Music

David Bazan | Curse Your Branches

Barsuk (2009)
The "Christian music" tag is still a puzzling cross on David Bazan's back. Sure, he writes a lot about Christianity, but he mostly sticks to its failures in the face of depression, death, and doubt.

By JAKE COHEN | August 25, 2009

Review: Monty Python's Flying Circus: 30 Musical Masterpieces from the Infamous Television Series

DeWolfe (2009)
Such is the legendary status and posthumous influence of the original run of Monty Python's Flying Circus on BBC One in the early '70s that it's easy to forget how low-budget British comedy production was in those days.

By GUSTAVO TURNER | August 25, 2009

Jay Reatard | Watch Me Fall

Matador (2009)
Jay Reatard is the Lil Wayne of the Memphis garage-rock scene.

By MIKAEL WOOD | August 25, 2009

A. A. Bondy | When the Devil's Loose

Fat Possum (2009)
I just don't get most of alt-country — what is it even alting us out of at this point?

By MICHAEL BRODEUR | August 25, 2009

Little Dragon | Machine Dreams

Peacefrog (2009)
Sometime in the not too distant future, we can finally put to rest the endless speculation regarding what machine music will sound like.

By DANIEL BROCKMAN | August 25, 2009

Yo La Tengo | Popular Songs

Matador (2009)
Yo La Tengo are articulate, thoughtful purveyors of highbrow pop.

By MICHAEL PATRICK BRADY | August 19, 2009

Various Artists | Ze 30: Ze Records Story 1979-2009

Strut (2009)
Impromptu dance parties have begun to interrupt the domesticity of my household, and my family would like to thank Strut for supplying the soundtrack.

By ZETH LUNDY | August 19, 2009

Jack Peñate | Everything Is New

XL (2009)
Not everything is new on Everything Is New , this young London singer's sophomore set, but enough is to make you wonder what on earth persuaded Jack Peñate to ditch the ample charms of his terrific debut.

By MIKAEL WOOD | August 19, 2009

Sally Shapiro | My Guilty Pleasure

Paper Bag (2009)
One of the best things about Disco Romance , the 2007 debut album from Sally Shapiro, was its effortless channeling of the wistful spirit of vintage Italo-disco.

By MICHAEL BRODEUR | August 19, 2009

Adrian Soiza and Dani Umpi | Dramatica

Los Años Luz (2009)
Uruguay, a small nation often shadowed by neighbors Argentina and Brazil, is home to a thriving music scene that has produced some of the best performers and composers of the "southern cone" of South America.

By GUSTAVO TURNER | August 19, 2009

Woody Guthrie | My Dusty Road

Rounder (2009)
The agit-pop songwriter of "This Land Is Your Land," "Going Down the Road," "Pretty Boy Floyd," "Philadelphia Lawyer," and a passel of other bedrock American folk classics carried a business card that identified him as "Woody, Th' Dustiest of the Dustbowlers."

By TED DROZDOWSKI | August 19, 2009

High-powered hybrid

Roz Raskin and the Rice Cakes set sail on The Friend Ship
"It's pretty much impossible for us to have a predictable sound," said Rosalind Raskin earlier this week while discussing The Friend Ship (Moose Proof Records), the full-length debut from Roz Raskin and the Rice Cakes ( MySpace.com/RozRaskin ).

By CHRIS CONTI | August 18, 2009

Hoolies + Howlies + Dusty Rhodes

Dig the roots
On THURSDAY (the 20th), Westerly's finest blues-roots crew THE HOOLIOS play a hometown gig at the revamped and renowned Knickerbocker, and have locked up the third Thursday of every month through '09 (401.596.4225).

By PROVIDENCE PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF | August 18, 2009

Newport Jazz Festival 2009

Jazzy!
Jazzy!

By JEAN HANGARTER | August 13, 2009

Bacdafucup, indeed!

Remember Onyx? They’re still pissed.
There was a moment between the late ’80s and the early ’90s when hip-hop was cheerier than diaper commercials.

By CHRIS FARAONE | August 11, 2009

Kollective soul

Kris Hansen's ever-evolving sound
Singer/songwriter Kris Hansen and longtime pal Bob Giusti certainly are no stranger to the local music scene, having played out and hosted scores of gigs and all-star, open-mic jam sessions for more than a dozen years as Kris Hansen's Left Hand Band, a tight-knit jazzy/folky-type trio. Their 08 self-titled debut (at CDbaby.com and iTunes) zigged and zagged across acoustic blues and roots-rock, with Hansen's pen celebrating a second chance at life after the Scituate native battled a near-fatal brain aneurysm on the eve of his 24th birthday, as well as Hansen, drummer Giusti, and bassist/engineer George Dussault all becoming dads during the recording process.

By CHRIS CONTI | August 12, 2009

Covering the bottom end - and the bottom line

Newport Jazz comes back with a bang
The biggest news made by the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals the past two weekends was that they happened at all.

By JON GARELICK | August 14, 2009

Foo-palooza!!

Empire Street, Saturday. Nuf sed.
Something for everyone THURSDAY (the 13th), from the roughshod blues of THE KILLDEVILS at Nick-a-Nee's (401.861.7290) to rap icons ONYX at Jerky's Bar (401.621.2244) to diabolical rawk icons SIX FINGER SATELLITE at Everyman (401.751.3630).

By PROVIDENCE PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF | August 12, 2009

Review: Robert Pollard | Elephant Jokes

Guided By Voices Inc. (2009)
Pollard doesn't care whether you listen to his music. The entire world could be rendered deaf and he'd still put out a half-dozen albums a year, driven by a need to express the twisted melodies and schizophasic lyrics that clutter his brain.

By MICHAEL PATRICK BRADY | August 10, 2009

Review: Fresh Daily | The Gorgeous Killer in Crimes of Passion

High Water Music (2009)
Despite yielding at least half of contemporary hip-hop's subterranean and major-label kingpins, the New York underground is often overlooked when it comes time to dole out props.

By CHRIS FARAONE | August 10, 2009