Spins
Spins: Buck Curran ⢠One Evening and Other Folk Songs
Buck Curran One Evening and Other Folk Songs (ESP-Diskâ/Obsolete Recordings) Singer-songwriter Buck Curran offers the aptly named One Evening and Other Folk Songs as a snapshot of creative evolution since 2020âs No Love is Sorrow. Learned quickly and captured mostly in intuitive live takes in an Italian studio, these psychedelic folk songs find Curran and […]
Spins: Thompson Twins ⢠Into the Gap 40th Anniversary LP
Thompson Twins Into the Gap 40th anniversary LP (BMG) Thompson Twinsâ fourth album, Into the Gap, is one of the emblematic New Wave albums of the â80s. The album was a creative, cultural, and commercial smash that saturated radio and then-influential MTV. The albumâs indelible singles include a song of reconciliation, âHold Me Now,â the moody and amorous […]
Spins: Neon Horse ⢠Habit of Creature
Neon Horse Habit of Creature (Velvet Blue) The originally clandestine gothic rockers Neon Horse released a second full-length album called Haunted Horse: Songs of Love, Defiance, and Delusion in 2009. Already about as underground as they come, the band went further underground. Fifteen years later, the disbanded band has re-banded to lob this Molotov […]
Spins: The Beatles ⢠1964 US Albums in Mono 8xLP Box Settings
The Beatles 1964 US Albums in Mono 8xLP box (Apple/Universal) The 2023 holiday season saw the release of the Beatlesâ Red and Blue compilation albums, along with the bandâs final single, âNow and Then.â This yearâs deluxe offering returns to the Fab Fourâs initial British Invasion to chronicle the music that swept America in 1964. […]
Spins: Ashley Naylor ⢠Soundtracks, Volume 2
Ashley Naylor Soundtracks, Volume 2 (El Reno) If your record collection includes instrumental albums by solo rock guitarists â perhaps Jeff Beckâs Blow by Blow, Peter Framptonâs more recent All Blues, or efforts by the Fixxâs Jamie West-Oram and Televisionâs Tom Verlaine â the latest album by Australian guitarist Ashley Naylor will likely be up […]
Spins: The Outfit “Go”
The Outfit Go (Pavement Entertainment) On its third full-length album, Go, local rockers, The Outfit continues its infectious blend of catchy hooks, memorable melodies, and a hybrid of Cheap Trick meets Foo Fighters influences. Chicago veteran sound engineer Matt Mercado returns for this release, as does Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum producer and mixer Ulrich Wild (Pantera, Static-X, […]
Spins: Green Day ⢠Saviors
Green Day Saviors (Reprise) Thirty years after sending punk to the top of the charts with breakthrough album Dookie, erstwhile upstarts Green Day return as power-pop elder statesmen with Saviors. With the bandâs familiar friend and producer Rob Cavallo back at the helm for the first time in a decade, Saviorsâ 15 tracks find frontman […]
Spins: Rob Fetters ⢠Mother
Rob Fetters Mother (Baby Ranch) If youâre already familiar with him, Rob Fetters may be your favorite musician that your friends have never heard. Fettersâ regional reach into Chicago and surrounding areas is largely due to his former role in the Bears alongside co-frontman Adrian Belew and the great post-Bears power-pop trio Psychodots with bassist […]
Spins: Paul McCartney & Wings ⢠Band on the Run – 50th anniversary LP
Paul McCartney & Wings Band on the Run 50th anniversary LP (MPL/Apple/UMe) Paul McCartney scattered enduring pop singles across the seven albums made with post-Beatles group Wings, but few fans would dispute identifying Band on the Run as the bandâs peak. Furthermore, Band on the Run is commonly cited as McCartneyâs best overall work outside […]
Spins: Beastie Boys ⢠Hello Nasty 25th anniversary 4xLP box
Beastie Boys Hello Nasty 25th anniversary 4xLP box (UMe) By 1998, Beastie Boys ruled radio and MTV thanks to a steady stream of brash and catchy singles, beginning with 1986 noise-fest “Fight for Your Right” from the trioâs debut and continuing with tracks including âHey Ladies,â “So What’cha Want,” and âSabotageâ from ensuing albums. After […]
Spins ⢠The Rolling Stones ⢠Hackney Diamonds â Live Edition
The Rolling Stones Hackney Diamonds Live Edition (Polydor/Interscope/Geffen/A&M) It isnât the backhanded compliment it sounds like to say that Hackney Diamonds is a better album than many Stones fans might have anticipated. Giving away the ending: This is strong work that earns its spot on many 2023 year-end lists, and itâs not unfair […]
Spins: The Vince Guaraldi Quintet ⢠A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving: Original Soundtrack Recording
The Vince Guaraldi Quintet A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving: Original Soundtrack Recording (LMFP) Following 1965âs A Charlie Brown Christmas and 1966âs Itâs the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, 1973 saw the arrival of the third Peanuts holiday special with A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Fifty years after first airing, the cartoonâs complete soundtrack is released as a vinyl […]
Spins: Tom Waits ⢠Island â83-â93 LP reissues
Tom Waits Island â83-â93 LP reissues (Island/UMe) Ten years into his recording career, Tom Waits began a significant stretch of work and creative reboot that continued for another decade and helped cement his reputation as a singularly unclassifiable and consistently engaging artist. This key middle-period run of Waitsâ eighth through twelfth albums for Island Records […]
Spins: The Empty Pockets ⢠Gotta Find The Moon
The Empty Pockets Gotta Find The Moon (Self) Chicagoland-based, roots-rock quartet The Empty Pockets just released their latest studio effort Gotta Find The Moon. The follow-up to their 2022 Billboard #1 (blues album chart)Â Outside Spectrum. Members Josh Solomon (Guitar), Erika Brett (Keyboards), Nate Bellon (Bass), and Adam Balasco (drums) recorded the 14 tracks at the […]
Spins: Bob Dylan ⢠Shadow Kingdom ⢠Appearing at Cadillac Theatre ⢠Chicago
Bob Dylan Shadow Kingdom (Columbia/Legacy) The pandemic lockdown finally brought Bob Dylanâs Never Ending Tour to a halt in 2020 after 31 years on the road. A few short months before resuming band travel in late 2021, the Bard gathered a stripped-down ensemble of trusted players for a streamed concert in July as a […]
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