Trophy Michael Griffith book review Ink Dropp literature the dropp 2012 Dylan Kelly

Jun 02
Trophy, by Michael Griffith

Overall, Trophy is a wildly ambitious intelligent work of great literary merit. If there is anything that detracts from its quality, it may be that it gets a little ahead of itself sometimes. The story does indeed get very difficult to follow at certain points, but perhaps this is to remain faithful to the complex nature of any stream-of-consciousness work like this one. Fans of Faulkner, Pynchon, Ellis, and the like would definitely do well to give this novel a shot.

However, for those uninitiated with the styles of authors such as those this work may very well prove to be a bit frustrating and perhaps a little too inaccessible. If you are willing to challenge yourself though, and have a respect for deep thought provoking literature that’s new and contemporary, you can do no better this summer than with Trophy by Michael Griffith.

FULL REVIEW HERE


A Clash of KIngs George R.R. Martin ink dropp book review the dropp 2012 Jaroslav Kalfař

Jun 02
A Clash of Kings, by George R.R. Martin

Often, the fantasy genre represents worlds we’d love to escape to. They are places of honor, of great big plains and constant sunshine, filled with brave knight-like men and fair virginal maidens. Lines between good and evil are clearly defined, very often by convenient border lines (“Mordor is over there”). George R.R. Martin’s popular series, A Song of Ice and Fire, takes things in a different direction, one more fitting for a morally ambiguous world full of disillusionment and confusion about how exactly this “good vs. bad” concept applies to reality.

The second book of the series, A Clash of Kings, picks up right where the first book of the series,Game of Thrones, ended….

FULL REVIEW HERE



sigur rós Valtari album review Album Reviews ear dropps the dropp ambient music review 2012 Robert Miller

Jun 02
Sigur Rós: Valtari

After a brief hiatus, which only saw the release of a concert DVD and some sparse touring, ethereal Icelandic group Sigur Rós released Valtari, an endless stretch of eight pretty, ambient droning tracks. If you’re at all familiar with the group’s musical career (and I’d be shocked if you weren’t), they’re generally considered a post-rock band who have breached into pure pop-rock territory with lead singer Jonsi’s boyish vocals, up-beat choruses and triumphantly climactic finishes. Their last release, Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust (or With A Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly), was the most ostantatiously pop endeavor. With clear staccato drum beats and a wide range of lyrics—made-up or otherwise—it was an easy album to dance and babble along to. But Valtari is much different….

FULL REVIEW HERE



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Anthony Fabozzi Film Review MIB Men in Black 3 Tommy Lee Jones Will Smith film dropps movie review the dropp 2012

May 31
Men in Black 3

I am glad to report that this film is the best of the Men in Black series and a vast improvement from the second film. MIB3 tries to keep the plot as simple as possible, even with time travel, and has two very successful action pieces. Thankfully, the writers all but completely removed the overbearing talking pug and annoying coffee drinking bug aliens that ruined the second film. My favorite thing about Barry Sonnenfeld direction is he keeps it short and simple. The film moves at a good pace and has no superfluous moments.

FULL REVIEW HERE


The Walkmen Heaven Album Review Ear Dropp The Dropp Eric Quitugua 2012

May 31
The Walkmen: Heaven

And while 2008’s You & Me was the sonic apex of cinematic drama in the band’s repertoire, the last few years have shown the band’s increasingly relaxed, even low-key sound to be just as engaging. It’s actually this brighter trajectory that has given the band a sense of balance. Sorrow and longing stray from sulking against the backdrop of beautiful instrumentation. Singer Hamilton Leithauser has called the band’s new approach more sincere.

In the case of their latest release, Heaven, the band exude a confidence in their sincerity that shines in a polished sound laced with beautiful, old-timey harmonies and the tipping of their hats to an old friend.

Perhaps the most beautiful moment on Heaven is….

FULL REVIEW HERE


The Cribs In the Belly of the Brazen Bull ear dropps album review rock the dropp 2012

May 30
The Cribs: In the Belly of the Brazen Bull

In search of that good ole classic rock sound? Search no more. The Cribs’ new album, In the Belly of the Brazen Bull, takes a page right out of the classic-rock playbook. The band’s new album sounds like they could fit perfectly in a lineup featuring The Sex Pistols, The Libertines, and The Guess Who. From beginning to end The Cribs charge their songs with raw guitar riffs sprinkled over catchy drum beats.

The three brothers’ latest album is refreshing for classic rock lovers as it is not drowned out at any time by futuristic sound effects, DJ scratchings, or voice dubbings that sound more robotic than human. In the Belly of the Brazen Bull is rock to its core and does not have any unpleasant surprises that sound manufactured for commercial success or driven to be poppy and popular.

FULL REVIEW HERE


Damien Jurado show review Schubas Chicago JBM the dropp 2012 Zach Frimmel

May 29
Damien Jurado and JBM @ Schubas Chicago, IL

Only about half of the room was filled during the intermission between bands, but by the time Damien and his misfits were locked and loaded, a max capacity had been reached and Damien powerfully reprised the first two chords of “Nothing is the News” – the first song off his 2012 record Maraqopa. To set the mood a little more, Damien was jacketed in a red-checkered flannel, he’s stomped to the beat in his socks, his bass player (Jesse) stood a few shades shy of a grizzly giant, his keyboardist (Barry) sat adjacent to his nifty noise-tweaking gadgets, and his guitarist’s (Kyle) pedalboard could light up the small town of Monowi, Nebraski – population 1. As Damien strummed and Kyle’s rockin’ blues guitar part reigned over all sound, an immediate rush probably inundated anyone who is familiar enough with the new album to anticipate each turbulance of notes and lyrics.

FULL REVIEW HERE


Ben Brown Gabrielle Nagengast Illustration artwork eye dropps the dropp 2012

May 29
Ben Brown

Ben Brown is an exceptionally unique illustrator from Australia, whose work is exclusive to the world of posters, T-shirts, and comic strips, all consisting of cartoon-like or half dead figures. The works that display actual celebrities, such as James Dean, Amy Winehouse, and Jimi Hendrix, are limited prints only. Brown’s ability to precisely estimate the symmetrical skeletal side of the “dead” part of each face is particularly remarkable.

FULL COVERAGE AND MORE ARTWORK HERE


Kimbra Robert Miller Vows album review ear dropps the dropp 2012

May 29
Kimbra: Vows

Most of what you probably already know of Kimbra comes from “Somebody That I Used to Know,” the hit breakup single from Gotye. Vows is the New Zealander’s breakout solo LP, which showcases that her chilling vocal range stretches much farther than those couple shared verses and follows through with up-beat pop, soulful bravado, silky smooth funk and enough synthesis and cohesion throughout to deserve all of the praise her emotionally draining contribution to Gotye already received.

FULL REVIEW HERE


Overdue for Review Bowerbirds M. Ward Toro y Moi Screaming Females Sarah Jaffe Conan ear dropps album review album reviews 2012 Robert Miller Zach Frimmel David Hanson the dropp

May 29
Overdue for Review: Bowerbirds through Toro y Moi

Phillip Moore’s distinctive diaphragm and timbre have carved out a small place for Bowerbirds in the folk forest. Their 2012 junior release, The Clearing, straddles the chamber music of Ragged Wood–era Fleet Foxes, Fionn Regan’s staccato and Patrick Watson’s darkly classical finesse….

READ ON FOR MORE REVIEWS OF:

M.WARD
SARAH JAFFE
SCREAMING FEMALES
TORCHE and
TORO Y MOI 

MORE REVIEWS HERE

A doom metal band from the U.K., Conan is a powerful assertion that doom has a profound and tangible presence in the metalverse. When the opener of the new Monnos album, “Hawk as a Weapon,” begins in silence and whirls into a steady strumming pattern of deep, gurgling riffs and a simplistic drum beat, there’s such ferocity that it’s impossible to ignore….

MORE REVIEWS HERE

Filled with plenty of bleak atmospherics, Led Er Est’s The Diver is a fuzzy background filler. On Sacred Bones records, this album is another attempt at reviving some of the minimalist synth-driven music from the 70s and 80s, and it punches with songs like “Animal Smear” and complacently drones on in songs like “Senatta.”….

MORE REVIEWS HERE

This sophomore effort under his solo moniker is a continuation of the shoegaze-y guitar rock of Lotus Plaza’s debut. Loops of spaced-out guitar and crooning vocal deliveries float through the majority of Spooky Action at a Distance, much like the balloons that float towards an empty sky on the cover of the album….