Posts by Jeff Strowe

Buried beneath the clunkiness of this project’s name is Spencer Krug, well-known as the noodling, keyboard-playing, co-leader of Wolf Parade.  Yep, you remember them: the versatile Canadian indie-rock outfit who rocked hard over the course of a handful of solid albums and EP”s before taking an indefinite hiatus last spring.

Diamond Rugs' self-titled debut, out on Partisan Records, is a 14-song gem lined with country-rock wailing, Replacements’ punk stomping, and bluesy jazz riffs reminiscent of Exile-era Stones.  The sum of its’ parts, Diamond Rugs’ song-craft will also remind listeners of the various members’ main projects. 

In a similar vein to Neil Young & Crazy Horse, the four members of Austin, Texas’ White Denim took the stage Saturday night in Hoboken, and proceeded to pummel the capacity crowd with an onslaught of frenetically paced and emotionally fueled songs and instrumental histrionics.

Kurt Wagner and company have always operated on a different plane than others, making many beautiful albums worth of strange bedfellows, marrying rock, country, folk, and orchestral sounds into a conglomerate of tunes so distinct and intriguing that classification seems a pointless exercise. Mr. M is no exception as again the traits that make Lambchop one of a kind are on full display. 

Coming of Age is an amazingly crafted debut from a young band we’ll hopefully hear more from as time progresses.  It will be interesting to see how their songwriting and thematic elements develop as they age and matriculate among the rock and roll lifestyle.  They’ve captured a particular slice of life well this time around.  Here’s to hoping they keep it up and reward us with a long career.

For their third album, the five members of Delta Spirit have lit the fuse, opening up the overall sound and punching through with a sonic boom.  Gone is the rootsy Americana of 2010’s History From Below and their 2008 debut, Ode To Sunshine.  In its place is a big modern rock cacophony that may initially catch listeners off guard but is more in tune with what the band has had in mind all along.

Here, the Bottle Rockets pile into the Lucas School House, a former one-room building dating back to 1898 and strip the sound down to the bare essentials.  The 13 tracks provided serve as a well-rounded and diverse sampling of the band’s excellent catalog, but prove even more memorable for the insights provided before, during, and after each performance.

As evidenced by the varied nature of the Nomad Series, the Cowboy Junkies do a lot of genres and styles well.  For those that like the meandering whims and see-where-we-go improvisation of their stage dynamics, this album is made for you. 

Future Islands have made their name by delivering the kind of “blood, sweat, and tears” live show that can inspire legions of fans to blindly follow the band across the miles.  The members don’t look like your typical indie-rock darlings; instead they resemble the type of guys in the cubicle next to yours who you depend on for a daily dose of levity or to complete a fantasy football trade.

Every now and then it’s good to get your head rattled a bit by a good rock show.  Monday night, the native sons of Providence, Rhode Island rolled into town and blew the roof off of Carrboro’s newly reconfigured Cat’s Cradle.  Over the course of 19 songs and 90 minutes, guitarist-singer John McCauley, lead guitarist and Last Waltz-era Robbie Robertson doppelganger Ian O’Neil, keyboardist/saxophonist Rob Crowell, bassist Chris Ryan and his drummer brother Dennis plowed through their set with an unbridled and furious burst of energy that enthusiastically resonated with the amped-up crowd who filled the floor, looking to sing, dance, and fist-pump their way through the evening. 

Deer Tick live and in person is always a spectacle to behold.  Regardless of the day of the week they play your town, the band members will whoop it up like a revved-up start to the weekend.  With Divine Providence, they’ve made a recorded document that spreads around the debauchery and rock decadence for all times sake.  

All troubled thoughts and hand-wringing should cease however, as Wilco has released The Whole Love, a fully realized collection of tunes versatile, commanding, and magnificent.  This album is bold, yet painted with deft touches; powerful and evolved, yet simple and stripped down when need be; grippingly philosophical yet still fun enough to demand sing-alongs.

Will Sheff is a densely literate songwriter of the highest degree.  Like a good novelist, his songs reveal layers as they progress, adding intrigue and possibility to the plot and subtle nuance to the characterization, while weighty symbolism abounds throughout.  The man also likes his hand-claps, as Sheff raucously urged and prodded the crowd to “throw their hands up” and clap along to the beats of some of the band’s best-known numbers

If the lyrics weren’t so sharp and the wry observations so focused, you’d swear Stephen Malkmus just invited some friends over and recorded an album over a quiet evening in the garage after work.  The 15 tracks that comprise, Mirror Traffic, Malkmus’ latest endeavor with his band of collaborators, the Jicks, flow by with that breezy feeling that has become a hallmark of Malkmus’ solo work.

For a band that has been gaining momentum over the past several releases, Blitzen Trapper’s latest, American Goldwing finds the Portland group pausing a bit to catch their breath. 

Acknowledging that the band has been on the road for what “has seemed like forever”, Kurt Vile and his accompanying two-piece The Violators, hit Carrboro Tuesday night, bringing with them a healthy dose of rock and roll ferocity.  Playing behind the excellent new album, Smoke Ring For My Halo, Vile and company regaled the near-capacity crowd with their expert blend of eccentric lyrical tales, noodly guitar freakouts, and pounding riffage.

David Byrne, never one to abide by guidelines, is one such artist and his recent film release, Ride, Rise, Roar delivers a healthy balance; satisfying the desire to see the live performances, but also offering a close inspection of the proceedings that make his live shows so arresting. 

There is an air of authenticity lent to Field Songs, William Elliott Whitmore’s second full-length release.  Growing up and residing on a farm in rural Iowa, Whitmore has worked on and reaped the benefits of the land that he praises and exults throughout the album’s eight tracks.

Vek is still young, but the six-year gap between releases raises flags about his long-term growth and development as an artist.  Leisure Seizure offers much to get excited about and a great deal of potential from which to build.  However, there is just as much material to skip over, which on the other hand raises concerns about Vek’s DIY mentality.

Upon hearing news of her death I was shocked to realize that she was two months shy of her 28th birthday, putting her squarely into the pantheon of The 27 Club, a grim collection of musicians who passed away at this way-too-soon age.