Spectrum Culture: Japandroids Live Review

New on Spectrum Culture, my review of the best show I have attended this year so far, Japandroids with Cadence Weapon at Chicago's Lincoln Hall:

In a recent Spectrum Culture interview, Japandroids guitarist Brian King told me, “Punk is no more a music genre than Pluto is a planet.” He went on to discuss the limitations and irrelevance of musical labels. It’s not surprising, then, that the opener for the Vancouver-based duo’s Lincoln Hall show was not another garage rock band, but a rapper originally from Edmonton, Alberta named Rollie Pemberton, otherwise known as Cadence Weapon. The crowd admittedly looked a bit skeptical at first, but they quickly warmed up to Pemberton’s brand of articulate, personal hip-hop. The rapper gave the audience plenty of chances to get involved with songs like “Jukebox” and “Real Estate,” shouting out lines for them to chant along with.

Click below to read the rest:
http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/concert-review-japandroidscadence-weapon.html/

Mini-Record Review: Alabama Shakes, Boys & Girls

Alabama native Brittany Howard has one of the most memorable voices that has emerged recently. It’s gritty, yet irresistibly sweet, virtuosic, yet always relatable, youthful sounding, yet laced with the wears and tears of time and experience. Her range as a singer is remarkable, with her lowest registers and highest falsettos possessing equal power. Alabama Shakes has been hyped like crazy lately, and for good reason. Howard and company capture that magical Muscle Shoals sound without playing the role of mere historical reenactors. Their debut LP Boys & Girls demonstrates plenty of antiquated musical influences but at the same time expresses timeless human emotion.

On lead single, “Hold On,” Howard sings, “Didn’t think I would make it past 22 years old.” Indeed, {Boys & Girls} is to a large degree a record about survival. As the album’s title suggests, the main thematic concern here is relationships, especially of the painful, complicated variety. There’s an intriguing blend of carnality and spirituality, though. Tunes like “Hold On,” “I Found You,” and “Hang Loose” suggest a kind of mystical transcendence, a rising above all the trials and tribulations. “Goin’ to the Party” and “Heartbreaker” invoke the feeling of wallowing in the grime and grit of small-town life. No matter what Howard sings about, her voice is so commanding as to make it interesting and relevant. {Boys & Girls} is a stunning debut. If Alabama Shakes can match its vitality and energy with their next effort, it will constitute a small miracle. 

Spectrum Culture: Metric, Synthetica

New on Spectrum Culture, I review the latest record from Canadian band Metric:

"The fifth full-length record from Canada’s synth-pop/New Wave/post-punk/garage band Metric, is a concept album of sorts about the role of technology and artificiality in modern culture. As if to reinforce the sense of alienation and ennui expressed through frontwoman Emily Haines’ lyrics, the music is mostly predictable, mechanical and largely devoid of anything that resembles personality. We have before us an extraordinarily, sometimes maddeningly, consistent album, one that fills the listener with the sensations of a streamlined society, the kind Donald Fagen was talking about on his 1982 hit “I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World).” There’s no denying that Haines and friends evoke a specific world throughout Synthetica. It’s just not one that’s especially original, or even pleasurable to explore."

Read more here:

http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/metric-synthetica.html/

Spectrum Culture: List Inconsequential: One Album Wonders

New on Spectrum Culture, a list of the greatest one-album wonders of all time. I contribute a blurb on The Avalanche's Since I Left You: http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/list-inconsequential-one-album-wonders.html/

Spectrum Culture: The Tallest Man On Earth: There's No Leaving Now

New on Spectrum Culture, my review of The Tallest Man On Earth's latest effort There's No Leaving Now: http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/the-tallest-man-on-earth-theres-no-leaving-now.html/

Spectrum Culture: Live Review: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros at The Riv

New on Spectrum Culture, my review of the live show by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros at Chicago's Riv Theatre:

http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/concert-review-edward-sharpe-and-the-magnetic-zeros.html/

Spectrum Culture: Japandroids Interview

My interview with indie-punk duo Japandroids, new on Spectrum Culture:

http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/interview-japandroids.html/



Spectrum Culture: Live Review: M. Ward

New on Spectrum Culture, my review of M. Ward, live at Chicago's Vic Theatre:

http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/concert-review-m-ward.html/

Mini-Record Review: Daniel Rossen, Silent Hour/Golden Mile

Silent Hour/Golden Mile is undoubtedly one of the most pleasant surprises of the year. I’ve never really jumped on the Grizzly Bear bandwagon. The indie darlings have been critically claimed for their airtight arrangements, intricate, yet accessible, melodies, and Daniel Rossen’s distinctive, virtuosic acoustic guitar playing. I’ve just always found them slightly ponderous and a chore to listen to at times. With his debut EP, key Grizzly Bear member Rossen has made a spiritual, uplifting record, one that is clearly a product of a man alone with his thoughts and his instrument.


Listening to Silent Hour/Golden Mile, I was reminded of a documentary about monastic life in the French Alps called Into Great Silence. That’s not to say that this EP is completely quiet, for a couple of the tracks have some richly layered textures. Rather, it exudes the kind of contemplation and inner searching associated with the lives of monks. Daniel Rossen has looked within himself and revealed many layers of meaning. Lead track “Up on High” simultaneously invokes the twangy acoustic guitars of Django Reinhardt and the electric melodicism of George Harrison. “Saint Nothing” is a beautiful piano ballad, one that sounds familiar and mystically ancient at the same time. Silent Hour/Golden Mile, although a brief statement, is the kind of record I imagine turning to for both solace and celebration. It’s the sound of a well-established artist trying to come to terms with who he really is.

Spectrum Culture: Live Show Review: Glen Phillips

New on Spectrum Culture, my thoughts on the solo acoustic set at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music by Glen Phillips (leadman of 90s alt band Toad the Wet Sprocket):

http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/concert-review-glen-phillipsjonathan-kingham.html/

Spectrum Culture: The Walkmen, Heaven

New on Spectrum Culture, my review of the Walkmen's Heaven:

http://spectrumculture.com/2012/06/the-walkmen-heaven.html/



Spectrum Culture: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Here

On Spectrum Culture, my review of the new Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros' album, Here: http://spectrumculture.com/2012/05/edward-sharpe-and-the-magnetic-zeros-here.html/