December 9, 2005

Pennywise The Fuse [3/5] Really, who else would you expect to write a snarling punk anthem titled “Fox TV?” Bad Religion, maybe; but Pennywise beat ’em to it on The Fuse, and they also continue to beat listeners over the head with 15 screeds against mass media and America’s current political landscape. The word “lies”...

Left Alone Lonely Starts & Broken Hearts [2/5] It’s funny that on an album loaded with cheesy pop-punk love songs of the bright-eyed (“I got my girl by my side!”) and bitter (“Hey girl! You fucking broke my heart!”) variety, the most eloquent tune is dedicated to a Chevy. “My 62” is a lovely ode...

Kid606 Resilience [4/5] Kid606 spent his last few albums slumming with high-energy send-ups of/homages to gabber, dancehall, hardcore rave and mashups. His eighth album, Resilience, returns to the more cerebral, melodic electronica of 2000's P.S. I Love You. Resilience is 606 at his most chilled and tuneful. Unconcerned about pleasing his fanbase, Kid606 embraces styles...

Felt Felt 2: A Tribute To Lisa Bonet [4/5] Like their previous homage to Christina Ricci, this all-star pairing of Atmosphere’s Slug and Living Legend’s Murs is no celebrity good. Instead, Felt 2 gives these underground legends an excuse once again to kick back old-school style, quoting Ice-T and good-naturedly promising to "Breaker Down Like...

Cage Hell's Winter [3] The litany of victims is still long, and so is the list of perversions, but veteran New York rhymer Cage is beginning to put some artistic distance between himself and his horrific upbringing. His latest still plays like Eminem’s worst nightmares, yet the occasional forays outside Cage’s tortured mind make this...

Blackalicious The Craft [4] Back in indieland after a dalliance with the majors, Blackalicious’ Chief Xcel and Gift Of Gab have made the sort of hip-hop album most big labels still don’t know how to sell: smart, eclectically but authentically funky, and humane to boot. The fate of The Craft probably rests with the garage-rocking...

Innaway Innaway [3] Innaway’s debut is heady with ample atmospheric keys and dreamy meandering reminiscent of Obscured By Clouds-era Pink Floyd. The rehashed psychedelia is pulled off with a dusty and shimmering authenticity, but there aren’t enough moments tense with the kind of guitar playing that feels like claws coming from the speaker. And they...

Terminal How The Lonely Keep [2] As a member of As I Lay Dying recently said in another publication, the summer of ’05 could be metalcore’s end of the line, thanks to the near-pandemic explosion of sound-alike bands. Listening to Dallas’ Terminal could have one thinking that a similar scenario for the thrift-store and ironic-T-shirt...

Broken Spindles inside/absent [3] Broken Spindles’ first two albums marked mastermind Joel Peterson as Saddle Creek’s resident weird-electronica geek with surprising orchestral talent. With inside/absent, the Faint/Beep Beep bassist makes concessions to the label’s indie-rock pedigree while retaining his maverick aesthetics. “Inward” begins the disc with one of those atonal solo-piano pieces your nutty uncle...