A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Human Reaction LP by mssv. While Mike Watt’s early career was defined by the bassist’s time with The Minutemen, it can’t be denied that since the end of The Minutemen, Watt has been viewed as a solo entity. That isn’t to say that the bassist hasn’t played with other bands since then (there have been several), just that Watt has stood as very much an individual entity – even when playing...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots 20th Anniversary 5LP Super Deluxe Edition Box Set by The Flaming Lips. While The Flaming Lips had already established themselves in the pop and rock communities by the time Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots was released in 2002, the album holds the distinction of being the one that really took the band to another level – and equally impressive was the manner in which they managed...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Urban et Orbi LP by Urban Junior. It doesn’t seem like this should be true on paper but, in the fourteen cuts which comprise Urban et Orbi, Urban Junior shows those listeners who come upon the album the future of pop. That might seem like a bold statement, but it’s true; throughout this album, Urban Junior intermingles electro clash, punk, something which sounds like indie or garage rock and (somehow) underground...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Porterhouse Records reissue of the View From The Bottom EP by The Modernettes. What Porterhouse Records has been doing over the last couple of years has proven to be pretty thought-provoking. The label had already established a name for itself – releasing deluxe edition vinyl reissues from bands like Circle Jerks, Urge Overkill and All – but keeping a second hustle releasing reissues by even more obscure artists has really proven...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Kane Brown’s Ordinary Man 2LP. It doesn’t take long, after one begins listening to Kane Brown’s Different Man LP, to realize that the artist is most definitely onto something here that might end up changing everything – if it has a chance. True, country music has been surrounding and absorbing every other type of music with which it comes into contact over the last twenty-five years or so (thanks in no small...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Bruce Springsteen’s Covers Volume 1 – Only The Strong Survive 2LP. As open as Bruce Springsteen’s fans have become to the singer’s experimentations and his desire to push boundaries as the tape rolls in the studio, that doesn’t mean the singer’s fans are incapable of being apprehensive when they hear how far from the norm The Boss has strayed “this time,” in advance of hearing the results. Certainly, when word got out...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Free Rein To Passions LP by The Dirty Nil. How fantastic is it that, in some instances, a band doesn’t have to change themselves or their sound very much (if at all), they just have to write a new batch of songs and be brave enough to just be themselves with the understanding that fans will be able to pick up on it and appreciate that music and that heart for...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Full Sun LP by Spitting Image. While such things might seem like the definition of logic to those on the outside looking in, some bands feel compelled to lay up when they make their first introduction to audiences rather than making an orgiastic statement the first time a needle drops on their album. For example, Jane’s Addiction laid up when they made their presence known on their Warner Records debut, Nothing’s...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into The Hypnotist 12” EP by The Flaming Lips. 2023 marks the twentieth anniversary of Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots and, to celebrate, Warner Brothers has embarked on an impressive campaign to re-examine the album (stay tuned for more on that later) but, without question, one of the most unusual parts of that endeavor is exhibited in the standalone release of The Hypnotist – a sort of unusually paced creation (one mammoth, 23-minute...
Poe – “Trigger Happy Jack” – Hello LP A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Hello vinyl reissue by Poe. The fact is that, by intention and not by accident, Poe (born Anne Decatur Danielewski) has always chosen to present herself in a manner completely separate from any artist who might pretend to be her peer. Most recently, the proof of presenting herself that way can be found in the fact that – at the height of “reissue...