Secret Cog

Talk Normal’s Secret Cog, a five song EP, begins with a noise sample that is not quickly placed—a curious noise that immediately demands attention and perks the listener’s ear.

Trio B.C.

Four years ago, I stumbled onto Girl in a Coma—a strict accident, finding them in the first place—but after that discovery, keeping up with GIAC has become a habit, it has become compulsory, and a pleasure—as if their success has suddenly been tied to my own. Two years ago, after the release of Both Before I'm Gone, I caught up with them at the old Club 101 in El Paso, on one of their relentless tours.

Love Will Find You

Findlay Brown is not an artist who tries to hide his musical influences.

Selfish

A is for Accident, a Portland-based duo of Andrew Klaus and Julie Baird, is driven by Baird’s song writing and reverence for 1980s bands like Joy Division, Depeche Mode, and The Cure.

It’s Blitz!

Karen O. is back, and she’s dancing—or so she makes us think. The original hipster band from New York released their third album and it’s a love letter—it’s my love letter and yours, read aloud under the scattered light of a disco ball. This album combines the sensibility of MGMT’s enthusiasm, along with Karen O.’s personal finesse and emotional depth and a spot of New Wave. She is this generation’s Hope Sandoval and Beth Gibbons combined, without affectation, without orchestra, and with a lot of attitude. Karen O.’s voice simultaneously kisses you, fucks you, and kicks you out on your ass.

Outside Love

Pink Mountaintops—a Canadian band comprised of Stephen McBean and his collected associates—is an evocative, addictive blend of psychedelic melodies, fuzzy guitars, and gospel-like lyrics.

A Chopping Block

The death of Jim Henson was probably one of the single most traumatic events of my childhood. By that time, I was old enough to realize that Kermit was created by Jim Henson, but still young enough to have a certain amount of love for Sesame Street. (Okay, I was ten, which is a bit old for Big Bird, but I was a late bloomer.) You are probably asking yourself a variety of questions at this point.

Eve

After the release of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon, Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson put together the Alan Parsons Project, a British progressive rock group that put out several albums that could be considered “concept” albums—not too unlike what the Mars Volta does now. 1979 was the original release year for the album _[Eve](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NJVWU0?ie=UTF8&tag=feminrevie-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000NJVWU0

I Was Just Comforting Her

During my exploits as a queer culture addict, I’ve heard Gretchen Phillips’ name dropped multiple times, generally paired with admiration and approval, but I never went so far as to investigate the source of her praise.

Meridians

Meridians is a very “new age” title for an album. You may hear the word “meridians” all the time without knowing what it means, and when you look it up, you still don’t. You know it’s about circles and zeniths and acupuncture references to the body’s pathways to energy—but can you use it in a sentence? When I worked at a record store (yes, a record store) in the '90s, we had an entire new age section.

Trailer Park (Legacy Edition)

I was twenty and living in Austin when I first heard Beth Orton. She laid the soundtrack to my existential search for love and self and meaning. Trailer Park is the kind of record you listen to while laying on your bed, questioning your life, your love, or playing against the background in a movie scene where you walk along the railroad tracks, hands in your pocket during a particularly emotional moment.

From the Heart

There are several good songs on From the Heart, but by the end of the album, I was sick of the slow, languorous ballads that Babyface does so well. There’s nothing wrong with most of the songs; they’re just bland, and the delivery becomes monotonous after sixteen tracks.

Gaudi (1987 Expanded Restoration)

The Alan Parsons Project music can be defined as mainly rock. They create concept albums revolving around different ideas or people, such as Edgar Allan Poe, and for this particular concept album Antonio Gaudi served as the inspiration. Gaudi was a Spanish modernist architect whose buildings still stand as monuments of his genius. Among his very impressive work is La Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona, which is considered his masterpiece even though it remains unfinished. Several musicians and singers contribute to the Project’s vision.

Live Session EP

You either have that friend, or are that friend: the friend who tells people about obscure artists that seem weird or off-putting, but always become familiar with time. These bands usually rise from unknown to an only quasi-obscure status within about six months of your introduction, making your friend appear to have some magical intuition or inside information. For me, that friend is Israel. We were in Israel’s green Subaru in Lincoln, Nebraska when I first heard the child-like Japanese/English ramblings of a mystery band, and I asked who it was.