When RIFF talked to Weezer’s Brian Bell about his band The Relationship last November, to say he was excited about the group’s forthcoming album would have been an understatement. A smile spread across his normally stoic face, Bell beamed when he talked about the music he and his band…

What began as Nima Kazerouni’s musical bedroom experiments evolved into So Many Wizards. The Los Angeles dream-punk project, led by Kazerouni, is back and looking to build upon its last album, Warm Nothing. Since that last album, Kazerouni has undergone a series of radical life changes and has drawn inspiration…

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…

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…

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…

“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…

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 7 Originally a ska…

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…

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 by K.Flay, has blossomed into a musical…

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…