A Magazine for Craftmakers

NOW PLAYING: Au Pairs, ‘Sense and Sensuality’

The Details: Au Pairs, Sense and Sensuality (Sanctuary, 1982) A Short Review: Ramshackle rhythms, drunken horns, steely synths, and prickly lyrics converge on a post-punk pillar that ought to be name-dropped a bit more. Songs like “America” reek of Reagan (sample lyrics: “Let’s have some more mass extermination/Genocide down at the Sumpul River/Children of eight […]
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2010 IN REVIEW: Underworld’s Favorite Albums and Singles

Photo by Andrew Parks When it comes to underappreciated LPs, Barking ranks as one of 2010’s finest return-to-form full lengths. Like Underworld’s best work (the mid-’90s run of Dubnobasswithmyheadman and Second Toughest In the Infants), new songs like “Scribble” and “Between Stars” highlight two very different sides of the human condition–blinding bursts of happiness and […]
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VIDEO: Domino Shares Four Tet & Steve Reid Documentary

“2010 has generally been a fantastic year, but looking back it’s the sad loss of my great friend and musical collaborator Steve Reid back in April that is one of the main things that comes into my mind. As a tribute and also so that he can be remembered I wanted to get some more […]
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2010 IN REVIEW: Bruce Lamont’s Favorite ‘Heavy’ Records

Photo by Andrew Parks Words by Bruce Lamont self-titled asked if I would list my 5 favorite heavy/ progressive records of the year. After putting the list together, I realized that all of the recordings I listed are from seasoned musicians that have continually been a source of inspiration. Without further ado…
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2010 IN REVIEW: The Year-End Lists We’ve Put Off Until Now

While we all stand by every single issue of self-titled, our office is often a battlefield full of bitching and several variations of “how could you like that crap?” The following year-end lists should give you a good idea of who’s blasting what at any given time. As a side note, we’d like to thank […]
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Best Coast, Wavves Ready Limited ‘Summer Is Forever’ 7-Inch

Mexican Summer have announced a special split 7” for Wavves and Best Coast‘s upcoming “Summer Is Forever” tour. Available only at merch tables between a January 21 stop in San Diego and a February 26 show in San Francisco, it features a pair of exclusive tracks that’ll also be dropped in a digital iTunes sampler […]
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