The Tribune

Blue Swan Orchestra is the re-release of the Golden Boy’s 2003 debut album, and their latest since 2011’s Sleepwalker. The soft-rock/indie-pop band’s re-mastered album also features two bonus tracks, “Blind” and “Windows.”  The album’s greatest strength is the blend of the familiar sounds of indie and pop with uniquely evoking[Read More…]

Jack Davey, frontwoman for the Californian electro-soul duo J*DaVeY, has gone solo. But for a singer who has opened for Prince, the Roots, and Janelle Monáe, the five-song EP falls distinctly flat. Davey’s voice, sultry, breathy, and deep, is wasted on what she calls “stripped-down grunge” and her attempt at[Read More…]

In their nearly 20-year career, The Sea and Cake have not only maintained incredible consistency in sound and quality, but have also shown incredible versatility. Named after a mishearing of “the ‘C’ in ‘Cake,’” the Chicago-based quartet avoids the labels of genre (although post-indie-breathy-jazz-rock-fusion is a start)—The Sea and Cake[Read More…]

Vancouver’s The Zolas take an original approach to indie-pop with their evocative Ancient Mars release. The duo’s sophomore album is full of imaginative lyricism perfect for a fall heartbreak compilation. Ancient Mars opens up with “In Heaven,” a lackluster jumble of sounds. It’s not that the track itself is disappointing,[Read More…]

The last time I heard a Tyler Hilton song was in 2004, and the track was “Kiss On Me;” the 20-year old singer-songwriter was, meanwhile, guest-starring on the hit TV series One Tree Hill. Now, a good eight years later, Hilton has grown up. Forget The Storm is only his[Read More…]

Muse was heard across the world this year with their official Olympic anthem “Survival.” Their sixth album, The 2nd Law, followed hot on its heels, and much like their Olympic debut, brought back the grandiose musicality and exuberant magnitude that Muse fans have been dying for the band to rediscover.[Read More…]

Oct. 5, 2012 proved to be a day of excitement for experimental-pop group Thus:Owls. Not only was it the release date of their most recent album Harbours, but it was also a day of positive response from devoted fans. Erika Angell, a Swedish singer/composer is to thank for gathering this[Read More…]

If summer was cruel to producer Kanye West, this album makes me wonder if it was just because his artistic ambition was not up to its usual standards. Coming out on the tail end of the warm season, G.O.O.D. Music’s Cruel Summer largely misses the mark of a classic summer[Read More…]

Nostalgia is the first word that comes to mind upon hearing the first strings on the new self-titled album from Sic Alps. Nostalgia, in this case, refers to a wistful longing to have had experienced the wild changes of the ’60s. Listening to this album feels similar to being transported[Read More…]

For the past 20-odd years, Dwight Yoakam has been writing and singing what he calls “Honky-tonk music.” Honky-tonk indeed: his new album, 3 Pears, released last month, has a distinct ‘bang-that-keyboard, strum-that-guitar’ feel. 3 Pears both is and isn’t a typical country album. While Yoakam’s voice is tinged with Southern[Read More…]