By - Kristi Houk Recommended if you like:  Wednesday, Silver Jews, Jason Molina, Uncle Tupelo I am not convinced that MJ Lenderman is actually from Asheville North Carolina. While, yes, Asheville is typically still below the Mason-Dixon line, Lenderman’s scorched Southern rock sounds more like it’s coming from someone born and raised in Limestone County, Alabama.  Recorded live at Lincoln Hall in Chicago and at Lodge Room in L.A., these […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if you like: Weyes Blood, Big Thief, Wolf Alice, Girlpuppy Singer/songwriter Anna Beckerman has a way with words.  Her debut full length project as Daneshevskaya pronounced (Dawn-eh-shev-sky-uh), Long is the Tunnel is a sweetly haunting collection of 7 tracks that bend the psyche in a fairy tale fashion. The album opens during a hypnotic downpour and the listener is instantly transported into another world of […]

By - Kristi Houk   Recommended if you like: Wishy, Winter, Swirlies, Computer Wife, Ride This is a big deal. All new and old shoegaze heads are collectively losing their shit.  30 years have passed since the grossly underrated 90’s alternative rock/shoegaze band Drop Nineteens made an album. The Boston based group has returned with Hard Light a sublime collection of shimmering guitars, boy/girl vocals, and thundering bass lines reminiscent […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if you like: Wednesday, Snail Mail, Sharon Van Etten, Bruce Springsteen Thank god for Chicago-based Ella Williams aka Squirrel Flower and her beautiful, grungy new album (her third full length), Tomorrow’s Fire. Honestly, there’s not a stinker in the bunch, but are you really surprised? If you are, then you aren’t paying attention and pay attention you should. As a friend recently remarked when I […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if You Like: Soccer Mommy, Bully, Chastity Belt, Elliott Smith God, I really love the title of this album. Oh, to be that direct. Would save a lot of heartache which I think is what Clementine Creevy is aiming for on her latest album in four years. I Don’t Want You Anymore.  Upon first listen, it is apparent that Creevy has matured and gives zero […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if you like: ANY POST 80's ROCK AND ROLL “Everybody wants to be special here…” It’s about time. Replacements fans everywhere are likely giving a collective fist bump over this stunning, 4 album deluxe box set containing a remix of the misfits from Minneapolis fourth beloved album (their first on a major label and arguably their best collection of tunes), Tim. It’s an embarrassment of […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if You Like: Doesn’t matter. Just listen to it. Ok, everyone, we’re going to play a game. Every time Mitski Miyawaki mentions God, angels, or insects on her latest album, The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, you have to take a drink.  Oh Mitski, you’ve managed to break my heart while falling in love with you all at the same time. That’s how […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if you like: The Cars, Gang of Four, The Strokes, Arcade Fire  Talking Heads, Early Cure, Television Don’t be afraid of a little post-post-post punk. Is that even a thing? It is now.  The Chicago quartet, Deeper, is definitely carrying that torch. Careful!, their latest release and debut on the famed Sub Pop label, is a stroke of dark wave, post punk genius. The album […]

By - Kristi Houk Recommended if you like: Throwing Muses, Bully, Liz Phair I’ve never understood why Confessional poetry gets a bad rap. According to the Poetry Foundation, Confessional poets wrote in direct, colloquial speech rhythms and used images that reflected intense psychological experiences, often culled from childhood or battles with mental illness or breakdown. Maybe it’s all that navel gazing? My take as a writer has always been to […]