Posts by Jeremy Lukens

Beneath the Eyrie is the seventh full-length album from alt-rock legends Pixies and the third since the band reunited in 2004. Like 2016’s Head Carrier, it is a more mature album, trading in a lot of the frenetic eccentricity that characterized the band’s early releases for a more cohesive sound. The sound is still diverse […]

In 1989, Soundgarden hit the studio with an uncertain future. The band was dissatisfied with its full-length debut Ultramega OK and its lack of creative control over the final mix of the songs. After several failed attempts to rework the material, the band decided to cut its losses and focus on the next album, for […]

On Thursday night, rock fans in Central Florida took a break from hurricane preparations to enjoy three of the best acts in the alternative scene. For the second-to-last show of Beck and Cage the Elephant’s co-headlining Night Running Tour, the bands treated the crowd at Tampa’s MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre to eclectic performances, along with […]

Saturday night August 17th, 20,000 packed into the MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre in Tampa, Florida for a celebration of female-fronted rock and roll. The three acts each brought its own distinctive style, wowing the crowd in different ways. Relative newcomer Elle King delivered a twangy set of hook-laden southern rock. King and her backing band […]

New Zealand psychedelic band Unknown Mortal Orchestra brought its densely layered indie rock to the Plaza Live in Orlando on June 13th. Backed by a three-piece band, Ruban Nielson laid down intricate guitar compositions heavy on effects, his brother Kody Nielson buttressing the songs with his frantic drumming. Most of the set was subdued, with […]

On a soggy night in Orlando on June 8th, Florence and the Machine treated the crowd at the Amway Center to an upbeat celebration of love. Fifteen-year-old singer-songwriter Grace VanderWaal opened the night with her unique brand of folk-pop. VanderWaal, the 2016 winner of “America’s Got Talent” impressed the early arrivers with a set of […]

Erotic Reruns, the fifth album by Brooklyn trio Yeasayer, is the band’s most accessible album to date. For better or worse, it has less experimentation than previous efforts, leading to fewer standout moments but also none of the missteps that have popped up from time to time. It is a collection of hook-laden indie pop […]

The Traveler, the ninth studio album from the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band, picks up where 2017’s Lay It On Down left off. Guitar prodigy Shepherd again focuses on tightly crafted blues-rock songs, forgoing excessive six-string histrionics in favor of a subtler approach that favors composition over licks and solos. The ten-track album features eight originals […]

The third and final day of the Shaky Knees Music Festival didn’t quite live up to the high bar set by the first two days, but it still offered great music covering a variety of genres. UK trio Demob Happy unleashed a ferocious set of heavy alternative rock on the Criminal Records stage. Drummer Thomas […]

Day two of the Shaky Knees Festival in Atlanta was held under the constant specter of severe weather. Dark clouds threatened storms throughout the day, with the skies finally opening up near the end of the night. The weather prompted last-minute shifts in the schedule, but even a soaked crowd was able to enjoy a […]

The first day of the Shaky Knees Music Festival in Atlanta, Georgia was a showcase of the eclecticism of modern rock music. It featured rock bands rooted in R&B and country, punk rockers, melodic rock, riff rock, and in Incubus and Beck, two bands so versatile that they defy classification. Devon Gilfillian brought his brand […]

In what may or may not be the swan song for Foxygen, the indie duo has released a nine-track collection of tightly crafted pop songs. Seeing Other People is the most accessible Foxygen album, especially coming on the heels of the chaotic double album …And Star Power (2014) and the theatrical bombast of Hang (2017). […]

For Band of Skulls’ fifth LP, Love Is All You Love, the U.K. rockers made a conscious effort to record a happier and more optimistic album. In response to depressing and anxious times, the band decided to provide with its music the kind of euphoria that is in short supply in society. The result is […]

After an uneven and disappointing performance by Swervedriver, alt-rockers Failure delivered a powerful and eclectic set to an Orlando crowd at the Plaza Live on March 19th. English alternative band Swervedriver opened with a noisy set in which its shoegaze-influenced sound brought out the weaknesses of the genre, mostly Adam Franklin’s unintelligible vocals and a […]

It was a night of 90s nostalgia as grunge icons Candlebox rocked an Orlando crowd at The Plaza on March 13th. They walked onto the stage to a fake radio broadcast that tuned in to brief clips of songs by the band’s Seattle peers Mudhoney, Soundgarden, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Screaming Trees, and Pearl Jam. […]

On the second and final day of the Gasparilla Music Festival on March 10th, the crowd in Tampa, Florida was treated to another day of solid eclectic music, with a combination of local bands and those who came as far as New Zealand. Beyond Chaotic kicked off the festivities. Fronted by 13-year-old guitarist Max Karafilis […]

After an inauspicious start, Speedy Ortiz recovered to rock Will’s Pub in Orlando on Monday, March 4th. Local trio TV Dinner kicked off the night with their brand of self-described “twee pop.” Combining lo-fi melodies, droning guitars, and somber lyrics, singer/guitarist Julia Joyce and the band treated the early arrivers to a melodic performance with […]

Dynamics were the formula for the night as Car Seat Headrest rocked an Orlando crowd on Friday night February 22nd. The Virginia indie rockers delivered a set that showcased the band’s impressive range, eclecticism, and penchant for long, hook-laden anthems. Following a raucous opening set from Naked Giants, Car Seat Headrest opened their performance with […]

On the last day of January, veteran alt-rockers Soul Asylum took an Orlando crowd back to the 1990s, when grunge, flannel, and walls of feedback were king. Playing an intimate Velvet Sessions set at the Hard Rock Hotel on 1/31/19, the Minnesota band tore through songs ranging from 1986 to 2016, from fan-favorite head-bangers to sing-along radio […]

Despite having little commercial success and only existing for three years, Green River remains one of rock’s most important and influential bands. The grunge pioneers are best known for the bands they formed after Green River’s demise – such as Mudhoney, Pearl Jam, and Mother Love Bone – but the three albums released by Green […]