Amanda Blank – I Love You
Welcome to the Blank generation - potty mouthed, vacuous, and promiscuous - with the music to match.
Splendour in the Grass 2009 (Day 1)
We give an in-depth rundown on 2009's Splendour in the Grass festival including the good - The Flaming Lips, Happy Mondays, Bloc Party, Doves, Sarah Blasko, Specials, You Am I, MGMT and the frankly rather appalling - Kram, Grinspoon.
Cat Power – Jukebox
Matador, 2008 [rating:6.5/10] Chan Marshall walks into a Manhattan recording studio, one arm weighed down by a stack of vinyl and the other carrying a large Starbucks cappuccino. She sits down on a couch by
Dean & Britta – London – 30 July 2010
Releasing their soundtrack to 13 of Andy Warhol's screen tests was an opportune moment for ex-Galaxie 500/Luna star Dean Wareham to fully express his love for Velvet Underground and the stars of Andy Warhol's Factory. The screen tests alone, wavering between the visually arresting and the arrestingly mundane, were elevated into a new realm with the musical accompaniment provided by Wareham and partner Britta Phillips. Bringing the 13 Most Beautiful show to London (having frustratingly been given its UK premiere in Dunfermline last year) was a long-anticipated occasion.
Exlovers – London – 28 February 2011
There really is something enthralling about watching a band not just perform music but energetically project themselves into it. It's akin to standing against a gale who's presence is to overpower you and anything in its way. That would in part, sum up the appeal of Exlovers -- they cut a forceful, harmony-fuelled rug. The other part is they're the most attractive bunch of tattooed scruffs that you'll ever encounter. Put all this in the context of their latest single "Blowing Kisses", a song that transcends simple indie guitar music and that gale hits like a perfumed fist that still makes you want to stand up and take more.
The Radio Dept. – Freddie and the Trojan Horse
Labrador, 2008 [8/10] It was not the lyrics that got me hooked on The Radio Dept but rather their gentle, dreamy melodies. The vocals of Johan Duncanson are an integral part of the band's sound
Blue Roses – Blue Roses
Blue Roses may not exist in nature but there's nothing artificial about Yorkshire songsmith Laura Groves.
Helvelln – Interview with Jeremy Gronow – Part 2
Part 1 Bedroom critic that I am, I'd be amiss not to suggest that only thing that lets Side 1 down is the lugubrious "Temptation". If I had my way, I would've swapped it for
The xx – xx
XX marks the spot for mixed treasures on the much lauded London foursome's debut LP, an album for the post-sunset hours.
PJ Harvey & John Parish – A Woman A Man Walked By
We took at poll at Webcuts, and PJ Harvey is most definitely not a woman one of us would walk by.
Vivian Girls – Vivian Girls
Brooklyn twee-punksters the Vivian Girls hit the reverb heights in a hail of cartoon tattoos and converse on their debut album.
Wilco – The Whole Love
Wilco -- "They’ve solidified themselves as the greatest American band playing today, possibly of all time".
The Minus 5 – Killingsworth
No longer young bucks American supergroup The Minus 5 release their eighth album of beautiful stories, pretty melodies and career-defining songs.
Metric – Fantasies
Canadian/American synth-rockers Metric return with their fourth (or third) album. Fantasies. Will it be yours though?
Destroyer – Kaputt
Lyrically and musically, simply one of the best records you'll hear all year. Dan Bejar -- Genius. Kaputt -- Divine.
…And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead – The Century of Self
Texas' Trail of Dead increase their shelf life with their sixth album, Century of Self.