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Climber – “The Mystic”Sparklet Records-out Oct. 19 (DL available tomorrow)3.5 / 5 The Portland, OR outfit’s third release comes in the form of “The Mystic,” a psychedelic rock-suite not unlike something the Flaming Lips might put out. Opening is “The Simians Speak,” a sonically delightful tale that blends philosophy with – indeed – sign-language talking monkeys. Before you run out screaming, let us say this: the paired down psychedelia joined with a deep, meaningful statement (plus monkeys!) just plain works. Even without the apes are sonic and lyrical statements that you might expect from Pink Floyd (“Flying Cars”) and Brian Eno (“I Have Seen Everything”),Read More →

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Sufjan Stevens – “The Age of Adz”Asthmatic Kitty-out Oct. 124 / 5 Perhaps a more appropriate title for Detroit-native Sufjan Steven’s latest album might be “Sufjan Battles the Pink Robots.” That is to say, there are certainly Flaming Lips-ish space-a-delic themes both lyrically and sonically throughout on his seventh full-length album (excluding Avalanche), and those attuned to Beck’s electronica will almost certainly enjoy themselves here. The downshot is that fans of his breakthrough album Illinois may find themselves surprised, and not always in a pleasant way, as to this new direction; stepping back, Stevens still provides an excellent sense of the pop dynamic, as wellRead More →

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Kings Go Forth – “The Outsiders Are Back”Luaka Bop-out now!4 / 5 Take Earth, Wind and Fire, add dense layers of percussion and a female lead vocal, and you might come close to Milwaukee’s retro-funk-soul outfit Kings Go Forth. With uplifting melodies and soulful harmonies, Kings brings back everything you loved about the 70s scene (shiny suits aside) on their debut release. And if you forgot what some of those things were, “You’re the One” will certainly remind you again: singable choruses, bright, danceable rhythms, lyrics that transport you straight back to back-seat first-kiss nostalgia. Our favorite, “High on Your Love,” is so pure andRead More →

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Fake Problems – “Real Ghosts Caught on Tape”One Side Dummyout now!3 / 5 Pure adrenaline pop/rock is the order of the day when it comes to the Naples, FL indie outfit Fake Problems. Perhaps some of the best direct comparisons would be the bands Fun., the Gaslight Anthem (downtempo, without echo on the vocals) and perhaps Motion City Soundtrack (without the extreme sugar rush), and that does fine with us; it’s that opener, “ADT,” that pulls us in. Then why the long face? Well, (thanks for asking), it’s that Fake Problems doesn’t present particularly fresh material. Scrabbled together from a handful of catchy guitar licks,Read More →