REVIEW: ASTRONAUTALIS – THIS IS OUR SCIENCE (2011)
No way will this review ever do linguistic justice. It’s as futile as saving the life in the opening scene of Cliffhanger. Dare I compare Bothwell to Sylvester Stallone? Nah, well…yes. Unlike Rocky, Astronautalis improves with age and each iteration. The Jacksonville wordsmith had the
CONCERT REVIEW: THRICE AT THE NEWPORT MUSIC HALL (COLUMBUS)
This review originally appeared in Ryan’s personal blog TUNED UP!, which also follows business trends in music in addition to the usual reviews and news. Thrice (Irvine, CA), La Dispute (Grand Rapids, MI), and O’Brother (Atlanta, GA)October 23rd, 2011Newport Mu
Review: Jeremiah Nelson – Drugs to Make You Sober (2011)
The harsh winter can do a number on brittle bones. Autumn’s visual warmth is long gone save the stalwart conifers, leaving fireplaces and holidays to look forward to. Ironically winter’s the season of comfort, where nostalgia and friends circle the wagons around one another in order to see the n
Review: Capsule – No Ghost (2011)
We’ve all put our music players on shuffle even though we know we want a specific kind of song or band, but are too indecisive to choose which one. So, we keep pressing next until we either find something perfect, or good enough, or smash into the car in front of us. Sometimes when goi
REVIEW: PENGUIN PRISON – PENGUIN PRISON (2011)
Chris Glover’s a humble, quiet guy from NYC. At least that’s what I got from him when we spoke back at SXSW. His music? Bright, extroverted, and hooks interspersed in dance beats that would fulfill any hopeful expectation of an electrifying Friday night. Talking with him (the interview can be fo
Concert Review: Danzig Legacy at the Congress Theater (Chicago)
Editor’s Note: Today we have a guest contributor coming at us from Frontier Psychiatrist, a site devoted to “urban life, music, food, drink, and culture.” Peter Lillis is on their staff, covering music. Peter and I go back to days debating and talking indie and punk music in Marquett
Review: Lana Del Rey – Video Games EP (2011)
She’s not authentic. No contest on that, nor debate. The hipsters going to arms over this are, as Gawker remarked, fighting a losing battle. The facts: She’s Lizzy Grant, daughter of a domain investor, had a supposedly failed 3-song EP entitled Kill Kill in 2009 despite growi
CONCERT REVIEW + PHOTOGRAPHY: DESSA AND HINDI ZAHRA AT LINCOLN HALL (CHICAGO)
Dessa (Minneapolis, MN) and Hindi Zahra (France/Morocco)October 11th, 2011Lincoln Hall in Chicago, Illinois Sometime during the late summer, not so far away from now actually and in a midst of that still growing curiosity of all that’s going on across the Atlantic, I happened upon the most vib
Review: The Great Explainer – The Way Things Swell (2010)
Jimmy Roxy is a composer/producer from Madison, Wisconsin. Ever since his dog died, the world has become a cruel, senseless place filled with hateful cats who feel the need to mark their territory in his closet. (Editor note: They made the adjective ‘uncanny’ to describe his ability to articulat