Lollipop Magazine

The Unicorns – Who Will Cut Our Hair When We’re Gone – Review

March 29, 2004

Fans of cute, nerdy, experimental low-fi indie-pop music will love this Montreal threesome. The Unicorns offer up unusual songs with a playful and innocent undertone.

The Special Goodness – Land Air Sea – Review

March 29, 2004

You know how Weezer’s Maladroit rocked fuzzy guitars in a weird, slow, brashy way that nobody really liked? The same concept is in effect here. The Special Goodness is the brainchild of Weezer drummer Pat Wilson.

Gravity Propulsion System – Poison Rays of Sound – Review

March 29, 2004

Ikara Colt could gig with’m just fine, as could Poem Rocket, or some of those angular units wandering around in the yard.

Madcap – Under Suspicion – Review

March 29, 2004

Madcap rocks out on their third album with punk, reggae, rock, and ’80s dance inflections. “Keep Dancin” made me sit up and give this band a serious listen. Then I got up and danced. That’s how catchy the songs are.

The Snake The Cross The Crown – Like A Moth Before A Flame – Review

March 22, 2004

Straight from Alabama to the big time. With their six-song debut, they’ve managed to mix melodic indie rock and hook-laden emo with just a touch of ’80s-influenced pop-rock.

The Silent Treatment – Review

March 22, 2004

This is classic MidWestern emo, no fuss about it. The trailing arpeggios, the accented guitar/drums interplay, the yelping.

The Radio Hour – Review

March 22, 2004

With steady, heart-bearing emotion washing through the notes like a young Michael Stipe, Tim Hort has created the R.E.M. album we’ve all been wishing for since Out of Time.

Smogtown – All Wiped Out – Review

March 22, 2004

Smogtown is influenced by the L.A. roots of Redd Kross, Circle Jerks, and, to a lesser extent, Black Flag. They have a sense of humor, write engaging and funny lyrics, and write feverishly fast and high-strung riffs.

Blacktail – Styrofoam Island – Review

March 22, 2004

Blacktail reminds me of Keelhaul, if the mathy metal influence was replaced by a love of AmRep noisefuckery and/or Touch and Go-era Butthole Surfers.

Black Helicopter – That Specific Function – Review

March 22, 2004

Monstrously sluggish tempos, the thud-heavy, stuttering beats and ponderous basslines keeping more or less the same speed and emotional heft on every track as the guitars drone compellingly and the vocalist intones the words in a spoken monotone.