Featuring new songs by these bands: Avi Buffalo – What’s In It For
Dr. Dog – Strange
Echo & The Bunnymen – Proxy
Fang Island – Daisy
Fang Island – Life Coach
Future Islands – In the Fall
Future Islands – Tin Man
Gil Scott Heron – New York Is Killing Me (featuring Nas)
Karnivool – Set Fire To The Hive
Lodger – Back Of My Mind
Trans Am – Apparent Horizon
True Womanhood – The Monk
Woven Bones – Alright
- This list is in no particular order. Although Derek Walker makes a strong case for Joanna Newsom’s Have One On Me as the best album of February.
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Local Natives – Gorilla Manor
Written by thirst’n howl III
I had an uncle who thought he was going to have a mistress in every capitol across the U.S. and he was emphatic that they be locals to that city. He died of diabetes and had a funeral similar to Mardi Gras. He died in February. Weird, right? This Album was much better than February deserved (and that’s not a racist statement, I’m just saying February wasn’t that cool this year, but this album was). It had all the splintered sunlight of an early spring and sounded like feet running barefoot in jean shorts. A softness close to Other Girls and the catchiness of Phoenix. Get the album and get ready for these loc’s to invade your town.
Rocky Votolato- True Devotion (Barsuk)
Written by Bear
Dear readers, True Devotion finds Rocky Votolato in his finest form. Like a race horse trained solely for the purpose of winning the big prize, so does Rocky Votolato spend months and years, pouring his heart out into songs that once released will hopefully have a huge impact on his fans. With True Devotion Rocky has stripped down his songs with only vocals and acoustic guitar taking his music back where it belongs. -Read Full IRR Review
Phantogram- Eyelid Movies (Barsuk)
Written by Murdoch Watson
Instead of the contained, smooth, atmospheric dream pop of xx, Eyelid Movies gives us a manic, often disjointed, noir-ish, shoegazey album. Phantogram sounds like trip-hop revisited, while Carter and Barthel refer to their sound as “street beat, psych pop”, whatever name you want to call it it’s refreshing. -Read Full IRR Review
The first thing to be said is, Catchy. Any good pop artist knows the importance of a great hook, and riff, and song after song Dan Black finds a way to help you remember each individual track. Dan uses a variety of different elements to bring out some great ambient sound affects like simple strings in the aptly named song “Symphonies” or “Wonder”-a song that it is grounded on the rhythm of an acoustic guitar. -Read Full Review
- Yeasayer- Odd Blood (Secretly Canadian)
Written by Barry Moore
The first track on the album comes right out of left field, or maybe left out in right field? Um…anyway, beginning with an almost Metropolis-esque electro jazz stomp that evolves into the more electro-poppy hope filled second track “Ampling Alp”, Yeasayer seem to declare their roots in 80’s electronica while maintaining a rather refreshing originality.
- Quasi - American Gong (Kill Rock Stars)
Written By Bear
A dozen years ago Quasi was a group of youngsters making music that stood out. Now with their new album, American Gong, they have succeeded in making one of the freshest albums so this year, or of the past year for that matter. You might imagine Sam Coomes’s jangled guitars toning down over the last decadde, but they haven’t. Or perhaps you would expect Janet Weiss to not hit her drums as hard, but that would be a fallacy. American Gong is as good as they come.
- Joanna Newsom – Have One On Me (Drag City)
Written By Derek Walker
How does this 20-something songbird keep getting better? If “Ys” was her coming out party, “Have One On Me” has made Joanna Newsom the belle of the indie rock ball — if you call the beautiful melodies she plucks “rock.” An unprecedented triple album, this two-hour-plus long masterpiece is thus far 2010′s best, even if 2010 is barely two or so months old.
Dios - We Are Dios (Buddyhead Records)
Written by thirst’n howl III -
One of the raddest albums of Feb. Did you read the 18 questions we posted with them. That alone should stand tribute to how ubercool they are. And if you listen to the album you will get it as well. This album gives Brian Wilson a run for being chill and crazy and southern Californiaee? Listen to it and know what sleeping in the most comfy bean bag chair for consecutive days is like. I wouldn’t be surprised if skittles commercial people listen to this album for inspiration. Basically go high five your ear and listen to this!
The Courage of Others opens with “Acts of Man” which, in many ways, is representative of the album. The song is British folksy with intricate classical guitar arpeggios and steady drumming. Soft, monotone vocals serve to darken the landscape while the lyrics force the listener away to another sphere — one where the earth and all that grows and runs upon it have been forgotten. A flute appears as the work builds somewhat just before its completion. The influences of Fleetwood Mac and Jethro Tull are unmistakable here. But although the track is solid, it has a strange dullness and throughout it and others on the album, the intended intensity simply doesn’t come through. No significant depth, so important to a piece such as this, ever seems to emerge.
Another song, “Rulers, Ruling All Things” is a case in point. The quiet verse gives way to a thumping, epic chorus: “I only want to be left to my own ways, The rulers of one leaving all things undone, I stood in awe of the whole creations, Gathered among them was the morning, Giving all its rays.” The work is a technically sound bit of prog-rock but one has the sense that the reserved passion found in the vocals is not quite authentic. This makes the buzzing guitar seem more remote than piercing. Midlake frontman Tim Smith has claimed that “Small Mountain” is his favorite. And although its woodsy melody is intriguing, it also has an energy which is far too distant for the listener.
For me, the title track (originally to be a B-side for Van Occupanther) is probably the highlight. Here, the sentiment is haunting but close: “I was always taught to worry about things, All the many things you can’t control.” Intensity slowly assembles as the hypnotic melody transitions, as one of the many uncontrollable things mentioned, into thick layers of sound. It is a good piece. But like the record itself, it would be a stretch to call it first-rate. On the other hand, I will say that the collection of songs on The Courage of Others do seem to evolve somewhat with each listen. And for this this reason alone, I believe the album deserves some attention.
Tracklist:
Acts of Man
Winter Dies
Small Mountain
Core of Nature
Fortune
Rulers, Ruling All Things
Children of the Grounds
Bring Down
The Horn
The Courage of Others
In The Ground
Once when I was a younger man than I am now, my local cd store had me on hands and knees a couple times a week, squinting at album titles while hoping for a special find. One of these times I happened upon One For The Ride by Rocky Votolato’s first band Waxwing. If I was an archaeologist it would be similar to discovering the tomb of Tutankhamun…. eh, maybe not. But it was exciting, and that release made a huge impression on me with it’s unique orchestrations and wonderful musicianship (Rudy Gadjadhar is one amazing drummer), but what took hold of me most were the vocals. Since that time Rocky’s music and I have had time to grow together. With each release I find myself eager to hear what he has created. Unfortunately Waxwing called it quits around 2002, but, and this is a big “but”, from what I hear the guys have gotten back together and are working on new songs -and so the rumors begin. Let’s return to the task at hand, and that is getting the point across to you, dear readers, that True Devotion finds Rocky Votolato in his finest form. Like a race horse trained solely for the purpose of winning the big prize, so does Rocky Votolato spend months and years, pouring his heart out into songs that once released will hopefully have a huge impact on his fans. Read the full story
If you have seen Akron/Family recently, you have likely heard them close an evening with the unreleased song “Woody Guthrie’s America.” It is an immediately familiar song, one that often evolves into an audience sing-along continuing after the band has exited the stage. Over the past year the band has collected over 20 versions of the song sung, stomped, and videotaped by friends, and is now looking to open the doors of the project and encourage all to contribute. All contributors are welcomed to their headlining shows for free!
Featuring these great new songs: Alvin Band “Mantis Preying Ate Single”
Beach House “Norway”
CFCF “Monolith”
The Dead Trees “Rayna (demo)”
Fredrik “Locked in the Basement”
Furcast “Greyls Old”
Holly Miranda “Forest Green Oh Forest Green”
Letting Up Despite Our Faults “In Steps”
Mean Creek “(OrTheUnderground)”
Midnight Masses “Walk On Water”
Miracles of Modern Science “Bossa Supernova”
Summer Dregs “Bones”
Tape Deck Mountain “On My Honor”
Tape Deck Mountain “Scantron (remix)
Technoir MA “Roundabout”
The New Loud “Dont Dance”
Toro Y Moi “Blessa”
Noah and the Whalereleased their new album ‘The First Day Of Spring’ on October 6th of this year. Already the album has become our go-to-album (you know when you have an album that somehow finds itself in every cd player you have? Exactly.). And now we would like to offer you a first viewingof their video for their song with the same name as the album “The First Day Of Spring”. Filmed live at Cafe De La Danse.
Featuring these great new songs:
A Sunny Day In Glasgow “Failure”
Atlas Sound “Doctor (Five Discs Cover)”
Bluebrain “Bring Out Your Dead”
Jasone Boesel “Hand Of God”
Joan Of Arc “Friend In Common”
Josh Ottum “Like the Season, it’s Alright Single”
LoneLady “Immaterial”
Midnight Masses “Walk On Water”
Mother Hips “Third Floor Story”
Mother Hips “White Falcon Fuzz”
Pants Yell “Cold Hands”
Princeton “Sadie And Andy”
The Bravery “The Spectator”
The Wooden Sky “Something Hiding For Us in the Night”
The Mercury Program “Arrived Departed”
If you are young, have nothing better to do, like bad music, but like to criticize bands you know nothing about then send an email to info @ indierockreviews.com
