So, I know I've said this before , but I'm serious this time. After more than two years of writing about my favorite music, I've decided to put Under The Rotunda on an indefinite hiatus. It's been an absolute blast, but I've come to the same conclusion I did last August when I stopped for a few months. Which is that I could be -- and should be -- doing more valuable things with my time. Here's the story I shared last time: As some of you know, I am a musician myself. It [...]
Are we at the end of this year already? It's seems like just the other day I was working on my list of the best albums of 2007 -- any yet, here we are. As the year draws to a close, I'm happy to present you with one final article, the best albums of 2008. Although I don't think this year was as strong as it has been in the past for indie music, there were still a few stellar albums that saw release. What were your favorites? What are you upset that [...]
[EDIT: Sigh. This post was deleted by Blogger recently, without warning or notice, as usual. They don't tell you which posted MP3 caused the deletion, so I'm just going to try putting this post back up intact. We'll see what happens...] Are we at the end of this year already? It's seems like just the other day I was working on my list of the best albums of 2007 -- any yet, here we are. As the year draws to a close, I'm happy to present you with one final article, [...]
In the past year, Under The Rotunda has grown quite a bit. As several contributing photographers joined the team, the concert photography increased in quality exponentially. And while you saw the list of my favorite shows yesterday, today is reserved for the visual representation. Here's the best of what was featured here in the past year -- the best of Under The Rotunda's concert photography of 2008. Photos by Malora Mcintosh (The Mountain Goats, Headlights, Mock Orange, Amanda Palmer, Talkdemonic), Cassandra Marino (Shearwater), Erick Dela Rosa (Islands, Jaymay), and myself, Keith Nelson (John Vanderslice, The [...]
In case you haven't figured it out, I got to a lot of shows. More often than not, you can find me in the local rock club several nights of the week. There were quite a few extraordinary shows that I was lucky enough to have been in the audience for this year, and these are my personal favorites. As always, the list is given a strong boost from the summer music festival circuit in Chicago, from stellar performances at both the Pitchfork Music Festival and Lollapalooza. All in all, this list below is a representation [...]
In this day and age, the YouTube phenomenon is still alive and kicking. A prime example of this is Canadian sketch comedian Jon Lajoie, who has become an internet personality due to his numerous videos online, many of which are songs. And quite hilarious songs at that. Just take a few minutes and watch a couple of my favorites below. Lajoie is on tour as we speak, if anyone wants to find out if he's just as good performing stand-up. Jon Lajoie - Everyday Normal Guy
It has been said that I am a Christmas curmudgeon. A scrooge, if you will. This is merely because I can't stand listening to Christmas music. That's right, I absolutely hate it. I joined a group on Facebook called "I Will Maim The Next Person To Make Me Listen To The Holiday Lite". With all of this being said, here are a few of the tunes that relate to this holiday that I actually enjoy. I know I'm a little early, but this blog will be on vacation in a week and half [...]
If you poke around We Are Scientists' website , you'll find numerous blurbs and segments that will make you laugh out loud. Whether it's in their "Advice Column" or just poking around anywhere, their unique sense of humor is ingrained. And every time I've seen the band live, their banter is always entertaining and quite hilarious. So, with all of this being said, I was looking forward to sitting down with bassist Chris Cain. He did not disappoint, keeping his wit and sarcasm sharp throughout the interview. For example, when I asked him about [...]
In the wake of everyone's "Best Albums Of The Year" list, sometimes EPs get left behind. Too long to be a single, not long enough to be considered an album, the EP is still pretty important. Especially in the indie scene, many artists release an EP before they have enough material or clout for a full-length album. 2008 saw the release of many stellar EPs, here are my top picks. What are your favorite short-playing releasing from this past year? 1. JOE PUG - [...]
As I gear up for posting my favorite albums of this year, I like to take a look back at the previous year, and see what I missed. There are always some albums that you don't find out about until later, or maybe an album that takes you awhile to get into. In the past year, my 2007 list didn't change too much -- my top four are still exactly the same. Last year's list can be found here , but in hindsight, here are my choices for the best albums of 2007. New to [...]
Verb The Adjective Noun have been quickly building a local fanbase here in Boston with their exciting take on indie folk. The songwriting is excellent, and everything is performed with conviction and with emotion, and this shines through as one of their best features. You can't help but be roped in by the personality of the music. There is energy and excitement here, and that's exactly what the doctor ordered. If you're local, I'd highly recommend checking out their Myspace and taking a look at when their next Boston gig is. Their recordings [...]
As I begin to compile my "Best Of 2008" lists, I find that Juana Molina's latest album, Un Día (her fifth), is one of this year's best albums. Her music is a wonderful blend of her roots (she's a native of Argentina) and indie folktronica, and it meshes together perfectly. The songwriting shows influence in classic Brazilian music, but she fills up the record with electronic soundscapes and hypnotic repetition. Molina sings in her native tongue of Spanish, but that's no matter for non-fluent listeners. In fact, I think it may be [...]
Everybody has to take a break sometimes, right? I know daily posting has been a little shaky over the last month, but I'll be back in a jiffy with some great end of the year features. In the meantime, this should suffice.
I posted this last year, but it still makes me laugh. Happy Thanksgiving, kids.
In the last few months, you may have noticed the many times when a post was deleted from Under The Rotunda without warning or notice to me. It's a result of the newly created Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and it's not the record labels or artists that are behind the deletions. Jason, from The Good, The Bad, And The Unknown , recently wrote an open letter in response to this, and I agree completely with his sentiments. For [...]
A.A. Bondy. November 18th, 2008 at Great Scott in Allston, MA. Photo credit here (not from this show). If there's one thing that A.A. Bondy radiates in his music and his live performances, it's personality. Fresh off a tour with Cold War Kids, he was in full force last Tuesday here in Boston. As he played through songs from his debut solo album, there was a certain sincerity about him that just made me smile. A minute or so into his first song, he paused and mumbled something [...]
Pushing 50 with wrinkled varacose hands grasping at the straws of his youth, Axl Rose and his cohorts (a term used with a grimace, since the driving force is singular) released Chinese Democracy yesterday. This album has been the butt of jokes, the basis for lawsuits, and mastabatory fare for legions of heavy metal hangers-on for the last 15 years. If you were lucky, yesterday you signed up for free Dr. Pepper. If you were unlucky, you bought Chinese Democracy . This album marks the end of an era for rock music. [...]
The guys in Apollo Sunshine are not only stellar musicians, but great people as well. That goes for pretty much every artist who I've had the chance to interview -- but Apollo Sunshine take the cake, being the first band to ever offer to buy me a beer. Maybe that was just because I had to wait around an hour before they were free to chat, but it was certainly worth the wait. As I to a nearby Thai restaurant with guitarist Sam Cohen and drummer Jeremy Black, we started to talk about Berklee College Of Music, [...]
It was twelve years ago today that DJ Shadow's groundbreaking album Endtroducing was released, and I figured there wasn't a better day to share his music. He's made many albums since 1996, but none of them match the power that he accomplished at his first attempt. In fact, Endtroducing is such an incredible album, I'm almost shocked that it was created only from samples of other records. Those bass lines, and everything else for that matter, sound so natural it's hard to believe that a musician didn't play them. But that's exactly what [...]
The Lucksmiths have been one of my favorite bands for many, many years. Ever since I first heard 1997's A Good Kind Of Nervous , I've been infatuated with their folky goodness. They've made some truly stellar albums and EPs throughout their 15 year career, and with that being said, their new album, First Frost , may be the best album they've ever made. Songwriting-wise, the Lucksmiths always capture their personality -- the music is fun, it's clever, it's catchy, it's beautiful. But arranging wise, sonically speaking, their latest offering is far [...]
Under The Rotunda
My Funny Valentines
Download: James Blake Live Album (Unofficial)
Lana Del Rey - Without You (Kill Paris Remix) [Dubstep]
Miike Snow - “Paddling Out” Jacques Lu Cont Remix (MP3 Stream)
Iron & Wine and Patty Griffin
