Douglas Martin does not recommend Male Bonding as an adhesive. In spite of being repeatedly referred to as such, Nothing Hurts (/2010/05/10/douglas-martins-dirty-shoes-male-bonding-gets-to-the-point-and-fast/)– Male Bonding’s forty-yard dash of a debut record– was not lo-fi. All the hallmarks were in place, though: the gnashing guitars, the skittering cymbals, the ear-piercing feedback. But those aspects were delivered with […]

Douglas Martin won’t sell you his Malkmus troll doll. If you have even a passing knowledge of indie-rock, the name Stephen Malkmus hardly needs an introduction. Some credit the Pavement frontman as the reason why the indie-rock sounds the way it does today. Some feel he’s single-handedly responsible for creating the entire genre. There are […]

Douglas Martin still likes all things Sarah. As we wander further into the 21st Century, “indie” is gradually becoming more of a lifestyle than a way of life, a simple aesthetic more than a breathing culture. And with that comes the influx and subsequent popularity of bland, inoffensive music made by small bands, aural window […]

Vote for Douglas Martin in your next straw poll. New Brigade is an incredibly visceral experience. It’s the sound your head makes after you’re bludgeoned repeatedly with a shovel. It’s the sound of Hüsker Dü getting mashed inside of an industrial-strength garbage compactor with Refused, Don Caballero, all the bands featured in the No New […]

Douglas Martin looks dapper in blue velvet. We’re quickly approaching the 2/3 mark of 2011, and Badlands is still my favorite record of the year. It’s a record marked with grimy, dingy overtones, one marked with an uncomfortable feeling of disquiet. Using the grit of analog tape to render the image of a lost black-and-white […]

Douglas Martin knows Jim Jones. The REAL Jim Jones. There’s this thing that a lot of obsessive music fans often do when thinking about bands and songs:  grapple with the concept of “authenticity”. When evaluating an artist’s work, we question whether it’s “genuine” or “honest,” or adding anything to the musical landscape. Some feel that […]

At this moment, Douglas Martin is reenacting the song “Homecoming.” After the wild artistic success of Shabazz Palaces’ Black Up— not to mention the signing of Shabazz friends and collaborators, Seattle space-rap / R&B duo THEESatisfaction– it’s hard to turn a skeptical eye at the idea of Sub Pop being a burgeoning destination for some […]

We obsessive music fans are quite the organized bunch sometimes. There’s a reason why too many dudes who really like music feel such a kinship to Rob Fleming and/or Gordon, and it’s not necessarily because most of them are failed record store clerks. Multiple times a year (and with even greater frequency when we’re staring […]

Douglas Martin knows nothing about your so-called Balco investigation. Just like the word “steroids” when determining the legacy of certain baseball players– or the video for “Piss on You“ when assessing the career of R. Kelly– it seems as though no write-up about John Maus can be completed (or even begun) without the mention of […]

Douglas Martin is thinking of you…and you…and you….but not you. A band’s breakup is a natural occurrence, even as commonplace as a band’s formation, but there was a particular feeling of sadness among fans of Mika Miko when the band decided to part ways. The beloved LA five-piece packed a whole lot of energy into […]