Music
▼ Local Reviews
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: Mary May I
Have you ever heard those bands that seem to dabble in many different genres, but don’t really have a core or a niche? That’s how Mary May I is. They’ve got a punk crust with post-punk sauce, nu metal crumbs drizzled over chunks of groove rock, baked in an indie-rock oven. … read more
Local Reviews: Drop Dead Julio
Drop Dead Julio (pronounced “Jewlio”) is a band that transcends genres. This band is so subtly complex that words probably won’t be invented for hundreds of years to even begin to describe the amount of layered lyrical and musical mastery provided to our ears on The Stories We Could Tell. Wait, no. They’re actually the exact opposite. … read more
Local Reviews: Jef Doogie
Something Original is good, solid underground rap in the style of most solid underground rap: old-school production and angsty subject matter. The last part is what kept me from really loving this album. … read more
Local Reviews: Discourse
Discourse is like a big wedding cake in outer space. This six song EP has layer upon layer of reverbed-out, sugary goodness. Each song is well thought-out and intelligently played. It’s nice to hear local music like this. … 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: Vanzetti Crime
Let’s face it: local punk and ska bands, as a general rule, are pretty shitty. Of course there are always exceptions, but more often than not, local punk bands tend to be drunken, untalented idiots, and local ska bands tend to be goofy kids whose religious upbringing keeps them from being drunken, untalented idiots. … 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: 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: Eric Openshaw Band
I know who I want to marry now: Eric Openshaw! He is such a dreamboat, and his music is so creative and original—definitely God’s gift to music and the world. Ever since I received his album, I have longingly stared at the beautiful, seductive glamour shot of him posing next to the dryers at the laundromat. … read more