Scores: 1/10; 9.5/10 . Let’s be clear about something: when Blitzen Trapper first came out, they were TOTALLY original. In fact, they were even too weird for me, but da** did they have some hipster appeal, with the pitchfork “Best New Music” slot and an official endorsement from Stephen Malkmus (or as official as Stephen … Read more“DD Review: Blitzen Trapper – Live at Third Man Records/Live in Portland.”
Score: 6/10 . The good news is, my 16 year old self is really psyched about the fact that I’m listening to Incubus. The bad news (or good news, if you ask him) is that this band sounds the exact same as they did then, almost to a greater extent than is even possible, and … Read more“DD Review: Incubus – 8.”
Score: 6/10 . This whole review can, more or less, be unfurled in terms of comparisons. Louisville, Kentucky’s White Reaper is a band making rock and roll which we might as well call “organic,” which has generously made their whole album available on youtube, and which also commendably introduces every sort of keyed instrument somewhere … Read more“DD Review: White Reaper – The World’s Best American Band.”
Score: 8/10 . I feel like any discussion of Spoon will automatically boil down to one simultaneously of style, for style’s own sake. Sure enough, on “Hot Thoughts” which acts as new LP’s titled track opener, I don’t hear any glaring STRUCTURAL unorthodoxies, but I do hear everything stylistically from androgynous synth-pop to slight heavy … Read more“DD Review: Spoon – Hot Thoughts.”
I typically don’t do research on musicians before I write about them. I dislike those reviews that are stuck on that kick about like the singer has all these kids, and does all this stuff behind the scenes, or whatever. But come on, Gary Clark Jr is just TOO GOOD of a story to resist … Read more“DD Review: Gary Clark Jr – Live/North America 2016/Twin Peaks – Urbs in Horto/Howling Diablos – Live.”
Score: 7.5/10 . I have to be careful what I ask for, I guess. I once made the knock on The JMC’s album Automatic that it was a little too “automatic”: like as in all songs got put through the same leather-cool sneering culture cooker, and then produced through the same leaf blower-sound apparatus. So … Read more“DD Review: The Jesus and Mary Chain – Damage and Joy.”
Score: 2.0/10 . Nothing is ever as simple as it seems. Ok, check that. Real Estate are every bit as simple as they seem. But most things are not, and in my opinion we have the city of New York to blame for this, with its inexorable hype machine surrounding seemingly every newly released album. … Read more“DD Review: Real Estate – In Mind.”
Score: 9/10 . There’s a lot that goes on behind making an album. Believe it or not, I’m not talking about how many kids the singer has, or relationship with the label. I’m talking about just the very minor miracle of somebody making it so many more times around the sun all the while carrying … Read more“DD Review: The Shins – Heartworms.”
Score: 8.5/10 . I don’t know anything about The Stooges. That’s the attitude I have. That’s the attitude you have to have watching a thing like this, otherwise you won’t learn anything, whereas if you think you already know everything, you won’t learn anything anyway. Related to this, Jim Jarmusch of Cleveland suburb who also … Read more“DD Review: Gimme Danger.”
Score: 7.5/10 . I review some tracks on this site (Menace Beach’s enchantingly apocalyptic, and enchantingly Britpop “Maybe We’ll Drown” being one) but I primarily review albums, which involves as we know sitting in one space and concentrating on the same thing for 40 minute chunks of time. Now, I have no problem with this—it’s … Read more“DD Review: Fourth Dimension (4D) – Millennial Kingdom Vol. 1.”