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Suz – “Shape of Fear and Bravery”No.Mad Records-out now While we’re kicking off the end of the year with this Italian electronica/ Trip Hop band, let’s cut to the chase so you can resume your festivities: try out “The Gathering” and “Fear” for their flavor, but leave the rest behind. The main weakness of this album lies not with the backing sound effects and rhythm section (which is often strong), but rather in the somewhat monotone range of singer Susanna’s vocals here: as the central focus of this album, the vocals need some more tension and modulation. Many of the tracks don’t diverge enough vocally,Read More →

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Tegan and Sara – “Sainthood”Sire/Wea-out now4 / 5 Almost the perfect bookend to Phoenix’s “Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix,” Tegan and Sara churn up a beat-oriented popfest in their sixth full-length. While this album isn’t quite up to par with Phoenix’s there is still plenty here to recommend it: driving music, great melodies and choruses, and simple, sugary fun. Out of the thirteen presented here, “Arrow,” “The Cure,” and “Alligator” are the sure bets, with the best choruses out of the bunch, but that’s not to say there is a weak track in the mix. Rather, the biggest complaint is that, like Phoenix, these songs are fairlyRead More →

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Karen O and the Kids – “Where the Wild Things Are” (Soundtrack)Interscope Records-out now4 / 5 With a fuller version of her excitable Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Karen O would seem like the exact opposite of the person you’d want to make a soundtrack for a famous children’s book adaptation. But here she plays dead on, with playful, organic music that both adults and children will enjoy. Her second album released this year, she loses no steam in conducting a fuller orchestra, bringing an incredible innocence by utilizing a children’s chorus, fingersnaps and claps, and acoustic instruments. Performances on the simple and somber “Worried Shoe” andRead More →

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John Vanderslice – Romanian NamesDead Oceans-out now While there is much to enjoy, including the opener, “Tremble and Tear,” John Vanderslice’s seventh studio album just doesn’t quite cut it. Throughout the album, there is simply a feeling of sparseness, a sort of desertification of sound, and while that plays rustic and well for some, it leaves “Romanian Names” feeling unfortunately plain instead. “Carina Constellation” suffers especially from this, repeating the chorus a few too many times, and “D.I.A.L.O.” also falls victim, with only vocals, synth and percussion. In addition, the somewhat unpleasant chorus to “Fetal Horses” doesn’t help, either, but the main culprit is aRead More →