Chicago-based Ezra Furman & The Harpoons are due to release their third studio album, Mysterious Power, April 5th on Red Parlor Records. In addition to their 2 earlier self-releases, Banging Down The Doors and Inside The Human Body were put out on Minty Fresh Records in 2007 and 2008. This singer-songwriter driven indie rock quad [...]
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REVIEW: Aunt Martha – Bloodshot EP
Aunt Martha’s stunning EP, Bloodshot, is a five track follow-up to their 2009 self-released full-length, Candymaker. Everything about this epic effort captures just how much the [now] trio has evolved since forming less than 2 years ago. Bloodshot is undeniably bigger and better. Producer Chuck Brody [other credits include Bear Hands, Ra Ra Riot, Galactic, [...]
REVIEW: Iron and Wine – Kiss Each Other Clean
Release Date: 1/25/11 Label: Warner Bros. Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam has done it again with his 4th studio album, Kiss Each Other Clean. Although this time around he has created an even more dynamic sound than ever before. This LP is infested with sassy sax solos, doo-wopping back-up vocals [which literally appear in "Half [...]
The Rural Alberta Advantage To Release Sophmore LP
On March 1st the Canadian co-ed indie rock trio, The Rural Alberta Advantage, will be releasing their sophomore full-length on Saddle Creek Records. Departing is a much-anticipated follow-up to Hometowns, the widely received album that they put out themselves in 2008 before Saddle Creek picked it up and re-released it in 2009. Nils Edenloff (songwriter, [...]
Sarah Jaffe: Suburban Nature
Twenty-something Texan, Sarah Jaffe, released her debut full-length, Suburban Nature, on Kirtland Records in the spring of 2010. This indie folk-pop follow-up to her 2008 self-released EP, Even Born Again, is an effortlessly intimate confession of her teenage years. Listening to the album in full makes you feel as though you just snuck into her [...]
Five 2011 Winter Releases To Get Excited About
Nothing rings in a new year better than listening to buzzy beats that people can’t stop chatting about. Some amazing bands are due to release [what I am sure will be] great albums this winter. I’ll be reviewing each of them individually as their drop dates near – but for now be sure to take [...]
The Head and the Heart Hitting the Road with Dr. Dog!
If the Beatles and Ben Folds had a random illegitimate indie-folk music baby, it would be The Head and the Heart. This 6-piecer from Seattle encompasses everything that these hypothetical baby daddies have done so well in the past. The catchy pop melodies are driven by speedy, focused piano playing and flawless three part harmonies. [...]
Nathaniel Rateliff: In Memory of Loss
Rural Missouri bred Nathaniel Rateliff’s well-received LP, In Memory of Loss, was released in April on Rounder Records. It’s jazz inspired folkiness has earned him [and his band mates previously known as "The Wheelers"] much recognition on Best of 2010 lists, as well as from music critics and lovers alike. Everything about him, his band, [...]
Lost in the Trees: “Fireplace”
Once a solo project for Ari Picker, Lost in the Trees, has evolved into a full blown orchestra. After he became a classically trained musician at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, Ari gathered up a handful or two of talented musicians in North Carolina to help him create the All Alone in an [...]
