CD OF THE MONTH

Heavy Rotation Records- Dorm Sessions 5 (VA)
Produced by Heavy Rotation Records

Mixed by Heavy Rotation Records

One of the staple programs at Berklee College of Music has to be the Heavy Rotations Records class, where students sign up for a semester of running a record company. Students are responsible for picking the music, designing the CD, and marketing the release.

Now in its fifth year of release, Dorm Sessions 5 showcases a range of Berklee bands from the infectious electronic ramblings of Altered Tensions to the folky touch of Annie Lynch and the Beekeepers.

The best of the mix may be Altered Tensions, the project of Matt Lange, which opens and closes the disc. It’s a mix of chill out and melodic blips in the vein of Aphex Twin, but it’s also clear that Lange loves his ambient Eno.

Next up, goofy and equally catchy, The Peasantry provides pop choruses with a dirty edge. Their first offering, “The Tie Off” could easily transition to alternative radio, with its similarities to Spoon. Their second offering, “Homie,” although fairly catchy brings to mind a less enthusiastic Hot Hot Heat.

Turkuaz, a love child of Funkadelic and Sly and The Family Stone is also one of the disc’s best. Bringing back the glam funk of the ‘70s, their track “20 Dollar Bill” is an instant party fav. The disc doesn’t miss one genre, save country, although Annie Lynch and the Beekeepers’ acoustic folk drawl could possibly be considered country with their Neko Case-ish overtones.

Other standouts include With Engines, an acoustic pop band who doesn’t mind breaking out the electrics once in a while. Also at the top of the heap is Christopher Barnes, who combines Damien Rice with more piano-based influences and Black Tea, a mix of Berklee educated world musicians bringing fusion electronica to the already eclectic mix Dorm Sessions 5 is proof enough that this class is getting close to an actual record label, picking out music that’s very appealing across the board. Kudos to their Berklee-trained ears. (Heavy Rotation Records)

www.hrrecords.com

-Dana Forsythe

By BloodAlone- Sea of Blood
Produced by Steve La Cerra | Recorded by Marc Bartholomew at Acadia Recording, Portland MD | Recorded by Rowan Bishop at Purgatory Recording , Westbrook ME

If there ever were an indie/goth/slasher movie, By Blood Alone would provide the soundtrack. They’d even be the featured band at the obligatory concert/rave scene, performing as the victims fall one by one. The first track on Sea of Blood, “Serpentarius,” begins with thrash guitars and a crashing orchestra reminiscent of early Iron Maiden. Lead singer Cruella’s voice separates them from others of their ilk, though one would be hard-pressed to name another gothic prog-rock band reaching those deep and sultry notes as she does. In fact, it’s her voice that can reach those Siouxsie-like banshee pitches combined with the whining strings of the oft-featured violin that allow each song to meander towards jazz-pop before reeling back into the fast-paced and doom-filled world of goth metal.

The title track combines twisting prog-rock guitar solos with a sad, repetitive piano tune making it the closest to an actual ballad on the record. “Undead Friend,” has more of the melodic vocals Cruella seems more comfortable with. The haunting piano and occasional snare pairing off with seemingly random triangle tinkles sound like a ballet for the dead, even more so with the progression of swelling strings of the violins. By far the most original track on the album, it forgoes the obligatory guitar and accompanying solos until late in the song where it revives the weakening tune, wakes it from the dead if you will, and carries it to the end. The Addams Family keys of “Lovely Lies” comes in after a motorcycle gang guitar riff that heartily repeats itself throughout the song. The vocals and keyboards then build up to a biting chorus worthy of any pale maiden that got stood up at the Victorian equivalent of prom. As if the creepy horror flick aspect of By Blood Alone wasn’t prevalent, “Little Lady Lillit” should put your mind at ease. The cheerful rolling piano and nursery rhyme chanting of the layered vocals belie a sinister story of murder. A fitting end to the album. (Jericho Hill Records)

www.bybloodalone.com

-Leyla Hamedi

Alex Nackman- Still Life Moves
Produced by Alex Nackman | Recorded and Mixed at Green Chapel Studios | Mastered by Richard Morris

Still Life Moves, Alex Nackman’s fifth studio release, is a rather predictable collection of songs with splashes of interesting guitar arrangements. Nackman has a style that is reminiscent of one John Mayer albeit, with slightly deeper arrangements and a bit less pop fluff. Still Life Moves is sure to please any listener looking for something unthreatening and easy to digest as it offers a collection of sweet-sounding pop/rock tunes. Despite its conventions, Still Life Moves occasionally features some combinations of acoustic guitars and near-electronica beats. The contrasting arrangements blend seamlessly together, while “Indifferent” is a fine example of Nackman’s ability to blend these two dissimilar genres together.

Still Life Moves also features some tightly intertwined guitar arrangements with some subtly arpeggiated lines over the predictable rhythm tracks. Nackman is not going to blow anyone away with blazing guitar solos and experimentation but he does show a knack for creating some unpredictable leads.

Still Life Moves is a sign of Nackman’s potential for growth, but for now there aren’t many surprises with nearly every song keeping similar tempos and dynamics. (self-released)

www.alexnackman.com

-Wayne Raymondo

Alien Father- Paste
Recorded by Curtis Regian, Mike Topley, Dave Hallinger

Odd, irreverent, clever, and filler are just a few of the words that come to mind regarding Alien Father’s latest album, Paste, which is a comprehensive retrospective of the first year and a half of the band’s existence. The problem herein is between some promising tracks that hint towards a bright future, there is far too much filler.
Paste begins with “Alien Father,” an acoustic song with unconventional lyrics such as “I never loved you and I never will/Alien Father your blood I will spill.” Aside from a slight change in the rhythm two-thirds through the song and some quirky lyrics, the song fails to catch on to something outstanding. Fortunately, the following song, “Gbacl Lravong,” features the entire band and creates an unpredictable feeling on the verge of collapse, something that Alien Father seems to do really well throughout Paste. They even take a stab at musique concrete on “Fgt Lawbuster” which would no doubt make Pierre Schaeffer proud. The most prominent aspect of this album is Curtis Regian’s excellent bass playing. He has a very smooth style and this contrasts exceptionally well with the rest of the band’s avant-garde sound.

Alien Father seems to shine most on the instrumental tracks as it brings their excellent knack for odd arrangements front and center particularly on “John Carnival” which consists of some interesting tempo changes and bass lines. Unfortunately, this album features one too many filler tracks. Though on the plus side, Alien Father’s unique sound gives way to a handful of truly excellent tracks. (Brother and Brother)

www.myspace.com/alienfather

-Wayne Raymondo

Brendan Murphy- Jumped the Shark
Produced and mixed by Eric Lichter and Brendan Murphy. Mastered by Mike Burke

Boston born, Alaskan-transplant BrendanMurphy’s debut, Jumped the Shark, is striking with its stark acoustic guitars and harmonicas, though the lyrical content is a bit conventional.

The instrumentation on the album is pretty spare - acoustic guitar, harmonica, metronomic drums and a few other instruments are all we get. The mood Murphy creates isn’t bad - a lot of the songs sound like something you’d hear around the campfire if the guy who brought the guitar happened to write his own music and bring a rhythm section - but overall the songs never seem to stick. Murphy opts to stay in the typical alt-folk realm and never really breaks outside of the mold.

On “Sun Blames the Moon,” Murphy changes the mood, deciding to plug in for this track, Sun opens with a riff that may or may not have been lifted from Jimi Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady,” right down to the feedback. But at least “Sun” tries something the rest of the album doesn’t accomplish: make the music interesting. There’s a guitar solo, but even that feels uninspired, as if Murphy suddenly remembered what key he was in and tacked two scales back to back. Murphy’s talent is undeniable, but Jumped the Shark tries so hard to parrot the singer-songwriters that Murphy obviously admires, that it ends up feeling self conscious and derivative. (self-released)

www.myspace.com/bgmurphy

-Brian Kraemer

Bridges and Powerlines- Ghost Types
Produced by Chris Zane | Mixed by Alex Adi and Chris Zane | Engineered by Aled Adi and Billy Pavone | Recorded and mixed at Gigantic Studios, NYC | Mastered by Sarah Register at The Lodge

The debut full-length from Bridges and Powerlines is a mishmash of indie-rock, synth-pop and psychedelic harmonies. Though the record, Ghost Types, is full of upbeat tracks, the underlining stories on the record are a diverse collection; with protagonists ranging from a Bangladeshi cab driver, a depression-era film maker and the captain of a ship destined for doom.

The first track, “Uncalibrated,” sets a nice tone for the rest of the record. With its bouncy backbeat, vocal harmonies and melodic synth lines, this track demands to be heard. With a sound that can be described as a cross between Spoon, Sunset Rubdown and We Are Scientists, vocalist/keyboardist Andrew Wood, bassist Keith Sigel, drummer Pete Mucek and guitarist Jon Crockett bring a melodic racket to each of the album’s 11 tracks.

On the song “Half a Cent,” the group is at their most exhilarating. Going from Wood’s lone vocal into group harmonies, the drummer Mucek gives the track its pulse, while Crockett delivers a Strokes-ish guitar riff.

Produced by Chris Zane, the man behind records for breakout acts Asobi Seksu, Les Savy Fav and Ambulance LTD, brings his producing talents to one of the next big groups to come out of New York. Zane’s talent allows the listener to clearly hear each member’s part, never clumping Bridges and Powerlines together. (Citybird Records)

www.bridgesandpowerlines.com

-Nick Stefanovich

Dave Keller- Play for Love
Produced by Dave Keller | Recorded mixed and mastered by Wes Chapman

Vermont bluesman Dave Keller’s third album Play for Love offers up a fun collection of original compositions that is winning from the opening plucks. With spacey instrumental openers and a wonderfully wailing organ, this is a mix of downbeat blues groovers and up-tempo soul tunes that have the ability to touch. The sound leans more towards Booker T and The MGs than The Funk Brothers.

The tunes themselves are hip, with rich swathes of Hammond B3 and electric piano from Ira Friedman alongside kicking Fender bass from Jan Schultz, both powering a healthy dose of soul-blues. Drummer Brett Hoffman never dominates, but does exactly what he’s supposed to keep the energy flowing.

The most glaring weakness is actually the leader, whose vocals can’t always match the force that his band has set up behind him. Keller tries to reach out to the depth of Southern blues, with its intensely ecstatic gospel feel, but has trouble matching that raw power.

Yet if the step-stopping title track is any indication, Keller has the ability. He really finds his niche with this tune, singing out “If you’re afraid to die / Don’t worry/cause you will/but right now/you still got time to love.” He also manages to dig deep down for a few others, including “Something’s Gotta Give” and “Only Place I’m Going (Is Down).”

Keller’s guitar work is solid, but only occasionally exceptional. His work on steel is a real highlight on “I Was No Angel,” and he also takes a nice solo acoustic turn on “The Golden Bird.” Few other solos stand out.

All in all, Play for Love offers up a helping of rich blues. Some early tracks are decidedly forgettable (“Give It a Rest”). Mostly though, it’s music that’s good for the soul. (Tastee-Tone Records)

www.davekeller.com

-Warren Allen

Erik Ringstad- Reflections

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Erik Ringstad

Over the past four years, Boston-based jazz guitarist Erik Ringstad worked out a series of lone acoustic guitar compositions with the loose definition of “ballads.” Then, using overdub and a host of axes, including a guitar synth, Ringstad pulled those tunes together into his new album Reflections. The end result is a solo guitar album with a whole lot going for it. The acoustic, folksy vibe is always present, but the electric sound gives the tunes an edge. Space is used, just enough to give the songs an airy lilt. The sound is mellow, but this isn’t a typical smooth jazz offering.

Ringstad demonstrates some considerable chops, as on the grooving “Blues at St. James” and the poignant “BT34.” There are moments of breathtaking technique throughout, but no tune ever turns into a duel between Ringstad’s finger muscles. The tunes are short, with the longest being a three-part “Suite” clocking in at six 1/2 minutes. The abbreviated length allows Ringstad just enough time to develop his ideas before moving on and giving a new perspective on what is mostly a unified whole. There are tastes of everything from classical (the Medieval sounding “Highgate”) to flamenco and fusion, all adding distinct tints of emotion to the jazz sound.

Arrangement-wise, the keyboards, usually nicely muted, do come on a little heavy at times in the middle of the album, particularly on “Lament,” but this is only a small distraction. For a self-produced album, the sound is mostly excellent. Everything from ambient effects and the guitar’s fret squeaks ring out nicely in the mix. As a whole, Ringstad’s one-man band has blended seamless technique and expression into a laid-back and captivating work. (Self-released)

www.erikringstad.com

-Warren Allen

The Informati- Requiem
Produced by Steve Catazone and the Informati | Mixed by Jeff Yurek and Mastered by Mark Donahue at Sound Mirror in Jamaica Plain, Boston, MA

Requiem is an impressive album - all of The Informati’s songs here, save one, are in Latin. Yes, Latin, the dead language high schoolers hate. At first thought and listen Inman’s vocals are reminiscent of Gregorian chants reminiscent of an Enya record, though the disc’s production truly brings the ancient art form back into modern times.
The Informati are a duo of by T.S Ryan on guitars and J. Mark Inman on keyboards and vocals, and although they employ a few others to round out the bass (Ben Foley) and drums (Michael Thomas, Brad Caetano).

With electronic beats, spacey guitars and minor chords a plenty, Requiem has just enough cool to be tapped for a Lexus commercial. Although that might be short changing the Informati, the record finds and fits the electronic, Goth chill out niche; if there is one.

Songs like “Dies Irae,” and “Sanctus” are about exploring a deep stone basement in a long forgotten castle, only to find Ryan and Inman conducting rituals within. It’s nice and creepy.

Requiem is a nice slice of minor melodies for those out there that still listen to The Cocteau Twins, who also like a bit of darkness with their music. (Inman Records)

myspace.com/theinformati

-Dana Forsythe

Linoleum Blownaparte- Twelve Flavors of Temptation
Recorded and Engineered by John Etnier at Studio Dual, Cape Elizabeth, ME | Mastered by Scott Elson at Acadia Recording Company, Portland, ME

Portland, Maine blues rockers Linoleum Blownaparte’s full-length debut, Twelve Flavors of Temptation, distill what likely amounts to a lifetime of blues fandom, composing songs with the dragging tempos of classic Chicago-style electric blues as well as the more mid-tempo, rock-oriented style produced by Cream in the mid-60s. Though the group might seem relatively assuming, perhaps as the soundtrack to a long night of whiskey shots and pool games at the local watering hole, the technical proficiency displayed throughout Twelve Flavors of Temptation cannot be denied, but neither can a sense of redundancy.

The production is perhaps a bit too sterile, especially for something as naturally dirty as the blues, but it succeeds in allowing each instrument to come in clearly, avoiding the potential cluttering that has undone many similar records.

What makes Twelve Flavors of Temptation a difficult listen is the overall homogeneity of the songs. The group never deviates from the genre’s narrow sound, but rather contented to merely change the tempos every so often. Alterations are few, “Lead Me Not” adds some wah-wah and “Brave Party” adds some acoustic flourishes, while “Josephine” is completely acoustic. Otherwise, the whole affair feels like one long collage of riffs and grooves that are fast approaching a full century’s age. A perfect example of a technically talented group that likely thrives in a live setting, but doesn’t translate well to an album. (self-released)

www.myspace.com/linoleumblownaparte

-Anthony Saggese

Rat Wakes Red- Energy Garage
Produced by Jerald Benjamin at Dryhill Studios, Oneonta, NY | Recorded and Mixed at Dryhill Studios, Oneonta, NY | Engineered by Andris Ballins at Dryhill Studios, Oneonta, NY

There’s something surprising about a band called Rat Wakes Red having the mellow resonance that is found on their four song sampler, Energy Garage. While these pop/rock, riff-infused tracks aren’t earth shattering by any means, they are quite easy on the ears. On “Garage,” an acoustic guitar serves as the bare backbone to near-whispery. Although this strategy could either result in musical success or the makings of an obscene phone call, Red pulls off the former, almost flawlessly reeling in the listener from the very first chord. The rest of the disc maintains this cohesiveness that (unfortunately) makes it become predictable. Luckily, the most upbeat track out of the four, “Be Kissed,” introduces funkier and considerably unconventional instrumentation that only enhances the fun mood that Energy Garage aims to achieve. Lyrically, the words are enticing, yet frustrating due to their ambiguity. From “You, “Cut the wheel starboard/better day ahead/come in here, hide away, your balances were an act/be still.” Energy Garage is certainly worth a light and fluffy listen. (self-released)

www.myspace.com/ratwakesred

-Candace McDuffie

The Raveonettes- Lust, Lust, Lust
Produced by Sune Rose Wagner | Recorded by The Raveonettes at Once Was (New York City, Los Angeles, Copenhagen) | Mixed by Chris Young and the Raveonettes | Mastered by Emily Lazar

On Lust, Lust, Lust, The Raveonettes take their sex, drugs and rock and roll in one spoonful, offering reverb-drenched tales of insatiable desire and wild abandon that, like their highs, can only end in an utter crash.

The duo’s third release winds through clouds of atmospheric fuzz, always grounded by a subterranean rhythm section, but always about to burst at the seams. “Aly walk with me,” the album’s opener, is a lucid stroll through a sleeping city, featuring twisted surf-rock leads and two short noise breakdowns that recall the immaculate noise-craft of Ride and, The Raveonettes most obvious forebear, The Jesus and Mary Chain. It’s an explosive, seductive start, and sets a drive maintained throughout the entirety of the album.

Although by no means a concept album, Lust, Lust, Lust has a respect for the album as a format, placing heavy significance on sequencing and song-structures that benefit a unifying theme. On “Lust,” the song’s haunted, confessional tone (“I fell out of heaven / To be with you in hell”) flows seamlessly into the messy drive of “Dead Sound” (“Your cheap words that you bought on sale / Won’t help you through tonight”). “Expelled from Love,” placed midway through the album, is The Raveonettes version of purgatory, stripping their lush sound to the bare minimum. They reduce the walls of fuzz to the metallic clangs of broken guitars, a humbling moment that precedes their abject return to depravity in the album’s later half, begun with the infectious “You Want the Candy.” It is the embodiment of the album’s theme, with angular guitars ripping through waves of sound, crafting ethereal leads subtle enough to border non-existence. The song, as well as the album, is a complete indulgence in everything lust, a vicarious thrill that proves love is never quite as good as it is in song. (Vice Records)

www.theraveonettes.com

-Nick Curran

The Rustic Overtones- Light at the End
Produced by Tony Visconti

After two failed record deals resulting in a five year break, Portland, Maine funk rock outfit Rustic Overtones are back with their fifth release. A strong and consistent album, the Overtones multi-genre’d songwriting style throughout Light at the End is a brassy, entertaining affair that dips and dives through overwhelmingly hooky choruses and smooth, Fender Rhodes-filled verses.

Hitting its high point early on, “Letter to the President” is an acoustic ballad detailing a soldier’s tour overseas. Where political songs are the deathbed of lesser bands, the Overtones manage to write a chilling story of a soldier losing friends, facing parents and confronting the inevitability of death in a foreign land. The simple chord structure is a vehicle for the lyrics (and Dave Gutter’s appropriately guttural delivery), and the arppegiated guitar breakdowns, backed by a delicate glockenspiel, are haunting and as effective at conveying emotion as the story.

The remaining nine tracks are equally diverse in style, borrowing equally from jazz, funk and straight rock. “Hardest Way Possible” features Gutter’s best croon, fronting soaring strings, cacophonous horn blasts and a borderline ‘70s-disco horn section. The menacing horn-swagger of “Car Sick” is an excuse for Gutter to break lose, releasing a visceral chant mid-song, while “Troublesome,” with verses that slowly crescendo toward smooth choral transitions, is all guitar hooks and funk keys.
After a short divergence with the acoustic “Carnival,” the title track explodes with dueling synth and brass hooks, abruptly mellowing into a pulsing organ and droning sax, exemplifying the Overtones scatterbrained songwriting. And with the remarkable sheen brought by former Morrissey producer Tony Visconti, the album should have seen the light at the end of their tunnel, though the final two tracks fade to relative obscurity in face of the albums previous fanfare. (Velour Music Group)

www.myspace.com/rusticovertones

-Nick Curran

Sheri Miller- Mantra
Produced by Michael Patzig | Engineered by Recorded at Moomba Studios, New Milford, CT | Mastered by Ted Spencer and Eli Lishinsky

Take Bob Dylan, change his gender (Cate Blanchett pulled it off, after all), throw in the Beatles’ head-on lyricism, and find a voice with attitude: you’ve got Sheri Miller’s “Mantra.” She balances knife-blade cynicism with openhearted sweetness in well-crafted melodies, harmonies and lyrics on a CD that’s definitely a keeper.

Doug Yowell’s fatback kicks off Miller’s “Waste My Breath,” a Positively- Fourth-Street blow-off of a phony creep caught cheating on his girlfriend. He’s a pack of lies: about the family he lost, the school he never finished, the other girl he left behind. Miller gulps in air telling him “don’t waste my breath,” and the song ends, literally, with a bang.

In the title tune “Mantra,” Miller’s on piano, and Dave Eggar’s string arrangements using cello and violin add to its full-throated McCartney-esque lyricism. The singer realizes, even though she says it like a mantra, that she’s not in love, maybe had kidded herself, and the whole band underscores the self-questioning ending, “unless I was never in love.” Miller gets inside each song’s emotions, be they sweet or ballsy. In “Right Here, Right Now,” a medium-tempo musical setting of the marriage vows, there’s a punch to the singing that saves it from sentimentality. “Devil in White” is Miller’s spin on Jesus’ temptation in the desert (or an evening stroll through the Bronx). Flipping conventional imagery, she has the devil in white; an angel on her shoulder wears black. Armed with the angel’s golden light, the singer makes quick work of the devil’s silver knife, metaphors for rape and big-city danger. There’s definitely a hint of Bob Dylan’s influence in the tune.

There are no musical solos on the album - it’s the song, and the singer, who matter. They’re worth listening to. (self-released)

www.sherimiller.com

-Roanna Forman

The Attorneys- Stereocracy
Engineered and Mixed by Alec Tabak and Graham Moore | Mastered by Nathan Jones

Filled with fast-paced melodies mixed with frenzied guitar make it easy to figure out why Stereocracy is all sorts of danceable. The New York natives try to find a balance between upbeat indie rock and good old-fashioned pop/rock, culminating in sweetly intense album. On tracks like “On A Whim” and “Talk About It,” is channeled with a plethora of lavish soundscapes and swirling choruses managing to balance each other.

The boys lean for a harder sound on “She Got It,” in which killer riffs and vocals are brutal enough to leave a mark. Stereocracy concludes with the epic “Not A Bad Way To Spend An Evening,” a nine-minute song decorated with harmonious and weightless guitar, which overshadows the almost-whiny vocals. The track remains the perfect ending to the album. Stereocracy is a strong debut and while the sound lacks innovation to make a brand new band stand solo in a sea of competitors, it’s not a bad start either. (self-released)

www.myspace.com/flyingmachines

-Candace McDuffie

The Coming Weak- Consider This
Produced and mixed by Michael Poorman

Engineered by Michael Poorman and Darryl Rabidoux at Strangeways Recordings, Providence, RI | Mastered by Ian Kennedy at New Alliance East, Cambridge, MA
Consider This, a five song EP from Providence, Rhode Island’s The Coming Weak, provides an enthusiastic glimpse into the intersections of punk and hard rock. From Tim White’s upper-register vocal delivery to the dual guitar work of Jamie Thomas and Matt Tremblay, Consider This is a smart example of the artful collision of both rock techniques and obvious influences.

The Coming Weak build their brand of rock on a pop-punk foundation complete with unyielding, chunking guitar parts and simple, fast-paced drums. To this the band adds heavy distortion, big rock cymbals, and energetic guitar fills to fortify their punk style with a more aggressive approach to the introspective lyrical content of the CD. Classic hard rock techniques, like the pick slides on “The Last Laugh” and the vibrato-heavy lead flourishes on “Memories Remain” seem to take Consider This out of the realm of punk and into straightforward rock territory.

The highlight of the EP is the coordination of the rhythm section in providing a solid framework for the expressiveness of White’s vocals and a number of searing guitar breaks. The drums are tidy and assured, though they are far from lacking in cymbal thrashings and snare fills. The rhythm section is definitely not lacking in exploring their way through a series of coordinated starts and stops underneath a selection of hooky melodies and phrases.

While Consider This boasts a thick layering of alternative, punk, and rock influences, the tracks are somewhat uniform in structure, and the vocal parts begin to sound repetitive on the second half of the CD. White sings mostly about things broken or breaking, things “fading away,” and even someone who “paints [him] in a somber gray.” Nonetheless, The Coming Weak manage to craft a collection of catchy, vigorous rock songs that sound as fun to play as they are to listen to. (Self-released)

www.thecomingweak.com

-Sarah McFadden

The Diggs- ctrl-alt-del
Mixed and Mastered by Rudyard Lee Cullers | Produced by Howie Weinberg

Featuring collaborations with producers Rudyard Lee Cullers (Ryan Adams, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and Howie Weinberg (Oasis, Nirvana), ctrl-alt-del is a record that lives up to its’ hype. The Brooklyn trio capitalizes on a melodic, often up-tempo sound that draws comparisons to The Stills and Your Black Star. Singer Timothy Lannen’s voice is unabashedly heartbreaking, especially on the epic “You Really Used To Light Up The Room,” in which his wistful tone complimented by tumultuous percussion is nearly jarring. On “This Emphatically,” the vocals are outshined by the instrumentation, yet The Diggs re-establish their unity on the tighter title track as well as “Brigante,” where the transitions are flawless and the harmonies are flowing.
ctrl-alt-del maintains its’ dreamy atmosphere and is a step forward for the band following their previous effort, Commute. The Diggs have evolved past such classification and put all stigmas aside to put out a record that is as good as it is necessary in today’s musical climate. (self-released)

www.thediggs.com

-Candace McDuffie

The Lanterns- Last Generation
Engineered and Mixed by Jim Tierney | Mastered by Chris Decato | Recorded at Electric Cave, Portsmouth NH

The Lanterns would be a typical pop/rock band if they weren’t so damn catchy. Last Generation is a collection of fast-paced pop tunes stripped down to their punk origins.

Courtney Denison’s voice, though not unpleasant, retains its no-nonsense chick-power monotony throughout, but each song sounds different thanks in large part to the noodling bass and sharp riffs. “Someone Like You” features racing, almost rockabilly guitars that, paired with the rapid-fire vocals, could allow it to pass for Bad Religion’s cooler little sister. “California Girls” is, unlike its Beach Boys predecessor, a slowed down, more introspectively longing number. However, the sleepy guitars and lounge-room drumbeats make it one of the only flat-lining tracks. Speed is their strength with songs like “Hey Joey” and “Riverside” where the jangly guitars and excited bass highlight the poetic stories of the songs. The rolling drums of “Massachusetts Can’t Live Without You,” introduce a contrast for the vocals as they subdue the music enough to let Denison actually sing and hold her notes. The title track, “Last Generation,” presents a harder edge comparable to The Cure if Robert Smith took a few anti-depressants. The steady racing guitars are the same, but the overall sound is uplifting, cushioned by the rich bass and carefree drums. In direct contrast to this song though, the album comes to a hushed, and bittersweet end with, “Polar Grape Soda, 2 Straws,” where the vocals are accompanied by a lone guitar, the other instruments pitching in to remind us they’re still there as they harmonize to carry it to the finish. (self-released)

www.myspace.com/thelanterns

-Leyla Hamedi

Topheavy- Love Drunk
Produced David James Minehan | Mastered by Colin Decker at M-Works, Cambridge MA | Recorded at Woolly Mammoth Sound, Boston MA

Beginning with a catchy but non-descript guitar line, Love Drunk’s opener, “Hook,” progresses into a danceable melody that slows down for a soulful, yearning chorus. Though the vocals waver uncertainly as they try to match the tune, they deliver the obligatory, “Yeeeeahs,” clearly and with self-assured confidence. “Words” has an airy guitar that tastefully enjoys its echoes. But the bridge is the real winner here. The steady duet of drumbeats and guitars allow for some actual fist pumping, understated of course, and the backing vocals add a nice layer to the lead. The tracklisting seemingly comes in pairs. The slower numbers, like “Sometimes” and “Happy Song,” all begin with a small, almost acoustic intro before going into the forgettable but sweetly strummed main bodies.

“Kinda Wonderful” is the only song that doesn’t seem to have a twin on the album. The bass is a key focus in the start giving the song more serious tone before dipping into the jangly guitar and bittersweet lyrics. Overall, the album is good background filler for any car ride for the mind to wander. The tone is melancholy at times but the fast pace of the songs doesn’t depress as the lyrics pontificate on different subjects like time and relationships. One such song is “Gone Tomorrow.” The music is uplifting with its lilting vocals and breaks that rally all the instruments to follow the same melody. However, they each then go their own way, the guitars like sirens in a quiet zone, the cymbals keeping the quick time up, and the backing and lead vocals coming together to for the big finish. Though not “big” in the sense of electrifying goosebumps through your body, Topheavy still manage to inspire that satisfied feeling with their music. Like musical granola bars - healthy and tasty but won’t leave you craving more. (self-released)

www.topheavyrock.com

-Leyla Hamedi