Pop culture musings by Kevin Mathews
The year-end has witnessed a slew of new releases from classic rockers eager to demonstrate that rock ’n’ roll is still as vital as ever. Or to show their fans that they’re still alive (!)
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. THE ROLLING STONES, NEIL YOUNG, STING AND BON JOVI”
On the edge of tomorrow’s musical imaginings, rock ‘n’ roll continues to be re-invented phrase by phrase. Discover why we need to constantly look back to move forward.
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. TOBIN SPROUT, THE WEDDING PRESENT, DANIEL LAND AND WHOOP-SZO”
Recommended albums for your discovery!
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. FUTURE STATES, LUKE TEMPLE, NICK PIUNTI & RACHEL MASON!!!”
This week’s recommendations for your discovery!
Fear not TRUE BELIEVERS cuz we have new music to affirm our faith in #THENEWROCKNROLL!
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. THE SHACKS, MUUY BIIEN, GIRL TEARS & THE LEGAL MATTERS”
As promised, we continue to hold fast to an eclectic mix of new releases for your discovery.
It’s a retro-pop extravaganza right here right now and that’s the best place to be. Dive in!
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. THE FLAT FIVE, REAL NUMBERS, DYR FASER & CONOR OBERST”
Diversity in rock n roll is what will save it! Here are four brilliant instances how beautiful eclecticism can be! Enjoy!!
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. RAGLANS, THE ORB, LEMON TWIGS & BIG STAR”
Capsule reviews of new music that might be a lil under the radar.
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. MV & EE, THE YEARNING AND RUE SNIDER”
From post-punk to power pop to soft rock to art music to grunge – it’s all #THENEWROCKNROLL to us!
Reviews of EPs/albums that have been released in 2016. Time to discover new music!
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. THE HANNAS, SUMNER, JOHN PAPA GROS & GABRIEL COLLINS”
Four new albums of diversity and quality plumb the depths of THE NEW ROCK N ROLL! Dig in!!
A fantastic crop of new albums this week – #THENEWROCKNROLL has never felt more relevant and vibrant! Dive in!!
More new albums to discover in 2016. Let’s dive in, shall we?
Continue reading “BLURB-O-RAMA FT. TRES, JUNK, VOMITFACE & DREAMERS.”
Alternative rock with nods to rock ‘n’ roll’s rich past. That about sums up what we have in store for you with these five new releases!
The journey of music discovery continues as we unearth five new rock n roll gems!
Five new albums to get excited over! Don’t miss out!!
New albums you might want to check out, PoP fan!
Too much music, too little time has become our mantra somewhat in recent times. SO… we have revived Blurb-O-Rama to cover as much of the new releases that we really dig! For your kind consideration. Enjoy!!
More capsule reviews of the newest releases.
FEAR OF MEN – Loom
This highly-rated trio hails from Brighton, UK and this debut album justifies all the hype. There is a strong chamber pop vibe that enhances the obligatory post-punk indie pop stylings. The band manages a fine balance between atmospherics and arty edge with singer Jessica Weiss cemented associations with 90s bands like Curve and Lush. Recommended.
METRONOMY – Love Letters
Album #4 opens rather tentatively with sparsely instrumented tracks like “The Upsetter” and “I’m Aquarius”. The songs sound vaguely unfinished – almost like demos. And the pace never quite picks up for the rest of the album. Presumably, Metronomy was not interested in simply replicating meaningless dance rock numbers. Good for them.
PERFECT PUSSY – Say Yes To Love
A beautiful noise is what punk quartet Perfect Pussy makes on its debut full-length. Deliberately lo-fi with singer Meredith Graves spitting out the barely discernible lyrics over the cacophony, there is something disarmingly honest about this edgy sound. Sure, it’s hard to tell what Graves is singing most of the time, yet it all come across as compelling. Recommended!
WE ARE SCIENTISTS – TV en Français
Probably one shining example of how fun modern indie pop can be in the right hands. This Brooklyn duo has been going for a decade now and from the evidence here, it seems like they have got the balance right! Infectious melodies, danceable rhythms & pop smarts throughout. Surely this has got to be one of the better albums of 2014. Recommended.
Capsule reviews of new music that has been released in the last couple of weeks.
WARPAINT – Warpaint
Dreamy atmospheric drones are the order for the day on the sophomore effort from this Los Angeles-based quartet. Very high on ‘feels’ and rather low on songcraft per se, the attention to sonics and rhythms somewhat circumvents any melodic deficiency in evidence. Which is fine, as Warpaint’s modus operandi is to lull listeners into a feel-good chilled out mode. Good enough.
It’s the end of February 2014 and here’s some new albums that we think you should check out!
BENMONT TENCH – You Should Be So Lucky
Better known as the piano player with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Benmont Tench releases his debut solo album and it’s exactly as you might expect. Pristine country-folk-blues-rock that echoes Dylan and Petty (of course) with touches of jazz (“Ecor Rouge”) and soul (“Why Don’t You Quit Leaving Me Alone”). But with authentic material like “Veronica Said”, “Hannah” and “Today I Took Your Picture Down”, Tench demonstrates that he can stand his ground against his heavy-hitting associates. Recommended.