By:
On:
In: _CD Reviews 2017, _Four or More 2017, Album Reviews
With: 0 Comments

Goodbye June – Magic Valley  Interscope Records – out now 4 / 5 Time for a bit of rock and roll. That must be the impetus behind this Nashville trio’s debut LP. Goodbye June, we must say, sounds like they’re already on their third or fourth album – Magic Valley is a polished piece of record right here. They’ve got cookers (“Good Side,” “Bamboozler”), quiet ones (“Darling”), and just generally a good chex-mix of rock singles. Musically, think of aggravated vocals taking a hint from Angus-Young, simplified, clear guitar hooks (perhaps also a la AC/DC), and singable choruses. All in all, a good time with GoodbyeRead More →

By:
On:
In: _CD Reviews 2017, Album Reviews
With: 0 Comments

Matthew Logan Vasquez – Does What He Wants  Dine Alone Music – out April 21 3 / 5 Delta Spirit frontman Matthew Logan Vasquez comes upon his second solo LP, the perhaps aptly named Does What He Wants. Up front, we’ll tell you: it’s not bad, and it’s more of the same a la 2016’s Solicitor Returns. That is to say, this is a Vasquez comfortable in his own skin, not the wild yells of a Vasquez of early Delta Spirit fame. But we miss those wild yells, those impassioned pleas stretching, reaching for an imagined musical perfection. But such is life: we grow old, weRead More →

By:
On:
In: _CD Reviews 2017, Album Reviews
With: 0 Comments

Ecstatic Vision – Raw Rock Fury  Relapse Records – out April 7 1.5 / 5 Philadelphia’s hard rock foursome Ecstatic Vision slash their way through their second LP. Their approach is part gut punch, part slam-your-head-against-the-wall; that is to say, unapologetic. And while we appreciate their forwardness, their energy and approach, we still have to say: sorry, no. Their aimless jams certainly do not appeal to us, and in total feel like an album-long experiment in playing the same few brazen notes obnoxiously loud. There’s nothing wrong with loud, no. But there is when 11 is the only volume you understand: there is a deepRead More →

By:
On:
In: _CD Reviews 2017, _Four or More 2017, Album Reviews, Recommended
With: 1 Comment

Laura Marling – Semper Femina  More Alarming Records -out today 4 / 5 Laura Marling’s sixth album is not something we typically listen to. We like rock-outs, soul sessions, complicated layered what-have-yous. Stuff with a lotta moving parts. Contrary to our usual tastes, the Los Angeles native’s Semper Femina feels, to take the opener, “Soothing.” That is, sonically, it feels soothing; but make no mistake, behind the comfortable vocals, the sparse guitar, behind the illusion of a soothing album lies a quiet intensity. It’s an introverted LP, an album that begs multiple listens to catch the subtle effects that work here. In short, it is notRead More →