Music Reviews

Sort By: Post DateTitle Publish Date
Music Reviews
MUSIC: Queens of All Ages
Ken Richardson  |  Feb 03, 2006  | 

They'll breakfast at Tiffany's, they'll sing to you in Japanese - oh, wait. Jardin, jardin, jardin, jardin! That would be French. No matter - they're still only here to entertain you. And that's exactly what the young boys in The Darkness do on their second album, One Way Ticket to Hell ...

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Music: Songbirds of a Feather?
Brett Milano  |  Jan 14, 2006  | 
Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Music: Top of the Pop in '06
Ken Richardson  |  Dec 03, 2006  | 

Think nobody writes and plays like the Fab Four anymore? Take that thought and let it be, 'cuz there's plenty of great pop here, there, and ... you know. You should know that 2006 has had more than its share of great releases.

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Music: Who'da Thunk!
Parke Puterbaugh  |  Jan 03, 2007  | 
Kate Bush Aerial Columbia
Music ••• Sound ••••
Universal/Republic
Endless Wire Music •••½ Sound •••
Live at Lyon (Bonus DVD) Show ••••½ Pi
Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Music: Work Du Fab Four
Ken Richardson  |  Dec 03, 2006  | 

THE BEATLES: Love (Apple/Capitol). Mashups from the Cirque du Soleil show. Unavailable at press time, but billed as "first Beatles album in 5.1": CD+DVD-Audio!

JOHN: The U.S. vs. John Lennon (Capitol; 4-½ stars). Edgy songs from the doc. Also out: Give Peace a Song (Hip-O DVD), Sean Lennon's Friendly Fire (Capitol CD).

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
My Chemical Romance: Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys
Billy Altman  |  Feb 28, 2011  | 
 
Reprise
Music •••• Sound ••••

 

Continue Reading »
Audio Video NewsMusic Reviews
My mom killed Borders (and maybe music too)
Leslie Shapiro  |  Jul 21, 2011  | 

Sad news in the headlines this week. We all mourn the passing of Borders Books, not just one of the last megabooksellers, but one of the last that also sold music. Who’s to blame? I blame my mom.

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
My Morning Jacket
Rob O'Connor  |  Jul 15, 2008  | 
Evil Urges ATO
Music •••½ Sound ••••

My Morning Jacket is in the basement, mixing up the medicine.

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Neil Finn: Dizzy Heights
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 27, 2014  | 
Performance
Sound
Neil Finn is a restless soul. Though the New Zealand–bred singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist has long mastered the craft of concocting melodic gems—Split Enz’s “I Got You,” Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over,” his solo single “She Will Have Her Way”—he continues to search for ways to shake up song arrangements and their ensuing sonic character while still managing to keep everything eminently hummable. By teaming up with longtime Flaming Lips sonic alchemist/producer Dave Fridmann to co-turn the knobs for his third solo album, Dizzy Heights, Finn plants a stylistic flag that whips together a heady mixture of stark minimalism and ethereally dramatic effects.
Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Neil Young—Prairie Wind (Reprise) [CD/DVD-Audio]
Steve Guttenberg  |  Dec 16, 2005  | 
I guess I shouldn't have counted him out, but, after Neil Young's last few efforts—Silver & Gold, Are You Passionate?, and Greendale—I was starting to feel like he was in a rut. The recordings had their high points, all right; but, when I'm in the mood for Neil, I'll spin Comes a Time or Sleeps With Angels. Although I've only spent a few weeks with Prairie Wind, I think it'll stand beside Young's earlier triumphs. It's that good.
Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Neil Young: Archives Vol. II: 1972-1976 (Deluxe Edition)

Mike Mettler  |  Apr 23, 2021  | 
Performance
Sound
Neil Young is an international treasure. Perhaps he should adopt Frank Sinatra's signature mantra "I did it my way" as his own, because his artistic vision is, frankly, unparalleled in the history of popular music. Neil always does what he wants, releases new and archival material whenever he wants, and often chooses to lay it all down in whatever genre strikes his fancy. Even better, he takes great pains to ensure we the listeners get to hear all of it in the highest resolution possible.
Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Nellie McKay: 21st Century Renaissance Woman
Ken Richardson  |  Feb 08, 2011  | 

Photo by Rick Gonzalez

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
New Gear: Onkyo CS-445 and CS-V645 Stereo Systems
 |  Nov 08, 2010  | 

The holidays are approaching, which means big box electronics stores are starting to dangle mostly-awful iPod dock speaker systems in front of would-be consumers like bait. Thankfully, Onkyo isn't taking that approach, instead they have announced two new stereo systems designed for small spaces or even your shelves.

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds: Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!
Rob O'Connor  |  Jul 22, 2008  | 
Anti-
Music ••• Sound ••••

At this point in Nick Cave's nearly 30-year career, there isn't any unclaimed territory for him to visit.

Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Nirvana: In Utero Super Deluxe Edition
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 05, 2013  | 
Performance
Sound
When I saw Nirvana play Roseland Ballroom in New York City in July 1993, it was three months before the release of In Utero, the band’s explosive follow-up to the game-changing Nevermind. The balls-out, frenzied new songs I heard that night foreshadowed In Utero’s raw power. And this 20th anniversary Super Deluxe Edition not only reconfirms the depth of Kurt Cobain’s tragic genius, it also reminds our collective ear that alternative-rock icons could sound great too, despite the somewhat misleading lo-fi tag hung on the grunge movement.
Continue Reading »

Pages

X