Now that vinyl is making a comeback, it’s good to see folks appreciating the art of the album cover again, even though a recent article I read somewhere (and am too lazy to cite for reference) says that album art is shrinking as we move further into the digital age. Matthew Chojnacki’s new book, “Put The Needle On The Record”, takes us back to the glory days of the eighties, when not only album art was the rage, but many […]
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New Release Report 8/16/11: After The Throne
Still catching your breath after last week’s rollout release of Jay-Z & Kanye West’s “Watch The Throne” ? Well, today marks the final installment of this superstar release-the deluxe physical version (which Best Buy had a four day exclusive on, to the consternation of many music retailers) hits all music stores today. So now, you can get the album in any way, shape or fashion you would like. Happy now? Elsewhere on the release schedule, aggro-rock band Blue October returns with Any Man […]
Chart Stalker 8/11/11: Spirit of ’75
Yet another boring week on the Billboard album charts. Adele spends a 12th week at the top of the charts with 21, although she only needed to sell 70,000 albums to do it. Country star Trace Adkins and singer/songwriter type Mat Kearney debut in the Top Five. The biggest news comes from hipster-pop band Foster the People, as their debut album, Torches, jumps into the Top 20 and “Pumped Up Kicks” looks to be one of the year’s surprise hits. […]
Achtung! U2 Super Box Set to Drain Wallets Worldwide
If you’re a music geek (and let’s face it – you probably are, if you’re reading this), you know that music labels love springing expensive collector’s packages and box sets on gift-givers as the holiday season approaches (and like it or not, Christmas is less than five months away). Nirvana’s Nevermind is being reissued with a bunch of extra content for its 20th anniversary (because duh), Sting’s getting his first multi-disc career retrospective and even underrated or forgotten acts are getting the deluxe treatment. This year marks 20 years since U2 […]
Simon’s Back!: Duran Duran Announce Fall Tour Dates
Yeah, it’s been a hot minute since we professed our love for Duran Duran, but that doesn’t mean that the Fab Five Four Two Three Five Four haven’t been on our minds. Quite the contrary, actually. All You Need is Now is still in heavy rotation as one of our, and we tried (in vain) to get tickets to what we were told was an amazing club show at the Royale in Boston earlier this year. We got a huge scare when Duran lead singer […]
Ben Folds’ “Best Imitation” Dives Headfirst Into Vaults
If you’re the kind of music geek that I suspect you might be, there’s probably a soft spot in your heart for the music of Ben Folds. The witty singer/songwriter/pianist is one of the smartest and funniest guys to grace a major label – imagine Randy Newman and Joe Jackson thrown in a blender, with the songwriting virtuosity of a Billy Joel/Elton John-type – and, with his partners in Ben Folds Five (of which there were only two other bandmates), […]
Free Music! Ashley Arrison’s “Hearts on Parade”
Singer/songwriter Ashley Arrison was the subject of one of our very first “Who the Hell Is?” columns. Ashley’s a little bit rootsy, a little bit rock and roll, and a little bit pop. One of her benefactors, in fact, is a woman who shares similar characteristics, former “American Idol” champ and current Grammy-winning superstar, Kelly Clarkson. In the year since we spotlighted her, what has Ashley been up to? Well, she’s been recording her debut album, Hearts on Parade. The album is finished […]
“Watch the Throne” Album Coming Soon! Documentary Now!! And Tour Dates!
Got 10 minutes to spare? If you’re a Kanye West or a Jay-Z fan, you might want to have a look at the short film that was recently released, documenting their collaborative effort, Watch the Throne (out in one week). Of course, 10 minutes is nowhere near long enough to provide anything in-depth, but the mini-doc is pretty entertaining. Jay does much of the talking, and it’s cool to catch them (along with Jay’s wife Beyonce) in relatively unguarded moments-especially […]
Spin Cycle: Rahsaan Patterson’s “Bleuphoria”
With each subsequent release, the liquid-voiced Rahsaan Patterson edges closer to the outskirts of r&b. Originally lumped in with that group of singers that formed the “neo-soul” movement in the late ’90s and early ’00s, Patterson cut his teeth on accessible (albeit very accomplished) soul throwbacks; his output this millennium isn’t overly abstract or gratingly experimental – far from it – but his willingness to expand outward and expound on his unique sensibilities have granted him immeasurable artistic success. Wines […]
Welcome Home, Family…Er, FDeluxe!
To use a word more commonly associated with a popular documentary series, The Family was unsung. Generally the least praised of Prince’s peak-era side projects, their one album (released in 1985) is a psychedelic pop/soul/funk mashup that’s way more accomplished than it might seem. Featuring Susannah Melvoin, the twin sister of Prince’s guitarist Wendy Melvoin, as well as former Time members Jellybean Johnson and Jerome Benton, sax player Eric Leeds and vocalist “St.” Paul Petersen, The Family are probably best […]
