My technical difficulties of last weekend did not return this time, which I'm thankful for. It was one of those moments where I felt like the entire universe was against me! I decided to only carry over two of those previously deleted reviews. The other albums that I reviewed last weekend before they disappeared didn't seem worthy of repeating, so I left them off and focused instead on albums that I listened to this week. There are a few new releases and a few older albums that I discovered, or had known about but just finally got around to evaluating. Some great tunes here, hopefully you will find something worthy of discovering. Enjoy.
Goblin Cock - Necronomidonkeykongimicon: The new album from the Pinback metal side-project is the band's third and first since 2009. Despite the silly name, and previous albums' silly covers, this is quality stoner metal played at high speed. Like Pinback, the musicianship is intricate and flawless, but nothing about this band takes itself too seriously. Simply a fun metal album, probably a little more consistent than the previous two. Worthwhile for sure.
Shotgun Sawyer - Thunderchief: This is the debut album from the band formerly known as Thunderchief. The Cali band is heavy garage blues, falling somewhere between Black Keys and Zeppelin. There are some moments where everything doesn't quite come together, but for the most part this is a fantastic debut and a band that I hope will continue to put out music. I certainly recommend going to their website (linked) and checking them out.
Big Blood - Dark Country Magic: Over the past decade, this psych folk duo from Portland Maine has become one of my favorite bands. There music has a way of tapping into my imagination that few bands can. This 2010 album is one that I'd been searching for and finally was able to give it a listen last week. It's one of their best, with songs like "Waiting Is...," "Coming Home Part III," and "She Wander(er)" being standouts.
David Johansen - David Johansen: The New York Dolls front man's solo debut from '78, long before he became Buster Poindexter, is a wonderfully unheralded record. I recently found a beautiful copy of this at the Goodwill and used my $1.99 credit to snatch it up. It's not as chaotic as the Dolls but doesn't stray too far from the essence of their work. Perhaps a little more straight forward, but still the album is dense. "Funky but Chic" is exceptional.
Hockey Dad - Boronia: Another debut album for this week comes this Australian indie band, which follows their debut EP from 2014. I was into this form the first song, which has a Dinosaur Jr. guitar feel. From there, it continues with a 90s indie feel, but infused with a contemporary garage sound that reminded me of The Orwells. This is a very solid indie rock album and another band that I hope continues to release music in the future.
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast: The band's third album was released in 1982 and is the first with Bruce Dickinson on vocals. I love the first two albums and had always stopped there because of the singer change, but Bruce is great. This is a monster record that fits securely in their NWOBHM sound. "Run to the Hills," "Children of the Damned," and "Invaders" are among my favorites. I'm slowly working my way through their entire '80s catalog.
Lena Zavaroni - Ma! He's Making Eyes at Me: This is an album that I'd been looking for back during my Kidcore search. I finally found it about five years ago for 99¢ in Seattle. I listened to it once back then, and then not again until this week. Lena was 11 when this album was recorded in 1974 and she has big voice as she belts through some standards and current hits of the day like "Take Me Home, Country Roads." My favorite is her version of "The End of the World." A nice curiosity and well worth the buck.
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