Oct06

Flash Bang Grenada – 10 Haters (Review)

Flash Bang Grenada

10 Haters

Released by Hellfyre Club


Absurdist narratives placing “bouquets of penises” alongside “duvets with Jesus jizz” and making “the tea party speak Farsi” are unleashed at light speed over some of the L.A. beat scene’s finest backdrops on Busdriver and Nocando’s debut as Flash Bang Grenada. 10 Haters, centered on the notion that every act of decency shall be met with hatred tenfold, is a showcase of two of the west coast’s wittier spitters stepping into a vocal booth and polishing their collective smirk into some bizarre gems. Some may dismiss the punchline-laden affair as over-the-top, but it’s awfully hard to avoid laughing at lines like the Weekend at Bernie’s inspired “dance like an old dead white man.”
Oct03

L-Vis 1990 – Neon Dreams (Review)

L-Vis 1990

Neon Dreams

Released by PMR Records / Island Records


London electronic label Night Slugs have defined dance floors with indefinable dance music since early 2008, and the club turned label’s steady run of 12-inches have blessed us with thick synth chords, echoes of old-skool rave euphoria and futuristic house vibes. Night Slugs is the creation of Alex Sushon AKA Bok Bok and James Connolly AKA L-Vis 1990, and the the wider Night Slugs posse includes Girl Unit and Jam City from London, Kingdom from New York, Egyptrixx from Toronto and other trendsetters like Lil Silva, Mosca, Gucci Vump, ...
Oct03

Feist, Metals (Review)

Feist

Metals

Released by Cherrytree/Interscope


Something is telling us Feist's social scene is anything but broken. After breaking through in a major way in 2007, the Canadian probably found all sorts of new friends, admirers & one-cell organisms in her mix; perhaps the 4 Grammy noms in 2008 had something to do with that, the spots with Stephen Colbert or maybe the SNL performance in late 2007. There is no danger Feist will ever occupy the pop territory of a Cheryl Crow but there was something just a bit unnecessary about the number of video vignettes that preceded this release (alright this one was kinda cool).
Sep27

Warm Ghost – Narrows (Review)

Warm Ghost

Narrows

Released by Partisan


While music critics have been busy coining the term Chill Wave to describe the burgeoning crop of electronic acts whipping up dreamy soundscapes in their bedrooms, Paul Duncan and bandmate Oliver Chopy are already pushing past those definitions with a sound that comfortably cozies up with the name they’ve taken for the project. Warm Ghost’s debut album builds on the sound they developed with a pair of well received EPs, exploring comfortable intimacies and all the dark things lurking around the edges. Duncan’s wrought vocals mix 70s emotion with ...
Sep27

Renaissance Man – The Renaissance Man Project (Review)

Renaissance Man

The Renaissance Man Project



Finnish duo Renaissance Man are ready with their debut LP The Renaissance Man Project released on Turbo; the label founded by Tiga in Montreal back in 1998, and known for the success of acts like Chromeo and most recently, Azari & III. The Nordic production duo has been pioneering a new breed of house and club music, similar to Claude Von Stroke, Jesse Rose, Canblaster and Myrryrs, and they met while working in the same architect’s office in Helsinki. They have been championed by tastemakers like Dubsided and Sound ...