue program of psych classics, Rhino records re-released three of England’s best psychedelic rock albums for Record Store Day 2014: The Yardbirds’ Little Games (their only album with Jimmy Page as the main guitarist … Read more
Guided By Voices Cool Planet GBV Inc. [2014] Fire Note Says: Cool Planet is a strong follow-up to Motivational Jumpsuit. Album Review: Another month, another GBV/Robert Pollard-related release. Some critics argue that Robert Pollard needs an editor, someone to cherry-pick the best of his numerous compositions—and it’s an understandable opinion. Between his “solo” records, GBV, … Read more
Wye Oak Shriek Merge Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Wye Oak trades guitars for synths with (mostly) positive results Album Review: It seems a lot of bands these days are switching out guitars for keyboards, often totally changing their sound in the process. For Wye Oak, at least it makes some practical sense: a duo … Read more
Chad VanGaalen Shrink Dust Sub Pop Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Shrink Dust is an “everything but the kitchen sink” album that works. Album Review: Chad VanGaalen seems like he’s probably a pretty busy guy. When he’s not building monster heads to mount on the roof of his house or creating animated sci-fi movies, he … Read more
The Autumn Defense Fifth Yep Roc Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Wilco members offer up immaculately-produced 60s-style pop-rock. Album Review: A collaboration between Wilco bassist John Stirratt and Wilco multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone, The Autumn Defense started releasing albums around the same time as Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (though Sansone didn’t join Wilco until 2003). Now … Read more
The Fire Note’s March Bandcamp feature is here and ready to supply you with 10 more bands you should know about. There is a little bit of something for everyone this month as we get some LA riot grrrl, Phily chillwave, English psychedelic and some heavy sludge from Minneapolis. Till next month – Discover, Support … Read more
Temples Sun Structures Fat Possum Records [2014] Fire Note Says: Temples’ impressive debut is melodic psych done right Album Review: Temples is a four-piece hailing from the small English town of Kettering and while they haven’t been around for long, their brand of pop-inflected psych rock has garnered a lot of attention. Listening to Sun … Read more
Lakefield Swan Songs EP Self-Released [2014] Fire Note Says: Lakefield makes a triumphant exit on their final release. Album Review: A full-length album and some touring under their belt, Lakefield has decided to call it quits six years after they formed. As a thank you to fans the Vancouver band has recorded Swan Songs, a … Read more