Music Reviews Category

It’s been a while since we’ve been able to read Kesha’s name in the news without biting back some kind of frustration. Since 2014, the pop superstar has been locked in a legal battle with former manager and producer Dr. Luke (aka Lukas Gottwald) alleging sexual assault and emotional manipulation, while seeking an injunction to be freed from her contract with Sony. So far the law has predictably come down on the side of the record label and the accused (which I’ve already aired my grievances about), but the cloudRead More

After eighteen months off the map, Writtalin’s favorite electropop band is back with new music in tow. Ahead of their forthcoming album, the LA four-piece Parade of Lights have given us a taste of what’s to come in the form of “Touch,” a bright, hook-packed piece of effervescent pop, the likes of which has been sorely missing from the indie scene lately. Gone are the heavily vamped guitars of their debut, frontman Ryan Daly and the gang instead pursuing a straight-forward dancefloor vibe that begs listeners to abandon their seatsRead More

Smoke & Fire. Have you ever heard that one track that makes you stop for a second and consider the beauty that is music, and the way it can affect each and every one of us so differently? Especially in today’s world? So much of the music produced is thrown aside simply because it’s in one genre or the other, or because so-and-so made it and they have beef with another person and therefore you, good conscious moral you, can’t listen to it on principle. But then you’ll hear theRead More

No year in recent memory has brought with it as much turmoil and general fuckery as 2016. From the celebrity lives lost, to the spiraling of world events, to the dumpster fire that was the US presidential election, it seemed like this was the year that would never end. And of course it had to be a leap year too, extending our misery for an additional 24 hours. 2017 can’t get here soon enough. In these twilight days of this lemon year, there are a few things to look backRead More

Anonymity allows a certain degree of freedom, does it not? Free from the bounds and obligations of ego one can explore the whims of creativity apart from fear of criticism or judgment. It’s a dimension the internet age has afforded us. Behind usernames, proxies and guises our wildest fantasies come true. This liberation erases the boundaries whether they be personal, political, or in the amazing case of Soundcloud and other uploading services, sonic. Such an auditory liberation has given birth to a cornucopia of artists previously unheard by the massesRead More

The Nashville music scene seems to favor a certain type of up and coming artist. But if you don’t wear a cowboy hat and boots and sing about tractors, is it still possible for you to find an audience? In the case of Tennessee natives COIN, that answer is a resounding “yes!” Though they may bear little resemblance to Alan Jackson or Lady Antebellum, they still owe their rise to the same renowned music scene, which nowadays churns out bands in nearly every genre imaginable. Chase Lawrence (lead vocals), JoeRead More

Punk rock and basketball certainly aren’t the first things that come to mind upon listening to singer-songwriter Stefan Pruett’s debut single, but both make up the cornerstone of “Carefree” – a smooth slice of 80s dream pop that plays like a lost track from The Breakfast Club and the National’s first foray into EDM. If that sounds like an earful, listen and judge for yourself:   If the culture clash of punk and hoops isn’t immediately apparent, Pruett wouldn’t blame you. The evolution of his music into the dark popRead More

Scottish rock instrumentalists Mogwai – a group that I reviewed a few months ago – are back with an EP to follow up their 2014 Rave Tapes album. The 6-track EP, titled Music Industry 3 Fitness Industry 1 features three new songs recorded during the Rave Tapes sessions, and three remixes of album tracks. The EP has spawned the single “Teenage Exorcists,” one of the bands most catchy and ambitious vocal tracks to date. Music Industry 3 Fitness Industry 1 is available on iTunes here, but first, take a listen to the single on SoundCloud,Read More

This past Wednesday marked a glorious occasion for fans of dance-along, paint-your-face indie pop.  Giddy, metro rock outfit Walk the Moon – still selling out shows on the back of their massively successful second album – released a taste of what’s next in the form of the whimsical dance floor track “Shut Up and Dance.” The Ohio foursome – comprised of members Nicholas Petricca, Kevin Ray, Sean Waugaman and Eli Maiman – have spent the summer supporting Panic! at the Disco on their Gospel Tour, but it appears that theyRead More

Even those who frequent Pitchfork and BIRP might have a difficult time stumbling upon a certain quintet of upstarts from Hamilton, Ontario. Funny, considering that Arkells all the rage on the Canadian indie scene, amassing the Juno Awards (the Canadian Grammy) for New Group of the Year in 2010 and Group of the Year in 2012. A brief journey through their discography is all it takes to see why. Their debut album Jackson Square announced them as a loud, persistent force backed by a subtle Motown influence and a uniqueRead More

Jack White, “Just One Drink” Jack White will always be known The White Stripes. Jack and Meg brought cool and intrigue back to rock and roll and created “Seven Nation Army,” which has one of the most recognizable riffs in music history. The White Stripes are retired and Jack is now an indie mogul in Nashville with his own record company, two side project bands, and his own solo career. He’s touring right now behind Lazaretto his second solo album and playing two and a half hour concerts with setRead More

Looking for some new tunes to stick on a playlist, impress your friends, or find your new favorite band? You’re in luck. Here are three summer jams to rock your weekend!   1. A Sunny Day in Glasgow, “In Love With Useless” For fans of: Passion Pit, Grimes, Dirty Projectors Windows down, top up, sunglasses on, hats off. This is the song of the summer for people with ADD.   2. Strand of Oaks, “Same Emotion” For fans of: Dinosaur Jr., My Morning Jacket Guitar solos, anthemic lyrics, a wall ofRead More

A singer-songwriter known for her cinematic sounds, Lana Del Rey never fails at amazing me. I am the only one of my friends and family who truly loves her and listens to her religiously. I have my reasons:   1. She is so vintage – it’s cool, trust me.   2. Her words are like poetry and they speak truth.   3. Her inspirations are Elvis, Bruce Springsteen, Eminem, Amy Winehouse, Britney Spears and more.   4. She is weird. Weird is fun.   5. She’s from New York (I’mRead More

As we move further into the 2010s, many bands seem to be dropping the “indie” from their indie pop moniker in favor of the straight-forward melodies and smooth production that dominate the Top 40 airwaves.  Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing.  For every Imagine Dragons that trades in their quality for popularity, there is a group that effortlessly thrives on sweet, melodic pop music. Take DC threesome Jukebox the Ghost for instance.  Buoyed by frontman Ben Thornewill’s powerful, crooning voice and melodious piano hooks, they prove that pop musicRead More

Enclosure was made available April 8th, but I was able to hear it early because a satellite beamed it into my skull from outer space. The experimental satellite in question–not Valis but Sat-JF14–was deployed to transmit Frusciante’s twelfth full-length as it toured the planet. It sounded like an April Fool’s joke disguised as a marketing ploy займ на карту онлайн без отказа. It wasn’t. Unless the satellite was  in my head all along, in which case I have to avoid a certain delusion-inducing Dick in the library fiction aisle. FansRead More