Music

Mosart212 declares himself PASSIVE/AGGRESSIVE

EDM x DSM
It's been hard to miss this whole EDM push lately.

By: SAM PFEIFLE | February 15, 2012

Catching up with Kid’s Gotta Do

Two-man show
There's no shortage of emo-influenced, WARPED Tour rock bands in these parts.

By: SAM PFEIFLE | February 15, 2012

Fun with mirrors

Wax Tablet
The dark lounge band JOHNNY CREMAINS are putting the final touches on their first full-length, tentatively titled Leave It To Believers .

By: PORTLAND PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF | February 15, 2012

Craig Finn | Clear Heart, Full Eyes

Vagrant
In the near-decade he's spent as frontman-lyricist of bar-rock saviors the Hold Steady, Craig Finn has hardly been labeled a happy camper.

By: RYAN REED | February 14, 2012

Cotton Mather | Kontiki [Deluxe Edition]

Star Apple Kingdom
When it was released in 1997, Cotton Mather's sophomore album racked up glowing critical huzzahs across the pond (not to mention big-ups from Oasis), yet dudded here in the States.

By: ZETH LUNDY | February 14, 2012

Field Music | Plumb

Memphis Industries (2012)
The buzz about Britain's Field Music has been growing for some time.

By: JONATHAN DONALDSON | February 15, 2012

Cursive | I Am Gemini

Saddle Creek
Cursive blew their chance to get out of this town a long time ago when they let cellist Gretta Cohn go.

By: DAN WEISS | February 15, 2012

Band of Skulls | Sweet Sour

Electric Blues/Vagrant
Band of Skulls aren't innovators, and they probably won't ever be.

By: REYAN ALI | February 15, 2012

Anti-Flag | The General Strike

SideOneDummy
It wouldn't be easy for Anti-Flag to stay relevant nearly a quarter century into their careers, but it's as if they're not even trying anymore.

By: BARRY THOMPSON | February 15, 2012

For Steve Jones, It's Different Every Day

Life on a barstool
For a guy whom just about every true Maine roots fan knows on sight (and by the first five notes or so of a guitar solo), Steve Jones sure is a chameleon.

By: SAM PFEIFLE | February 08, 2012

Hymns heard

Wax Tablet
Comments from the Super Bowl (well, the printable ones): Is that Regis Philbin? Is that John Stamos? Is that Deion Sanders? Is that Jerry Seinfeld? Is that . . . SPOSE?

By: PORTLAND PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF | February 08, 2012

J the S | The Last Days

Same Plate/Greater Good
J the S has been promising The Last Days since he went by Jake the Snake.

By: CHRIS FARAONE | February 07, 2012

The Punch Brothers | Who's Feeling Young Now?

Nonesuch (2012)
For a group full of virtuosos, the Punch Brothers refuse to dole out prodigious string-murdering sessions.

By: ZETH LUNDY | February 07, 2012

Ital | Hive Mind

Planet Mu
If there was a broken-record knock against electronic music in the last decade, it's that it all sounded the same.

By: MICHAEL C. WALSH | February 07, 2012

Tennis | Young & Old

Fat Possum (2012)
Denver's Tennis, the husband/wife duo of Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley, are back with another slab of dreamy, feather-light pop.

By: RYAN REED | February 07, 2012

Zef Recordz
Moreso than any "controversially-lipped" chanteuse (to borrow from one of Lana Del Rey's many observers), South African rap/rave/meme/satire/knuckleheads Die Antwoord beg the question:"Is that all there is?"

By: DAN WEISS | February 07, 2012

Van Halen | A Different Kind of Truth

Interscope
Who would've thought Eddie Van Halen would still be innovative in his late 50s?

By: MICHAEL CHRISTOPHER | February 08, 2012

Exploring the countryside with Max García Conover

Take to the trees
There are so many guys with guitars nowadays.

By: SAM PFEIFLE | February 01, 2012

Growing pains

Wax Tablet
Among the stacks of new local releases coming out this winter, we were stoked to find a new offering by the pastoral plucker MICA JONES .

By: PORTLAND PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF | February 01, 2012

Air | Le Voyage Dans La Lune

Astralwerks (2012)
It was inevitable that Air would one day be asked to soundtrack a colorized version of an iconic 1902 silent French film about moon exploration, right? There's the French thing, the moon thing, the kitsch-cool factor.

By: ZETH LUNDY | January 31, 2012