Bruce Springsteen - High Hopes (Album Review)

There’s a lot to be said for striking while the iron is hot and that’s just what Bruce Springsteen, five decades into one of the defining careers in popular music, has done with ‘High Hopes’.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Monday, 13 January 2014

Stephen Malkmus And The Jicks - Wig Out At Jagbags (Album Review)

Contrary to what its title may suggest, there’s precious little wigging out going on here. ‘Wig Out At Jagbags’, the latest solo release from former Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus, is one of the more straightforward records in his recent canon, offering up witty, charming alt-pop tunes with a few prog splatters.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Friday, 10 January 2014

Self Defense Family - Try Me (Album Review)

‘Try Me’, Self Defense Family’s first full-length since switching names from End Of A Year, is every bit as challenging as its title suggests. It’s a raw, emotional work, one that flatly refuses to take the easy way out.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 09 January 2014

September Girls - Cursing The Sea (Album Review)

‘Cursing The Sea’, September Girls’ debut full-length, arrives on the coattails of a string of singles, each one bearing the Dublin band’s brew of reverb, girl group harmonies and menacing Jesus And Mary Chain guitars.

Written by: Sam Jones | Date: Wednesday, 08 January 2014

Beyonce - Beyonce (Album Review)

In a world saturated by rolling news and dominated by the social media hive mind, genuine surprises are hard to come by. Hats off then, to Beyoncé. Her fifth album arrived at the end of December with so little fanfare that Kanye West’s stripped-back unveiling of ‘Yeezus’ seemed gratuitous by comparison.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 07 January 2014

French Exit - Guts & Black Stuff (Album Review)

‘Guts & Black Stuff’, the debut full-length from French Exit, is a patchwork quilt of sorts. Its title references a classic Simpsons episode, and a Movielife lyric that will ring a bell with pop-punk fans of a certain age, while its 12 tracks plot a path through ‘Pinkerton’-era Weezer via the ragged guitars of Dillinger Four and enough redemptive singalongs to floor a room full of broken hearts.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Monday, 06 January 2014

Iced Earth - Plagues Of Babylon (Album Review)

Iced Earth have been knocking about for a good while now, and across almost three decades they've pummelled the ears with some delightful treats. The 'Something Wicked' saga, in particular, is a collection of gems and with 'Plagues Of Babylon', that sprawling, grandiose narrative has once again been stretched across the course of...well, half an album.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Monday, 06 January 2014

Neil Young - Live At The Cellar Door (Album Review)

Stripped to its bare bones, ‘Live At The Cellar Door’, the latest entry in Neil Young’s 'Archive' series, may seem fairly inconsequential. It shares over half its tracklist with ‘Live At Massey Hall’ and was recorded a matter of weeks earlier during a short residency at the intimate Washington DC club late in 1970.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 12 December 2013

Nils Frahm - Spaces (Album Review)

Berlin-based neoclassical pianist Nils Frahm has, along with his Icelandic buddy Ólafur Arnalds, become something of a poster boy for the revival of the piano in the world of contemporary classicism. Studio records such as ‘The Bells’ and ‘Felt’ have received the bulk of their acclaim in the mainstream ‘indie’ music press, although an acknowledgement of this is certainly not meant to belittle Frahm’s exceptional talent.

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Wednesday, 11 December 2013

The Warlocks - Skull Worship (Album Review)

With a rotating cast of musicians, the Warlocks have been trudging the psychedelic rock path for some 15 years now, with the mesmerising ‘Skull Worship’ their long-awaited return to action.

Written by: Graeme Marsh | Date: Tuesday, 10 December 2013

Boston - Life, Love & Hope (Album Review)

Since Boston's mega-selling debut arrived in 1976, Tom Scholz’s search for perfection has taken over and, unfortunately, the band's music has gradually worsened with each release. With 'Life, Love & Hope' he has hit rock bottom, serving up one of the biggest turkeys of the year just in time for Christmas.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Monday, 09 December 2013

Matt Pryor - Wrist Slitter (Album Review)

‘Wrist Slitter’, Matt Pryor’s third solo record, is done a slight disservice by its title. Take his word for it: “I was prepared to write a very sad album, a ‘wrist slitter’, but this album ended up being the exact opposite of that.”

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Friday, 06 December 2013

Britney Spears - Britney Jean (Album Review)

The hype machine is a duplicitous beast, and nowhere is that more apparent than on Britney Spears’ ‘Britney Jean’. Billed pre-release as her most ‘personal’ record, a claim emboldened by its title, it is in fact a dreary tramp through club staples and tired ballads.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Wednesday, 04 December 2013

Bad Religion - Christmas Songs (Album Review)

Nothing says Christmas like Bad Religion, right? Well, maybe not. But for those out there who bristle at the thought of another December plagued by pop cash-ins and also-rans, ‘Christmas Songs’ could become a festive tonic for years to come.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Monday, 02 December 2013

Annie Dressner - Don't Feel The Same

Following strong reviews of her debut album, ‘Strangers Who Knew Each Other’s Names’, and this year’s ‘East Twenties’ EP, UK-based New Yorker Annie Dressner has returned with a new single to brighten up those long winter nights.

Written by: Dave Ball | Date: Friday, 29 November 2013

Hammock - Oblivion Hymns (Album Review)

When searching for tunes that evoke floating sensations or prompt existential reflection, look no further than Hammock's sixth full-length, ‘Oblivion Hymns’.

Written by: Jonathan Lin | Date: Friday, 29 November 2013

Billie Joe + Norah - Foreverly (Album Review)

‘Foreverly’ finds Billie Joe Armstrong, frontman of Green Day, teaming up with Norah Jones for a re-tread of the Everly Brothers’ ‘Songs Our Daddy Taught Us’. It’s not as crazy as it sounds. Honestly.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Thursday, 28 November 2013

Michael Schenker - Bridge The Gap (Album Review)

The phoenix-like resurgence of Michael Schenker continues in style on this storming old school metal album, where an energised bed of dark, drilling riffs are counterpointed by a strong melodic backbone that'll have the old devil horns raised in celebration.  

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Wednesday, 27 November 2013

Gary Barlow - Since I Saw You Last (Album Review)

Gary Barlow has weathered his share of storms. Having emerged from the fallout of Take That’s initial disintegration, his reputation as a songwriter of note was cruelly snatched from his grasp by an underwhelming solo bow and the all-encompassing scope of Robbie Williams’ fame at the turn of the millennium.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 26 November 2013

XXX: Three Decades Of Roadrunner Records (Album Review)

Everyone has a goal, something to point at and think: "that's the dream." When it comes to metal music, Roadrunner Records has felt, for much of its 30 years, like the home of all that is great and good. Now, the iconic label has pulled together ‘XXX’, a one-stop shop to highlight their history of launching and nurturing metal's finest.

Written by: Heather McDaid | Date: Monday, 25 November 2013