The boys of fun.–lead singer/songwriter Nate Ruess, Jack Antonoff, and Andrew Dost–are back with their second studio album, Some Nights, which drops today. As a long time Nate Ruess fan, from his Format days, I feel qualified and obligated to review this record. People who are just beginning to listen to fun. might be
Many years ago, back in 2004, Elizabeth Harper began her music career as a singer/songwriter, strumming an acoustic guitar and crooning to coffeehouse patrons. Half a decade later, the beautiful songstress swapped her guitar for some synthesizers and drum machines, and let’s just say, the trade was for the best. Harper joined forces with producer
Yes, The Dead Trees are another Los Angeles bred, skinny-jean wearing, moustache-rocking, grunge garage band hitting the local club scenes (I saw them open for The Whigs at The Troubadour back in 2009). But, this band stays distinct thanks to their blend of East Coast influenced sound (think more gritty Strokes, less preppy Vampire Weekend)
The Features—they’re hard to sum up, really. For those who haven’t heard of them, The Features are a four piece southern rock outfit from small-town (they go with Nashville, usually), Tennessee. They’ve been around for some time now and have had somewhat limited success in the States, though they’ve made a solid impression in the
In the Mountain In the Cloud is finally here to reaffirm my ongoing love affair with Wasilla, Alaska’s very own Portugal. The Man. Out today, this is this hardworking band’s 6th studio album—they’ve been cranking out one album a year since 2006 (with each album of impressive quality, no less). In the Mountain In the
Let me preface this review with this: I know little about electronic music. I’m working with basically Daft Punk, a little bit of Justice and Deadmau5, Air, and Hot Chip as my main references/points of comparison. However, I look at this as a good thing because, with electronic music, I either love it and dance
For someone like me, who pays close attention to lyrics, at times even before the music, Ryan Driver’s album Who’s Breathing? is pure perfection. It’s a blissful frolic through fields of contradiction and beauty, where one can bask in the loveliness of the English language. Too flowery? Maybe. But for a word nerd like me,
The Shivers are the kind of band I feel like I should have heard about before now. Their Americana style of rock is so solid, it sounds like it could come from the ’70s (one of my favorite music decades). The Shivers’s latest album, More, released May 10, sounds like a jam session with greats
Listening to Fan Modine’s new album Gratitude For The Shipper is like floating through a dreamlike landscape of sound. Lush lyrics intertwine with melodies made by trombones, keyboards and euphoniums. Gordon Zacharias’s distinct voice sings of light and stars and love, making the record uplifting and completely enjoyable to hear.
The Background: Ah, White Denim. I remember the very day when my love affair with their distinctly deft sounds began. ‘Twas a chilly October night last year. I was at the El Rey, seeing Portugal. The Man for the first time (read about my second time seeing them in Anaheim here!). Unsuspectingly, I stood in