Saturday, Dec 13, 2008
Christmas on Mars is not only another milestone in the Flaming Lips' landmark career, but is also able to stand as something all its own.
[Brian Loeper]
Saturday, Dec 13, 2008
A film of visual beauty about an artist obsessed with...visual beauty.
[Danny Djeljosevic]
Saturday, Dec 13, 2008
Paul Schrader tackles the Holocaust in this perverse film that is ultimately about the strength of the human spirit.
[Danny Djeljosevic]
Saturday, Dec 13, 2008
Mickey Rourke completes his comeback in the powerhouse character study that fails to disappoint.
[Danny Djeljosevic]
Saturday, Dec 13, 2008
Kelly Reichardt makes another deep, moving film using the beauty of Oregon as a lush backdrop to her stories of lost people searching for a connection.
[Jane Hruska]
Saturday, Dec 13, 2008
To complain about a lack of humanity in a story about how human life is worth saving is not a good sign, is it?
[Danny Djeljosevic]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
Some strong punch to get you through the holiday blues. Merry Christmas, bitches.
[Lukas Sherman]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
Stephen Colbert's parody of Republicans spills over on CD to create a hilarious, biting album for the Yuletide.
[Brian Loeper]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
This is a Christmas album for depressed, solitary sad-sacks, whose every word trembles like Sune Rose Wagner's falsetto, who pine for a Sharin Foo to harmonize their holidays away, whose trains of thought screech against tracks of feedback.
[Charles A. Hohman]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
Part Three of our coverage of the year's best releases.
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
Tapes is a 74-minute rave and everyone is invited. Unfortunately, this rave sounds too contrived to be convincing.
[Jory Spadea]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
Worth checking out for one song, our writer muses that an album of only Bob Mould covers may have been the way to go here.
[Bob McCarthy]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
Rivers Cuomo continues to purge his old, unreleased tapes to produce a collection that has some real keepers.
[Cameron Mason]
Friday, Dec 12, 2008
The problem of the covers album as a novelty hangs over this new release that is neither essential nor original.
[Charles A. Hohman]
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008
Part Two of our coverage of the year's best releases.
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008
Fennesz is firmly in control over this new batch of compositions that continue to make him one of the best out there in the electro-minimalist movement.
[Jory Spadea]
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008
With a distinct sound and apparent vision, Wild Beasts appear to have skipped the embryonic phase and shifted straight into a developed band on this startling debut.
[Edmond Stansberry]
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008
On this decidedly Scottish release, James Yorkston weaves quiet folk music with wordy, bucolic tales of love and heartbreak.
[David Harris]
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008
A sordid concept album about a teenage prostitute, The Parts That Showed is a harrowing listen that has some great parts, but probably won't come off the shelf that often. You're not going to play this one on a first date.
[Chris Middleman]
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
Part One of our coverage of the year's best releases.
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
Our writer is saddled with the morning after blues, but sated by a fantastic meal at this restaurant.
[Nathan Kamal]
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
The Billy Corgan flame out continues.
[Brian Loeper]
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
Though it drags in its second half, The Betrayal is a fascinating study about the after effects of the Vietnam War on Southeast Asia, decades later.
[David Harris]
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
"We take small steps, and we only take a few a year. Our songs and recordings are always moving in the same direction - wider, brighter, deeper."
[David Harris]
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
Those expecting another My Life in the Bush of Ghosts will be disappointed, but David Byrne and Brian Eno turn in an enjoyable album that reveals a bit more with each listen.
[Eric Whelchel]
Wednesday, Dec 10, 2008
Though whether Nebula actually deserves a Peel Session is debatable, something about this release makes our writer's heart go thumpety-thump for that Endless Summer we all mythologize.
[Chris Middleman]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
Limp and silly, The Dukes could have been something really great if more time to thoroughly develop the character was utilized.
[Jane Hruska]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
Fox Theater, Boulder, CO, 11/12/08
[Aimee Herman]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
Q-Tip is still at the top of his game with The Renaissance, one of the finest rap albums of the year that outclasses most of the competition.
[Cameron Mason]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
George W. Bush furor is, like, so passe. Do yourself a favor and skip this one.
[Brian Loeper]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
Michael Rapaport turns in a strong lead performance in a film that is special for nothing much else.
[David Harris]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
Rediscover this classic album of stark violence, beauty and depth.
[Eric Whelchel]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
Matador (and Pavement) score again with another chock-a--block reissue that does something rare: provide bonuses that are essential.
[Eric Whelchel]
Tuesday, Dec 9, 2008
The Welcome Wagon is an undiluted example of simplicity; the beauty of married instruments and voices. If church sounded like this, we would go!
[Aimee Herman]
Monday, Dec 8, 2008
Grease, grease, grease! We love grease here at Spectrum Culture like no one's business. But what about all those svelte Boulderites? Dig in, people!
[Aimee Herman]
Monday, Dec 8, 2008
Where are the farmer's daughters when we need them?
[Jane Hruska]
Monday, Dec 8, 2008
An examination of a period of time in the life of a handful of Israeli homosexuals, Antarctica is touching and, at times, funny.
[Allyn Sterling]
Monday, Dec 8, 2008
Wonder Ballroom, Portland, OR, 11/12/08.
[Mathew Klickstein]
Monday, Dec 8, 2008
Though gimmicky and sometimes annoying, Kanye West produces an album about heartbreak that may not equal the stature of his previous records, but still has some choice cuts on board.
[Cameron Mason]
Monday, Dec 8, 2008
This album just drones on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on.
[Chris Middleman]
Saturday, Dec 6, 2008
It's the crust that makes the pie. Try this killer recipe that has been passed down from generations before.
[Ian Lasell]
Saturday, Dec 6, 2008
The underside of human nature is explored in this chilling masterpiece as director Glowna juggles contact and creepiness with aplomb.
[Nathan Kamal]
Saturday, Dec 6, 2008
"Well, there's a million things wrong with America. Racism, for one. I come from the South. It's a violent place. Deep, dark, violent place. And Christianity pisses me off. It makes me sick to my stomach every time that it occurs to me that everybody in power believes in Santa Claus."
[David Harris]
Saturday, Dec 6, 2008
If only it were 1987. We would have big hair and hang out on the boardwalk; maybe eat a gyro. Yeah, that would be great. Remember when Axl Rose was a rock god?
[Eric Whelchel]
Saturday, Dec 6, 2008
This Portland band looks across the pond for influence on this album that at times calls up Muse, Queen and the Fab Four.
[Nicholas Ryan]
Thursday, Dec 4, 2008
The Punisher, a dark character that really possesses no special powers, has been around for 35 years and has endured a handful of dreadful film adaptations. Is the third time the charm?
[Danny Djeljosevic]
Thursday, Dec 4, 2008
Duck Room, St. Louis, MO, 11/9/08.
[Eric Whelchel]
Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008
Neumo's, Seattle, WA, 11/06/08
[Chris Middleman]
Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008
Ewan MacGregor and Charley Boorman take an unforgettable adventure from Scotland to South Africa. Too bad they are just so bloody rich.
[David Harris]
Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed is a sonically and thematically darker follow-up to the critically acclaimed Hold on Now, Youngster, full of endearing indie-pop odes replete with pointed barbs, squealing guitars and meaty hooks.
[Charles A. Hohman]
Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008
Lipke's music is the sound of 5,000 coffeehouses augmented sometimes with the particular kind of cloying rhythmic sensibility that can only come from time served in a jam band.
[Chris Middleman]
Tuesday, Dec 2, 2008
Jean-Claude Van Damme pulls off the impossible in this film where he plays himself. He makes us care.
[David Harris]
Tuesday, Dec 2, 2008
"I think once the record started taking shape, the way that worked out felt really natural to me. It wasn't a distancing move and it wasn't a "fuck you" move, but when I got around to sequencing things it felt like the right way to do it."
[David Harris]
Tuesday, Dec 2, 2008
Ludacris is quite the mastermind. Ask him.
[Chris Middleman]
Tuesday, Dec 2, 2008
Not much sounds like this combo of 12-string guitar and lute, but a little variation on the tracks would have gone a long way.
[Jory Spadea]
Monday, Dec 1, 2008
Hmmm.....zombies as a metaphor for homosexuals. I get it! Where's Lestat when you need him?
[Allyn Sterling]
Monday, Dec 1, 2008
This second, surprise disc wouldn't stand up as powerfully if not included with Microcastle, but it's unfair to judge it as a separate entity.
[Nathan Kamal]
Monday, Dec 1, 2008
Is this double disc totally bootylicious?
[Aimee Herman]
Monday, Dec 1, 2008
An unsung masterpiece, Primitive Radio Gods' sophomore album is a testament to the beauty of the universe.
[Jory Spadea]
