Archive for the 'Reviews' Category
So I here I am in the New Jersey dust bowl sitting through Street Sweeper Social Club featuring Tom Morello. While he is an innovative guitarist, I got nothing for him, I got nothing for Rage Against The Machine. I am here for Nine Inch Nails. If this is truly going to be one of those farewell tours that precede another farewell tour later on, I will be pissed. Street Sweeper Social Club is a mutation of “Kid Rock meets Poser Metal”. The PNC dust bowl is filling up and the crowd is respectably mixed in demographic. Morello, the guitar player for SSSC, tells the crowd to stand up for their last song (thankfully) but I adhere to no such demands from any front person.
read comments (0)BILL BRUFORD – A DRUMMER OUT OF TIME: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Author: Jeff Boule
The Bill Bruford Autobiography, definitive reading for progressive music fans, jazz fans, music practitioners from the novice to the professional, this book is the 21st century musician's survival guide. (Photo permission courtesy of Bill Bruford)
A few posts ago, I wrote about Bill Bruford, announcing his retirement from public performance as of the first of this year. I was angry, I was hurt, I felt abandoned, and most of all I was disappointed that one of the primary warriors of mundane music had laid down his small wooden swords for the last time. I could not understand why the world’s greatest drummer would hang it up while he was still undeniably a force in the industry, the industry he labels as “the industry of human happiness”.
Sometimes you need a good autobiography to make things clear, to garner the inside perspective. But be warned, and I was taken aback by what I encountered, the ending of this book is not what you would expect from a player of Bruford’s qualifications.
SLIMMED-DOWN TUBES SPRING FROM NY ON WORLD TOUR – B.B. KING’S 05-31-09
Author: Jeff Boule
(Photo by Lynn Vala)
If you are a bit longer-in-the-tooth as I am, you remember a time when MTV played music videos, those alleged promotional devices that were short-form movies scripted to coincide with the lyrics and tone of the song being promoted. If you consider this time period (from 1981 to about 1992) when we were still recovering from the post-disco era, music that suddenly had images to accompany the sounds seemed like a logical place for this 7-piece-plus musical theater troupe of a band. Since their inception through their last major release, they have been minimally a 7-piece. TWO guitars, TWO keyboardists, bass, drums and vocals with occasionally added female vocals, dancers, roller skaters, actors, sometimes just the guys backstage would walk around on stage and it would be so heavily populated no one would notice.
Last Of Last Of The New-Wave Riders – Utopia Storm Tokyo, 1979
Author: Jeff Boule
Utopia bid adieu after a night on stage. Photo by Coming Age.
It is painfully; finally time to wrap up the on-going series of reviews tackling the Utopia box set Last Of The New Wave Riders. This set features Utopia playing to the American-culture-starved Japanese inquisitive yet reserved audiences. Japanese audiences were the most accepting of the some-time obscure and were willing to hear out the overtly obscure. No better place to play Utopia’s material. Unless you are Todd Rundgren and in your enthusiasm to entertain you do something that mortifies the people in the first few rows.
Joe Vitale “Backstage Pass”
Author: Beverly Paterson
Equipped with a resume longer than the Mississippi River, drummer Joe Vitale has been playing music professionally since the sixties when he was just a kid. It was the early seventies when he came to worldwide prominence with Joe Walsh via “Rocky Mountain Way,” and since then he has been performing, touring and recording nonstop. Crosby, Stills and Nash, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, The Eagles, Dan Fogelberg, Rick Derringer, Peter Frampton, John Entwistle, Ringo Starr, John Lennon, Ronnie Wood, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman, Boz Skaggs, Eric Carmen, The Beach Boys and John Fogerty are all but a handful of famous folks he has worked with in one capacity or another. Read the rest of this entry »
AMY SERRATA
Author: Leigh Silbernagel
Amy Serrata’s self-titled debut album is a musical blend of soul, jazz, hip-hop and pop, threaded with themes of personal growth and positivity.
free download of the track “Rooted”
http://wdl7.streamhoster.com/elemental/amy-serrata-rooted.mp3
C
-leigh Silbernagel
Piper “Piper”/”Can’t Wait” (American Beat)
Author: Beverly Paterson
Prior to seizing the airwaves with prickly pop metal prizes like “Stroke Me,” “In The Dark” and “Everybody Wants You,” Billy Squier fronted a Boston, Massachusetts band called Piper. Signed to A&M Records, the group bore an image akin to something of a cross between Raspberries and Aerosmith. Despite the fact Piper received loads of promotion and press, they fell through the potholes and have largely been forgotten after all this time. Together for a few years, they cut two albums, which have been coupled onto one disc. Read the rest of this entry »
Beatles Bio Looks Behind the Myths
Author: Bob Bembridge
To London record executives in 1962, Liverpool may as well have been Timbuktu.
Small wonder that a provincial rock band calling itself “The Beatles” couldn’t beg, borrow, or steal a record contract. How a desperate Brian Epstein, after a crushing rejection by Decca, finally secured a recording contract is one of the many engaging stories told in Bob Spitz’s The Beatles: A Biography. Read the rest of this entry »
Acid Mothers Temple for beginners (like me!)
Author: Doctor B
I’d only heard a few of Acid Mothers Temple’s recordings before I saw them last April in Philadelphia. One of them was a seven-inch which sounded much to me like the output of any number of Japanoise bands, such as The Boredoms or The Machine Gun TV. Another was a live recording from 2004 which had them sounding like Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd jamming with Blue Cheer with members of Pere Ubu sitting in. This turned out to be merely a fraction of a fraction of the output of this extremely prolific Japanese psychedelic-rock band One day while I was in Philadelphia visiting friends, I heard on the radio that Acid Mothers Temple’s 2009 North American tour would bring them to a club in Philadelphia called Johnny Brenda’s. So I decided to make the trip and check them out. Read the rest of this entry »
VALENCIA UPDATE
Author: Leigh Silbernagel
Direct from Valenica’s email newsletter, here’s the latest update about the Japan Tour and all of the Presale Information you need.
-leigh Silbernagel
LAST OF THE NEW WAVE RIDERS, UTOPIA LAND ON THE WRONG PLANET
Author: Jeff Boule
Roger Powell from Utopia Photo by Coming Age
For those of you following my blogs, you know that some of my earlier posts were eradicated through the magic of ones and zeros. The reason I am bothering to repost them is that some are referred to in other blogs. Then when the hapless reader looks for those blogs they aren’t even there! This blog is BRAND NEW!!! This section of the box set Last Of The New Wave Riders never made it to press as concerts came first. I won’t be making that mistake this time. We will finish the box set and THEN begin an onslaught of new reviews. Upcoming will be The Tubes from B.B. Kings in NYC and then the Nine Inch Nails FAREWELL TOUR. Yup, you heard it right, Trenty is hangin’ up Nails. At least for a while. New Tori Amos album Abnormally Attracted To Sin will soon be reviewed here, and hopefully some new releases as well, as well as dipping our toes in some literary territory.
It ain’t all about Utopia, but we are going to review two more discs from the box set then we have all new events and music to sink our teeth into.
Various Artists “Off The Wall Volumes One & Two”
Author: Beverly Paterson
These albums, which are now available on compact disc, initially arrived on the shelves in the early eighties. Pressed in limited quantities via the Wreckord Wrack label, “Off The Wall Volumes One & Two” are nearly as rare and pricey as original copies of the featured singles, which were cut by sixties bands. Read the rest of this entry »
Soundtrack To Watermelon Munching
Author: HJ Mills
The seasons are nomads, and Summer has come back for a visit. Watermelon and berries are no longer in hibernation. There is now potato salad to make for the backyard barbeques to come. The beach becomes an opportunity again. Ball Mason jars are just waiting patiently to house freshly caught fireflies. And the songs of summer are ready to prove that they are just as luminous as sunlight glimmering through the trees. Read the rest of this entry »
Brothers of the Southland “Brothers of the Southland” (ZOHO Music 200906)
Author: Beverly Paterson
Are you ready for a new supergroup? If so, cordially cock your ears towards the Brothers of the Southland. Composed of Bo Bice from “American Idol,” along with members of Wet Willie, The Outlaws, The Allman Brothers and The Black Crowes, here’s a band highly educated in the fine art of southern rock, and plays the music in the manner it was intended to be played. Read the rest of this entry »
“Rocking Horse – A Personal Biography of Betty Hutton” by Gene Arceri
Author: Beverly Paterson
Conceived of several excellent interviews author Gene Arceri conducted with Betty Hutton, “Rocking Horse” covers the famed actress and singer’s life from beginning to end. Well written, interesting, informative and laced with a nice personal touch, the book stages a fantastic job of drawing the reader into Betty’s colorful, creative and often complex world. Determined to make her mark in show business, Betty was a hard worker and truly loved her craft. In spite of encountering some hardships, she persevered and became one of the most popular performers of the forties and fifties.
Eventually abandoning show business altogether, and the reasons why are effectively documented in “Rocking Horse,“ Betty went to work for a church, where she found the peace and compassion she was seeking. As is the case with anyone’s life, whether they’re a public figure or an ordinary citizen, Betty had her highs and lows. That said, there are moments of sadness to be had in “Rocking Horse,” but for the most part, the book celebrates her tremendous talents and portrays her as a genuine human being. Not only is “Rocking Horse” a must have for admirers of Betty Hutton, but for movie buffs in general.
The mere mention of U.S.A. and Destination Records causes obsessive collectors of sixties music, such as myself, to go weak in the knees and turn to mush. Run by Jim Golden, both these Chicago, Illinois based labels (located at 2131 South Michigan Avenue) produced some of the coolest singles of its genre. A generous sampling of these tunes can be heard right here, on this double disc set, which also entails a lengthy history of the operations, an interview with Jim Golden, swarms of photos and profiles on the featured bands. Read the rest of this entry »
92 in the Shade
Author: Anthony Medici
92 in the shade. An emblem of heat. The title of Tom McGuane’s modern classic novel. Phoenix was not quite that cool. It might have been all of a balmy 98 in the shade on my last trip there. 102 in the sun. Carless, and on foot, I was in search of LPs. Vinyl. Jazz vinyl. I scored my first vinyl at Grandiose, on East Pierce, a hip boutique with records, clothing and art. There I picked up a sealed copy of Stuff Smith’s Black Violin on MPS. I also picked up a double-LP on Arista Freedom (a short-lived but great label), Ornette Coleman’s The Great London Concert, recorded 1965, with David Izenzon, Charles Moffett and a small classical ensemble. I hadn’t seen this one before, and was glad to get it. There was also a nice copy of Jimmy Lyons’ “Some Other Afternoon” on BYG, but I already had that, so left it for the next vinyl hunter. In search or more vinyl, I was directed to Wax ‘n Trax, further along on Central Avenue, at Camelback; too far to walk. I would need to take the light rail train that runs along Central. As I attempted to finagle a ticket from the station dispenser, as the sun beat mercilessly down, and my hot sweaty hand clutched my bag of vinyl treasures, the question occurred to me: what is the melting point of vinyl? Read the rest of this entry »
“Waiting for the Sun – A Rock ‘n’ Roll History of Los Angeles”
Author: Beverly Paterson
Pinching its name from the third Doors album, “Waiting for the Sun – A Rock ‘n’ Roll History of Los Angeles” was originally published in 1996, then reissued in the United Kingdom in 2003 with a profile on Beck. Now available in paperback, bolstered by an introduction from the author, penned this year, “Waiting for the Sun – A Rock ‘n’ Roll History of Los Angeles” lives up to its lofty title and then some. Read the rest of this entry »
Utopia’s Last Of The New Wave Riders Hurtles Towards Oblivion
Author: Jeff Boule
Photo By Jeff Boule
Once again, we revisit, review and revise a blog lost to zeros and ones…
As we recover from the last two back-to-back weeks of the Deface Tour, we need to take it easy. With this in mind, we will be doing an abbreviated review (read: not a two-parter this week). We are continuing with our examination of the Utopia box set, Last Of The New Wave Riders. A set of live performance CDs spanning from early in Utopia’s career up to almost the end. This particular show, the Oblivion Tour, is a single disc. The only one in the box set that isn’t a two CD set. VALUE!
Various Artists “Do You Wanna Be In The Show?”
Author: Beverly Paterson