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Category: Alt rock
Caroline Rose releases new single, “Getting to Me,” and new tour dates.
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Unknown Mortal Orchestra releases crunchy new single, “American Guilt,” ahead of upcoming tour.
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The Coathangers announce winter and fall tours.
The Coathangers are heading out on tour this winter and spring, starting on the west coast, to promote an upcoming live album. Some of these dates include shows with Death Valley Girls, Dengue Fever, and Minus the Bear. Catch them if you can!
Keep your mind open.
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Ty Segall – Freedom’s Goblin
It’s hard not to like an album that opens with a song about the lead singer’s dog.
That’s exactly what Ty Segall does on his newest record, Freedom’s Goblin, a sprawling double-album with rock riffs galore, wild horn sections, funk jams, new wave trips, ballads, and psychedelic freak-outs. The opening track, “Fanny Dog,” launches like a Polaris missile with a full brass accompaniment and Segall shredding his guitar like his dog probably shreds a stuffed animal.
Segall makes a hard right turn on “Rain,” which seems to reveal his admiration for Radiohead with its simple piano chords, unadorned vocals, slightly warped horns (which are all over this record, really) and lyrics about pining for a lover. His cover of Hot Chocolate’s “Every 1’s a Winner” is outstanding, and one of the best covers anyone has put out in a couple years. Segall and his crew keep the funk but up the fuzz on it, and we’re all winners for it. Speaking of funk, the bass on “Despoiler of Cadaver” is downright slick, and the rest of the tune is a weird, disco / new wave fun zone.
“When Mommy Kills You” is appropriately hard-hitting. “My Lady’s on Fire” is a ballad that displays Segall’s love for 1960’s folk rock, and the saxophone solo on it immediately gets your attention. “Alta” is stadium rock brilliance. Want more cowbell? There’s plenty of it on the groovy “Meaning,” which blends hot beats with guitar freak-outs. “Cry Cry Cry” isn’t a cover of the Johnny Cash song, but it does sound like a nice salute to ELO‘s ballads. “Shoot You Up” is a slugging, chugging song that I think is about the dark side of the record industry, or fame, or both.
“You Say All the Nice Things” and “The Last Waltz” are two love songs, one about love in the now and one about a love lost to death. One of the longest tracks on the record, “She,” is a wild jam that would be appropriate for any lady wrestler’s entrance music or the theme song for any metal-loving dominatrix. “Talkin’ 3” is almost a free-form acid jazz session, but with a noise rock band playing at the same time. “The Main Pretender,” with its skronking, squealing saxophone by Mac DeMarco, was one of my top 10 singles of 2017. “I’m Free” gets back to Segall’s love of 1960’s folk, and “5 Ft. Tall” has some 1960’s power pop touches to it and then evolves into a garage rock fuzz-fest. The closer, “And, Goodnight,” is a twelve-minute psychedelic jam and a great finale.
As you can guess, Segall is all over the map on Freedom’s Goblin, but it all works. He’s created a record that embraces his many influences and is having a great time exploring all of them. It’s a treat for us as well.
Keep your mind open.
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L7 – Detroit (live)
There aren’t many better ways to start a new year than a release from L7, and it’s ever better when it’s a recording of a crazy 1990 live show in Detroit. Detroit begins with the band apologizing for arriving late, co-lead vocalist and guitarist Donita Sparks making fun of a drunk guy in the crowd, and then having issues with guitarist / co-lead vocalist Suzi Gardner‘s microphone before unleashing a sonic assault with “Fast and Frightening.” Thankfully, Gardner’s microphone works just fine for “(Right on) Thru” as she belts out the vocals like a professional boxer.
“Scrap” chugs along like a monster truck. “Broomstick” is a forgotten metal classic. “Packin’ a Rod” seems to fly by at 100mph (and ends with more great banter of Sparks taking down the rude drunk). The inclusion of one of their earliest hits, “Cat-O’-Nine-Tails” is a welcome one, and the first time I’ve heard it live. It’s crazier (and better) than I’d hoped it would be. “Deathwish” is like a saw slicing through a log while the lumber mill is being swarmed by killer bees. It ends with more fun banter like Sparks promising she’ll learn how to play guitar before their next tour.
“Till the Wheels Fall Off” has drummer Dee Plakas going bonkers through the whole track and probably terrifying most of the men in the crowd. Gardner’s vocals on “Shove” are, as always, more like a hockey check than a push. They end on “Bloodstains” before coming back for a fiery encore. They initially offer to take requests, but that quickly devolves into drunken chaos in the crowd and Sparks dealing with tuner problems. Bassist Jennifer Finch briefly teases playing some Black Sabbath before they announce “This is really going to suck, but we’re gonna do it anyway,” and launch into “Shitlist.” This was when “Shitlist” hadn’t reached its levels of popularity that it has today. This is the first time I’ve heard reverb effects on Sparks’ vocals (as she dedicates the song to her broken tuner), and they push her voice to the back wall of the venue.
Detroit is a welcome edition to L7‘s catalogue, and a nice time capsule of raw 1990’s rock. By the way, they haven’t lost a thing. They still hit as hard almost thirty years later.
Keep your mind open.
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Caroline Rose releases “Soul No. 5” from album due out next month.
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Top 30 albums of 2017: #’s 5 – 1
Happy New Year! What were the best albums of last year? Well, these topped the list for me.
#5 – Blanck Mass – World Eater
The somewhat startling cover is a warning for a powerful, teeth-baring electro record that somehow catches all the chaos this year displayed. There was a lot of early buzz about this record upon its release, and for good reason. It’s a stunning piece of synthwave, dark wave, and psychedelic fever dreams.
#4 – All Them Witches – Sleeping Through the War
This psychedelic blues-rock was pretty much a lock for my favorite rock record of the year as soon as I heard it. ATW brew up haunting tracks that range in subjects from being stuck in purgatory to internet addiction (which are pretty much the same thing).
#3 – LCD Soundsystem – American Dream
Their reunion was possibly the most anticipated of the year, and they proved they hadn’t lost a thing on this great record. Front man James Murphy‘s lyrics are as searing as ever as he confronts aging, love, social media, partying, and Millennials. One of the singles, “Tonite” (one of my favorites of the year) is a great example. It’s a song about songs, but it’s also about the fears and joys of aging.
#2 – WALL – Untitled
This is a bittersweet choice because one of the best post-punk records, and best records in any genre, of the year is by a band who broke up before it was released or even named. WALL‘s only full-length record is shrouded in mysterious lyrics about the current political landscape and the band itself. It’s also full of sharp guitar hooks and sass that is sorely missed. Consider yourself blessed if you caught one of their too few live shows.
#1 – Kelly Lee Owens – self-titled
I read a review of this album that described it as “a breath of fresh air.” I’m not sure I can beat that description because this stunning debut is the most beautiful record I heard all year. Ms. Owens’ synth soundscapes immediately seem to lighten gravity around you. It’s a tonic for the toxic atmosphere we’re living in right now (both in the real world and in the one that blitzes us from cyberspace every day). If 2017 got you down, listen to this album today and you will have a much better outlook on the year to come.
Keep your mind open.
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Top 30 albums of 2017: #’s 20 – 16
It’s top twenty time!
#20 – Brother O’ Brother – Neon Native
I’m happy to include some “local” (as in from the same state as I) cats on my list of top albums of the year. This is a blistering garage-blues record that further proves you don’t need a lot of fancy gadgets and studio trickery to make hard-hitting rock. They’re one of my favorite discoveries of the year.
#19 – The New Pornographers – Whiteout Conditions
This album is one of the best reactions to the year in politics that was 2017. Band leader Carl Newman has openly spoken about how the 2016 election and his battle with depression formed a lot of the songs on this record, but it’s not all doom and gloom. There’s a lot of hope on this fine power pop album, and we all need a lot of that right now.
#18 – Thundercat – Drunk
I didn’t expect to pick up a jazz fusion record this year, but this one is certainly outstanding and was all over the place in 2017. It made the top of many lists, too, and for good reason. It’s an incredible concept album about the day in the life of a guy who parties too much and knows he’ll probably regret it later. It’s the closest we’ll get to a Frank Zappa album any time soon.
#17 – Priests – Nothing Feels Natural
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I got on a big post-punk kick this year and albums like this are the reason why. It’s a vicious takedown on corporate bigwigs, consumerism, and greed, and the music is sharp as a hatchet.
#16 – The Black Angels – Death Song
If you know me, then you’re not surprised that a Black Angels record made my top 30. They’re one of my favorite bands, and this album is one of their hardest-hitting in a long while. It, too, is a bit of a reaction to the 2016 election and the country we’re now living in and seeing on the nightly news, but the Black Angels also let us know that all things are transient and this, too, will pass.
We’re halfway to home! Who makes the cut? Come back soon to find out.
Keep your mind open.
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Top 30 albums of 2017: #’s 25 – 21
Who made the top 25? Read on!
#25 – Dion Lunadon – self-titled
As the story goes, Dion Lunadon was restless during a break that his band, A Place to Bury Strangers, was taking in-between tour dates. He focused that restless energy into this powerhouse of a record that mixes everything from noise-rock to psychobilly grooves. Thank heavens for eager artists.
#24 – The Moonlandingz – Interplanetary Class Classics
A band that started out as a fictional joke between Sean Lennon and members of Fat White Family ended up putting out one of the wildest records of 2017. It’s a great mix of psychedelia, electro, disco, and otherworldly chaos.
#23 – Jake Xerxes Fussell – What in the Natural World
Good heavens, this album is beautiful. It’s somewhere between blues and outlaw country and is most Jake Fussell and his acoustic guitar singing heartbreaking songs about being broke, lost loves, and the bravery of river men in old times. It will leave you wondering why you hadn’t heard of him before now.
#22 – Ron Gallo – Heavy Meta
Ron Gallo is working damn hard to remind you that rock and roll isn’t dead (We are, however, according to him.), so it would do you good to pay attention to his Stooges-inspired riffs, vocals, and attitude. He’s already planning a release early next year, so get on this now and hear the buzz.
#21 – The Flaming Lips – Oczy Mlody
The Flaming Lips continue their journey through other dimensions and exploration of death, life, and love with this weird mix of psychedelia and shimmering power pop. The addition of guest vocals by Miley Cyrus is a nice touch as well.
Next up, the top 20! Come back soon!
Keep your mind open.
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