Jake Bugg – Shagri La
The 19-year-old English singer / songwriter phenom has
struck again, only a year after releasing his acclaimed debut, Bugg shows he is
here to stay. Shagri La hears Bugg’s signature throwback rockabilly riffs but
this time produced by the lendary Rick Rubin to clear up the sound and scale of
the music. Bugg may be doing something so basic, but he is doing it just right.
FINAL GRADE: A
Blu & Nottz – Gods in the Spirit EP
New material from West Coast rapper Blu is hard to come by,
when it comes it usually flies under the radar when in fact, it should be up
there with the ranks of new school kings like Kendrick, Earl Sweatshirt, and
A$AP. However, teaming up with Nottz might just give Blu the push he has needed
for so long to be one of hip-hop’s most talked about emcees.
FINAL GRADE: A
Four Tet – Beautiful Rewind
If anyone ever wanted to know what Four Tet sounded like,
Rewind is the answer. It takes listeners on a musical voyage to territories
that only this British producer, DJ, and beatmaker can provide.
FINAL GRADE: A-
AFI – Burials
While most of the bands that emerged from the same emo scene
as AFI are touring behind the one or two records that got them famous a decade
or so ago, AFI are still releasing worthwhile material that shows they are going
nowhere. Burials is the long awaited new release from the California band and
it is as hard and as thrashing as they have ever been. They return to form in
fine fashion.
FINAL GRADE: B+
Sky Ferreira – Night Time, My Time
The long awaited debut from the California synthpop indie
buzz girl has finally arrived and it arrives in fine form. Ferreira takes a
seductive and dark look at pop music and blends catchy hooks and melodies that
will haunt and pleasure the spirit. With some of the songs written with former
As Tall As Lions singer Daniel Nigro, it is no wonder we enjoy the sound so
much.
FINAL GRADE: B+
The Avett Brothers – Magpie and the Dandelions
The Carolina fraternity returns with a bombastic new record
that hears them taking their signature folk / Americana / rock sound to a
stadium ready level. Magpie shows why these guys are loved by so many including
Chris Cornell, Bob Dylan, Mumford & Sons, and many more.
FINAL GRADE: B+
A Wilhelm Scream – Partycrasher
The Massachusets hardcore titans return with their first
album in six years and boy, are we glad they are back. Partychrasher plays like
a bone crunching, foot stomping, face melting, good time…or as their fans would
say, “It sounds like A Whilhelm Scream record.”
FINAL GRADE: B+
FINAL GRADE: B+
Blood Orange – Cupid Deluxe
Much like Sky Ferreira, Blood Orange has an ability to make
pop a seductive and haunting sound but still make you want to get up and move
like there is some sort of party going on. On his long awaited second album,
Cupid Delux, Blood Orange brings along a slew of guests like Dave Longstreth of
Dirty Projectors, Caroline Polachek of Chairlift, Samantha Urbani of Friends,
Clams Casino, Despot, Adam Bainbridge of Kindness, and Skepta, to join his
party.
FINAL GRADE: B
Lucious Jackson – Magic Hour
The divine indie darlings of the 90’s return with their
first album since they reunited earlier this year and their first album since
1999’s Electric Honey. Now, older, wiser, and much more skeptic of the music
industry, it is as if these fine ladies never left us.
FINAL GRADE: B
Dr. Dog – B-Room
One of music’s most adored traveling bands return with their
third album and bring forth a much more psychedelic tone than ever before.
B-Room still has the band harmonizing as if they were The Beatles, but bringing
more of the later work of the Fab Four into the studio as a clear inspiration.
FINAL GRADE: B-
Okkervil River – The Silver Gymnasium
The seventh album from the Austin indie favorites hears them
throwing back to the indie folk sound that got them their acclaim so many years
ago. The Silver Gymnasium also hears singer Will Sheff go back to his masterful
storytelling but crafting a concept record about growing up in a small town in
New Hampshire.
FINAL GRADE: B-
Erasure – Snow Globe
An 80’s new wave take on Christmas songs and brand new
soon-to-be holiday classics! Yes, Please!
FINAL GRADE: B-
Blitzen Trapper – VII
The seventh studio album from the Portland indie favorites
hears them sticking to the same formula that has driven them for years.
FINAL GRADE: B-
Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP 2
Making a record after his fantastic 2010 Grammy Award
winning Recovery record was going to be a hard task, but maybe that is why
Eminem decided to go back to the album that made his a serious international star
– The Marshall Mathers LP. Eminem has ditched his natural black locks to go
back to his blonde alter-ego Slim Shady and spits and shits on everything in
pop and in the media. Trying to be cutting edge by linking up with Rick Rubin
to sample Beastie Boys cuts and give some of his songs a late 80’s / early 90’s
feel to them doesn’t seem to flow. At points the album seems disjointed and Em
is trying to fit as many words together as he possible can without letting a
song breathe or just be.
FINAL GRADE: C+
The Melvins – Tres Cabrones
The Melvins return with their second album this year and
link up with original drummer Mike Dillard for a comical but often times
redundant sounding LP.
FINAL GRADE: C+
Lady Gaga – Artpop
We know Lady Gaga has talent, she displayed that on her
massive debut. We know Lady Gaga can be creative, she displays that every time
she steps out the door. So, if she has all of these abilities to make her a
great artist, why must she try so hard to not only sound like everyone else,
but sound so generic that you think she has lost her touch. Artpop, much like
it’s predecessor, Born This Way, is an uninspiring, overproduced, album that
tries too hard to sound like the bastard child of Madonna and Cher. Our advice
for her is to go back-to-basics and go back to being yourself, trying to outdo
your last persona.
FINAL GRADE: D
MIA – Mantagi
After a three year wait, MIA returns with an album, that
much like Gaga’s, is an overproduced effort that hears another woman trying to
hard to gain attention. What MIA was doing early in her career when she was
dating Diplo was fresh and original, especially to this part of the world, now,
it is just something she is trying to do to stay relevant by throwing as much
shit on the wall and seeing what sticks.
FINAL GRADE: D
