Hitting middle age was always going to be a test for The Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn. Some 11 years after the barroom rock version of the E Street Band emerged from the wreckage of Lifter Puller, the now 44-year-old’s…
New York City based outfit Tall Firs took 16 years to get to its first album, after forming in 1990. Thankfully subsequent releases haven’t taken such a long time, and we now find ourselves addressing the matter of the act’s…
As scuzzed-up electronic drums heartbeat their way through the opening bars of Low’s 11th album there’s a thrilling realisation that this is not more of the same from the Minnesota minimalists. Replacing the floor-rug warmth of 2013’s The Invisible Way,…
Ortega’s nostalgic world of ‘Faded Gloryville’ looks back over her shoulder and contemplates what went before. Her fourth long player for Last Gang records reeks of class and is the sound of an artist at total peace with herself. It…
Norwegian singer Ane Brun is in typically wide-ranging and intriguing form on her sixth studio album. From the strong independent woman of ‘You Lit My Fire’ to the fragility of ‘Black Notebook’, the sparse ‘Still Waters’ to the incongruous Indian…
Beach House over its last two records cemented its reputation as an innovative and quirky, elegant and dreamlike indie pop duo. The act’s records seemed to get increasingly better up to the point of those two great albums. However, that,…
On the early tracks of Beirut’s 4th full album ‘No No No,’ Zach Condon, head honcho of the world music outfit, seems somehow weary. Yes, it has long been his approach, a compelling laid back yet motivated drive, but some…
On her debut EP, Watch the Water, Oh Sister shows off her song writing prowess in a richer, more electro-filled sound than I’d previously heard at her intimate live performances. The new vibe fits her style impeccably, and her voice…
One of my favourite Yo La Tengo tracks is ‘Gentle Hour’, a hushed, drony love song from 2009’s Dark Was The Night compilation. I realised this week that it’s not theirs, but was originally recorded by New Zealand’s Snapper. That’s…
Anyone familiar with Feathers and Fishhooks was most likely keenly anticipating some new tunes from the man, the myth, the legend – Rayland Baxter. I had the pleasure of seeing Mr. Baxter live at a folk festival, where he told…