Stacey Oristano’s motto in life is one word- “Letitgo.” The Friday Night Lights star combines a simple and “Eckhart Tolle-like” approach to life but most importantly, she builds a strong argument to release one’s self from any and all negativity. Classically theatre trained in London and constantly learning from those around her, Oristano takes away nothing but positive energy from every experience on and off stage, but especially on the set of the NBC drama as Mindy Collette. In its third season, the newly engaged Mindy makes plans for her …

Penny Flame’s Expert Guide To Hand Jobs for Men and Women
Vivid Ed
9/10
Well, just as major labels have smaller imprints to handle different genres, so has Vivid video split up some of their titles by smaller imprint. Penny Flame’s Guide to Handjobs for Men and Women comes from the Vivid Ed (I really don’t think I need to explain what the Vivid Ed imprint covers) and is truly a learning experience. Penny Flame is one of Vivid Alt’s big names, and with her quirky attitude and sense of humor, she sits …

Miniature Tigers
Tell It to the Volcano
Modern Art Records
8/10
February is the month of hits and misses and tender kisses, so it is appropriate that an album all about romantic love and its frustrations would arrive on the scene. With a quirky title like Tell it To the Volcano, the debut album from the Phoenix based Miniature Tigers isn’t likely to inspire warm tingly feelings among lovebirds looking to get themselves into the Valentine’s Day mood. What the jangly guitars and moody synthesizers on the record are likely to do is inspire …

Psyopus
Odd Senses
Metalblade Records
3/10
This cd has a lot of potential to be a really awesome metal album – honestly the only downfall I think it has is the fucking annoying sampling throughout the record, particularly tracks 6 and 10. Maybe it’s just me – and maybe some of you can pick up this album and find it in yourselves to really dig it – but I cannot. I don’t look to heavy metal for sampling bits, I get that from experimental and hip-hop…places where it generally fits the overall feel of …

Cattle Decapitation
The Harvest Floor
Metalblade Records
9/10
Not a bad cd at all…the vocals occasionally hinted at redundancy, but wherever that happened the wonderfully crafted musical brutality was able to make up for it. The title track in particular is fan-fucking-tastically haunting and a refreshing deviance from the rest of the cd. Definitely an enjoyable album, and let’s face it – it’s Cattle Decapitation – who amongst metal fans could really resist?
-Kim Worpek

My Dear Disco
Dancethink
8/10
Electronica is admittedly not the easiest genre to get into. Chalk it down to the artificial, metallic voice of the artists, the trite lyrics, or the pretentiousness of artists who confuse what they are doing with art. Whatever the reason, it’s been out of the mainstream of rock culture for well over a decade. My Dear Disco’s latest LP Dancethink may well change that- if fans get over subjugation of guitars to the pulsating beats, that is.
Though the opening number “White Lies” sounds like something that would be …

Revolting Cocks
Sexo Olympico
13th Planet Records
7/10
Well, never judge a book by its cover or a band by its name – this is a lot better than I initially expected just from the artist and album names. Of course I’m not an industrial/goth connoisseur – so this was an interesting breath of fresh air. While it makes a strong industrial/ rave impression during the second half of the album, the sound frequents an 80’s new wave, goth, and metal vibe. With Sexo Olympico, RevCo decided its time for a serious, …

Amon Amarth
Once Sent From The Golden Hall
Metalblade Records
10/10
I really have zero complaints with this one, it was very fulfilling – you definitely get your money’s worth with ‘Once Sent From The Golden Hall‘. The album screams epic, particularly on track 7, “Amon Amarth”, which serves as a fantastic anthem for the band of the same name, and the bonus track “Siegreicher Marsch” which is fucking brutally awesome. The two-disc reissue consists of 9 remastered tracks and 8 live recordings, every single track well-worth listening to at least once – even …

City and Colour
Sometimes
Vagrant Records
9/10

What. The. Fuck? While Chris Carraba may have kind of lead the way in heavier band front men striking forth to super-personal acoustic albums, Alexisonfire’s Dallas Green dropped the inaudible lyrics and the pedalboard to create City and Colour. You know what? It’s fucking amazing. Where Carraba has gone from acoustic ballads to fucking Spiderman soundtracks, Green strikes a nerve with his haunting voice, gorgeous lyrics and ethereal melodies.
“Day Old Hate” sends shivers down my spin, even after listening to it dozens of times and …

Autumn
Altitude
Metalblade Records
8/10
This is something I can really respect – a metal band featuring a female vocalist who doesn’t try to alter her voice to sound more ‘metal/hardcore’. Marjan Welman has a natural beauty to her voice that accents the heavy cutting-edge of the music as much as it offers a refreshing contrast that makes for an overall, unique and enjoyable sound. I gave it an eight out of ten simply because it’s not as brutal and heavy as I prefer, but I really think this is a fantastic album that …

Douglas Coupland
Eleanor Rigby
Bloomsbury Publishing
8/10
The subject of loneliness- especially in the context of romance or life in general- is not one that publishers like their authors to dwell on, especially in America, the land that gave birth to the “Hollywood ending.” Perhaps that is why it took a Canadian, Douglas Coupland, to render the reality of being alone in its complex, sad and gritty detail- a task which he does brilliantly in what may possibly be the greatest novel of his career. The fact that the book is titled Eleanor Rigby …

Throwing Color
The Static Seas
Unsigned
5/10
Cool. Who doesn’t love unoriginal, melancholy, pop-emo college rock? It’s complete with a few spacey synthesizer sounds, whiney guitar riffs, lackluster drums, and that’s about it. Admittedly, vocalist Drew Duddly – in addition to being a total dreamboat – has a nice pair of lungs, but they don’t pull this band out of the depths of mediocrity. Think the older and more mature cousins of Fall Out Boy, yet you’re still impressed more by Fall Out Boy’s lyrical ability and catchiness.
-Stephanie Thornton

Thrice
Live at the House of Blues
Vagrant Record
9/10
When the crap did I start liking Thrice? While I meant that to be rhetorical, I suppose the actual answer is during the Alchemy Index. I thought that that series showed a level of songwriting that went beyond simply writing songs to crafting them. There is a difference. You don’t just slap down your old poetry from tenth grade, have your guitarist do some riffs over it and call it a day. Tailoring music to genres and styles that you are not known for …

Five Corners Quintet
Hot Corner
Ricky-Tick Records
7/10
In a cold land known for beards and midnight sun, Finnish jazz ensemble Five Corners Quintet seem to be longing for a warmer place – 1930s-era United States. These Finns offer some pretty uppity jazz music that’d make Benny Goodman proud. As the album title suggests, the tunes tend to be “hot” and quick paced – more swing and rock based as opposed to “smooth”. If you’re into jive and swing dancing, this ought to fit in to your record collection. I can …

Lazarus AD
The Onslaught
Metalblade Records
7/10
Despite the fact that I felt like I’d stumbled into Hot Topic or the Taste of Chaos tour, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, I found this album a bit redeeming…it’s metal for metal fans, I just find it difficult for myself personally to get into their overall sound.
-Kim Worpek

Gavin Castleton
Home
Five One, Inc.
8/10
Some albums are haunting, others are bizarre, and still others are downright incomprehensible. Gavin Castleton’s Home is in the very last category. The discordant album, a mix of synthesizer keyboards, frenetic guitars and the occasional orchestral orchestra, has more in common with avant-garde opera rock than straight up rock n’roll. No wonder it isn’t getting much airplay. Well, the press doesn’t know what it’s missing, because while it may not be as poppy as anything on the Top 40 these days, it is anything but boring. …