An oft-quoted rule-of-thumb for writers is “write what you know.” Great written works are usually imbued with a strong sense of place derived from the writer’s ability to pull that little bit of themselves in–people, places, conversations, situations. Kelly Pardekooper lived in Iowa most of his life and recorded five albums of Grade-A Iowa Americana. […]
Album reviews
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: The Pines – Dark So Gold
I’ve been a dedicated follower of former-Iowa City band The Pines since their first album came out on Dave Zollo’s late record label, Trailer Records, in 2004. Benson Ramsey and David Huckfelt have since recorded three albums for Red House Records—a label with a famous affinity for the Iowa City folk and blues scene. Each […]
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Album Review: Grism – Social Obligations
Grism is a group comprised of Zach Lint (aka Coolzey of the Sucker MCs), Grace Locke Ward (Petit Mal, Leslie & The LY’s, Etsy.com superstar), Rachel Feldman and Kate Kane (Lipstick Homicide). They’re longtime friends and members of the recombinant scrum of rock bands in Iowa City. Even though Grism is a vehicle for Zach’s […]
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Album Review: Cuticle – Mother Rhythm Earth Memory
This release by Cuticle (aka Brendan O’Keefe) is notable in the first place because it will be released on Not Not Fun, a well-respected boutique label, known internationally for adventurous releases on vinyl and cassette. Mother Rhythm Earth Memory will be limited to 500 vinyl records; I hope the vinyl will be followed by a […]
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Album Review/Show Preview: Blind Pilot at the Blue Moose, 2/2/12
Blind Pilot is a six-piece musical group from Portland, OR, which started its touring career bicycling up and down the West Coast. Israel Nebeker leads with his gorgeous voice and warm acoustic guitar, while the rest of the band adds eclectic instrumentation like banjo, upright bass, vibraphone, trumpet, and harmonium. Their bright, uplifting music is […]
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Album Review: Thomas Comerford – Archive + Spiral
Thomas Comerford Archive + Spiral www.thomascomerford.bandcamp.com As the principal singer and songwriter in the band Kaspar Hauser, Thomas Comerford has built a reputation for his inventive take on roots rock. Archive + Spiral is less rocking and more country, with a vibe more living room than rock club. Comerford’s slightly nasal baritone recalls Lou Reed […]
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Album Review: T'Bone – Mount Trashmore
T’Bone is based in Chicago, but is made up of Iowa natives Leland Meiners (bass), Ed Bornstein (drums) and Pat McPartland (guitar), and their album Mount Trashmore was recorded in Iowa City at Luke Tweedy’s Flat Black Studio. Chicago, birthplace of seminal post rock bands like Tortoise and Gastr Del Sol, is an apt home for these guys, whose songs follow their own crooked paths, leaving pop song conventions far behind.
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Album Review: John Rapson – Mystery and Manners
Questions of authenticity and the creative process have long been pressed on fans of modern music, especially electronic music. File sharing and digital manipulation change the collaborative process and force listeners to ask how important human playing, human authorship and human interaction are to creating what we call music. Is collaboration collaborative when it is […]
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Album Review: Cop Bar
Brando Gassman and Andy Sinclair’s hard-hitting musical skills and unironic love of metal. Sam Locke Warde’s bloody-minded humor and migraine-inducing shrieks. Twenty songs averaging a minute in length. Result? Police Brutality.
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Album Review – Fetal Pig: Autopia
Fetal Pig Autopia fetalpig.bandcamp.com Jesus said “Behold the lilies of the field. They toil not, neither do they spin.” For some reason Fetal Pig reminds me of Jesus’ lilies. With a band history going back nearly 20 years, these guys do what they do not because it makes them rich and famous–because it hasn’t–but because […]
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Album Review – Rahlan Kay: Now You Know
Rahlan Kay is the new hip-hop handle for Rowland Gibson, who has in the past been known as Genuyne, DNA and Testfyi. Rowland is a producer and MC from Cedar Rapids who has been a regular in the Iowa hip-hop scene for over ten years. He’s nothing if not persistent. There’s more than a few sketchy MCs around who are legends in their own minds, but Rowland’s different–he’s church folk, a family man and dead serious about his craft.
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Album Review – P-Tek: Oh! What a Miracle
P-Tek (Adam Protextor) makes me feel old, since he’s a friend of my son, Sean. You might know Adam from his involvement with the Resist Evil horror movie, which starred another Iowa City hip-hop head, Coolzey. Adam’s verbal gymnastics and bent sense of humor, in full effect on Oh! What A Miracle! owes a debt to Coolzey and his Sucker MCs posse, but he’s cinematically deranged in his own special way.
