Hot Chip have always had a streak of violence in them, most memorably in the title track of The Warning which warned: “Hot Chip will break your legs/Snap off your head/Hot Chip will put you down…
Album Review: Vampire Weekend – “Father of the Bride”
Once the disappointment wanes that there’s nothing on here as stunning as “Diane Young” or “Hannah Hunt” (although lead single “Harmony Hall” comes pretty close), you’ll quickly fall in love with …
Album Review: Girlpool – “What Chaos is Imaginary”
It’s no secret that unity is important to Girlpool. The band has an irrefutable ability to work in unison with each other, which results in something truly amazing. Their first album, Before the…
Album Review: Hippo Campus – “Bambi”
They were coy little things when they began — back when the world bid adieu to Don Draper and people booked stays at The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. They took a spirit ride down to the sl…
Album Review: Interpol – “Marauder”
Let’s face it, Interpol were by some distance the dullest band of the early 2000s indie-rock revival wave. Yet I had enough admiration for 2004’s Antics – in my view, their best, a solid rock album – …
Music Review: Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks – “Sparkle Hard”
It’s been four years since Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks last put out an album, but Sparkle Hard is well worth that wait. Nearly 30 years into his prolific career, Malkmus shows that he still …
Album Review: Yo La Tengo – “There’s a Riot Going On”
No one would label this great band with the term “consistent”: even within their albums, the quality of the output usually varies. Yet the warmth that exudes from Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley, the ma…