Archive for the Indie Rock Category
Phosphorescent “C’est La Vie” (Dead Oceans)
Recorded in Nashville at Matthew Houck’s own Spirit Sounds Studio, C’est La Vie reveals a crystallization of what made Muchacho such a breakout a little sweetness and a little menace, sometimes boot-stomping and sometimes meditative. For years, Phosphorescent’s rise was a steady one: tours got a little better, rooms got […]
Church of The Cosmic Skull “Is Satan Real?” (Kozmik Artifact)
Third pressing. Limited to 250 copies on orange/black marbled vinyl (black slug edition). CHURCH OF THE COSMIC SKULL delivers a psychedelic rock opera which references the big riff swagger of Led Zeppelin at its peacocking peak, the bluesy flair and organ swirl of Deep Purple, and the theatrical pomp of […]
Pixies “Come On Pilgrim…It’s Surfer Rosa” (4AD)
30th anniversary edition of Pixies’ very first release, the eight-track mini-album Come On Pilgrim and the band’s first full album, Surfer Rosa. Gold 3xLP edition Pixies “Come On Pilgrim…It’s Surfer Rosa”with new artwork reimagined by original designer Vaughan Oliver and the bonus disc, Live From The Fallout Shelter – one of the earliest recordings of […]
Kurt Vile “Bottle It In” (Matador)
Kurt Vile is back with his first record in three years, the eclectic and electrifying Bottle It In, which he recorded at various studios around America over two very busy years, during sessions that usually punctuated the ends of long tours or family road trips. Every song, whether it’s a […]
Yo La Tengo “Summer Sun” (Matador)
The brilliant Hoboken trio of Ira Kaplan, Georgia Hubley and James McNew explore the sunny landscapes of summer, in every imaginable mode of music. From the gorgeous “Little Eyes” to the ten-minute jam “Let’s Be Still”, this may be Yo La Tengo’s most ambitious album to date.
All Them Witches “ATW” (New West)
Psychedelic but not hazy. Bluesy but not plodding. Prone to jams but not overindulgence. All Them Witches are all these things, and they push this formula farther than ever before. ATW is their fifth studio album, and every song here exists to be stretched out like an elastic band, taking […]
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds “Distant Sky” (Bad Seed)
Distant Sky (Live in Copenhagen) – Filmed at Copenhagen’s Royal Arena in October 2017, Distant Sky captured an extraordinary and triumphant live concert from Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds. Performing new album Skeleton Tree’s beautiful compositions alongside songs from their essential catalogue. 4 track 12” taken from the performance. […]
Felt “Me And A Monkey On The Moon” (Cherry Red)
Following the release of FELT’s first five albums in February, the band’s reissue campaign continues with the second half of their discography. During the ‘80s Felt recorded ten albums and ten singles for the Cherry Red and Creation labels. This gorgeously-produced series explores the work of one of the greatest […]
Felt “Train Above The City” (Cherry Red)
Following the release of FELT’s first five albums in February, the band’s reissue campaign continues with the second half of their discography. During the ‘80s Felt recorded ten albums and ten singles for the Cherry Red and Creation labels. This gorgeously-produced series explores the work of one of the greatest […]
Felt “The Pictorial Jackson Review” (Cherry Red)
Following the release of FELT’s first five albums in February, the band’s reissue campaign continues with the second half of their discography. During the ‘80s Felt recorded ten albums and ten singles for the Cherry Red and Creation labels. This gorgeously-produced series explores the work of one of the greatest […]
Felt “Poem Of The River” (Cherry Red)
Following the release of FELT’s first five albums in February, the band’s reissue campaign continues with the second half of their discography. During the ‘80s Felt recorded ten albums and ten singles for the Cherry Red and Creation labels. This gorgeously-produced series explores the work of one of the greatest […]
Felt “Forever Breathes The Lonely Word” (Cherry Red)
Following the release of FELT’s first five albums in February, the band’s reissue campaign continues with the second half of their discography. During the ‘80s Felt recorded ten albums and ten singles for the Cherry Red and Creation labels. This gorgeously-produced series explores the work of one of the greatest […]
Mogwai “Happy Songs For Happy People” (PIAS)
Though “happy” isn’t necessarily the first word that springs to mind when describing the band’s intricate, brooding style, it is a word and emotion that is both simple and profound, much like the direction Mogwai’s music takes here. Happy Songs for Happy People takes the focus and restraint of Rock […]
Mogwai “The Hawk is Howling” (PIAS)
Mogwai’s sixth studio album is, as one might expect, a brooding and atmospheric collection, full of the band’s exceptional use of dynamics and creation of hypnotic soundscapes. The Hawk Is Howling is, however, partly more reflective than previous releases, perhaps sharing more in common with 2001’s Rock Action. Instrumentally the […]
Mogwai “Mr. Beast” (PIAS)
The album opens with the calming guitar atmospherics of “Auto Rock,” but then “Glasgow Mega-Snake” comes bounding out with a crushing jog of a beat and a trademark granite slab of guitars. The Scots also indulge incrementally more beautiful and terrifying dreamscapes, especially the down-turned piano topping that hovers above […]
First Aid Kit “Tender Offerings” (Columbia)
Limited 10″ EP – a 4 track collection of songs / outtakes recorded during the making of Ruins.
The Shifters “Have A Cunning Plan” (Trouble In Mind)
After two 7-inch singles and a demo cassette (recently pressed to wax), Melbourne quintet The Shifters finally unveil their first, proper full-length album ‘Have A Cunning Plan’. The album showcases ten tracks by the band at their best; scrappy, self-destructive, stumbling and brilliant pop music that seems tossed off or […]
Idles “Joy As An Act Of Rebellion” (Partisan)
Bristol, UK 5-piece IDLES (aka “the UK’s best punk band” – The Guardian) have confirmed details for their anticipated sophomore LP Joy as an Act of Resistance via Partisan Records. IDLES have also shared the album’s first single, an arena-ready pro-immigration anthem entitled “Danny Nedelko,” which takes its name from […]
Jungle “For Ever” (XL)
The album is titled For Ever and is released via XL Recordings. If Jungle’s first album was their imaginary soundtrack to the places they had never been, For Ever is inspired by real life experiences of the places they’d dreamed of for so long. Swapping Shepherds Bush for the Hollywood […]
Robert Pollard “Waved Out” (GBV Inc.)
Robert Pollard’s Waved Out gets the 20th anniversary re-issue treatment with newly re-mastered audio and a beautiful blue vinyl pressing. The Guided By Voices captain’s second solo album from 1998 captures the more eclectic side of his songwriting. Here, he brilliantly compresses prog, psych, and post-punk ideas into magnificent two-minute […]
Waxahatchee “Great Thunder” (Merge)
KATIE CRUTCHFIELD’s ever-shifting musical project WAXAHATCHEE returns with the Great Thunder EP. Featuring a collection of songs written with now-dormant experimental recording group GREAT THUNDER while Crutchfield was also writing the Waxahatchee albums Cerulean Salt and Ivy Tripp, the original recordings have mostly faded into obscurity. Unearthing and reimagining them […]
Low “Double Negative” (Sub Pop)
In 2018, Low will turn twenty-five. Since 1993, Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker—the married couple whose heaven-and-earth harmonies have always held the band’s center—have pioneered a subgenre, shrugged off its strictures, recorded a Christmas classic, become a magnetic onstage force, and emerged as one of music’s most steadfast and vital […]
Rosali “Trouble Anyway” (Scissor Tail)
Philly-based musician Rosali (Long Hots, Wandering Shade) wrote the songs for her second album, Trouble Anyway, seeking empowerment by sharing openly on love, power, aging, suffering, confusion, self-doubt, and anger. The result is a full-bodied record that is at once sweeping and intimate—a vulnerable and powerful exploration of emotional narratives. […]
Blitzen Trapper “Furr – Deluxe Edition” (Sub Pop)
It was on September 23, 2008 that Blitzen Trapper, after putting out three albums on its own label, released its fourth full-length album, Furr, via Sub Pop. At that time, it was a record that captured exactly where the band’s frontman, Eric Earley, found himself, both literally and metaphorically, geographically and existentially. […]