After their flashy, dance-friendly album “It's Blitz!,” the New York trio Yeah Yeah Yeahs claim they're returning to basics on their fourth studio production, supposedly reminiscent of “Show Your Bones” (2006). I say “supposedly” because while “Show Your Bones” was a great milestone for the ever-evolving band, “Mosquito” feels painfully inadequate and unable to follow the energy of their...
The digital dances of the internet — the soft block, the finsta, a deleted subtweet — distinguish the ways in which we tend to ourselves and each other online. The choreography is complex and mesmerizing, yet frail enough to crumble with a misstep; these steps are designed to upkeep a persona which, with time, hardens into a reputation. A...
With credits ranging from Yeezus to FKA twigs to Bjork, the Venezuelan-born producer Alejandro Ghersi has had an unusual career, walking the line between mainstream and underground production. He’s injected his albums with his abstract style of industrial schizophrenic and glitch electronica. At first listen, Ghersi’s production seems random and twitchy, with no sense of rhyme or rhythm, yet...
In Latin, the word “forma” means shape or figure, and in a more figurative sense it is also used to describe beauty. This implication suggests that the simplicity of the form and structure in things captures the spirit of elegance. Forma’s 2011 self-titled debut album was a dream pop record that embraced the modern world’s fascination with experimentalism and...
On Tuesday, Oct. 8, a gang of KUCR DJs ventured off the quiet UCR campus and headed west to see psych-indie sensation, Crumb, perform live at The Glass House in Pomona. For a few of us, the decision to drop all of our responsibilities and go to the concert was very spontaneous. Some of us had early classes and...
Albums can tell stories just like cinema can, and in some ways better. Albums can offer an abundance of drama without telling a linear narrative, such as Angel Olsen’s “All Mirrors.” In Olsen’s fifth and most recent release, she employs the extensive use of strings throughout the whole album to accentuate the grandiosity of the project. For instance, the...
Shining in authentic old-school blues fashion, guitar virtuoso Gary Clark Jr.’s major-label debut, “Blak and Blu,” brings true soul and pain back to an R&B realm that has been wallowing in overproduced hip-hop. Clark’s earnest tone and masterful guitar playing should definitely earn this album a spot as one of the year’s best.
Opening up with the brass filled “Ain’t...
Once a band of five strangers put together by Simon Cowell on the X Factor in 2010, One Direction has made their name within the music industry indestructible — four years and four albums later. With the world at their feet and their careers in their pockets, the 20- to 22-year-olds have seized the opportunity to make a concerted...
The most influential rapper of the last decade released his second studio album, “Punk,” at 12 a.m. PST. on Friday, Oct. 15. The title, cover art and overall album promotion were true to Young Thug's left-field approach to music. From gleefully destroying a Rolls Royce with his disciple, Gunna, to reinventing Octavio Ocampo's “Forever Always” piece, it was evident...
Soul and heavenly vocals surround the tunes of Omar Apollo. Recently coming off a Best New Artist Grammy nomination, Apollo has risen from the ground up to bless his fans with alternative R&B, pop and hues of reggaeton.
The artist’s start to music was unsteady due to Apollo’s financial struggles. When attempting to release his first single, “Ugotme,” Apollo was...