Home > audiofiles

CD review: The Hold Steady
By Matthew Quane
In the same way the characters in their songs sport scars and drug addictions, The Hold Steady wears its “bar band” label like a badge of honor. And with the critical acclaim the band has received in recent years, “bar band” has indeed become an honorific.

CD review: Time Again
By Billy Schear
True stories and decorative metal studs are hardly an antidote to Time Again’s Rancid smell.

CD review: In Reverent Fear
By Cassie Hood
There is an endless number of ways a band can combine different elements in their music. Some bands can flawlessly mix ingredients together and some get it so wrong they should be stabbed in their collective Stomacher.

CD review: Umbrellas
By Shannon Yoshida
Umbrellas won’t keep anyone dry during a thunderstorm this season.

CD review: Emily Haines and the Soft Skeleton
By Matthew Quane
Someone – or something – has made Emily Haines sad. And to that someone, the music world owes a debt of gratitude.

Freeplay: Capitol Punishment
By Megan Carneal
Long before the current animosity towards President Bush and after the flower children had their peace-loving ways with Nixon, there was Reagan. And as with all screw-ups in seats of power, he provided music with a much-needed ingredient: hardcore fuel for the counterculture fire.