Music

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Visuals LP by Mew. Without intending to come off as terribly cynical, it’s rare to be genuinely and truly surprised by by some new music recorded in this current age of formula and digital sameness now present in every quadrant of popular music. Often, it seems as though artists set the tone for what they plan to do on a new release within seconds of its beginning, and the success or...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the vinyl reissue of Clumsy by Our Lady Peace. With the knowledge of what Clumsy would ultimately become in the context of Our Lady Peace’s catalogue already a matter of public record (it was a runaway success, being certified Diamond in Canada and Platinum in the US – each denoting at least 1 million records sold), the possibility that the making of the album was laborious may come as a surprise. Not...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Thirtieth Anniversary, Legacy Celebrates edition of the Raising Hell LP by Run-D.M.C. Without attempting to get too colorful or indulgent about it, Run-D.M.C.’s third album, Raising Hell, is one of the most important and influential albums to come out of the second half of the twentieth century. That fact is beyond dispute; it was Raising Hell which really got producer Rick Rubin noticed by a whole crew of hip tastemakers when...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Citizen Of Glass LP by Agnes Obel. As one listens to Agnes Obel’s third album, Citizen Of Glass, it quickly becomes apparent that it’s only a matter of time. The first couple of albums Obel released really only set a scene and made introductions for the artist – now though, the inevitability that she WILL be the next fringe superstar – like Bowie, like Bjork and like Tom Waits – is...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Fortieth Anniversary, Legacy Celebrates edition picture disc reissue of Boston’s debut album. How does one attempt to celebrate the release of an album like Boston? To date, the record has sold twenty-five million copies worldwide. The breakthrough single from the album, “More Than A Feeling,” has attained a status which makes it rank among some of the most instantly recognizable songs of all time; the average Joe on the street might...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Record Store Day Exclusive Release pressing of Alice In Chains’ Live Facelift 12” EP. While readers may be familiar with parts of Alice In Chains’ new Black Friday/Record Store Day release, Live Facelift, it’s nearly guaranteed that they don’t know the whole thing. They may know some of the songs – like the performance of “It Ain’t Like That” because it was the song which was playing in the background as...

Artist: Mike Watt Album: “Ring Spiel” Tour ’95 Label: Columbia/Legacy/Sony Music Ever walked into a record store and, digging through a vast and vastly disorganized bin of CDs, come across a genuine treasure of the sort that no one ever expects to find? That was the feeling which overtook me when I opened my copy of “Ring Spiel” Tour ’95. Now, I’m familiar with plenty of the back story behind that period of time in Mike Watt’s life; the bassist...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the 2016 reissue of the BLACKsummers’night LP by Maxwell. On a superficial level, leaping around an artist’s catalogue can be confusing in a variety of ways; there can be a disconnect in the continuity of the artist’s development and that may mess with the perceptions of their catalogue as a whole. Such a phenomenon is absolutely true of Maxwell’s songbook – when the singer’s started with Urban Hang Suite in 1996, his...

  Artist: Lou Reed Album: The RCA & Arista Album Collection (17CD box set) Label: RCA/Arista/Sony/Legacy Recordings The thing which really set Lou Reed apart from the other stars he was grouped with in the Seventies (including David Bowie, Iggy Pop and so on) is that he never once considered pandering to his audience – he always made them work for their enjoyment of his music. It could be said that making them work was the one consistent thread which...

Artist: Jack White Album: Acoustic Recordings 1998 – 2016 (2CD) (Third Face/Third Man/Columbia/Sony Music) Over the last twenty years (yes yes yes – it’s hard to believe that it’s been so long), Jack White has worn many hats. In that time, he’s been a punk and indie rock-identified pop star, a blues and folky troubadour, an opinionated artist of music and opinionated record label owner, and an innovative composer who has reinvigorated the blues almost single-handedly – causing young audiences...