Album Reviews
Say Psych: Album Review – Wicked Sun by Narco States
Narco States are one of those bands who, on the surface, sound like many others who you could safely file under ‘garage’. There are the MC5/ Stooges wails and lo-fi drums, and thrumming bass. There is the sort of wailing organ swirling in and out of the mix which is redolent of any number of …
Not Forgotten: David Byrne – Feelings
In retrospect Feelings is probably the last time that David Byrne made a conscious effort to make an album that might sell to an audience beyond his most obsessed fans. Where his previous self titled album had been a mature mix of material with a very definite adult feel about it, Feelings was partly a …
Not Forgotten – The Cult – Electric
The Cult, bless their ridiculous hairstyles, couldn’t have found it easy to follow-up their unexpectedly successful album Love, particularly as it had included one of the key rock songs of the decade, “She Sells Sanctuary”. Although they apparently attempted to make a bigger and better version of their previous album, The Cult got bogged down …
Album Review: Union Blak – Street English
Despite the fact that it has now been out for over a month, it is surely not too late to welcome an album which overwhelmingly defies the commonly-heard aphorism that ‘real’ Hip Hop is dead. It exists, a subterranean animal, evidenced only when deliberately sought out or inadvertently stumbled upon – proof incarnate of this …
Album Review: Björk – Vulnicura
Very few solo artists are as diverse and experimental as Björk. In a career spanning 22 years (not counting her album released when she was 12), she’s released music ranging from Alternative Rock, to Trip Hop, Jazz, Ambient and even Avant-Garde. Every album takes the listener to a new musical destination as Björk really gets …
Album Review; Ghostpoet – Shedding Skin
Every now and then, an artist comes along who confuses those music critics and fans that like to put music into certain boxes or genres. Ghospoet is undoubtable one of those people. Singer/songwriter? Rapper? Poet? Yeah, I guess you could say he falls into all of the above. There are elements of hip-hop, but with …
Album Review: Melanie De Biasio – No Deal (Remixed)
Beligian/Italian singer Melanie de Biasio made a record last year, No Deal, a record that showcased her singing, songwriting, even flute playing. With a voice that approached both Karen Carpenter and (more pertinently) Nina Simone, at least stylistically, it was a wake up call that soul jazz was very much alive and well. Despite picking …
Not Forgotten: Thea Gilmore – Avalanche
It can’t be easy being Thea Gilmore. Widely hailed as one of the best songwriters of her generation, yet receiving almost no radio play and little media coverage. She’s been releasing high quality music now for the last eight years or so, but registers negligible sales. She displays traditional singer-songwriter strengths, but she doesn’t fall …
Not Forgotten: Warren Zevon – Life’ll Kill Ya
It’s tempting to retrospectively view Warren Zevon’s final three albums as a loose trilogy based around the theme of mortality. While the post cancer-diagnosis musings of My Ride’s Here and the acceptance of The Wind can certainly be seen as being directly influenced by the fact that Zevon knew that he was reaching the end …
Album Review: Taylor Locke – Time Stands Still
A few notes of electric piano and semi-distant slide guitar stamps Time Stands Still with the hallmarks of a West Coast album with a whole heap of promise. The opening track of Time Stands Still, “Burbank Woman”, was my first experience of the music of Taylor Locke and by the end of the song, I …