Physical Media & Album Reviews
Fans have paid artists $1.62 billion using Bandcamp.
On select Fridays throughout the year, Bandcamp waives its share of sales for 24 hours, giving fans an opportunity to support the artist they love more directly.
Here are some of my recommendations for vinyl, CD and cassettes:
Warren Zevon‘s 1978 album Excitable Boy stands as a pinnacle of his sardonic songwriting, blending rock vigor with dark humor that skewers societal absurdities. Produced by Jackson Browne and Waddy Wachtel, this nine-track gem solidified Zevon’s reputation as a masterful storyteller, following his self-titled debut. It feels like a compact greatest hits collection, with no filler tracks to drag it down.
Crash Test Dummies‘ 1993 sophomore album, God Shuffled His Feet, remains a quirky gem in the alternative rock landscape, blending philosophical musings with folk-infused melodies and Brad Roberts‘ unmistakable baritone voice. Following their debut, the Canadian band catapulted to fame with this release, largely thanks to the inescapable hit “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm,” a humming enigma about childhood traumas that topped charts worldwide. The title track opens with a spoken-word intro pondering divine creation, setting a tone of existential whimsy that permeates the record.
Continue reading “God Shuffled His Feet by Crash Test Dummies”
Released on October 2, 1984, Knights of the New Thunder is the second studio album from Norwegian heavy metal band TNT, and it’s a pivotal one. This record introduced American vocalist Tony Harnell, whose soaring, high-pitched screams injected fresh energy into the band, replacing original singer Dag Ingebrigtsen. Recorded at Nidaros Studios in Trondheim and produced by Bjørn Nessjø, the album clocks in as TNT‘s last foray into pure heavy metal before veering toward glam rock commercialism in later works like Tell No Tales.
Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield is famous for his viral, modified cover of David Bowie‘s “Space Oddity,” which he performed and filmed on the International Space Station (ISS). Released on May 12, 2013, the video has garnered over 55 million views (as of February 2025) and is considered one of the coolest covers ever.
Beyond the viral hit, Hadfield‘s time during Expedition 35 made him an important figure in music history.
In October 2015, Hadfield released “Space Sessions: Songs from a Tin Can,” an album consisting of songs he had recorded aboard the ISS using a Larrivée Parlor guitar. This became the first album ever recorded in space.
During his free time, he recorded several other notable songs:
“Jewel in the Night,” the first song recorded in space, was released on YouTube on Christmas Eve, 2012.
He collaborated with Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies for “Is Somebody Singing?” (I.S.S.), which premiered on CBC Radio in February 2013.
In addition to his musical feats, Hadfield is recognized as the first Canadian to walk in space.
