Authors: JP
Local Reviews: Fox Van Cleef
“Don’t laugh at me if I make a really crazy face,” is heard as you put Fox Van Cleef’s latest EP on for a spin––and we won’t––these cats are cool. Some pyschedelic guitars start in at that point and make for a very interesting intro track called “Torpedo.” … read more
Local Reviews: Trouble on the Prairie
Minimalist percussion and plaintively delivered vocals make this release one of the most haunting local pieces I’ve heard in a while. Band members Big Red and Little Fran create a lot of atmosphere with only some sparse acoustic guitar, a shaker, a tambourine on some songs and a small drum kit on others. … read more
Local Reviews: Lexi Sayok
This music is engineered to hit right on the money for all people born in the 90s. The fact that the songs longer than three minutes were shoved to the end of the album makes me think that the average Lexi Sayok fan has a gnat’s attention span (what’s new with music written for those under 21 these days though?). … read more
Local Reviews: Cub Country
Thankfully, a local band who had deep roots in the alt-country scene is changing it up. The twang on every song was getting a little tiresome ‘round these parts. Fortunately, Stretch That Skull Cover and Smile is really gutsy rock for most of the disc. … read more
Local Reviews: Lindsay +INFLUENZI+ Heath
Lindsay Heath is an artist entirely in her own right, comparisons to other female pianists aside. When not busy adding her unique talents drumming and playing to the arsenal of others, she unlocks her own powers on personal projects like this. … read more
Local Reviews: Standing Solo
I immediately gravitated towards this album when I first played it. It had all the hallmarks of the music I liked in the late 90s: melodic “punk” with a bit of piss ‘n vinegar. I’ve changed and so has music and the demands I put on what makes an album truly great. … read more
Local Reviews: The Sweater Friends
Your enjoyment of TSF depends on how much you like pop-acoustic duos, or enjoy feeling the pull on your heart strings this type of music elicits. I should say this is good for what it is, which is acoustic rock (such a thing still exists), and an improvement over the majority of bands like this in the region. … read more
Local Reviews: Various Artists
Spy Hop, the local non-profit enterprise known for mentoring youth in a wide swath of media disciplines, is back at it with a sampler of their latest artists. The quality is shockingly good and diverse. … read more
Local Reviews: Skud Missile Smugglaz
This EP surprised me, as most great local hip hop/rap does. The beats are interesting, the production utilizes samples well and the emcees are on point with some really well-versed rhymes. It is VERY nice to see a local group bringing up political ideas that challenge the mainstream with questions about the quality of westernized lifestyles and the wars fought in the name of the American people in the guise of “freedom.” … read more
Local Reviews: Blue Sunshine Soul
Diversity within the local scene isn’t always celebrated and is usually even harder to come across within the environs of a six-piece entity like Blue Sunshine Soul. Perhaps the fact that the majority of the members of this collective are professional musicians helps to keep egos in check and let the individual voices present come to the fore. … read more