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There’s nothing better than a night of beers and cheesy pop songs, and with the advent of YouTube, it’s all the easier to rock out to the latest hits without spending a dime or dusting off the old radio. Bless modern technology’s heart! These are the songs I have found myself replaying time and time [...]

Liz 1.  Tortoise – Standards 2. Hermit Thrushes – Slight Fountain 3. St. Vincent – Actor 4. Stereolab – Emperor Tomato Ketchup 5. Bob Log III – My Shit Is Perfect Laura 1. Green Day – 21st Century Breakdown 2. Talib Kweli – Eardrum 3. Adele – 19 4. N.E.R.D. – Seeing Sounds 5. Lady [...]

Andrew Kenny is the master of a particular kind of subtlety, creating songs that aren’t sparse, but sheepish; they’re polite and contemplative no matter how many bass lines or guitar parts might sneak in. This could describe his work with American Analog Set, whose more droney and exploratory sound simmers at inoffensive tones, but on [...]

San Francisco’s Adam Balbo is at his best when he’s making a particular kind of fun of himself, mocking his own lyrical and metaphoric choices as he considers the greater “purpose” of singer/songwriters.

Liz 1. Neko Case – Middle Cyclone 2. Afuche – I Made Dots 3. Sister Suvi – Now I Am Champion 4. tUnE-yArDs – BiRd-BrAiNs 5. Bosque Brown – Baby Laura 1. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz! 2. Neko Case – Middle Cyclone 3. Mark Ronson – Here Comes the Fuzz 4. Lily Allen [...]

Say Hi (no longer to your mom, or anyone in particular), is the moniker of basement recorder Eric Elbogen, the contemplative dreamer whose sixth album is the first to come out on the Barsuk label. Oohs & Aahs carries the musician’s signature homemade feel, not due to random background noises or lack of recording quality, [...]

When considered without any contextual information, it’s difficult to group Fleet Foxes immediately within the tumultuous Seattle music scene from which they’ve emerged. With their long beards, country guitar sound, and tale-telling lyrics, one imagines rather that their self-titled debut is the result of its members spending several months strumming strings ‘round a camp fire. [...]

8. Of Montreal – Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? Yes I am. No, but seriously, this jubilant yet immensely depressing album really did something big for Of Montreal this year. Never before has intense personal drama been so much damn fun to witness, and it seems lots of ravey youngsters have discovered this truth, [...]

9. In a Sentimental Mood That woman is thinking naughty thoughts. Also, as a sometime fan of They Might Be Giants, I appreciate knowing what the Longines Symphonette means. 8. I Like Beethoven A musical tribute to the hero of non-conformists everywhere. You can see the record company executives just aching to get a piece [...]

1. Hats Off to Pennsylvania Polka (Stanky and his Coal Miners Polka Band) For one thing, it’s by the band that gets my award for best name, the Stanky and his Coal Miners Polka Band. For another thing, the patriotic theme makes you think you’re about to be listening to some nice drum and fife [...]