Lav's Music Corner

Cloud Nothings are a Cleveland based punk and indie rock group who became one of the definitive punk acts of the 2010's across a prolific series of albums. After establishing themselves with raw harsh songwriting and intense performances the band spent the decade honing their songwriting down to its catchiest points and embodied much more of an indie and even pop punk affair. After releasing two Bandcamp exclusive albums last year that took a much sunnier approach to bedroom indie music the band is returning to their punk roots on The Shadow I Remember . Review By Lav: Man I love Cloud Nothings. Attack On Memory  and Here And Nowhere Else  are two of my favorite rock albums of the last decade but don't underestimate Life Without Sound or Last Burning Building  either. After the trilogy of singles released in the lead-up to the record signaled a return to older sounds, specifically that of Life Without Sound  I was exciting for what the band would be delivering. ...

Blanck Mass is the solo project of British musician Benjamin John Power who first gained notoriety as one half of pioneering drone duo Fuck Buttons. Since 2011 Power has released 5 albums worth of genre bending drone and industrial music under this solo project, and with only two long form tracks on In Ferneaux  it promises to be the most experimental outing yet. Review By Lav: While I wasn't head over heels for either of the first two Blanck Mass albums in recent years the project has completely won me over. 2017's World Eater  featured a number of absolutely crushing long-form industrial ragers that melted my mind with their intensity, but it was the next project 2019's Animated Violence Mild  that really knocked me off my feet. That same intense and uncompromising sound is applied to a genre blending set of industrial, drone, electronica, rock and pop songs that sounded truly unique and ended up being one of my favorite albums of the year when all was said and done. I ...

 Check out the first video recap of reviews from 2021 so far on the Music Corner YouTube channel right here

Tindersticks are a British experimental chamber rock band who made a number of essential experimental rock records in the 90's and have maintained an experimental sound in the decades since as a Stuart Staples led project. The band found late stage critical acclaim in 2016 on The Waiting Room  and are continuing to experiment, evident by the two singles from the record being a deep cut Television Personalities cover, and the records 11 minute opener.  Review By Lav: Anyone who knows Tindersticks knows that they are experimental, envelope pushing and boundary expanding within the world of British rock music and have been for a few decades now. Even given their history, and that they've continued to experiment late in their career, Distractions  is still impressively weird at nearly every turn.  Despite being nearly 50 minutes long there are only 7 tracks in the mix on this record. The first two and last two tracks are originals with 3 covers laid in-between. Man Alone...

Mogwai are a veteran post-rock band out of Scotland who have been putting out numerous studio albums and soundtracks full of expansive instrumental rock music since the late 90's. With classic albums like Mogwai Young Team , Mr Beast  and Come On Die Young  in their catalog the band is worth paying attention to whenever they release new material. Despite being quite prolific in recent years this is their first proper studio album since 2017's Every Country's Sun .  Review By Lav: I'm a big fan of Mogwai's classic, particularly their groundbreaking debut Mogwai Young Team  as well as their modern post-rock classic, 2011's Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will . While I haven't reviewed any of the bands non studio album material over the last few years I have definitely been paying attention to any of the soundtracks, compilations or live projects they release which all came together to make me excited for this project. While I wasn't head over heels for a...

The Hold Steady are a long running New York indie rock outfit fronted by charismatic frontman and narrative heavy lyricist Craig Finn. After a prolific run of records in the 2000's the band slowed down in the 2010's before releasing a long list of singles leading up to their 7th album, Thrashing Thru The Passion  in 2019. This follow-up came relatively soon after and featured only a trio of singles in its lead up.  Review By Lav: I've always considered myself a Hold Steady fan, even if most of what's considered there best work came before I was really old enough to be an active listener of the band. That's why I felt so justified when the band released Thrashing Thru The Passion  a few years ago and it was the best thing they'd done in a long time. Overflowing with memorable storytelling and instantaneous hooks it was exactly what I could have hoped for from a late stage Hold Steady project. That's why I was so excited for this project even though the single...

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah are an American indie project who made major waves in the indie scene in 2005 with their self-produced, self-released and self-titled debut album. While they never quite reached that level of critical success again then did release a number of subsequent projects as a group, before taking a break and returning as an Alex Ounsworth solo project in 2017. While their return album didn't necessarily generate a ton of buzz this time around there's been more attention pointed in the bands direction.  Review By Lav: I've always had a soft spot for the lo-fi indie music of the 2000's. Partly because I grew up listening to it and scenes parallel to it, but in the BandCamp era of bedroom indie revivalism there are plenty of new bands carrying the torch. I'm a big fan of CYHSY's debut album so I've kept tabs on pretty much everything they've done and the singles for this album had me pretty excited. As it turns out this is by far my favorit...