Laura Gibson La Grande (Barsuk; Jealous Butcher) I recently heard someone on NPR use the term “desert noir” to describe the band Calexico. Having never heard the term before, I…
Boris New Album (Sargent House) If, like a lot of Boris listeners in the United States, you were introduced to the band through its heavy yet accessible Pink in 2005,…
White Fence Family Perfume, Vol 1 & Vol 2 (Woodsist) The first thing you have to accept when you listen to White Fence is that Tim Presley sings like George…
Ben Von Wildenhaus Great Melodies From Around (Riot Bear Recording Co.) In Retromania, Simon Reynolds quotes Brian Eno from a 1991 Artforum article: “Curatorship is arguably the big new job…
Various Artists Luz de Vida (Fort Lowell Records) 1. A Little Context Tragedy can define a city, coloring not only the way it is perceived by outsiders but, inevitably, the…
Sean Rowe Magic (Collar City) It might be hard to get past the first song on Sean Rowe’s Magic it if you have a real aversion to guitar-based songs written…
Ty Segall Goodbye Bread (Drag City) Orange County native Ty Segall weaves garage, surf, glam, and psychedelic rock into a collage that plays as self-consciously with its sources as any…
Cass McCombs Humor Risk (Domino) The thing I have noticed about Cass McCombs, or rather the thing I think is a telling parallel to his music, is that he never…
Iceage New Brigade (What’s Your Rupture?) Perhaps because the band consists of four clean-cut Danish teenagers, Iceage’s brash, discordant punk has made it the darlings of both the Pitchfork and…