Indie and Lo-Fi music reviews

This is an AWESOME album..."All Points North" is one of my favorite songs on here but all are equally good, if you like Grandaddy and The Shins definately check out this band. They have a lot to offer and its sad that a lot of people havent heard of them.

i would barely dare to write a review, but i felt any grifters fan out there that didn't have this ep needed apprising. the first song, eureka iv, is by far my favorite grifters tune (i've been listening since crappin you neg). it's so beautiful, and never fails to strike an emotional chord in me, even after all these years. buy it if you don't have it already

if vampire on titus could be re-recorded...if the versions of marchers in orange and dusted are any indication, it would be the greatest LP of all time. also here is the all-time GbV classic, my impression now. this is a very nice little disc.

You are reading this review because you are wondering if this EP is worth the price you'll pay for it. If you are paying $10 or less, than it is.

It's short, at only about 15 minutes. It is probably only for GbV enthusiasts, who are obsessive completists by nature anyways. For its length, it contains several essential GbV tracks, and therefore cannot be easily slotted into the "hardcore fans only" slot. "My Impression Now" is excellent, "Indian Fables" is among their best acoustic fare since "14 Cheerleader Coldfront", "Dusted" is a good reworking of the original track, and "Kisses to the Crying Cooks" is a masterful reworking of the very excellent "Over the Neptune" that appeared on the "Propeller" album.

If you have a half-dozen or so albums by Pollard and/or GbV, I woiuld recommend this album as a good compliment to what you already have.

At over fifty cents per minute these had better be great songs, and they are. There are enough hooks here for the last 3 GBV albums, which should tell you how great the old stuff was (sorry Bob - I understand your need to evolve though). The disc (at least the old version I have) comes in one of those low-budget cardboard covers similar to LPs, which seems to cause this disc to disappear from my collection and then reappear occasionaly for several consecutive listenings. The cliche "pop gem" truly applies here.

this is one of the best songs pavement has ever written (even though it is not on S & E or Crooked). The other songs are great too! Kris Kraft is great--it has a kind of funk guitar and a great faux-British accent. Muscle Rock is Scott at his best

The National Splits deserve serious props. This is a fun, smart, well-crafted album. The sound falls somewhere between ziggy stardust era Bowie, T-rex, Modest Mouse and Guided by Voices. Having said that I would add that it is totally unique at the same time. I heard their song on Radio 365 and bought the album on Amazon. I am blown away. I have been listenening to it practically non-stop.
"Fun" is the best word to describe this record. The vocals are laid back with a very slight british tone. The guitars are great with a sweet low-fi sound. It mixes catchy, accoustic guitar stumming with electric rock leads. The lyrics are clever, but not too clever. On one song about a ex-girlfriend stealing (the singers?) records, the chorus laments, "Of all the things you could have stole..... you had to take my rock and roll."
Some songs like Get Loose and Fader to Fader really rock and are totally danceable. Others are more open, but still really catchy. By the third listen, you'll probably be singing along. I am psyched that I found this. If you like the previously mentioned bands you will love this.

The late(?) and definitely lamented Grifters were a wonderful band from a town I love, Memphis, Tennessee, and I think this album was their best release. It is one of my favorite albums of the last fifteen years. Drop the needle down anywhere on the album (or program in any song, if you will) and you'll find a winner; what's really great about the album, though, is the way it all works together, in spite of the wide range of songs and arrangements. You'll get the most out of it, especially on first listening, if you can put it on at the start of a long uninterrupted drive where you can hear the record straight through without being interrupted by telephone calls or knocks on the door. It rocks, it's spooky, it moves you, it makes you laugh. Buy it now, while it's still available. You never know when something will go out of print.

If you are even reading this review, you gotta buy this EP. Guided By Voices have a lot of cd's out there, but this one's a real gem and is easily the best mini-album among the many they have produced. Melted Pat will make you laugh, Dusty Bushworms will make you cry, and Scalding Creek will make you say "wtf!", in a good way! Super lo-fi, Get Out of My Stations crackles and slinks and makes you want to jump up and down and break stuff. Trust me- as one of the chosen few who knows all GBV songs and owns all GBV records, this is one that's worth your wrinkled dollars. Long live rock!

Is there anything different between the import and the U.S. version?

Good from beginning to end though tracks 2 and 9 are especially nice. Perfect for your sunny days. The album is addictive and like most good music gets better with every listen. Buy it from lunamusic.net for a better price and get a free pin with the purchase. Surf around and you may also find the band's bio linked to that site. Above all, though, you've got to begin enjoying yourself and quit taking life so seriously. This album is a good place to start.

the port huron statement makes, in very simple fashion, some of the best songs available on disc this year. while taking their cues from such underground luminaries as guided by voices and the flaming lips, phs manages to carve out a distinctly original sound. ethereal in essence, it holds all the elements of a drunk night spent contemplating one's place in the world. some songs are jubilant, others are more melancholy, while still others float between abstraction and so-obvious-you-can't-understand-it. all those familiar with chip's old band, sticky, are bound to find something to latch onto. though, don't expect a simple retread of that band's distinctive power-pop sound. if there is a god, i'm sure he's rocking out to these lo-fi nuggets. songs to remember: "ray's life", "waclav jagiella", "the magic of scott", "another vodka, please!" and the aptly titled closer "powerful, very powerful."