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cd review

“Lazaretto” finds Jack White bruised and seeing blue

When Jack White accuses The Black Keys of ripping off his sound, I have to agree with the man. The White Stripes–and only The White Stripes–are responsible for bringing back the rawness to some seriously over-cooked rock-and-roll at the turn of the century and every band after only followed suit. Unfortunately, the distinction today is...

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Sean Lennon eats his father’s ghost and shines on Midnight Sun

What better relationship to have but one where music is the constant center? Sean Lennon and his girlfriend, model Charlotte Kemp Muhl, have been creating music together in their New York apartment since 2008 under the guise of The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger. Midnight Sun, not their first release, does feel like the one...

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Neil Young peers at the lo-fi past on A Letter Home

Before Neil Young tries to master the state of audio with his high-quality digital music service, Pono, he wants to remind us where we once were. His new album, A Letter Home, was recorded in one full take on a rare Voice-o-Graph instant vinyl recording booth–the type of antique only Jack White could get his grubby hands...

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NAPALM work on preserving hip-hop on debut album

Some excellent hip-hop you haven’t heard. “So underground I raise my hand and touch a coffin,” from the song “Reigny Daze.” NAPALM is an upcoming collective of MCs making music in Connecticut. Black Mask Nation Presents: #BLVKTOBER, their debut mixtape, was released last Halloween on their Bandcamp. Then, the group was Black Mask Nation, but...

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Liars crack open the glowstick on seventh album, Mess

One of the first things I did after pressing play on Mess, the new, seventh album from Liars, was take my pants off. Only because a voice with Satanic inflections demands it on the opening song, “Mask Maker.” If you fail to comply, it’s your face that’ll get eaten. Mess is the Liars’ devilishly drugged-up...

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Beck Morning Phase Album Cover on the Independent Music Promotions Blog

On Morning Phase Beck rubs the sleep from his eyes

If you’ve spent a couple rain-soaked afternoons listening to Beck’s first plush collection of songs, Sea Change, then there should be no surprises with his newest offering, Morning Phase. The two effectively go hand-in-hand. As the title suggests, it’s purely a morning album. Where Sea Change fits perfectly between, say, the hours of 4 p.m. and 5...

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St. Vincent self titled album cover on the Independent Music Promotions Blog

Annie Clark does the hustle and bustle on St. Vincent

Love an album that steps right into it. The self-titled fourth album from St. Vincent, or the girl also known as Annie Clark, picks up right where 2011’s Strange Mercy left off with opener, “Rattlesnake.” It surges ahead with grooves contorting and billowing from all angles. The beats are jacked-up and burbling as Clark takes...

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The End Men Play With Your Toys Album Cover on the Independent Music Promotions Blog

The End Men Work It Off With “Toys”

Play With Your Toys by The End Men may have been recorded at Brooklyn’s Well Rounded Hoodlum Studios, but often, it sounds like it’s coming from the back room of a rickety old wooden boat where a single dimly-lit bulb swings with the waves. The album opens with woozy, ship-wrecked chanting on “Cleaning Your Mind,”...

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The Haxan Cloak Excavation Album Cover on the Independent Music Promotions Blog

The Haxan Cloak conducts waves of doom on Excavation

The music of The Haxan Cloak could be the internal soundtrack in Walter White’s head as he runs around Albuquerque covering his tracks. It’s dark, foreboding and urgent; the monotonous heartbeat of waking demons. Excavation, released this year on Tri Angle Records, is a jet-black pack of drone and ambient suspense. It doesn’t really exist...

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Dillinger Escape Plan’s “One Of Us Is The Killer” Lights A Fire Of Inspiration

Dillinger Escape Plan are back with the newly released “One Of Us Is The Killer”, out now via Sumerian Records. They’re a band that continually evolve, and to many, their last outing “Option Paralysis” was about as good as it gets; daring, frantic, and passionate. Well, I’ve listened to the new album about 4 times...

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The cranks and gears of Piqued Jacks’ “Just A Machine”

Just A Machine, the newest EP from Piqued Jacks, opens with the quick crack of a distorted egg. What then dribbles out is the yolk of six fluctuating industrial rock songs that leave the listener scrambled. The title and opening track starts with a patient riff that falls right off a cliff. When it lands...

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