Posts Tagged ‘alt rock’
Out of the light of the sun…
Sometimes you just wanna rock.
Check out Dear Agony by Breaking Benjamin. They are a mainstream band, but they have a distinctive sound and I really like the music. The themes are a little dark but over all the music has a ‘dig your heels in and growl at the world‘ feel.
My favorites are Into the Nothing, Fade Away (with its great metal sound) and the power ballad of the set, Give Me a Sign.
You can listen to the album on the Grooveshark widget in my sidebar or over on the band’s myspace page. Their myspace is kind of pretentious slick but don’t worry - the album is still great rock.
-Kit
2 Comments »
The color of sundown…
I picked up Transylvania by Belgian alt/experimental band, Creature with the Atom Brain. I have listened to it a few times and while it is moody and a little dark, I really like their style and 
arrangements.
The tracks run from rock to alt-punk to metal but the overall sound and feel remain cohesive. My favorites are The Color of Sundown, Spinnin the Black Hole and slightly prog rock Sound of Confusion.
(If I were looking for mood music to play during a RPG session this is the album I would pick.)
Transylvania is set to release April 10, 2009 but you can listen to tracks on the band’s myspace page, or on Emusic where you can also download an advance copy of the album.
- Kit
No Comments »
I’m black coffee, she’s sweet tea…
The other day I went hunting for free mp3′s and found Summer’s Gone by Jackopierce. I liked it so much I
went back and bought the CD, Promise of Summer.
Aside from the utter coolness of Jack O’Neill as a name, this is just a great band. (I am sure Cary Pierce is cool as well, just not SF geek cool)
Most tracks have kind of a folk/alt-rock sound. The music is mellow but not sleep inducing. My favorites are ‘Everything I’m Not’ and ‘Something Good’ but the album as a whole has a great sound.
I say buy the whole thing -
But if you need a test drive you can listen to several songs over on the Jackopierce myspace page, cnet.com or samples of all the songs on Amazon. You can d/l the mp3 album from Amazon or other online retailers.
- Kit
No Comments »
The secrets that you keep are what he sees…
I picked up ‘The Magician’ by Ghost Buffalo. It is a big change from their first release.
While there are still bits of country peeking out, notably on ‘Choke’, the sound is harder and more rock and punk. (With the exception of ‘Just a Thought’ which sounds like the band was temporarily possessed by Pink
Floyd)
Overall the music is darker (although I thought tracks like ‘Ruin Everything’ from the first album were kinda dark) and the songs tend to stand out. My favorites are Fire Walk With Me’ and ‘Gold Disease’.
I love Marie’s voice and think the new direction of the music makes her sound even better. Definitely worth buying.
You can listen to tracks from or purchase The Magician on Emusic,
on the Ghost Buffalo Myspace page,
or over on Suburban Home Records.
You can also watch the new video for Gold Disease on youtube.
- Kit
No Comments »
And you’re lying when you sing along…
I picked up The Stand Ins by Okkervil River last week. They have kind of a folk/alt rock sound.
I love Pop Lie. It has kind of a kicky beat and is just a little pop, all the while snarking on songs that…er, have a kicky beat and are pop. Awesome song.
I also like Lost Coastlines. It has a different feel and more of a folk sound.
As a whole, this is pretty good and I would recommend picking it up. I got mine from Emusic, but you can also get a copy from Amazon or from the band on the Okkervil River Website.
- Kit
No Comments »
There was change in the air…
I have been listening to Time the Conqueror by Jackson Browne. And I like it.
This is probably where I should mention my favorite Browne song is “The Road“. Not just because I have a thing for ‘being on the road’ songs and if I had an internet radio show I would do one entire day a week with nothing but on-the-road songs, but also because I think it is just a beautifully written song.
I have read several reviews complaining about the political tracks. I don’t get the problem. Yeah, Where Were You is not a ‘Levee Prayer’ or a “What Would Jesus Do” but it is not a bad song. It has almost a techno beat to it and you are enjoying the song before you even start to catch the lyrics. I also don’t think it hurts to remind people that the problem is not fixed and sadly, is not much better. For all those complaining about being ‘so tired of all this’ well…that is what your mp3 player is for. Skip those songs and then other peoples’ hard times will not intrude on your perfect day.
I also like ‘The Drums of War“. I found it very snarky. I love ‘Off of Wonderland’ and while I am not usually a big fan of nostaglia songs, I love the sound of this one. I already have it on my mp3.
Seriously though, it is Jackson Browne. At 60, he -still- has a fantastic voice and looks kind of hot in his new beard. The music is great and the ratio of good to bad is very high on the good side. Where is the bad in this?
However, you don’t have to trust me or any of the other reviewers. You can pop over to amazon (linked above) and listen to the cd for yourself. You can also preview it over on Emusic. (You can pick up a copy from both places as well.) If you prefer, Browne has a player on his site (also linked above) where you can listen to tracks from Time the Conqueror as well as his previous work.
All in all, it is worth the money.
- Kit
2 Comments »
Heroes or ghosts…
The Coronas are in the Spotlight, primarily because I have been playing ‘Heroes or Ghosts’ on my mp3 since I downloaded the track off Emusic a few days ago.
I love the song and I would love to have the cd but I can’t find anywhere to purchase it. I am going to email Jim Lawless but if anyone knows where I can pick the cd up please let me know so I don’t have to pester him.
(Okay, found it. You can d/l the cd from a link on their mySpace page.)
You can also listen to the guys over on their mySpace page and/or watch vidoes of them, like the one below.
*ponders postage from Ireland to here and hopes there is some way to d/l instead*
*hops off to d/l ‘Grace don’t Wait’ and some others*
- Kit
The summer sun it blows my mind…
Offering your new cd up for downloading online – would be super cool.
Offering your new cd up for listening, not d/ling - less cool, but okay.
Offering a track from the new cd for d/l -free – would be super cool.
Offering a track from the new cd for d/l for .79 – okay still cool.
Having it take so long to go through registration that I could have mowed the lawn, painted the house and read War and Peace in the time it took to register to buy the freakin’ track – highly annoying.
Seriously, it was the most convoluted and awkward payment system I have ever used online.
On the plus side, I like most of what I have heard so far. I would recommend getting the digital bundle instead of just the single track The Shock of the Lightning, as it comes with an additional track, Falling Down. (I love Falling Down and wish I had d/led the bundle, but in a couple weeks and I can get the entire cd so no prob.)
Vid of The Shock of the Lightning -
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87IQhui_Yy8]
Dig Out Your Soul will release October 6th, 2008.
- Kit
- Blurred…
February 12, 2013 | 4:06 pm
I have been trying to write the review for Blurred, by San Francisco singer/songwriter Alex Wise for a few months now but can’t seem to finish it. This is difficult for me to say but I get about halfway through the process and find myself so homesick I just can’t continue. The past few years have been full [...] - Arc & Stones…
February 11, 2013 | 4:53 am
Now that Scooter is back sleeping nights I proclaim this ’dig myself out from under the mountain of un-reviewed music‘ week. Kicking off the week o’reviewing is Arc & Stones, the debut EP from Brooklyn band Arc & Stones. The guys are Dan Pellarin (vocals), Ben Cramer (guitar), Joe Doino (drums) and Eddy Bayes (bass). I had [...] - Telegraph Taboo…
January 21, 2013 | 8:45 am
So, I was in the mood for some blues and whoosh – blues appeared. Other people get coupons, bills and news updates in the mail while I get blues music. Cool new blues music in the form of the debut release Telegraph Taboo from the Chicago-based band Nick and the Ovorols. This is not a pretty album. The vocals on a few tracks [...] -
Archive for music reviews »