Contributions
Toh Kay - Streetlight Lullabies
Toh Kay Streetlight Lullabies Tomas Kalnoky faces a particular challenge translating the horn-laden songs of his ska-punk band, Streetlight Manifesto, into his solo acoustic guise, Toh Kay. Not that there’s a lot of choice involved: He turns Streetlight’s boisterous, hard-skanking sound inward, becoming as quiet, understated and meditative as the lyrics. Revisiting 10 songs culled […]
Post Teens - Post Teens EP
Post Teens Post Teens EP There’s a no-nonsense honesty to Post Teens’ resurrected old-school punk sound that’s quite beautiful. Songs blaze by in 60 to 90 seconds driven by raw, chunky guitars with a rough, unvarnished veneer and surprisingly durable hooks. It’s a sound that harks back to early American hardcore, when you could still […]
A Great Big Pile Of Leaves - BOOM! EP
A Great Big Pile Of Leaves BOOM! EP Possessors of one of the worst band names since Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Brooklyn trio A Great Big Pile Of Leaves’ moniker sounds like a Blink-182 throwaway song title, but the music couldn’t be farther removed. Instead of goofy pop-punk, they make indie pop with a […]
Tim Kasher - Bigamy: More Songs From The Monogamy Sessions EP
Tim Kasher Bigamy: More Songs From The Monogamy Sessions EP By now we know what to expect from Tim Kasher. Since Cursive’s 2000 album Domestica, his releases have been cinematic concept albums predominantly preoccupied with affairs of the heart. While Cursive explore slashing post-punk with baroque touches, Kasher’s solo explorations with the Good Life (and […]
Riverboat Gamblers - Smash/Grab EP
Riverboat Gamblers Smash/Grab EP Even a good bet’s a loser 40 percent of the time, and Austin’s Riverboat Gamblers have gotten the short side of the stick more than they deserve. For more than a decade they’ve crackled like a lit fuse, nearly blowing to pieces on multiple occasions. The fiery intensity they showcase onstage […]
Various Artists - Live From Nowhere Near You: Volume Two
Various Artists Live From Nowhere Near You: Volume Two Compilations by nature have a strong odds & sods bent, and Live From Nowhere Near You is no exception. Extending across three discs, 65 tracks and almost four hours—and featuring recordings from more than 50 different artists—it’d hard for it to be otherwise. But it’s […]
Wharf Rats - Wharf Rats EP
Wharf Rats Wharf Rats EP If hardcore is so rudimentary, how come more bands don’t make music as vibrant and catchy as the debut 7-inch by Wharf Rats? Old school rules as this all-star cast revisit the classic sound of Minor Threat, particularly on the wham-bam-foot-up-your-can musical pugilism of “Capital Gains.” The only disappointment is […]
Des Ark - Don’t Rock The Boat, Sink The Fucker
Des Ark Don’t Rock The Boat, Sink The Fucker After more than a dozen years making music, Aimée Argote has found the right balance between scalding white-noise guitars and acoustic tenderness with Des Ark’s Don’t Rock The Boat, Sink The Fucker. In the six years since her last full-length, Argote’s spent a lot of […]
Damion Suomi & The Minor Prophets - Go, And Sell All Your Things
Damion Suomi & The Minor Prophets Go, And Sell All Your Things Somewhere between Flogging Molly and Langhorne Slim lies Damion Suomi (pronounced sue-me), a rootsy Floridian rocker with a strong dose of the Irish in his rollicking and reeling Americana. His voice is a ringer for Michael Stipe, and in his religious fascinations […]