about contributors submissions book series advertising contests tour dates Mixed Media PopMatters Picks
|
|
Adam BunchReviews
Charlemagne: We Can Build an IslandThe word "boring" seems like such a harsh way to describe a band. [1 February 2008] 
The Octopus Project: Hello AvalancheInstrumental music for the MTV-raised, ADHD-infected, Architecture in Helsinki-loving indie popster. [29 January 2008] 
Spiral Beach: BallToronto's most exuberant, silly, gleeful, infectiously bouncy, dance-friendly, absurdist, lovable, teenage, new-wavy electro-pop. 
OK Ikumi: SpiritsAll beeps and bleeps, electronic squiggles, crunchy bass synths and wistful lyrics, OK Ikumi's debut is as charming as it is long. [13 December 2007] 
Shooting Spires: Shooting SpiresParts & Labor bassist B.J. Warshaw strikes out on his own to indulge his love for muddy production and PC-based bedroom-pop. [10 December 2007] 
Orion Rigel Dommisse: What I Want from You is SweetGiven a little patience, Dommisse's medieval-inspired folk music reveals a dark and twisted fairy tale world. [6 December 2007] 
All Night Chemists: SpotsBrooklyn's All Night Chemists might not be a Britpop band, but they do a decent impression of one. [29 November 2007] 
The Color Wheels: The Color WheelsThe Color Wheels will make you wonder why you never listen to your favourite Weezer album anymore. [15 November 2007] Phonograph: Hiawatha Talking MachineBrooklyn-based alt.country crooners look to follow up on the success of their "stellar debut" with a new five-song EP. [12 November 2007] 
White Shoes and the Couples Company: White Shoes and the Couples CompanyWhite Shoes and the Couples Company are like six modern-day East Asian Burt Bacharachs, drowning their songs in woodwinds and strings, "doo-doos" and "ba-dahs". [6 November 2007] 
The Tambourines: Sally OGannonSo what if the Tambourines sound a lot like a lot of British bands from ten years ago? Why does that have to be a bad thing? [1 November 2007] 
The Wombats: The WombatsAn EP of dance-happy songs about 20-something girls by 20-something boys who don't understand them. [15 October 2007] 
White Rabbits: Fort NightlyFort Nightly has a bit of a twist that makes it more than just another forgettable album of perfectly competent dance-happy hipster-rock. [11 October 2007] 
Carbon Dating Service: PolyentendriiGentle, folksy Saskatoon pop that likes to think big. [10 October 2007] 
Clare and the Reasons: The MovieGuest appearances by Sufjan Stevens and Van Dyke Parks help make The Movie the kind of record you could fall in love to. [9 October 2007] 
Hes a Rebel by Mark RibowskyRibowsky sees the tragic truth of the story that he's telling: Phil Spector is a terrible man who made wonderful music. [28 September 2007] 
Bryan Scary and the Shredding Tears: The Shredding TearsThere are precious few albums that truly and honestly deserve to be called masterpieces. Bryan Scary's debut is one of them. [24 September 2007] 
Little Name: How to Swin and LiveI don't think I've made it through Little Name's debut record once without thinking for at least a second that I was listening to Tigermilk or The Boy with the Arab Strap. [31 August 2007] 
The Golden Dogs: Big Eye Little EyeIf you're a fan of raucous, raunchy indie rock records, then Big Eye Little Eye might just be the album for you. [27 August 2007] 
LadybiRdS: Regional Community TheatreTyler Pursel, keyboardist for the Gym Class Heroes indulges his love for Cyndi Lauper and the Postal Service with a sugar-coated, dance-happy album of electronic squiggles and bleeps. [23 August 2007] 
Deleted Waveform Gatherings: Complicated ViewDon't let their math-rock band name fool you -- these Norwegians are all about '70s-style rock and roll. [16 August 2007] 
The Velcro Stars: Hiroshimas RevengeJangly, '90s-style power-pop walks the fine line between annoying and endearing. [14 August 2007] 
Architecture in Helsinki: Places Like ThisThe Aussie indie-poppers are back -- and this time they want to make you dance. [10 August 2007] 
Booker T. & the MGs: The Very Best of Booker T. & the MGsThe Funk Brothers of Stax were about more than just "Green Onions". [7 August 2007] 
Ella Fitzgerald: Love Letters from EllaOne of the 20th century's great voices gets the Starbucks treatment on some previously unreleased tracks. [1 August 2007] 
The Wildbirds: SuzanneThe Wildbirds' debut EP is the kind of record that sounds better and better the drunker and louder things get. [19 July 2007] 
Ferraby Lionheart: Ferraby LionheartIf these six songs are any indication, Lionheart is one adorable name we're going to be hearing a lot more of. [11 July 2007] 
Johnny and the Moon: Johnny and the MoonWolf Parade's Dante DeCaro takes a moment to explore his folksy side with Johnny and the Moon. [10 July 2007] 
Bears: The Shortest Day of the YearCleveland six-piece are soft and sweet and compulsively clad in the sound of crisp acoustic guitars. [29 June 2007] 
Maybe Smith: Animals & ArchitectsSaskatoon's Colin Skrapek delivers a wonderful record of upbeat, loop-based indie-pop. [22 June 2007] 
amiina: KurrOriginally formed as a string quartet to back up Sigur Rós, amiina gives us a debut even more ambient and instrumental than the band they usually support. [21 June 2007] 
The Mooney Suzuki: Have MercyThe Mooney Suzuki used to be one of the best bands around -- but this isn't the Mooney Suzuki you know and love. [19 June 2007] 
Lets Go Sailing: The Chaos in OrderThere's a fine line between twee and annoying, but the debut from Irving's former keyboardist manages to pull it off. [8 June 2007] 
The Red Button: Shes About to Cross My MindThe Los Angeles duo display some top notch songwriting, but might love the Beatles a little too much for their own good. [4 June 2007] 
Miracle Fortress: Five RosesMixing Sigur Rós' dramatic scope with Brian Wilson's summery melodies, Miracle Fortress' debut is a thing of rare beauty. [22 May 2007] 
Peel: PeelSure to be one of the best power pop albums of the year -- from yet another great Austin band. [17 May 2007] 
Ral Partha Vogelbacher: Shrill FalconsThe San Francisco band have come into their own, abandoning tongue-in-cheek fantasy in favour of a more sombre and mature approach. [4 May 2007] 
Paper Airplanes: BoyhoodThey might have muddy, low-fi production values, but these prog-friendly indie rockers don't let that stop them from thinking big. [24 April 2007] 
Escape the Floodwater Jug Band: Whiskey Will Fix It!Iowa-based jug band go back to the banjo and washboard-driven music of the Hoover administration for inspiration on their debut. [20 April 2007] 
The Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound: EkranoplanPsychedelic San Francisco jam rockers play straight up rock and roll with a Black Sabbath edge. [12 April 2007] 
The Giant Skyflower Band: Blood of the SunwormThis side project from a founding member of the Skygreen Leopards creates a hazy marijuana-fuelled atmosphere on their debut record. [5 April 2007] 
Inside the Music of Brian Wilson by Philip LambertIt's the ultimate in the band A = band B + band C style of music criticism, and it grows old quickly. [29 March 2007] 
The Mooney Suzuki: The Maximum Black EPUnderrated rock revivalists get back to their raw rock roots with a re-release of their excellent debut EP. 
Erie Choir: Slighter AwakeChapel Hill indie rockers forgo bells and whistles and rely on the quality of the songwriting to woo their listeners on this debut record. [27 March 2007] 
Elliott Brood: AmbassadorCanadian "death country" trio delivers a satisfying debut with a few truly outstanding tunes. [21 March 2007] 
Lost in the Trees: Time Taunts MeThe sounds of indie rock and film scores mix and match on this debut LP. [13 March 2007] 
The Early Years: The Early YearsBritish three-piece aspires to Eno-like experimentation but comes off as a weaker Stone Roses. [23 February 2007] 
The Triffids: In the PinesLargely forgotten '80s rockers get the reissue treatment on two of their greatest albums. [20 February 2007] |
Now on PopMatters
Columns
Moving Pixels: Parent-Child Bonding: Video Games that Bridge the Generation Gap The Rockist: Metal, Back from Purgatory
Blogs
Short Ends and Leader: Shameless! Tasteless! Hilarious! The Films of Yakov Levi Marginal Utility: A Quick Theory of the Self Mixed Media: Monsters of Folk - “Temazcal” (video) Sound Affects: Masters of the Form: Rage Against the Machine (1992) Moving Pixels: Cut Scenes Can Work in Games Notes from the Road: Fuck Buttons + Growing: 4.Nov.09 - Washington DC
Music
:. Say Anything: Say Anything :. Wolfmother: Cosmic Egg :. The Swell Season: Strict Joy :. Neon Indian: Psychic Chasms :. Karen O and the Kids: Where The Wild Things Are :. Slaraffenland: We’re on Your Side :. Gloria Jones: Share My Love
Film
:. The Men Who Stare at Goats :. Endgame :. The Fourth Kind :. Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire :. Disney’s A Christmas Carol :. Gentlemen Broncos
DVDs
:. Adult Swim in a Box :. The 39 Steps :. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (Those Aren’t Pillows Edition)
News
:. Craig Ferguson’s autobiography is a testimony to America’s eternal appeal to immigrants :. INTERVIEW:Jeff Bridges abides, and works like crazy :. Roland Emmerich’s latest big-budget doomsday extravaganza is his ‘darkest film’ to date :. INTERVIEW:Hit repeat with Steely Dan and ‘Aja’ :. INTERVIEW:Lily Tomlin has had an extraordinary career being ordinary :. Film changes student’s course: ‘Precious’ star pursuing acting
|
