Sand Reckoner
Album: The Shepard EP
Released: December 2010
From: Boston, MA
Sand Reckoner bring 70s acid rock into the 21st Century on their EP The Shepard. Giant bass lines and guitar riffs bring to mind a less lumbering version of Black Sabbath and Kashmir-era Led Zeppelin. But Sand Reckoner meld their classic hard rock tendencies with vocals and production details that take from 80s shoegaze and make this much more than a mere rip-off of their forbearers. This EP begs to be played loud and I encourage you to do just that.
Powderhouse
Album: in the meantime
Released: July 2010
Hail from: Newton, MA
Judging from the cover of Powderhouse's in the meantime, a water color-ish picture of a starry night sky with a silhouette of a woman in the lotus position on top of a hill, I expected to be tortured with some new-age stylings and maybe some Native American pan flute. I was pleasantly surprised when what I got instead was 12 tracks of very enjoyable, Liz-Phair-circa-Exile-In-Guysville, straight up rock music. Theresa Mastrorilli has that same sexy deep voice that was put to such great use on that classic record from 1993; and it certainly doesn't hurt that she's backed by a fantastic band.
Mango Floss
Album: Monsters
Released: October, 2010
Hail from: Portland, ME
Mango Floss' Monsters EP is a breezy pop nugget that reminds me of Best Coast with the wall-of-sound stripped away to reveal a beautiful little band. Sarah's breathy, candy-coated vocals are a treat to the ears. Monsters hints at a band destined for good things.
Leon Rich
Album: Ghost In The Cooler
Released: September 2010
Hail from: Boston, MA
Ghost In The Cooler opens with "Dead Squirrels", a fantastic prog-rock moment, sounding like something off of Rush's Grace Under Pressure. It's something of a bait and switch because nothing else on Ghost In The Cooler explorers that same territory. The remaining eight tracks are classic American rock with a great mix of guitar and keys. Rich's vocals bring to mind the strange falsetto of Canned Heat's Alan Wilson on the classic psychedelic track, "On The Road Again".
--George Dow
