The xx is the exception. The English band’s 2009 debut, xx, is a modern classic, lauded for its moody and sparse pairing of R&B and indie grooves. “Intro,” “Crystalised” and “Islands” all made splashes, and The xx went from 0 to 60 like that. So then comes the follow-up, Coexist, with the words “sophomore slump” […]
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Dillard’s exclusive
Give Tara Dillard a spotlight and a stage and she is set. Earlier this summer, the Oklahoma City-based singer-songwriter released her first single, “So Long,” on iTunes and Spotify, with plans to release a full EP soon. “I’ve just released the one single right now,” she said. “The whole EP project I’m hoping to finish […]
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Map quest
Having formed at a Chicago art school, alternative-rock outfit Maps & Atlases has never shied away from lofty goals or pushing itself creatively. In the early days, that meant making math rock fun. Now, it means channeling the members’ inner Marty McFly. “It’s tough to make an album that exists out of time,” singer and […]
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Still whipped
Photo: Joshua Dalsimer The planet is heating up, running out of fossil fuel and getting stingy with clean air and water. World nations seem chronically on the verge of global economic collapse. Crazed gunmen and suicide bombers make daily headlines. Literacy is down, obesity is up and Kim Kardashian is a household name. Humanity, meet […]
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Hank airin’
Politics and social justice have never been too far from the mind of punk legend Henry Rollins, and the world of the Black Flag front man turned spoken-word artist plunges more and more into that realm as we approach Election Day on Nov. 6. Naturally, it’s become a chief point of discussion during this tour, […]
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For a Good Time, Call …
If you bet that means a lot of one-liners about penises and vaginas, and maybe some sight gags involving zeppelin-sized dildos, I congratulate you on your clairvoyance. But there are surprises here, too, particularly how sweet-natured this film actually is, and how winning are its two stars. Lauren (Lauren Anne Miller, 50/50), the straitlaced product […]
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Red-hot rock
Photo: Jason Tanaka Blaney When Ohio rock act Red Wanting Blue got booked to play Norman Music Festival this past spring, the band members worried about whether they’d be able to impress the crowd. “These people have seen everything,” lead singer Scott Terry said. “I’ve never been close to a tornado, but most of these […]
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Animal Collective — Centipede HZ
In direct contrast to, say, Grizzly Bear, Animal Collective thrives on being inexact, and to come so close to re-creating the formula nonetheless is impressive. Centipede Hz is not half as catchy; nothing resembles “Summertime Clothes” or “My Girls,” save for “Applesauce.” What you’ve got instead are nearly a dozen jarring pop songs that split […]
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Blondie has more fun
Blondie co-founder Chris Stein hears traces of his band in a lot of contemporary rock and pop, from Garbage to Lady Gaga. It’s an impressive range of influence for an outfit once considered the ugly duckling of New Wave acts toiling in the sweaty, steamy environs of New York’s CBGB back in the 1970s. “Assuming […]
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The Crimson Petal and the White
Romola Garai (Atonement) plays Sugar, a 19-year-old prostitute pimped out by her own mother (The X-Files’ Gillian Anderson, almost unrecognizable) to the hoity-toity about town. One such uncool customer is William Rackham (O’Dowd), a soap titan married to a mentally ill woman (Amanda Hale, Bright Star). So taken is he by Sugar’s honeypot that he […]