To me, when a musician does an ‘artist tribute’ and does a re-make of an original song, the outcome results only one of two ways. It’s either a heartbreaking turn-in-your-grave piece where the artist murders the essence of the track — or the piece is “something like a phenomenon” (yeah, I bit off LL Cool…
Category: REVIEWS
CD and DVD reviews
Accidental Tribe, Resolution
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Make no mistakes because Accidental Tribe has a Resolution for you; simply listen up and listen close. You will be attracted right away toward the infectious hooks & rhythms coming from this NYC band. Accidental Tribe has an alternative punk rock thing goin’ for them and it’s really working in their favor. The…
Steve Steele, The Expat
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Whether you like alternative, progressive, experimental or art rock, you’ll hear all of this and much more on Steve Steele’s debut album The Expat. Steele’s record literally plays out like a well-written story that has three sections. The first part focuses on Steele’s character living a secluded life and feeling alone in a…
The Sunrise, Spread The Word
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Husband and wife duo James and Rebecca Mileti are bringing Jesus to the forefront on their debut release titled Spread The Word. The Sunrise is taking a trip back to the 70s, but don’t be mistaken because these two musicians are not performing to the tune of peace & love hippies. They are…
SHOUSE, ALONE ON THE SUN
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Over the years we’ve seen music slowly shift its emphasis away from solid musicianship to other more marketable skill sets. Fact is most of the biggest hit’s in 2010 were nothing more that creative sampling, via a BOLD IN YOUR FACE MIX with an artist that possessed many cosmetic heavy attributes. Kind of like Ramon…
PepperDome, Chaos Point
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I remember when I reviewed PepperDome’s last album Let’s Try The Other Side back in 2009 and I was left thinking what the hell did I just hear? PepperDome is back with a brand new EP titled Chaos Point. Get ready to fasten your seatbelt once again because PepperDome is taking you on…
Katey Laurel, From Here
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Katey Laurel is a singer/songwriter from Denver who hopes to impress you with her new EP From Here. This latest release is a follow-up to her debut solo record titled Upstairs, Downstairs. Katey proved it then and she proved it once again on this eight-track set that she is one committed artist. …
Daniel Park, Search and Rescue
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Mr. Park does it again! Coming off his last release These Illusions, Daniel Park proves that he did not lose a beat. On the new EP Search and Rescue, Park continues to impress listeners everywhere with a sound and voice that makes you listen. There are a number of talented musicians on this…
Giorgio, Party of the Century
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Italy’s own Giorgio Onorato Aquilani or Giorgio for short recently released his latest CD entitled Party of the Centur in 2010. During my preliminary investigation of the production I quickly realized the sheer magnitude of this project with its impressive line up of players & various production folk. (Simon Phillips, Bobby Kimball, David Paitch, Greg…
Carmen Tosca, Time Only
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I had the pleasure of reviewing Carmen Tosca’s last album titled Wind (http://skopemag.com/2010/03/05/carmen-tosca-wind), which was a breath of fresh air for the most part. Her new record Time Only stays in the realm of a new-age, electronic and ambient setting. There are, however, some nice surprises that Tosca throws in like some hot…
Surf City, Kudos
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Sometimes a band just gets it. Sometimes a band comes from the far reaches of the planet (New Zealand, in this case) and make all their contemporaries look rather foolish and do so with relative ease. Sometimes a band culls from oft-plagiarized inspirations (Jesus and Mary Chain, Velvet Underground, the Spacemen) and instead writes and…
The Love Load, The Human Resourceful
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Over the years we’ve seen punk, hard rock & even alternative rock bands slowly erode into over-commercialized, corporate puppet shows. Talking to many music fans out there, the response is overwhelming. Give me something new, something raw, something that’s pushes hard & is going to kick me in he ass. Something that doesn’t sound like…
Braids, Native Speaker
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Brace yourself. Native Speaker, the debut from Montreal via Calgary’s Braids is destined to be the first massive indie record of the year. While only seven tracks long, there is a textural depth to the entire record that allows it to become much larger than the sum of its parts. Beginning with the nearly seven-minute…
V.I.T.A.L. Emcee, Versus-Verses
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I’m gonna be honest and say that mainstream hip-hop music is in trouble right now. This V.I.T.A.L. Emcee from Long Beach, California has an answer for this problem and it’s Versus-Verses. With not much to offer the public today as far as quality-driven rap music goes, this MC comes with a total package…
Spaceships Are Cool, Heart Echoes
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Get ready for an out-of-this-world adventure that will take you “to infinity & beyond!” (gotta love a good Buzz Lightyear reference) Rob Maddison is the mastermind behind Spaceships Are Cool writing & performing all the tracks on the new record. Guest appearances include: Helen Maddison on viola, violin, cello & saxophones and Ben…
Matthew Genovese, Change
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Over the years we’ve seen music slowly erode itself into popish nothingness. Artist after artist presenting themselves as superstars in the making, but look deeper you will discover many of these artists are nothing more than a pretty face, pushed in front of a microphone by the corporate giants in the hopes of making a…
The North Lakes, Cobra
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As a cold wind rushes through the night’s darkest hour, Charlottetown’s The North Lakes inhabit my stereo, balancing apocalyptic blues-folk with an East Coast/garage rock hybrid. Though the wind howls without reprise, the forecast is calling for sun tomorrow morning. And therein lies the manner in which Cobra, the debut from The North Lakes tantalizes…
Chikita Violenta, Tre3s
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When searching for the next big thing in the world of indie rock, bloggers are quick to lend an ear to anything coming out of hot spots like Portland, Austin or Brooklyn. Mexico City doesn’t exactly have the same kind of reputation for producing hipster-approved bands that these three cities do, but things may very…
Delta Spirit, Waits Room EP
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Whenever a band releases a live album, B-sides collection–hell, even an EP–the word “stopgap” is often thrown around. By “stopgap”, of course, I’m referring to the critical go-to insult used to describe a holdover release bridging together “proper” releases, often simply a cuter way of saying a band is suffering from writer’s block. On…
Green Children, Encounter
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“Encounter”, the title track from The Green Children’s debut full-length album, begins with buzzing nature sounds, the laughter of a small child, and a cheesy, whispered promise from frontwoman Milla Sunde: “I will always be with you”. Not a promising start. That same track eventually blooms into a micro-world of synth pads, cheap beats,…
Professor Pandemonium’s Cabinet of Wonders
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Very interesting! That pretty much sums up the listening experience of Professor Pandemonium’s Cabinet of Wonders. Douglas La Ferle is the man behind it all and boy does he have a surprise for you! The first thing I notice is a Medusa-like figure on the front cover of the CD with very detailed…
WEST COAST SEATTLE BOY, THE JIMI HENDRIX ANTHOLOGY
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WCSB is the latest offering by the Hendrix Family is available in a 16 cut CD, an eight LP Limited Edition version, a one CD one DVD Deluxe Edition, and a Box Set Collectors Edition version featuring four CD’s and a DVD. The release features both unreleased and alternative versions of Jimi’s songs. …
Voice In The Dark, Best Of
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Voice In The Dark is one artist who is a singer, composer and producer. This appears to be a man of many talents and he proves it on his new Best Of collection. The San Diego-based musician actually came out with 4 CD’s in 2009 titled: GAIA, ETHERIC, PHONEME and HIKARI. Voice…
AUDITORIUM, BE BRAVE
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Spencer Berger has joined the ranks of the one-man band genre with this release. This product is different than the majority of the things done in basically “First Person” that I get in the mail to review. Many aren’t mature material, and sound like karaoke, and I won’t waste my time reviewing them.…
Vicious Cycle, The Vagina Chronologue
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Vicious Cycle is a female rap duo made up of: Money and Neeky Devero. This tag team is taking girl power to a whole other level with their new release The Vagina Chronologue. Dainty and lady-like goes way out the window here as Money & Neeky Devero give you a raw and un-cut…
Dane Drewis, Rock and Soul
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Rock and Soul is the first solo CD from Sacramento, CA-area singer/guitarist Dane Drewis. Fans of Drewis will recognize him from the band Cuesta Drive and in fact, a number of the tracks on this release also appeared on Cuesta Drive’s Distractions album. The new tracks feature Jason Weed on drums and Dane’s…
MIDDLE CLASS RUT, NO NAME, NO COLOR
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Middle Class Rut are one of the newer groups out there gigging, in the vein of two man groups like White Stripes and Black Keys. Zack Lopez is on guitars and vocals, accompanied by Sean Stockham on drums and vocals. USA is a Ramone’s styled rocker. Are You On Your Way is…
STEVE LUKATHER, ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL
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Steve is a well-rounded studio vet who has played with a virtual “Who’s Who” in the music industry, and was the six-string wizard behind Toto. This release as expected, features some clever and tasty guitar work. The band he’s assembled for this disc include Steve on vocals and guitar, CJ Vanston on keys…
Brennan Dylan, Bullet Ride
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Rock and electronica collide like never before on Brennan Dylan’s exciting new album Bullet Ride. This debut instrumental album from Dylan gives you the best of both worlds from rock guitar to dance-heavy beats. I remember hearing in the 70s that you either were a rocker or a disco junkie; could not be…
Intended Creation, Awake
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What I love about Indie artists is that they take risks and that they have no set boundaries or limitations holding them back. A big-time record company isn’t telling these musicians what they should play and how it should sound. The outcome is usually downright raw and unpredictable, which I simply love! Intended…
Swift Tongues, The Last MC Mix Tape
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When you think of rap meccas — you think of great cities like ATL, CALI, NY. Even Seattle Washington has had it’s share of popular rap artists over the year. Artists like Sir Mix-A-Lot, LaborOldoninion, Blue Scholers, The Boom Bap Project, No Clure just to name a few. Now I’d like to introduce you to…
Nexcyx, EP
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Get ready for a group from Barbados as they unleash their International debut EP and hope to take the world by storm! They call themselves Nexcyx and the band incorporates many different styles of music such as: hip-hop, rock and pop. Nexcyx is made up of four members: Mahalia Phillips on vocals, Andre…
Adam Rader, What Dreams Become
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Singer/songwriter Adam Rader releases a two-song EP in light of his upcoming 2011 debut album. One track is an original penned by Rader and the other is a cover of a classic tune. It will be hard to judge this artist and his music based on just two songs, but I will do…
Pas Chic Chic, 12″
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There’s something about kraut rock that just gets me. Where I often find myself bored with minimalist electronica that simply drones on and on, repeating the same melodic and rhythmic passages into a numbing, sterilized pulp, the deliberate thrust of a good, weird kraut rock groove can make me weak in the knees. …
Eight Feet Deep, EP
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Eight Feet Deep is the latest project from Long Island, NY guitarist and songwriter Billy “Pills” Fridrich. Fridrich has played guitar and written for his previous bands Celestial and HeavySurf and also plays throughout the NY area in a side project called No Excuses. Eight Feet Deep is comprised mostly of Fridrich given…
Quest For Fire, Lights From Paradise
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Maybe the members of Quest For Fire smoke a lot of pot, and maybe they don’t. What they do to fill their hours offstage and out of the studio shouldn’t really matter. Though you can’t help but wonder, considering how seamless and engulfing each of the eight tracks on Lights From Paradise are. It’s a…
Aliqua, All I Want
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The cover of All I Want, the holiday-themed sophomore release from all-female choral/pop group Aliqua, features all eight vocalists posing as mannequins behind the glass of a department store window. It’s a troubling image–anyone who’s listened to a Christmas compilation in the past thirty years probably knows holiday music has seen better days (Besides, the…
Eleven Dollar Life, Shatter The Silence
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Are you ready to get nuts and join the party that is known as Eleven Dollar Life? I hope so because these Chicago rockers are about to Shatter The Silence for good! Eleven Dollar Life unleashes a fury of sound that will excite the hell out of people’s senses everywhere! This group…
Broken Poets, Self-Titled
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If it ain’t broke then don’t fix it is a famous saying and one that Broken Poets should stand by on their latest effort. This Phoenix-based group offers up a four-track EP here, which is a teaser for their upcoming multi-media project called For The Death Of Dustin Essary. What you are getting…
Bassments of Badmen Volume 2, Various Artists
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Hand’Solo records has recently re-released their classic hip-hop compilation, Bassments of Badmen Volume Two. Featuring a new cover that reflects the darker tone of mixtape, the album still contains early songs from Mindbender, Conspiracy, Noah 23, Epic, Wordburglar and Selfhelp. Embracing all the Hand’Solo trademarks ( twisted, and often laugh-out-loud funny, lyrics and…
