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Posts tagged "rock"
Spin Cycle: Nada Surf’s “The Stars are Indifferent to Astronomy”
It’s still hard to believe it has now been 18 years since Nada Surf’s “Popular” graced the airwaves. In fact, since 2002 (i.e. the last 10 years) the band has done quite well at establishing themselves as one of the finest indie pop rock acts for your money. Let Go is a stand-alone defining moment in their career – from the opening chords of “Blizzard of ‘77” we began to hear what separated Nada Surf from their pop rock leaning […]
Spin Cycle: Craig Finn’s “Clear Heart Full Eyes”
Craig Finn’s new solo album is out tomorrow. Does it measure up to the standard set by The Hold Steady’s catalog?
The Viewfinder: Van Halen’s “Tattoo”
Van Halen’s forthcoming album, A Different Kind of Truth, is notable for being the band’s first with original frontman David Lee Roth since 1984. The band released the video for leadoff single “Tattoo” today, and it’s our first real taste of the reformed band, boasting a no-frills aesthetic in crisp black and white. And on first impression, it’s just fine: Van Halen’s glory days may be behind them, but the newly-rejuvenated boys seem to be having a blast jamming together […]
The Jukebox From Hell 08: “Christmas Shoes”
This Jukebox From Hell installment is a special one, dear friends. Even as I write this, a Christmas tree glows proudly in my window; stockings for Drew, wife, and pets line the bookcase; in preparation for the holiday at hand, rolls of wrapping paper are stacked in the corner like the most festive teepee framework ever assembled. The brisk air is scented with the pine-scented Yankee Candle to my right; it’s almost depleted, but fear not, for we have backups. […]
Spin Cycle: Gym Class Heroes’ “The Papercut Chronicles II”
Titling their latest album as a sequel to their debut seems like a curious move for Gym Class Heroes. Back in 2005, The Papercut Chronicles was safe hip-hop for the Fueled By Ramen set – the Heroes wove strands of aggro punk and emo into their stylistic tapestry, and the results were more Fall Out Boy than Kanye West. (This, of course, long before Fall Out Boy ironically acquired Kanye’s penchant for hubris, outsized ambition, and Jay-Z cameos.) They’re a peculiar […]
Spin Cycle: Tom Waits’ “Bad As Me”
Back in 2006, Tom Waits released a sprawling odds-and-sods collection called Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers, and Bastards. At a massive three discs, and packaged like a dusty hardbound American tome large enough to bludgeon with, Waits decided to cut directly to the chase: each disc was named after the type of songs contained therein, according to which of the three titular descriptors it matched. That mentality isn’t unique to that set, though; in Tom Waits’ universe, in fact, brawlers, bawlers, and […]
Spin Cycle: Puscifer’s “Conditions of My Parole”
While some may not always enjoy Maynard James Keenan’s out and out weirdness, you do have to appreciate what he brings to the music scene. He’s a larger than life yet still intensely private figure, a passionate winemaker, and the core of two different but wildly successful projects: prog-rock gods Tool and alt-rock side project A Perfect Circle. But occasionally the man just needs to indulge his weirdness in a way that neither Tool nor APC will allow. For those […]
Spin Cycle: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin’s “Tape Club”
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin are easy to like, but they’re unlikely to be anyone’s favorite band. They’re a little too unassuming for that: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin write simple, unadorned pop songs. Classifying them as indie is difficult since, beyond their unwieldy band name and reasonably lo-fi take on things, their songs are generally catchy and devoid of pretense; lumping them in with groups that tread the indie/pop dividing line like Death Cab For Cutie or […]
The Blerd Interview: Bleu
When interacting with power-pop artist/in-demand songwriter/mutton-chop maestro William “Bleu” McAuley, one thing comes into crisp, refreshing focus: Bleu is one nice dude. You see, a few weeks ago, Bleu was nice enough to set some time aside to talk to us; when a technological failure resulted in an entire, story-packed interview getting lost in space, I was awfully glum. As an avowed and longtime fan, it was disheartening to lose so much interesting material, and to waste a favorite artist’s […]
Spin Cycle: That Handsome Devil’s “The Heart Goes To Heaven, The Head Goes To Hell”
I imagine that relatively few people decide to go to a rock concert twenty minutes before it starts. But, see, my wife and I were spending the week in Boston, and we had a Friday night with nothing on the docket. There was talk of a movie; there was talk of dinner, but ultimately, we wanted to do something unique, something singular. Take in a play, or some jazz, or climb a mountain (which, to be fair, is kind of […]