With so many options at their disposal, it would be interesting to see what they think they play. But their online presence is not forthcoming with a unified front (or, really, any front) on that note, so we’ll have to just play it by ear. On its face, Chikita Violenta is a Mexican indie-rock band […]
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Ruby Coast — Whatever This Is
Does the first band get considered merely an innovator and put behind the new band? Does the new band get considered copycats, even though they’re doing it as well or better? This is the problem in reviewing Ruby Coast’s “Whatever This Is”: It sounds exactly like a Tokyo Police Club album. I mean, down to […]
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Esben and the Witch — Violet Cries
The quiz determines whether or not you will want to purchase “Violet Cries” by Esben and the Witch: 1. Do you like Björk? If yes, buy album. If no, continue to question two. 2. Do you like art for the sake of art? If yes, buy album. If no, continue to question three. 3. Do […]
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Cloud Nothings — Cloud Nothings
The band — brainchild of frontman Dylan Baldi — made its first blip in late 2010 and has come on strong in 2011 with its proper debut and a simple enough style: Take recent tourmate Wavves, swap the weed for Red Bull, bathe it in Fun Dip, and you’ve got a close approximation. The self-titled […]
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Destroyer — Kaputt
Destroyer — despite its metal-sounding name — has been unleashing some of the best and brightest chamber pop since its formation in 1995. Frontman and chief songwriter Dan Bejar has taken time out since to contribute to supergroups The New Pornographers and Swan Lake, but has steadily streamed new tunes through Destroyer, including 2008’s acclaimed […]
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Steven Drozd — The Heart Is a Drum Machine
Steven Drozd — The Heart Is a Drum Machine The Flaming Lips are incredibly self-contained; the members rarely do side projects. So it’s with great interest that multi-instrumentalist Steven Drozd’s score for the music documentary “The Heart Is a Drum Machine” appears, as the Lips’ resident music genius hasn’t released his own stuff (ignoring studio […]
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Wye Oak — Civilian
Their previous releases have been full of concrete songs, made up of very definable riffs and melodies. They were the equivalent of a period, and even sometimes an exclamation point (especially live). “Civilian,” their new album out March 8 on Merge, is much more of an ellipsis. Songs are fluid and less defined, with the […]
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The Radio Dept. – Passive Agressive: Singles 2002-2010
Hailing from Sweden, this trio has been around in varying ways since 1995, although things took off for them in 2001. They have the distinction of being predecessors of both sides of the psych-pop resurgence, having released albums both with distorted guitars and fuzzed-out synths. Both sides of the sound are shown in “Passive Aggressive: […]
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Foxes in Fiction — Alberto
And when the songs are as evocative as the tunes on Foxes in Fiction’s “Alberto” EP, the phenomenon makes perfect sense. Foxes in Fiction’s take on the genre is a vocals-heavy one, as it sounds like Warren Hildebrand can actually sing. He still runs his voice through the requisite reverb, but it seems unnecessary. The […]
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Colin Stetson — New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges
Colin Stetson (Tom Waits, Arcade Fire, TV on the Radio, among others) is of the last category, as his upcoming album, “New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges,” is a cerebral experience unlike any other I’ve heard. It drops Feb. 22. Stetson plays saxophones primarily; there’s one 76-second French horn suite, but the bulk of the […]