Music Review
Unfortunately a very busy 2013 has kept me from what I enjoy most, writing reviews and doing that good ole Down the Line Zine. Getting back into the swing of things, fresh year, a new start and reviews that I need to catch up on. Seems right that the first one I get to is…
You may not be familiar with Jason Tyler Burton, but go check out his Noistrade site to see who is. Yep, Mr. Bill Mallonee himself would encourage you to check out his music, because he says “You will NOT be disappointed.” This particular album is a collection of covers and originals that you can download…
Way back before Spotify or Bandcamp, before Facebook, before even MySpace, there was Mp3.com. It wasn’t very social, but it was the place to check out this new-fangled digital method of music distribution. It was also pretty much a free-for-all place where unknown bands could fight alongside established bands due to lack of industry interest…
In the large and still growing re-emergent underground Christian punk scene, False Idle seems to quickly be climbing to the top of the heap. Out of all the good to really good punk albums I listened to 2013, this is probably one of the best. False Idle is not redefining punk as much as doing…
This slightly over-looked ep should have gotten more attention just due to the high caliber guest players on the album. But these guests don’t really overshadow the whole Grace & Thieves sound as much as augment it, though. The first track has a long, slow build up before it thrashes away nicely. You then get…
This album was a huge surprise for me. When I put the songs into iTunes, the style came up as “Soul & Hardcore.” Great, I thought – yet another silly kid somewhere messing with genre descriptions. But, weird as it sounds, that is about the best description I can think of. Easter Teeth is basically…
Acoustic, stripped down, and rawer than we have heard Rowlands in the past, these songs are labeled as demos. So will we see these again on future albums? Maybe so, but for the most part these songs can stand alone as another project of the acoustic side of Rowlands that we have heard on many…
Transistor Revival is a newer project from Glenn Rowlands and Robert Powell. The tone, lyrics and music are much darker than most of their past projects. Loud guitars, catchy hooks, and memorable melodies are still present. The name of the album/project seems to be rooted in a series of dramas of the same name. It…
Fashion Week is a bit different than I was expecting. Their first track, “Jacksons Everywhere”, sounds almost like they are starting off with a slightly amplified Americana sound. But the second track (“The Other Side/SPIT BUBBLES”) is alternative guitar rock. Most of the songs on the their EP seem to float somewhere in between the…
So what exactly does progressive folk rock sound like? If it is all like The Glance, call me a fan. I was hooked from the melancholic interplay between the guitar and mandolin on “Keep Your Mood From Changing.” I am guessing the “progressive” part is the electric guitar that is tastefully added in many places.…