Tag: Album Reviews

Album Review: Liars – Sisterworld

My first experience with the New York combo Liars is an interesting one. I went on a date with a girl to go see the band Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. The opening acts were two New York bands, one band that was already getting a fair amount of press called The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and the other was Liars. They blew my mind! They played brilliant layered noise that was chaotic and danceable. I was overjoyed to learn about this new band. My date thought that they were absolutely wretched. By the end of the night, I had a new favorite band, and she started making out with some guy that resembled Kim Thayil of Soundgarden. I think I won.

The years have been very kind to Liars, gradually improving upon their sound, while also building a fan base. I was always going to be excited about a new release by these guys, but nothing prepared me for Sisterworld.

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Album Review: Pavement – Quarantine the Past: The Best of Pavement

I was on a date once, and the date seemed to be going pretty well. We went back to her place and I started flipping through her records. There were a lot of Pavement albums, and I commented on how much she likes Pavement.

“Oh, I used to play bass in a Pavement cover band. They’re my favorite band! You like Pavement?” I never saw this girl again. I don’t like Pavement. Continue reading “Album Review: Pavement — Quarantine the Past: The Best of Pavement”

Album Review: Charlotte Gainsbourg – IRM

Charlotte Gainsbourg is just so effortlessly cool. The daughter of French music legend Serge Gainsbourg and his beautiful British muse, Jane Birkin, Gainsbourg has been singing and acting professionally for over 25 years. Her music has been critically well-received, and she’s worked with such celebrated directors as Franco Zeffirelli, Michel Gondry, Todd Haynes, and perhaps most notoriously, Lars Von Trier for Antichrist, for which she won the Best Actress prize at the Cannes Film Festival. But in an incredibly successful and diverse artistic career, IRM may stand as her greatest triumph.

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Album Review: You Say Party! We Say Die! — XXXX

I’ve never understood why “garden variety” is viewed by many as a pejorative. You don’t have to be a vegetarian to appreciate broccoli. Just ask Steve Masters.

You Say Party! We Say Die! doesn’t offer much in the originality department outside of the double factorial, but that’s fine. We need more bands like this. Let’s start at the end with “Heart of Gold.” It does belong at the end, because it has a “Road Movie to Berlin” feel to it, but musically it reminds me of The Cure’s “Untitled,” and the singing is straight out of a Marine Research-style track. The rest of the album copies other styles, but no other band manages to homogenize this many sounds together. Continue reading “Album Review: You Say Party! We Say Die! — XXXX”

Album Review: Holly Miranda – The Magician’s Private Library

Listening to Jealous Girlfriends’ front woman Holly Miranda’s first solo album, I couldn’t help but think of an old Bjork interview referring to Debut and Post as her greatest hits albums.  They stood as a sparkling mesh of every style of music that piqued her interest.  And that is the energy trying to burst out here, traveling with Holly from one sound scape to the next. Continue reading “Album Review: Holly Miranda — The Magician’s Private Library”

Album Review: Meaghan Smith – The Cricket’s Orchestra

Spinning Platters gets asked to review a lot of albums.  And the ones I’ve been hearing lately?  Awful. (Yes, I’m looking at you Nick Jonas.  Why couldn’t your solo album sound like this!?!).  So when I got an email last week from our managing editor Dakin asking me to review Meaghan Smith’s first album The Cricket’s Orchestra I was unsure to say the least.  But Dakin told me “She’s a Canadian singer/songwriter who is influenced by music from the 20’s, 30’s and 40’s.  If you don’t like it, no one will and it would deserve a bad review.”  And I’m sure he’s right. Continue reading “Album Review: Meaghan Smith — The Cricket’s Orchestra”

Album Review: Gil Scott-Heron – I’m New Here

Gil Scott-Heron’s new album I’m New Here is a look back at his life and the lives of the people in his life.  On I’m New Here, Scott-Heron starts off with a tribute to the person he considers his mother, grandmother Lily Scott. The majority of the album deals with death, responsibility, and socio-economic issues. Continue reading “Album Review: Gil Scott-Heron — I’m New Here”

Album Review: HIM – Screamworks: Love in Theory & Practice

You would think that featuring love as your sole inspiration for so many years may provide you with more luck on the subject, but in the case of HIM, a steady relationship will always find a way to elude them. Curses! Will their tortured souls ever catch a break? For the sake of their wallets, I certainly hope not.

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Album Review: Titus Andronicus – The Monitor

Tasked to review the new album, The Monitor, from Titus Andronicus, I find it difficult to expand upon my reaction to this album. “I’m pretty sure it’s better than their first album, but I sure do like it a lot less” is what I said. I think it works like this: if you’ve been loving The Airing of Grievances for over a year, and shouted “your life is over” along with the band when seeing them live four times in a week, you may find this album disappointing. Otherwise, I think you’re going to like it. Continue reading “Album Review: Titus Andronicus — The Monitor”

Album Review: Earl Greyhound – Suspicious Package

Earl Greyhound’s previous album, Soft Targets, blasted out of the box with “S.O.S.,” a dynamic mission statement that attempted to explain, in five minutes, what Earl Greyhound was all about. While the album didn’t live up to the high standards set by this blistering track, descending into middling bluesy rock numbers by the end, the promise of that one song alone has kept me interested in the band, and earned them all sorts of lauds as the “next big thing.” Now, the band’s new album, Suspicious Package, has arrived, and it also starts with I assumed to be a clear mission statement. What’s the mission this time? Continue reading “Album Review: Earl Greyhound — Suspicious Package”