Reviews

The Wilson sisters have proven adept at re-inventing and repackaging themselves without really changing what they do. Heart was the breakthrough female rock act of the 1970s. A decade later, it answered the call for video vixens and power ballads. While the band has not been exactly dormant, “Fanatic” marks an ambitious overture beyond the […]

Soft folk sounds, jangling acoustic guitars, sweet falsetto harmonies, Krautrock leanings and what has come to be Thee Oh Sees’ signature sinister psych overtone saturate Putrifiers II. Demented feedback screeches jockey for position amongst la-la-la choruses, making for the darkest sounding ’60s sounds you’ve ever heard. Cohesiveness is achieved through the overall weirdness of the […]

Australian psychedelic art-rockers Tame Impala return with Lonerism, a gloriously indulgent follow-up to 2010’s critically acclaimed Innerspeaker. Leaving behind the Yes-inspired daisy chains and vibrant King Crimson-esque guitar drudge of their debut, lead maestro Kevin Parker cranks the ambient textures on Lonerism even higher, using an array of layered vintage-synths and guitar reverb to flush […]

Somewhere between Rich Terfry and Marshall Mathers lies Halifax rapper Sampson. Elements of both aforementioned artists abound throughout the solo debut Ill-Mannered. Tracks such as “3 the Hard Way,” “Greatest Story Ever Denied” and “Venomous” just go to prove that this talented emcee is no joke, he’s here to stake his claim in the diverse […]

Heavy bass and lumbering electric strum lace most of the tracks of Continental Drag, requiring a close listen if you want substance. On “Tractor and Crane,” where Weinwurm unplugs and enlists Old Man Luedecke for backup, a simple eloquence is allowed to shine. “They are building our new sky” is her dry assessment of the […]

From the moment the first note sounds on the first track from the debut album of Ontario’s Inlet Sound, it’s clear that the two years spent working on The Romantics with producer Laurence Currie (Wintersleep, Hey Rosetta!) has allowed the band time to get it right. Lush arrangements meld banjo twangs, strings and piano harmonies […]

The south shore’s deadpan banjo man has come far since enthralling the curious at Ginger’s. Four albums and two Junos later, he’s made the journey to procure production, fiddle and pickin’ support from Nashville veteran Tim O’Brien. “Song for Ian Tyson” is the closest to a conventional country song Luedecke has written. The Bible supplies […]

On her self-produced third album, it is clear early on that Costelo is aiming for pop over jazz, brevity over expansiveness, with confidence in her voice to hit the target. One misstep is a consonant-clunky dance number, “Count to 10.” Everything else feels new even if it might evoke the Shangri-las, Doug Riley, Carole King […]

A 1977 plane crash that killed three members of Lynyrd Skynyrd halted the Southern rock dynamo, and many fans may view askance any subsequent lineup. Guitarist Gary Rossington is the last of the originals. Johnny Van Zant succeeded his late brother Ronnie when the band reformed in the ’80s. The licks are crunchier, and the […]

Straight-up Celtic music has few sturdier proponents than these two. Mary Jane is best known as Ashley MacIsaac’s Gaelic singer and Wendy as fiddler in the band Beolach. A contemporary touch like half-funky bassline might cameo, but this sumptuous recording may confirm the word that Cape Breton music is more Scottish these days than the […]

Nova Scotia’s astounding crop of female singer-songwriters keeps on giving. Jennah Barry arrives with a lively collection of songs recorded at the Old Confidence Lodge in Riverport. It sounds like the room is full of players, though not so dense that timely “wooo-oo-ooh”s by Barry won’t considerably sweeten a tune. Icy of heart, “they fight […]

Shadow Folk are shadowy folk indeed. The band’s website has no indication of who’s in the group, but most websites state its a quartet…maybe. A little bit of mystery is always appreciated in today’s age of information overload, and it’s the mystery that highlights the sonic beauty of the four-track debut, Green Window. The vocals […]