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The Seedy Seeds – “Verb Noun”-out now3/ 5 Cincinnati’s electro-pop trio The Seedy Seeds know how to make good music. Check out the dense “Ethel” or “Nomenclature,” a soothing, harmony-laden chill-back-and-sway-to-it song. Then why aren’t we recommending this particular album? Excellent question: as a whole, “Verb Noun” falls a bit short of the expectations built up in the first three tracks. “Hey Exponent,” an instrumental track, is bland as a biscuit, and the title track, despite it’s NPR accolades, isn’t all that special. Why not special, then? Another excellent question; gut instinct. Perhaps it’s the lack of vocal variation and a need for just aRead More →

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Middle Brother – “Middle Brother”Partisan Records-out tomorrow4 / 5 We make it little secret here that John Joseph McCauley III is, indeed, absolutely fawned upon. With Middle Brother, the Deer Tick frontman joins with Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes and Matt Vasquez of Delta Spirit to produce some inspired country (not “inspired” inspired, no). Starting with the takeout single, “Me Me Me,” which rockabillies all the way to Tennessee, you have to notice that there is some serious jam in these guys; so much so that one must wonder how McCauley can maintain so many projects over these past couple years. Nonetheless, “Middle Brother” isn’t aRead More →

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Smith Westerns – “Dye it Blonde”Fat Possom Records-out now3.5 / 5 Chicago, IL’s Smith Westerns give a bit of glam to their cluster-f*** pop. We mean that gently: these instruments don’t sing or soar, but meld together like that Nutella stuff you used to be addicted to. Minus the sick feeling afterwards; that told, “Dye it Blonde” works on the simple principle that it’s simply enjoyable to listen to. It’s something of a mystery to us how it works, but listen to “All Die Young,” and you get the Westerns at their apex on this album. The depth of their layering may, at times, leaveRead More →

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Bright Eyes – “The People’s Key”Saddle Creek-out now4.5 / 5 According to NPR, “The People’s Key” is Conor Oberst’s best album; no minor statement, considering Bright Eyes has seen 2007’s “Cassadaga” and 2005’s “I’m Wide Awake It’s Morning,” let alone Oberst’s various side projects (“Monsters of Folk,” “The Mystic Valley Band”). Take him or leave him, Oberst is doubtless one of the most skilled lyricists of his generation, and on “The People’s Key,” he does not disappoint. He is still capable of drawing up strong, concise images, such as in “A Machine Spiritual (In the People’s Key)”: “And little Hitler sat in his giant’s chair/Read More →