Blog: 18+

Dude. I don't have time for this blog. Seriously. And on top of that, I don't really even like music. Come on, music? Please. I'm gonna leave this piece in the dust. Over the next couple of weeks I'm gonna probably start a new one of these guys. It won't just be about music. I can't just write about music. I like 6 bands. Seriously. Ok, I'll see you guys later. -L.C.

Yeah, it was definitely a bummer when Stephen Brodsky put an end to his first post-Cave In band, The Octave Museum . But it took a mere few weeks for him to resurface with another project. This one is called Pet Genius and it also features J.R. Conners who was also in Cave In. This shit proves that Stephen Brodsky is some sort of super-human. Everything he touches turns to sonic gold. He could probably stand in front of a microphone and make armpit farts and it would come out sounding [...]

CLOUDS are FINALLY going on a U.S. tour, with labelmates and Chicago locals Pelican, no less. I'd like to think this decision has something to do with Kenny and I telling Adam that he needed to do this for us when we talked to him in the Spring. The final stop is in Chicago at the Beat Kitchen on August 24th. Speaking of Clouds, expect the Clouds/Zozobra interview to finally be up sometime this week.

Whoaaaaa..... I haven't written a substantial update in this thing for months! I've been super busy, and the 18+ staff underwent some changes. I guess what's happening is Kenny left so now this thing is solely mine. Hope you don't miss him too much I'm going to keep 18+ updated regularly. Expect record reviews, show reviews, music news and commentary, and general shit-talking. So, now for my first post back, five records that have come out in the past few months that need some reviewing. Enjoy! [...]

.....We're just a couple of busy dudes. So hold yer horses...within the next couple of weeks we'll be back with a full-blown update and then a ton more after that. We know you've missed us, so we're about to satisfy all your wants and needs very soon. See ya in a couple of weeks, losers.

Holy shit! A new Danzig release! On May 29th, "The Lost Tracks of Danzig" will drop like it's hot. This is a double-disc set of b-sides and rarities, spanning the band's entire career so far. Yeah, yeah, I know shit got a little weak after "Lucifuge" but this it still bound to have some kick-ass songs on it. Included are "Pain is Like an Animal" and "When Death Had No Name" which are actually two late Samhain songs which got turned into the first two Danzig songs. Glenn's taking us way back on this [...]

You should be listening to: Boris Why: Two dudes and a little lady from Japan make up Boris and are killing it so hard right now. Whether it's a hour-long drone/doom masterpiece of a three-minute long Motorhead-esque rocker, Boris can do no wrong. I swear to god, the Japs are the master race. Just listen to "Feedbacker." 45 minutes of fuzzy Pink Foyd-inspired psych mixed with bombastic explosions of drums and squeeling guitar solos. Boris [...]

Well shit. It's Monday, and there's actually some pretty exciting shit doing down. First off, Tony Lovato of third-rate Chicago based pop-punk crap machines Mest has, believe it or not, stabbed someone to death! Holy shit! Apparently he got in a fight with his ex-girlfriend's new dude-friend last night in the armpit of the country, L.A., and stabbed the dude in a fit of rage. Dude stepped back and saw exactly how much damage he caused and decided it would be the best if he turned himself in. Tony is being held on suspicion [...]

Whooaaaaa, spring break was nuts! Kenny and I did our breakin' at the MTV Beach House in Acapulco. I saw that kid do so many body shots off of so many hot babes it wasn't even funny. Every spring break from here on out in going to Mexico again. Fuck, man! Either way, the two of us are happy to be back in Chicago. We were lucky enough to go to the Zozobra/Jesu/ISIS show last night. It was a great time, to say the least. Zozobra was there [...]

Hey guys, Sorry Kenny and I haven't posted anything new or exciting todday. We've been too busy spring breakin'. See ya tomorrow dudez......

My black ass is down June 5th (via Touch & Go )

If there is anything that Keith Morris is, it's a complete nutcase. Once I saw an interview with him and he spent most of the time talking about how delicious the Nutrageous bar he was eating at the time was. And he wasn't doing it to be funny or ironic or anything. He just thought he was making some sort of valid point. Apparently he tells a bunch of lies about D. Boon on the Minuteman documentary too, but that's neither here nor there. Another thing that Keith is, without any sort of doubt, [...]

It's Friday- and that means I don't feel like doing shit. Watch both parts of this Spacemen 3 interview from around the time when Recurring came out and Spiritualized and Spectrum were already happening. Smoke dope!

Hey man, I wasn't fucking kidding when I said that there are some kick ass records coming out right now. For the past few weeks, I had been cuddling up to the softer side of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds with some gems off of The Lyre Of Orpheus , but since I've heard the new Grinderman record, I can't go back. The whole thing is mind-numbingly primal, and puts all these youngsters to total shame. It's going to be totally embarrassing to be Iggy Pop on March 20th when The Weirdness [...]

Ok, dude. So you're totally gay. Like really gay. We get it. But does that really give you the right to put your goddamn grubby-ass fingerless-gloved mitts all over this poor girl's titties?

Man- when it rains, it pours, and it seems like all of a sudden some fucking kick ass records are coming out. I don't know how I almost passed up the Black Lips ' new live record... probably because it came out on Vice of all fucking record labels, but anyway, it fuckin' rips! Recorded in the dirty capital of the world, TIAFUCKINJUANA, by the legendary John Reis (of Hot Snakes and Drive Like Jehu fame) there is no way on earth that this record wouldn't be good. Reis makes no effort to [...]

• Black Lips - Not A Problem » BlackLips-NotAProblem.mp3

I'm not quite sure what is going on with me this week, but the combination of being sick and being stressed has made things just a little more warped than usual. Strangely enough- it was easy to find a soundtrack to such a bizarre few days in Greg Ashley's Painted Garden . Ashley also fronts The Gris Gris , and his new solo record offers a stripped down version of their previous work. Hell, Ashley's last solo outing was called Medicine Fuck Dream , and I don't think you'd be far off in [...]

• Greg Ashley - Won't Be Long » GregAshley-WontBeLong.mp3

Why do DJs' egos keep swelling in Chicago? I don't get it man. I mean, sure, playing a bunch of songs that you didn't write off of your laptop to a bar full of really unnattractive, drunk hipster dorks must be reeeeeeeaaaalllllllyyy hard work, and being able to do all that while sporting a fashionable flat-brimmed New Era baseball cap and an ironic throwback basketball jersey is a pretty admirable achievement. No wonder your heads are so big! You have tons and tons of talent! Sike! You guys are [...]

Typically, I fucking hate when writers include some personal anecdote about how busy their lives are, and how whatever they are doing in the real world is so important- but I'm just giving you guys the heads up so you know that if this entry fucking sucks, it's because it's rushed and I have other shit to do. For example, I need to bathe. I also would like to eat sometime today. At this point, I don't even known how I came across Los Angeles' Alarma , but their anthem about fucking while high was something I [...]

I've decided to start a new section of 18+ in which we will judge records based entirely on their cover without ever listening to them. Our first edition features a record I got in the mail a few weeks back by Macromantics. I tried to find the album cover they used on the promo- but I couldn't track it down, so you're going to have to deal with the promotional picture they used for the album cover without goofy fonts to tell you what Macromantics is all about. A quick glance at this chick gets you instantly thinking [...]