This was a really unique and fun album. ʻĀina means “land” or “earth” in the Hawaiian language, and even though this album was released in 1980, it honestly sounds more like something from the early ’70s. Musically, it sits at the intersection of soft rock and folk rock with a strong Hawaiian psych feel. It’s almost like if you took bands such as Seals & Crofts, America, and even Hall & Oates and dropped them on the island of Hawaiʻi, you’d ... read more

This album has long been rumored to have been inspired by an LSD fueled journey through an amusement park ride, which makes sense considering the band held a residency at Disneyland prior to the release of this album. It really reminds me of Days of Future Passed by The Moody Blues. You can also hear touches of early Doors, along with the kind of studio experimentation that was starting to take shape on Sgt. Pepper’s by The Beatles. That said, the overall atmosphere and energy of the ... read more

Overall, I really enjoyed this album. I love Turnstile’s raw hardcore roots, and for a while it felt like they were starting to soften up a bit. This album, though, feels like them leaning back into that hardcore foundation while still keeping the expansive sound they developed on their more recent releases. It’s more textured and atmospheric overall, almost like they’re pulling from shoegaze and dream pop influences, but without losing their footing in melodic hardcore.

This is definitely my kind of modern day grunge. It’s loud, with plenty of distortion and feedback, but it’s not just pure slop. It has the urgency and energy of punk and hardcore, which really feeds into the overall vibe of the album. I can also see fans of shoegaze, and even some metal listeners getting into this. Overall, when it comes to modern grunge revival, this is easily one of my favorite releases of the year.

I give Wolf Alice credit for all the different directions she’s gone over the years, but based on what I’ve heard from her, this album fell pretty flat for me. It just feels too poppy and overly produced, and it doesn’t really have that energetic edge she’s had in the past.

If you like post punk bands like A Certain Ratio, ESG, and Gang of Four, then this album will be right up your alley. It has that raw punk edge, but it’s also very groovy and funky. You can definitely hear the influence these guys had on a lot of the modern post punk and indie rock bands that emerged in the early 2000s. Even the Beastie Boys have referenced APB as an influence during their early punk days.

This is one of those late 60s psychedelic and prog records that was pretty limited and underground at the time of its release. Thankfully, it was rediscovered years later, but even today it remains a deeply underground album that most people are still unaware of. I genuinely think these guys had a lot of potential, and it makes me wonder what could’ve come from them if they had stayed together longer.

Overall, the album is rooted in modal jazz, folk psych, and psychedelic rock, blending ... read more

When it comes to 60s psychedelic pop, Nirvana are one of the most overlooked bands from the era. Thankfully, people still stumble onto their music today thanks to the confusion caused by sharing a name with the Seattle grunge band. This album strikes an even balance between psychedelic rock, baroque pop, and sunshine pop, very much rooted in the sound of the late ’60s. The music is lush and orchestral, built around melody, harmony, and studio experimentation rather than any kind of heavy ... read more

This album is definitely a product of its time. In the early 2000s, there was a big trend of hip hop and electronic producers doing downtempo, acid jazz, and trip hop reinterpretations of classic jazz. This album came out right at the peak of that era, but instead of remixes, it’s built around original songs that are deeply rooted in classic bossa nova.

A classic album for 80s progressive thrash metal, but I sometimes wonder if their cover of Pink Floyd’s “Astronomy Domine” ends up overshadowing the rest of the album.

This album reminds me of angry old women arguing with each other during the Christmas rush at Jo-Ann Fabrics back in 2011. I was a receiving manager there at the time, and I vividly remember the chaotic packed stores, frustrated customers, and Adele playing nonstop over the speakers. That association is so burned into my memory that I can’t hear this album without being transported straight back to that exact environment.

I don’t know if this was the first album to really nail fluid, atmospheric drum and bass, but it’s definitely one of the defining albums of the genre. I honestly can’t remember if I’ve ever listened to it straight through from front to back, but almost every track on here feels familiar from years of being around the rave and club scene.

Listening to this album took me straight back to my teenage years when in the mid 90s, when I used to hang out at underground, ... read more

This was a cool album that I probably never would’ve come across on my own, which ended up being a good introduction to jazz tango. Overall, it’s a pretty laid back listen, and beyond that there isn’t much else to overanalyze, other than it’s worth listening to.

This was definitely an abrasive album and a bit hard to pin down. The best way to describe it is post punk and industrial adjacent, mixed with noise rock, shoegaze, and touches of psychedelia. It feels very cold, hazy, and abrasive, with songs that unfold slowly and deliberately rather than hitting all at once.

I love how on this album Sonic Youth moved closer to the edges of mainstream alternative without compromising their identity. It’s much more direct and song focused compared to their output from the 80s. This album really captures that tension between accessibility and abrasion, because you get some genuinely strong hooks, but they’re buried under sheets of noise and distortion.

The title track “Little Girl” is by far the biggest hit on this album and is ultimately what turned the band into a one hit wonder. This was also the only album they ever released, but I still think it’s a pretty solid listen from front to back, especially considering it came out right at the peak of the mid 60s garage rock movement. You can also clearly hear psychedelic rock starting to take shape during this period.

Another track I thought was especially cool was their ... read more

This album is definitely a revival of ’80s synthpop, new wave, and minimal wave, but it also gives those influences a modern twist, like a modern retro feel. Some of the tracks are a bit more upbeat, but structurally they stay very true to the traditions of minimal wave. The album leans heavily into nostalgia and longing, with repeating ideas and motifs that feel like memories looping back on themselves and becoming haunting in their own way. Overall, it comes across as a pretty ... read more

It was pretty cool to check out this album and revisit Saint Etienne, especially since they take me back to the early 2000s when they first got big. This album definitely carries that electro pop sound from that era, while also mixing in their glossy, cosmopolitan style with indie pop. It doesn’t really break any new boundaries, but it’s a fun, feel good album that pulls you back to another time, like when this sound felt a lot more contemporary.

Echo & The Bunnymen are definitely an interesting band. I used to think they were overrated, and I think what made them hard for me to grasp at first was the expanded atmosphere they layer on top of their dark post punk foundation. It’s like the core of their sound is firmly post punk, but the added psychedelic elements introduce an atmosphere that didn’t always feel like it aligned with those darker undertones.

Over time, though, I’ve definitely warmed up to them. I ... read more

Surprisingly, I had never heard of this band until now, but overall I thought it was a pretty good album. To me, it clearly represents a specific stage in the evolution of alternative music. When I think of 80s bands with a strong female presence, like The Runaways, Babes in Toyland, X, and The Pretenders, this album feels like a natural next step.

It works as a great bridge between that era and what would eventually become the female-led alternative and grunge bands of the 90s, such as Hole, ... read more