Music

You would think the song title “Jesus” would have clued me in, but I didn’t even realize Page France were a Christian-leaning operation until the album was almost over. “Praise to you, praise to me,” they sang, and I thought, “Well, sure, why not?”

For fans of the coveted material from Oregon’s Dead Moon, Echoes of the Past will be a highly sought after and enjoyed disc, but for those unfamiliar with the late-’80s/early-’90s punk/grunge outfit, this double disc is a daunting and exhausting listen.

With Rilo Kiley’s exodus in pursuit of the iconic rock mainstream and Conor Oberst’s subsequent reposition on the East Coast, it seems Saddle Creek Records isn’t the indie rock powerhouse it was only a few short years ago. Barring a full reconnaissance of the fall out – whether it be the hiatus of Cursive, the emergence of other prevailing indie rock labels, or even an abandonment of new folk – the fervor and the frenzy of said record label has most certainly been subdued.

When I first heard Xiu Xiu, I was blown away at the intelligence of their style of electronic pop. The vocals teetered on the edge of breaking down at any second, and it was all very exciting.

Made Out of Babies is a band that’s defined by their vocalist, Julie Christmas. Without her there would be little to talk about in reference to the band itself.

Over the past eleven years, Jucifer’s eccentricities have made them stand out from the crowd. For one thing, the husband and wife duo literally live out of their van with their dogs. For another, their unforgettable live show with an entire wall of speaker cabinets (some of which were once owned by The Spice Girls) could easily win them the heavyweight championship for the loudest two-piece band in the world.

As luminescent as their moniker suggests, this trio, consisting of vocalist/keyboardist Erin Fein, Brett Sanderson on drums, and Tristan Wraight manning the stringed instruments, pumps out endearing indie pop. Awash with ambient, shoe-gazing tides and placid flourishes of violins and harmonicas, Kill Them with Kindness soothes the beast with a spring in its step.

Part prog-punk, part art-noise, and part synthesized mayhem, Ho-Ag’s The Word from Pluto is a confluence of sound both dynamic and obnoxious. From technically proficient riffs to interspersed, head-banging rock and underused space-punk, much of the Ho-Ag modus operandi is laudable.

The Roots crew returns with their latest album, Game Theory. The greatest thing that can be said about The Roots is that every album sounds completely different from the previous.

It must be kind of weird to be in Beachwood Sparks and The Tyde at the same time, since neither band sounds like anything else out there, but both could easily be compared to each other. Playing easy going, mellowed-out guitar rock with super sweet vocal harmonies a la The Byrds is what these folks do best, and Three’s Co. is no exception.

French Canadians Les Breastfeeders prove that a garage rock revival band by any other name will still sound like the Hives. With a rabidly squealing frontman, Luc Brien and crew careen through forty minutes of fast-paced but ultimately forgettable mod madness.

The final opus of the late great Jay Dee (a.k.a. J Dilla) entitled The Shining is a fitting departure for an underappreciated, phenomenal beatsmith of our generation. J Dilla’s beats are the epitome of soulful production, often including his famous soul clap, giving drum machines the warmth and texture of an analog set.