It's time to start. Here begins our journey through the top 50 albums of the past decade. 50. The Postal Service - Give Up Ben Gibbard of Death Cab and Jimmy Tamborello of Dntel combine to make one of the best pop/electronic bands of all time. I have yet to meet someone who doesn't like at least one song off of this album. It flows [...]
Do you remember the early '90s? C'mon, think a little... it wasn't that long ago (and things haven't really changed all that much, either). It was a prosperous time! The Simpsons , Melrose Place , and Beverly Hills, 90210 had all started its reign on television (aka the FOX invasion), the '80s still bled into culture only with hotter colors, and America considered the Middle East a plausible area for democracy. Funny how things change, huh? Well, if you really dig deep - and squint between the cracks - you'll recall the [...]
Boys Like Girls - The Shot Heard Round The World "There's no such thing as a miracle" For their new album, Boys Like Girls have borrowed heavily from rock bands of the 80's. Think Bon Jovi and Def Leppard. They've also upped the electronic influence, becoming a band very different than the one heard on the first album. There are still some regressions back to whiny emo-ness, as I expected there would [...]
Last year Wild Beasts released an album that fell under the radar for most. It was a record that showed a lot of promise and had its moments but wasn't an all around champion. Hot on the heels of releasing Limbo, Panto Wild Beasts jumped right back into the studio to work on its follow-up. This time the band managed to crank out something that sounds far more mature and well fleshed out, something that may very well wind up being one of the better records of the year. Next week Two Dancers will release here [...]
If you listen to the radio at all, which I'm sure is not true for a majority of the readers, you might have heard the latest single from Boys Like Girls, Love Drunk. Not surprisingly enough, the next sophomore album from these Boston boys is of the same title and will be released in one week's time. A couple days ago the kind folks over at Sony Music sent me an advanced copy, which is one of the greatest perks of my job. Opening up the mail to the sight of the new Boys Like Girls album was like Christmas [...]
photo: Vince Alongi First up I heard Alexandra Burke 's new song the other day. The song, "Bad Boys" is the first song off of Burke's debut album and features Flo Rida and personally, I don't think it's as good as Lewis' "Bleeding Love." The critics are loving it at the moment and I personally quite enjoyed listening to it. I didn't really enjoy the production at the beginning of the song though. The synth just doesn't sound right to me and the constant left to right switching got annoying after a [...]
photo: Vince Alongi First up I heard Alexandra Burke 's new song the other day. The song, "Bad Boys" is the first song off of Burke's debut album and features Flo Rida and personally, I don't think it's as good as Lewis' "Bleeding Love." The critics are loving it at the moment and I personally quite enjoyed listening to it. I didn't really enjoy the production at the beginning of the song though. The synth just doesn't sound right to me and the constant left to right switching got annoying after a [...]
BOYS LIKE GIRLS TO RELEASE LOVE DRUNK SEPT. 8 "LOVE DRUNK" SINGLE SELLS MORE THAN 400,000 UNITS, TOP 20 AT BOTH iTUNES AND RADIO Frontman Martin Johnson to Perform National Anthem on Monday Night Football's Opening Game Sept. 14 Fall Headline Tour Presented by OP Kicks Off in October As Boys Like Girls continue to gain momentum for the Sept. 8 release of their sophomore album Love Drunk, the Boston band are gearing up for a busy fall. After appearing on ABC television's Jimmy Kimmel Live on the night of the album's release, Boys [...]
From the LA Times: By MICHAEL WALKER, Michael Walker is a free-lance writer based in New York. NEW YORK -- Les Paul is plowing through the last of his chicken supper at Fat Tuesday's, the tiny basement jazz club in Manhattan where he has performed two shows on Monday nights for the last eight years. It's 15 minutes or so before the start of the first set, and the tables ringing the stage are already filled. As usual, the 76-year-old guitarist and inventor, whose pioneering designs for [...]
And lo, the flock of hipsters descended upon their annual roost on Chicago's near west side, drooling over a weekend of music deemed just weird enough to be cool (or just cool enough to be weird?). Getting off the Green Line at Ashland this one weekend of the year is like becoming part of a living blob of flannel and tight denim, chattering and adjusting eyeglasses. Yes, it's that time of the year again. The Pitchfork Music Festival returned to Union Park once again, but this time it had even more hype than it ever has. [...]
Recommended Show: WEDNESDAY, JULY 15, 2009 JAGUAR CLUB, THE GRATES, APOLLO RUN, & SPIRAL BEACH @ PIANOS 158 Ludlow Street Manhattan, NY 10002 $10, 8PM Another month means another great residency at Pianos, this time from The Grates. What makes this show a must-see, however, are the fine supporting acts which include Spiral Beach and Juguar Club, giving you the best bang for your buck. Other shows going on tonight are listed after the jump. Jucifer @ Cake Shop Kaki King @ Stuy Town Aimee Mann @ City Winery Unisex Salon @ [...]
I don't know about you, but all this celebrating of our country's birthday has put me in a reflective state of mind. Call it reflective patriotism; how else to describe sifting through a half-century's worth of perhaps THE American of all-American weekly magazines - Time - for an embarrassingly sustained stretch of time (no pun intended)? It was worth it. What I found was an incredibly entertaining cross-section of cover stories over the years that earnestly and eagerly attempted to tackle many of the musical "trends" the staffers at [...]
In the words of Bob Marley, one good thing about music is when it hits you, you feel no pain. Bonnaroo, one of the largest eastern festivals in North America hosted more than 70 000+ people this year with headliners such as Bruce Springsteen, Beastie Boys and Phish. But really, these were just headliners and in my opinion, not the real headliners of the festival. With performers ranging from Of Montreal, the Decemberists, Animal Collective, and Grizzly Bear to Femi Kuti, PUBLIC ENEMY, Erykah Badu,and Murs, you could easily be a neutral fan of the Boss and Phish-or in my [...]
As I've stated before, I was a writer for glorious-but-defunct Stylus Magazine. One of the more popular re-occuring bits on the site was a feature that we called "Summer Jamz," which were customized mixtapes curated by the individual writers. The purpose was for each writer to compile a playlist to celebrate a mood, theme, or meditation based on the season. And even though Stylus lies in the internet graveyard, many of its writers still continue the "Summer Jamz" tradition through the website The Passion of the Weiss , which is run by the world's greatest hip-hop writer (and former [...]
Do people who actually still have jobs still get Summer Fridays in 2009? No matter, it's just a hook to hang an excuse for making weekly mixes again. How did it get to be June already? As usual, there's no theme here, just a bunch of song (mostly new this time) that I like a lot. You may remember, I actually segue the songs together because I'm a control freak who wants you listening to the songs in the order I put them in. Cover art for this first Summer Friday is by my friend Kate, who did a couple [...]
In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book. Carrie Vaughn writes a series of "urban fantasy" novels that are incredibly entertaining and impeccably paced. Since finishing Kitty Raises Hell , I have been recommending her books to the myriad fans of the Twilight series. In her own words, here is Carrie Vaughn's Book Notes music playlist for her novel, Kitty Raises Hell : [...]
Most bands shun comparisons to other bands. They'd prefer to be known for their own virtues and don't want any intimation that they're "unoriginal". Personally, I appreciate when critics cite a comparison because it gives me a reference point. But if the comparison is wrong or does a disservice to the band, I too am disillusioned. It's with this caveat that I make a comparison that I've never made before. Home Video shares a passing fancy for In Rainbows era Radiohead. There, I've said it. I've just compared a band to my favorite band in the world. It's a lofty [...]
Now that was the best American Idol finale battle in the history of the show! The only way that it could've been better is if it had been Kelly vs. Carrie. Or, well, if Kara had actually written a decent coronation song. But I digress. "The duel," as Randy put it, between the final two contestants standing, Adam and Kris , gave us three strong rounds with no clear winner. Ryan stated, the finale pitted "glam rock vs. acoustic rock" and "the guy next door vs. guyliner." He could've gone as far as saying it was a [...]
Charlie Wilson is best-known for being the lead singer of the Gap Band, whose string of platinum and gold albums produced hits like "Outstanding," "Yearning for Your Love," and "You Dropped a Bomb on Me." The consummate performer, Wilson's star shined bright on his solo outings as well: You Turn My Life Around (1992), Bridging the Gap (2000), and Charlie, Last Name Wilson (2005). And on the heels of 2005's gold-selling LP, "Uncle Charlie" topped Billboard's Hot Adult R&B Airplay, again, with the release of "There Goes My Baby," which spent eight weeks at [...]
Okay, I don't know about you but my fingers are TIRED! I've been busy voting for American Idol like a crazed tween girl for the last two hours. (Yes, I do vote regularly.) However, tonight, I voted with more passion, hope, fear and vigor than ever before. You see, we simply must must have a Kris vs. Adam finale next week. It would be a battle between the best top two Idols in the show's history. It would be an incredible show pitting two very distinct and different and deserving performers against each other in an [...]
WKND PLYLST!! This has nothing to do with NEW MOON!
new music from vampire weekend – cousins + music video
HOT CHIP TAKE another crack at IT and I’m IN
The Beach House Theory of 2k10.
Friday Five: Surf Songs
