WRUV Reviews

Rogue Wave’s newest album, Permalight, is catchy and fantastic, to say the least.  The male vocals are unique, clear and crisp.  Rogue Wave’s melodies are unbelievably catchy and have you singing along by the end of the song.  Most tracks on the album are upbeat (check out tracks 2, 4, and 5), with a few exceptions such as tracks 6, 9 and 12, which are equally enjoyable.  Each track contributes in its own way to forming a beautiful, incredible album.  Listening to each track individually and listening to the album as a whole is highly recommended.   

FCC: clean

Recommended Tracks: 1, 2, 4*, 5*, 6, 9, 12

Contemporary works composed (mostly) for baritone saxophonist Lynn Klock, inlcuding McMichael, Krzywicki, Jex, Noble, & Macchia. Elements of jazz and rock with a classical base. Try 2, 6, 8, 9.

File: Classical collections–Baritone Saxophone

The Gryphon Trio performs Piano Trio Op. 1, No.2, with its Haydn and Mozart elements, and the “Archduke” Trio, so named because it was dedicated to Archduke Rudolph for his continued financial support over Beethoven’s career. Beautiful. Play any!

File: Classical composer–Beethoven

Contemporary avant-garde works for (mostly) solo instruments–violin, cello, piano, accordion, flute, that explore the range of the instrument, their voices and dynamics of sound-making.

File: Classical/Avant-garde composer–Arter

Selections from the minimalist composer’s movie scores, theater music and compositions. Most have his characteristic quiet, ethereal quality, however track 11, Etude no. 2 is electronica with a driving beat and track 9 Concerto Fantasy is quite boisterous. Play any!

File: Classical composer–Glass

Works by Chopin either for cello or transcribed for cello with piano. The cello was a favorite instrument of Chopin’s since he likened it to the human voice. Lush, gracious, lyrical. Play all!

File: Classical composer–Chopin

Weinberg was a modernist composer during a period when being a modernist, Jewish composer was unwelcome. The Nazis and Soviets necessitated his translocations from Poland, Minsk, Tashkent and Moscow. Through political connections, friendships and luck, Weinberg was able to continue composing and survive. Rostropovich considered these solo cello sonatas as important as those of Bach. Edgy, lyrical, quiet and expressive. Try 1, 4, 6, 7, 11

File: Classical composer–Weinberg

Contemporary works for flute, harp and/or electronics by various composers (some works re-arranged for flute by the composer). All pieces are interesting and reveal a broad range, from ethereal and delicate (Corigliano, Grandjany, Schocker, Sung, Young)  to pounding and insistent (Higdon) to witty (Taylor). Play all!

File: Classical collections: Flute & Harp

4/25/2010

Hardly Art gives us an awesome new 7″ split featuring Brooklyn’s garage punk circus Golden Triangle, and San Francisco’s psychedelic garage pop quintet The Fresh & Onlys. The first track “Cold Bones”, a more poppy song for Golden Triangle, is built on minor chords with shadowy backing guitar distortion and Shangri-La-like vocals. “Jungle Jim”, a song that feels much more like Golden Triangle, emanates the Stooges, “1969″, and has an awesome instrumental bridge. The Fresh & Onlys tracks begin with “Head of Steam”, a nearly perfect guitar driven dark garage pop song complete with beautiful backing vocals, and “I’m Not Myself Today”, a lo-fi garage rocker harkening back to 1964 when bands were really practicing in their garages. Both of these bands are uber talented and this 7″ suffices for more than pure evidence of their genius.

Play: ALL!

4/25/2010::Ecstatic Peace

Michigan has always been a place for awesome rock and roll: The Stooges, MC5, the countless number of sixties garage bands. Hailing from Detroit, Awesome Color  have taken these bands to heart and their third album resonates like an early 70’s psychedelic rock album. Standout tracks include, “White Cloud”, an Iggy Pop fuzzball driven by tight bass and drums, “Vision”, a classic hard song with buzzy lead guitar lines and lo-fi vocals, “Zombie”, a Southern rock soundtrack for scrambling around a zombie invested city with nothing but a bloody baseball bat, and the albums closer “IOU”, six minutes of tremolo induced psychedelia ending with a wild guitar solo. While “Massa Hypnos” may not be the most original rock album that’s coming out right now, Awesome Color have funneled their rock god predecessors into a good heavy album.

Play: 1,4,6