Big TimeAlbum by Angel OlsenReleased 3 June 2022Americana / CountryLabel – JagjaguwarRating – 8/10 Angel Olsen wears her country colours with pride and enamour, alongside the endearing songwriting we’ve come to expect. – Anybody could have been pegged as an indie music darling in 2014, back when Angel Olsen released her album Burn Your Fire […]
You Belong ThereAlbum by Daniel RossenReleased 8 April 2022Folk RockProduced by RossenRating – 8/10 – Even in an age where pop trumps all, music is rarely without its mass of great auteurs. From detrimental cripplers like Captain Beefheart to zeitgeist-ier artists like Prince, many have taken it upon themselves to rule over their own music […]
Chloe and the Next 20th CenturyAlbum by Father John MistyReleased 8 April 2022Traditional PopLabel – Bella Union / Sub PopRating – 6/10 Father John Misty time travels. – As the protagonist of Father John Misty’s Goodbye Mr. Blue cares for an ailing cat – the final leftover of a relationship, signalling the acceptance of finality […]
PompeiiAlbum by Cate Le BonReleased 4 February 2022Art PopProduced by Le Bon / Samur KhoujaRating – 6/10 Pompeii is a difficult kind of beauty. – Where Cate Le Bon is concerned, I’m a bit of a basic bitch. While I appreciate the shapeshifting, angular atmospherics of Reward, my main reason for enjoying the Welsh singer-songwriter’s […]
MadisonAlbum by Sloppy JaneReleased 5 November 2021Chamber PopLabel – Saddest FactoryRating – 8/10 Impossible to review without saying ‘recorded in a cave’ at least ten times. – Sloppy Jane’s ‘Madison’ was seemingly recorded in a hole in the ground, but a carefully-chosen hole, capable of staging an opera, with only earth and thin air for […]
ShadeAlbum by GrouperReleased 22 October 2021Ambient FolkLabel – KrankyRating – 7/10 There’s an album buried beneath the album. – Grouper’s ‘Shade’ is a bundle of secrets. The first Liz Harris project to predominantly feature guitar since 2013’s ‘The Man Who Died in His Boat’, the album was recorded over the past fifteen years, grooming and […]
Dream WorkAlbum by DinnerReleased 22 October 2021Hypnagogic PopProduced by DinnerRating – 5/10 Dinner’s latest is an appetiser at best. His noteworthy personality dilutes on ‘Dream Work’. – I was first made aware of Danish musician Dinner when I saw him open for Mac DeMarco in September 2015. He performed a number of Eurocentric, orotund dance […]
The Turning WheelAlbum by SpelllingReleased 25 June 2021Progressive PopProduced by SpelllingRating – 7/10 ‘The Turning Wheel’ is a well-travelled collection of curious heart songs. – We need this opening paragraph to result in the phrase “this ain’t your grandpa’s Spellling album”. Ready? Well, compare ‘The Turning Wheel’ to the musting ruins of ‘Mazy Fly’ or […]
Forest of Your ProblemsAlbum by Snapped AnklesReleased 2 July 2021Dance-Punk / Post-PunkLabel – LeafRating – 7/10 ‘Forest of Your Problems’ is desirous in its classic new wave/post-punk fascination. – Regularly disguising themselves as foliage, not much is known about the ins and outs of Snapped Ankles. Even the most heedful of gardeners have no idea […]
Getting Into KnivesAlbum by The Mountain GoatsReleased 23 October 2020Alternative RockProduced by Matt Ross-SpangRating – 6/10 The Mountain Goats’ second outing of 2020 is sturdy but never spectacular. – Often times, John Darnielle has performed similar duties to Jim’ll Paint It; surrendering to the desires of others, penning wrestler Sasha Banks a song after she […]
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