album reviews
J. Cole
Born Sinner Roc Nation/Columbia
"Sometimes I brag like Hov/ Sometimes I'm real like Pac," J. Cole raps on his second LP. Sometimes he's both – a verbal powerhouse and a self-emptying truth-sayer. The flagship signee to Jay-Z's record label spins dervish rhymes over dazzling self-produced tracks (see the Outkast-sampling "Land of the Snakes"). His riffs on racism, homophobia and misogyny have more lyrical cunning than insight. But when it comes to twisting himself into Kanye-size pretzels of career-orien... | More »
Mac Miller
Watching Movies With the Sound Off Rostrum
There's a startling moment near the end of Mac Miller's ambitious second LP where all the playful boasts and wobbly beats seem to catch up with him, and he suddenly sounds like an overtired kid: The music drops away, his voice catches, and he sobs, "[I] keep cryin' 'cause I still ain't over my bitch." (Granted, the previous two lines end "show you I'm rich" and "show me your tits.") Miller – who already boasts a Number One debut and an MTV2 show chronicling... | More »
Sigur Ros
Kveikur XL
These Icelanders have always had a sideways relationship with the ideas of "pop" and "heavy." Ambient mindblowers like 2002's brilliantly titled ( ) drift and surge rather than swing, but the effect can be sublime and overwhelming. Kveikur has structure and, hello, grit like never before. (The drum-thunder shimmering vocal hook on "Ísjaki"! The distorto bass on "Brennisteinn"! All that riff fuzz on the title track!) Singer-guitarist Jónsi is still bafflingly obtuse – ... | More »
3OH!3
Omens Photo Finish/Atlantic
Even after hit collaborations with Ke$ha and Katy Perry, these jokey Colorado electro-rappers remain two nerdy bros. On their fourth LP, they ditch the guest stars to bluster, drop stale references (Yes, "winning"!) and obsess over chicks. The best track isn't one of the album's two singles, but "Two Girlfriends," a goof that seems to take its inspiration from the Beastie Boys' "Fight for Your Right." | More »
Mt Eden
Walking on Air Ultra
"Cinematic" is as much a part of EDM's musical lexicon as "drop," and Mt Eden – New Zealand dubsteppers Jesse Cooper and Harley Rayner – know it as well as anyone. Walking on Air, the duo's second EP, is as widescreen bombastic as a Hans Zimmer score; the splashy, gothy chorus of "Airwalker" beats its chest like Celine Dion at the Oscars. Not that they neglect drops: "Chasing" features low-end convulsions so over-the-top they're funny. But when Mt Eden ditch the voc... | More »
Hanson
Anthem 3CG
"Come with us if you want to live," Hanson sing on the White Stripes-y "Fired Up." The brothers who gave you 1997's Disney-funk fantasia "MMMBop" can't back up that superhero brag. But their very existence is a marvel, and from the bubble grooves of the boldly titled "I've Got Soul" to the easeful power pop of "Cut Right Through Me," their pro-rock competence is pretty impressive too. | More »
Jason Isbell
Southeastern Southeastern
"I sobered up and I swore off that stuff, forever this time," sings Jason Isbell on "Cover Me Up," a world-weary love song that shows the Alabama native isn't averse to autobiography. It also suggests that rehab has sharpened his country-rock storytelling. Here, he mostly dials back the volume to plumb heavy emotions. New wife Amanda Shires and Kim Richey add harmonies to rich songs about love's struggle. But "Elephant" is the masterpiece, a piercingly plainspoken song about friends... | More »
The Grateful Dead
May 1977 Grateful Dead/Dead.net
The Grateful Dead's May 8th, 1977, gig at Cornell University is widely considered the ne plus ultra of Dead bootlegs. This 14-disc set, packed in a psychedelic sarcophagus, documents five gigs from later that month. It puts the consensus-maker in perspective, occasionally rivals it and, flaws notwithstanding, shows a band on a hell of a hot streak. Compared to the hard-tripping Sixties edition, this is comfort-food Dead, long on unhurried jams and raggedy country harmonies sweetened by t... | More »
Big Deal
June Gloom Mute
This London-based lad and lady debuted as a drummerless duo on 2011's charmingly downcast Lights Out. Here they're a full band, splaying low-protein vocals over delicately crunchy hooks and tensile ballads. On "In Your Car," they mumble, "I want to be wherever you are/Asleep in the backseat/There's nothing more that I'll ever need." It's so cute you want to take them home and feed them soup. | More »
Pokey LaFarge
Pokey LaFarge Third Man
Unrepentantly old-school, with a nasal vibrato that can recall Jack White's, this 30-year-old is a perfect fit for the re-formed White Stripe's label. LaFarge taps into Western swing, Twenties jazz and country blues, with hot brass, banjo, lap steel and fiddle, making virtuosic artisanal pop that's less Mumford & Sons than Squirrel Nut Zippers. "Home Away From Home," an ode to Louisville, pairs cornet and clarinet with Louis Armstrong Hot Five flavor, and the similarly jazz... | More »
Music Reviews
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star ratingYeezus -
star ratingBorn Sinner -
star ratingKveikur
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star ratingWatching Movies With the Sound Off -
star ratingOmens -
star ratingWalking on Air
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