Album Reviews
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Album Review: Isotopes hit a home run with 1994 World Series Champions
If you’re a punk rock-loving baseball nerd, we have good news for you and it comes in the form of a new record called 1994 World Series Champions, by Canadian band Isotopes Punk Rock Baseball Club. 1994 World Series Champions Isotopes April 14 The Vancouver B.C. natives have invented a new genre…
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Album Review: Little Dragon shows growth and experimentation with Season High
Little Dragon hasn’t lost any steam since its 2014 Grammy nomination. The Swedish electronic quartet’s new album, Season High, shows its continued sonic progression as artists. Season High Little Dragon April 14 The album’s upbeat synth-heavy melodies are complemented by introspective lyrics. Season High features the pop vocals of…
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Album Review: Actress masters the art of experimental songwriting with AZD
A well-placed melody can turn noise into a memorable motif. The most chaotic and jumbled sounds can suddenly be given a direction solely based on how the track is produced, even though the composition itself has no obvious chorus or structure. Experimental instrumental compositions, in particular, often lack the repetition for…
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Album Review: Michelle Branch returns from 14-year absence a Hopeless Romantic
“Everywhere” singer Michelle Branch has returned with Hopeless Romantic, her first album in 14 years. During that time, the singer-songwriter was married, had a child and her marriage ended in divorce 10 years later, in 2015. That’s when she decided to return to making music, and if the new album is…
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Album Review: The Flatliners trip on the way to the ‘Inviting Light’
The Flatliners, “Inviting Light.” For better or worse, the Flatliners‘ new record, Inviting Light, represents the second sharp turn the Ontario band has taken away from what most fans have grown to know and love of its sound since its inception in 2002. Inviting Light the Flatliners Out April…
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Album review: Karen Elson travels to ‘Distant Shore’ on Double Roses
It’s been seven years since Karen Elson released her debut album, The Ghost Who Walks, which was produced by her now-ex-husband Jack White. A lot has happened in those seven years, including her divorce and a very public custody battle over the couple’s two children. So it’s no surprise…
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Review: K.Flay at intersection of metal, grunge, pop on ‘Every Where is Some Where’
K. Flay, “Every Where Is Some Where.” Stanford alumna and former San Francisco denizen Kristine Flaherty’s genre-defying new album, Every Where is Some Where, leaves listeners waiting on the edge of their seats. Every Where is Some Where K.Flay April 7 The Illinois native and L.A.-based musician, who goes…
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Album review: The New Pornographers turn frenetic on Whiteout Conditions
Pressing play on The New Pornographers’ seventh album, Whiteout Conditions, is akin to downing several shots of espresso, then riding out the 42-minute caffeine kick. The album, out April 7, is the first to be released on the band’s Collected Works Records. In the three years since releasing Brill…
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Album Review: Nelly Furtado looks inward on ‘The Ride’
Nelly Furtado, “The Ride.” Nelly Furtado’s new release, The Ride, offers a window into the emotional growth and maturity the singer has developed in the five years since her last release—she’s come a long way since her Promiscuous and Maneater days. The Ride Nelly Furtado March 31 With the new record, the British Columbia native has…
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Album Review: Julia Holter offers variation on prototypical live album with In the Same Room
Art-pop singer Julia Holter’s upcoming release, In the Same Room, a live studio recording of 11 select songs from three previous albums, Tragedy, Loud City Song and Have You in My Wilderness, offers listeners a new vantage point from which to enjoy her work. In the Same Room Julia Holter March…