Lav's Music Corner

After a week where the best new tracks were limited to just a video segment, they're back in written format in addition to the video this week.  5.  Bright Lights  - The Killers Is this a sort of corny heartland rock epic from a band who just seemed like they were past this kind of thing on their surprisingly great last album, yes. But much like the record that preceded it the band continues to prove that being corny absolutely does not prevent you from being good. With nostalgic and life-affirming crescendos this is exactly the kind of song that makes The Killers who they are and they do it expectly.  Listen 4.  Lacking The Ability To Process Empathy  - NAILS If you're familiar with Nails and their history, or you've even just heard some of the other singles from their forthcoming new record, you know what you're getting. The chugging heavy metal riffs drive through a short two-minute composition hardly ever stopping for a second and are accompanied by hef...

The Killers are a Las Vegas based indie and heartland rock band who have undergone a bit of a transition in sonic approach as their songwriting matures. Pressure Machine  follows last years Imploding The Mirage  and sees Foxygen's Jonathan Rado returning on production for a set of tracks inspired by frontman Brandon Flowers childhood in Utah.  Review By Lav: It's no secret that I've been a fan of The Killers for a very long time and I've dished out positive praise to the band repeatedly since I started reviewing. Last years My Own Souls Warning  saw the band leaning into Springsteen aesthetics more than ever before and recruiting Jonathan Rado from another one of my favorite bands Foxygen to ham it up instrumentally to great effect. I was excited to see Rado unite again with the band on Pressure Machine , but this record is a very different beast from Soul's or really from anything else in the bands discography. Brandon Flowers and company pen their most folk inspir...

The Killers   are a Las Vegas based indie and alternative rock band who have been dropping consistently successful studio albums since their 2004 debut Hot Fuss . This was the bands first record without regular guitarist Dave Keuning and it was produced in full by Johnathan Rado of Foxygen fame.  Review By Lavender: It is safe to say I was very very excited for this record. I saw the bands last album Wonderful Wonderful  as a really solid and critically underrated album from the band and they have a back catalog that I think can stand up to most any other bands from the 2000's. Given my love for the groups glamorous dramatic alternative rock sound the pairing with produced Johnathan Rad seemed perfect given that Foxygen have helped carry the torch for that sound into modern indie rock. Not to mention he proved his versatility on one of the most immaculately produced albums of last year Weyes Blood's Titanic Rising . Now that the record is here I have to say it has both a ...

Joywave is a New York based indie rock band who emerged in the middle of last decade with a handful of moderate hits including their huge collaboration with Big Data,  Dangerous . Posession  is the bands third record and their first since 2017's Content . Review By Lavender: I am more of a fan of the first two Joywave albums than most. Even though I didn't flat out love either of them I do think the band has always deserved more recognition, mainly for their last record Content  which still sounded pretty good last month when I listened to it again in preparation for this album. But on Posession  the group kind of fades out of favor with meas not only do I think this record is their weakest yet, but their least original as the album is major glam rock worship that borders on Killers rip off. The record had a number of singles that ran the full gambit of great to very wack, some of which have been out for over a year at this point. Blastoffff  is one of ...