Modern Merchant Creates Layers of Harmony on ‘For the Fields’ EP
You don’t hear a lot of clarinet in rock ‘n’ roll, but there it is, winding its way through “Marry Me Annie” on Modern Merchant’s new EP, “For the Fields.” Although part of the Brooklyn indie band released a three-song…
John Murry Sings of Ghosts and Ashes on ‘The Graceless Age’
If rock ’n’ roll tends to exist in the present tense, John Murry’s songs live in the aftermath. The Mississippi-born California transplant sifts through shards and fragments on “The Graceless Age” (Evangeline Recording Co.), a powerful solo debut anchored by…
Titles Bow Out With Charming Finale, ‘Modern Sounds in Science Fiction’
The coming and going of bands is an inevitable part of music — sunrise, sunset and all — but the Connecticut music scene has been hit with some lamentable goings, from New London punk veterans the Reducers to Hartford chamber…
Frightened Rabbit broadens scope and sound on ‘Pedestrian Verse’
Frightened Rabbit leader Scott Hutchison picked “Pedestrian Verse” as the working title of the band’s fourth album as a reminder to himself to avoid cliches in his lyrics.
Top 10 Albums of 2012: Alabama Shakes, Winterpills, Frank Ocean and more
It was a eclectic year for music, with only a handful of consensus albums. That said, it was also a good year for music. Here are my 10 favorite LPs of 2012.
Mark Mallman Works Through Heartache on Catchy New LP, ‘Double Silhouette’
When Mark Mallman isn’t busy engaging in 78-hour public sing-a-thons — by himself — as part of a series of what he calls “Marathon” events, the Minneapolis singer and songwriter writes catchy pop songs. His latest album, “Double Silhouette” (Eagle’s Golden…
Teenage trio Bonsai Trees show promise on four-song EP
Listening to teenage would-be rockers is one of the least appealing musical activities there is. They rarely sound like anything more than a pale imitation of their influences, and when their lyrics aren’t crass stabs at humor, they’re painfully earnest…
Heirlooms bid farewell with first studio LP, ‘Everyone a Diver’
After releasing an EP in 2010 and a live album last year, Hartford band Heirlooms returns this month with “Everyone a Diver,” the band’s first studio LP. It’s also the band’s last studio LP. While that’s understandable — leader Jesse…
Album Review: Franz Nicolay keeps up pell-mell pace on ‘Do the Struggle’
Latter-day vaudevillian Franz Nicolay keeps up the pell-mell pace on his third solo album, “Do the Struggle,” dashing through songs with the urgency of a man overflowing with deeply felt emotions and important things to say. It’s compelling as hell…
Album review: You Scream I Scream’s ‘Zookeeper’
It’s been years since Floyd Kellogg played with UConn funk band Adios Pantalones, but the singer and bassist nods at the old days, sort of, in a song on “Zookeeper,” the second album from his current group You Scream I Scream,…
