A visit to the inside of Jack White’s head would be an interesting one. The prolific rocker, responsible for such diverse acts as The White Stripes with relationally ambiguous Meg White and the far too short-lived The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather, and who has also appeared on a James Bond theme song with Alicia Keys and an Ennio Morricone-inspired Danger Mouse album, breaks ground with every new record.
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As electronic music continues to fill the market, it’s becoming easier with each new act to separate the wheat from the chaff. A tragically high number of up-and-coming electronic/alternative acts are either forgettable or just plain boring. Thankfully, Panama not only avoids mediocrity, but races forward with memorable energy. Far more than merely passable, the Always EP is just a great piece of alternative music.
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No two people explore loss in the same way, particularly when it comes to musicians. Whether it’s the dichotomous musical and lyrical tandem of Mike Ring and the Connection, the raw anguish of The Antlers, or the sprawling light-in-the-dark hopefulness of Arcade Fire, music as a coping mechanism is a powerful thing. Chicago-based City States uses their newest release, Geography, to do the same thing in honor of frontman Joel Ebner’s father. Joel was kind enough to answer a few questions about the band and the album.
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To dismiss Twin Peaks simply because they share a name with an old television show beloved by some and forgotten by others would be a mistake. Indeed, the Chicago quartet is rudimentary at face value, but the second the disc starts spinning they reveal their true colors as something much more exciting and special. Their newest LP, Wild Onion, is an entertaining piece that keeps things relatively grounded to huge success.
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Self-described brass house trio Too Many Zooz has only been around since late last year, and rose to national prominence sometime in January when someone posted a video of the group performing in Union Square. Fans have said that the first time hearing the group was when they were walking through the area and “suddenly heard this massive, incredible sound.” That’s about accurate.
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TV Girl started as a collaboration between Brad Petering and Trung Ngo before becoming Petering’s solo act in 2013. Petering casually refers to French Exit as a solo album “Depending on how you look at it,” which is an odd line considering this follows a 15-track mixtape a couple of years ago titled The Wild, the Innocent, the TV Shuffle. The album’s Bandcamp page goes on to advertise “12 songs about lost lust, too much love and not enough.”
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In terms of comparisons, Operators are probably closest in sounds to Handsome Furs. Not to be confused by the hard rock band of the same name, Operators sport a peppy electronic sound that splits the difference evenly among its songs between clean, exciting beats and softer, fuzzier sounds. It mostly works quite well, and with the different types of ideas and sounds Boeckner experiments with on the album, it’s exciting to anticipate what he’ll do with the next Operators release, especially if that release is enabled by the expanse and budget of a full-length album.
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Whether they’re starting a full-on dance contest during a show with original compositions or performing rip-roaring covers of everything from Beyonce’s “Love on Top” to the Ghostbusters theme, The Burroughs are never short on energy. In under a year of operation, the band has already displayed impressive talent and limitless confidence to match a group several times their tenure. The wait has seemed longer than it actually was, but The Burroughs EP is here, and as expected, is plenty of fun.
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