Brace yourself for a 46-minute ride of psychedelia in its most potent form. Signal Morning , the new Circulatory System record, has infinite forward movement, a creation with such depth that it begs for multiple listening sessions. Meticulously crafted riffs

The Fame Monster , like The Fame before it, is unfuckwithable where the big, banging club tracks are concerned. Lady Gaga is praised for the theatrical, visual element of her performance, but she really does write strong material to back

The Love EP is such a strange sound in the context of 2009 indie rock. It's not skuzzy, purposely camouflaged in lo-fidelity or derailed by gimmicks. In fact, it's all "la-la" choruses and straightforward melodies (occasionally with full brass accompaniment,

The bad news is that Ghost Train Tragedy is, at fifteen tracks, about five tracks too long. And even at ten tracks, there would still be some filler. The good news is that when Coming Soon is on, they are

Califone is a sophisticated band with an old school sound. Their new album All My Friends Are Funeral Singers demonstrates how they have mastered the mixing of traditional blues and soul with electronic and rock flourishes. Tim Rutili's tortured vocals

He's probably better known for his work with other people than for what comes out under his own name, but Dialogue is a solid collection that spends time on both sides of the line between hip-hop beatmaking and electronic experimentalism.

The twelve-year evolution of Shudder to Think ended in 1998, leaving members to focus on side projects, solo albums, and many a song for television and movies. Whether you heard them as an ultra-unique punk band or an ultra-unique alternative

Crippled Cute is the sophomore release by Italian trio Damien*, and though it might have a few '80s post-punk touches, it reminds me more of '90s bands like Girls Against Boys. Grinding bass and fierce drumming and a completely in-your-face

Raditude () [] []The five stages to grieving the death of the Weezer you knew and loved.Stage One: Denial (The Green Album... "This is just as good...right?").Stage Two: Anger (Maladroit... "What the @#*! happened to Weezer?!?!?!!")Stage Three: Bargaining (Make Believe...

If Derek Jeter played guitar instead of shortstop, he'd be in Yo La Tengo. Popular Songs proves again the trio can consistently crush it outta the park without any over-the-top "enhancements." "Periodically Triple or Double" kills with a screaming organ

Aim and Ignite () [] [] Focus Group reviewMany will say that fun. is fun. Period. The truth is that fun. is more than just fun. Aim and Ignite is composed of 10 epic pop songs that take you on

The Mary Onettes' work recalls bands like The Ocean Blue or The House of Love or, when they get a tad punchier, Echo & The Bunnymen. Now that comparisons are out of the way, let me tell you about Islands

Brooklyn's Dead Stars have some immediately familiar sounds even on the first listen-Pixies' loud-soft-loud trademark, Built to Spill, Pavement and Hum when they decide to unleash the wall of guitars. Anyone claiming to be a fan of those bands should

Pissed Jeans have no time for your bullshit. The release of pent-up anger in "False Jesii Part 2," slams you in the face with a shovel and kicks off their new album King of Jeans . The rest of the

Home recorded as a solo project with heavy processed drums, electronically edited into an avalanche of dub, distorted over driven keyboards, minimal vocals, occasional guitar freak outs and even a thunderstorm mixed in. Lots of nods to My Bloody Valentine,

Mos Def returns with an album that benefits as much from its attention deficit disorder as it does its musical schizophrenia. Alternating between the live band feel of 2004's The New Danger and more conventional sample-based tracks, Mos jumps from

They're probably not acquainted, but Desmond & The Tutus and Vampire Weekend are would-be members of a very tiny mutual appreciation society. Odd that D&TT (from South Africa) sound a little more Brooklyn while Vampire Weekend (from Brooklyn) sound a

The sad, horrible truth is that Air peaked five years ago with Talkie Walkie . Everything since resembles the scattered and reverberating soundwaves from earlier albums that have gone out into space, bounced off Saturn's rings and come back to

Pinhead Gunpowder has been occasionally releasing the best pop punk around for almost twenty years, so in their case it is only slightly bizarre for an indie punk band to have a greatest hits disk. And although this band includes

I've had my eye on The Pains of Being Pure at Heart since late last year, and was occasionally impressed by a single or outtake that leaked out. Then the album arrived and revealed a band with self-assurance and complete