Music
Review: Lisbon, The Walkmen
On their latest LP, indie rock veterans get lost in the details. As coy and ironic as the modern indie landscape may be, The Walkmen have always aimed for the gut of both their fan base and their steady, shifting musical output.
Summer In Music
We know that by now, summer seems like a sad, distant memory. As you struggle to get into the school grind, take a look back at some of summer’s happenings in music both in Philly and beyond.
The 2010 Summer Playlist
1. Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse — "Revenge" 2. Lady Gaga — "Teeth" 3. Sleigh Bells — "Rill Rill" 4. Big Boi — "Shutterbugg" 5. Wavves — "Post-Acid" 6. Kanye West — "Power" 7. LCD Soundsystem — "Drunk Girls" 8. Foals — "Miami" 9. Neon Indian — "Deadbeat Summer" 10. M.I.A.
Q+A - Netherfriends
Netherfriends is Shawn Rosenblatt, a 23-year-old Chicagoan-via-Suburban Philadelphia who produces buoyant psychedelic pop that ranges from frustrated to ecstatic in tone.
Q+A - Here We Go Magic
Born out of a bedroom psych-folk project by singer-guitarist Luke Temple, Here We Go Magic has bloomed into a buzzworthy indie rock act with two albums under its belt.
The Edge of Darkness
Like a typical suburban family’s home, Dark Night of the Soul is a collaboration on multiple levels.
You Can Ring My Bell
For the most part, tracing the genealogy of most current cutting-edge bands is pretty straightforward.
Stop Forkin' Around
CHICAGO — Over the past several years, the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago’s Union Park has valiantly worked to separate itself from the usual crop of summer festivals, attracting attendees with an ear for interesting bands and a yearning for more comfortable, personal concert experiences.
Oh My Goddess
The sound that dominates today’s dance floor is a heady mixture of R&B and techno, whose building beats and naughty lyrics are best characterized by the likes of Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Ke$ha, the new divas of nightlife.
In the Flesh
In yet another summer of Gaga’s reign, it’s nearly impossible for any other female artist to avoid the dreaded comparison.
Fool's Gold
Let me preface this review by saying 3Oh!3 is not trying to be the next Coldplay. Their music isn’t for the reviewers or the critics.
Breakfast of Champ-ions
The best adults are the ones that retain some sense of youth on the inside. When they released their frenetic debut, A Lesson in Crime, Tokyo Police Club were kids.
What's the Prognosis?
Recovery, the title of Eminem’s seventh studio album is fitting in more ways than one. While alluding to rehabilitation from a prescription drug addiction, it also references a recovery of his lyrical prowess.
Attack of the Clones
Considering that Beyonce and the meteoric Lady Gaga currently dominate the pop music star-scape, the news that now-antiquated Christina Aguilera has released a new album, her first since 2006’s Back to Basics, may seem no cause for commotion.
Buffalo Style
The Shins on acid? The Shins if the Shins cared less about showcasing lead singer James Mercer? The Shins with MGMT’s Andrew VanWyngarden at the helm?
Infinite Similarity
Like their 2006 debut Everything All The Time, Band of Horses’ third release, Infinite Arms, opens with what is possibly its best song.
Blues Brothers
On a fundamental level, the two-man band is one of the most constraining paradigms in rock n’ roll.
Wise Fools or Wise Foals?
The much-hyped sophomore album has proven an enigma for most bands. More often than not, indie buzz bands release follow-up albums that are intentionally completely different from their first, if only to show that they don’t want to be the same as they were (even if they really are the same as they were). Lately, these sophomore albums have tended to disappoint early fans while at the same time pleasantly surprising many reviewers.
Bearing It All
Four-piece Seattle-based indie-prog band Minus the Bear recently released their fourth album, OMNI, three years after the critical and commerical success of their last LP.
