Britta Phillips Luck or Magic (Double Feature) Though Luck or Magic is her first album, Britta Phillips has just about done it all. After providing the singing voice of Jem (of the “Jem and the Holograms” cartoon), she appeared alongside Justine Bateman and Julia Roberts in the lightweight girl-band film Satisfaction. Joining alt-rock darlings Luna […]
Britta Phillips Luck or Magic (Double Feature) Though Luck or Magic is her first album, Britta Phillips has just about done it all. After providing the singing voice of Jem (of the “Jem and the Holograms” cartoon), she appeared alongside Justine Bateman and Julia Roberts in the lightweight girl-band film Satisfaction. Joining alt-rock darlings Luna […]
Eleanor Friedberger New View (Frenchkiss) Eleanor Friedberger took a step back from the overstuffed exuberance of The Fiery Furnaces with her solo debut, 2011’s Last Summer. Friedberger didn’t blanch out her quirkiness, but unlike much of her former band’s output, the songs didn’t feel like riding a roller coaster with your eyes closed. You could […]
Benji Hughes Songs in the Key of Animals (Merge) As expected, the guy who wrote “Let’s Duet” for Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story is something of a joker. In 2008, North Carolinian Benji Hughes released his debut, A Love Extreme, a double-length album with his face on the cover in rapturous close-up, looking like […]
The Jezabels Synthia/Self-released As much an ode to self-acceptance as it is to bearing the standard of feminism, Synthia is equal parts euphoric and cathartic in its exploration. The epic synth-rock opener “Stand and Deliver” finds singer Hayley Mary revisiting her childhood and begging her daddy to prioritize her over his work. “My Love is […]
Signature styles Cross Record Wabi-Sabi/Ba Da Bing Records Emily Cross’ sophomore release is equal parts creepy, beautiful and utterly haunting. From the unusual opener, “The Curtains Part”—with its orchestral flourishes, off-kilter jazz horn, in-and-out ambient acoustic guitar and breathy, airy vocals—to “Wasp in a Jar”—with its plodding, thick-as-molasses bass and distorted electric guitar led by […]
Lemolo Red Right Return/self-released There is an undeniable ghostly beauty to this record from Meagan Grandall. The lush vocals on Red Right Return play off of the swelling, often moody musical aesthetics, resulting in a euphoric experience. Ambient piano ballads such as “White Flag” are beautifully offset by alt-rock flair on tracks such as “One […]
Cage the Elephant Tell Me I’m Pretty/RCA Continuing the exodus from the brash alternative rock that typified Cage the Elephant’s first few releases, Tell Me I’m Pretty continues the artistic evolution that started on its last release, Melophobia. Classic rock fills every nook and cranny of this record from the thrumming bass and massive drums […]
It’s been an interesting year. Between “Uptown Funk” and “Shake It Off,” the music world has been dancing up a storm, but it’s also seen some head-scratchingly bizarre releases (I’m looking at you, Mutemath) and yawned at familiar material (Muse). So what to make of this year’s so-called best releases? What follows is one man’s […]
Rock steady Foo Fighters Saint Cecilia EP/RCA Records If the Saint Cecilia EP is indeed the Foos’ last recording—and Dave Grohl has hinted it could be—then it’s one final shotgun blast that will leave your ears ringing long after it ends. There is a rawness to these five tracks that’s been missing on the past […]
Mimi Page The Ethereal Blues/self-released Mimi Page has been carving out a niche for herself in the indie electronic scene for several years, and The Ethereal Blues is her most accomplished work yet. The singer-songwriter’s breathy vocals are as spellbinding as ever on ambient numbers such as “Indigo,” and on the gritty electronic track “All […]