Time to forgo all that is considered “fun” or “extracurricular” in favor of cramped hands and involuntary all-nighters. That’s right, exams lurk menacingly in the not-too-distant future! The good news is that this is the last time I’ll take an exam! Oh, wait… I still have to take the bar exam… and [...]
Against Me! – New Wave (Sire, 2007)
Anyone looking for a review here go somewhere else cuz I don’t have this album. Nor am I going to put great effort into acquiring it. I’ve never been a big Against Me! fan anyway, but apparently every single other person in the world is. AM! is just one of those bands that I know [...]
RIYL: The Swellers
Funny that I had a draft post for this band and someone mentioned them on VLV earlier… anyway, The Swellers are a melodic-punk band from Michigan that completely cater to the Fat Wreck crowd. I’m talking straight up, mid-90’s sounding No Use For A Name-meets-Strung Out. Horse gallop beat, layered harmonic vocals, solos… they got [...]
Portugal. The Man – Waiter: You Vultures! (2006, Public Music/Fearless)
Portugal. The Man. The band name alone confuses me. Not as much as the music, though. I can’t really describe what P.TM sounds like. Portishead? Of Montreal? Maybe if the Blood Brothers smoked weed instead of doing coke? Every song has lots of layers of instrumentation: pianos, drum machines, strings, synthesizers, guitar, and I think [...]
Cold War Kids – Robbers & Cowards (Downtown, 2006)
Lo-fi.
Blues
Funk
Dance
I’m not buying it.
Cold War Kids are trying to mix all the former stuff together. Add in “jailhouse lamentations” for their annoying “Saint John” song. They’re trying to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes with their new take on an old sound. Yeah, they really like Lou Reed too. They’ve checked the list twice, making [...]
