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Showing posts from September, 2018

Mudhoney's "Digital Garbage" - Review

Mudhoney's latest album is an aging band's daft attempt to be hip and relevant. The title of this record is a descriptor of what it actually is: Digital Garbage . Digital Garbage by Mudhoney

Review: Juniper Douglas - "Error to Introspection

Psychedelic and experimental music is notorious for being deliberately difficult. Artists gladly make things as dense as possible, often solely for the sake of doing so. Taking the precedent and smashing it to pieces is the ultimate artistic pursuit, or so some might say. Juniper Douglas , a musical collective based out of Minneapolis, certainly fall into this category. They manage to walk the tightrope of bizarre and tasteful throughout the 63 minutes of their debut album, Error to Introspection . With sloppy precision, sounds are splattered on an ethereal canvas of invitation. Each song on the record acts as a coat of multi-colored fluorescent paint. There is a techno-like study in layering on Error – each corner can be peeled back to reveal something new, confounding, and often wonderful. The record kicks off with “Promiseland Bakery.” Lowkey drum machines and acoustic guitars invite the listener to cross the threshold and immediately the overwhelming scents pos...

In Pursuit of Something Interesting: Tongue Party - "Looking For A Painful Death"

As a fan of heavy music from Minneapolis, I have stumbled across Tongue Party a handful of times, but I always put them on that list all music fans have but never actually get to. Thankfully, the gods of music sent me signs to nudge me toward this record. The first sign came in the form of radio. The Current's The Local Show played the track "This Exists" Sunday night. Its heaviness and frantic nature made me sit in my car to finish it before going into work. The second sign was a podcast called Pod Minutes to Cast Night where one of the guest hosts mentioned that they were going to play a show with Tongue Party later in the week. It was then and there I knew that I needed to listen to this band.  Upon first listen, Tongue Party's debut record  Looking For A Painful Death  sounds like a musical cousin of the first two Metz records but that comparison lazy and a huge disservice to this band. Their music is noisy, explosive, and just downright ag...

Kurt Vile Announces New Album, Releases Next Single

It has been three years since Philly singer-songwriter Kurt Vile released his last record b'lieve i'm goin down . Since then, Vile has kept himself busy. He released (and toured behind) an album with Courtney Barnett in 2017 titled Lotta Sea Lice ,  and he even opened for Neil Young in Quebec. When Vile released the single "Loading Zones" a month ago, fans were excited at the prospect of new music being right around the corner.  Yesterday, Sept. 10, Vile released the next single from his forthcoming record Bottle It In . "Bassackwards" is a nine-minute self-reflective jam. A press release from Matador Records  describe the tracks on the new record as Vile moving into unexplored territory. It said, "Using past albums as points of departure, Bottle It In heads off in new directions, pushing at the edges of the map into unexplored territory: Here to be monster jams."  You can watch the lyric video for "Bassackwards" below.  ...

Watch the First Episodes of "Paperhouse, Ask A Punk"

DIY music spaces are a staple in any underground music scene. They are an expression of true freedom because they operate outside of the traditional channels used to book shows used by typical venues. The concerts at house venues are often curated by people (or bands) who live there. The Paperhouse is one such venue located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It has found itself as the focus of an episodic documentary titled,  Paperhouse, Ask A Punk filmed by SWA Media Production . The documentary is shot in a style reminiscent of the 1981 documentary  The Decline of Western Civilization . Paperhouse, Ask A Punk features interviews with bands who are prominent in the Minneapolis punk scene. These interviews are filmed in various parts of The Paperhouse and are broken by footage of live performances. You can watch the first, three of six episodes of  Paperhouse, Ask A Punk  below.