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rock nyc

rock nyc's Top 10 Tracks, Week Of August 25th, 2012

The new Dylan is awesome and will end up in my top 20 2012 almost for sure, Mr. Vegas channels the late lamented Gregory Isaacs, it is hard to imagine a sweet sounding man. Spider Bags (still the album of the year), is on its way off the chart and Taylor will probably hang another week.

rock nyc

Singles Going Steady: Week Of August 25th, 2012

Havoc And Bright Lights – Alanis Morissette – Not quite as bad as the name implies, but pretty terrible. The first two songs are mediocre Alanis, but after that it is a dreary mess, proving how band love and marriage can be for your artistic juices. This slow, draggy, album is in serious need of an editor and while it is not always her worse, it is her worse often enough. Ten years after Under Rug Swept, this is what is left Grade C-

rock nyc

Listen Up: 9-2-12

A Little Love (That’s All I Want From You) – Mr. Vegas – Off his absolutely terrific Sweet Jamaica album, this song didn’t come within a million miles of making an appearance at da Reggae,. More the pity, because this absolutely lovely melody would have saved the night. Who needs Mr. Energy when you have Mr. Melody? – Grade: A

rock nyc

Car Thumpin', Stereo Volume Debate

Over a quarter of jazz and blues listeners have been in accidents due to being “really into the music; getting swept up”. On the opposite end of the spectrum, those who put on Chopin or Bach or other classical virtuosos, are the least likely to have an issue.

rock nyc

Spotify Has Revealed The Most Played Songs Of The Summer

How is this possible? Why do the large majority of music listeners have such shitty tastes? Come on, how could they listen to that Gotye’s tune for the trillionth time? I heard these Flo Rida and Train’s songs for the first time when the bands appeared on TV, and they totally suck

rock nyc

Listen Up:9-1-12

A Little Love (That’s All I Want From You) – Mr. Vegas – Sweet Jamaica, is the name of this Lover’s Rock artist, and these rhythms swing so sweet and mellow it is hard to deny him. I wouldn’t why mainstream USA don’t cover him. Grade: B+

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Odd Future's Deplorable Misogynistic Performance At Leeds Festival

Sexism isn’t dead, men beat and kill wives and daughters and mothers, girlfriends. We kill each other as well, of course, but there is a terrible bullying brutality in our actions towards women. And Odd Future can get away with art for arts sake rapping, even if it’s stupid, but not this. This sucks and I am thoroughly ashamed of them.

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The Decemberists Guest The Simpsons

For those of you unfamiliar with the band I strongly suggest the introduction via the ‘Rake Song’. By far one of the best told musical stories. Melloy’s voice is outstanding and the overall mood sent over with such clarity that it will remain one of my all time favorite song.

rock nyc

Dr. Who Back On BBC America Saturday!!!!

The new season premiers on BBC America, tomorrow and every Saturday at 9pm and I swear I would cancel all my Saturday concerts for the season if it wasn’t for Video On Demand! With just about zero production values, Dr. Who is a world jumping, time traveling dream of a TV show.

rock nyc

US Top 10 Albums, September 8th, 2012

If Trey had to get a number one, this is the album to get it with and three of the top four albums are heavy hip hop affiliates. Tenth Avenue Noth is CCM (Christian rock band) and not the worst one, though still unpleasant.

rock nyc

Listen Up: 8-31-12

Kiss On My List – Hall And Oates – Back in the day I trashed Private Eyes in the Village Voice. What was I thinking of? This is as great as blue eyed soul ever gets and gave the boys a whole new world. And I know for sure Daryl was checking out Prince around this time because I saw him at the 1999 gig – Grade: A

rock nyc

Spotify, No Friend of Joe Average

I need variety and I don’t want some hack kids ‘’playlist’ or some ‘mood enhanced’ song scroll. I want to turn the thing on and I want a genre non stop til I tell it otherwise. I need radio.

rock nyc

The Many Music Fairs And Festivals Happening Around Los Angeles

With the FYF fest just announcing its set times for the two-day music celebration this weekend, I was thinking that Los Angeles (and its region, Orange County included) has a hella number of music festivals, this is quite incredible. Mammoth-size festivals or neighborhood-size street fairs, from April to October, festivals abound around me. I have tried to make a list of them:

rock nyc

Rolling Stones In The Studio?

I wouldn’t put too much faith in that occurring. Where’s the tour? Where’s the videos? Where are the guest spots? So far all we have gotten is gossip and a coffee table book.

rock nyc

Colony On Broadway And West 49th To Close

The world just dies on us, it disappears and there is nothing that can bring it back. I remember when the Ramones played the Village a coupla days a week for years on end, and that ended. And now the Colony, a New York institution for decade after decade is going as well. Oh well, I am sure we will get a wonderful Chase Bank vestibule in its place.

rock nyc

Bob Dylan's "Duquesne Whistle" Reviewed

Bob Dylan claimed that he original planned to make Tempest an album more religious, but found the single theme concept album too constricting. But the ghost of the idea lies in “Duquesne Whistle”, another traveling song with a twist

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Jay-Z's Made In America Line-Up Labor Day Weekend

. Long time readers may remember I was infamously expelled from the Boy Scouts for taking the train when I shouldda been hiking. Something of an overreaction if you ask me. Still, the pain lingers and my ideaof hell is being at the back of a crowd of 100,000 people seeing “Daughter”.

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Hands At Echo Park Rising, Saturday August 25th 2012

The music was extremely layered and filled with exotic rhythms and dance beats, at times borderline disco – one of their songs almost reminded me something borrowed from a Blondie track – with a few sprinkles of different things, dreamy and moody vocals, glittering synth, and lots of beats.

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Must See: Das Racist In September

I’ve thought of catching Das Racist a couple of times but the timing wasn’t right and when I heard they were playing Irving Plaza on September 29th, the timing wasn’t right either. I am seeing Corin Tucker at Mercury Lounge that night. But, catch this, Corin is a 730p early showm and with two opening acts, Das Racist will probably hit the stage at tenish..

rock nyc

Justin Bieber On The Simpsons

‘Swaggy’, thats the word of the day! The episode titled ‘The Fabulous Faker Boy’ has Beiber as a contestant in a talent show- and not making the cut. A bit of pop star self depreciation. I gotta say though, Beiber has lost his standing joke status

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Listen Up: 7-30-12

Guardian – Alanis Morrisette – It’s been a long long time since Alanis blew us all away with “Hands Clean”, and this, while standard issue good as opposed to painful Alanis (though the chorus gets kinda close to please stop now level), isn’t gonna change the perception. Still, it is nice to heard such devotion from the girl, and it should play well on stage – Grade: B

rock nyc

Claire's Diary "Girl Next Door" Reviewed

Simplicity is a gift, and Claire’s Diary is simple but in a complicated way. Adding a guy to the mix ups the sexual complexity clearly mooted in the proto-teen CBOH, and channeling Kathleen Hanna raises the specter of girl power all the way to feminism

rock nyc

Hip Hop 2012 For Dummies

When was the last time you heard of Freddie Gibb, let alone Public Enemy? PE’s latest album, though a masterpiece of sorts that improves with listening, was roundly ignored in a baffling act of cultural ignorance. Modern hip hop is a mess where people are so desperate they rave about Rick Ross. It is a machine, but some of the parts are faulty.

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