David Comes To Life – Fucked Up
By Lewis McKinney
On their third outing, Fucked Up transcend their hardcore roots and craft a four-part punk rock opera that just might be this generation’s Zen Arcade. Continue reading
Posted in Album Reviews, Articles
Tagged album review, david comes to life, fucked up
What Did You Expect From The Vaccines – The Vaccines
By Lewis McKinney
The Strokes meet Dick Dale in a half hour burst of guitar pop perfect for the summer months. Passionate and energetic, The Vaccines knock their debut, What Did You Expect From The Vaccines, out of the park and into the stars. Songs like “Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra), If You Wanna and Norgaard” are perfect for bonfire boomboxes and road trip adventures. Not without its flaws, though, the album misses its highest marks with some of the slower songs, specifically “Blow It Up” and “All In White.” On the album closer, “Family Friend”, lead singer Justin Young croons “You wanna get young but you’re just getting older/You had a fun summer but it’s already colder“, an almost curt acknowledgement that, yes, the record is over and soon it’s place in your record rotation “but it’s cool.” A fabulous introduction that transcends their indie-rock titling and just may catapult them to the forefront of their current musical breterhern. What else would you expect from a band called The Vaccines? A bore?
Codes And Keys – Death Cab For Cutie
By Adam Murray
Well…hmmm. We’re all allowed one, right? I just finished listening to the latest album, Codes And Keys, from Zooey Deschanel’s husband and his friends, also known as Death Cab For Cutie, and it has, unfortunately, fallen short of what we were all hoping for. Continue reading
Posted in Album Reviews, Articles
Angles – The Strokes
By Ky DiGregorio
What do fine wine, the iPad 2, sushi, and the 1998 remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho all have in common? They’re all just like the new Strokes’ album, Angles, obviously. Like a good red wine and Steve Jobs’ newest toy, some bands get better with age and technical sophistication, but some bands are better in raw form (like sushi) and left alone (like how Psycho should have been). The Strokes are all ends of the spectrum, in some twisted way. The guys have grown up over the past five years, during a hiatus following their third record, First Impressions of Earth, and they seem to be more Married With Children than 24-Hour Party People nowadays. Did it ruin their “sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll” reputation and carefree songwriting, though? Some might argue so, but that’s quite shallow. Angles is exactly what it should be: A follow-up as good as Is This It. Continue reading
Posted in Album Reviews, Articles
Tagged album review, angles, fabrizio moretti, julian casablancas, new album, nick valensi, the strokes
Bad Books – Bad Books
By Dan Mugrauer
The Favorite Gentlemen forces themselves have been united for more of a reason than just sharing a stage. Manchester Orchestra and Brooklyn’s own Kevin Devine have started a supergroup of sorts, known as Bad Books.
Posted in Album Reviews, Articles
Tagged album review, andy hull, bad books, dan mugrauer, kevin devine, manchester orchestra
