review

Neil Young and Bluenote Cafe Bluenote Cafe 2CD (Reprise/Warner) Many things could be said for and about Neil Young but, without a doubt, that he was never brash enough to follow a questionable artistic lede through to its conclusion is not one of them. One of the best examples of that can be found in the guitarist’s straight-up blues/R&B period; in the late Eighties (read: long after The Blues Brothers might have made the sound popular enough to turn Bluenote...

The Flaming Lips Heady Nuggs 1994-1997 – 20 Years After Clouds Taste Metallic (Warner Brothers Records) As most fans know, The Flaming Lips had already gone through a few semi-seamless transitions by the time they were ready to begin making Clouds Taste Metallic. By then, they’d already been DIY Okie punks and goth-y pseudo rockers, and had even managed to sort of put together an arresting estimation of their first genuinely golden sound (see Transmissions From The Satellite Heart, released...

A critical evaluation of Feminist Theory from Margin to Center by Bell Hooks. Without knowing the context in which Feminist Theory was written, it’s hard to distinguish whether it was written as a response to feminism today or thirty years ago – but that doesn’t matter, really. What does matter is that there are many things we (feminists or not) can learn today from this book. Now I’m going to avoid writing Bell Hooks’ name after this sentence because I...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into a vinyl copy of Sore by Dilly Dally. As music in general, Dilly Dally’s debut album, Sore, is incredible (not for nothing did it end up appearing on this writer’s Top Ten of 2015 list) – but the vinyl presentation of the album transcends such praise and offers listeners an experience several steps beyond that of the compact disc. It’s unbelievable. It’s a game-changer. Such claims may read as unlikely, but it’s...

Release date: November 13, 2015 Artist: Swallow the Sun Label: Century Records Hi, My name is Suvi and this is my first music review for Ground Control Magazine. I chose Songs from the North I, II and III by Swallow the Sun to talk about. They come from Finland, as I do myself, and they´re practically the only doom metal band I listen to at the moment. For ten years (already!?) I have been enjoying their music and many times when...

It has been said so often now that most fans (even the newest, least tested ones) can take this as a fact: David Bowie always rocks hardest and best when he’s making a grand artistic statement. The years have proven that as factual but, as Station To Station, Tin Machine, Earthling and, now, Blackstar illustrate, the singer goes that ever-so-important extra step and ascends to a whole other creative echelon when even his biggest supporters are left pretty sure that...

Divers is the fourth studio album by U.S. singer-lyricist Joanna Newsom, released on October 23, 2015 via Drag City. Release date: October 23, 2015 Artist: Joanna Newsom Label: Drag City Genre: Baroque pop, Avant-garde music Producers: Joanna Newsom, Noah Georgeson   This album was released a couple of months ago – Joanna’s first new album in five years. I never started listening to her until about two years ago. I discovered her when a very good friend of mine said...

Restorations LP3 (Side One Dummy) If The Constantines taught us anything in their decade-long run as the pre-eminent Canadian ambassadors to rock n’ roll before the Arts & Crafts artist roster showed the rest of the world that there was some great music being made in the great white North, they showed us that the secret to a great rock song isn’t always a mind-blowing riff – sometimes it has everything to do with sonic texture and a good vibe....

RICOH THETA S The Ricoh Theta S is a one-click device that creates flawless, high resolution 360 degree images, wow! I’ve never owned a camera like this before. I never imagined that there would be a camera that can do the things this one does. I’m just a photography enthusiast/hobbyist but I enjoy creating imagery that is unusual and eye catching. The potential that this camera has to easily create extremely eye catching images is phenomenal. One of the alluring...

ARTIST: Adele – DATE: 12-20-15 ALBUM: 25 LABEL: XL Recordings/Beggars Group   There’s no other way to say it: Adele is the rightful queen of pop in 2015. Now three albums into her career, she has set and broken records with an ease which is almost comical, and done it with raw talent – not using salesmanship or clever gimmickry. Her third album, 25, continues in that tradition for the most part but, now, the singer has clearly lay down...