Review: Atoms For Peace, Amok

Ever since Thom Yorke announced the Atoms For Peace record, I've been anticipating the resulting album and hoping that it would be a continuation of Eraser, Yorke's previous solo album. While AFP isn't truly a solo album for him, what with including members of Beck, R.E.M and Red Hot Chili Peppers, it still has an undeniable feel of Yorke's signature sound. And because it features that, it definitely fits right in with Yorke's previous effort, and possibly surpasses it.

Review: Red, Release the Panic

While I'm not too much of a big fan of Christian music anymore, I do still follow some bands from time to time. It's always interesting to see the evolution of a band, especially when they drop from a label and start independent again (like Thousand Foot Krutch's release last year). Red has been around for a while, and they're still on the label that signed them from the beginning. So far, not much has changed for the band musically. When I hear a new album is coming out for band like this, I always give them the benefit of the doubt that something will have changed. I wondered if Release the Panic was going to be a change of pace for them.

Review: Foals, Holy Fire

Since Spotify launched over here in the US, I've had the chance to get to know a lot more bands that I hadn't listened to before. Friends would always tell me about bands to check out, and I'd write it down but didn't have a way to discover them. Foals is one of those bands. I've known about them for years, but never really discovered them and listened fully to their music until last year. Both Antidotes and Total Life Forever are still new to me, but they've become staples in my music library. I'm happy to say that Holy Fire is shaping up to be a welcome addition as well.

Review: Local Natives, Hummingbird

I can't say much about Local Natives as an opening, simply because they've been on and off my radar since their debut. I loved Gorilla Manor, but I'll admit I forgot about the for a while. But just from the buzz flying at the end of last year, I knew Hummingbird was going to be one of the first major releases for 2013 that I'd be covering. It's a pleasant surprise to forget about a group that comes back full force and reminds you of why you fell in love with them in the first place.