_Four or More 2011

Freddie Hubbard – “Pinnacle: from Keystone Korner”Resonance Records-out now4.5 / 5 Wow. Let’s just say that first. One of the most blazing jazz trumpeters in the history of the music comes back from the vaults with this posthumous live release from San Fran. Next, let’s get this out of the way: the sound quality is maybe 3.5/5. It’s recorded live, some 30 years old. Get over it. Now, onto the juice of the matter: Pinnacle is pure gold. We don’t feature jazz often enough, and Hubbard blasts through with “The Intrepid Fox,” tearing a veritable hole in our eardrums – in a good, earth-shattering wayRead More →

My Brightest Diamond – “All Things Will Unwind”Asthmatic Kitty-out tomorrow4 / 5 We love this cover. Absolutely adore it. It’s as vibrant, fun, and unusual as the work within; and considering Michiganian Shara Worden’s penchant for unusuality (see Decemberists’ rock opera “Hazards”), that’s no minor compliment. What grabs us about All Things Will Unwind, other than the classical orchestration, other than the rock-ish song structure worked with a orchestral ear, is the depth of Ms. Worden’s musical vision here. These songs, carried with her, at times, operatic voice (check out “Be Brave”), could easily be the mere eccentricities of an untrained, but curious ear. Yet,Read More →

Brown Bird – “Salt for Salt”Supply and Demand-out Oct. 184.5 / 5 It’s not Rhode Island love that lights this reviewer’s heart (the band is, after all, originally from Washington). And it’s not that David Lamb’s got to do vocals/ guitar/ bass drum simultaneously at shows. It’s, quite frankly, the moody “Bilgewater” and the fire of “Cast No Shadow” that slay us. But, if a couple songs on the previous EP were all that caught our attention, we’d not’ve given this album such striking marks. As excellent as those two songs are, it’s the entire mood of this album, an all-acoustic affair inspired by long-goneRead More →

Portugal. The Man – “In the Mountain, In the Cloud”Atlantic-out now4 / 5 We’re big fans of Portland, OR’s P.TM. Remember the sweet hooks and 60’s choruses of 2009’s The Satanic Satanist? Thankfully, they’re back for In the Mountain, In the Cloud. Their sixth album in as many years (yes, it’s a crazy number of releases) returns the rock/pop band to what we feel is their true element: polished, straightforward psychedelia replete with harmonies, highs and lows, and strange-ass lyrics. While we feel lyrically this album is a shade off of par with Satanist, fans of Portugal will find them musically in high form, especiallyRead More →