John Mayer vs. Van Halen
Posted on August 5th, 2008 by Michael
I’ll be damned if he doesn’t look like he’s having a blast doing his best bedroom Eddie Van Halen even though he’s in front of a crowd of thousands.
Midnight Madness
Posted on August 1st, 2008 by siart
Check out this video: Midnight Madness
Midnight Madness
The Chemical Brothers deliver yet another entertaining video, this time for the new track Midnight Madness.
LEGO ® Covers!
Posted on July 30th, 2008 by Michael
It seems almost everything is better in LEGO and clearly the folks at The Toy Zone agree as they’ve taken on 20 album covers and given them the treatment. Here’s a few of my favorites:
Born In The U.S.A.
Nevermind
A Hard Day’s Night
You can check out the rest of the collection here.
Christmas in September
Posted on July 30th, 2008 by ThePlumber
I’ve been listening to Ray LaMontagne since his debut album Trouble in 2004 and than his sophomore follow-up Till the Sun Turns Black in 2006. And now I’m like a kid on Christmas eve eagerly waiting to open his presents. Ray’s third album is due out September 30th, “Gossip in the Grain”, which is currently available for pre-order. If you likes the like of Damian Rice or David Gray than you’ll love Ray’s raspy voice and soulful music. Artists like him are a rarity and I’m sure glad his music has found my way.
Ray LaMontagne - Empty
Barack Obama’s iPod
Posted on July 27th, 2008 by siart
I am an American who gets to vote for a president this year and I am a Barack Obama supporter. I am excited about his potential. I am excited about the kind of positivity he engenders. Even though a lot of it is just empty catch-phraseology for now (change/hope/etc..), I feel like he might be able to inspire change in others. I am excited about the possibility of a President who is an eloquent speaker, who can articulate ideas, and who doesn’t make me cringe every time he opens his mouth. I am excited about the possibility of having this country’s international reputation restored from it’s current state of disgrace.
But none of that is what this is really about. Today I am interested in what is on Barack Obama’s iPod. As a music junkie I am always interested in what other people listen to. Thanks to Rolling Stone I now know the man’s music taste a bit better. During an interview with Jann Wenner several music names pop up - The Grateful Dead, whose members have played benefits for him and Bruce Springsteen, who has endorsed him. He says “a lot of Seventies rhythm & blues and pop were staples for me: Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind and Fire, Elton John, Rolling Stones.” He picks out Stevie Wonder for special recognition and mentions Dylan, Coltrane, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Howlin’ Wolf, Yo-Yo Ma, Sheryl Crow & Jay-Z. It is not a bad list but is is not that terribly exciting either. It is safe and not very edgy - what?! No Devo!? - and kinds of puts him in the middle of the road. Which is kind of where he is in the current political spectrum too. Go figure.
Is That All There Is to a Disco?
Posted on July 27th, 2008 by KSkittles
A few months ago, I received a promotional copy of Going Places - The August Darnell Years: 1974-1983, a career retrospective of August Darnell, aka Kid Creole. On that compilation was the Cristina track, “Is That All There Is?” It is a re-working of the Leiber and Stoller-written song, with some new lyrics that irritated the pair enough for them to demand the single be withdrawn when it was first released. I was immediately smitten and sought out anything I could find of Cristina’s. Luckily, I didn’t have to look far, because Ze Records, her original label, had re-issued her two albums, Doll in the Box (aka Cristina) and Sleep It Off, including some b-sides and unreleased tracks. I have listened to these two albums quite heavily this year and Cristina has become another one of those artists that I wish I’d have known about a long time ago.
So, who is this Cristina? Here are a few quick facts:
- She is the daughter of a French psychoanalyst an American writer.
- She dropped out of Harvard.
- She used to be a theatre writer for The Village Voice, where she met her future husband and Ze Records co-founder, Michael Zilkha.
Her first album, Cristina, which has been re-released as Doll in the Box, included Ze Records’ first single, “Disco Clone.” The track actually preceded the album and featured Kevin Kline (yes, that Kevin Kline) as the disco-goer trying to seduce Cristina. The track’s moderate success inspired Ze to put out a full album of Cristina’s work. That album was produced by August Darnell and mixes Latin beats with disco and features some humorous lyrics. It’s definitely NOT your normal disco record (actually…Cristina’s stuff is usually considered “No Wave”).
For her second album, Sleep It Off, Cristina paired up with producer Don Was (of Was Not Was) and the result was a more punk-ish album, full of biting lyrics and a more “rock” sound. Personally, I think this is her best work and if it were released fresh today, would probably be a huge hit. For the re-release, several non-album tracks were added, including Cristina’s stab at a Christmas song, “Things Fall Apart,” and a really interesting cover of Prince’s “When U Were Mine.”
In a perfect world, Cristina would still be making music, or at the very least, would do a tour (I’m thinking…club tour). But, that’s not likely to happen. So, instead, I’ll just crank up her albums and pretend. I urge you to purchase her stuff (I got mine from emusic) and take a listen for yourself. Here’s a small sampling of what you’ll get:
Cristina - Is That All There Is? (from Doll in the Box)
Cristina - Disco Clone (from Doll in the Box)
Cristina - Don’t Mutilate My Mink (from Sleep It Off)
Cristina - What’s a Girl to Do (from Sleep It Off)
New Pretenders
Posted on July 24th, 2008 by siart
I love Chrissie Hynde. She is the quintessential tough broad rocker. Her long standing band The Pretenders are releasing a new album on September 23rd. Called “Break Up the Concrete”, it is a new configuration of the band. She recorded “Break Up the Concrete” in 10 days with a band consisting of guitarists James Walbourne and Eric Heywood and drummer Jim Keltner, as well as bassist Nick Wilkinson from the last incarnation of The Pretenders. To promote it they are giving away a new mp3 every week via a variety of sources including QuickTime, ClearChannel.com, CMT.com, iLike, iMeem, MP3.com, VH1 Classic, Yahoo!, CBS Radio and MSN Windows Media. This week’s track is “Boots Of Chinese Plastic”, and is available from Spinner. Check The Pretenders website for details of forthcoming mp3s. Yay! Free music from bands you love!
Allman Brothers Hittin’ the Road…
Posted on July 23rd, 2008 by Michael
It would appear that Greg Allman has weathered his Hepatitis C storm and the tour is on!
August 2008
12 - Bethel, NY - Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
13 - Wantagh, NJ - Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
15 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center
16 - Mansfield, MA - Tweeter Center
19 - Saratoga Springs, NY - SPAC
20 - Hartford, CT - New England Dodge Music Center
22 - Canandaigua, NY - Constellation Brands Marvin Sands PAC
23 - Camden, NJ - Susquehanna Bank Center
25 - Hershey, PA - Hershey Star Pavilion
27 - Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre
28 - Chicago, IL - Charter One Pavilion
30 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks
September 2008
26 - Fayetteville, AR - Bikes, Blues & BBQ
27 - Robinsonville, MS - Horseshoe Casino
30 - Columbia, MD - Merriweather Post Pavilion
October 2008
7 - Birmingham, AL - Verizon Wireless Music Center
8 - Orange Beach, AL - The Amphitheater at the Wharf
10, 11 - Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheater
Rush r n00bz!!1!
Posted on July 23rd, 2008 by Michael
I should mention here that I do not condone the usage of “L33T SPEAK” and have failed miserably any time that I’ve attempted to play Guitar Hero or Rock Band.
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