Album Reviews

Dolly Parton Tribute: Just Because I’m a Woman: The Songs of Dolly Parton

Brian Gearing February 20, 2004 No Comments

Just Because I

Steve Morse: Major Impacts 2

Kenny Bohlin February 20, 2004 No Comments

Steve Morse is the guitar virtuoso behind Deep Purple, the Dixie Dregs, and the Steve Morse band. He

Edie Brickell: Volcano

Heather Handler February 19, 2004 No Comments

One strum of a guitar and then Edie Brickell

Liars: They Were Wrong So We Drowned

Shane Handler February 19, 2004 No Comments

The only promise these tunes can deliver is one for the cult lavish, who enjoy their music on the dirty and dark side. It’s been said the Liars frenzied live performances are quite the catch on the New York scene, so hopefully that energy is a bit more cohesive than the one preserved on record.

Carrie Newcomer : Betty

Jason Gonulsen February 18, 2004 No Comments

Betty

Ryan Cavanaugh Trio: Live from Nowhere

Dan Bliss February 11, 2004 No Comments

Before changing their name to the Ryan Cavanaugh Trio earlier this year – due to the departure of percussionist Chris Dougherty – Space Station Integration released Live from Nowhere. Fusing the traditional banjo with high-energy, jazz-fusion, Cavanaugh and company heighten the bluegrass bar by further adding elements of rock, bluegrass, funk, Celtic and Indian to the mix. All done of course with a definitive focus on improvisation.

Mindy Smith: One Moment More

Dean Barnett February 9, 2004 No Comments

Backed by remarkably accomplished musicians, including acoustic guitar role model Bryan Sutton and steel guitar master Dan Dugmore, Ms. Smith seems satisfied with pretty acoustic arrangements that only rarely give way to more aggressive expressions. It’s not a bad formula, as shown in “Angel Doves,” but it dominates the disc until the listener’s stupor is interrupted by the processed vocals of “Hard to Know,” a near-rocker that would be far more convincing if Ms. Smith’s tenuous voice could carry the voltage she wrote into the tune.

Dr Nigel: Seeing In Squares EP

Shane Handler February 5, 2004 No Comments

Working on solo projects outside a touring band has become commonplace, but recording and touring with two bands above and beyond a solo career is a rarity. The unassuming focal point of a small, simmering music scene in Boston, keyboardist/composer Neil Larson is usually found bringing the synth-madness to Amun Ra and moonlighting with Nikulydin, but has somehow managed to keep his day job as solo artist, Dr Nigel.

Phantom Planet: Phantom Planet

Aaron Mendelsohn February 2, 2004 No Comments

Phantom Planet is still trying to find their identity. After two moderately successful albums of melancholy, California pop rock, Phantom Planet has taken a cue from some of their East Coast counterparts and released a self-titled LP of straightforward, guitar driven rock. Offering their best Strokes imitation, Phantom Planet has concocted a solid post-punk/post-grunge album that becomes more engaging upon each listen.

Teitur: Poetry & Aeroplanes

Shane Handler February 1, 2004 No Comments

Teitur, a self-professed troubadour from Denmark’s Faroe Islands is a songwriter first and foremost, as he manages to blend voice and poetry into a polished acoustic realm – think Badly Drawn Boy or Coldplay with a splash less rock and roll. But it’s his acoustic confessional lyrics, with a knack for gentle pop harmonies that make Poetry and Aeroplanes, a collection of twelve stark confessional pangs, a cozy listen.