At first, a strong late-’90s alternative vibe emanates from The Prize, the second full-length effort from Toronto trio A Primitive Evolution. Indeed, singer Brett Carruthers could easily join a Soundgarden cover band to pay some bills if the need ever arises. read more
- A Primitive Evolution: The Prize by Eric Garneau
- Virgins Family Band: Honeylion by Eric Garneau
- Marla Mase: Speak (Deluxe Edition) by Eric Garneau
- Grown Up Avenger Stuff: Alive by Eric Garneau
- Tom Dyer: I Ain’t Blue Anymore by Eric Garneau
- Joan Torres’s All is Fused: Before by Eric Garneau
- Mutt’s Company: Jump Ship by Eric Garneau
- Chords of Truth: Reflections of Reality by Eric Garneau
- Arc & Stones: Arc & Stones EP by Eric Garneau
Grant Lyle: So There by Eric Garneau
Toronto singer-guitarist Grant Lyle is probably tired of people comparing him to Eric Clapton, but truly that’s the easiest way to give listeners an idea of what to expect on So There, Lyle’s latest full release. Of course, that comparison only does Lyle partial justice. Disregarding Slowhand for a second, Lyle’s a highly skilled singer read more
Arc & Stones: Arc & Stones EP
Above all else, the self-titled debut EP from Brooklyn, NY duo Arc & Stones is a solid rock record. It’s the kind of music your friends who hate “indie rock” spend their nights craving. These five tracks run a range of styles and emotions that recall a great alternative/hard rock band in their prime. These guys would have been huge in the late ’90s. — more
Vajra: Pleroma
New York four-piece Vajra’s debut album Pleroma is the most pleasant of surprises. The first track kicks in with its treble-y, melodious bass and ominous drums and you think “oh, I get it – this is Tool.” But if you wait just a few seconds, the stately vocals of lead singer Annamaria Pinna enter the fray and you realize you’re in for something different. — more
Scarlet Hollow: What If Never Was
The members of Ventura, CA four-piece outfit Scarlet Hollow are clearly metal connoisseurs. For What If Never Was, their first full-length record, they’ve culled together ten impressive tracks that pull their influences from across the genre – the intense riffs of death metal, the melodic keyboards and sweeping solos of power metal, and even, in places, the grandiosity of early proto-metal pioneers like Heart. This is a hefty list of influences to wear, and Scarlet Hollow tributes them all with noteable skill. — more
All 22 James Bond Themes RANKED and RATED
Analyzing James Bond theme music is kind of like a study in the law of diminishing returns. It’s so fascinating, in this film franchise with now 50 years of history, to see the way each film’s producers decide to present their music. It wouldn’t exactly be fair to say Bond themes have “evolved” since 1962, at least not in any organic way–there’ve been lots of stops, starts, and looks to the past for inspiration. In fact, every time the Bond franchise seems to want to push forward musically, something pulls it back a bit. That’s part of what makes this analysis so interesting. — more
Why Do People Go to Comic-Con?
Eric Garneau covered the San Diego Comic-Con for The MindHut. These are his personal reflections on going to the show for the first time.
Early Thursday in the crowded Room 6DE, before comic writer Jimmy Palmiotti dove into a few of All-Star Western‘s upcoming plotlines for DC’s Dark/Edge panel, he had a few words for the people assembled before him at the San-Diego Comic Con. “I’m so glad you’re here,” he said “because you are the real comic fans.” — more
Linkin Park: Living Things
Giant, transforming robots may be absent from the box office this year, but that doesn’t mean perennial rap/rockers Linkin Park get to take the year off. Their fifth album, Living Things, builds upon their commitment to release a new album every 18 months. However, is that a decision that leads them to place quantity over quality? — more
Arc in Review: Rick Remender’s Secret Avengers #21.1-25
Marvel’s Secret Avengers has taken on its fourth regular writer in under two years, and it’s one that perhaps fans would not have instantly associated with the property. As of issue #21.1 Rick Remender (Fear Agent, Punisher) has taken the reigns of Marvel’s covert ops superhero team. Now, four months later (with issue #25), his first proper story arc has come to a close. How he’d do? — more
Arc in Review: Princeless #1-4
Last week we published our commentary on the 2012 Eisner Award nominations, and I lamented that every year it seems like I never read enough books to know most of what’s up to win. As it happens, the author of one of the nominated books (several noms, actually!) saw the article and e-mailed me asking if I’d like to check out his work. Well, of course I would! So this morning I sat down and read the first four issues (the first story arc) of Princeless. — more
Delayed Gratification and Genre Mixing in Scott Snyder’s Swamp Thing
When Scott Snyder and Yanick Paquette’s Swamp Thing #7 saw release, it was met with generally spectacular reviews, at least in part because after six issues the book finally delivered on the promise in its title — it finally featured Swamp Thing. Not many mainstream comics would wait over half a year to introduce their main character to audiences; a decade ago it was a noteworthy when Brian Michael Bendis waited just a couple months to do so in Ultimate Spider-Man. So why did author Snyder choose to wait, and what effect does it have on the series as a whole? — more
Arc in Review: Action Comics #1-8
After what some (well, me at least) might consider a rocky start, Grant Morrison and Rags Morales‘ Action Comics reached the end of its first arc with a pretty satisfying confrontation wherein Braniac forces Clark Kent to choose between his adopted home and his biological one. It was nature versus nurture for the fate of the planet, and Clark’s solution — which found a way to incorporate both — saved the world and set him on the path to becoming the Superman we all know and love.
But how does Action‘s first arc measure up as a whole? — more
- All 22 James Bond Themes RANKED and RATED by Eric Garneau
- Why Do People Go to Comic-Con? by Eric Garneau
- Delayed Gratification and Genre Mixing in Scott Snyder’s Swamp Thing by Eric Garneau
- Your 2012 Eisner Award Nominees (with Color Commentary!) by Eric Garneau
- Serial, Super Serial: Quantum of Solace by Grisly Gunnar
- Serial, Super Serial: Casino Royale by Grisly Gunnar
- Serial, Super Serial: Die Another Day by Grisly Gunnar
- Serial, Super Serial: The World is Not Enough by Grisly Gunnar
- Serial, Super Serial: Tomorrow Never Dies by Grisly Gunnar
My Best of 2012 Playlist by Eric Garneau
After being inspired by some friends, for the past few years I’ve been really into documenting my musical exploration with year-end mixes. I realize this is not a particularly novel thing to do, but hey, who has original ideas any more?