CD Reviews

Whispered melodic vocals adorn a rigid bassline at the onset of Hal St John’s radio edit of “Call My Name,” one of five remixes of the new song from acclaimed British duo ooberfuse out now everywhere that indie music is sold and streamed. The soft serenade is glistening, intoxicating even, …

About fourteen-seconds into “Joyride,” the punky opening salvo of Biglemoi’s brand new extended play Permanent Vacation, a nervous beat is joined by an airy lead vocal that provides us a little bit of light in the dark sonic tunnel that the band has us traveling down. It isn’t long before smoking …

I just plain love Crazy for Jane, the 6th studio album of the Latin Grammy nominated band Locos Por Juana, released this week. I have been listening to the hit singles “Crazy for Jane” (with Common Kings), “Don’t Tell Me No”  with. (Freddie McGuire), and “Children of the Light” since they were …

Steady but never shy about drifting away from the standard rock template, the beats that listeners encounter in Relic Kings’ “Blinded by the Sun” are bouncy, buoyant and full of a rare vitality that drives every stitch of audio in this single from the much buzzed Moose Factory-stationed band. A …

The problem that I, and a lot of other critics, have with modern electropop doesn’t really have anything to do with the artists responsible for its ongoing success. My issue is that, unlike 2.O.F., so few of the Tim Milliken-collaborative project’s contemporaries inject their music with the unfiltered emotion that …

Subtle in presence but still sharp as a dagger, the icy strings of an achy acoustic guitar essentially define the mood in Wilhelm’s new single “Carpet,” from his debut album Lace, which was released this past April 30th to critical acclaim. In their simplistic strum, we find shades of anxiety, depression, hope, …

David Berman is not a happy man. He never has been, or so it seems, and it feels increasingly likely he won’t be. That melancholy streak ran through his previous music project, Silver Jews, for years. Often erroneously viewed as a Pavement side project early on, Silver Jews was entirely …

The debut single by Australian singer-songwriter Asha Vivian has just been released and it’s sure to get a lot of attention across all platforms. Like In the Movies is a song that straddles the line between pop, RnB and indie with maturity and refinement despite the vaguely teen angst confessional …

There are a number of attributes about Caracol’s “Flooded Field” capturing my attention. The fluid integration of disparate styles like electronic pop and reggae, her spot on vocals, evocative yet minimalist lyrics, and Detroit hip hop performer Illa J’s guest appearance are among them. Caracol draws upon a vast wealth …

Jacques Gaines’ “Something Wrong with Me” is an overall outstanding single from his first solo release in many years titled Volume Won. Gaines interrupted his journey through the music world a number of years ago after the early flush of a musical career faded into disappointment and disillusionment and broadened his …