New Order make a triumphant return with Get Ready, their first record since 1993’s Republic. They’ve definitely tweaked their setup a bit (more guitar—a lot more), but they've retained their distinctive sound and, in many ways, have improved upon it—especially in ‘Primitive Notion,’ which
Do I hate to make another Faint album the album of the week so soon? No—not when it’s this good. Intricate, engaging songs make the follow-up to their strong Blank-Wave Arcade a thoroughly good listen, over and over again. Goth? Pish-posh. And so well-thought-
Tribal, synth-laden—oh, and you better believe it’s avant-garde—this 1981 release from PiL is a head-trip of violence and beauty. John Lydon’s lovely sing-song lyrics carelessly riding atop the stark instrumentation only add to the fun (?). Definitely not for everyone, but certainly a
Richard Hatch, the winner of the first Survivor show, was arrested yesterday in a domestic dispute with his boyfriend. How interesting is this? Well, the answer is ‘not too.’ In fact, it’s just an excuse to show to you – once again – his weird Web site, Rich Hatch – Dynamic, Versatile
Bright, persistent synth-driven pop—just what’s needed to get us all (those in New York, anyway) out of this rain-fueled slump, though the skill with which Vitesse craft these apparently simple, yet misleadingly elegant songs is reason enough to hear this album. Yes, Vitesse owes a debt
Abrasive? Anarchic? Just nuts? I don’t know and I don’t think they ever knew, either—or cared—and in that may be what makes this 1985 release such a worthwhile listen: it’s wholly original. Quite seriously, in an age of reprocessed/recycled culture and music (that being,
I love end-of-the-world/paranoia/disaster movies – you know the ones: Planet of the Apes (the original, thanks), The Omega Man, Soylent Green (why these all have Charlton Heston in them I’ll never know…). Well, I am very disturbed to have to report this, but there is
Warp Records wunderkind Chris Clark will change the way you feel about experimental electronic music. Though continually pushing the envelope, Clarence Park never loses sight of being listenable. Clark's debut album showcases his ability to run a wide gamut of emotion: sometimes bleak (‘A Laugh With Hills’), occasionally
Right now it’s really hot in New York. Really hot. Something about the vacant, tropical, acid-house sound on this album makes it perfect for what we’re all sweating through here. Recorded in (where else?) Ibiza (upon, reportedly, a legendarily massive load of drugs), this 1989 release strikes
Richard Rosner, a former ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?’ contestant, is suing the show because he claims that the correct answer to the question that knocked him off the show (at the $16,000 mark, incidentally) was not among the four choices he was given. How could an asshole
