Shawn Murtough reckons it must be a pretty cushty life being an A&R man nowadays…If Attack! Attack! are anything to go by at least..
ReviewsAuthor Shawn Murtough
Rose Kemp – Unholy Majesty
Like the Bride of Chucky, ‘Unholy Majesty’ has plenty of malicious intent but ultimately the threatening demeanour is eroded to reveal a spongy soft stuffing. Shawn Murtough reviews.
The Outline – You Smash It, We’ll Build Around It
There are enough reasons when listening to The Outline to develop an immediate dislike for them. For one, they are Americans that sound too…. British and even go so far as to sing about Pints.
Russian Circles – Station
Shawn Murtough welcomes the sophomore effort from the Chicago act Russian Circles, the perfect company for a days commute.
Supergrass – Diamond Hoo Ha
Shawn Murtough casts his mind back through the mists of time, remembering when Supergrass were at their peak. Can their latest album live up to past glories?
Serj Tankian – Elect the Dead
Elect the Dead isn’t quite a System of a Down record but a worthy effort in what has been a slow year for decent metal albums.
TLOBF Debate: Is it better to burn out or to fade away?
After reading Bridget’s review of The Libertines “Greatest Hits”, it got me pondering…. Is it better to fulfil the old adage and burn out or have the listening public robbed of extensive back catalogues by the early demise of their favourite acts? Music history is filled with mysterious and untimely deaths, bust ups and breakdowns [...]
Oceansize – Frames
Oceansize have gone about their business quietly, building themselves a hard earned reputation for creating songs of grandiose. Each of their previous two albums have been filled with ambition and technically brilliant time changes. At their best Oceansize are peerless in their majesty. Whilst Frames easily surpasses anything you are likely to hear this side [...]
Saturation Point – Three
Ah the bourgeois excess of Post Rock. Not only is the genre literally bursting at the seams under the heavy burden of an ever increasing number of sub-standard copyists, now we have Saturation Point who ambitiously set their stall out to produce four albums in twelve months. Cunningly these are entitled One, Two, Three and [...]
Arbouretum – Rites of Uncovering
Arbouretum release Rites of Uncovering as a debut album that promises to be “broad in scope, musically, lyrically and texturally.” As mission statements go that takes some beating. The brainchild of David Heumann, Arbouretum deliver some white man blues at times akin to a distant relative of Nick Cave. Lyrically this is pretty heavy [...]
Silverchair – Young Modern
Silverchair are like the English Rugby Team. Having achieved multi-million success in their early career, things have gone backwards apace for Silverchair like the England forwards in the face of another Southern Hemisphere assault. The latest offering from these Antipodean rockers is like an English back line move orchestrated by a non-existent fly half. The [...]
They Came From The Stars (I Saw Them) – Vs Reality
The questions surrounding this band and this release are endless. For one, where has it been? Apparently recorded in 2002, heaven knows where Vs Reality has been in the interim. Did TCFTSIST have trouble finding a label brave enough to release it? Was the producer too embaraased to put his name to it? Or did [...]
