Song Reviews

Pepper Rabbit: Older Brother [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
March 1, 2011February 28, 2011

Pepper Rabbit broke through last year with a few pretty stellar EPs. Xander Singh and Luc Laurent, the force behind this exceptional band, are back with something new. It’s called “Older Brother” and it can be found on their LP, Beauregard, released recently courtesy Kanine Records. “Older Brother”, like many of the songs off the duo’s EPs from last year, is light and playful with great indie pop hooks and harmony vocals in the vein of Michael Nau (Page France, Cotton Jones). Read More »Pepper Rabbit: Older Brother [mp3]

Kasey Anderson: The Wrong Light [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
February 28, 2011February 26, 2011

Earlier this month, Portland’s Kasey Anderson dropped another album in our hands. On Heart Of A Dog, he’s backed by his band The Honkies. You can tell right off that Anderson has taken a slightly new path, one capitalizing in blues-oriented rock. He still has those drawl-tinged, country-like vocals, but Heart Of A Dog is heavier and greater in overall scope. “The Wrong Light”, opening track from the new album, screams with wild, bluesy electric guitars wrought with distortion. And Anderson’s vocals, too, seem more confident in their gritty, back-country nature. “The Wrong Light” is cool. Very cool. Anderson knows this, and he flaunts it on “The Wrong Light” in the most tantalizing of ways. Read More »Kasey Anderson: The Wrong Light [mp3]

Acid House Kings: Would You Say Stop? [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
February 21, 2011May 13, 2023

Acid House Kings is back next month with a new album, their first in about six years. As the previous, Sing Along With The Acid House Kings, has been a favorite of mine since its release, their new one is easily my most anticipated album of 2011. Last weekend, I pre-ordered Music Sounds Better With You on vinyl; the anticipation continues. Thankfully, Acid House Kings have given us another song to bide the time. The song is “Would You Say Stop?” and it will be released as the band’s first single off Music Sounds Better With You on March 3.

Andy Fenstermaker
February 18, 2011February 18, 2011

My buddy Jon wrote in an email to me yesterday: “Hey Andy, did you see this yet? That’s your ride too, right?” Sure enough, he linked to this great article from Michael Lerner on Aquarium Drunkard talking about his 1976 BMW 2002. Part of AD’s Diversions column in which artists talk about a passion outside of music, I simply felt compelled to leave a comment. Read More »Telekinesis: Car Crash [mp3]

The Hive Dwellers: Get In [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
February 10, 2011August 12, 2023

Throw Calvin Johnson into the mix, and, no matter what situation presents itself, it’ll always be a little awkward. That might come out wrong, but it shouldn’t. He is, in all aspects of the word, cool. When I saw him front The Hive Dwellers at the Anacortes What The Heck? Fest (the above photo was taken there by yours truly), I was again thoroughly impressed with just how cool Johnson could be. So seemingly uncool that it’s gone full circle; there’s no one cooler.

Andy Fenstermaker
February 3, 2011February 3, 2011

I drove down to Seattle about mid-month in January, and in typical form my iPod was on shuffle. I had tossed a bunch of albums on it from my FensePost file, and was looking forward to some new tunes. One band in particular popped up a few times, with interesting synths, clean guitar licks and slightly higher pitched vocals. Each time, the band caught my ear, I had to check out who it was — and it was Jonquil. Read More »Jonquil: Fighting Smiles [mp3]

BOAT: (I’ll Beat My Chest Like) King Kong [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
January 28, 2011February 6, 2022

BOAT is prepared to release their fourth album, Dress Like Your Idols, in March and we have here the first single from that album. The song is called “(I’ll Beat My Chest Like) King Kong” and it maintains BOAT’s wild throaty vocals, packed with a seemingly self-deprecating sarcasm and a penchant toward pop culture. It maintains those rockin’ guitar riffs and bouncy percussion. It maintains all those lovable rock hooks, catchy as all hell. Yet it’s slightly different from their past three releases — it’s more mature, refined a little bit, almost grown-up.

Andy Fenstermaker
January 18, 2011January 16, 2011

Slowwave astounds with mesmerizing hazy vocals, hypnotic echoing melodies, and the clash of indie pop and electronic pop. The band is the freshest thing to come from Tacoma, WA in a while and it’s about time. Nestled between the musical meccas of Seattle and Olympia, Tacoma should be a hotspot for unfettered undiscovered talent; Slowwave shows that it can, will be, and (at least in their case) is. “Pour” blends just enough of that northwest sound to be recognizable, while maintaining a sizable amount of locational and genre-specific ambiguity to be highly intriguing. Read More »Slowwave: Pour [mp3]

The Booze: Kick Me Where It Hurts [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
January 14, 2011January 17, 2011

With a continual playlist featuring the likes of Rolling Stones, The Kinks, and Faces, The Booze has captured that era of mod-rock to near perfection in their song “Kick Me Where it Hurts”. With blisteringly brilliant guitar riffs and a nonchalantly cool set of vocals, this band has embodied an era where rock, in the opinion of many, was at its pinnacle. The song has the grit of the garage, the twang of the south, and a bounce to it that’s downright gripping. “Kick Me Where It Hurts” is solid through and through; this is a song that represents all that was good about rock’s heyday — when the most popular bands around actually made good music. Read More »The Booze: Kick Me Where It Hurts [mp3]

Papercuts: Do What You Will [mp3]

Andy Fenstermaker
January 7, 2011January 6, 2011

This is what we’ve been waiting for! After Papercuts announced last year that they would be joining the Sub Pop roster, we could barely contain our excitement. Jason Quever’s dreamy psychedelic pop sound borders on shoegaze at times, and their new song, “Do What You Will”, off the forthcoming LP Fading Parade builds upon Papercuts’ existing library of great tunes. Read More »Papercuts: Do What You Will [mp3]

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