WHO: The Arrivals WHAT: Payload WHY: Any new Arrivals album is reason to celebrate. Especially one that took this long to make. This band has always put out the most mature version of this kind of pop punk and I think they might have outgrown me. Payload is a mature and nuanced album, with hooks that take a while to grow. Maybe too long. I feel like I’ve been reckoning with this album. Something tells me I love Payload, that...
WHO: Jon Spencer WHAT: Songs of Personal Loss and Protest WHY: With his new backing band, Jon Spencer has injected some youth and vigor into his already-explosive musical style. His first full album with this lineup has the energy and humor of the old Blues Explosion but brought up to date. Spencer sticks to the garage while giving a callback to the style of old blues and R&B singers with a cheeky commentary on the issues of today. You won’t...
WHO: Jeff Tweedy WHAT: Twilight Override WHY: Can Jeff Tweedy be stopped? He’s a song-making machine. Last year he put out a fantastic collection of songs as a 3XLP (even though it “only” clocks in at 1 hour and 51 minutes, meaning it fits on TWO CDs, thankyouverymuch). Sure, he’s gone the “quiet” route these days and is afraid of rocking, but the quality of Twilight Override is remarkable, and with killer tracks like Parking Lot, Feel Free, and Stray...
The Cramps are one of the most important American rock and roll bands of all time. No one could blend cheese and sleaze quite like they could and their influence is felt all throughout music. If some band or someone cannot appreciate the Cramps’ music to some extent, they’re not worth being associated with. Unfortunately, the band left us prematurely with the passing of vocalist Lux Interior, and after having stayed dormant for some years, their record label Vengeance seems...
WHO: Brook Pridemore WHAT: Only I Can Prevent Forest Fires WHY: We’ve been singing Brook Pridemore’s praises for years because he’s, in our minds, the most underrated solo musician currently in the biz. His music is a pleasant mix of folk, deeply inspired by punk ethos, and with a healthy dose of introspective witty lyrics. It’s not just that he’s a great musician, he’s also a wordsmith. He should be packing the halls, but instead he’s out there jammin’ econo,...
WHO: Lice WHAT: Miami Lice (Season Four) WHY: I’ve been a fan of Aesop Rock for a long time and have been following his collab with Homeboy Sandman for quite some time, but never have I heard a collection of Lice songs that’s so elevated and fun. This time it just GELS. I don’t get the Miami reference (Miami Vice, sure, but why?), but somehow, the rhymes and beats just work on a whole new level on this Fourth Season....
We don’t typically review movies that are currently in the theatres here on Ground Control, but then again, Napa Boys isn’t your typical movie. For one thing, I couldn’t get a straight description of what the movie is about. Most of the reviews call it one big inside joke, or they’ve been polarizing: people are either loving it or calling it unwatchable. I guess I had to see it for myself, and as luck would have it, my local theatre...
WHO: Angine de Poitrine WHAT: Live at KEXP WHY: Because music this shocking doesn’t come along very often. It’s the band that’s all over your Instagram feeds! It’s microtonal math rock, but I don’t think the audio recording does it justice. It’s the bizarre costume and watching these two talented weirdos build the songs in front of you that’s half the charm. This rocks on so many levels. Let’s make music fun again! Watch them...
WHO: Steve Gunn WHAT: Daylight Daylight WHY: I try to steer far away from overly-delicate and too-previous-sounding music. Maybe it’s because I wanna rock and I don’t have time for that sad, sappy shit. But Steve Gunn always has a way of making me rethink my choices. Daylight Daylight is such a beautiful, solemn, and rich collection of songs that it gives the genre hope. Why am I listening to, let alone enjoying, a song about a loon so much?...
WHO: Radioactivity WHAT: Time Won’t Bring Me Down WHY: Because, it’s Jeff Burke and the name Burke is synonymous with quality. Time Won’t Bring Me Down is a sentimental pop punk album, in spite of its name. If you’re a fan of the Marked Men, then you already know about this band, and if you don’t, now’s your chance to get on the bandwagon. This album shows that pop punk can still feel relevant, edgy and beautiful, and the trio...