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'Silver Wilkinson' Music Review: Bibio Creates An Entire Album Worth Listening To

05/21/2013

Stephen Wilkinson, known musically as Bibio, released his seventh album, Silver Wilkinson, on Warp Records. The English music producer from Wolverhampton’s new album can be labeled within the electric genre with hints of indie and folksy-acoustic influence, and Silver Wilkinson has an organic feel that somehow also makes you feel as though you are out-of-this-world. Many of the songs flow into one another, making it clear that this soothing album is meant to be listened to all together rather than in pieces.

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Mature Alicia Keys Emancipates Herself With 'Girl On Fire'

12/10/2012

After a three-year hiatus from her last album, getting hitched with producer Swizz Beats and having a son, Alicia Keys returns to grace us with her soulful piano-laced talents in Girl On Fire. Slightly raspier, and infinitely more mature, we find Keys emancipating herself with a newfound identity gathering a myriad of both veteran and younger producers throughout. Girl On Fire is both an intimate self-reflection and an affirmation of emotional freedom. Below, is a track-by-track review: The “De Novo Adagio” orchestrated intro immediately shows Keys at her best, tip-toeing her way through a no-fuss dreamscape melody that is soothing and confident.

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Rihanna's 'Unapologetic' Suffers From Melodic ADD

11/30/2012

The edgy songstress who leaves mouths watering with her bold sex appeal and esoteric lyrics has graced us with her seventh album Unapologetic. As the title suggests, Rihanna is anything but contrite in her latest release — assuming she was ever in the past. Honest lyrics coupled with mind altering beats, both suggest just how bad but yet still vulnerable she can really be. A wise decision was made to divert from the redundant overuse of sexually explicit topics. Instead the creative minds fused on this project opted for meaningful, deeper, and more realistic subject matter such as love, loss, displacement, and freedom of expression.

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Aerosmith Resurrects Its Rock Edge

11/16/2012

Though Aerosmith is one band, they have gone through several incarnations. There’s the Aerosmith of the 1970s, which featured classic, traditional rock songs like “Sweet Emotion” and “Dream On.” There is the Aerosmith of the 80s and 90s, which was more pop-oriented and belted out ballads like “Angel,” “Crazy,” “Cryin’” and, of course, “Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing,” better known as the theme from Armageddon (1998).

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'Red' Is Still Heartbroken, But Feistier

10/29/2012

Innocent as her appearance may be, Taylor Swift seems to stir up controversial feelings among music fans. She is often either loved or hated with passion, with very little room for in-between. Her third album, Speak Now, left some pretty big shoes for the just-released Red to fill, if the thousands of screaming preteens who filled stadiums during her last tour are any indication. With Red, Swift moves in a slightly different direction toward a more pop-dominated sound. Many of her songs still have a country sound to them, but they are far from the majority of the album.

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Muse Takes 'The 2nd Law' Of Entropy Too Literally

10/09/2012

Bursting through your speakers with a pulsating sonic boom, Muse’s sixth outing, The 2nd Law, emerges back into the fray with a demanding and overly ambitious album filled with a sound that both frustrates and satisfies. Dedicated to the second law of thermodynamics (entropy), Muse weaves in and out with plenty of prog-rock rhythms and synth-breaks that may overwhelm the untrained listener. Of course, Muse fans will be right at home here as The 2nd Law continues to deliver the stadium-filling sound they’ve come to be known for, albeit with more of a pseudo-electronic vibe than their previous efforts.

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CelebSelect

Danielle Panabaker's Top Pop Picks
- Favorite Band: The Avett Brothers
  
  "I'm really into the Avett Brothers as of late."
- Favorite Book: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  
  "My girlfriends are I - we are very nerdy. We started a book club and the first book we read was Gone Girl."
- Favorite New Movie: Silver Linings Playbook
  
  "I thought it was a great film and I thought Jennifer Lawrence was incredible, you know those angry tears, I've certainly experienced that."
Paul Van Dyk: Current Favorites
- School of the Seven Bells
  
  The New York-based band unites Benjamin Curtis of "Secret Machines" and Alejandra Deheza. Formed in 2007, the duo is named after a mythical South American pickpocket training academy of the same name.
- Linkin Park
  
  The Californian rock veterans have come a long way since 'Hybrid Theory.' Back now with their fifth studio album in over a decade, 'Living Things' is one of Paul Van Dyck's favorite albums this year.
- Jupiter Jones
  
  The German punk rock band formed in 2002, but has already released several LPs, including an eponymously-named album in 2011.
- Depeche Mode
  
  The legendary Essex electronic band from the 80s remains a classic for Van Dyk. It was also recently among 'Q' magazine's "50 Bands That Changed The World!".
Cody Simpson
- Favorite Movie
  I'm still really into the Ocean's series. I got into them recently. I was always too young to watch them.
- Favorite Book
  This book called Contest by Matthew Reilly, he's an Australian author.
- Favorite Album
  Drake's Take Care — big fan of that
- Favorite TV Show
  The Mentalist
Styx's Lawrence Gowan
- Bossypants by Tina Fey
  
  "That’s got me laughing hysterically on airplanes."
- Making Mirrors by Goyte
  
  "I thought that was a tremendous record."
- The Artist
  
  "It really impressed me."
- Keane
  
  "They’re really strong."
90210's Michael Steger: My Favorite Stuff
- Favorite TV Show: Rome
  
  HBO's series starring Cirian Hinds
- Favorite Album: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
  
  "Either that or The Gypsy Kings."
- Favorite Book: The Fountainhead
  
  "Probably my favorite book of all time."
- Favorite New Movie: Attack The Block
  
  “It reminded me of The Goonies.”