Aaron Hartling

Stars Of Track And FieldCenturies Before Love And War(Wind-Up)The first major label long form release from the two guitar/drum trio from Portland, Oregon consists of seven new tunes plus three from the 2005 EP You Came Here For Sunset Last Year. Songs such as “Movies Of Antarctica,” “Real Time” and “Say Hello” show the influence […]

Jesse Sykes & The Sweet HereafterLike, Love, Lust & the Open Halls of the Soul (Barsuk)Sykes’ fourth LP finds her building on the previous success of 2004 critical darling Oh, My Girl. Opening track “Eisenhower Moon” could be mistaken for a Neil Young cast-off, while there are traces of Jefferson Airplane-era Grace Slick (“LLL”) and […]

VariousHeartworn Highways OST(Hacktone)In 1976, for those who didn’t fit into the Nashville country scene, it was called “outlaw country.” Now it’s alt-country or Americana. This is a sound recording of a documentary about this breed of singer-songwriter. It features artists such as Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and David Allen Coe along with (then) unknowns […]

AqueductOr Give Me Death(Barsuk)The second full release from Seattle, Washington-based Aqueduct (AKA one-man-band David Terry) shows the influence of piano-driven ’60s pop with an ’80s synthesiser sound. It’s Brian Wilson wrapped in dry wit, resulting in satisfying tunes. A good example is the opening track “Lying in the Bed I’ve Made‚” where Terry sings “Sorry […]

Kristin HershLearn to Sing Like a Star(4AD)Kristin Hersh is the anti-star in today’s music world. Her reputation was built with bands Throwing Muses, 50FootWave and with her solo material. Learn To Sing is in contrast to the quiet tones on her previous release, The Grotto. There’s a full band sound with nice cello arrangements (such […]