Month: February 2013

Paolo MizernaPaolo Mizerna

Regina Spektor - What We Saw From The Cheap Seats

I’ve always thought that those detractors quick to dismiss Regina Spektor’s career with words like ‘quirky’, ‘oddball’ or ‘sentimental’ were missing out on a unique talent with incredible piano and songwriting skills and a sad-sweet voice to match. Sure, there are moments when whimsy or sentimentality may arguably have led Spektor a step too far into eccentric or syrupy territory, but she finds success more often than not. What We Saw From The Cheap Seats isn’t necessarily a huge departure from earlier work –in fact it reminded me a great deal of her first effort, Soviet Kitsch- and yet this…

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Paolo MizernaPaolo Mizerna

The Cranberries - Wake Up and Smell The Coffee

Back from an even longer break are The Cranberries, as it has been over ten years since their last studio album, Wake Up And Smell The Coffee. Dolores O’Riordan’s extraordinary voice never quite managed to claim the successful solo career it deserved through the two albums she recorded during the band’s interim hiatus, but with her old partners back in tow they’ve reunited to create one of the strongest album releases of 2012 to date. O’Riordan’s voice always possessed a dreamy, tender quality that worked well when set alongside her talented bandmates, and tracks like the gorgeous opener ‘Conduct’ or…

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Paolo MizernaPaolo Mizerna

Garbage - Not Your Kind Of People

Yet another band back from a long hiatus and also recording independently from a major label, Garbage return after six years with Not Your Kind Of People. The album is a genuinely successful combination of the ‘dark pop meets garage’ that clearly defined their earlier work but was perhaps not as pronounced on Beautiful Garbage and Bleed Like Me. The electronica has been toned down a touch here, but not so much that you can’t hear shades of Nine Inch Nails on a track like ‘Battle In Me’. Elsewhere, ‘Blood For Poppies’, ‘I Hate Love’ and ‘Automatic System Habit’ showcase…

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Paolo MizernaPaolo Mizerna

The Hives - Lex Hives

After five years The Hives are back with their fifth full-length album, this time released on their own Disques Hives imprint. If you’re familiar with the Swedes’ stomping, energetic sound spearheaded by Pelle Almqvist’s charged yelps and howls then you won’t be left disappointed. To be fair, few fans of The Hives would ask the band for a reinvention anyway, and charged tunes like the two-word-only track ‘Come On’, 60’s-themed ‘Midnight Shifter’ and single ‘Go Right Ahead’ are sure to become popular live staples (and yes, with regard to the latter, don’t worry, The Hives asked Jeff Lynne for permission…

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