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With a lineup featuring accomplished jazz organist Joe Doria and saxophone legend Skerik, "The McTuff Quartet," as the group formally calls itself, promises some world-class virtuosity. Volume 1 delivers. The songs average about eight minutes each, and every song is, unsurprisingly, mostly soloing. But it's thanks to Doria's composition that
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If Ultraman decided to take a stab at the rap game, his beats would probably sound something like this. The Golden Handshake is an EP of tracks made separately by electronic music producers Lando Kal and Low Limit, who usually work together under the name Lazer Sword. Though futuristic,
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Last year, I had the insane privilege of studying street musicians in an Ecuadorian city called Cuenca. One particular group-known as Bandada de la Madre-was a sort of a loose Latino drum circle, consisting of about 10 people creating wild percussion from bottles and bells to buckets and boxes. Their
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Why is Japanese punk always so good? MCR records has just released the Fight for Existence EP- by the band Reject, from Nagoya City. What has your experience with Japanese punk been like? Mine has been awesome, and Reject continues to bring the raw energy I've come to expect out
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Only 30 minutes in length, Angelo Spencer's all-instrumental effort Et les Hauts Sommets floats happily between surf, afro-pop and noise rock. Spencer's MySpace declares, it "sounds like a soundtrack." Sure enough, the album's pulsing character pieces define an exotic tone that could have great cinematic effect. If this well-defined tone is
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An album entitled Teen Dream can seemingly lead to only two things: bubblegum pop stars or angsty pop-punk sensations. Thankfully, Beach House's most recent album, the band's first on Sub Pop, delivers on neither. Instead, listeners are offered a seamless mix of ambient, indie-pop perfection. Fans that fell in love
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Tacoma's very own Jeff Matz (Zeke) joins Oakland California's High on Fire on bass for the band's fourth LP, Snakes for the Divine (E1 Entertainment). This fourth album, while staying true to the powerful stoner rock that has defined HOF's auditory onslaught since their conception in 1998, falls short of
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When it came time to choose an album for this review, Freeway and Jake One's new effort seemed to be a no-brainer, based on album art alone (the CD case is stylized as a wallet, the liner notes as a roll of cash). With album art on my mind, though,
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Power Patriot is an excellent example of what I like to think of as "heavy instrumental jazz." The album is jazz/rock/jam supergroup Garage A Trois' first album following the departure of Seattle eight string guitar virtuoso Charlie Hunter. As a longtime Benevento fan, I personally rejoiced when I heard keyboard player
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Hot Buttered Rum's released their most recent studio effort, Limbs Akimbo, on Sept. 9 under the guidance of producer Tim Bluhm of the Mother Hips. This is drummer Matt Butter's of Everyone Orchestra first official release with HBR following the departure of mandolin player and vocalist Zac Matthews
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John Vanderslice will follow up his 2007 hit Emerald City with his seventh album Romanian Names. While recording Emerald City Vanderslice was in the middle of a customs battle trying to obtain a visa for his French girlfriend (now wife), and the album reflects his frustration as well as references
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John Vanderslice will follow up his 2007 hit Emerald City with his seventh album Romanian Names. While recording Emerald City Vanderslice was in the middle of a customs battle trying to obtain a visa for his French girlfriend (now wife), and the album reflects his frustration as well as references
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Rooted in elements of musical psychedelia, a movement slowly reemerging, Vampire Hands brings to listeners their second full-length release, Me & U Cherry Red, coupled with a re-release of their first EP, Cruz It’s a Beach Funeral. Made up of Minnesotans Alex on drums, Chris B. on bass, Chris R.
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Rooted in elements of musical psychedelia, a movement slowly reemerging, Vampire Hands brings to listeners their second full-length release, Me & U Cherry Red, coupled with a re-release of their first EP, Cruz It’s a Beach Funeral. Made up of Minnesotans Alex on drums, Chris B. on bass, Chris R.
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Luke Temple has just released/engineered/produced an album under the moniker Here We Go Magic, a new project that far surpasses Temple's earlier indie folk rock efforts. After releasing "Snowbeast" in 2007, Temple caught the attention of Ben Gibbard and Sufjan Stevens, which perhaps inspired him to do something a little
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Luke Temple has just released/engineered/produced an album under the moniker Here We Go Magic, a new project that far surpasses Temple's earlier indie folk rock efforts. After releasing "Snowbeast" in 2007, Temple caught the attention of Ben Gibbard and Sufjan Stevens, which perhaps inspired him to do something a little
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Marco Benevento's new solo album, Me Not Me, explores a wide range of instrumental covers as well as a few original compositions. Me Not Me is Benevento's second solo album, following 2008's Invisible Baby, and is the first on his new record label, The Royal Potato Family. Reed Mathis (Jacob
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Marco Benevento's new solo album, Me Not Me, explores a wide range of instrumental covers as well as a few original compositions. Me Not Me is Benevento's second solo album, following 2008's Invisible Baby, and is the first on his new record label, The Royal Potato Family. Reed Mathis (Jacob
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DM Stith is David Smith, the son of a college wind ensemble director and a pianist. His musical childhood deeply influenced his first album, Heavy Ghost, out March 10th on Asthmatic Kitty. His songs have an ornate orchestral quality similar to that of label mate Sufjan Stevens but darker and
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DM Stith is David Smith, the son of a college wind ensemble director and a pianist. His musical childhood deeply influenced his first album, Heavy Ghost, out March 10th on Asthmatic Kitty. His songs have an ornate orchestral quality similar to that of label mate Sufjan Stevens but darker and
