Album Reviews – Page 3 – Spinning Platters

Album Review: Peter Gabriel – Scratch My Back

Peter Gabriel’s new covers album Scratch My Back is the beginning of a “song exchange” project. This means that every artist covered on this album is being asked to cover one of Peter Gabriel’s songs in exchange. This collection will then be released under the title …And I’ll Scratch Yours. That’s the intention. Whether or not the second part ends up happening seems to be up in the air so far, but Stephin Merrit has already recorded “Not One of Us” as a b-side to Peter Gabriel’s Magnetic Fields cover,”Book of Love,” so the project has begun. Continue reading “Album Review: Peter Gabriel — Scratch My Back”

Album Review: Basia Bulat – Heart of My Own

Listening to the music of Basia Bulat is an unabashedly heart-hugging delight. The 26-year-old Canadian singer/songwriter first established herself as one of the brightest young talents in the folk-rock scene with her insanely lovable debut LP, Oh, My Darling (2007), and makes overwhelmingly good on that early potential with her sophomore release, Heart of My Own.

Continue reading “Album Review: Basia Bulat — Heart of My Own”

Album Review: Yeasayer – Odd Blood

The immediate reaction to the opener on Yeasayer’s upcoming release Odd Blood, “The Children,” is that it sounds like the band decided to play a joke on downloaders by starting with a song designed to make the listener feel as uncomfortable as possible. It’s a weird cacophony of bells and creepy vocal processing, all played at a lumbering pace, seemingly built to frighten. What the heck happened to Yeasayer? Continue reading “Album Review: Yeasayer — Odd Blood”

Album Review: The Bloodsugars – I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On

Bloodsugars

As soon as you push play on The Bloodsugars new album, I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On, you know you’re listening to something really good. The bass line comes direct from The Turtles’ “Happy Together” and the vocals use the old fashioned reverb, like the kind you’d hear in The Zombies’ “The Way I Feel Inside.” Those are some pretty impressive touchstones to start an album off, and this record doesn’t disappoint. Let me talk about some of the joy you’ll find within. Continue reading “Album Review: The Bloodsugars — I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On”

Album Review: Brilliant Colors – Introducing

Brilliant Colors - Introducing (2009)

Ten tracks. Less than 23 minutes. Three women. Oh, it’s that kind of album. Actually, not so much. This band got tired of waiting for Heavenly/Marine Research/Talulah Gosh to get back together (fundamentally impossible, I know — the new Tender Trap will be out soon, so hang in there) and decided to make their own music. Then, they’d get about two minutes into a song and realize, “Wow, this is harder than we thought. On to the next track!” Continue reading “Album Review: Brilliant Colors – Introducing”

Album Review: Wallpaper – DooDoo Face

Wallpaper’s debut album “DooDoo Face” thinks it’s from the 70’s but really it’s not. They didn’t have Auto-Tune way back then, I mean c’mon they didn’t even have computers back then. DooDoo face thinks that it’s from the 70’s with it’s horns and funky beat. Shaft would be proud at this funky dinosaur of a record. Wallpaper is basically Eric “Ricky Reed” Frederick. I think it’s still classified as a side project, and as a huge Facing New York fan I am going to try really hard not to talk about how I think Wallpaper/ Taking Back Sunday/ UC Berkeley killed Facing New York. Continue reading “Album Review: Wallpaper — DooDoo Face”

Album Review: The Twilight Saga: New Moon Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

I’m what you might call an anomaly. I’m female; relatively young, and I enjoy the sensual seduction of the undead. And yet, the hold that Twilight gained over a generation of young (and young at heart) girls doesn’t apply to me. I came of age as a disciple of the great Anne Rice, and for me, there is no other leading man than Lestat. That being said, there’s no reason why I can’t enjoy the music inspired by the movie based on the novels by Stephenie Meyer. Continue reading “Album Review: The Twilight Saga: New Moon Original Motion Picture Soundtrack”

Album (EP) Review: Foxes! – Who Killed Rob?

Foxes

Foxes! is a 4-piece indie-pop band from Brighton, England. Just like in a fox hunt, you have to be extremely fast if you ever want to catch them, especially if you live in a country that doesn’t breed hounds for the traditional hunt.

This clever band recently completed a small but successful California tour without visas, and thus without merch and, most importantly, instruments. They dodged the instrument issue by sharing gear with tour headliner, Oakland’s The Hot Toddies. Matching their DIY pop sound, Foxes! burned and decorated CDRs to hold over their curious new American fans until the real CDs cross the pond legally.

For a fiver, I nabbed a burned copy of the band’s 5-song debut EP, Who Killed Rob? Continue reading “Album (EP) Review: Foxes! — Who Killed Rob?”

Album Review: Emmy the Great – First Love

Emmy

I’m kind of a sucker for female singers with a British accent. Ok wait, I’m kind of a sucker for British accents in general, but let’s ignore that for now. Lucky for me there seems to have been some point in the last few years when the music industry decided that the new “it” thing was female British singers. I won’t name them, but you know who I’m talking about: they are always grouped together even though their musical styles are different just because they are of the same gender and geographical area. First Love, the debut album by Emmy the Great (aka Emma-Lee Moss), might fit the quirky-folk contingent. Continue reading “Album Review: Emmy the Great — First Love”

Album Review: a-ha – Foot of The Mountain

AHA_foot_of_the_mountain

Why am I reviewing a-ha you may ask yourself. Perhaps it’s because I am the most mainstream pop fan around here but in truth it’s because they released a fantastic album, Analogue in 2005, which, even with my very short attention span for music, remains on my playlist on a regular basis. This is not really the a-ha of 80’s “Take On Me” fame, though the members are the same as when the band formed in 1982: lead vocalist Morten Harket, guitarist Paul Waaktaar-Savoy and keyboardist Magne Furuholmen, the music they are making has grown up significantly. I am told their lyrics are Christian based but, to be honest, I don’t pay that close attention and just hear great songs. Analogue featured some amazing balladic tunes and I was happy to hear of the Europe-only release of their new album Foot of the Mountain. Continue reading “Album Review: a-ha — Foot of The Mountain”