TITLE: The Classics 018 A deeper look at the grooves pressed into a 1978-issued copy of Van Halen’s self-titled debut album. DATE: 08-30-15 WRITER: Bill Adams The thing about albums which are truly progressive (to be clear, I’m referring to albums which break new ground – not necessarily prog rock albums) is that their impact on pop music as a whole takes a bit of time to really register; sure, there’s a chance that they might break through, win fans...

ARTIST: Dr. Dre – DATE: 08-25-15 REVIEW BY: Bill Adams ALBUM: Compton LABEL: Aftermath/Universal Music It’s not easy to know how to feel about Compton, Dr. Dre’s first new album since 2001 came out in 1999. On one hand the excitement that even the mention of a new Dre album generates makes it deserving of attention but, now well over a decade since the emcee really did anything important anywhere other than behind the mixing board, it’s hard to...

ARTIST: Ground Control’s Back To School Guide (Part Two) Time is growing short, here is Ground Control’s last cram for the stuff you might need to make life livable after you go back to school. DATE: 08-22-15 WRITER: Ollie Ottoman   Mininch Toolpen If you can see a certain trend in our back to school guide, it’s that practical and space saving are incredibly important to us. Living in a dorm can be the most fulfilling experience of your life,...

ARTIST: Primus – DATE: 08-15-15 REVIEW BY: Bill Adams ALBUM: Primus & The Chocolate Factory with the Fungi Ensemble LABEL: Prawn Song/ATO/Maple Music Recordings Even before they hear a note of music, sometimes listeners already know why a band elected to cover an album/film score/collection from front to back: it just makes sense that they’d do it. Sometimes, it’s almost like both the band and its members were born to cover that particular piece of music, and the only...

ARTIST: Ex Cops – with free mp3 download for ‘Black Soap’ from Daggers by Ex Cops DATE: 08-12-15 REVIEW BY: Bill Adams ALBUM: Daggers LABEL: Downtown/Fontana North/Universal Music It might seem a little dubious but, in listening to Ex Cops’ sophomore album (and also keeping the band’s sensational 2012 debut in mind), it’s hard not to feel as though the band is earnestly trying to establish some roots by rebuilding the progression of punk’s development into new wave in...

ARTIST: Benjamin Booker – DATE: 08-11-15 REVIEW BY: Bill Adams ALBUM: s/t LABEL: ATO Records/Maplemusic The thing which has been missing from both pop and rock for the last few years has been a sense of spontaneity. With the “digital revolution” has come a terrible epidemic of artists thinking too much and/or treating their work with too gentle a hand; they build (and build upon), develop and activelyproduce ideas rather than simply walking into a recording studio, plugging in,...

ARTIST: Ground Control’s Back To School Guide (Part One) Is it almost that time already? Sure is! You’re bound for institutions of higher learning, but Ground Control studied up and has Cliff’s Notes on what you might need after you get there. DATE: 08-10-15 WRITER: Ollie Ottoman Welcome to our first ever Back to School guide! Ground Control isn’t just about telling you what cool music, shows, comics and movies you should be checking out, it’s also what cool gear...

TITLE: Vinyl Vlog 089 A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the original version of the Blizzard Of Ozz LP by Ozzy Osbourne DATE: 08-08-15 WRITER: Bill Adams “Is the reissued release of an album always superior to the original?” Such a question is valid – particularly when one takes the recent proliferation of reissues which have been released by both major and indie labels into account. In nearly every case, a “new” re-examination of an old title comes...

ARTIST: Finger Eleven – DATE: 08-06-15 REVIEW BY: Bill Adams ALBUM: Five Crooked Lines LABEL: Bicycle Music Company/Concord/Universal Music It was very reasonable to assume that Finger Eleven had totally sold out years ago. Back in 2003, the success of “One Thing” – a mid-tempo, melancholy and balladesque number found in the late-playing of the band’s fourth album – dangled the gold-plated chain of pop prosperity before the group and they took it. After that, they jumped from point...

ARTIST: Best Coast – DATE: 08-05-15 REVIEW BY: G.Murray Thomas ALBUM: California Nights LABEL: Harvest/Universal Are Best Coast trying to be the new Ramones? Not by copying their music, but by repeating their career model. That is, by developing a signature sound and sticking with it album after album. Both bands have a style which is both catchy and hard edged; where the Ramones crossed the Beach Boys with Stooges, Best Coast blend Phil Spector with grunge. It’s a...