Joe Flatt
Coffee Break
Everything about this is bland— uninspired lyrics are met with flat vocals, simplistic acoustic guitar and woodblock. Each song presents the same tired formula. This coffee break puts me to sleep. Yawn. joeflatt.com
—Jen Van Tieghem
The Flowerthief
Demo
This classic-rock quintet has professional chops—especially the drummer. If youre into tie-dyed guitar riffs and a moody Doorsstyle organ, youll have fun listening to these dudes. theflowerthief.bandcamp.com
—Joshua Emerson Smith
Don Forla
nativewisdom <-> gregorianblues
Theres something a little, well, off about Don Forla. And I mean that in the best way possible. From the moment that nativewisdom <-> gregorianblues begins, he takes the listener on a disorienting, albeit playful, ride through psychedelic vaudeville freakouts, intertwining the complex hobo blues of Captain Beefheart with the lo-fi folk of Daniel Johnston, all narrated with the hushed and muttered vocals of an uncomfortably unstablesounding weirdo. He incorporates Latin and Southwestern touches on Breakin in My Shoes, which sounds as if it could have been plucked from a David Lynch film. And The Future Sucks is downright dreamy in its dense array of soothing guitar sounds and unexpected bursts of effects. Im not sure I entirely understand Don Forla, but I definitely like his music. donforla.bandcamp.com
—Jeff Terich
Free and Easy Wandering
Work-In-Progress EP
Three solid, if unexceptional acoustic-folk demos about busking, bartering and being a rambling man. Fella has a decent voice and affective storytelling, but the subject matter and sentiments overall are about as relevant as an Occupy rally. freeandeasywandering.com
—Seth Combs
Friction Monster
Tantrum
This ones all over the place. There are ambient rock songs, like opening track Waiting, which combine interesting layers of vocals and synthesized sounds. And then, midway through the album, Friction Monster take a hard left into a screamo realm that Im dont particularly like. The music and vocals are strong throughout, as is the production quality. Their better tunes remind me of the better years of Our Lady Peace, which in-trigues me enough to want to catch them live. frictionmonster.com
—Jen Van Tieghem
Fuckin Duh
Fuckin Duh Mixtape 14
Fuckin Duh is every bit as lowbrow and obnoxious as youd imagine it to be. Maybe more so. This mixtape is nine tracks of poorly recorded dick jokes over DIY Casio beats, and while its consistently borderline unlistenable, theres a kind of Aristocrats level of high art to their lowbrow tendencies that makes their shtick admirable as a whole. Intellectual Head, for instance, imagines blowjobs as a transfer of knowledge (Well call this head intellectual / because youre blowin my mind) and then closes with the chant, Feelin titties, feelin titties / feelin breasts. For some reason, closing with breasts rather than one more titties just seems like an inspired move. I feel dumber, and yet richer, for having listened to Fuckin Duh. fuckinduh.bandcamp.com
—Jeff Terich
Fused
Demo
Hell yeah! Fuckin rock that shit, dudes. I hope you were wearing codpieces and spandex while recording this, cause this is heavymetal to the core. A little Maiden here, a little Halen there, a little folksy Zep guitar work thrown in for good measure. Hot licks all around, baby. Now, wheres the cocaine? reverbnation.com/fused
—Peter Holslin
Dan Gindling
Fingerprints
Its all me, but when I look at Dan Gindling, I cant help but think of ex- Good Morning America host Charles Gibson. And I imagine if Gibson—maybe during an interview with Gordon Lightfoot or something— had spontaneously grabbed a guitar and busted out one of the stronger tunes from Fingerprints, theres a good chance it wouldve gone over pretty well. I mean, I can totally imagine saying to my TV, Hey, that guys actually not half bad. reverbnation.com/dangindling
—Scott McDonald
The Hand of Gavrilo
The Demo
With a name like The Hand of Gavrilo, I expected some dizzy combination of psychedelia and schlocky horror, à la Manos: The Hands of Fate. Thats not too far off from what The Hand of Gavrilo sound like, as a matter of fact—though their name most likely refers to the Serbian assassin credited with starting World War I—their effects-heavy psychrock coming across like an altrock Blue Cheer with a touch of The Mars Voltas rhythmically complex prog. Its hard-rocking, super-fun stuff, and with a slightly bigger studio budget, these guys could do some serious damage. thehandofgavrilo.bandcamp.com
—Jeff Terich
Hanging from the Rafters
Box of Songs
This female-fronted three-piece reminds me of Everything but the Girl if only they were filtered through a prog-rock lens and the more sinister of Massive Attacks low-tempo grooves. The album never really gels as a whole, but they seem to be headed in the right direction. soundcloud.com/hangingfromtherafters
—Scott McDonald
Sharon Hazel Township
14 C Bags Earnest and raw, Ms. Hazel definitely puts her heart into these eight tracks. But, to me, the folky, acoustic, pseudo-blues back drop that frames it isnt working. Hazel is charismatic and definitely has something to say. Id just love to see her experiment: Get all Saul Williams and really let loose, try some spoken word or fiddle with electronic elements. The dish is there; I think the recipe just needs a few more herbs and spices. reverbnation.com/sharonhazel
—Scott McDonald
Headsick
Demo
Have you ever walked down the street and written a song based on your observations, to the rhythm of your footsteps? Something that might sound like: There is a man / there is a bus / hope it doesnt rain / cuz then it might rust. Most of Headsicks songs have this quality, but turned up to a grungy extreme. However, according to their Facebook page, the singer is a diagnosed schizophrenic, which gives his mental turmoil—a common lyrical theme—added poignancy. Itd be a mistake to confuse these songs with run-of-the-mill adult angst; rather, they offer an intimate portrayal of mental illness and one mans struggle to cope with it. reverbnation.com/headsickepic
—Ryan Bradford
The Heart Beat Trail
Fear of Being Alone; Halloween Annual No. 3 double EP
The first of these two EPs is an alt-country affair complete with twangy tremolo guitar and lyrics full of cliché cowboy jargon. Its as hokey as a Wild West town in an amusement park, and the whole act comes off as completely unbelievable and disingenuous. The second half of this collection doesnt deviate too far from the first. It has a bit more of a spooky 60s psychedelic vibe to it but feels equally as inauthentic and uninspired. theheartbeattrail.bandcamp.com
—Jackson Milgaten
Hellnote
Hellnote My cassette player broke a while back, but I still got that warm cassette-listening vibe from the digital version of this dope hiphop beat tape. Filled with soulful beats and heady rhymes, it finds the local duo showing love for old-school hip-hop, J Dillastyle beat science and ravenous crate-digging. A little too choppy at points, but, all in all, its ideal for a blunted head-nodding sesh. hellnote.bandcamp.com
—Peter Holslin
Hellnote
Buzzkill the Magnificent EP
Those of a certain age might remember the days of horrorcore and vintage RZA beats that could have very well been the score of a slasher film. Something tells me these beatmakers do, as well, and good on them for it. However, most of the instrumental tracks last less than a minute. Flesh em out a bit more and get a capable MC on there and they might be a local hip-hop force to be reckoned with. Good stuff nonethe less. hellnote.bandcamp.com
—Seth Combs
Hirie
Hirie
A reggae album thats more Carnival Cruise than Pacific Beach bro party, Hirie drags through one squeaky-clean riddim after another in a homogenous display of what a tour guide speaking in a fake Jamaican accent would call island vibes. hiriemusic.com
—Peter Holslin
Hocus
Outside Your Door
When your names are Fat Lando, Lolita and Rhino, not to mention that you have legendary Seattle producer Jack Endino on board, and your one-sheet says the band continues to keep guitar rock alive, you have to be aware that youre building some lofty expectations. And while Outside Your Door has a few nice moments and plenty of nifty guitar work, it never lives up to that promise. sound cloud.com/hocus-music
—Scott McDonald
Hoodrat
Return of the Comeback
Not a single song on Return of the Comeback reaches two minutes, and none of them has to. They get in, make a mess, tear shit up, break the windows, annoy your neighbors, piss on your lawn and then get the fuck out before the cops show up. Their methods mostly involve three-chord punk songs played loud, fast and with snot-rockets to spare. Its punk rock the way its been done for nearly 40 years, and it sounds just fine to these ears. facebook.com/hoodrat666
—Jeff Terich
Inciting Riots
Grey Test Hits
Grey Test Hits is a collection of punk songs from various EPs and albums released by Inciting Riots between 2001-2009. Me & My Attitude, Oi Boi, Road Kill and If Not for the Ramones are all culled from 2004s Tim Goes to Prison and are their best offerings here: a mix of vitriolic, spirited vocals and grungy, fuzzed-out guitar set to pummeling drums. Sadly, the remaining cuts lack any urgency, often plagued by bland lyrics and dull, punk-by-thenumbers riffs. incitingriots.com
—Dustin Lothspeich
