Guitars are at the forefront of much of Royal Headache's self-titled debut, but not the noodling, 14-notes-a-second variety. Instead, these young Aussies specialize in the type of songs led by jangling, major-chord strums laced with just enough distortion to make it interesting. The Sydney foursome cut its teeth in Australia's punk and hardcore scenes before opting for something a little more mod, a little more power pop, a little more R&B. The resulting LP, which… more »
Four years ago, I flew from Portland to New York to see my favorite band, New Zealand's garage-pop trio the Clean, play three shows at a glorious pit called Cake Shop. The openers were Crystal Stilts, a Brooklyn group with no records out whose moody and noisy music pushed all the right buttons. I quickly befriended the group, especially guitarist JB Townsend and his then-girlfriend Frankie Rose, whose own band Vivian Girls were soon-to-be favorites.… more »
The Coathangers couldn't play their instruments when they formed on a whim five years ago but now — somewhat to the dismay of singer/guitarist Julia Kugel — they're getting sort of awesome. "We're still kind of shitty. I tell myself that to keep the pressure off," she says on a break from her day job at a prom and bridal dress store. On their third disc, Larceny & Old Lace, the Atlanta quartet polish up… more »
You can never accuse John Barrett of having his heart in the wrong place when he explains the genesis of what would eventually become Bass Drum of Death: "Basically, the whole purpose of me ever [playing songs] live was because I could get free drinks and make a little money and girls would talk to me. It worked a lot better than if I was just going out normally." Indeed, while their debut LP GB… more »
