Reviews

“Nobody said it was gonna be easy,” Rankin sings in “Falling So Hard.” He could be describing his solo career. Of course he’s celebrated here at home. However, the goal is to be on country radio all over, because with this album he deserves it. The first single, “Cool Car,” panders a bit. The title […]

Was 1987 really “The Second Summer of Love” and does it deserve a resounding homage? “Dropout girls smoking Export A’s?” Really? Pink Mountaintops assembles its own war stories from the suburban teen experience. Surging hormones live again as reverb. There is so much echo on Get Back, it is the lasting impression to the point […]

One of America’s most adept heart-stompers comes roaring back after the success of 2012’s Tramp with an even bigger, braver artistic achievement in Are We There (that lack of punctuation is no accident). Presented as 11 pieces of a doomed relationship Van Etten can’t sort out for the life of her—look at the titles: “I […]

At 45, Ziggy is nine years older than his father, Bob Marley, was when he died in 1981. Though he does have a similar vocal style, the tone is more upbeat than uprising. Ziggy’s songs dart in and out of what purists would call reggae, dangerously close to a Disney version. The title song, with […]

This tribute hones in on Dylan’s less-acclaimed output, including the overtly religious Saved album and dubious long-winded tunes like “Brownsville Girl.” The latter benefits from editing, extra beats and a soulful rendering by comedian Reggie Watts. Craig Finn of The Hold Steady and Glen Hansard from the film Once are two more artists who luxuriate […]

The pop music Merrill Garbus makes as tUne-yArDs mutates many of the catchiest elements of contemporary top 40, tainting them with twisted polyrhythms, maniacal shout-outs, inventive playing and kitchen-sink lyrical content. On Nikki Nack, her third LP, Garbus retains her reputation as an auteur who is as irresistible as she is annoying. The high-gloss production […]

This synth-pop duo has been cooking up something dark, delicious and beautiful in its Halifax studio. The beats are more dreamy than dancey, and its smooth synths create a lush cloud for singer Babette Howard to glide over. The duo’s focus on atmosphere— sampling bells, ocean sounds, even country guitar on “Turns and Turns”—creates an […]

Gryner seems to be appreciated more by fellow artists than the masses. Broader acclaim can never be ruled out if she keeps making albums like this. Her vocal range is uniquely fluid. The band and songs accentuate this asset most vividly. Opener “Pioneer” is so exuberant and concise it belongs on the radio as an […]

It’s been five years since Smith’s major-label debut, The Cricket’s Orchestra. Where that one bent jazzy, swingy, adult contemporary-y, Have A Heart, produced by Jason Mingo and Ron Lopata, is a straight grab for a piece of the pop pie. Propulsive beats, synopated, repeated phrases and clapalongs abound, along with fun jaunts like the torchy […]

Austria’s electroacoustic mastermind Christian Fennesz returns with his first proper LP in six years. Billed as a conceptual follow-up to his best-known album, 2001’s Endless Summer, Bécs feels more like an overview of the many intoxicating sounds Fennesz has created over the last 13 years. Ranging from sumptuous guitar-driven pieces that induce a sense of […]

It’s been more than 20 years since the Pixies released their last LP, and it seems like the band picked up where they left off. The band’s latest effort, Indie Cindy, is full of LOUDquietLOUD songs and awkward chord progressions. There’s even some Gen X rap-singing, which proves 49-year-old frontman Black Francis is still capable […]

Last Saturday, Chicago DJ, producer and musical pioneer DJ Rashad was found dead in his apartment. While he never became household name or superstar DJ during his career, he was integral in taking footwork music out of Chicago’s south side, and bringing it around the globe. His most recent LP, Double Cup, was released in […]