Friday, July 29, 2011

The Elected - Bury Me In My Rings album review

Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley used to be a child actor. One of her most memorable roles is in the 1989 film, The Wizard, which was basically a 90-minute Super Mario Bros 3 commercial. For me, however, Jenny Lewis’ greatest performance was when I saw her in New York City a few years ago.  She was so “overcome” with emotion she collapsed onstage, sobbing hysterically, while her bandmates were forced to play on.

When Rilo Kiley guitarist Blake Sennett formed The Elected in 2004 he titled his band’s debut record Me First, which was probably a jab at the melodramatic antics of Kiley’s leading lady...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up The Elected Bury Me In My Rings album review



The Elected by VagrantRecords

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Timber Timbre - Creep On, Creepin' On album review

It’s a shame that Halloween isn’t really celebrated here in Australia. If it were, the fourth album from Canada’s Timber Timbre, Creep On Creepin’ On, would be the perfect soundtrack to accompany a night of ghosts and ghouls.

Lead singer Taylor Kirk’s subdued voice navigates an eerie alien landscape where pianos dance jauntily over the carcasses of doo-wop, jazz and blues. The simplistic, chugging basslines feel like someone is creeping up behind you, while string arrangements screech and whine and send your pulse into a frenzied anxiety...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up Timber Timbre Creep On, Creepin' On album review



Timber Timbre - Timber Timbre by The Drift Record Shop

Saturday, July 09, 2011

Q&A with Pat Hull

Barely in his mid-twenties, American singer-songwriter Pat Hull has toured extensively and been praised in every corner of the United States. His fourth album, Old Antics, is slated for release later this year and he is offering his new EP, Light, to Rip It Up readers for free. Despite the 13 ½ hour time difference, Pat managed to find time in his busy Big Apple schedule to sit down for a quick interview with our writer Ryan Lynch...

Click on the link below to read the interview:

Rip It Up A Q&A with Pat Hull

Friday, July 08, 2011

The Panics live @ Uni Bar 2/07/2011

The last time I reviewed a show at the Uni Bar (The Drums) I was called a “douche” by some of our readers after I said that the sound quality was terrible (it was). Haters gonna hate, I guess, and so I’m just going to get my main complaint out of the way right now.

The doors of the Uni Bar opened at 8, and The Panics didn’t take the stage for over 3 hours.  I understand that they want to sell drinks, but for melodic soft-rock like this, the last thing I want to do is stand around for five hours.  I’m not at a rave, I haven’t popped any E and, quite frankly, after my second jug of Pale Ale I started to get drowsy.  There.  Now that that’s out of the way, let’s move on to the performance.
I’m sure that most of you have heard of The Panics...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review...

Rip It Up The Panics live @ Adelaide Uni Bar 2/07/2011

Thursday, July 07, 2011

No Joy - Ghost Blonde album review

When Bethany Cosentino (AKA Best Coast) hailed No Joy, a female duo out of Montreal, as the “best band ever” on her Twitter feed, it sent buzz band vampires into a frenzied bloodlust. Fast-forward and No Joy have been signed by Mexican Summer and released their debut LP, Ghost Blonde, to a bevy of insatiable music elitists who have probably found little to no joy listening to it...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up No Joy Ghost Blonde review



No Joy - Heedless by morrisday

The Airborne Toxic Event - All At Once album review

LA’s Airborne Toxic Event seemingly came out of nowhere and delivered a surprise hit with their emo-laden, woe-is-me anthem Sometime Around Midnight. Back with the follow-up to their debut album, All At Once is a huge sounding record. It is ambitious, as every track attempts to capture your interest through heart-on-the-sleeve lyrics and foot stomping, sing-along choruses. The problem is that The Airborne Toxic Event take themselves too seriously...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up The Airborne Toxic Event All At Once



Numb by The Airborne Toxic Event

Sunday, July 03, 2011

Treefight for Sunlight album review

After listening to Treefight For Sunlight, it is easy to see why Denmark is frequently cited as one of the happiest countries in the world. The Danish band has bottled sunshine, rainbows, lollipops and fairy floss on their eponymous debut album, edging the listener dangerously close to type two diabetes or, at the very least, a sugar-induced coma...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up Treefight For Sunlight Treefight For Sunlight album review



Facing The Sun by TREEFIGHT FOR SUNLIGHT

Tim & Jean - Like What review

Here’s an analogy for you. Lady Gaga is to mainstreamers what Tim & Jean are to scenesters. Make no mistake, there is nothing original, unique or groundbreaking about Tim & Jean.  In fact, you probably already have a few albums by artists who sound incredibly similar. Passion Pit? MGMT? Cut/Copy? The Naked & Famous? If so, you’ve pretty much heard everything teenagers Tim & Jean have to offer.

This complete lack of originality isn’t a bad thing when you do it right. Let’s conduct a little history lesson for those of you born post 1990: Lady Gaga wouldn’t exist without Madonna, Madonna wouldn’t exist without Debbie Harry and so on and so forth. Tim & Jean are basically copycats; a duo who were enamoured with electro-pop and took their fandom one step further to make their own record...

Click the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up Tim & Jean Like What album review



Tim And Jean - "Like What" by YiN Magazine

Matt Walters - Farewell Youth review

Melbourne’s Matt Walters had a chance meeting with Mercury Records A&R head Peter Karpin a few years ago. During this chance encounter, Walters played his song Conversation and was signed on the spot. When record companies complain about declining profits, it is because they choose to produce records like this...

Click on the link below to read the rest of my review:

Rip It Up Matt Walters Farewell Youth album review



I Would Die For You - Matt Walters Ft. WASHINGTON by Matt Walters