We reviewed four new albums this week – One will blow you away!

19 September 2016 by

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SHARK SANDWICH – Fast Album Reviews for Those on the Go

September 16, 2016 – Vol. 23 

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Music reviews come in all sizes, but you’re busy and do not have time for flowery language… or sentences, really.

Spinal Tap gave the world the greatest album review of all time:

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Still Corners – Dead Blue

Are you listening to the Stranger Things soundtrack? Naw, hoss, you’re listening to Still Corners’ new album, Dead Blue, but they are really mining a similar icy, 80s vein. Angular synths, breathy, detached vocals, and unobtrusive guitars make a sound that is familiar to those who lived through it, as well as those who know “the 80s” only as an ironic reference point. There is a darkness rising throughout this well-crafted song cycle. Part of me wanted to be snarky and dismiss this album, but halfway through I was enjoying myself too much.

Rating – 3 out of 5 whistles

Best Song – “The Fixer”

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Against Me! – Shape Shift with Me

I’m going to ignore all of the delicious implications of a band like Against Me! having an album called Shape Shift with Me. The sexual politics, the social touchstones, all that shit matters little when you are listening to this very kick ass rock and roll album. The band is at their best when they are flexing their pop chops, and they do a lot of that on this album. Lean forward, rockers. Against Me! is coming to a town near you, and soon.

Rating: 4 out of 5 whistles

Best Song: “12:03”

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Deap Vally – Femejism

“If you wanna be queen bee, you better make honey.” So say Deap Vally on their new album, Femejism. I should have known I was in trouble, in a good way. Does the album title make me uncomfortable? Yeah, that’s the point, but holy fuck does the album rule. It’s like Black Sabbath’s Master of Reality decided it wanted to kick the shit out of the White Stripes’ Elephant, and it rocks all over you.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 whistles

Best Song: “Post Funk”

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Kool Keith – Feature Magnetic

A safe rule to live by is to be wary of albums that start with a track called “Intro.” Kool Keith is the exception that proves the rule. Chock-a-block with collaborators, Feature Magnetic is an expansive, sometimes uncomfortable, spacey trip to the center of your mind. I can’t verify whether or not the world is full of “cheese cake rappers,” but Kool Keith has certainly brought the madness.

Rating: 4 out of 5 whistles

Best Song: “Peer Pressure” (feat. Slug)

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All artists are available on iTunes, Amazon, GooglePlay, and wherever else better music is sold, streamed, downloaded, or performed on tour.

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NewsWhistle music contributor Chad Werner is “ahead of the curve, behind the times.” You can contact this rock n’ roll sphinx at chad@newswhistle.com (e-mail) or @scooternotmoped (Twitter).

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Lead-In Image – Composite

  • Album and sleeve – Courtesy of  imagefactory / Shutterstock.com
  • Main album cover – Courtesy of Blablo101 / Shutterstock.com
  • Album collage – Courtesy of  Deap Vally (Cooking Vinyl/Nevado Music);

    Against Me! (Total Treble Music); Still Corners (Wrecking Light Records); and Kool Keith (Mello Music Group).