Ella Henderson came in 6th in the 2012 UK X Factor contest, and so the eighteen year old went away for two years and returned with a new song that sold over 140,000 copies (in the UK, mind) and went straight to the top of the charts. That’s all I’m saying.
Keep It Gay – Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick – Uproariously funny celebration of all things camp and magical and, well, gray about the musical theater… stopped the show when I saw it on Broadway. Of course, so did everything else – B+
He truly displayed the versatility of the Texas Playboys during a stretch from 1935 to 1938, when the band recorded material influenced by blues, jazz, jug band, big band, pop, and country sources to make his uniquely rhythmic and upbeat brand of dance music
She gave a short but intense set, all alone with her electric guitar and multiple pedals, producing some ambient, experimental lugubrious reverb-tinted soundscapes inhabited by her breathy and vulnerable voice, and it was part eerie, part haunting.
“It went everywhere, all down his shirt and in his hair, he seriously went for for like a solid minute. It was feral. And yes he just went on like nothing happened afterwards, it was one of the funniest/strangest/most disgusting and confusing things I’ve ever seen in my life.”
May be that’s a new outlet for Greg Ginn’s new band, I heard that the tickets were not selling as fast as expected? So I don’t know if Mike Vallely will change his language but last time I saw him he was saying a lot of fuck… Definitively not good for the kids. And what does stripped down mean in this case?
It is, the word is, mediocre. The songs aren’t good enough, Jack’s voice grates by the end because there isn’t enough oomph to bring it all back home, and int he end, if you think Jack is an asshole any way, there is no reason to do much but dismiss it.
Let’s say Sarah ,the soprano who used to be married to Andrew Lloyd Webber, figures you can film it for a TV special, make an album, tour behind it, does she think she can make it back? I guess, maybe, I mean nothing in her life story gives you the impression she has those kinda numbers but still, maybe just possibly…?
Silly that ‘late night’ TV has become such a drag When you’re up late at night with insomnia you should be treated to new sounds and disturbing images not the same artists who appear in soda commercials. Unfortunately thats not the case at al
A huge week, the debut album by Big Freedia, a really great disco guy whose 2012 “Booty-Whop” and current “Explode” are just so much fun, Cerebral Balzy are a blast live, everything I’ve heard off Lana’s Ultra Violence has been first rate, and J Lo better come up with the goods, but the week belongs to soul brother # 1 Sam Smith’s eagerly anticipated debut album.
Toreador Song – Christopher Lee – Electric guitar riffs to introduce the Bizet thunder and lightning with Lee’s harsh, unprettified singing interrupted guitar solos, the main question being, why bother? At 91, Lee may very well be immortal – C
“This will be an intimate evening with Sir Cliff, music with Keith Hayman and Suzie Furlonger, and chat with Phil Silverstone, an ex-Londoner living in Philadelphia, a lifelong Cliff fan who hosts “Time Out with Phillip Silverstone” and “Cliff Notes” on tunein.com”
I have seen many incarnations of the Eels, and the one at the Orpheum on Wednesday night was a very lo-key, intimate and subtle one, with very quiet moments and people listening without making a noise, deeply submerged into Mark Oliver Everett’s son
So The Adams Family has released a new song and performed it on Conan June 11th. Luckily Gomez and Morticia stopped speaking in French long enough to get this twangy tune in the can. It seems Gomez is no longer able to shower and is boycotting the barber, Morticia has been sucking on helium so much it’s hard to recognize her voice any more.
Is Kanye West the new prophet? The new chosen one? The material is impressive, I had no idea Kanye’s insane verbal diarrhea could fit so well basically… with anything as long as it is scored by Jonny Greenwood’s ‘There will be Blood’,… or is it ‘the Master’? It’s so ironic
Squeeze was and will always be one of the most memorable bands of the 80s to this day I adore their work and find myself belting out random lyrics at the oddest times. Granted, this tour is not Squeeze but just the blonde guy but still- he was the pipes so you can be sure he’s throwing in some classics and that alone is reason to attend.
According to Billboard: “Tom Hiddleston will play country western singer Hank Williams in Marc Abraham’s “I Saw the Light,” which will chronicle the performer’s rise to fame and fame’s ultimately tragic effects.” Based on the Colin Escott 2004 biography, which has already been turned into a four hour PBS special
With the eagerly awaited big time rock concert for young Ringo and his All Stars at the Beacon Tuesday and Wednesday nights, I thought it might be worthwhile to take a closer at the setlist, a lot of Ringo (including two newbies), plus Rundgren and, ahem, Toto songs
Here comes summer, school is out on happy days and the wild world of music is coming your ways so… what are we looking forward to here? I didn’t care less about Jenny Lewis but after her terrific turn at Governors Ball, I am wondering if this will be a biggie for her. Sinead O’Connor –because, well, because she is an enormously consistent recording artist, and Spider Bags who released the best album of 2012
Three really good albums here: Colbie, Shinobi and the Shoe, plus jack White which, well I’m thinking of doing a full length review but for now, it has too many weak spots. I still prefer Colbie any way.
Crazy Little Thing called Love (Live At Wembley Stadium) – Queen – We could debate it but this straightforward Presleyish rocker is Freddie’s finest moment, just not this version where the extended end doesn’t work – B
He isn’t cute. There is something off center about him as a performer, a sort of nolle prosequi which was at the heart of both punk and No Wave: he doesn’t play nice. This saves him some headaches, among them the question of aging and it gives stuff like “Design To Kill” an entirely timeless quality: it exists in its aggression.
They would change to what is called the Lightning connector, or port, and with Beats, they would make special headphones that would be Apple-only. They’re creating a more and more exclusive market this way.
Maybe we don’t have Gerard the deep thinking mastermind terminal, but we do have “Action Cats this glorious slab of power pop, a wall of fuzzy guitar, it’s like the the Cure circa “Mint Car” without Smith’s thick voice, –yes, THAT GOOD!!! If the rest of the album can maintain this sugar and spice, Gerard is back on parade again.
It feels nostalgic and energetic, the “do you miss me? cos i miss you” tugging on our hearts the way he knows he can. He seems happy and silly and the Gerard I know I’ve sure missed.
She appears on stage like a gracious and thin statuesque figure, quite dignified and she sang with a soulful and velvet voice,… I read that she interestingly describes her music as ‘a cross between Mary Poppins and Coldplay’, whatever this means, but I didn’t get the Coldplay vibe nor the Mary Poppins side, and I don’t think she was making allusion to her full-clothing
I saw A-Trak a couple of weeks ago at T5 and was very impressed so it was even more of a reason to catch Chromeo next time they play locally but there is more… THEY ARE PLAYING SUMMERSTAGE!!! Under the stars at Central Park for a modified rave? You gotta think that is gonna be a blast.
Youtube is a good way to take a peek at the numbers but too time consuming so in our ongoing attempts to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony, here is the chart that dares to ask the musical question…How many streams did you get buddy?
I’d read she was a celebrity actress (the cult fave “Donnie Darko” and “The Hunger Games”) but I didn’t quite know who she was until I saw the video below and then I thought, hey, she reminds me of someone. Jena reminds me of herself of course.
Life repeats itself three times, first as tragedy, second as rap music and third as farce. Ice T has been on the third revolution for a long long time and any idea that the former Tracey Marrow is still using memory recall from his gangbanging, drug selling (not to mention stint in the army) days has to be taken with a huge huge dose of reality TV
Bill Bruisers – The New Pornographers – This is a nicely bruising pop rocker with vocal hooks on top of vocal hooks from a band who have been around forever but for whom I’ve never had all that much time, by this one they got right – B+
Perry has not sung with Journey since 1991, and Mark said he hadn’t performed in Los Angeles for 20 years! Nevertheless, his voice is still great, and although he said he was a bit out of breath after singing ‘Lights’, he can still totally hold the high notes in a very amazing way.
As she was wearing a long black skirt and a black top with a white collar, she might have looked like a sage schoolgirl entering catholic school had it not been for for her totally-Margot-Tenebaum dark eyeliner… And knowing that Mr Little Jeans is a name of a minor and humble character (the janitor) in Wes Anderson’s ‘Rushmore’, this makes complete sense
They kept their classic pop punk sound, and their noise rock quality. It really sounds like old FYS, and I’m so happy they didn’t change direction. It’s fast and intense and a lot to take in but definitely pumps you up.
‘Where does it come from bro? And what’s fueling it ok? In [1989] it was used sparingly in small circles, now it’s mainstream. Why? … You saying black folk pinned it on themselves out of nowhere dude?’
He could be catchy and clever at times, but his calling card was restraint, not emotion. He didn’t make me laugh or cry or belt out a chorus – at best, he just didn’t make me lunge to change the station when his latest hit was played.
It seems to me, Brian Wilson’s decision to make a new album featuring the likes of Zooey Deschanel, Lana Del Rey, Frank Ocean and Kacey Musgraves is a great one… and except for Zooey all these names excite. Especially Frank Ocean, the only name here with real production chops that might work well in tandem with Wilson.
I loved the original for such a long time, but that was only because it was all I knew. They not only completely revamped the tune and made it a thousand times better, but it’s more complex and still feels raw, just more like the musicians are experienced.
It seems incredible that after his disastrous 2012 tour, which also ended with cancellations aplenty, Moz got insurance for the 2014 jaunt and also, even more remarkable, that he did so without a check up which found him capable of catching a virus from Kristeen so virulent he had to cancel the midtour.
Yeah, yeah the stroppy Aussie kid is full of herself and I don’t doubt she has the song of the summer here, and I don’t doubt it won’t be Sam Smith because Smith is too downbeat, but I am real happy he has hit the top 10 because when you’ve spent as many posts trumpeting Smith as the next big UK soul sensation I’d feel like a total twit if he wasn’t.
Better Led Zep’s first three albums than all those damn Bro boys, right? And much better Miranda Lambert, who, should stop dressing like Bozo if Bozo was a honky tonk hooker, than any Bro including Eric Church. Between the four of em you’ve got a solid album charts for a change.
Rollercoaster – Bleachers – This indie pop track from the fun. Composer is so good I am kicking myself for not getting to Governors Ball early and checking him out; it doesn’t go up and down precisely, it kinda builds to the chorus which is anthemic in a not un-fun. Way and subsides, so more like waves. Still damn good – A-
The result was quite minimalist, Amelia’s vocals were always front, but everyone was cheering at each of her moves,… I was taking tons of pictures and they came up all great. ‘Wait! Small adjustment’, she said while they had to move their equipment away from the sun, visibly ‘not used to direct sunlight’ and ‘designed for pale people in a basement’ as Nick Sanborn notice.
‘For me, the issue of feminism is just not an interesting concept. . . Whenever people bring up feminism, I’m like, god. I’m just not really that interested. I’m more interested in, you know, SpaceX and Tesla, what’s going to happen with our intergalactic possibilities.’
I wear tee shirts all the time but I only get stopped when I wear either Stevie Wonder or Titus Andronicus. And with Titus only two sorts of people stop me. 1. Shakespeare fans. 2. New Jersey denizens.
Looking at these stars, you wonder how much Strait is responsible for the fitful state of modern country (though I remain decrying what now feels like a golden age, the mid-1980s). George played for three hours plus and here is the setlist, read it and weep
As they tend to do in the UK, they had started a Facebook page to get everybody to buy “Noble England” and get it into the charts thereby supporting the World Cup (which England doesn’t stand a chance in hell of winning) and Rik, which, after word got out of his death, has caused 500 girls to kill themselves.
Why am I telling you this? Because I am inviting you to listen to Monty Python’s Unofficial World Cup Anthem. We only get one new verse on this “Always Look At The Bright Side Of Life” but it a cracker.
Live It Up – Spoon – A heavy blues from the semi-popular indie band; not my scene, it is neither beaty nor meaty enough but it has a uniqueness to it: it sounds like nothing else only not quite as good – B
“It is with great sadness that the remainder of the US Tour has been cancelled. The respiratory infection Morrissey contracted in Miami has worsened, and in the interest of making a full recovery, all further touring plans have been halted”
