Hunx And His Punx- Too Young To Be in Love

If filmmaker John Waters wrote his own music for his movies it would sound something like Hunx and his Punx's Too Young To Be In Love. This is Hunx and his Punx's first real full length album and it's a blast to listen to. Bubblegum pop mixed with ‘60s diner music is the best way to describe the sound of Too Young To Be In Love. The all girl “Punkettes” that back Seth Bogart are talented musicians and have complimenting backup vocals. I think Seth Bogart in some ways is kind of a genius. He takes trashy sounding music and makes it into pop. You just can’t help but sing along even when Bogart sings about obscene and over the top things. That’s the charm of Hunx and his Punx: it’s the classiest trashy music you can find. So if you have been watching movies like Pink Flamingos or Female Trouble and want to cruise around feeling like you are in that Baltimore scene then Too Young To Be In Love is the album for you. I know I adore it and everyone needs to give it a chance.




Final Review- 95

The Vaccines- What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?

What Did You Expect From The Vaccines? has an interesting ‘50s rock vibe mixed with an almost Ramones punk sound. I think The Vaccines have a lot of confidence, and are entertaining but lack the knowledge of how to put a stable album together. Some songs stand out like “Post Break Up Sex” and show you that the band really does have a decent amount of talent, but most of the tracks kind of all start blending together and lack that certain something that makes their sound original. A positive thing I can say about The Vaccines' album work is that they know to make a majority of their songs less than three minutes.  Other than that I would say that shortly after What Did You Expect From The Vaccines? is finished it sinks to the back of your mind and doesn’t really stick with you.

Final Review- 70

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart- Belong

Belong is the second release from The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and really it's impressive how rooted their music sounds already. Belong is another album that is a call back to ‘90s rock with strong guitar driven songs and a great pop sense. Kip Berman has one of the more interesting male vocals I have heard. His voice is light and airy instead of fierce and hard like most male driven groups. Berman’s vocals really add that certain something that makes Belong stand out. All of the songs on Belong are pretty catchy and make you want to move to the beats. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have done a great job on this album and I look forward to their future work. Belong is an album that you should not miss out on.




Final Review- 90

The Mountain Goats- All Eternals Deck

The Mountain Goats' founding member and lead singer John Darnielle is one of the best lyricists I have heard. All Eternals Deck really pushes the music itself to the back and lets Darnielle's voice be the primary focus, which is good because of how lyrically based the band is. One downside to the vocals being so important is that at times Darnille’s voice can be a little whiney and hard to listen to. All Eternals Deck is a pretty raw and sturdy album. Some interesting  songs on All Eternals Deck are written for various celebrities such as Judy Garland (“The Autopsy Garland”), Charles Bronson ( "For Charles Bronson”), and Liza Minnelli (“Liza Forever Minnelli”). I can recognize the talent that The Mountain Goats have even if at times it’s not really my cup of tea, and I think they are worth a listen.




Final Review- 80

The Boxer Rebellion- The Cold Still

I first heard of The Boxer Rebellion after watching the 2010 movie Going the Distance. They played an independent band in L.A looking for a record deal, which was pretty much what they were doing in real life. The Cold Still is the third self released album and has some pretty neat things going on. The album flows well and there are a handful of great little gems. Nathan Nicholson has a really great voice that is haunting without sounding like he really has to try to be. I don’t think The Cold Still is an earth shattering album but I certainly enjoyed listening to it. Is it my favorite album of 2011? No. In all honesty it wouldn’t even get in my top 20, but I think The Boxer Rebellion is a decent group worth a listen. 




Final Review- 75

Bibio- Mind Bokeh

If you have been trying to find a group that is the link between ambient techno and pop then look no further than Bibio’s Mind Bokeh. Most of the music is a mix of found sound, rock guitars, synths, and vocals. The beats are fantastic and always jumping around keeping you on the edge of your seat. Mind Bokeh is incredibly original. In a genre that sometimes really lacks great vocal hooks or hooks in general Bibio delivers both in interesting ways. It’s pretty amazing to me that it’s only Stephen Wilkinson pumping out all of this fantastic music and not a group of people. I strongly suggest a listen to Mind Bokeh. It might be out of your comfort zone but it would be a real shame to miss out on a great album like Bibio’s Mind Bokeh.   

Final Review- 90

The Generationals- Actor-Caster

Upbeat is something The Generationals seem to really do well, even if the lyrics are not always the happiest. Actor-Caster’s songs are all varied, ranging from a doo-wop group to jangy guitars and an almost protopunk sound sprinkled with indie rock. The Generationals are a duo that sounds like a whole band and really stand out in the indie rock scene. Actor-Caster is overall a pretty great album. The one weak part of Actor-Caster is that it loses a little steam around halfway through. It’s not that all of a sudden the songs are bad, it just feels like the spark that’s there in the first half is duller in the second. It certainly doesn’t stop me from pushing repeat on my ipod but I feel like The Generationals can do better. Actor-Caster would have gotten a 100 if it hadn’t been for the loss of a spark, so of course I am going to tell you that you have to give this album a chance. You will not be sorry.

Final Review- 95

Erland & The Carnival- Nightingale

Nightingale is the debut album from Erland and the Carnival. This is definitely a headphone wearing kind of album, with lots of subtle musical things happening in the background. Simon Tong (Bassist from the former group The Verve) is one of the founding members of Erland and the Carnival. He offers his vocals to this album and does a pretty great job. My problems with Nightingale are that the album runs a little long and some songs are a little drawn out. It kind of feels like they bit off more than they can chew with this pretty ambitious album. In Nightingale there are glimpses of real talent and originality but it gets overshadowed by the occasionally overdone music. I think if they would have made this album 30-40 minutes long instead of an hour it would have been better. Nightingale is definitely worth a listen.

Final Review- 75