Articles By: Duncan Ros 
I have been writing for the college newspaper at Portland State for the past two years while simultaneously playing bass in a punk band. My interests include phantasmagorical literature, punk rock and cheap horror movies. My favorite album is Nirvana's Bleach.
Slash – Apocalyptic Love album review
Slash’s second full-length solo album Apocalyptic Love was released earlier this May, a collaborative effort between the former Guns N Roses guitarist and vocalist Myles Kennedy. It is true that the thirteen songs (complete with two bonus tracks) tend to occupy the homogenous late 80s and early 90s blues / rock sound pocket which brought Slash his renown. There remains, however, a significant amount of eclecticism beneath the surface. The guitar progressions tend to have the major tonality and rhythm [...]
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OFF! – OFF! album review
OFF!’s self-titled LP was released this May, and contains a disgusting vitality usually reserved for a sea of pissed off teenagers. Former Black Flag and Cirkle Jerks front man Keith Morris is almost 60, and needs to get it out of his system before he keels over and dies. Dmitri Coat’s blistering guitar riffs cut through each song like a rusty serrated knife, attacking the spasmodic explosive drums provided by Mario Rubalcaba with sickening syncopation. The sardonic white-noise screeches of [...]
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Lower Dens – Nootropics album review
“And now for something completely different.” These words, immortalized by Monty Python, would be the best way to introduce the strange and unique sounds of the relentlessly touring five-piece outfit known as Lower Dens. Originally the brainchild of Baltimore based noise rocker Jana Hunter, the group has released their second full-length album on Ribbon Music: Nootropics. A nootropic, also known as smart drugs or neuro enhancers, is a kind of chemical used to enhance cognitive functions like memory and intelligence. [...]
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The Spinto Band – Shy Pursuit album review
There are a bunch of bands that try to take the musical components of antiquity and make something fresh and interesting. They usually fail. Frank Zappa said something addressing this problem—that punk rock, for example, was simply a reincarnation of doo wop. The main difference between the two was the style of dress. In fact, this is true for other forms of consumable commercial art forms as well. The film industry, for example, lives off of the regurgitated ideas which [...]
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Neon Trees – Picture Show album review
Neon Trees released Picture Show, their second full-length album on Mercury Records this April. The fourteen-song LP is packed with catchy hook laden tales of love reminiscent of Thriller era Michael Jackson, The Cure and Depeche Mode. At the same time, however, this Mormon four-piece from Utah manages to maintain an originality among the myriad influence of eighties new wave and glam that allows Neon Trees to maintain their autonomy and individuality. The album opener “Moving in the Dark” exhibits [...]
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Bassnectar – Vava Voom album review
In the midst of constant touring to an ever-growing audience, Lorin Ashton a.k.a. Bassnectar has managed to release another of his “omnitempo maximalist” records this April. Vava Voom, Bassnectar’s 9th full-length album delivers all of the appealing elements that have allowed this San Fransisco native to create a flourishing underground community unseen since the days of the Grateful Dead: low thumping bass, intense musical eclecticism and a positive message of community involvement. His latest album includes a slew of collaborators [...]
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Of Monsters and Men – My Head is an Animal album review
With concerts sold out internationally this Icelandic six-piece is rapidly becoming one of the most popular groups to hail from the region in recent years. Originally the solo project of singer and guitarist Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir, the extended group began to grow in popularity after winning an Icelandic battle of the bands competition in 2010. After getting significant airplay on Seattle’s KEXP with their single “Little Talks,” they quickly topped their native charts, signing to Record Records in 2011, then [...]
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