The Dismemberment Plan / Emergency & I / DeSoto With Emergency & I, Washington D.C.'s Dismemberment Plan have successfully merged two seemingly incompatible genres. It's an album filled with contradiction, where noisy guitar blasts sit side by side with belching electonic bleeps and scratchy ambient drones... more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Sloan / Between the Bridges / Murderecords I was a twenty-something year old zombie Sloan fanatic. All day and all of the night, it was Sloan, Sloan, Sloan. My parents loathed me, my friends hated me, my girlfriend left me. But until Between the Bridges came out, I thought that I was finally back on the right track. I thought all those pills had cured me for sure... more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Blo.Torch / Blo.Torch / Earache/Wicked World Ah, the piercing sounds of speedy snare drum hits and ear-stinging guitars. As with most metal releases, Blo.Torch may seem like unnecessary, noisy ear fodder to some -- but to the experienced aficionado, this fearsome Dutch fivesome executes speedy thrash metal tainted with an occasional Maiden-styled rocker and a general propensity for dispensing steady bursts of death metal... more»
		Bruce Haack and Esther Nelson / Listen Compute Rock Home / Emperor Norton For every advance our society makes, we take a few steps backward in other areas. We don't notice it right away, but eventually the difference becomes glaringly obvious. Want an example? Compare Listen Compute Rock Home to any of the sanitized musical pap that's being fed to children these days... more»
		The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion / Xtra-Acme USA / Matador O.K., so you listened to Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's Acme till your ears bled. What do you do now? Fortunately, Xtra-Acme USA is available to succor your poor, sorry JSBX-junkie soul! It's a collection of out-takes and remixes from the band's afore-mentioned, genre-busting, super-funky, hard-rockin' 1998 album. I'm not going to pretend that it qualifies as a new record... more»
		Luke Holder / Playing for an Audience of Candles / LH I've read every line of print on CD Playing for an Audience of Candles, convinced that there should be a warning that reads: "May induce surly sixteen month old children to behave brilliantly for 54:46; do not be alarmed". Left with a child named Emily who is not easily dazzled, the thickly strummed rhythm guitar and spunky harmonica on the CD's opener, "Cracks," proved surprisingly moving... more»
		New Flesh for Old / Equilibrium / Big Dada The thing I like best about Equilibrium is that the beats and music behind the MCs are just as interesting as the MCs themselves. While a few tunes follow a simple looping beat + synths + MC formula, most of the tracks are pretty deep, ranging from tweaky sample/scratch fests like "Quantum Mechanix" to beatless meditations like "Answer of Action"...more»
		Papa M / Live from a Shark Cage / Drag City David Pajo clearly has a few good albums left in him before it's time to ship him off to the Lou Barlow Home for People Who Can't Think Up Very Good Band Names. Live from a Shark Cage is, predictably, very mellow and very minimal. In typical Pajo/M-named-band style, melodies are very gently and gradually coaxed from guitars; it's more like the guitars are being milked than played...more»
		Pee Wee King / Pee Wee King's Country Hoedown / Bloodshot Revival/Soundies Pee Wee King (alias Frankie King, alias Frank Kuczynski) started off as a pretty straightforward Polish-American bandleader, but a stint backing Gene Autry awakened him to the possibilities (and the magic) of country-western or "hillbilly" music. King's take on the music was pristine cowboy crooning -- innocent western swing-derived tunes with a healthy dose of twang and a refreshing Hollywood-musical friendliness...more»
		The Wedding Present / Singles 1995-1997 / spinART For fourteen years the world has been blessed with The Wedding Present. Albums upon albums and singles upon singles have been filled with their stylish and brilliant guitar pop tunes, overlaid by David Gedge's soothing, British-accented vocals. This CD compiles the first two singles and mini album on their UK label Cooking Vinyl...more»