Author name: Iman Lababedi

Charts, Slideshow

10 Songs: Thursday, May 28th, 2015

Things Happen – Dawes – This is meant to be the introduction to a very very big album, and it might be and it might take a coupla spins to introduce itself in any real way, but an early listen shows a well played not very good song, a touch oversung – B-

Charts, Slideshow, US Top 10 Singles

US Top 10 Singles 6-6-15

The 385,000 units shifted of “Bad Blood” is pretty impressive though I personally am not so crazy about the Kendrick verse as the rest of the world. Plus, not my fave track on the album at the best of times though Taylor certainly keeps changing the plot on us, doesn’t she

Charts, Slideshow, US Top 10 Albums

US Top 10 Albums 6-6-15

I bet Twenty-One Pilots are opening up the bottles oc champers, whatever the downsize of the music biz in 2015 might be, the upside is everybody gets to have a # 1 album. This is the seventh by a new act, this year. Meanwhile, in the smaller share US, the Billboards award catapulted Taylor, Meghan and Ed. Finally, Bradley Gilbert has a song with featured singers Justin Moore and Thomas Rhett. Or as we like it to call it, a breesome.

Slideshow

Oldies But Goldies: The Who At MSG In 2012

Hours before I go to see the Who perform a Greatest Hits set, here is a 2012 viewing of Quadrophenia, and I am interested in how much difference three years makes. I enjoyed this show, but I saw it two more times before the year was over and it wore off me…

Be Here Now, Recorded, Slideshow

Be Here Now: New Album Reviews, May 26th, 2015

I wasn’t crazy about Rocky when I caught him at MSG, and “1 Train” had worn off, but this is a huge album in the middle of a very good year. “LSD” is the best song he has recorded, and the Rod Stewart, Miguel and Mark Ronson featured “Everyday” is a pop move that may well break pop, and the darker stuff features the likes of M.I.A. and Kanye West. At the least, acid is a lot more interesting than weed – ALBUM OF THE WEEK – A-

Charts, Slideshow

10 Songs: Tuesday, May 26th, 2015

The Bullfighter Dies – Morrissey – Moz, defender of those who can’t defend themselves, and bullpit for causes no one has the power to approach. It is a shame that he doesn’t have a better balance or better songs, this has neither. “Hurray hurray the bullfighter dies and nobody cries…” isn’t gonna cut it – B-

Movies, News, Slideshow

Brad Bird’s “Tomorrowland” Reviewed

None of it makes the slightest bit of sense, all of it is Disney pretty nonsense, the acting is bad, really really bad, three people wrote the script and if any of them can make sense of the story they chose not to share it. Why is the world gonna blow up in 58 days? Something to do with people not caring but why would that mean the… ah screw it, it isn’t worth the effort.

News, Slideshow

Adele For Las Vegas Residency?

There is a Las Vegas bidding war between the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, The Venetian and Caesars Palace, and is in line to ink a $40 million deal.Look, if Adele was willing to do an Arena tour the chances are excellent you could gross in the $150M level. But if she isn’t willing to play Arenas, where is the money?

News, Slideshow, That Was The Week That Was

That Was The Week That Was: May 18th, 2015

All endings is my ending, time is so inexorable, so relentless, so infinite but not for me, every change, every wedding, every death, every hope… I haven’t much watched David Letterman in many many years but if ever anyone seemed to be sick of having a Late Night TV show by the end of it, Letterman seemed sick of it. He was ready to leave. But his left is our left and the least sentimental television personality brings out the sentimental in me!

Slideshow

10 Songs: Monday, May 25th, 2015

Love 3 X – ZZ Ward – I saw Ward a coupla years ago at Beacon Theatre opening for Gary Clark t Beacon Theatre and wasn’t thrilled, indeed so unthrilled arrived late at another gig she was opening, but this is a major breakthrough. Bubblegum blues as catchy as you could hope for, saucy, sexy cool, crazy shit – A

News, Opinion, Slideshow

The Unbearable Lightness Of Pop Music

There is so much music out there that I feel if you could find all the good stuff the 2010s would be the equal of the 00s… but how do you find it? Overhere at rock nyc we try and save you time by telling you what to listen to (that’s also why we use grades so liberally, so you don’t even have to bother reading it). The next decade should be interesting at the very least…

Live, Slideshow

Oldies But Goldies: Ed Sheeran At Mercury Lounge In 2012!

With Ed off on his stadium tour, which reaches New York this week, I thought it might be worth remembering his set at Mercury Lounge three and a half years ago. Already a star in the UK, he hadn’t broken the US yet, hadn’t become best friends forever with Taylor Swift and hadn’t recorded the double album X. Though he was still thinking out loud… at the 200 capacity Mercury Lounge!!

Charts, Slideshow

10 Songs: Sunday, May 24th, 2015

LSD – A$AP Rocky – Here is where, well, actually, what the hell? This is rap? It sounds like indie rock on a 60s psyckick, the rap is minimal, just a verse, but the rest of it sounds like a dream of sex and power runs, this is a song of the year – A

Movies, News, Slideshow

“Pitch Perfect 2” Reviewed

The pitch is never really great and its total lack of believability means that the pleasures of the first movie, of real life, it felt real and possible, are blown to smithereens. I’d have had everybody grow up a year and let new recruits in and see what helps in the second year.

Live, Slideshow

Taylor Swift’s Concerts Are Too Short

“If this album hadn’t been so impactful to the fans, if they hadn’t gone out and broken so many records and made sure that I knew that this album was the most important one to them and the one they liked the most, I probably would have had to pull more old hits into the set.”

Live, Slideshow

Let’s Active: rock nyc Concert Picks Week Of May 25th, 2015

The Who never really recovered from Keith Moon’s death, and that’s true: it was a bigger disaster than you can even begin to imagine, despite Moon falling apart in the last few years. And the complaints about the 2013 tour? Not exactly unwarranted. But I end up with my Beethoven comparison… would you say “yeah, I don’t wanna see Ludwig, he’s too old and he’s deaf”? Neither would I. I’m going to Tuesday a Barclay Center. They’re also playing Saturday at Forest Hills.

Live, Slideshow

Oldies But Goldies: Jay Z Opens Barclay Center, September 2012

Back three years to opening night at the Barclay Center and the vibe around Jay Z’s performance is mammoth. I wish I was writing back in the “Fade To Black” reunion days… mow that was a concert. This one? It didn’t live up to the hype but what does, right? 2012, Hov was still a minority stock holder and Barclay Center was opening..

Charts, Slideshow

10 Songs: Friday, May 22nd, 2015

Serenade – Franz Schubert – No less than Franz Liszt dubbed Schubert our most poetic composer and really this melody echoes effortlessly through time, it is beyond gorgeous, and dating from 1826 he wasn’t yet 30 (and wouldn’t make it to 31), pop learnt how to compose melodies from this guy, hell Gershwin learnt off this guy – A+

Live, Slideshow

Governors Ball, Sunday, June 7th, 2015: Line Up With Set Times

If Saturday was all about leaving early, Sunday is all about arriving late/. The show doesn’t start proper till Sturgill Simpson at 3pm, and, if you wanna be difficult, skip him and arrive really late for A-TRAK, but once you reach there is a whole lotta tough choices. War On Drugs or weird Al? Noel Gallagher is a gimme, but Hot Chip or Flying Lotus or Lana Del Rey or the Black Keys?

Charts, Slideshow

10 Songs: Thursday, May 21st, 2015

The Kids Are Alright – The Who – There is a plaintiveness about this song, maybe more so now than 50 years ago, but the word kid reverberates and the sense of a scene in movement is also partly a scene closing down forever. “I don’t mind…” is suh a loaded line – A+

News, Slideshow

Robert Christgau: In The City

Which leads me to Christgau the rock critic, who once wrote of Costello “all wordplay as swordplay” –a phrase I still use. As is this one, which only I own since he said it in reference to a pan of Visage (more or less –I think I was a little ambivalent) I’d written for the Voice: “They aren’t invading Poland”…. A phrase I’ve used ever since whenever somebody is over reacting. And… MICK JAGGER SHOULD WRAP UP HIS PENIS AND GO HOME.

Charts, Slideshow, US Top 10 Albums

US Top 10 Albums: 5-30-15

Three albums in the top five are soundtracks and I bet more to come as the days roll by: ever since “Twilight” realized it could connect with the youngsters via indie bands, mainstream poppers have been circling the soundtrack compilation and now the eagle has landed. The result? While you might enjoy EDM pop moves on a single, or on a dance floor, one after another for 40 minutes? Not so much. Incubus? I’m a pass.

Live, Slideshow

Governors Ball Friday June 5th, 2015, Line Up With Set times

So here we go, sixteen days and the nyc festival of the year hits and I will take a closer look at each day. It sure seems to me, the big draw closers on Friday should be a repeat of Skrillex versus Jack White last year, Drake is going to have 75% of the attendants. Me? I haven’t seen MMJ since New Year’s Eve 2008 and I saw Drake twice last year…

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