expect delay
New Order’s 1980’s output is nigh-untouchable, but amongst those albums, it’s arguable that 1983’s Power Corruption & Lies is the best of the best, as they stepping out of the shadow of Joy Division and boldly established their own identity. And while there were no singles taken directly from the record – the band somehow […]
Maria Lindén of I Break Horses essays her choice for the top Spiritualized record for Sonic Cathedral. Pure Phase is also possibly my favourite Spiritualized album for reasons I can’t fully articulate; maybe because it was the hardest one for me to find used on CD some 20-plus years ago. I made an attempt to […]
While running this blog has been a great exercise in exploring music through the flat circle of time, I’d be remiss to not acknowledge that we’re currently experiencing a(nother) renaissance in post-punk because, remarkable, artists are finding some aspect of the world to be anxious or angry about. As such, a lot of the bigger, […]
Peruse any list of “essential post-punk bands” and at some point, probably at least halfway down the list, you’ll probably find an entry for Watford’s Sad Lovers & Giants. Find a list for “most overlooked post-punk bands”, and they’ll probably be near the top. Whatever the reasons for their under-appreciatedness, lack of quality is not […]
The losses in the music world over the past year have been immeasurable, but the loss of Andy Gill from Gang Of Four remains one of the bitterest, and a number of projects he was working on at the time of his passing have since become posthumous tributes to one of the most influential musicians […]
In this day and age where everything exists first digitally and basically in perpetuity, rarities aren’t really a thing. But in feeling like posting a Hatchie song, I opted to go for one that only barely exists physically and thus is sort of an inverse rarity. “Adored” was released as part of Adult Swim’s 2018 […]
Conventional wisdom holds that Slowdive’s second album Souvlaki is their masterpiece – certainly it’s my go-to of their catalog – but the critical re-evaluation Pygmalion – their once-but-no-longer swan song – has gotten over the past quarter-century is pretty remarkable. On its initial release in February of 1995, it seemed to be cursed. Drummer Simon […]
Germany’s Rockpalast programme really is the gift that keeps on giving. Their archive of live shows – or more specifically the ones that have made their way onto YouTube and remain there, rights be damned – is an astonishing time capsule that I’ll be happy to mine as long as I’m doing this. Today, a […]
Now that My Bloody Valentine’s back catalog is for the most part officially back in print – the Domino-branded reissues of their last three albums came out last week (although my own order is still back-ordered till whenever) and their EPs 1988-1991 has finally made it to streaming services in its entirety, albeit retconned into […]
Sometimes you want something fresh, innovative, and groundbreaking and sometimes you want something that just sticks closely to a tried-and-true playbook but does it well. Los Angeles’ Moaning fit that second category pretty well with their vein of mournfully catchy post-punk. Their second album, last year’s Uneasy Laughter, leans into synths and sonic refinement more […]
