January 2010
1 post
Eric & Mark's Top 40 Albums Of 2009
Jan 6th
August 2009
1 post
maudlin of the Well (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Part the Second [May 14, 2009] | [Dark Symphonies] x————————————————————— 8.5/10 Like every good album, Part the Second has quite a story behind it. Toby Driver’s maudlin of the Well had...
Aug 14th
July 2009
3 posts
Four More Great Albums of 2009 (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Yesterday & Today / The Ecstatic / Catacombs / Bitte Orca [2009] | [Kontackt / Downtown / Domino / Domino] x————————————————————— 8+/10 2009 is more than half way done now as we strut towards...
Jul 25th
1 note
Reverie Sound Revue (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Reverie Sound Revue [June 23, 2009] | [Boompa Records] x————————————————————— 7.7/10 Back in 2002, you might remember the formation of a rather sweet, indie pop band known as Reverie Sound...
Jul 5th
Discovery (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) LP [July 7, 2009] | [XL Recordings] x————————————————————— 8.1/10 There’s something charming about uninhibited and shameless love albums that are filled with dolorous tracks. We’ve all heard it...
Jul 1st
1 note
June 2009
5 posts
Kurt Vile (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) God Is Saying This To You… [2009] | [Mexican Summer] x————————————————————— 7.8/10 As the guitarist for The War On Drugs, Kurt Vile understands what it’s like to be under looked. The bands 2008...
Jun 22nd
Mountains (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Choral [Feb 17, 2009] | [Thrill Jockey] x————————————————————— 8.3/10 About a week ago, I was in my office (bedroom that contains a laptop) listening to a brand new album from the backwoods band...
Jun 16th
1 note
Teengirl Fantasy (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) CD-R [2009] | [Self-Released] x————————————————————— 7.2/10 So the gears seem to be really moving now as we hit mid ’09. There’s good reason to be excited about Teengirl Fantasy, whose CD-R is...
Jun 8th
Three Great Albums of 2009 (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Manners / Avoid The Light / Veckatimest [2009] | [Frenchkiss Records / Anger Management / Warp] x————————————————————— 8+/10 So once again, Mark and I have found ourselves behind on all the releases...
Jun 4th
Dredg (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion [June 9, 2009] | [Ohlone Recordings] x————————————————————— 5.0/10 I don’t really like calling Dredg progressive-rock. They’ve always seemed too poppy, too light, and...
Jun 2nd
May 2009
2 posts
Phoenix (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix [May 29, 2009] | [V2 Records] x————————————————————— 9.1/10 The mythological creature known as the “phoenix” is defined as having great beauty and fabled to live 500 to 600 years...
May 21st
Four Great Albums of 2009 (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart / Two Suns Why There Are Mountains / My Maudlin Career [2009] | [Slumberland / Astralwerks / Self-Released / 4AD] x————————————————————— 8+/10 So...
May 4th
April 2009
5 posts
Japandroids (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Post-Nothing [April 29, 2009] | [Unfamaliar] x————————————————————— 8.0/10 Japandroids, the two piece band intent on making up enough noise to pass for a fledged band plus more, hit us with their full...
Apr 23rd
Kyte (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Science For The Living [April 8, 2009] | [Rallye / Kids] x————————————————————— 8.4/10 As I look at the clock at 2AM while Kyte’s brand new album buzzes through my headphones, it puts me through...
Apr 20th
1 note
Archive (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Controlling Crowds [March 30, 2009] | [Island] x————————————————————— 7.1/10 Our world has seen its share of ups and downs no matter what generation of people you research. Even today, we are somehow...
Apr 9th
Doves (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Kingdom Of Rust [April 6, 2009] | [Astralwerks] x————————————————————— 6.5/10 Are Doves not content with their reputation? Their work has always had lightheartedness embodied in it that we’re not...
Apr 6th
Burning Hearts (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Aboa Sleeping [February 10, 2009] | [Shelflife Records] x————————————————————— 7.6/10 When you think Finland, you think rolling hills, thick wooded forests, and labyrinths of lakes and rivers....
Apr 5th
March 2009
7 posts
Mono (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Hymn to the Immortal Wind [March 24, 2009] | [Temporary Residence Limited] x————————————————————— 6.3/10 Post-Rock is becoming a very prominent genre of music in the indie scene. As the 90’s held on to bands...
Mar 30th
Gregor Samsa (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Over Air [2009] | [The Kora Records] x————————————————————— 5.4/10 As I sat at a stop light on my drive home from work, Boston’s sky was grey and overcast with drops of rain falling over a quiet and...
Mar 30th
Great Lake Swimmers (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Lost Channels [March 31, 2009] | [Nettwerk] x————————————————————— 7.4/10 Great Lake Swimmers like water apparently. If you hadn’t guessed it from their name (no it’s not a...
Mar 25th
1 note
The Decemberists (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) The Hazards Of Love [March 24, 2009] | [Capitol Records] x————————————————————— 6.1/10 Well, you had to see it coming. From the various tragedies, epic quests, elaborate observations about the...
Mar 23rd
1 note
The Boxer Rebellion (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Union [January 11, 2009] | [Self-Released] x————————————————————— 8.6/10 What exactly is it that defines an indie band? Is it a unique style of instrumentation or is it a band that stands...
Mar 19th
Yeah Yeah Yeahs (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) It’s Blitz! [March 9, 2009] | [Interscope] x————————————————————— 8.2/10 The Yeah Yeah Yeahs since their start have always had the term art associated with them. Their musical style was...
Mar 9th
Malajube (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Labyrinthes [February 10, 2009] | [Dare to Care Records] x————————————————————— 7.2/10 Sigur Rós has opened the gates up for bands all across the world to try breaking into the American music scene....
Mar 7th
February 2009
2 posts
Fever Ray (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Fever Ray [March 18, 2009] | [Rabid Records] x————————————————————— 6.5/10 The Knife’s 2006 Silent Shout was a powerful composition of eerie electronic music characterized by Karin Dreijer...
Feb 18th
Vetiver (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Tight Knit [February 17, 2009] | [Sub Pop] x————————————————————— 8.2/10 Vetiver is one of those bands that have never really garnered the respect that they so rightfully deserve. The band, led by Andy...
Feb 11th
January 2009
8 posts
The Bird And The Bee (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future [January 27, 2009] | [Blue Note Records] x————————————————————— 8.0/10 So what do you get when you cross Inara George and Greg Kursten? You get The Bird And...
Jan 24th
Circlesquare (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Songs About Dancing And Drugs [February 17, 2009] | [!K7] x————————————————————— 6.0/10 The new album from Circlesquare, aka Jeremy Shaws, has a sticky substance to it. Something about Shaws’...
Jan 22nd
The 1900s (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Medium High EP [January 20, 2009] | [Parasol Records] x————————————————————— 8.1/10 Usually when an EP comes along I am very skeptical on how the material within the album will be. My opinion on EP’s...
Jan 20th
A_liFe [DivideD] (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Virtualized [2003] | [Self-Released] x————————————————————— 9.0/10 It’s hard being A_liFe [DivideD]. Here they are – a bunch of German guys making some pretty good music, but can’t seem to find...
Jan 15th
The Rifles (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Great Escape [January 26, 2009] | [679 Recordings] x————————————————————— 7.4/10 The Rifles’ sophomore album entitled The Great Escape shows listeners a band with a whole load of potential. The album...
Jan 13th
Bon Iver (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Blood Bank [January 20, 2009] | [Jagjaguwar] x————————————————————— 4.9/10 It’s very rare these days that we see a folk artist enjoy as much critical acclaim as Justin Vernon has as Bon Iver since his...
Jan 9th
2 notes
Animal Collective (Wiki) | (Last.FM) | (Myspace) Meriweather Post Pavilion [January 6, 2009] | [Domino] x————————————————————— 10.0/10 Animal Collective has kept me loving music for years. However, there were a few things that I always craved...
Jan 8th
The Cold Wall’s Top 20 Albums Of 2008 Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago TV On  The Radio - Dear Science Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes M83 - Saturday’s=Youth Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours The Dodos - Visiter Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III Kanye West - 808’s & Heartbreak Shearwater - Rooks Hercules And Love Affair - Hercules And Love Affair Deerhoof - Offend Maggie Air France...
Jan 1st