Email Author Nicholas Hall

2009 Stories by Nicholas Hall

• Daniel Johnston

  published September 2, 2009

  “Fake Records” is an early indication that the forthcoming Is and Always Was is not the usual Daniel Johnston. It could be a great... More >>

• Karl Blau

  published August 19, 2009

  For an artist to whom “lo-fi” “indie” and “freak-folk” are common attributions, Karl Blau's forthcoming album Zebra... More >>

• Pissed Jeans

  published August 19, 2009

  Comprised of four guys whose greatest accomplishment is the ability to bang out rudimentary rock music, Pissed Jeans doesn't have a lot to say. In... More >>

• Or, the Whale

  published August 12, 2009

  Or, The Whale has a remarkable knack for sounding small. At first glance, this seems a slight to the folksy Bay Area septet, but it's really a... More >>

• Kimya Dawson

  published August 5, 2009

  Most people would agree that it's fair to characterize Kimya Dawson, and her entire musical career, as a fairly galvanizing phenomenon. Between... More >>

• Ditty Bops

  published July 29, 2009

  Think of the Ditty Bops as the house band for a hipster-idealized version of A Prairie Home Companion. With their blend of, pardon the phrase,... More >>

• Astronautalis

  published July 22, 2009

  Astronautalis’ music seems to ebb and flow, high tide and low tide represented by soft, lo-fi indie rock and intelligently crafted melodic... More >>

• Pumice

  published July 22, 2009

  Lo-fi, psychedelically inflected rock seems to be almost solely the province of one-man (or woman) acts. Pumice is no exception to this rule;... More >>

• Phenomenauts

  published July 22, 2009

  Phenomenauts seems like it should be nothing more than a joke band, conceived while inebriated (or, more likely, stoned) and realized on stage in... More >>

• The Weakerthans

  published July 15, 2009

  The Weakerthans have a legacy of shock and surprise. It all started with Propagandhi, John Samson’s original musical vehicle. That... More >>

• Robin Pecknold

  published July 8, 2009

  If Fleet Foxes represents the post-Napster generation’s reclamation and reimagining of wide eyed 60’s folk mysticism and the lyrical... More >>

• The Rural Alberta Advantage

  published July 1, 2009

  Take a look at any review of The Rural Alberta Advantage's debut, Hometowns, and the ready-made witticism “what's the advantage to living in... More >>

• Deer Tick

  published June 24, 2009

  John McCauley was born in the wrong decade. From his clear affection for American rock icons of the late 50's and early 60's, to his penchant for... More >>

• The Dimes

  published June 17, 2009

  If 2007’s The Silent Generation is any indication, the Dimes just might be clairvoyant. For the uninitiated, The Silent Generation is... More >>

• Th' Legendary Shack Shakers

  published June 10, 2009

  Few bands have chosen a moniker more evocative than Th' Legendary Shack Shakers. While the adjectival end of their name may originally have been... More >>

• Billy Ray Cyrus

  published June 3, 2009

  It’s bad enough to have your career derailed because of the fickle nature of a cross-genre fan base who only ever liked you for one song. But... More >>

• New York Dolls

  published May 27, 2009

  Going to see the New York Dolls is an odd proposition. On one level, it’s hard to deny the importance of a band so central to the legacy of... More >>

• The Aggrolites

  published May 27, 2009

  Over the past seven years, the Aggrolites have established a reputation for being a bit retrograde. Though this has occasionally earned them some... More >>

• The Them

  published May 20, 2009

  The concept of cliché is so rife with meta-irony that it makes poster children such as the Them seem downright erudite in their application... More >>

• Leo Kottke

  published April 29, 2009

  It’s an unfortunate state of affairs when one’s strengths are also the source of one’s impediment. For Leo Kottke, the willingness... More >>

• Rocco DeLuca

  published April 29, 2009

  The touchstones are clear. Rocco DeLuca is fond of Led Zeppelin, and finds footholds in the same hard-blues that Jack White has turned into a... More >>

• The Prids

  published April 29, 2009

  When you hear a band described as moody post punk revival with proto-goth leanings and a somewhat radical vegan, animal rights based political... More >>

• Wavves

  published April 22, 2009

  Nathan Williams isn’t trying to convince anyone that Wavves is revolutionary. He isn’t trying to spearhead a new musical movement or... More >>

• Yonder Mountain String Band

  published April 15, 2009

  Yonder Mountain plays high-energy, highly improvisational mountain music with a modern twist. Like an old fashioned hootenanny, the atmosphere at... More >>

• Wavves

  published April 8, 2009

  Nathan Williams isn’t trying to convince anyone that Wavves is revolutionary. He isn’t trying to spearhead a new musical movement or... More >>