Music

The Heavy — The House That Dirt Built

in
By Aaron Brophy (CHARTattack) October 30, 2009 2:29 pm
For all of King Khan's I'm-the-new-James Brown bluster, all it takes is the 1-2 of Kelvin Swaby's scream in "Oh No! Not You Again!" and the pointed "How You Like Me Now" to take that cape right off of Khan and put it in The Heavy's camp. Better than those songs, however, would be the Howlin' Wolf channeling future-retro...
More
Music Review
The Heavy's The House That Dirt Built
  • Read more
  • Share this
  • Comments

Volcano Choir — UnMap

in
By Phil Villeneuve (CHARTattack) October 30, 2009 2:09 pm
This uber-cool collab between from Bon Iver's Justin Vernon and A Collection Of Colonies Of Bees is an electronic wonder. Not electronic in terms of dancefloor power — of which this album has none — but in the way that it's subtle technological details are so precise and beautiful and odd that UnMap ends up sounding like an acoustic album without...
More
Music Review
Volcano Choir's Unmap

Boys Noize — Power

in
By Phil Villeneuve (CHARTattack) October 30, 2009 12:56 pm
If you're a fan of Boys Noize, you probably know remixing is their strength. So pulling off an entire album of original electro successfully can be a tricky task. Boys Noize don't fully succeed on Power, but they do get some things right. The Justice-style chainsaw basslines and synth rips are prevalent on Power, and simple, effective melodies...
More
Music Review
Boys Noize's Power

Little Girls — Concepts

in
By CHARTattack Staff October 30, 2009 12:48 pm
Digging lo-fi has little to do with being able to tolerate fuzz in an effort to find some sort of hidden payoff. Consider Condo Fucks, Times New Viking and Wavves — these are bands whose albums sound good because of their rough edges, not in spite of them. Little Girls are not like these bands. There's plenty of fuzz and distortion on Concepts,...
More
Music Review
Little Girls' Concepts

Karen O And The Kids — Where the Wild Things Are

in
By Ian Gormely (CHARTattack) October 29, 2009 4:16 pm
The soundtrack to the movie that's based on the children's book Where The Wild Things Are offers far more than just musical window dressing designed to accompany Spike Jonze's cinematic eye candy. Credited to Karen O And The Kids, the film's soundtrack could easily stand on its own as a singular record of songs about love and youth. One look at...
More
Music Review
Karen O And The Kids' Where The Wild Things Are

Jay Farrar And Benjamin Gibbard — One Fast Move Or I'm Gone: Music From Kerouac's Big Sur

in
By Kate Harper (CHARTattack) October 29, 2009 3:31 pm
Jack Kerouac's 1962 autobiographical novel, Big Sur, is based on the author's three trips to a cabin in Big Sur, Calif.'s Bixby Canyon where he attempted to kick his alcoholism. These trips were ultimately unsuccessful, and Kerouac died in 1969 at age 47 of internal hemorrhaging caused by cirrhosis of the liver brought on by alcoholism. Although...
More
Music Review
Jay Farrar And Benjamin Gibbard's One Fast Move Or I'm Gone: Music From Kerouac's Big Sur

The Clientele — Bonfires On The Heath

in
By Chris Burland (CHARTattack) October 29, 2009 2:35 pm
Like the opening moments of The Beta Band's "Dry The Rain" in High Fidelity, a record store owner out there is salivating at the opportunity to sell five copies of the new album by The Clientele. Opener "I Wonder Who We Are" mixes Pink Floyd with a more sophisticated, soulful groove that will get the heads of even the most...
More
Music Review
The Clientele's Bonfires Of The Heath

The Bon — "Stupid Question"/"Ancient Times"

in
By Scott Bryson (CHARTattack) October 29, 2009 1:59 pm
This two-song single is the debut release from a new band formed by former members of the Tijuana Bibles, The Leather Uppers, Rise and The Exploders. Side A's "Stupid Question" is a light-hearted garage rock attack on an unnamed "baby," who asks unnecessary questions like "Will you be true?" Singer/guitarist Craig...
More
Music Review
The Bon's "Stupid Question"/"Ancient Times"

Flight Of The Conchords — I Told You I Was Freaky

in
By Scott Bryson (CHARTattack) October 28, 2009 3:42 pm
If you're not a fan of the Flight Of The Conchords television show, you'll think this album is ridiculous. And rightfully so. But if you're familiar with Bret McKenzie's and Jemaine Clement's TV exploits, I Told You I Was Freaky should be a welcome companion. Overall, the mood here is similar to the funky vibe on Beck's Midnite Vultures. "...
More
Music Review
Flight Of The Conchords' I Told You I Was Freaky

Califone — All My Friends Are Funeral Singers

in
By Chris Burland (CHARTattack) October 28, 2009 3:00 pm
For years, Tim Rutilli has been created dissonant blues-drenched experimental post-rock, first as the leader of Red Red Meat, then initially alone as Califone. What started as solo experimentation has evolved into a Chicago-based musical collective involving the majority of RRM members in a sort of Red Red Meat v2.0. While it may seem far-...
More
Music Review
Califone's All My Friends Are Funeral Singers

IllScarlett — 1Up!

in
By Steve McLean (CHARTattack) October 28, 2009 2:26 pm
IllScarlett are moving up in the world and, while it's good for them, it's not for me. The Mississauga, Ont. quartet co-produced their new album with Grammy Award-winning producer Robert Carranza (Bjork, Beastie Boys) in Los Angeles after working on 2007's All Day With It in the same city with producer Matthew Wilder (No Doubt, Natalie Imbruglia...
More
Music Review
IllScarlett's 1Up!

Dog Day — Elder Schoolhouse

in
By Scott Bryson (CHARTattack) October 27, 2009 3:39 pm
Dog Day are getting noticeably better with every record they make. The three songs that constitute side A of this 12-inch — "Ritual," "Dark Day" (written specifically for the band by producer Rick White) and "Concentration" — are among the best they've recorded. It would be easy to credit White with this victory,...
More
Music Review
Dog Day's Elder Schoolhouse

The Red Chord — Fed Through The Teeth Machine

in
By Keith Carman (CHARTattack) October 27, 2009 3:29 pm
The Red Chord's fourth full-length, Fed Through The Teeth Machine, is apparently named after an industrial manufacturing unit the band saw on a television show, and doesn't exactly have the coolest back-story to its moniker. But that doesn't matter. When hearing the grinding metal that spews forth from Fed Through The Teeth Machine's 12 tracks...
More
Music Review
The Red Chord's Fed Through The Teeth Machine

Tegan And Sara — Sainthood

in
By Kate Harper (CHARTattack) October 26, 2009 3:40 pm
After two albums mixing conventional tunes with more experimental, keyboard-based electronic pieces, Tegan and Sara Quin have produced their poppiest disc since 2002's If It Was You. That's not to say that Sainthood sounds like the latter record, however. It's far more mature, and sees the twins exploring Leonard Cohen's idea of...
More
Music Review
Tegan And Sara's Sainthood

Alec Ounsworth — Mo Beauty

in
By Scott Bryson (CHARTattack) October 26, 2009 3:25 pm
A lot of people dislike Alec Ounsworth and it may be with good reason. Someone has to take the fall for having torpedoed Clap Your Hands Say Yeah with a difficult sophomore disc, and Ounsworth is the most visible target. In light of statements he's made about the songs on Mo Beauty being "mostly old," one has to wonder if he sunk Clap...
More
Music Review
Alec Ounsworth's Mo Beauty

Built To Spill — There Is No Enemy

in
By Ian Gormely (CHARTattack) October 26, 2009 3:14 pm
Built To Spill spent the first decade of the new century undoing the good will they'd engendered in the mainstream press throughout the latter half of the '90s. It's not that the sporadic recordings they made were bad; they just seemed to turn frustratingly inward. But the band seem refocused and re-energized on their first new album in three...
More
Music Review
Built To Spill's There Is No Enemy

Silver Starling — Silver Starling

in
By Scott Bryson (CHARTattack) October 23, 2009 2:55 pm
Montreal's Silver Starling was started by Stars, Torngat and Arcade Fire collaborator Marcus Paquin. Paquin's voice is more than a little similar to Win Butler's, and as a result, much of this disc sounds similar to certain Arcade Fire songs. There is, however, an urgency in the band's low end that isn't present in the Arcade Fire's music....
More
Music Review
Silver Starling's self-titled album

Julie Fader — Outside In

in
By Ian Gormely (CHARTattack) October 23, 2009 1:20 pm
Julie Fader has made a name for herself backing up other musicians, most notably Toronto's Great Lake Swimmers. Here on her debut, she steps into the spotlight and proves to be no mere sidekick. Fader is a talented songwriter in her own right, and with the help of Holy Fuck's Graham Walsh she has created a formidable album of dark sounding, warm...
More
Music Review
Julie Fader's Outside In

Priestess — Prior To The Fire

in
By Andre Mihsin (CHARTattack) October 22, 2009 3:59 pm
If you've ever seen Priestess in concert, you've probably noticed that the songs from the band's debut album Hello Master have a lot more energy live than on the actual record. In contrast, Prior To The Fire is rowdier sounding, with a more progressive and jamming atmosphere closer to the Priestess live experience. Opening track "...
More
Music Review
Priestess' Prior To The Fire

The Corner Laughers — Ultraviolet Garden

in
By Scott Bryson (CHARTattack) October 22, 2009 3:23 pm
The Corner Laughers suggest their music possesses a "smidgeon of twee," but it's more like a heavy-handed slap. You probably shouldn't listen to Ultraviolet Garden if you're in a bad mood. It's so musically upbeat that your anger brought on by the realization that anyone could possibly be that happy will make you want to throw your...
More
Music Review
The Corner Laughers' Ultraviolet Garden
Syndicate content