review Archive
18 Jan 2010
Album Review: Let Freedom Sing — The Music of the Civil Rights Movement
In honor of the Martin Luther King National Holiday — (as a close friend wrote to me last night, “Remember to honor Dr. King. What he did, he did for all.”) […]
15 Jan 2010
Album Review: Research Turtles (self titled)
If Shoes fit, wear ’em. Despite the fact that Research Turtles are depicted on the cover of their self-titled, self-released CD as a sort of dirty-faced Knack for the 21st […]
14 Jan 2010
Album Review: Jeff Norwood – Awendaw
South Carolina acoustic bluesman Jeff Norwood conjures the spirits of Mississippi Fred McDowell and Robert Johnson on Awendaw. Using little more than (mostly) acoustic guitar, dobro, bass and footstomps, Norwood […]
13 Jan 2010
Album Review: Fran King – My Sweet Elixir
Fran King has been called an Irish McCartney. A more apt comparison might be Hawthorne California’s Emitt Rhodes. Like both Sir Paul and the mercurial Rhodes, King is possessed of […]
12 Jan 2010
Album Review: Richard Smyth – Sleight of Hand
Good title. Smyth is an electric guitarist with a wide sonic palette, and his mastery is highlighted throughout the disc. Shades of Wired-era Jeff Beck and 70s Lee Ritenour are […]
11 Jan 2010
Album Review: Bench Grinder – Clean is the New Dirty (EP)
If Jordan Oakes were still compiling editions of the legendary Yellow Pills series, “Ride With Me” from Bench Grinder would merit serious consideration. High-energy powerpop in a 90s vein, the […]
08 Jan 2010
Album Review: Long John Hunter – Looking for a Party
Modern blues records often suffer from a fatal flaw: those in charge of the production or arrangement aren’t always possessed of the requisite “feel.” The resulting product thus often contains […]
07 Jan 2010
Album Review: Go Time! – Speak
There’s a quality to the audio and arrangements on Speak, the self-released disc from Chicago-area Go Time!, that evokes 1983. More than anything else, this outfit sounds like an indie […]
06 Jan 2010
Album Review: Them Bird Things – Fly, Them Bird Things, Fly
Surf rock from Finland? Well, you’d be hard-pressed to find more authentic writing, playing, arrangement or production of that style in the 21st century than you would from Them Bird […]
05 Jan 2010
Album Review: Crash Kings (self-titled)
Weird. When “Mountain Man” — the opening track on Crash Kings‘ self-titled album — kicks off, it sounds like a song you haven’t heard by Wolfmother, albeit without a bunch […]