In honor of being an openly critical place, I will admit that I was pretty disappointed in the latest Magnolia Sons artwork. They’ve done such a great job so far with aping the R&B style that this divergence seems like a mild disappointment. 

That being said, the song is absolutely tops, so maybe they were just focusing their efforts on the main thing you need to enjoy.. the music.

Technically, Uncle Skeleton no longer resides in Nashville but you know what? Neither do I! We have roots there and it will always be the place we call home. So, that being said, I don’t feel too wrong about posting about the new album, Too Young, Too Old. 

That aside, it’s the most “realized” album yet – the pop songs are sunnier, the bossa nova songs are more melancholy and the ambient songs are zone out than before. It is, in a word, great.

The album is available on an awesome clear gold vinyl, digital download or streaming on Rdio and Spotify. 

This latest EP from Cinema Cycle is a lowkey, melancholy, striving-for-sweetness bit of indie composition. Pretty perfect for these colder and colder nights.

first track off the forthcoming mixtape… color me intrigued!

it’s been roughly ten years since this album was originally released and now it’s been given the Deluxe Re-Release treatment from new label Refiner’s Fire. This version of the album includes all eight original tracks, two unreleased original demos and a handful of live tracks from the early years of the band. Turns out, the songs stand the test of time and feel as compelling now as they did then – assuming you’re a fan of Sunny Day Real Estate and classical influences mashed together.

I realize I mentioned them just last week because their previous album, Our Mother Electricity, is so Halloween appropriate but I’m going to alert you to the fact that All Them Witches has a brand new offering available now and it’s incredibly good. Continuing in the same dark vein as the previous offerings, Lightning at the Door manages to dish out a healthy dose of psychedelic, stoner rock – best compared to the offerings of Kyuss, QOTSA and other Desert Sessions style bands. 

I’ve yet to see them live but I hope it’s loud as hell – as that’s really the best way to take this on.

This week is a big one for Blank Range – they’re Lighting 100’s “Band of the Week”, they’re featured in NATIVE’s “You Outta Know” section and, best of all, they’ve unveiled their first 7". The two song wax is available for pre-order and streaming over on their Bandcamp right now but the actual release won’t be until the 21st, when they play The Basement with Fly Golden Eagle.

If they can play it live half as perfectly rousing as these recordings, they’ve got a good something going.