(Red Ink, 2005) “Have you heard the one about the Jesus and Mary Motorcycle Club?” B.R.M.C. sure have. The constant comparisons between early period Jesus and Mary Chain and the first two albums from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club had left the band pigeoholed. The slow, meandering, completely fuzzed out sound had kind […]

(Estatic Peace/Universal, 2006) Much has been written lately about young punk quartet Be Your Own Pet. There’s the fact that Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore thinks they’re great, that none of the members have yet reached their twenties, and that lead singer Jemina Pearl sounds like she could be Karen O’s younger sister, among other […]

(Columbia/Red Ink, 2006) The Zookeeper’s Boy is an EP from Danish progressive pop group Mew, intended to introduce the band to American audiences before the domestic release of their latest album, And The Glass Handed Kites, this summer. If the EP is any indication, the album will be one of the year’s best. […]

(Atlantic, 2006) Zero 7’s third album continues in the direction suggested by their previous release, moving further from Air-inspired downbeat electronica and towards electro-pop, folk rock, and soul. Ten of the twelve tracks on The Garden feature guest vocals from either longtime Zero 7 collaborator Sia Furler or Swedish sensation José González, and each […]

(Thrive, 2006) Who would have thought that a band started by a former drummer would spawn another band fronted by a drummer? Well, the Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins steps to the mike for this sunny, often satisfying album. He stays behind the drums, though, and they remain a focal point throughout. It […]

(Reprise, 2006) This is one of those records that I have been waiting for for a long time. Ever since I heard Now Here is Nowhere, I thought “God, I can’t wait to get their next record.” And now it is here. The spacey guitars are still all over the place, […]