Posts by Jeremy Lukens

[rating=7.00] Two years after the release of her acclaimed No Roots EP, Alice Merton returns with her full-length debut. Sharing only one song – the mega-hit “No Roots” – with the EP, Mint is an impressive collection of irresistible pop gems that showcases Merton’s knack for infectious hooks and dancefloor-packing beats. From the opening salvo […]

[rating=7.00] Greta Van Fleet’s first proper LP, Anthem of the Peaceful Army, follows two EPs that generated a lot of buzz and fame within indie circles. The young Michigan quartet has been praised for its musical chops and compared – both favorably and unfavorably – to Led Zeppelin. With the new album, the band hopes […]

The third and final day of the opening weekend of the 2018 Austin City Limits Music Festival saw a variety of musical styles, sometimes within the same performance. Though there were fewer big names than the previous night, the acts were solid and the night ended with perhaps the best show of the festival. Atlanta […]

Day two of the Austin City Limits Music Festival largely took place under threat of storm, but the weather cooperated and after a short delay, the show went on. Molly Burch started off the festivities with a jazz-soaked performance on the Barton Springs stage. Playing songs off her debut album Please Be Mine, Burch’s voice […]

The first day of the opening weekend of the Austin City Limits Music Festival featured a variety of genres on eight stages, from up-and-coming acts to established veterans to rock legends. The Coronas kicked off the festival on the Barton Springs stage with its blend of jangling pop rock. The Irish band, touring behind its […]

[rating=7.00] Wanderer, Cat Power’s tenth album, is a return to the slower, softer sound that characterized 2006’s The Greatest, after a brief flirtation with upbeat pop on 2012’s Sun. Cat Power, whose real name is Chan Marshall, has one of the most soulful and emotionally evocative voices in the industry and the new album puts […]

[rating=8.00] AAARTH, the fourth album from Welsh trio The Joy Formidable, is an aggressive collection of pulse-pounding hard rock that deftly combines raw power with melodic hooks. The fat, midrange-heavy distorted guitars and pounding drums seem more fit for an era of flannel and Doc Martins than the current alternative scene, but the Joy Formidable […]

[rating=7.00] Metric’s seventh studio album is another abrupt shift in sound from a band that has fluctuated between its rock, pop, and electronica influences over the years. Following the synth-pop sound of 2015’s Pagans in Vegas, an album that featured little guitar, the Toronto quartet releases its most guitar-driven album since 2009’s Fantasies. Produced by […]

[rating=8.00] Be the Cowboy the fifth album by Mitski –full name Mitski Miyawaki – followers hear breakthrough album Puberty 2, one of the finest albums of 2016. For the followup, Mitski does a lot of things that worked well on the last album – the melding of musical influences, the use of dynamics, unique vocal […]

A co-headliner tour featuring Beth Hart and Kenny Wayne Shepherd brought two distinctly different styles of blues rock to Hard Rock Live in Orlando Friday night August 10th. Beth Hart started off the night with a set that showcased her strong vocals and songwriting. Hart opened the set with the backing band playing onstage with […]

[rating=8.00] Releasing at least one album every year over the last decade, it’s amazing that garage rocker Ty Segall has been able to maintain a consistently high quality over his prolific catalog. For his second album of 2018, Segall has once again teamed up with White Fence, aka Tim Presley. Joy, the follow up to […]

Weezer and the Pixies brought contrasting crowd-pleasing sets to the nearly 20,000 people who packed into Tampa’s MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre on Saturday night June 23rd. After a brief opening set by the Wombats, iconic Boston rockers the Pixies tore through a fiery set that showed why they have influenced so many alternative acts. With […]

The third day of the Shaky Knees Music Festival in Atlanta, Georgia took a turn for softer, more melodic sounds. After a lot of loud, aggressive rockers in the first two days, the final day of the festival featured a lot of beat-heavy or melodic bands. Frankie Rose’s new wave pop rock opened the day […]

Day two of the Shaky Knees Music Festival in Atlanta Georgia saw more of the same eclectic rock talent that has made it one of the most underrated festivals in the country. With cloudy skies providing respite from the Atlanta sun, fans came out in full force, packing each of the four stages, which showcased […]

Over the last few years, the Shaky Knees Music Festival in Atlanta, Georgia has quietly become one of the nation’s best rock festivals. This year there are four stages and more than 36 hours of music over three days, with indie rock ranging from hard rock to new wave to folk and everything in between. […]

[rating=6.00] Just to get it out of the way, Scott Weiland was always the best part of Stone Temple Pilots. His bombastic stage presence, soulful scratchy baritone, keen ear for catchy melody, and lyrics that shifted between introspective and enigmatic helped the San Diego quartet become more than the sum of its parts. New singer […]

[rating=9.00] After gaining considerable critical acclaim and picking up new fans with 2016’s Teens of Denial, the band’s second album released under a record label, Car Seat Headrest follows up with the effort with a re-issue of its best self-released album, Twin Fantasy. Originally released only on Bandcamp in 2011, Twin Fantasy has been painstakingly […]

[rating=7.00] American Dream is the third album by California folk band Rainbow Girls, but it is the first with the band’s new scaled-back lineup. Now a trio consisting of Erin Chapin, Caitlin Gowdey, and Vanessa May, Rainbow Girls delivers an album of ten socially conscious indie folk songs. Stripped down to a point of being […]

Five years after debuting with the excellent neo-folk album Yossis, Sun Parade reinvents itself and returns with a sound that is much brasher and more aggressive. The new album, Shuggy Mtn Breakdown is a well-crafted amalgamation of garage rock, psychedelia, and melodic pop with a hint of the folk roots from which founder Chris Marlon […]

[rating=9.00] Thirteen albums into his storied career, alt-pop chameleon Beck returns to a more energetic form with triumphant party record Colors. After the excellent but subdued Morning Phase returned Beck to the acoustic singer-songwriter form that he has visited several times throughout his career, Colors brings back the pop energy of early Beck work. Colors […]