Lo-Fi Chorus / Self-Titled / Self-Released Part of Lo-Fi Chorus is simple "tall tale" country, the type of stories inmates tell when sleep doen't come; it's spending time with a country hero, and coming out the tougher one. The occasional sample evokes the darker edges of country music that rock-weaned souls tend to favor. There is not a single lyric about homegrown tomatoes, but many mentions of trains, quarries, moonshine, bartenders, rivers and knives that draw blood...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Radio Birdman / The Essential Radio Birdman (1974-1978) / Sub Pop It's okay if you haven't heard of Radio Birdman. Nobody will think less of you for admitting it, unless you're a self-described expert on the Australian punk scene of the late seventies. Though they beat The Saints to the punk-rock punch by something like a two-year margin, and are spoken of in hushed tones by the sort of people who speak in hushed tones about seventies garage-punk, Radio Birdman's modest output never found a big enough audience to earn them more than a glowing footnote in punk rock's history book...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Various Artists / The Rough Guide to Marrabenta Mozambique / World Music Network There are certain types of music that seem to speak directly to our butts on the genetic level. "Move butts!" they say, and our butts, no matter their shape, color, size or cultural orientation, can't help but respond with at least a twitch or two in the funky direction. Marrabenta, a popular music style from Mozambique, seems to be one of those musics that it's impossible not to move to. This survey of fifteen tracks from various generations of marrabenta musicians is another in the excellent Rough Guide world music series...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Crosscurrent / Rituals / Laugh and Jangle The band's songs, often written in challenging time signatures, betray a variety of global influences -- particularly in the percussion, provided by Bertram Lehmann and Norm Bergeron, which draws subtly from Afro-cuban and Brazilian rhythms. This gives the music a complex background that, if it wasn't so laid back, would roil. Carl Clements (saxophone/flute) and Eric Johnson (guitar) dominate much of the melodic content, and as such tend to have the most significant solos...more»
		The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up / It's Winter Here / Absolutely Kosher Falling into line behind "quiet-loud-quiet" torchbearers Ida, the Jim Yoshii Pile-Up marks expression on the sonic bell-curve of artistry -- I think there's a metaphor in there, but you have to ask yourself if it really matters. After wrapping their only previous album in emotive ribbon, the band offers It's Winter Here, a transcendently lush record that's as stellar in its encapsulating progressions as it is in its aberrant staccato ruptures. Math-like interludes open most tracks...more»
		Simon Joyner / Hotel Lives / Truckstop Once again Joyner has collected an amazing array of supporting players: Will Hendicks, Glenn Kotchie, Michael Krassner and the requisite Fred Lonberg-Holm play minimally, but with a stunning amount of emotion and creativity. Their supportive arrangements and thoughtful, sometimes avant-garde touches perfectly occupy the lives of these songs, helping them to achieve an even greater level of maturity and importance...more»
		Lunar / There is No 1 / Delboy/Carnival Tunes Croatian post-rock band Lunar proves that gently layered, repetitive instrumentals know no boundaries. There is No 1 is an enjoyable record full of subdued, delicate, restrained music. Most of the tracks lack vocals, allowing you to focus better on the stark beauty of the music. In tenor, the album reminds me a bit of Sonic Youth's soundtrack to the film Made in USA. There's something very cinematic about this stuff -- something vast and distant, something visual and evocative...more»
		Monkey to the Monster / 1/3 Less Fun / Self-Released "December 1983/Atari was brand new to me," Aaron Santigian sings at the start of "Atari", a seemingly autobiographical number filled with childhood memories. The lyric embodies one of the band's strengths, a voice which speaks directly to members of a certain demographic; anyone (well, okay, mostly anyone white and sub- or exurban) born in the early '70s will recognize a certain aesthetic at work here, in MTTM's words as well as their sound...more»
		Andrea Perry / Saturday Morning Sweet Shoppe / Trust Issue Armed with a voice that's almost too good to be true, Andrea Perry gives off a vibe so pleasant and cheerful that she could convince even the most down-on-his-luck chap that the sun is beaming in the middle of a torrential rainstorm. There's a strong Kate Bush quality to Saturday Morning Sweet Shoppe; the album is full of lyrical oddities and quirky melodies which, coupled with Perry's Voice of the Beehive-style approach to girly pop, provides a perfect antidote for a day muddled with bad weather...more»
		Radiohead / Amnesiac / Capitol Yorke’s alien cry has always been the focal point of the Radiohead attack. While Kid A buried his croon beneath layers of gloomy synths and stuttering electronics, Amnesiac returns him to center stage. On the first track, "Packt Like Sardines in a Crushed Tin Box", Yorke insists that he's "a reasonable man/get off my case", as if he’s somehow issuing a reply to the thousands of music journalists who branded him as "difficult" and "introverted" without ever meeting him face to face...more»
		Brian Michael Roff / Errors Intact / Self-Released Roff has talent, and what he has to say is worth listening to. On each song, Roff displays considerable ability, combining stellar musicianship with intelligent, thoughtful lyrics. "This Thick World," in particular, is excellent, its twangy electric guitar and deep baritone vocals recalling Hayden at his strongest moments. Further proof of the album's quality can be found when you examine its biggest flaw -- its length...more»
		Samhain / Initium/Unholy Passion/November-Coming-Fire/Final Descent / E-Magine Following the success of the Samhain box set, E-Magine has re-released each of Samhain's four classic CDs individually, with each disc remastered and including additional artwork. Up for review here are all four Samhain releases: Initium, the difficult-to-find EP Unholy Passion, the classic crossover LP November-Coming-Fire and the mixed bag of Final Descent. Each of these LPs played an important part in the history of both Danzig and the current resurgence of horror-punk-metal as it stands today...more»
		Various Artists / The Bip-Hop Generation, Vol. 2 / Bip-Hop The most noticeable difference between the Bip-Hop style and the Parisian style is that you sure as hell can't dance to Bip-Hop Generation Vol. 2. Dancefloor mavens will probably want to give this disc a pass, unless they also have an interest in experimental techno. Laurent Garnier is philosophically similar to Bip-Hop, although he's much more melodic and loud than most bip-Hop artists. Ditto for Phoenecia or Autechre. Nearly all of the Bip-Hop artists represented here are European...more»
		M. Ward / End of Amnesia / Future Farmer Despite its rootsy, acoustic feel, End of Amnesia is quite innovative. Mixing acoustic sounds with light drums, pianos and even what seem to be recordings from a 1940s radio, Ward puts a contemporary sheen on this old-fashioned style. Despite its stongly folkish and traditional ways, it even feels like an indie album -- sort of like the Summer Hymns, but more low key and modest...and absolutely nothing like Radiohead...more»