Music Emissions Alternative Music Reviews

L'illon - Warrior Angel (2009)

The much-anticipated debut album by DC-based singer/songwriter L'illon has enjoyed steady internet airplay throughout much of Europe, Japan, Australia and Canada, and the final track 'Warrior Angel' has already been thrust to the top spot on the Film Music List. Anyone else expecting great things? Hype can be a bad thing for some debut albums.

L'illon's own brand of Latina pop features nods to artists as diverse as Shakira Gloria Estafan, Sixpence None The Richer and 4 Non Blondes. There are lots of nylon-strung guitars and lyrics about relationships, the good, the bad and the ugly. It's standard pop fare in that area - tracks like 'Smile Once More' and 'Navigate Me Home' don't offer much in the way of creative license, just catchy, gentle pop tunes.

Onto higher points - 'Sweet Surrender' is a nice track, fusing Latin and classic rock influences on the guitars. Another song worth a mention is 'Untouchable', which starts with a delicate, staccato piano riff and whispered words about dreamscape encounters and expands into a whirling, cloudy chorus.

Hmmm. It's a well-executed album to be sure, but L'illon seems not to want to take the nice moments of sound fusion any further. Sometimes during listening, a moment will pop up in a track and you'll think, "Oooh, that was nice." Then it'll be gone - and you'll just be waiting for the next one to come, for a split second. Than back to waiting. Etc.

(Blye Tower Productions 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-11-01 07:26:18 by Emmy

Ihsaan Khatim - Ihsaan Khatim (2009)

Ihsaam Khatim says of his debut EP, "I know there is a call for this type of hope and love in music", and a bold case for optimism it certainly is - he preaches cheerfulness in this politically/economically challenging time. It's a refreshing set of values, actually, tempered by a sense of realism. Top marks for concept.

This debut EP is a mix of jazzy soul, blues, gospel and R&B melodies and it's perfectly suited to Khatim's gorgeous voice. I particularly like the interplay of voices on 'Pump Our Brakes', and the more mature feel to the vocal delivery - it gives it more soulful feel. There are nice beats and organs and keyboards in the background, giving the track a modern twist. My next favourite has to be the second track, 'La, La, La (Our Love Is So)'. The lyrics are a little soppy, but again the vocal delivery is smoother and warmer than hot honey, and the keys tinkle in the background like twinkling lights.

While this three-track EP is meant as a teaser for the full-length 'Speak Life' coming in 2010, I think Khatim has to be a little careful not to make it same-y. Especially hard work as happiness comes only in one, pure form - and this grates after a while. But if there are more forays into old school R&B and more lush, seductive jazz licks I'll be buying a copy.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-11-01 07:02:06 by Emmy

Matthew Curran - Simplify (2009)

Matthew Curran’s debut album 'Simplify' captures the essence of rock sound very well - flavours of Hendrix and the Allman Brothers mix with the more modern influences of Collective Soul, the Black Crows, Nirvana, and Alice in Chains. There are some unexpected detours into psychedelia-like noises but these always wind up back in the same place - rock sound. Straight up, no chaser.

Lyrically it's OK, nothing to shout about it keeps to the rock theme - the diction and pitch are good but still manage to have the right tones for rock. Am I saying rock a lot? Sorry, but that's what listening to this is - it's distilled everything that is 'rock' and compressed it neatly into an album. The soundscape is... well, rock. There's guitars and bass and drums and vocals, given a very, VERY nice twist by some stunning guitar work. Curran has been playing for years and years and his talent is well-known, and it shines through here. The riffs are spot on, and the solos, even minor ones, are expertly executed.

Another thing Curran has dead right is the production. This debut is self-produced, a word that invokes fear in many of us, especially when accompanied by 'debut', but the production is clean and deliberate. All the touches of harmonica ('The Vibe') or breaks in the sound ('Hiding') are exactly where they were supposed to be. Curran is also a multi-instrumentalist, further evidence of his talent for his craft.

I think that's the problem here. He's obviously an excellent musician and producer, but there's little creativity in the songwriting - it's just verse-chorus-verse-chorus-refrain throughout, for instance. He could do so much more, but as he's only eighteen there's a long way to go on that front. Get out of college rock and into proper songs - you could go far, Matthew Curran.

(n/a 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-11-01 06:17:48 by Emmy

Audio-Ok - Good Men (2009)

As this album starts, there is an immediate assault of what sounds like Talking Heads. It's the same confusing twanging, weird lyrical delivery and deliberate approach. But it soon becomes clear that it's not blatant plagarism, just happenstance - Audio-OK take a lot of the same approach but less of the soundscape. The whole album is very deliberate but quite loosely-planned, imbued with a 'we have NO REGRETS whatever happens with this next note' sort of vibe.

And the weird noises come - underneath fairly simple hooks there are layers of what starts off like whale-song and morphs into muffled voices in 'Between The Lines'. The songs are all fairly short, mostly under three minutes, but this is actually a good thing - it suits the slightly disjointed mood of the album. The whole experience is unnerving. Torsten Volkmann does nothing to dispel this feeling with his blunt delivery, growling, Rammstein-esq low notes and odd Windsor-English accent.

Tracks like 'The Good Man' are incredibly edgy, and when Volkmann declares 'I'm just... A good man!" I'm inclined not to believe him, what with the guitar in the background sounding like Jaws. It's good stuff though, albeit a little exhausting - listening to this album leaves you with the feeling you've been running from a stalker. There are slightly less intense songs - 'Gush' is a two-and-a-half-minute indie-rock excursion back into standard guitar-and-bass territory but it still has the trademark old skool vocal style and a nice bit of interplay in the middle.

Exhausting is probably the best word for this: sound-wise, it's distorted, disjointed and moody. The whole atnosphere is a little bit mad, but not Tasmanian Devil mad, more like crazy man on park bench kind of mad - Not outwardly aggressive but you get the feeling he might jump on you at any second and start shouting about the voices.

(n/a 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-31 04:43:17 by Emmy

Anna Madorsky - Incantation (2009)

Anna Madorsky is the new (old?) name of LA-based singer/songwriter Rouse, and even though this is her sophomore release this 'debut' album is full of fresh new stuff. While Rouse's first offering to us was a dark, breakup-inspired album, with notes of electro and dirty house. 'Incantation' has a much lighter sound but just as many layers: Tori-Amos piano licks, atmospheric percussion and still a bit of the good synthy stuff we know from before. The sheer diversity of the sounds, all of them fully formed, gives the impression that Anna hasn't been resting up in her year-long break.

The songwriting is very well executed, approached mostly in the third person as Anna takes us through the daily life of... well, ordinary people having existential crises. Now on paper this might make you baulk, as nobody really wants to listen to some twit whining about how his wife doesn't appreciate him because she nags him about the hoovering, but it's not that kind of album. Despite the dodgy conceptual point of view, Madorsky draws us in with the story of 'Clinic' - somewhere the normal folk can go for a vent about things as diverse as gay rights and the recession. It's actually very interesting stuff, everyone has a story but it's not told with pity or sap but with dry humour and honesty.

Madorsky's voice serves as the glue holding it all together - her diction, pitch and delivery twist and turns around the music so readily it almost sounds like two different people singing. Highlights include 'Therapist's Office', a lovely bluesy, rocky song and 'Broken Artifacts' is dream-pink changing into something slinky. This lady comes highly recommended and doesn't disappoint.

(n/a 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-31 04:19:28 by Emmy

Various Artists - Where The Wild Things Are (2009)

A fun game that will keep all of the family entertained whilst listening to this quaint, quirky and a little out there soundtrack can be had by trying to figure out which of the screams, yelps and incoherent murmurs belong to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (YYYs) leading lady, Karen O and which belong to the children? Welcome to Where The Wild Things Are, the soundtrack.

Short and serene opener ‘Igloo', immediately draws attention to the fact that this high profile and frivolous break from her day job, could be exactly what Karen O needs? Recently, some critics have been getting a little weary of the provocative disco indie that has been the YYYs' signature for years. This song alone, illuminates O's ability to turn her voice and tone to tuneful and contented and shows that she is certainly not stuck in a foxy and raw straight jacket. Soothing lullaby styled humming soothes and relaxes you into this new (ad)venture), with the tenderness of the leading lady's touch skipping over the restfully weaving guitar stroke of Imaad Wasif.

This is immediately contrasted by the bounding, carefree anthem ‘All Is Love', with fellow YYYs member Nick Zinner, providing a more strident guitar push. O's inner child is set free into the playground of musical abandon and her voice is almost lost in the enthusiastic kiddie chorus. This frisky show of abandon makes it easy for you to forgive and even embrace a return to her raw and rugged ways, ‘Capsize'.

Key-led melodies and more vocal eloquence seeps out in ‘Worried Shoes', helping you to immediately suspend your disbelief. Something that's absolutely necessary for tunes crafted to accompany a film featuring over-sized, delusional puppets. As the album grows, frivolity and fun mix together like blue Smarties and an excitable school kid. Nearly every film and accompanying soundtrack needs a slow, stirring and thoughtful acoustic ode and, ‘Cliffs' provides this to a tee. Despite the fact that O is effectively entering new territory with a number of this sort, she pulls it off with tenderness. The vocal element is subtle, complementing the stirring harmony (mainly provided by the skilful touch of Wasif again).

Rodriga Y Gabriela territory is bounded into through the classical guitar led rhythm romping instrumental, ‘Animal' that's sure to bring out your primal urges. This rhythm touch gains momentum as O opts to jump on the ride and gives her vocals some coarse rhythm. Making ‘Heads Up', a bounding pop folk push towards the latter end of a fresh, foraging and young spirited fourteen track parade. O and co have achieved variety and have also managed to make an album that could also stand alone from the film that it's meant to accompany.

(Polydor 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-30 17:50:35 by Dave Adair

Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy (2009)

When it comes to making his guitar sing Built To Spill's Doug Martsch may be second only to J. Mascis in the indie world. He does nothing but solidify that reputation as the Boise band returns with their seventh proper album There Is No Enemy.

The album, the band's first since 2006's You In Reverse, holds few surprises for long time fans. Skyscraping riffs are built on a solid foundation of rock. Martsch provides no shortage of memorable, complex riffs that give tracks like "Planting Seeds" and epic feeling.

What's shocking is the ease with which Martsch seems to be able to deliver these guitar parts. Whether it's an anthem like "Good Ol' Boredom", a turbo-charged rocker like "Pat", or a stylish, reverb-heavy cut like "Aisle 13", Built To Spill appear to do it effortlessly.

That sense can be a double-edged sword. When a track such as the plodding "Things Fall Apart" or the lacklustre "Nowhere Lullaby" come around they sound extra dull in comparison.

Thankfully, those instances are few and far between on There Is No Enemy. The album should serve as a solid introduction to Built To Spill for new fans as well as putting a smile on the face of the converted.

(WEA/Reprise 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-28 08:59:17 by Peter Kearns

The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You (2009)

September 29th saw the release of I and Love and You, the new studio album from indie roots band the Avett Brothers. For this album, the North Carolina trio present us with another collection of songs firmly grounded in American roots music.

Vocal folk-inspired harmonies greet you with the title track opener. "January Wedding" provides a twangy range ditty and "Ill With Want" provides the introspective cowboy lament.

Disappointingly, I and Love and You is a more subdued and safer sounding album than most of the Avetts catalogue. While the band's sense of humour is still present, there's a pep that seems to have been drained from the music. Ramshackle rockers like "Tin Man" are few and far between, replaced with buffed and polished Jayhawks-esque tunes such as "And It Spreads" and "Incomplete and Insecure".

There are a few exceptions. The exceptions, like the pulsating piano rocker "Kick Drum Heart" and the fun loving "Slight Failure of Speech", are the real standouts on the album.

The Avett Brothers are at their best when they are banging out cheeky roots-inspired road trip rockers. Too bad those are nearly non-existent on I and Love and You.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-28 08:57:15 by Peter Kearns

The Flaming Lips - Embryonic (2009)

I guess I'm just going to have to face it, gone are the days when you could rely on the Flaming Lips to provide you with quirky, humorous pop songs. The new double album, Embryonic, may be the final nail in that coffin.

This latest expansion of the Oklahoma group's use of electronics and programming has sucked the life out of a band whose music had once been simultaneously catchy and elegant. In it's place we get unstructured clatter ("Worm Mountain", "Convinced of the Hex") with a healthy side dish of drone ("See the Leaves", "The Sparrow Looks Up At the Machine").

While there are a handful of intriguing experiments, like Karen O's animal noises on "I Can Be a Frog" and the slight World rhythm of "Scorpio Sword", these efforts generally disintegrate into seemingly interminable noodling. The alternative isn't much better though. "Powerless", for example, seems to be a half-thought out ambient track which sags into a spacey snoozer.

On the plus side, "Aquarius Sabotage" and "Gemini Syringes" both combine clatter with a glorious twinkle to decent effect. "Watching The Planets" and "Silver Trembling Hands" lean on more conventional song structures resulting in the most memorable rumblings of the discs.

Alas, after exploring Embryonic if fear it may be time to give up the Flaming Lips.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-28 08:55:05 by Peter Kearns

Spiral Stairs - The Real Feel (2009)

With all of the hoopla over the now confirmed 2010 Pavement reunion shows, the release of Spiral Stairs' debut solo album has been quite overshadowed. Stairs, aka Scott Kannberg, has put out material post-Pavement with Preston School of Industry, but The Real Feel is his first under his ahem, own name.

Of course the first comparisons one is tempted to make are to the solo work of former Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus. So I won't resist that temptation.

The Real Feel is a far more structured album than the meandering efforts we've been getting in Malkmus' recent output. A song like "True Love" is far tighter than any Malkmus single. With songs like the hook-filled ambler "Maltese Terrier", Stairs leans far more towards the pop sensibility than the self-indulgent freeform jams Malkmus offers up on an all too frequent basis.

Branching out in some different styles, Stairs offers up some country influence with the dirty bluesy "Subiaco Shuffle" and the weeper "A Mighty Mighty Fall". But he never strays too far from the rock, as things are jerked back into alignment with "Stolen Pills", a raucous rocker.

That's not to say that The Real Feel will make you forget Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain or Slanted and Enchanted. Far from it. Those albums were classics, almost completely without filler. On the new album we are given a couple of snoozers in "Blood Money" and the plodding "Wharf Hand Blues". Fleshing out the record are the title track instrumental and a spoken word outro "Ladies and Gentlemen" both of which are toss offs.

The Real Feel may not stack up well against classic Pavement material, but in terms of the band's post-breakup output it's pretty damn good.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-28 08:51:36 by Peter Kearns

Lou Barlow - Goodnight Unknown (2009)

At this stage we've really come to know exactly what to expect when we get a Lou Barlow record. Whether it's his solo material or recording with Sebadoh, Sentridoh, or Folk Implosion, we know the music on the disc will be lo-fi rock that has mucho slacker appeal.

So we know what Barlow's new album Goodnight Unknown is going to sound like right? Not so fast bucko. Barlow has decided to throw us a few curve balls on his new record.

Yes, the lo-fi slacker sound is still there on many of the tracks. Songs like "One Note Tone", "Praise" and the banger opener "Sharing" are pretty much like the Barlow we've grown up with, even if the production quality is a little higher than we're used to.

The changes are subtle, but there is a marked broadening in Barlow's sound spectrum for this album. The title track brings in a psychedelic keyboard swirl while "Don't Apologize" works piano into the lo-fi stomp. String arrangements adorn "I'm Thinking...".

Through the clatter of "One Machine, One Long Flight" Barlow finally embraces the role of lead singer with his biggest vocals to date. The back-to-back "Faith In Your Heartbeat" and "The One I Call" may be the closest Barlow has ever come to producing an honest-to-goodness ballad.

The songwriting itself may not be as gripping as some of Barlow's previous work, but the expansion of his sound is a welcome development. Goodnight Unknown should help to breathe new life into his music.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-28 08:45:23 by Peter Kearns

The Raveonettes - In And Out Of Control (2009)

Danish electro pop duo The Raveonettes are back with their new studio album In and Out of Control.

If you own any of the previous Raveonettes albums you will not be surprised by what you hear. From the opener "Bang" on through we are presented with the pair's typical concoction of '60s wall of sound pop and dark Jesus & Mary Chain-inspired fuzz rock.

It's a sound that seems to be growing more and more formulaic in the band's music. Sometimes, like on the glimmering "Gone Forever", it works.

All too often however, it's a tired sound that we've heard before. In those instances the songs aren't bad per se, they simply have no reason to exist. Why listen to a Girl Group elegy like "Oh I Buried You Today" or the artificially restrained "D.R.U.G.S." when you have dozens of past Raveonettes songs that fill the same sonic role.

There are a couple of tragic missteps as well. "Last Dance" and "Boys Who Rape (Should Be Destroyed)" are far too sugary. This is particularly the case with the latter, whose sickly sweet melodies are far too incongruous with the heavy subject matter.

The album does have some bright spots. "Breaking Into Cars" has a mild Brit Pop influences, evoking memories of Elastica, while the white noise burst groove of "Break Up Girls" builds an intense platform for the subtly infectious track.

In the end, In and Out of Control is far from the most essential album in The Raveonettes catalogue.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-28 08:43:42 by Peter Kearns

3 - Revisions (2009)

Resolve had to happen sooner or later. First and foremost, The Eppard's didn't stop at Josh. Secondly, and most importantly for Joey, Josh Eppard's (Weerd Science, Coheed and Cambria) brother, an effortless hybrid of Pop Rock/Metal had to come to the surface and invade our ear. Not to say this is my dig, but without a doubt Revisions has taste.

To be quite honest, genrification is far too complex an issue. Light guitar picking is just as common on this recording as over stuffed melodic distortion on this album. Songs like "Rabid Animals" and "The Better Half Of Me" have an energetic acousti-crunch value. While "Fable" is more like Savage Garden with a bit of 80's metal spirit, "Lexicon Of Extremism" is more my speed. Stealth, and clean cut, the finger picking is loose and brutal.

With a firm grip of instrumentation, and diversity in musical influences after six albums, I'd like to see Joey Eppard and company reach for something a bit more contemporary. That being said, I can imagine a lage fan base for these guys.

(Metal Blade 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-26 18:31:33 by Brian Rutherford

Lucero - 1372 Overton Park (2009)

I was approached to review the new Lucero album and I thought I would give this "new band" a shot. After doing some research on this band I have realized my mistake. This band will probably be one of those "overnight successes" that took 10 years to happen. Yes, they released their debut self-titled album in 2000 on a tiny label called Madjack. Now, 9 years later, the Tennessee-based band fronted by Ben Nichols is finally on a major label, Universal Republic to be precise, to release their eighth full-length album 1372 Overton Park. I'm not sure that's a good thing these days but none-the-less Lucero have delivered a lovely album of Against Me meets The Hold Steady style of roots rock.

The album opens with a slow-building track simply called "Smoke". You'll find my Against Me/Hold Steady comparison running rampant on this song. Sure, the band dabbles in roots/country but in reality Lucero probably has more in common with Bruce Springsteen than Willie Nelson. The band takes off on the second track, "What Are You Willing To Lose". I absolutely love the horns on this one. They aren't highlighted instead serve to highlight Ben's wonderful voice and lyrics.

"The Devil And Maggie Chascarillo" is a rollicking affair that leaves you singing long after it's over. They take a ride into Blues territory on "Sixes and Sevens" and Nichols sounds quite at home belting it out here. The band is comfortable with ballads as well as proven on the depressing "Goodbye Again" and "Darken Again". I think my favorite track has to be the driving "Halfway Wrong".

I'm happy to have been introduced to Lucero even if it is a decade into their career. Here's hoping that the Universal deal works out to their advantage. Check them out if you like The Hold Steady. There is a huge similarity to their sound and storytelling.

(Universal Republic 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-23 18:26:20 by Dennis Scanland

Pelican - What We All Come To Need (2009)

Pelican are Pelican, but more. Massive instrumental tracks that build off of a few droning riffs, occasionally more heavy but often more prog-like than the bands they get compared to. "What We All Come To Need" can be ponderous, but it still works. The band's tightly controlled brooding remains as affecting and somehow uplifting as usual.

Guitarist Laurent Lebec has even invited some of the competition to sit in here and there on this first release for Southern Lord. Representatives of SunnO))), Isis, and The Life & Times of Shiner make this a sort of stoner-metal summit meeting, but always with the constantly refining Pelican sound as the source. Songs like "The Creeper, "An Inch Above Sand" and the title track hint at looking for connections in a world increasingly devoid of feeling, at least that is what the music suggests. Pelican always manage to edge close to ripping into a tired Stoner motif but then veering off into a delicate, light drone that makes lyrics irrelevant. Having said this, there are some brief vocals on the final track, "Final Breath," by Allen Epley (The Life & Times of Shiner), but they are brief and don't' really add much.

By this, the fourth Pelican release, the band may find that just by the nature of their chosen genre that their sound is either getting redundant or deeper. "What We All Come To Need" expresses the latter. While not offering anything radically new, Pelican finds new colors in its drones to play with, to explore, and to lift up.

(Southern Lord 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-23 11:35:32 by Mike Wood

King Charles - Love Lust / Mr. Flick (2009)

King Charles released their first single in May, to only a little press attention but a lot of mine. They have an incredibly unique sound - distortion, synth, blunt South London accents, folk elements and heavy guitars. It's an addictive combination, believe it or not, and if you don't believe it just have a listen to it.

‘Love Lust' starts off with some folky, almost Celtic-sounding harmonising dampened effectively by just a touch of distortion, and bounces on with the addition of a low piano. Just a low piano. It's perfect in it's simplicity, and when the first verse comes the pace doesn't slow. The words are all perfectly placed too, with just the right folk flourishes to make you think there must be a sardonic humour behind this song. If the lyrics haven't given it away already.

King Charles then launch off into the guitars, and the riffs are expertly played. It's a smart, sexy romp of a song - the quasi-rap in the middle is a little misleading, but all is well again very soon. The other a-side ‘Mr. Flick' (eh?) is edgier, nodding to the distortion-rich guitar sound of Eels, but it's more melodic, ‘poppier', if that's the right word. Again, the lyrics are brilliant and the vocal delivery is perfect.

(Mi7 Records 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-23 07:32:24 by Emmy

Theory Of Tides - Theory Of Tides (2009)

I'll just get something out of the way first off - I have an immediate reaction to bands with 'theory' in the title. I don't like theory, it's too wishy-washy and people spend so much time debating and discussing it to get any real work done. When the word 'theory' appears anywhereit makes me think of a pretentious idiot sitting in a room somewhere smoking stupidly expensive cigars, brushing his moustache and boring an interviewer with how the name for his band came about. How I manage to immerse myself in the uppity art world, I don't know.

So naturally I was apprehensive about this album - two arty people in love, making an album with two 'theory's on the front cover. Shudder. And on paper, it's a very arty sound too - it's like alternative trance music, with breif smatterings of hip-hop/latin beats. Arty, yes - but does it work? Actually, yes.

Tracks like 'Elated' have an Ibiza-in-summer feel and a deep house beat underneath Mirana's distinctive vocals, nothing too complex but a clever idea. 'Hour Of Pain' is built on a similar idea but this time with a swishing cymbal beat and keyboard chords, and again it works - the vocal fades and quiet bass additions are spot on.

I think this album has two main let-downs - one, the songs never build to much more than they start at, and two, the lyrics. There is no build but no tension either - this would be fine, because it shifts the focus to the lyrics... but those aren't great a lot of the time. It's a shame because they are nicely sung and very well-placed: "will you or even think of me... at all?"(Hour of Pain)

I think the trancey nature of this album is better than the rock one, and the more ambient/electronic tracks seem to have a more loving feel them, both mood-wise and production-wise. I can only hope this transcendance indicates a new direction for them - one equally as interesting.

(Sonic Release Records 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-23 06:38:30 by Emmy

Julian Marley - Awake (2009)

I always approach the Marley family albums with some reservation. How can any of Bob Marley's kids ever hold a candle to their father? Bob paved the path not only for Reggae to reach the masses but pretty much guaranteed that any of his kids who picked up the mic would be shadowed from his past. Many of the Marley boys have seen some success: Ziggy is the most well known, more recently Damien "Jr. Gong" has made a name for him with his awesome Welcome to Jamrock album. Julian has been making albums for a few years but I predict that Awake should make him a little more famous. It's got a great flavor and is very reminiscent of his father's music. Julian's voice is close to Bob's and the reggae songs are as close to Bob's as most of the other family member's releases.

Awake is a good all around album. It's got some really good upbeat tracks as well as the cool slow jams. The music is well produced and has decent arrangements. Look to one of Julian's singles, "Boom Draw" for an example of the premium quality you will expect from the rest of the album. "Oh Girl" is more of a hip hop track than reggae featuring a member of Lost Boyz, it ends up sound a little more like Marvin Gaye rather than a Marley song. But he follows this up with a great reggae track, "Violence In The Streets".

Julian takes on good times, politics and pretty much everything else on Awake. Basically, he's telling you to be mindful of your actions and take responsibility for what you do. Awake is the best reggae album I've heard this year.

(Tuff Gong 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-20 17:56:52 by Dennis Scanland

Mark Sanderlin - The One You Need (2009)

Singer/Songwriter Mark Sanderlin is a native Oregonian now living and playing in New York. The One You Need marks Sanderlin's debut full-length album following up an EP of material he released about a year ago. Mark started playing the piano at age 10 and began composing and writing songs at 14. I couldn't find his current age though. He sounds quite young but his songs are quite well developed for a younger songwriter.

The album opens with "Not The One", a bare bones track with mostly a mandolin and Mark's vocals. A nice introduction to his style, quite laid back pop/folk mix. He then builds nicely on it with "The Stonecutter" in which has a full arrangement with guitar, piano and even harmonica for good measure. Simple layered vocals back him up nicely. While this isn't the type of music I would choose to listen to on my own, I really found myself into this track. The following track, "Get Away", is a little darker with some really cool vocal melodies playing off each other with a simple guitar riff taking you through. A nice showcase of Mark's piano abilities and composition is "Bethlehem". The song "Disguised" almost lost me only on the sole fact that it was quite slow. Mark's voice shines on this one though.

I think most pop singer/songwriter fans should find something to enjoy in Sanderlin's album. You can tell that there wasn't too much effort put into the production but it is of the quality that you wouldn't turn it away on that alone. It's going to be a pleasure seeing where Mark takes his career from here. This is a very strong set of songs that is absolutely begging to be heard on radio.

( 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-19 18:21:34 by Dennis Scanland

Evergreen Terrace - Almost Home (2009)

I had this sitting in my virtual review pile when Strung Out provided Florida's Evergreen Terrace in their forthcoming Recommendations. When a band you respect mentions a band to check out, you check it and that's why Almost Home got a fast track to the top of my pile.

I've read about Evergreen Terrace previously but this album is my first foray into their mind-numbingly good hardcore/punk amalgam. They were previously on the smaller label Eulogy but have recently moved over to the more mainstream Metal Blade, which released Almost Home.

The band nicely mixes old-school hardcore like Madball with the more punk side of hardcore like that of Poison The Well. They do the dual vocals on most of their songs but on some like the pummelling "God Rocky, Is That Your Face", but then follow that up with a quite accessible metal track called "We're Always Losing Blood". There really are so many good songs on this, their second album for Metal Blade, that it is hard to just pick a few to mention. "Sending Signals" is amazing as well and it's the track they chose to do a video for (check out Editorial Emissions "Video Of The Week"). If you've listened to a lot of melodic hardcore then you might find this more of the same but I found enough hooks to grab onto.

Honestly, Evergreen Terrace will probably take home my favorite metal album of the year with Almost Home unless something else comes my way that is on another level. I absolutely love the different dimensions of this album as well as tightness of the band. Sure, they've almost been around a decade so you come to expect that with a veteran band but their sound really stands out. Give these guys a shot!

(Metal Blade 2009)
Reviewed on 2009-10-19 17:59:58 by Dennis Scanland