The chamber pop of Piñataland’s “Hymns for the Dreadful Night” caught my attention immediately, as it is immaculately captured. “Island of Godless Men” is the best example of this. It’s a great song made better by the details of the engineering. Opening the piece is remarkably clear sound of the ocean, which gives way to […]
Stephen Carradini
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Paul Simon — Paul Simon / There Goes Rhymin’ Simon / Still Crazy After All These Years / In Concert: Live Rhymin’
The accompanying notes state that the albums “feature the remastered sound, bonus tracks and expanded packaging from their first CD incarnations.” Translated: These are exactly the same as the 2004 CD releases, down to the liner notes. The only reason mentioned for re-releasing these albums is that a licensing agreement recently “brought Simon’s entire catalog […]
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Givers — In Light
But because the album does a half-decent job of catching that lightning in a bottle, it is a glorious blast of summery goodness. I won’t gush over Givers’ live show; I did that once already. They are the most enthusiastic band I’ve ever seen, and some of that transfers over to the 10 songs that comprise […]
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Extra Cheeze
Shea Weaver is a busy man. “You never know where things in life will take you,” said the Oklahoma City musician, who plays under his own name, as Cheezecoat and in Country Strange. His varied monikers correspond to the various places that music has taken him. He started playing with Country Strange almost 10 years […]
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The Pretty Black Chains — Awakening
The act makes it clear from the first second of the album, which kicks off with Derek Knowlton’s heavy riff from “Let Me In” and pours on the guitar from there on out. Fans of the six-string will find much to love in tunes from the fuzzed-out “Lovers” to the ’90s-influenced runs of “Thorny Crown”; […]
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Kill the Reflection — 3EP
On the group’s “3ep,” the standout “Cold” calls for the vocalist to deliver his notes in a low, forceful way that aspires toward the dominating control of Ian Curtis. The Oklahoma City-based three-piece musically churns behind him, channeling the energy of punk (especially in the drums) through tight, restrained rhythms. The tension of vocals versus […]
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Nik Freitas — Saturday Night Underwater
He helped raise the pop song to an art form, lifting it from the youth into the realm of serious consideration. But most mature musicians today stray toward the maudlin tones of adult alternative or the “raw” qualities of Americana/folk. There’s not too many guys making solid pop for adults, but Nik Freitas is one […]
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Son Lux — We Are Rising
Ryan Lott, who is Son Lux, is most often referred to as an electronic musician, but “We Are Rising” is more orchestral than almost any Sufjan Stevens’ work (especially “The Age of Adz”). There are electronic elements here, but to lump this in the same general category with techno is not only selling it to […]
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Instrumental madness
The International Vintage Guitar Collectors Association is holding an event now through Saturday that allows people to turn aural artifacts into cash. You don’t have to know anything about the instrument, either, whether it’s a guitar, bass, flute, banjo or something else. “A lot of times on older pieces, they’re not going to know much […]
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tUnE-yArDs — w h o k i l l
But, as with the baffling punctuation and spacing on the band name and title, there’s nothing here that’s normal. This is an idiosyncratic release to the core: Singer/songwriter Merrill Garbus does what she wants, and she doesn’t care if you don’t like it. This results in some of the most inventive pop songs I’ve heard […]