A trio of pairs top our list this week. Jon Spencer and Matt Verta-Ray unleash their third disc of old-school roots rock and rockabilly as Heavy Trash, collaborating with a bona fide cast of contributors to create some of its finest tunes on a disc that expands its repertoire.
No-nonsense rap duo Themselves — Adam “Doseone” Drucker and Jeffrey “Jel” Logan — returns from a six-year silence to release a third album, a sample-driven disc that is both experimental and traditional.
Lastly,as Minamo, avant-violinist extraordinaire Carla Kihlstedt and prolific classical pianist Satoko Fujii create two worlds of experimental chamber music on two discs. (more…)
The members of Cave In have resurfaced to redefine their sound once again — this time with their heaviest material since Until Your Heart Stops. Old-school fans should be really fucking pumped.
John Zorn’s beautiful sequel to The Dreamers covers Tropicália and other exotic styles with an all-star backing ensemble.
Full of instrumental country, lap-steel blues, and twangy Americana, Bill Frisell’s newest soundtrack is a multimedia venture set to the folksy black-and-white photos of Michael Disfarmer.
After more than 20 years as a frenetic bass/drums duo, Tatsuya Yoshida’s Ruins transforms to a sax/drums duo for a new sonic texture.
Saxophonist Dave Douglas continues his impressive oeuvre with a fun, horn-filled homage to New Orleans, Rock Plaza Central issues another dose of semi-orchestral neofolk, and John Zorn’s expansive second Masada book gets a jazzy installment with the Masada Quintet. (more…)
There’s plenty of musical inbreeding as well as doom, drone, and psych this week as we sort through new releases from Sunn O))), Khanate, Grizzly Bear, Sir Richard Bishop, Master Musicians of Bukkake, and Vieux Farka Touré. (more…)
This week brings the most powerful album in the canon of down-tuned metalheads Kylesa.
It also brings the vibrant, idiosyncratic rock of Les Claypool, the multicultural psych jam of Melvin Gibbs, more harmonized folk from Bonnie “Prince” Billy, and unreleased tracks of Afrobeat/groove from the Chicago Afrobeat Project. (more…)
In a slow week for tunes, our favorites of the week include John Zorn’s Mexican melodies, Mountains‘ electro-acoustic serenity, Rob Mazurek’s new quintet, and Steven Wilson’s solo debut. (more…)
January closes out strongly with a spacey, progressive solo effort from Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, a metal/Jewish mélange from Jamie Saft, 1970s-style prog jams from Diagonal, and more. (more…)
Our list of favorites from last year includes devastating dub metal, organ-fueled psychedelic grind, a re-released classic-rock gem from nearly four decades ago, an international assemblage of punk-infused field recordings, and an Indian/surf/metal take on John Zorn’s Masada material. (more…)
Details emerge about new albums from Isis, Tortoise, Akron/Family, and Stinking Lizaveta; Zu announces some dates for a world tour (a pair of which are with Mike Patton); Dark Meat will go on tour with its 17 members; the Scion Rock Fest hosts a spate of crushing metal bands in Atlanta on February 28.
It would have been killer to see Femi Kuti & Positive Force on Saturday, but the Afrobeat star’s US tour has been postponed until he recovers from illness.
The cancellation, at least, gives us a chance to catch two other strong options: the heavy, beat-driven jazz-rock of Doppler Shift and the keyboard-fueled Led Zeppelin covers of Bustle in Your Hedgerow. (more…)
A tentative lineup for Zorn Fest 2009 is posted; math metallists The Dillinger Escape Plan have another new drummer; rock cellist Helen Money just finished a new album; tour dates have been announced for Lymbyc Systym, the Alex Skolnick Trio, and the Extra Action Marching Band.
For this week’s picks, we break down John Zorn’s latest Moonchild release, Aaron Funk’s latest anonymous offering as Last Step, Swiss metal four-piece Impure Wilhelmina, and Chicago saxophonist / electronics artist Charles Gorczynski. (more…)
Enlisted by John Zorn, Bobby Previte, Merzbow, Dave Douglas, Bad Brains, the Beastie Boys, and dozens of other influential and notable artists, Jamie Saft is a massive talent. His work on assorted guitars and keyboards transcends countless genres, and his next solo release — Black Shabbis on Zorn’s Tzadik label — combines traditional Jewish music with metal. (more…)
Chinese-American composer Wu Fei leads our list this week with expressive ensemble creations. Her label’s owner, John Zorn, also makes an appearance next to the ambient jazz/electronics of Colorlist and the political throwback rock of The (International) Noise Conspiracy. (more…)
Dillinger Escape Plan guitarist Ben Weinman posts footage of his solo performance; Black Moth Super Rainbow won’t be playing for a while; MTV Iggy posts a clip of Yo-Yo Ma and Andrew Bird jamming. This and much more…
A trio of pairs top our list this week. Jon Spencer and Matt Verta-Ray unleash their third disc of old-school roots rock and rockabilly as Heavy Trash, collaborating with a bona fide cast of contributors to create some of its finest tunes on a disc that expands its repertoire.
Saxophonist Dave Douglas continues his impressive oeuvre with a fun, horn-filled homage to New Orleans, Rock Plaza Central issues another dose of semi-orchestral neofolk, and John Zorn’s expansive second Masada book gets a jazzy installment with the Masada Quintet.
