2006 June | one times one
opinions were like kittens i was giving them away. -modest mouse
there's nothing as something as one. -e. e. cummings

OTO Rating: 4/10       In which we hear nothing especially new. Julia Lau is yet another in the ranks of amiable singer-songwriters – think Norah Jones or Dido or Michelle Branch or…actually, didn’t this whole trend finish about 2 years ago? Look, girls with guitars, especially when addressing the facets of human weakness, are always [...]

OTO Rating: 7/10       The great complaint often leveled against “shoegaze” bands is one so often heard it has lost all meaning. You can’t dance to them. Well, then, let’s get something out the way right now.       You can’t dance to Trespassers William.       You can, however, mope, pout, chill, sigh, and be gorgeously [...]

The Fiery Furnaces, The Fillmore, San Francisco Capacity 1250. All ages.       In the Red corner: Mario! the Nintendo favorite. In the Blue corner: Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Bonham and John Paul Jones, the whole Zeppelism. Mario’s goal: to playfully obfuscate, set up smokescreens, and perform other assorted musical mischief so that the long-haired [...]

OTO Rating: 4/10       Knowing that Humble B is from Reno, Nevada, I couldn’t help but think of television program Reno 911!. In many ways, this CD is much like the infamous Lt. Dangle’s short-shorts: khaki, brief, and not hiding anything you’d especially like to see.       Musically, opener “Imytl” (“If I missed ya, talk [...]

OTO Rating: 8/10       Hear that? That was just the sound of this author’s heart going completely liquid, congealing on the floor, and forming a little weepy puddle. In other words, this is quite brilliant stuff, full of Cupid’s arrows and jangly guitar and saying “I love you” but not meaning it. Enough to bring [...]

OTO Rating: 4/10       Frankly, that name is a bigger giveaway than a critic could ask for. Some bands, like Devo or Rage Against the Machine, sound exactly like what they suggest, and Big City Rock is no exception. This is epic, swoony pop-rock, as indebted to Bon Jovi as it is to U2. Then, [...]

OTO Rating: 10/10       There’s a reason for the old adage never to date someone in your band. Sure, Sonic Youth and the White Strips (we think) pulled it off, but Fleetwood Mac crumbled under its weight and there’s always been that joke about the Libertines, hasn’t there? Track listing: 01 Peace and Hate 02 [...]

OTO Rating: 8/10       Ziggy played guitar – we know, we bought the album, we dyed the hair, and we wore the spandex. But then, Ziggy got boring, started wearing suits, and went by the name David. Please, darling.       Luckily, Disposable Thumbs (the nom de guitaire of Zach Lewis) remembers the good old days [...]

OTO Rating: 8/10       Honestly, it seems these days as though every band has the same goal, sound, influences, you name it. Another quartet from Leeds, eh? Or another minimalist two-piece? How about a good London Libs rip-off? Don’t you want something new? Something to set your spine-tingling or your nervous system exploding? Something, you [...]

OTO Rating: 6/10       The problem seems to be timing. After all, timing can make an album more culturally relevant or less so; it can create first impressions that really don’t connect to the work at all. And timing is the issue with Are You Nervous?, a rather good album unfortunately saddled with the burden [...]