Bob Mould
Sunshine Rock
Merge (2019)
Music is a form of expression and therapy and often times the only way an artist can make sense of the events going on around them. It's something Bob Mould makes very clear when he steps up to the mic. After years of dealing with loss and delving deeper into a darkness that surrounded him, he's letting his new album, Sunshine … Read more
Camera Obscura
Underachievers Please Try Harder
Merge (2004)
With the state of pop music looking more and more depressing with every year, it is always nice to hear a band whose influences reach a bit deeper than the latest craze. In the case of Glasgow, Scotland's Camera Obscura (not to be confused with the San Diego band of same name), cues are taken as much from the British … Read more
Conor Oberst
Conor Oberst
Merge (2008)
It's rather interesting that I've found the work of Bright Eyes to be wholly underwhelming since the release of Fevers and Mirrors back in 2000. Sure, there are been standout tracks throughout the years, but as a whole, not one entire album has quite captured the sincerity, the emotion, and the songwriting skills that Conor Oberst displayed on that album. … Read more
King Khan & the Shrines
Idle No More
Merge (2013)
In King Khan & the Shrines, King Khan goes big band. Not in the jazz sense, but in a horn-laden variety a la Memphis rock with some James Brown thrown in for good measure. It’s leg-kicking, camelwalkin’ rock with horns that fill out the sound over a funky groove.While the energetic frontman has a knack for rock ’n’ roll, especially going back … Read more
Robert Pollard
Normal Happiness
Merge (2006)
After the now-legendary, myth-making years in the basement with a guy named Tobin and the other Mitch Mitchell working shamelessly towards what would become Bee Thousand (while still teaching middle school Social Studies, no less) and Spin's review naming same "Record of the Year," some say it's all been downhill for Pollard and his raving gangs of rockers. And how … Read more
She & Him
Volume One
Merge (2008)
She is Zooey Deschanel, the actress and apparently all around talented individual. I remember the moment that is etched into my retina whenever I think of her is in the movie Almost Famous when she grasps the protagonist (her character's little brother) by the shoulders and proclaims to him, "One day, you will be cool" while staring at him with … Read more
She & Him
Volume Two
Merge (2010)
Following up the aptly titled Volume One with an album that has equally fitting title of Volume Two, Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward show that She & Him is not a short lived vanity project for Ms. Deschanel, nor a mere dalliance for Mr. Ward. This time around, She & Him have the benefit (and curse) of knowing that people … Read more
Spoon
Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Merge (2007)
Over the course of the last year Jim Eno, drummer of Spoon and certified electrical engineer, has produced some of 2007's best albums while working with his boys in Spoon to bring us Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Before even getting to the musical element of the record's equation, any enthusiast is quick to note the amazing quality to the … Read more
Spoon
Gimmie Fiction
Merge (2005)
Music elitists say that excellent music has not come out since the 70's; that the past thirty odd some years have been regurgitated, diluted crap. Some might admit that there have been some good bands in the past couple of years, but none of those bands are groundbreaking or memorable. And in the end, those bands are just extremely influenced … Read more
Superchunk
What a Time to Be Alive
Merge (2018)
The world feels like it’s coming apart at the seams, some new scandal or piece of terrible news hits daily, or sometimes with even more frequency. It takes more effort to simply keep up than it does just to be able to digest the news. The result is mind numbing. Then you look to find respite from these things. There’s … Read more
The Arcade Fire
Funeral
Merge (2004)
Hating to love something is a complicated and frustrating emotion. When it comes to music, I prefer one of the following: to love an album unconditionally and make it a part of my life, despise it with a scorching passion, or just entirely forget about it altogether. Conflicting emotions and any sort of middle ground or grey area regarding an … Read more
The Arcade Fire
Neon Bible
Merge (2007)
On Arcade Fire's likeable, but dark new album, Neon Bible, there are many things that differ from their critically acclaimed debut, Funeral. The Montreal based indie rockers have a lot more money behind them and you can immediately tell by the sound quality of their recordings. That said, the songs still have their haunting lyrics and feel. "Black Mirror" recalls … Read more
The Mountain Goats
Bleed Out
Merge (2022)
The Mountain Goats have made an action movie. Bleed Out is a concept album of sorts, made in a distinctly Mountain Goats way. Basically, ringleader John Darnielle wrote the record while watching movies: pausing and taking notes, so the lyrics aren’t just about familiar plotlines, but the full scope of cinematic storytelling. That info all comes in the press release, but it’s … Read more
Titus Andronicus
The Most Lamentable Tragedy
Merge (2015)
Titus Andronicus (+@, as they shorten it) is a punk outfit led by Patrick Stickles, an obvious obsessive who has spent the last three +@ albums cramming barrages of references to Pieter Bruegel, Cheers, Nietzsche, and obscure New Jersey baseball teams into angry punk songs. +@’s most-talked-about work is their second album The Monitor, a grandiose, Civil-War-themed account of what’s … Read more
Wye Oak
The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs
Merge (2018)
Wye Oak have never made the same record twice, and on The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs, it’s not about to change. Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack grow by leaps and bounds on each release, and this, their first proper studio album since 2014’s Shriek has them taking the synth heavy sounds of that record and Wasner’s excellent … Read more
