Barry Adamson Will Set You Free

Barry Adamson is a bit of a musical legend. As a member of both Magazine and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Adamson has been part of some of the most instrumental cutting edge music of our time. From post punk to theatrical murder ballads Barry Adamson has truly seen and done it all. He's had a long and fruitful career and to this day continues to make seminal music. His tenth album, I Will Set You Free is a funky, theatrical, loungey work that's imaginative and sounds like a Tom Jones record if he were living on the dark side.

With a jazzy feel, smoky sounds, and a element of darkness pulsating through it I Will Set You Free puts to use the knowledge of 34 years of musical experience. The results are stunning dramatic pieces that shows Barry's dark and seedy side as well as his atmospheric pop side. The ghosts of rock and roll bands long since past still haunt Adamson's soul and these songs are permeated by their spirits in the orchestrated, angular and expressive nature in which they exist. A song such as lead single, "Turnaround," illustrates this perfectly; it's loungey, sly, and teeters on being a noirish pop masterpiece.

I Will Set You Free is an awesome album that's so filled with thematic ideas, cinematic overtones, and just enough jazzy funk to keep your feet moving. From a blazing horn section to the deep soulful vocals that cover this record like syrup and everything in between, Barry Adamson has it covered and covered well. Atmospheric and melodramatic, I Will Set You Free is one heck of a record that proves this old dog still can learn a few new tricks.

The Doozies Release One

Straight out of the garage and into the gutter come The Doozies. These garage punkers consisting of just two members, the Van Dusen Brothers, record, produce and play everything themselves. Their recently released album is a severely raw, under-produced lo-fi affair that sounds as if it were recorded on half a four-track with a blown channel and the inability to regulate volume. These foibles and apparent lack of quality makes this debut album absolutely amazing.

With choppy riffs, distorted production, screams, bashed drums, and surprising melodies in odd places The Doozies pack a wallop of garage rock into 38 minutes. The Van Dusen brothers tap into their inner primal rock star and crank out churling riffs that chug along only occasionally taking time to catch their breath. With most songs lasting under two minutes this is a live fast die fast kind of record with the brothers sloppy but great, guitar work blazing the trail to the finish line.

The Doozies sounds like it's going to fall apart at any minute. The production sounds as if the whole thing may or may not have been recorded on an old BASF cassette from 1989 and rolls and rolls of duct tape were used to hold it all together. Despite that sounding horrible, that's half of its charm; it’s a mess of a recording but so incredibly honest how could you not like it? The Doozies are rock and roll in its purest unrefined state and they are awesome. They're rawer than sushi and have better songs. Imagine the Sonics in a bluesy fist fight with The White Stripes on a five dollar budget and you kind of have an idea of where The Doozies are coming from.

Honest to goodness rock and roll doesn't get much better than this. The Doozies pack a punch of unrefined riffs and coarse melodies throughout their debut and it's those characteristics that help the band stand out. This is brotherly love as recorded on a Radio Shack tape deck with a cracked cassette and it's awesome.

Hunters' Hands Are On Fire

I don't know a lot about the Hunters.  What I do know is that this is one group that clearly knows how to rock.  Their EP Hands On Fire is a raw punky three chord floor burner that's aggressive and refuses to take any bull.  Hovering somewhere around the punk rock/post-grunge genres Hunters stalk their prey over the course of their five song EP eventually unleashing it all upon their victim.  Their death is quick and painless.

Hands On Fire sounds like it was done on four track and has very little in the way of production value but it still manages to kick like twenty pack mules.  This is powerful stuff that's lead by a female vocalist (whose name I don’t know) who would make Chrissy Hynde or Karen O. blush.   Throw in fuzzed out guitars, bashed drums and an impending sense of doom and you have Hunters wrapped up in a nutshell.  Entertaining stuff to say the least Hands On Fire is indeed hot as hell and shows no mercy throughout it's duration.  Hands On Fire is great stuff that hopefully leads this band from garage to studio and from studio to one heck of record.   

Norse Horse Gallop Across Grids

Norse Horse's latest EP Grids is a psychedelic sun drenched pop record that's about as far from being Norse as Norway is from California. Sprightly, jangly, and melodically brilliant Grids is an indie pop treat of tiny proportions. Clocking in at just four songs this is a small grid, so to speak, in which Norse Horse has to work...but after a listen or two you come to realize something is most definitely better than nothing.

This is a vibrant record that whose riffs glistens like sunshine and charm with 80's jangle as the songs wash over you like a warm summer wave. At times sounding like The Wake at others The Strokes, Norse Horse create a dizzying array of styles within each song that keeps things entertaining. And entertain it does as Grids is a great single that shines the whole way through and leaves you breathless wanting more. Springs arrived early and it's Norse in origin.

A Classic Education Release A Classic

The first thing you come to realize about A Classic Education is that they're NOT British. No, A Classic Education is actually Italian but you'd never, ever know that based on their songs. While one member is actually Canadian, the band hails from Bologna but sounds as if it were lost in NME's C86 cassette all those years ago. Their album Call It Blazing is a fantastic indie pop album that's indeed classic; so classic in fact, that had it been released in 1986 it would have entrenched itself at the top of the Indie charts.

Call It Blazing sounds like the best record that Sarah Records never released. Imagine The Field Mice, The Sugargliders, The Go Betweens and say someone like Biff Bang Pow and you kind of have an idea of the sound that A Classic Education are after. It’s a sound they pretty much capture and make their own throughout this album and that’s a good thing. Jangly guitars, reverbed guitars, echoy ghostlike vocals, airy songs, and wistful lyrics give Call It Blazing a classic indie feel that sounds so British it makes it difficult to remember that these guys are Italian (uh and Canadian).

A Classic Education are amazing at what they do. They've so successfully tapped into that classic mid-80's British pop sound that it will leave you in awe. Call It Blazing is the sound of 1986 and it's songs are so achingly awesome, brilliantly twee and yearning to be British that it's impossible not to like them. This is a great record from a great band and regardless of where they might be from their hearts and songs will always belong to old Blighty.

Water Liars Have A Phantom Limb

St. Louis via Mississippi's Water Liars are a fascinating study in contrasts. This two piece band takes Americana and roughs it up a bit with some old fashioned rock and roll and then records it on a five dollar tape recorder. Their songs are intimate and rough, raw and quiet, dark and light and it's those opposites that makes this record and this band fascinating. The results of this constant tussle for control and sound can be heard on their debut album Phantom Limb.

Originally, unplanned the album was recorded on a whim in three days with exactly one microphone. As you might expect, this record isn't polished or even produced very well; what it is though is just two guys having one heck of time making music. It's that honesty and that purity that makes listening to Phantom Limb tolerable because as you know I can’t stand folk. It of course helps, as well, that there are the odd moments of rock and roll respite which will remind you of old Black Keys or My Morning Jacket records.

Overall though, Water Liars have created a quiet, melancholic, and haunting Americana record that sounds just like it seems; a lo-fi jam between friends. Phantom Limb was a unique moment in time that's been captured on tape for everyone to enjoy. This is a record that illustrates the power of song and if you like dusty heartbroken acoustic tunes this is one record you need to own.

Hit The Lights Are A Hit

Hit The Lights latest album Invicta is a soaring epic emotastic record that's so massive that stadiums would have a difficult time holding the songs contained herein. Say what you will about the genre but once bands tap into the Endless Meloditron 3000 it's almost impossible to look back. With vocals that are so harmonically perfect and songs that will quite literally melt young girls hearts Hit The Lights shine brighter than a 1000 suns.

Invicta is awesome for what it is...a clear example of how melody and harmony shape music and how with just one little hook you can reel in anyone. This album is filled with tons of such examples as the whole album is essentially one giant melody. Invicta is packed with the kinds of songs that will bring tears to the eyes of the broken hearted, depress those than can't handle love gone wrong, and have you wishing for a hug. Elevating all these harmonies and all this emotion are chunky guitar riffs, pounding drums, and driven basslines; it's all very crunchy, distorted stuff that contrasts with the vocals perfectly.

Hit the Lights ability to balance the heavy with the emotional is exceptional and Invicta’s songs reflect this ten times over. This record is packed with strong songs and mature musicianship and shows Hit The Lights developing into a monster of a band. This is a group that clearly knows how to play, write gargantuan songs, and melt the hearts of their female audience when needed. With its huge choruses, those soaring melodies, and incredibly large hooks there's so little wrong with Invicta it's not even worth mentioning. Invicta is easily one of the best emo records you'll hear all year.