Stories | Of Note
Stanton Moore
Published May 7, 2008
New Orleans drummer Stanton Moore’s jazz has more to do with the rowdiness of rock than with free-form intellectual explorations of melody. That’s not to say that Moore is a failed rocker turned jazzman or vice ...
Kathleen Edwards
Published May 7, 2008
There’s a song called “Oil Man’s War” on Canadian alt-country singer-songwriter Kathleen Edwards’s new album Asking for Flowers, but it’s not about you-know-who or you-know-where. No, it’s the story of a young American couple, Bobby ...
Po' Girl
Published April 30, 2008
When I tell Allison Russell that I think her band Po’ Girl has a slightly sloppy feel to it, I am instantly sorry for not having chosen a better adjective. “We’re much more driven by ...
Mike Doughty Published April 30, 2008
“I went to school with 27 Jennifers/ 16 Jenns, 10 Jennies, and then there was her,” sings Mike Doughty in the song “27 Jennifers” from ... More Post a comment
Victor Wooten Published April 23, 2008
It was legendary Motown bassist James Jamerson who proved that the electric bass guitar needn’t simply follow along with the drums in a generic fortification ... More Post a comment
The Breeders Published April 23, 2008
In loudQUIETloud, a film about the Pixies’ 2004 reunion tour, you get to see one of the most influential bands of all time play your ... More Post a comment
Mark Mallman Published April 16, 2008
Minneapolis madman Mark Mallman was in between songs at a 2006 show when his guitarist started fiddling around with a riff from “When Doves Cry.” ... More Post a comment
Dengue Fever Published April 16, 2008
It wasn’t enough that the Los Angeles band Dengue Fever took ’60s Cambodian pop as their main architecture. They had the random good fortune to ... More Post a comment
New Monsoon Published April 9, 2008
New Monsoon came with so much of rock’s past in their sound and performed with such accuracy that at first listen I thought they might ... More Post a comment
Scout Niblett Published April 9, 2008
If you look at the photos on Scout Niblett’s website, you might not think that all of them picture the same person. In one she’s ... More Comment (1)
May Fire Published April 2, 2008
May Fire’s “You Make It Right” starts off with some fuzzy guitar and singer-guitarist-keyboardist Cat Tasso singing a simple melody through a distorted microphone. She ... More Post a comment
Ministry Published April 2, 2008
The release of The Last Sucker last September was heralded as Ministry’s final studio album. Al Jourgensen’s announcement of semi-retirement coincides with the coming retirement ... More Post a comment
Jay Reatard Published March 26, 2008
Jay Reatard is the questionable stage name of prolific Memphis resident Jay Lindsey, who has been recording and releasing music for about ten years as ... More Post a comment
New Model Army Published March 26, 2008
I tell Justin Sullivan that without rock, I might not have survived adolescence. I tell him that my 1960s teenage alienation was overwhelming, that rock ... More Post a comment
Cheryl Wheeler Published March 19, 2008
Cheryl Wheeler’s voice runs the table in terms of emotion. A singer/songwriter in the new-folk tradition, she teeters on the edge of a full-throated country ... More Post a comment
Built to Spill Published March 19, 2008
As the millennium turned, Built to Spill was one of the bigger names in indie rock, even if the band wasn’t actually on an indie ... More Post a comment
Explosions in the Sky Published March 12, 2008
One night I was flipping channels on TV and came across someone interviewing shred-guitar hero Joe Satriani. Satch was talking about how his music expresses ... More Post a comment
Vampire Weekend Published March 12, 2008
“Their music isn’t revolutionary,” says my friend of Vampire Weekend, “but it’s light and silly, and it makes me smile listening to little blips of ... More Post a comment
Bad Religion Published March 5, 2008
From the beginning, Bad Religion, a Los Angeles band, thought they had a plan for the world. “Don’t you know the place you live is ... More Post a comment
New York Dolls Published March 5, 2008
Everyone from Morrissey to Mötley Crüe name-checks the New York Dolls as an influence, but no one really sounds like them. Hardly anyone even tries. ... More Post a comment
Cannonball-Coltrane Project Published Feb. 27, 2008
“The initial thing was just to have a fun time one night,” says Luther Hughes via telephone from his L.A.-area home. Hughes is speaking of ... More Post a comment
The Raveonettes Published Feb. 27, 2008
The Raveonettes are a duo, and their sound is all about dualism and contrast — noisy guitars and careful vocal harmonies, Danish accents and American ... More Post a comment
Liars Published Feb. 20, 2008
Last week I interviewed Stan Ridgway of Wall of Voodoo, and something he said has been nagging at me: “The music that I always found ... More Post a comment
Marilyn Manson Published Feb. 20, 2008
“I don’t mean to be nosey,” says David Letterman during an interview with Marilyn Manson, nonplussed by the vampirish figure seated before him, “but do ... More Post a comment
Richard Elliott Published Feb. 13, 2008
Richard Elliott first caught my ear during the mid-’80s as a member of one of the West Coast’s hottest funk/jazz bands, Tower of Power. Later, ... More Post a comment
Stan Ridgway Published Feb. 13, 2008
“We were not really part of that whole MTV, new wavey thing,” says Stan Ridgway, speaking about his old band, Wall of Voodoo. This comment ... More Post a comment
Rodrigo y Gabriella Published Feb. 6, 2008
If the acoustic duo Rodrigo y Gabriella sounds more like a trio, it is because Gabriella Quintero’s right hand does the work of two guitarists. ... More Post a comment
Black Mountain Published Feb. 6, 2008
A couple of weeks ago I went to a party for an indie rock listserv I’ve belonged to for a long time and found myself ... More Post a comment
Rogue Wave Published Jan. 30, 2008
Does this ever happen to you? You’re listening to your iPod on shuffle mode and a song comes on that you just can’t identify. It’s ... More Post a comment
Swarmius Published Jan. 30, 2008
With his long curls, wire-rim glasses, and red plastic shoes, Joel Bluestone looks the part of the rock star. I’m backstage with him at Mandeville ... More Post a comment
Health Published Jan. 23, 2008
Los Angeles band Health (or, as the band members like to spell it, HEALTH) has two MySpace pages — one to showcase the band’s noise ... More Post a comment
Stanley Clarke Published Jan. 23, 2008
Stanley Clarke is back after a five-year respite from solo recording. He has a new CD and a hot young band that is reviving the ... More Post a comment
Legendary Shack Shakers Published Jan. 16, 2008
Jello Biafra has called Legendary Shack Shakers vocalist J.D. Wilkes “the last great rock and roll front man.” I don’t know about the “last” part, ... More Post a comment
Ben Kenney Published Jan. 16, 2008
Brandon Boyd plays up the new-age, en vogue rock star thing a bit too much for my tastes, but there’s nothing wrong with his band. ... More Post a comment
Electric Prunes Published Jan. 9, 2008
The Electric Prunes are best known for their 1966 hit “I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night),” a great song and a fantastic example ... More Post a comment
L.A. Guns Published Jan. 9, 2008
It would be a mistake for history to remember L.A. Guns only for the temporary merge with Hollywood Rose that spawned the first official lineup ... More Post a comment
Jeannie Cheatham Published Jan. 2, 2008
“I wasn’t a singer,” says Jeannie Cheatham after I tell her how much I have enjoyed her singing over the years. “I was always a ... More Comment (1)
Get Back Loretta Published Jan. 2, 2008
It’s probably a bad idea to name your band with a Beatles reference, especially if you write melodic, exquisitely arranged guitar-pop songs with lots of ... More Comment (1)
The Aggrolites Published Dec. 27, 2007
Belly Up Tavern, Monday, December 31, 9 p.m. 858-481-8140. $38. The Aggrolites say they are not a ska band, but for the life of me ... More Post a comment
The Germs Published Dec. 27, 2007
Of all the bands to come out of the Los Angeles punk scene, the Germs were always the best cut out for a tacky biopic. ... More Post a comment
Venice Published Dec. 20, 2007
Belly Up Tavern, Thursday, December 20, 8 p.m. 858-481-8140. $17. Jackson Browne says they're one of his favorite bands, and he compares their vocal harmonies ... More Post a comment
Janiva Magness Published Dec. 13, 2007
Anthology, Friday, December 14, 7:30 p.m. 619-595-0300. $9 to $27. It's hard to talk to blues singer Janiva Magness and not bring up the rub ... More Post a comment
Imperial Teen Published Dec. 13, 2007
The Casbah, Saturday, December 15, 8:30 p.m. 619-232-4355. $14. Back in the mid-'90s, Imperial Teen charmed critics and indie audiences with their simple, hook-filled songs ... More Post a comment
Ahmad Jamal Published Dec. 6, 2007
Anthology, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, December 6-8. 619-595-0300. $18 to $63. The music that Ahmad Jamal was making in the early 1970s spoke of kinder ... More Post a comment
Scissors For Lefty Published Dec. 6, 2007
The Casbah, Thursday, December 6, 8:30 p.m. 619-232-4355. $17. San Francisco has been a big town for Britpop since before they called it Britpop. I ... More Post a comment
Jonathan Richman Published Nov. 29, 2007
Belly Up Tavern, Monday, December 3, 8 p.m. 858-481-8140. $15 Iggy Pop and Frank Black and the Violent Femmes all have Jonathan Richman in common, ... More Post a comment
Vampire Weekend Published Nov. 29, 2007
The Casbah, Sunday, December 2, 8:30 p.m. 619-232-4355. $12. In October, New Yorker magazine published "A Paler Shade of White: How Indie Rock Lost Its ... More Post a comment
Iron and Wine Published Nov. 21, 2007
4th & B, Tuesday, November 27, 8 p.m. 619-231-4343. $20. There are many singer-songwriters trying to sound like the new Nick Drake, but that goal ... More Post a comment
Van Halen Published Nov. 21, 2007
Cox Arena, Sunday, November 25, 7:30 p.m. 619-594-0429. $79.50 to $149.50. If 1984 was the best Van Halen album ever, then Van Halen III had ... More Post a comment
Count Basie Orchestra Published Nov. 20, 2007
Anthology, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, December 21-23. 619-595-0300. $21 to $63. The trick of the jazz big-band ensemble is to sound as one, such that the ... More Post a comment
Eric McKeown Published Nov. 15, 2007
AcousticMusicSan-Diego, Saturday, November 17, 7:30 p.m. 619-303-8176. $18 or $22. I thought Sing You Sinners was a fearless gesture, given Erin McKeown's catalog of funky, ... More Post a comment
Sea Wolf Published Nov. 15, 2007
Belly Up Tavern, Sunday, November 18, 8 p.m. 858-481-8140. $6. There are now more bands with the word "wolf" in their name touring North America ... More Post a comment
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