1. Agrimonia – Rites of Separation (Southern Lord)
2. ASG – Blood Drive (Relapse)
Best Albums Of 2013: Agrimonia, ASG, Beneath The Tides
Posted in Album Reviews, Lists, Reviews on 12/30/2013 by Kurt OrzeckBest Albums Of 2012: Cloud Nothings, Woods of Ypres, Be’lakor
Posted in Album Reviews, Lists, Reviews, Sound Off with tags belakor, Black Breath, cloud nothings, Converge, demonical, goatwhore, Gojira, High on Fire, metz, Woods of Ypres on 01/01/2013 by Kurt Orzeck
1. Cloud Nothings – Attack on Memory (Carpark)
2. Woods of Ypres – Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light (Earache)
• “Woods Of Ypres’ David Gold And Crash Test Dummies’ Brad Roberts: Doppelgängers”
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Woods Of Ypres’ David Gold And Crash Test Dummies’ Brad Roberts: Doppelgängers
Posted in Doppelgängers, Features with tags Brad Roberts, Crash Test Dummies, David Gold, Woods of Ypres on 03/21/2012 by Kurt Orzeck
Since David Gold is no longer alive, we’ll never get to hear him sing Crash Test Dummies’ “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm.”
But that shouldn’t stop Brad Roberts of fellow Canadians CTD from tackling Woods of Ypres at some point.
Long live the bass-baritone.
The Grateful Dead: Black-Metal Brethren?
Posted in Sound Off with tags black metal, Enslaved, The Grateful Dead on 05/30/2011 by Kurt Orzeck
For musicians whose chief mission was to promote good vibes, it’s always seemed a bit odd that the guys behind The Grateful Dead went with that band name. But equally strange—and less widely discussed—is the group’s stylistic approach to its logo. Check out the above version and try to make the argument that it couldn’t be confused with a black-metal band’s titular style. Take Enslaved, for instance:
A Quick Question for In Flames
Posted in Sound Off with tags In Flames on 02/05/2011 by Kurt OrzeckDear In Flames,
Why have you allegedly titled your new album Sounds of a Playground Fading?
Sincerely,
A (concerned?) fan
The Bad Penny New Music Releases Schedule
Posted in Latest New Releases Schedule, MP3s, New Releases on 12/19/2010 by Kurt OrzeckByrds of Paradise – TBA (Don Giovanni)
• Bad Penny download: “Barefoot Generation”
Cut Copy – TBA (TBA)
Dave Hause (Loved Ones guitarist/vocalist) – TBA (Paper + Plastick)
Iron and Wine – Kiss Each Other Clean (Warner Bros.)
Haroula Rose – These Open Roads (TBA)
Spectrals – Spectrals Extended Play EP (physical version; previously available digitally; Moshi Moshi)
• Bad Penny download: “Chip a Tooth (Spoil a Smile)” Continue reading
MGMT’s Ben Goldwasser On New LP, Doing Laundry – And His Favorite Cover Of An MGMT Song
Posted in Interview Transcripts, Interviews with tags Jónsi, MGMT, Sigur Rós, Violens on 10/27/2010 by Kurt Orzeck
MGMT are still young. They’ve only put out two LPs. That said, the Brooklyn group led by Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser has toured a helluva lot, behind the platinum Oracular Spectacular and the more recent (and more commercially unfriendly) Congratulations. So why on earth haven’t MGMT, now four years old, played Florida till now? Continue reading
My City Rules: Exray’s On San Francisco
Posted in Features, Interviews, MP3s, My City Rules with tags Evangelista, Exray's, the Decemberists, the Fresh & Onlys on 10/27/2010 by Kurt Orzeck
You say your band has a big following on Facebook? Well, San Francisco’s Exray’s can do you one better: One of their songs is featured in David Fincher’s related movie “The Social Network,” which appears well on its way to a Best Picture nomination. The experimental lo-fi group just released its debut EP; here’s a downloadable song from it – along with one of the bandmembers’ contribution to “My City Rules,” a new Bad Penny series. Continue reading
Revising History: Wooden Wand On Guided By Voices, Black Flag, Rolling Stones, More
Posted in Features, Interviews, Revising History with tags Ace Frehley, Black Flag, Brownie McGhee, Cockney Rebel, Deniz Tek, Dr. Feelgood, Guided by Voices, James Toth, Jim Ford, Johnny Dowd, Kiss, Royal Trux, Slaughter Joe, Sonny Terry, the Cure, the Durutti Column, the Feelies, the Gris-Gris, the Roches, the Rolling Stones, the Vanishing Voice, Tom Verlaine, Tompall Glaser, Wooden Wand on 10/27/2010 by Kurt Orzeck
Over the years, James Jackson Toth has quietly proven himself to be one of the more undervalued American songwriters out there. Calling to mind a broad array of characters from the canon of great music – Captain Beefheart, Willie Nelson, Sun Ra and more – the man better known as Wooden Wand has been making a case that, perhaps, eventually, he should stack right up there with those legends. For the most poetic edition yet in the Bad Penny’s “Revising History” series, Toth touched on the Rolling Stones’ “Coming Down Again,” Guided by Voices’ “Chicken Blows,” Black Flag’s “Three Nights” and other songs he wishes he had made. Continue reading
Cover Me: Dearling Physique’s Deadeye Dealer
Posted in Cover Me, Features, Interviews, MP3s with tags Autechre, Beyoncé, David Byrne, Dearling Physique, Digital Underground, Domino Davis, Janine Rostron, John Legend, Joy Division, Kate Bush, M83, Matthew Friedberger, Moloko, Peter Gabriel, Planningtorock, Portishead, Roisin Murphy, Slowdive, Sonic Youth, the Fiery Furnaces, Tom Waits, Wild Beasts on 10/27/2010 by Kurt Orzeck
Minneapolis’ R&B-ish electro-pop squad Dearling Physique recently released a new single. Which artists would they most like to hear cover it? For that matter, which artists would they most like to hear cover every song on their forthcoming new record? Two members of the band chimed in for the latest installment in the Bad Penny’s “Cover Me” series. Continue reading
