Palms
Self Titled
Ipecac (2013)
Isis may have disbanded in 2010, but that's far from the last we've heard from its members. Though many of them have joined other bands, they have mostly stayed separate from one another, with no more than two ever appearing in the same place. But of course, that's what makes Palms so intriguing--featuring three fifths of Isis (Jeff Caxide, Aaron … Read more
Pan & Me
Ocean Noise
Denovali (2014)
Christopher Mevel, one of the founding members of the Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones, set up his solo project, Pan & Me, in order to step outside of the jazz based sound of the main band and to explore other sonic domains. Ambient music and drone are the key aspects of Pan & Me and their main focus of … Read more
Pan American
The Patience Fader
Kranky (2022)
Sonic maturity is not always reached by further augmenting one’s sound. It can also arrive when the artist understands what is important. What it is at the core of the project that makes it unique. Mark Nelson has taken such a journey with his project, Pan•American. In the early days, Pan•American relished the experimentalism of drone music, the ethereal quality … Read more
Panda Bear
Person Pitch
Paw Tracks (2007)
Better known as one-fourth of indie darlings Animal Collective, Noah Lennox under the name Panda Bear has recently released his third record upon the world, aptly titled Person Pitch. Gone are the mostly acoustic-based songs found on his last album, Young Prayer. Person Pitch has taken elements of Brian Wilson's years of experimenting in the field of pop to an … Read more
Panda Bear
Young Prayer
Paw Tracks (2004)
Though Young Prayer is intended to act as a eulogy for Animal Collective member Panda Bear's (a.k.a. Noah Lennox) recently deceased father, it feels more like a bittersweet celebration of his life than a sorrow-filled reflection. Drawing upon modern classical music (Track 3), tribal African chants (Track 5), traditional Jewish hymns (Track 9), as well as the stylistic imprint of … Read more
Panda Kid
I Saw My Soul Leaving
Lollipop Records / FDH Records / Already Dead Tapes (2015)
Gloriously unpolished and perhaps one of the outright loudest and gnarliest records I've heard all year, 2015's I Saw My Soul Leaving is a sort of greatest hits album released to commemorate the first US tour by Italian garage rocker Panda Kid (a.k.a. Alberto Manfrin). This album combines two new tracks with eight from the artist's back catalog in a … Read more
Pandemix
In Condemnation
Dirt Cult (2019)
Pandemix are new to me, and they’re difficult to sum up in just a few words. That’s a complement. It’s punk by genre, but a few subgenre adjectives aren’t going to capture the band. In Condemnation isn’t exactly complex (we’re talking punk rock here), but it’s diverse in subtle ways that keep the energy level high and fresh as it … Read more
Panic
Circles
Reflections (2006)
In hardcore's early '80s halcyon days, the EP became the coin of the realm: a handful of songs, often over before you had a chance to sit down. Many great bands never even recorded full-lengths - a phenomenon that's a lot less common today though by no means extinct. Maybe if Panic hadn't broken up in 2002, they would have … Read more
Panic
Strength in Solitude
Bridge Nine (2006)
At first listen, Panic seems like your stereotypical Bridge Nine band. In a way they are, and in a way they aren't. But I'll get to that in a second. Strength in Solitude is a comprehensive look at everything the band produced in its first two years as a band (2000-2002). This includes the out-of-print Dying For It EP (2001) … Read more
Panopticon
On The Subject Of Mortality
Flenser (2011)
Many people (I was going to say all but did not want to over generalize) seem to have certain touchstones with regards to certain styles of music, and in one short year, Panopticon has become one of those “bands” (in quotes because this is really a one man project) for me; …On The Subject Of Mortality… is the record that … Read more
Panopticon
Roads to the North
Bindrune Records (2014)
Panopticon has been around since 2007, releasing great albums, from their self-titled full-length to the 2012 Kentucky. And it was with Kentucky that the band really made many heads turn. Their folk infused black metal was a breath of fresh air for the scene, with A.Lunn making things more interesting, using unconventional tactics. The only worrying part of all this … Read more
Panopticon
Social Disservices
Flenser (2011)
Did you ever just get constantly impressed with the evolution that an artist or group of artists make through the progression of their work and craft? Panopticon certainly is making that type of impression on me at this particular juncture as the one man political black metal project drops one of the more politically acerbic records that I have heard … Read more
Papermoons
No Love
Deep Elm (2013)
The press blurb that accompanies Texas-based indie folk duo Papermoons' sophomore album No Love claims that "the idea that you can say a whole lot more without screaming or shouting" is solidified in this LP. No Love is 10 tracks of smouldering, cleverly composed melodies with occasional gushes of shimmering electric guitars. Written during the five years after Papermoons' debut … Read more
Paradise Lost
Medusa
Nuclear Blast (2018)
With the daring first notes of a church organ, Paradise Lost primes its listeners for a quasi-sermon on the mount in Medusa. A part description of suffering, part omen for eventual destruction, part heroic call to arms in the face of meaninglessness, Medusa glorifies godless bravery and turns those who cower from responsibility to stone. The album is predicated on … Read more
Paramore
Self Titled
Fueled By Ramen (2013)
It makes sense that this is Paramore’s self-titled album, even though it’s their fourth full-length. Everything you know or have heard about Paramore, put all of those pre-conceived notions in your time capsule for 2009, because that’s not them anymore. This is the two remaining original members’ (Taylor York joined the band after the Farro departure) time to show everyone … Read more
Parasitic Skies
The Descent
Seventh Dagger (2010)
Metalcore may be the most loaded term in modern underground music. For most it means you sound like Hatebreed or for the slightly more adventurous Heaven Shall Burn. Either way, you're running the risk of monotony and probably jokes at your expense from those too cool. While I say this, there was a time in the 90's that metalcore was … Read more
Paris Hilton
Paris
Warner Bros. (2006)
Though I'm sure none of you indie elite need to be reminded, but allow me to assert that Paris Hilton is a piece of shit. It's an obvious statement, sure, but one that is central to wrapping your head around this omnipresent, miasmic phenomenon in our media and celebrity-centric culture. Too often, the question we thinking people - anyone with … Read more
Pariuh
Family Witchcraft Attack
Moniker Records (2018)
I'm not sure what exactly I expected going into an album titled Family Witchcraft Attack, but I wound up being pleasantly surprised by the type of sound exhibited by Miami-based Pariuh on their 2018 Moniker Records release. Almost immediately upon pressing play, I found myself transported out of 2018's frustrating reality to a sugar-coated fantasy world reminiscent of the type … Read more
