The Antlers – “Hospice”Frenchkiss-out now4.5 / 5 The Antlers have taken a giant gamble on this ambitious concept album, and in many ways, it has paid off. Their fourth album is replete with synthesized sounds, hushed Grizzly Bear vocals, electronic buzz, and perplexingly, an achingly slow pace. But this all serves to the Antlers’ advantage, as they pull off several strong tracks: “Sylvia,” which burns slow and soft until the brash chorus; the strange opening lullaby of “Bear;” and the plaintive pulse to “Two.” In general, you’re likely to run into a good track on “Hospice,” but it still has its few detractors: extremely softRead More →

The Felice Brothers – “Yonder is the Clock”Team Love Records-out now Another in our yearly recap is the Felice Brothers, from whom Simone Felice broke off. While their albums don’t necessarily merit comparison, there is little doubt that Simone’s “Duke and the King” duo took the greater part of the talent in the transaction. To be sure, “Yonder” will please the Felice Brothers fanbase, but does little to reach beyond. While tracks such as “Run Chicken Run” and “All When We Were Young” display the range of their talent, with the former’s Louisiana swing propelling it, and the latter’s slow rag-time piano, the album onRead More →

Hey Mama – “Hey Mama”-out Dec 114 / 5 Formerly Avi and Celia, “Hey Mama” officially marks Mr. Salloway’s and Ms. Woodsmith’s first release under their new name and band. While the songs of their previous release “Let it Rise” sometimes eclipse some of the songs here, “Hey Mama” still gives a heady rock and roll, with fantastic bluesy vocals from Woodsmith. For those who are unfamiliar with the young prodigy, she smacks of old jazz singers, blue smoke-filled bars, and importantly, displays impressive range and technique. The backing band, whether it be guitarist Salloway with rhythm section Ben Kogan and Jared Seabrook, or ifRead More →

For those of you who don’t know, I’m on Twitter! www.twitter.com/mattkeefer! Woot! That way you’ll get all the random updates on CD reviews and whatnot when I post them. Not a bad way to keep up with me.Been looking through a ton of CDs to put up. Haven’t decided which ones yet, which is probably a bad sign, considering I still have to get one ready for tomorrow. Hmmm… I think I’ll put them to an online Survivor vote…-MgmtRead More →