Reviews of Music, Movies, Anime & More

The perfect soundtrack for a nice cup of tea and your favorite Murakami novel.

Speed Racer is an undeniable treat. Not the healthiest or most thought-provoking treat, to be sure, but an incredibly fun and satisfying treat nevertheless.

You can listen to these songs twenty times and still not hear all of the sonic details contained therein.

Iron Man has set the bar high for every other summer blockbuster to come.

Balmer is taking off the gloves and striking up a much more defiant, incisive stance this time.

Here’s hoping that “5 Centimeters Per Second” represents one last hurrah for Shinkai before moving on to new, and equally fertile territory.

Appleseed Ex Machina is primarily disappointing because it squanders so much of the depth and potential that existed in the original.

At its best, I find it to be just as affecting as when I heard “Dreaming of Spires” so long ago.

An album that is thoroughly obsessed with creating soundscapes as amorphous and spectral as possible — for better or worse.

Even among diehard shoegazer fans, Chorus might be something of an acquired taste, but it’s never less than fascinating.

Ultimately, Lum and Bee are all about creating a mood with their music, a relaxed and blissed-out vibe.

This otherwise light and fluffy music contains a surprisingly engaging amount of emotional heft.

It’s a wonderful story — in the book, at least. And the filmmakers get it wrong on nearly every count.

The bleakest film the Coen Brothers have made to date.

A madcap pastiche that’s everything you’ve come to expect from The Kleptones.

Plumerai are clearly heading in the right direction with their sound.

At its best, Japancake’s take on the shoegaze classic offers some new insights into Kevin Shield’s masterpiece.

The sound of a band completely comfortable inside its own skin and supremely confident in their skills.

Weigl and Hoffman combine orchestral sounds, sparse piano lines, Spanish guitar, and skittering, echoey beats.