Tom Daily / Happily Deceiving Culture / Thick I was surprised to learn that Daily played all the instruments himself -- the recordings feel spontaneous, but also sound pretty tight and well-recorded. That's not an easy combination to pull off by yourself in your bedroom! The songs are sweet and fun, even though the lyrics tend toward the melancholy. The music is mostly simple, straightforward and guitar-based, although a few tunes, like "I Have a Vampire" and "Looking" benefit from the space-noodle-synth sounds that suddenly pop up in the mix...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		The Gunga Din / Glitterati / Jetset Yeah, throw a rhythmless pretty lady in the band on tambourine; no, better make it two tuneless and tone-deaf lasses. Not only will the the liberated rock chicks dig it, but all the guys who make like they're sensitive will elbow everyone out the way for a peek under flailing mini-skirts. This is not a description of the Gunga Din ...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Grant Hart / Good News for Modern Man / Pachyderm I'm not certain whether the neglect from Hart's fan base has been intentional, but until Good News For Modern Man, it has kept them from wasting money. Grant went from being punk rock's most prolific prince of idealism to a fellow whose energy seemed exhausted and out at sea. Happily, Good News for Modern Man finds Grant Hart making an astonishing return to form...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		AM/FM / Audiot / Skylab Operations As jangly pop songs go, the seven tracks here acquit themselves nicely. An Elephant Six-ish hummability persists, most notably on "The Death They Claim," "Neverever" and "Say What?", while the short but sweet "We Will Study Your Life," which bounces along on a bristling electric riff and stroppy drumming, cannot be played quietly...more»
		The Appleseed Cast / Mare Vitalis / Deep Elm Mare Vitalis is the follow-up to 1998's The End of the Ring Wars. It's an admirable CD. I enjoy its density, its raw power, the way it positively spurts out of my stereo speakers, gushing malaise. AC possess a gift for intensely communicative instrumentation. Textures shift and sound masses wax and wane in sympathy with the moodiness of their songs...more»
		Church of Betty / Fruit on the Vine / The Telegraph Co. The idea behind Church of Betty is a simple one, and you've probably heard something like it before. Basically, their goal to successfuly integrate Indian and Pakistani instruments with Western pop and rock songs. If you've heard other bands try this, you've also heard a lot of them fail. Miserably. Church of Betty succeeds, pretty much...more»
		Les Savy Fav / The Cat and the Cobra / Self Start Foundation/Frenchkiss While the LP packaging may not be as witty as the band's first release (it came wrapped in shower caps -- and was a fine slab o' vinyl to boot), The Cat and the Cobra still possesses equal parts off-kilter rhythmic madness and sassy, surprisingly sincere energy that'll capture your heart as it whisks away your breath with eclipsing riffs and cagey time changes...more»
		Oneida / Enemy Hogs / Turnbuckle A headache-inducing powerhouse, this droning, experimental freakout lets cascading trumpets commingle with choirs, taking your imagination to the nth degree of creativity. Oneida's curious existence revolves around manipulating noisy trajectories into a mildly moving piece of zoned-out pop...more»
		Tara Jane O'Neil / Peregrine / Touch & Go Peregrine is a subtle effort, combining elements of gentle folkish drawl and Rodan-descended sprawl. O'Neil's voice slips sidelong into the mix as she throws other distractions at the listener -- a childishly deliberate thumb piano melody on "Bullhorn Moon", or a call-and-response sequence between a banjo and a tentative guitar on "The Fact of a Seraph"...more»