Archive for the ‘Sound Off’ Category
Friday, July 4th, 2008
Philosopher-punk. Few bands could even come close to warranting that designation. Lungfish is one of them. Forged in the fires of 1987 Baltimore, they slammed out album after album of intense, mesmerizing and primitive post-punk laden with lyrics that oscillate between poetry and manifesto.
There is unquestionably a rigid, formulaic ...
Posted in Audio, Baltimore, Lungfish, Sound Off | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008
There is something about the combination of French, female scream-shout-sing vocals, crunchy punk guitars and screeching electro action that always has the ability to perk up my ears and my demeanor. This simply addictive (addictively simple?) track from Duchess Says lands in my Inbox, filling in all those bubbles ...
Posted in Audio, Duchess Says, Sound Off | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, June 4th, 2008
Arbouretum's Long Live the Well-Doer starts off with some stereotypically new-age string plucking accented by wind chimes. I immediately came up with an image of some hemp-pushing, mandala-worshipping yoga lover and almost chucked the disc in the trash.
But thankfully, I gave it a spin. And I never looked ...
Posted in Arbouretum, Audio, Baltimore, Kodiak, Preview, Sound Off, Talking Head | 3 Comments »
Wednesday, June 4th, 2008
I'm not gonna lie, These New Puritans are scratching an itch. One I never realized I had until I heard their debut Beat Pyramid a few weeks ago and it suddenly stopped bothering me...this venn-diagram-intersection-shaped gap between dub, electronic, dancehall, post-punk, balls-out indie rock, hip-hop and a dozen other ...
Posted in Audio, DC, DC9, Interview, Preview, Sound Off, These New Puritans | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
Hearkening back to those care-free days of sugary bubble-gum pop seems to be a pseudo-rage in recent years.
Drawing from that very same groundswell is DC's Bellman Barker. Their EP, Anise & Anisette, is chock full of lofty, airy, fluffy-as-a-cloud vocals and plentiful backup vocal harmonization, supported by twangy, power-chording ...
Posted in Album Review, Among Wolves, Audio, Baltimore, Bellman Barker, DC, Preview, Red Vines, Sidebar, Sound Off, Tereu Tereu, Video | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 21st, 2008
Baltimore - meet Concrete Prophet (if you haven't encountered them in a previous incarnation). They will be pummeling your head in now.
Born out of a network of connections and friendships at Towson's music department, since 2005 they have been playing the area, showcasing their take on progressive rock. Their ...
Posted in Audio, Baltimore, Concrete Prophet, Interview, News, Sound Off, Video | No Comments »
Sunday, May 18th, 2008
Small Sur is yet another testament to the talent that resides in our fair charmed city. Beyond the bizarre and the novelty, there is a massive well of traditional folk/Americana that rarely gets the attention it deserves (thanks to the focus on the more spastic and brightly-colored portions of ...
Posted in Album Review, Audio, Baltimore, Bob Keal, Preview, Small Sur, Sound Off | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 6th, 2008
So we here at Aural States get dozens upon dozens of new artists dropped into our inbox every day. We try to spare you the worst of it and only post those things each of us deem particularly interesting, or potentially appealing.
In this vein, I present to you music ...
Posted in Audio, Mr. Gnome, News, Sound Off | No Comments »
Friday, April 18th, 2008
Here's how I imagine the formation of Ungdomskulen (Wiki). First, visualize the scene: a group of talented instrumentalists in Norway are weaning themselves on giants of metal to form a cover band, studiously perfecting songs from System of a Down, the Gothenburg sound, early Metallica, Black Sabbath, prog.
They can't ...
Posted in Audio, Sound Off, Ungdomskulen, Video | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 16th, 2008
Imperial China impressed us in their last outing @ Lo-Fi with Caverns. A lot.I don't have time right now to really review this track and lavish the praise it deserves, but I will later today. I just wanted to get this out there.Imperial China has their EP release ...
Posted in Audio, Imperial China, Preview, Sound Off | No Comments »
