Our third contest is officially over, and we have three winners to announce. Congrats to David, George, and Robert, who each won a Death Cab For Cutie “Soul Meets Body” 7-inch, along with a dandy Directions DVD for David (I love alliteration)! As usual, you should definitely keep coming back to check out […]

(Atlantic, 2006) Big City Rock is a somewhat apt moniker, both for the band and its debut full-length. Just like a big city (say…LA or NY), Big City Rock is shiny and trendy. But that’s about about where the analogy breaks down. Unlike the Big Apple, Big City Rock isn’t full of […]

(Necessary/Atlantic, 2006) As it does with most albums, NME named Hard-Fi’s Stars of CCTV “album of the year” when it was first released in England last year. The album went on to get a Mercury nomination, among other accolades. Stars of CCTV finally dropped in the US in March of this year, and […]

(Warner Bros, 2006) The Vacation’s American Records debut is the same album as 2005’s Band From World War Zero, with a reordered tracklist and wider distribution, but that doesn’t mean a lot to me since I didn’t hear the original. The band’s formula is essentially hard rock in the vein of Buckcherry, with dashes […]

(Nettwerk, 2006) Having, the third full-length album from west coast indie popsters Trespassers William, is a bit of a departure for the band. Whereas they previously sounded rather like a dreamier, indier Cranberries or Natalie Merchant, Having finds the band resembling a spacier, slower, reverb-soaked Frou Frou. Not that such comparisons can really […]

Congratulations to Tom, Kaleena, Elisa, Jeff, and Kate, and thanks to all who entered and participated! Unfortunately, not everyone can win. Our five winners have been notified by email, and should receive their rad La Rocca prizes in the next couple weeks. But if you didn’t win, don’t let it get you […]