SPIN THE BLACK CIRCLE

Under The Radar’s Top 100 Albums of 2012

Kenny S. McGuane — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:57:31 +0000

Sorry for the mega delay on posting this. I highly suggest you check out UTR’s excellent list of the top 100 albums of 2012; it’s super thorough and I wrote blurbs on two of them (they’re down below).

Read the full list HERE.
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#19
Jessie Ware
Devotion
Universal Island/PMR/Cherrytree

A critic’s darling on both sides of the Atlantic, Britain’s newest and most promising songstress Jessie Ware delivers on all 11 self-assured tracks of her debut album, Devotion. With wholehearted sincerity, Ware manages to weave an otherwise worn-out pop narrative of love, loss, and hope through a deliciously expressive tapestry of sexy synths and modern alternative R&B. Better watch your back, Sade. © Under The Radar Magazine
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#35
Taken By Trees
Other Worlds
Secretly Canadian

Swedish pop darling Victoria Bergsman sounds as confident as ever on her third solo outing as Taken By Trees. Whereas sophomore album East of Eden was recorded in Pakistan, Other Worlds takes its inspiration from a more relaxed locale, Hawaii. It’s a laidback and dub-infused pop album brimming with enough sophistication and culture to help while away a few hours on the beach or bring some sun to a cold winter’s day. © Under The Radar Magazine

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Kenny S. McGuane — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 18:15:47 +0000

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CHAD VALLEY: YOUNG HUNGER

Kenny S. McGuane — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 16:44:02 +0000

Originally published in UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE:

On his long-awaited debut album as Chad Valley, Oxford, England based Hugo Manuel makes little attempt to veil his affection for the zillion-dollar, slickly produced, mammoth-sized pop albums of the 1980s; the results are as charming and imaginative as one may have come to expect from one of the blogosphere’s most buzzed-about artists. It’s obvious that Manuel cares passionately and thinks deeply about pop music and its potential as valid creative expression.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

Watch the video for album track “Fall 4 U”:

Glen Campbell: Live In Japan

Kenny S. McGuane — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 12:31:50 +0000

Originally published in UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE:

The last few years have been bittersweet for the 76-year-old Glen Campbell, who really is the godfather of the country-pop crossover hit. He’s made 70 albums, sold more than 45 million of them worldwide, and had 27 of his singles land in the country music Top 10. After two pretty-darn-good and unexpectedly successful cover albums, 2008′s Meet Glen Campbell and last year’s Ghost On The Canvas, Campbell’s enjoyed a renaissance of sorts and has been, more or less, on the road since 2008. His legacy was cemented at this year’s 54th Grammy Awards where he was paid tribute and given a Lifetime Achievement Award. So where’s the bitter? Last summer, Campbell announced he had Alzheimer’s and would embark on a final “Goodbye Tour,” which means retirement is being forced upon him.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

www.glencampbellmusic.com | www.undertheradarmag.com

ARETHA FRANKLIN – KNEW YOU WERE WAITING: THE BEST OF ARETHA FRANKLIN 1980-1998

Kenny S. McGuane — Sun, 15 Jul 2012 13:01:28 +0000

Originally published in UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE:

It used to be both popular and lame for people to say things like, “Oh, I love everything such and such artist/band has done, except for their ’80s stuff.” You hear that less and less these days, and it probably has a lot to do with all the ’80s revivalism, nostalgia-pop, and record collection rock that’s come out of the last decade of popular music. I guess the further we get from the 1980s, the better that decade sounds. The 2000s saw revivals of everything from New-Wave to hair metal, from goth to Chicago house, and thanks to acts like Chromeo, a very specific brand of disco-infused funk and R&B got its second chance too. So then it’s no surprise that a collection of Aretha Franklin singles drawn primarily from the 1980s manages to sound, at times, both fresh and retro cool.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

www.arethafranklin.net | www.undertheradarmag.com

Norah Jones – Little Broken Hearts

Kenny S. McGuane — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:17:18 +0000

Originally published in UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE:

“One of the many frustrating things about Norah Jones is what appears to be a total unwillingness to push herself beyond her lyrical and vocal comfort zones. She’s a gifted vocalist, a good-enough pianist, and a gracious performer, and yet—without exception—her first four studio albums sound like one long, tiresome song.”

READ THE FULL REVIEW

www.norahjones.com | www.undertheradarmag.com

CFCF – Exercises EP

Kenny S. McGuane — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:19:48 +0000

My quickie for UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE:

Montréal-based DJ and electronic wizard Michael Silver (stage name CFCF) was once primarily associated with his remix work on tracks by the likes of Sally Shapiro, Crystal Castles, Azari & III, and tons of others.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

www.soundcloud.com/cfcf | www.undertheradarmag.com

Elton John vs Pnau – “Good Morning To The Night”

Kenny S. McGuane — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:22:51 +0000

Sampling Elton John tunes (in this case 1972’s “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters”, 1973’s “Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” and 1976’s “Tonight”) for use in a fist-pumping summer club anthem only seems obvious now; “Good Morning To The Night” makes transforming ‘70s EJ into club music seem long overdue. Clocking in at an angeringly brief three and a half minutes, “GMTTN” features Pnau’s trademark swirly synths, crisp, clean guitars and a badass build and release. What’s more is that this is only the first installment in what’ll eventually be an entire Pnau album of remixed and reimagined EJ tunes.

Various Artists – Golden Gate Groove: The Sound Of Philadelphia – Live In San Francisco 1973

Kenny S. McGuane — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:07:42 +0000

My weigh-in for UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE:

During the 1970s, Philadelphia International Records released some of the best and most memorable pop music of the last century. Fact. Golden Gate Groove documents what some consider to be one of the most important nights in showbiz history, when a handful of Philadelphia International Records’ best and brightest performed for a mainly white, and somewhat skeptical, convention of CBS record execs.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

www.legacyrecordings.com | www.undertheradarmag.com

School of Seven Bells — Ghostory

Kenny S. McGuane — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 18:04:35 +0000

My weigh-in For FILTER MAGAZINE:

After 10 years of New Wave, post-punk and synth-pop revivalism, one of the more striking features of the third School of Seven Bells album, Ghostory, is that it sounds exceedingly familiar. And I mean that in a good way.

READ THE FULL REVIEW