Music Reviews

Music & Culture

New Release By Numero Revisits Ork Records' Complete Catalog

2:36pm January 27, 2016

by Ed Ward

Terry Ork was a mystery man who crashed the Warhol scene and founded his own record label. Rock historian Ed Ward traces the brief, tumultuous existence of Ork Records.

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Savages, left to right: Ayse Hassan, Fay Milton, Gemma Thompson, Jehnny Beth.

Music & Culture

'Adore Life' Refines Savages' Quiet Moments And Thunderous Peaks

4:55pm January 25, 2016

by Tom Moon

The four women of Savages first appeared in 2013 with Silence Yourself and a sound that lived up to the band's name — raw, confrontational, intense. Adore Life represents a huge leap forward.

Music & Culture

'Leave Me Alone' Blends Harshness With Beauty

1:47pm January 25, 2016

by Ken Tucker

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the debut album by the Spanish quartet Hinds. "These four women revive the notion of do-it-yourself punk musicianship," Tucker says of Leave Me Alone.

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Daniel Wohl's new album, Holographic, displays the emerging composer's gifts as an alchemist in sound.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Daniel Wohl, 'Holographic'

11:00pm January 20, 2016

by Tom Huizenga

Hear how an emerging composer weaves electronic and acoustic instruments in dense, compelling tapestries of sound.

Music & Culture

Groove Master Benji Hughes Sings 'Songs In The Key Of Animals'

3:22pm January 20, 2016

by Ken Tucker

The singer-songwriter plays most of the instruments himself on his new album. Critic Ken Tucker says you can hear a love for pop music in Hughes' silly sentiments and artful arrangements.

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Music & Culture

Music Review: 'I Long To See You,' Charles Lloyd

5:12pm January 19, 2016

by Tom Moon

Tom Moon reviews the new album from 77-year-old jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd, I Long to See You.

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Music & Culture

From Meditation Music To Whaling Songs, 2 New Records Showcase Berendt's Mashups

1:41pm January 18, 2016

by Kevin Whitehead

German producer and musicologist Joachim-Ernst Berendt was an early champion of so-called world music. Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews two cross-cultural rarities Berendt produced in the late 1960s.

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Music & Culture

Music Review: 'Love Is A Hurtin' Thing,' Gloria Ann Taylor

6:43pm January 12, 2016

Gloria Ann Taylor was a singer from Toledo, Ohio, when a record producer discovered her and took her to Los Angeles. They eventually married, and through much of the 1970s, created a series of unusual soul and proto disco songs that have become collectors' items. Now some of them are available to everyone on a new CD reissue called Love is a Hurtin' Thing. Oliver Wang has a review.

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Music & Culture

Saxophonist Scott Hamilton Harmonizes With The Jeff Hamilton Trio On 'Live In Bern'

3:07pm January 12, 2016

by Kevin Whitehead

For years, Scott Hamilton toured as a soloist. Recently he recorded a new album with drummer Jeff Hamilton's band. Critic Kevin Whitehead says the record showcases Scott Hamilton's ageless style.

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David Bowie's 27th album, Blackstar, was released on Friday, his 69th birthday. He died, following an 18-month battle with cancer, two days later.

Music & Culture

Review: David Bowie's 'Blackstar' Is Adventurous To The End

6:19pm January 11, 2016

by Barry Walters

Bowie's final album was recorded in collaboration with jazz musicians and inspired by Kendrick Lamar. Even when it challenges, Blackstar resonates because it emphasizes emotion.