Reviewed for Cyclic Defrost Based in Chicago, multi-instrumentalist and composer Derrick Stembridge has taken a step back in time with this release – Facewithin. It sounds like Depeche Mode must have been a big influence on his formative musical years, such is the way in which he uses rhythm and darker synths to create these 6 tracks (plus 3 remixes). Twinkling melodies hang in the … Continue reading REVIEW: DRIFTING IN SILENCE – Facewithin
1 2 3 4 5 Reviewed for FasterLouder Indie folk bands are a dime a dozen these days. You’ve got the likes of Vampire Weekend and Yeasayer taking african pop flavours and mixing them with danceable indie and then you have the likes of Iron + Wine and Devendra Banhart who take traditional folk, add a dash of indie and create their own tweaked and … Continue reading REVIEW: THE DODOS – Time To Die
1 2 3 4 5 I first saw The Phillies (as they are affectionately known) at the Laneway Festival and they stood out early in the day as a band in sync with each other and harnessing a good slab of enthusiasm in their music and performance. Cut to the first time I heard them on the radio and the one disappointment I had was … Continue reading REVIEW: PHILADELPHIA GRAND JURY – Hope Is For Hopers
1 2 3 4 5 Reviewed for The Dwarf… Minuit have been playing their dance-pop electronica in New Zealand for over a decade now and with this their third album they have come of age musically. In saying that, not everything works on this record. First single Wayho is a promising start with its bouncing buzzing bass and off beat toms. Singer Ruth Carr intones … Continue reading REVIEW: MINUIT – Find Me Before I Die A Lonely Death .Com
1 2 3 4 5 reviewed for FasterLouder HEALTH are yet another band to step up to the plate from the semi-legendary Smell venue in Los Angeles. Their first album got the bloggers and the indie underground excited with the way they took the DIY electronic sounds and added some choreographed aggression and a hazy sheen. They straddled multiple camps of indie, electronic, experimental and … Continue reading REVIEW: HEALTH – Get Color
1 2 3 4 5 Reviewed for FasterLouder It is surprising that musicians don’t do this kind of thing more – getting together for the sake of the music, collaborating and sharing the experience of songwriting. One way to do it is the ‘supergroup’ which can either work (Them Crooked Vultures, Temple Of The Dog) or can be a turgid affair (Chickenfoot, Tinted Windows). The … Continue reading REVIEW: 7 WORLDS COLLIDE – The Sun Came Out
1 2 3 4 5 Tasmania’s Ivy St have just launched their second album Picture Machine, a grinding swagger of a record that recalls the best of post-punk and its jagged rhythms and glorious repetition. First track Instruments is just that, an instrumental introduction to the bands approach and aesthetic. Minimal and repetitive it features a looped bass and guitar that circles like a hungry … Continue reading REVIEW: IVY ST – Picture Machine
1 2 3 4 5 I’ve read a few comments about how great the name of this band is which I just don’t get. The name doesn’t fit their sound, nor does it appeal as a classic moniker for a group. Thankfully that doesn’t detract from the quality of the music, a bold and confident indie rock record that has a certain romanticism with the … Continue reading REVIEW: WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS – These Four Walls
1 2 3 4 5 Two New York DJs decide they too can form a band so they do so , calling in favours from friends like Jon Spencer (Blues Explosion), Jaleel Bunton (TV On The Radio) and various others. The sound is essentially funk-lite with some disco synths and cartoon soul vamping going on. Opening track The Journey to Serra Da Estrela sets the … Continue reading REVIEW: THE PHENOMENAL HANDCLAP BAND
1 2 3 4 5 Discordant slashing rock n roll, knife-edge schizo punk, swirling, staggering hipster garage rock… all apt descriptions of Witch Hats and the glorious mess of sound they conjure up on their new EP Solarium Down The Causeway. The majority of the 6 tracks were recorded in Oakland CA in August last year and Witch Hats have done what many acts fail … Continue reading REVIEW: WITCH HATS – Solarium Down The Causeway EP
1 2 3 4 5 Bands soundtracking old movies can be a bit of a hit and miss scenario. Too often they fall into the trap of pretentious and dramatic flourishes and try to create an ambient or pseudo-classical sounding collection of music. British Sea Power have done just that but in their case they are working with a piece of film that calls for … Continue reading REVIEW: BRITISH SEA POWER – Man Of Aran
1 2 3 4 5 Tribal desert blues in the past would have fallen into the world music category, sidelined to the section in record racks and only embraced by a limited audience. With the growth of roots music over the last decade there has been much more focus on blues and folk-based sounds, opening our ears to a wealth of music, especially from the … Continue reading REVIEW: TINARIWEN – Imidiwan : Companions
Doubtful Sounds 