Category: Album Reviews

old-fashioned (and neo-modern) record reviews

Album Reviews, Interviews, Zines

Eat Your Fill on Gothic Tropic’s Debut LP, Fast or Feast

Originally appeared on Grimy Goods.  Cecilia Della Peruti has more in common with Father John Misty than meets the eye. It may have only dawned on her while we lounged at Echo Park Lake, as the Santa Ana winds ruined a family picnic nearby. After shamefully admitting I hadn’t heard Pure Comedy yet, she gushed, “the opening lyrics made me cry.” She began counting off … Continue reading Eat Your Fill on Gothic Tropic’s Debut LP, Fast or Feast

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews, Zines

Learn to Grieve On The Royal Parks New LP, Suburb Home

Originally appeared on Grimy Goods.  Hidden in the niche of bedroom folk pop is a new Australian outfit, The Royal Parks, who have just released their debut album, Suburb Home. The group is from Melbourne, which is also home to the national park that doubles as their namesake. The band explains that they chose this moniker because of its connection to Melbourne’s indigenous population, the … Continue reading Learn to Grieve On The Royal Parks New LP, Suburb Home

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

Are Our Gods Best? Ruminating on Emay’s New LP, Ilah

Originally appeared on Grimy Goods. Adams worked mostly solo on this record. A few guests contribute on the refrains, grounding the lofty project, but never detract attention away from what is largely autobiographical. Emay also produced all the backing tracks throughout Ilah, filling it with chopped drums and spliced samples for a unique listening experience, if not an acquired taste. The album’s production is tied … Continue reading Are Our Gods Best? Ruminating on Emay’s New LP, Ilah

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

Hopelessness in the Face of Injustice

If you hated Jenny Hval’s feminist commentary noted earlier on this best of the year list, you may not enjoy ANOHNI’s contribution either. Then again, if you hated Blood Bitch because the ideas were too amorphous, then Hopelessness may be exactly the album for you. To mention one without the other would be a dismissal of intersectionality in today’s music industry, but this is not … Continue reading Hopelessness in the Face of Injustice

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

Jenny Hval, Feminist Vampire

I wouldn’t mind writing about Jenny Hval every year. The Norwegian artist has been around the block, but remains relatively quiet in a provocative niche, where industrial electronics meet political performance art. Her 2015 LP, Apocolypse, girl, was a great introduction to her work, and did make my top albums list of that year. Now she’s back on SnG due to the mastery of form … Continue reading Jenny Hval, Feminist Vampire

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

Noname Fones Home

Soul is a commonly known genre of music, but like most genres, its origins are an amalgam of cultural and personal influences. The term itself suggests a depth that transcends the structure of what we know as soul, which recently has made way for an electronic vein of music that is equally emotionally potent. But noname’s recent mixtape Telefone actually has led me to an … Continue reading Noname Fones Home

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

LANKS and Eremin’s Newest Masterpiece

LANKS is not a new name for SnG. He was relatively under my radar for awhile, having shared some great singles but lost among the constant bombardment of new records and live shows. What made me really pay attention was an innocent tweet some months ago, declaring he would be collaborating with Andrei Eremin, a talented up and coming producer that I’ve also been following … Continue reading LANKS and Eremin’s Newest Masterpiece

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

A Mature Debut: Don’t Let the Kids Win

Julia Jacklin’s debut is filled with a nascent wonder. Her songwriting is refreshingly youthful, remarking on small moments that become significant in our old age. Familiar folk progressions meet her beautifully restrained voice which create earworms that haunt my heart. The title track is an egregious offender in this case; I often murmur the refrain under my breath, but it sounds even more pained in … Continue reading A Mature Debut: Don’t Let the Kids Win

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment
Album Reviews

Trekking Across the City with Still Parade

I first sat down to listen to this album on an exploratory adventure via mass transit across the city. Back in May, LADOT cut the ribbon on several new metro stations, extending the Expo line to somewhere that no Los Angeles rail transit line has ever gone before: the beach. For the first weekend of its opening, fares were waived, so I decided to take … Continue reading Trekking Across the City with Still Parade

Unknown's avatarsawdustandginLeave a comment