Posts by Shane Handler

Golden Animals aren’t your typical California by way of Brooklyn duo.  With a sound that’s more reminiscent of The Doors than Television, the duo comprised of Tommy Eisner and Linda Beecroft released their full-length debut (Free Your Mind and Win a Pony) earlier this year and have been opening their ears with their “groovy blues” sound.

Over the course of two prior albums, Eagles of Death metal have more or less been a shits and giggle hangout for Josh "Babyduck" Homme and his buddy Jesse “Boots Electric.”   With cornball nicknames and beer commercial 123 rock,  the due have set them up for more laughs than praises, including Axl Rose once hailing them as the “pigeons of shit metal” on a prior tour.

Hold onto to your headphones as Skeletal is more all-night dance mix than cohesive album – what some might call brilliant and others call unfocused and cracked out.  Listen at your own risk.

Having recorded albums with Widespread Panic, Bill Frissell and Lambchop as his backing bands, Vic Chesnutt is no stranger to collaborations. He’s also no stranger to revealing his complicated view of the world through a chaste vulnerability that reveals un-hesitated pain and insecurities. Dark Developments, his most recent collaboration with fellow Athens, GA and Elephant 6 members Elf Power, transforms his dark lyrics amidst pop melodies that shine the artist in a new dimension.

Cardinology isn’t the strongest Ryan Adams release to date, not even close, but it flows as a cohesive song cycle, perhaps a step forward for an artist who has recently struggled with those inner demons.

With a number one album, a Rock Band video game, and a cover of Rolling Stone magazine, 35 years later AC/DC  have hit their popularity peak. Although their creativity might have peaked after 1980’s Black in Black, Black Ice, their 15th studio album proves you can rock almost as hard in your fifties as you did in your early twenties.

he club scene has long been a productive shed for bands that most of pop culture really don’t appreciate.   Take Yo La Tengo, Les Savy Fav or Lambchop – they’ve been playing a long time but haven’t reached theater status yet.  Two bands sharing the bill at The Clubhouse in Tempe:  Earl Greyhound and Portugal The Man brought their uncanny ability to awe and maybe one day earn their name in bigger lights.

With The Nate Wilson Group’s debut release Unbound, Wilson has woven his musical influences into something original yet cohesively familiar. Fom the opening raunchy guitar chords on “Hear The Echoes,” the band appears to have more in kinship to The White Stripes and James Gang, where the swirling mellotron flourishes echo Pink Floyd and Wilson’s soft vocals reflect an edgier Paul Simon.

Following their joyless dark masterpiece, 2006’s Return to Cookie Mountain, TV on the Radio was due for a prescription of musical prozac. Enter Dear Science, full of disco jams, new wave bouncers and patterns of soul, post-punk, and techno in favor of the art noise uncertainty of prior TV on the Radio.

Sure Dead Confederate may have one of the best names in rock, but as their name suggests, they stand out amongst their peers with ragged space rock elements that leap with wailing jams and harrowing unpredictability.

Sonya Kitchell established herself as a breakout artist at age 15, when she recorded the album Words Came Back to Me and found herself performing on TV talk shows, notching respectable sales and collecting many a glowing review. Now 19 years old, the Massachusetts-bred singer/songwriter is back with This Storm, an accomplished effort that combines folk's searching sentiments with pure pop bliss.

But Gdansk's highlight is “Echoes,” the full 25 minutes of the Floyd classic that rivals the majesty of the Meddle version, as Gilmour’s guitar weeps strong. And this being s one of Wright’s final recorded performances, his vocals on “Comfortably Numb,” make Live in Gdansk as solid a live album as there ever was, even if its not Pink Floyd..it’s damn close.

The two and a half hour show rocked tight during “Gideon,” jammed mysteriously throughout “Dondante” and playfully expressed the funky flavor the band is currently experimenting with during “Highly Suspicious.” My Morning Jacket might very well be the new Radiohead or Wilco – either way, they got a good thing going, lucky for all of us involved.

Although not for everyone, Harps and Angels is 34 minutes of sharp-witted commentary by one of America’s most original lyricists.  Brainy ones will surely find this one mighty clever.

Carried to Dust, their fifth full length, serves as that picturesque medium, transforming the lonesome southwest landscape, creating the illusion of a lost highway nestling through cactus, ghost towns and the war between good/evil.

Although Dixon’s piano/improvisational chops have been known for stretching it out a tad far (2002’s On A Rolling Ball), this self titled release by The Gabe Dixon Band shines in the leader’s concise songwriting and spirited harmonies. Bandmates Winston Harrison (bass) and Jano Rix (drums) provide a session element that gives the songs a polished gleam.

Eef Barzelay, founder and creative force of the much-loved alt-country combo Clem Snide and noted filmscore composer, has recently released his second solo album –Lose Big. Adorned with distinctive musical textures ranging from mid-tempo rock to lighter acoustic flourishes (the album was recorded in Ben Folds’ studio), the songs are charged with a heightened sense of intimacy that Barzelay had not tapped into under the support of his former band.

With influences that range from moonlight, desert, deep sea, rainbows, melody, naturality, symmetry, outsiders, and….Jim Morrison, Golden Animals evoke groovy. but this isn’t some flower child, “people come together,” rubbish.  Golden Animals are young, but certainly not modern day hippies, although they may seem it

Rage Against the Machine being on a  recording hiatus during an election year…just doesn’t seem right.  So enter the next best thing, aside from a Tom Morello solo album:  One Day As a Lion.  Featuring RATM frontman Zack de la Rocha and former Mars Volta member Jon Theodore, One Day As a Lion kicks stripped-down rap rock with its over the top political fury on this five song self-titled debut EP.

Sometimes reunions tours are just a little bit “dead and bloated.” Throw Stone Temple Pilots into this category.