Little Red Lung

Posted on May 14, 2013 by muruch

Little Red Lung’s self-titled EP churns the haunting folk-pop lilt of Lia Ices with the creepy chamber-goth of Rasputina. Zoe-Ruth Erwin, the lead singer of this fabulous L.A. band, calls their sound “avant-indie.”

The standout is the chilling opener “50 Fingers.” You can download the mp3 below and also watch the video, which was directed by artist Sarah Sitkin.

“Ink Blot,” “Rare Bird” and “Fangs” are also highlights. Oh and I love the unusual finale, “Strangling Tree.” So basically, the entire EP is good.

Really, my only complaint about the EP is it isn’t a proper album. Six songs just isn’t enough. Thankfully, Little Red Lung is currently working on their full-length debut. They were also recently added to the Bonnaroo lineup, so it seems their star is rising.

Little Red Lung – 50 Fingers (mp3)*

Little Red Lung – Fangs (mp3)*

*mp3s hosted by & posted w/ permission of band

Buy @ Amazon

Little Red Lung Official Site

l’Orange: Old Soul

Posted on May 13, 2013 by muruch

By: Brendan

Browsing Bandcamp, the Billie Holiday cover art to l’Orange’s Old Soul caught my attention. The music is not for everybody – some may find it repetitive – but I love it, film clips and all. You will hear Billie Holiday as never before, and another unique voice, that of Kelsey Lu. On “Lost Souls,” you’ll also hear Hassaan Mackey spitting those rhymes. I love the fact that “I’ll Be Seeing You” is sampled on the final track, “The Mourning.” The word transcendent is overused these days, but this one fits the definition: extending beyond the limits of ordinary experience. You can download the entire album for free below…

Derek Clegg: Free Album Downloads

Posted on May 10, 2013 by muruch

By: Brendan

All Those Days to Feel Better is the latest release from busy Chicago-based singer-songwriter Derek Clegg. It’s a wonderfully twangy collection of songs. That album as well as several others by Clegg are available for free download at Bandcamp and the Free Music Archive.

Melissa Ferrick: The Truth Is

Posted on May 8, 2013 by muruch

Melissa Ferrick’s new album, The Truth Is, will be released on June 4th and it is, to put it mildly, absolutely outstanding. Recorded live with a full band with a “collaborative approach” to its creation and production, the album is somewhat of a departure from the bare bones, solo sound of Ferrick’s past. I personally love the new Nashville-oriented sound (which often reminds me of Brandi Carlile) and think it’s a fine showcase for the singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist’s talent.

You’re nothing but a mirror
And you can’t even look at yourself
I’m glad you cheated on me now
I’m better off by myself
I want answers, answers, I want answers
I’m gonna rise up, I’m gonna rejoice

The instrumentation is gorgeous, lush and elegantly Southern – lap steel, Dobro, pedal steel often mingle with beautiful cello. Singers Rose Polenzani and Anne Heaton lend backing harmonies to the album.

The opener, “Wreck Me,” features vocals by Paula Cole. It’s a fantastic song on its own merit, but it’s one of those sadly wasted duets in which you really can’t hear the guest vocalist well enough to warrant their presence. You can hear that song at SoundCloud.

You’ll think there’s never a song written about cheating before when you hear the blistering done wrong anthem “Overboard.”

Other highlights include the peppy love song “Home,” “Go Easy On Me,” the harmonious “Love Ain’t Afraid,” and “Time to Leave.”

The finale, “Take In All The Plants,” is a phenomenal, thought-provoking, subtle, post-apocalyptic anthem.

Melissa Ferrick – Wreck Me (SoundCloud Link)

Pre-Order @ Amazon

Melissa Ferrick Official Site

Duquette Johnston: Rabbit Runs a Destiny

Posted on April 30, 2013 by muruch

Duquette Johnston’s new album, Rabbit Runs a Destiny, blends so many genres and influences you may find yourself thinking of Elliott Smith and surf rock in the same moment. Sometimes that’s really awesome, sometimes it’s a drag. Duquette recently launched a Pledge Music campaign to fund the album.

Rabbit Runs a Destiny‘s title track is by far Johnston’s most successful attempt to swirl psychedelic rock into his signature Americana sound. The song happens to be my favorite on the album, so I’m happy I can share the mp3 with you fine people…

Duquette Johnston – Rabbit Runs a Destiny (mp3)*

*mp3 hosted by & posted w/ permission of artist’s PR rep

Duquette Johnston Official Site

Pre-Order @ Pledge Music

Pre-Order @ Amazon (not yet available)

Bell X1: Chop Chop

Posted on April 29, 2013 by muruch

Irish band Bell X1 will release their sixth album, Chop Chop, on June 28. The album’s opener and first single, “Starlings Over Brighton Pier,” is unusually, exquisitely beautiful. So much so, it makes the rest of the album deathly pale in comparison.

There are other highlights — the heavy drumbeats juxtaposed with Paul Noonan’s sweet falsetto in “A Thousand Little Downers” and the hint of retro pop in “Feint Praise” — but none of the other tracks comes even close to the initial level of brilliance found in “Starlings Over Brighton Pier.”

Whether due to the rush of its creation (the album was recorded, mixed and mastered in only two weeks) or the outstanding, overshadowing depth of its opening track, Chop Chop as a whole simply doesn’t excite me as much as its predeccessors, Flock and Blue Lights on the Runway. That being said, Chop Chop is still much better than anything you hear on the radio these days. The problem with truly great bands like Bell X1 is that they raise the bar so high that sometimes not even they can reach it again.

BUY @ AMAZON

Bell X1 Official Site

Rykarda Parasol: Against The Sun

Posted on April 23, 2013 by muruch

Rykarda Parasol’s new album, Against The Sun, gives her signature noirish rock sound a modern polish without compromising its dark, artistic integrity. Recorded primarily in Paris, the title of the new album is the loosely translated English of Parasol’s name in Latin. I first posted the title track in March and I’m happy to say the rest of the album is every bit as exciting…

What impresses me most about Against the Sun are the little details, particularly the vocal embellishments woven into the arrangements. Rykarda uses her voice as much as any instrument: haunting moans and surprising ooh la la’s in “The Cloak of Comedy”; echoing yelps in “I Know Where My Journey Will End”; the chilling multi-tracked glory of “Island of the Dead (O mi, O my)”; melodic whistles in “Withdrawal, Feathers and All”; and Mamas & Papas harmonies in “I Vahnt Tou Beh Alohne.”

The outlaw anthem “Take Only What You Can Carry” is the standout track. There aren’t many songs that possess lyrical references to graves and a beat catchy enough to clap your hands along with.

At times the sound of the album reminds me of Wave-era Patti Smith — “Your Arrondissement or Mine?” in particular recalls “Dancing Barefoot.” And it’s all wrapped up in Rykarda’s remarkable, throaty voice and eerily poetic lyrics.

Against The Sun is the kind of richly layered album that immediately mesmerizes and still gets even better with each listen.

Rykarda Parasol Official Site (Buy CD)

Buy @ Amazon (not yet available)

Rykarda Parasol – The Cloak of Comedy from Chaos Music on Vimeo.

Della Mae: This World Oft Can Be

Posted on April 17, 2013 by muruch

Della Mae’s upcoming album, This World Oft Can Be, is a merry, genteel collection of old-fashioned bluegrass, folk and country that beautifully showcases Della Mae’s all-female harmonies. Highlights include the opener “Letter From Down the Road,” the ballads “Mabeline” and “Heaven’s Gate” and the lilting, string-accented title track. You can download a free, legal mp3 of the track “Empire” by entering your email address into the widget below. This World Oft Can Be will be released on May 28th.

BUY @ AMAZON

Della Mae Official Site

The Civil Wars & T-Bone Burnett : A Place at the Table

Posted on April 15, 2013 by muruch

You read that right. The soundtrack to the American hunger documentary, A Place at the Table, is a collaboration by The Civil Wars and T-Bone Burnett. And it’s every bit as magnificent as you want it to be. Especially of note is “Long Time Gone,” which you can hear below. The song beautifully marries The Civil Wars’ melodic country-folk sound with the thunderous Western rumble that has become T-Bone Burnett’s trademark. I do wish there were more vocal tracks like it, but the nature of the soundtrack demanded an overabundance of instrumentals.

BUY @ AMAZON

The Civil Wars Official Site

T-Bone Burnett Official Site

Tyler Lyle: Expatriates

Posted on April 10, 2013 by muruch

You know when you hear a song and you think “this is classic, they’re gonna be a big star”? That was my reaction to Tyler Lyle’s new EP, Expatriates, which is available on Bandcamp. The atmospheric opener “Medusa” is my favorite, but the entire album falls somewhere between Elliott Smith and David Gray. Love it.

Muruch

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Tag Archives: cd reviews