Music Reviews

Equals Equals

For their debut release, Texan act Equals attempt to mix together post-rock and dance-punk and, surprisingly, it makes for a rather pleasant combination. Perhaps a bit too pleasant...

Mark Davison wishes that they'd turn it up a bit...

Handsome Furs Sound Kapital

After a disappointing release from Dan Boeckner's former Wolf Parade bandmate Spencer Krug, can Handsome Furs salvage the post-Wolf Parade legacy with Sound Kapital?

David Hogg reviews...

Peter Wolf Crier Garden of Arms

Peter Wolf Crier seem to have replaced vocal melody with vocal reverb, and it leads to some moments that seem promising initially but quickly fade into that same boring funk.

Matt Montgomery reviews...

For their second album of Krautrock-influenced electronica, the Swedish duo attempt to create a hellish guide to the world of industry (think L.S. Lowry does Dante's Inferno) with interesting results.

Mark Davison tried to keep the pretentious comparisons to an absolute minimum...

Case Studies The World is Just a Shape to Fill the Night

Former The Dutchess and the Duke songwriter Jesse Lortz goes solo for this dark, stripped-down album of brooding acoustic ballads.

Stephen Wragg reviews...

Cymbals Eat Guitars Lenses Alien

The Staten Island indie rock revisionists step even farther from nineties slacker rock conventions with their sophomore release, a tightly-knit, yet abundantly ornate listen that enthralls as much as it confounds.

Juan Edgardo Rodríguez wouldn't karaoke to any of these songs...

Richmond Fontaine The High Country

Is it a song-novel? A record album? Both? Neither?

Andrew Davison reviews...

Stephin Merritt Obscurities

Think that rarities collections are a waste of time and the preserve of the obsessive 'super-fan'? Then prepare to have Stephin Merritt prove you wrong.

Mark Davison is one of those obsessive super-fans, but don't let that put you off...