FIRST PUBLISHED AT THE LINE OF BEST FIT
Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs
8.5/10
Perennial critics’ favourites Yo La Tengo return with an album that reigns in some of the magpie tendencies of 2006’s sprawling ‘I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass’ with a more focused set. ‘Popular Songs’ - their twelfth [...]
Tags:Alternative·Ambient·chamber pop·Experimental·Georgia Hubley·Indie·Ira Kaplan·pop·post-rock·Yo La Tengo
Mercury Rev by numbers
6/10
Although not a die-hard fan of ‘The Rev’ - I own nothing before Deserter’s Songs - this album has finished my interest in the band. As with Lambchop’s tedious ‘Aw Come On’ / No You Come On’, there comes a time in many band’s careers when the effect of their trademark sound [...]
Tags:Alt-rock·Alternative·Indie·post-rock·Psychedelia
A cast of thousands?
8/10
Extraordinary album this. A vast cast of musicians and influences seemingly sculpted in the studio by careful, intelligent production. Not just for indie fans, this has a universal appeal with the added lure of subtle shades of electronica (Capture The Flag), jazzy post-rock (Pacific Theme), and borderline psychedelics (Shampoo Suicide). The [...]