Julian Plenti – Julian Plenti is… Skyscraper
Paul Banks discovers that the best path to seduction lies in reduction on his first solo outing as the mysterious Julian Plenti.
Jonneine Zapata – Brisbane – 7 October 2010
Jonneine Zapata's Cast the Demons Out came out of nowhere and managed to do what it said on the tin. And all indications were that live was where she excelled. Comparisons were bandied around from PJ Harvey and Patti Smith for there strong vocal ranges to Jim Morrison and Mick Jagger for their bold sexual stage presence. Apart from the smoldering mic stand gripping, her onstage persona also alternates between standing still with an ice cold stare, holding her arms aloft swaying like an eagle, and my favourite, lurching around the stage like a drunken marionette. Unsettling? Maybe but never boring.
The Fall – London – 7 May 2010
I’m a band purist at heart. You can cut off all your fingers, but you’ve still got a hand. If you cut off all your band members and keep cutting and cutting and cutting, you can't expect your audience to comply with your decision or to even recognise the music you make. What was it John Peel said about The Fall? "always different, always the same". Well, yes, but... no. Mark E. Smith is The Fall, but The Fall isn't just Mark E. Smith.
Stereolab – Chemical Chords
4AD, 2008 [7/10] Stereolab were an essential part of the 90s and a flipside to the wave of angst-ridden guitar bands that characterised that decade. Influenced by obscure experimental and pop bands, Stereolab set about
Who The Hell Are… Fear Of Men?
The online buzz surrounding the release of current single “Mosaic” was uniform in the way the agreeable (and occasionally obnoxious) tastemaker blogs began to fall in line with praise. This was slightly akin to a
My Morning Jacket – Circuital
Album number six for these free-wheeling long-haired holdin' on to black metal giants of Southern Rock.
The Fall – The Wonderful And Frightening World Of… / This Nation’s Saving Grace
Two classic, career defining Fall albums get the deluxe box set treatment.
She & Him – A Very She & Him Christmas
It's October. Why are we reviewing Christmas albums in October? Why She & Him? Why?
The Charlatans – Some Friendly (20th Anniversary Expanded Edition)
20th Anniversary? Seriously? You're twisting my melon, man! Wait, wrong band...
Laneway Festival – Brisbane – 2009
We brave the laneways of Brisbane to report on No Age, Jay Reatard, The Hold Steady, Cut Off Your Hands, The Drones, Stereolab, Spiral Stairs, Augie March and more.
Kaki King – Junior
More depressing pop dressed up espionage style on the fifth album from this diminutive guitar goddess. "Junior", indeed.
They Might Be Giants – Cleveland – 16 September 2011
On the surface, it’s a normal, sold-out show on a Friday night just north of downtown Cleveland. The fans stretch around the corner from the front door; ticket holders excited for the They Might Be Giants concert they’re about to see, and those without tickets hoping to catch a break when they get to the box office. But this is not a normal show, and this is not a normal audience. These are the geeks. The nerds. Die hard rock fans of a different shade of crazy, waiting for their musical heroes to serenade them with catchy pop songs tinged with dark humor and insightful counter-culture references.
The Church – Untitled #23
Moving on from Uninvited, Like The Clouds to Untitled #23, The Church near the end of the alphabet but not the end of their career.
Esben and the Witch – Violet Cries
Over-indulgent Gothic melodrama from Brighton's Esben And The Witch. How do you like your nightmares? Black with 2 sugars, thanks.
Lotus Plaza – The Floodlight Collective
The second solo project members of Deerhunter, Lotus Plaza is guitarist Lockett Pundt's self-fulfilling dreampop odyssey.
Cat Power – Dark End Of The Street
A christmas gift from Chan Marshall aka Cat Power. You might want to keep the receipt...