Little Sister – Queens Of The Stone Age – I couldn’t take their last album but this one from 2005 is a doozy at least until they go riff mental… their glam instincts would work for em if they left it… nice bridge – B+
I did this painting on black canvas. Only special peeps get to the black canvas. I also used fluorescents to help dignify his intensity. I put his name in green like those old scary movies ads of the 50’s…as if he is “The Blob” and coming for your children. As Lenny once said, “I’m sorry I haven’t been funny. I am not a comedian. I am Lenny Bruce.”
‘This is a free, all ages event. Registration does not guarantee entry. Entry is available for the first 10,000 registrants on a first-come, first-served basis. Please arrive at 10:00am to secure your place in the Largest human peace sign! On-site registration and peace sign placement will close promptly at 12:00pm. The aerial photograph capturing this historic event will take place at 12:30pm.’
Of the big ones I am not impressed with, put Keith Richards at the top of the list and then add Chris Cornell, Mac Miller, Metric, The Front Bottoms who are emerging into one of the biggest disappointments, then moved to the maybes with Lana Del Rey, Motion City Soundtrack, Mercury Rev, Robert Forster, David Gilmour and Lucero. Finally, the battle for most intimating, intimate, and anticipated album of next week… no not Robert Delong or Darlene Love but RUDIMENTAL!!! If only because it includes one of Bobby Womack’s last vocals. And not only because of that either.
True Blue – Madonna – Has doo wop ever sounded better. Just a straight up, 50sish perfect pop tune that everybody loves and if they don’t they miss the pop music gene in their soul… she is playing it on this tour!!! – A+
‘People ask: ‘These are your friends, right? This is a funny thing? I’m like, ‘I’ve never met these guys. I don’t know what they sound like.’ They asked me to play guitar with them on David Letterman a couple of months ago and I said no. But I guess somewhere in between that time and now they decided that they didn’t like me actually and yeah, if they have a problem, then that’s fine. Not everyone’s going to like my music. That’s fine.’…
Trent Gardner and Wayne Gardner, formed the band in 1985 and, much like their namesake Ferdinand Magellan have been navigating historic lesson songs with consistently prog-rocky effect till February 2014 when guitarist Wayne killed himself.That left brother Trent, who did everything else, to soldier on alone.
I only have to hear that Pitchfork and Consequence Of Sound like a song for me to doubt my own instincts. And absolutely, for me, popularity improves a sound. Lorde’s “Royal” is a perfect example where I dismissed it and dismissed it and though it took a live performance to turn me all the way around, its success was what had me wondering.
“A group of ten patrol officers on the nightwatch conducts end-of-shift get-togethers they euphemistically call “choir practices” (possibly to hide their true nature from superiors but actually a sardonic reference). These “choir practices” almost always involve heavy drinking, complaints about their superior officers, and war stories (and, occasionally, group sex with a pair of lusty, overweight barmaids). They hold the choir practices in MacArthur Park because it is in another division’s territory and “one does not shit in one’s own nest.”
Still waiting for its official release, this is a Stonesy meets punk workout with a great groove and a Stiv Bators via Mike Hudson (who is indeed the lead singer) vocal, all snarl and drugs, Richard Duguay’s guitar is fluid and fast and first rate. If Hollywood High was art rock by other means, “Hopped Up” is 70s punk by professional hit men – A
In which Kurt expands his horizon into MOR old school rock, with a piano motif up close and personal, and I hated it yesterday but I think I missed it because I was expecting something completely different. This is a beautiful and strange rhythmic hook, it is like there are two beats and one falls off and discombobulates the song and neither rests with the drums- B+
Miguel on Fallon wins, though Run The Jewels TV On The Radio come close… I wouldn’t mind catching Leona Lewis on Ellen.
They didn’t talk much, Josh was visibly touched by the loving demonstrations of the enthusiastic crowd, but he shouldn’t have, as only the most die-hard fans had probably managed to get a ticket. In any case, the time was for music and not talking, and they played the show with a formidable energy while dispatching their songs as if they were rockets sent to the moon. The band kept us on the edge of a hard rock cliff, showing us once again they are one of the greatest rock bands alive.
Six years ago I reviewed every single Dylan album, decade by decade. Why? Same reasons as ever I had room to fill. Here is my look back at Dylan in the 1990s. I haven’t read this in years and years -wonder if it is any good. I do believe I’ve improved of the years. But as a fan recently mentioned, I shouldn’t be allowed to write about music
went to see Michael Jackson with a girl named Christina at MSG the night before (with Whitney Houston! and Marlon Brando!) and we’d been out all night (Id taken the next day off work), we were at a bar in Queens when we saw it on the news, I took the last running train back to the city as my niece Louba was at work and I wanted to get her home safely… crossing 5th ave I watched WTC topple. Picked up Louba and no way out of the city we went on a pub crawl…
Listening to A Ha while deciding on a grade, I had chosen a “C” and was ready to move on when my PC froze but the album kept playing, and the last time I’ve hated a song I couldn’t get rid of was when I was riding a very busy subway and couldn’t get my hands to my IPOD to stop a Smashing Pumpkin’s album for twenty minutes. Truly cast in steel from hell.
Here is a funny quote for you pop pickers, Sigala on writing “Easy Love”: “This is so amazing. I had no idea this would ever be a Number 1 record. I wrote this song in my bedroom on a Sunday evening after a couple of beers. I had no idea it would go to the top of the charts!” In case you haven’t heard the song, the reason it is so funny is because the song is a pretty straightforward remix of “ABC”. It’s like adding drums to “A Hard Rains Gonna fall” and claiming you wrote it in a quiet hour at home.
The Old College Try – Garfunkel And Oates – This is a very good and very funny song about a girl in college experimenting in lesbianism and finding cunnilingus the point of thanks but yuck. “When I looked a vagina in the eye I beat an ungrateful but hasty retreat… funny stuff – B+
I don’t know what’s going on in his world but he may be under the influence of many different things because he can’t stop saying the strangest things. His latest? He declared to the Mirror that his daughters Theodora, 30, and Alexandra, 28 should snort his ashes: I’ll give them a straw,’ he said.
If there is nothing as great as “Honolulu Blues” it is much much better than the last Hold Steady album. Craig is like Snoop Dogg, his voice is so distinctive that when the song isn’t rock solid, the voice overwhelms it. This is better than his last solo album. a tremendous run of great songs from one end to the other and what it misses in the top rung, it makes up for in the middle – ALBUM OF THE WEEK – A-
Last night, Queens of the Stone Age played a ‘secret’ show, announced at the last minute at the Teragram ballroom, a tiny place for them. I got the chance to get a ticket,and they were fantastic as usual, but being in the front, at Josh Homme’s feet is really a treat… And now I have all these ridiculously good pictures of these guitar gods! The last true rock stars….
For one thing, if Miley Cyrus is pornographic, what on earth was Prince in 1979? And for another to claim the tragedy in Syria has ANYTHING AT ALL TO DO WITH, with discussing Chrissie’s statements regarding rape is pure asinine. If that is the case, why discussing anything? Why talk about music when a five year old child just died?
It used to be that at least in New York City, everything you wanted to see sold out instantaneously, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. U2, Taylor Swift, Madonna, even The Weeknd, is not entirely sold out (The Weeknd has tickets available at Prudential and loads more in the secondary market).
Remember Sha Na Na? Sure you do, the old school rock and roll cover band who gave a spark of continuity to the Woodstock generation back in 1968. Dennis Greene was the black guy and a real talent, who appeared with the band in both Grease and Happy Days, before turning his back on the biz and becoming a Professor of Law (Harvard Grad, no less). Sadly he died earlier this week at the age of 66.
You Make Me feel (Mighty Real) – Sylvester – The six minute twelve incher, not only does Sylvester’s voice simply soar, he also mutates a declaration of love till it is a declaration of dance, and presides over one of the greatest grooves ever recorded – A+
‘You can characterize our operating model as stubbornness and stupidity. We were too stubborn to quit,’ said National Audio Company President Steve Stepp.
And the most remarkable thing is that business is booming, they have produced more than 10 million tapes in 2014 and sales are up 20 percent this year.
Empire Of The Clouds – Iron Maiden – Mammoth end of the album juggernaut in two movements with a piano motif to open and close and a full throttle juggernaut of riffs right down the middle. Ambitious to a fault – B
she is missing a great deal of her best songs off the new one, no “Ghost Town”? Surely some mistake here. NO “JOAN OF ARC”???? Still, she performs next Wednesday at MSG and it should be a killer evening (Amy Schumer opens!)
It was 100ºF in the house, and I was melting in front of my phone, then, I almost went through and for some reasons Ticketmaster rejected my password?
Before we crow at the big 64, just remember, if you are really ahead of the pack, the band probably hasn’t broken yet! Also, it is kinda what we do, save you from being ahead of the pack by beating the world to it. Though perhaps apologies are in order.
If you are sick of the Oldies But Goldies segment look at it this way: if I was to repost one article a day till I’ve reposted every story I’ve written since 2009, it would take 56 year years. By which time I would be 114 years old . So shut your face
‘Many times, a record company will look the other way in a situation like this, as it serves as free publicity for their intellectual property,’ added Steiner. ‘Though, in this case, I believe that EMI does not want their song associated with someone like Kim Davis, or Mike Huckabee for that matter, and will most likely seek full damages for this incident.’
Knockin’ On Mine – Paul Westerberg – In retrospect, 12 Songs could stand as the final Replacements album, if anything it is even more professional than we were used to. This song is Paul at his best, the dodgy depressionalism getting burnt in the summer and wet in the rain – A
Apocalypse Now: My cousin Hala called me from Damascus to tell me the end of the world is nearing, with a sandstorm that has Egypt, Syria, Israel, and Lebanon. “The sky is red”, she told me. It is hard to believe they could hit Damascus with anything more but there you go.
“Make Room” is a non-profit organization that helps poor people pay their rent and with the current homeless problem in New York, it is even more worthwhile if anything. If the City or State really wanted to help the homeless, they’d give money directly to landlords to supplement rent for poor families. Just because you don’t see children on the street doesn’t mean there aren’t children on the street, they are just hidden from view.
Yes, great songs, terrific voice, beautiful guitars, lyrics: a long term artist with more than enough integrity and skill to last a lifetime. But lemme tell ya something, kids: I want more solos (I wouldn’t mind an instrumental album) and I want many more people to listen.
On stage, five women covered with pastel-colored veils were sort of entering in a yoga transcendental meditation, reciting a new age-y discourse about opening our minds and receiving a waterfall, some esoteric stuff they were taking very seriously,… like opening our feet into the earth to channel infinite love?… they were surrounded by flowers and I was wondering, when do they really start the show?
Really, Justin Bieber’s first number one, with 375,000 downloads, also entered the charts at # 1. Though I can’t quite hear it, it is a soft focused romantic ballad -one Selena Gomez, he cried while singing it, though quite how many times you can whine about a break up, I don’t know. A huge success for Bieber, after three years of relentlessly bad publicity, two huge hits in a row. Who said there are no second acts?
With Madonna’s 2015 tour starting tomorrow, here is a step back to her 2012 concert, which had me swearing to never see her again. I have changed my mind and am going on September 16th, for my sins, but I am very excited for it. I just think she is too much the pro to screw us over again… Here is my pan
I’ve read good things about this tour, if she plays it straight, plays the hits plus choice cuts off rebel heart, if she gets on stage at 9pm and performs 120 minutes of great dance pop, word of mouth will instantaneously sell out the tour. But if she gives us more of MDMA, art pop self flagellation and audience hatred, forget it
People think it is the end of warm weather and while that is certainly a part of the summer season, more important is children being away from school for two months . Look at two months this way: it is something like 0.25% of my life and 2% of a ten year olds. Translation, summer last forever for children but is a blip on ours and since many of us (me) are working stiffs, we more observe than participate in summer. But we observe well.
This story became even fuzzier 2 days ago, when the rapper revealed a bit too much on Instagram, by posting a vine with the text: ‘My crib is almost finished in AFRICA. I’m gonna have the craziest House warming party ever. I’ll explain later. I got a good life Man.’
Crowd surfing has become so common these days, at least where I live, in Los Angeles, people do it all the time, even when the music is not punk, they do it at any occasion as it seems to be part of the Southern California culture, a way for kids to express themselves, to have fun while taking some risks
This is a perfect day for this day of the year, not an ending day but an instant nostalgia, a day where everything comes to a close and while it doesn’t aspire to death, it does aspire to an aching nostalgia. Morrison captures it perfectly, “when summer’s gone, where will we be?” The freest, warmest, youngest and most fun season – A+
Wait, they had already this audio version on Youtube showing them in a Star Trek fantasy, but this time Homme and Jesse Hughes, aka Boots Electric, are playing their SNL’s version of Sprockets with black turtlenecks and intellectual glasses, which suit Homme very well I must say. Of course the joke is that this weird Krautrock-y German parody totally clashes with the music, a not-so-complex rocker that would require much more hip action.
Tom Brady’s ability to cover his tracks in deniability his telling Patriot employees to deflate footballs during games so they are easier for him to throw and the head of the NFL Roger Goodell’s pathetic attempts to mete out punishments that aren’t in the rulebooks ended with two laughingstocks saved through power and chronic indifference.
Career Opportunities – The Clash – A masterpiece of agitprop dead endism that heralded a world where people in the UK would never have a job in their entire life. Meanwhile, bus driver? ambulance man? Opening Letterbox. And it never ever knock – A+
the three neo soul albums, one in the second month of the season, and two as the season bows out, made a case for this being the summer where neo soul got important
The world is, and I am, sick of these second rate albums, and if respect for his work in the 80s and to a lesser extend the 90s, keeps me listening, it doesn’t keep me obsessing by any stretch of the language.
“No Closer To Heaven” is an album that will transcend The Wonder Years’ career and be an album that truly defines them, this album will be the one that separated them from their prior work.
