Tagged: monasheikh

Special thanks to editrix extraordinaire Jessica McGinley for last week 's Britney Spears -ified Under Cover! My last few months of writing 'Under Cover' have been one big lovefest. But sometimes I feel like balancing things out by tossing in a little sour with the sweet. Never one to shy away from the dissenting opinion, this isn't just about my need to hate on things every now and then (especially since some rockers make it so hard not to). I'm just trying to keep it real. And fun. And mix [...]

Every week I write praise pieces on great bands and how other great bands pay homage to them in the form of a great cover and overall musical greatness. Sure, I could continue focusing on the best of the best, but sometimes it's fun to talk about the music that never should have been made. Welcome to the sporadic and highly elusive Under Cover: WTF!? Edition . Why, you ask? More like why the fuck not !? Sometimes music journalists feel the need to report on something really horrific, whether it be the musician who refuses to fade away/burn out/go away/simply retire [...]

Hey all, welcome to a special Under Cover: Christmas Edition . Ever wonder why there is such a high incidence rate of depression during the holiday season? I'm no psychiatrist or anything, but I'm sure the fact that Christmas music is so unbelievably awful might have a little something to do with it. Christmas music can be so irritating! So hokey, so cheerful, so damn awful! And there's nothing worse than driving somewhere on December 25th, flipping through your favorite alternative and classic rock stations and seeing they've all been taken over by the same lame-ass Christmas songs. And there's only so [...]

Welcome to a special Under Cover: Showdown Edition . In the interest of mixing things up, I've decided to feature some very popular cover songs that seem to have outshined their original versions. Some of us may not even realize that the songs were originally someone else's since the cover version has become far more recognizable and is, perhaps, even better. These renditions are incredible because each took a great song, made it inherently their own, and turned it into something even more amazing. So which song is better... the original? Or the cover? We'll let you decide. Otis Redding (1965) [...]

I thought I might have been the only one at Sunday night's Mountain Goats show more excited and amped for Kaki King 's opening set, but I was surprised to see a few others were wearing the same hat. She is every bit as good as I've read in magazine praise-pieces and heard from Dave Grohl 's sound bytes. (Yes, he actually has been quoted to have said "There are some guitar players that are good and there are some guitar players that are really fucking good. And then there's Kaki King." ) Man, she owns more guitars [...]

Off With Their Heads? More like Off With Their Ears! If you're in the market for indistinguishable Brit rock to pad your collection, feel free to add Leeds' own Kaiser Chiefs to the mix. Their third studio release is perfect for fist-pumping frat boys in Hoboken bars who want to prove they have some semblance of indie rock cred but are far too lazy to research something a little less generic and slightly under the radar. That would require thinking, but then again so does most [...]

TK Webb & The Visions put on a great set perfect for guitar junkies and general rock enthusiasts alike on Saturday night. Their music is all over the musical map and they totally put on a stellar performance that showcased not only their debut album Ancestors (now available on Kemado Records) but just how unique their musical vision can be. And just seeing them live transformed my casual interest into actual intrigue. Currently on tour in support of their eponymous third studio release, Secret Machines got their space rock [...]

Stepping onto the stage before a crowd that was hardly interested in first opening act, Phil and The Osophers , the members of Bear Hands were comfortable, relaxed and ready to rock out for the entirety of their pre- Les Savy Fav time-slot at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. Within minutes of launching into their first song, these Brooklyn rockers had at least half of those in attendance toe-tapping and head-bobbing along to their breed of post-punk experimental indie rock. Alternating between jumpy electro-rock jams and somber [...]

Pogonophilia was alive and well Sunday night! Fleet Foxes folked it up hardcore at their second NYC show, much to the delight of some pretty enthusiastic fans. This Seattle quintet makes music that is warm, cathartic, lush, hopeful and fairly epic, but seeing them live is a whole 'nother level of musical genius. They describe their music as "baroque harmonic pop jams." Yeah, I just call it "awesome." Playing tracks off the Sun Giant EP as well as [...]

To most of us, 'monkey' means "furry little creature" or "furry little former Brit-rock darling" (see: The Monkees ). But to Blur frontman Damon Albarn and British comic book artist Jamie Hewlett (creator of the Tank Girl comic strip), "monkey" means an elaborate stage adaptation of a 16th century Chinese novel, Journey To The West , and their first major collaboration since their groundbreaking work on Gorillaz . An artistic dream team in their own right, Albarn wrote the score while Hewlett's duties includes set design, animation [...]

Hailing from Pittsburgh, Girl Talk (nee Gregg Gillis ) is a man on a mission to make you shake your ass on the dance floor like it ain't no thang. This former biomedical engineer quit his day job last year to pursue his real art and craft: mash-up style DJ-ing. Specializing in the creation of incredibly catchy "song blends," he incorporates the best highlights from popular Top 40, 80's, hip hop and alternative rock songs we all know and love, to make brand new tracks for us to continue loving. P Diddy [...]

NY Magazine sponsored the Highbrow BBQ at Solar One Complex, a solar-powered, "green energy" arts and education center along the East River. "Top Chef" fans of the indie rock persuasion flocked to the event in the name of a 2-year subscription to NY Mag , free food and beer, a chance to witness "Top Chef: Season 33 contestant Chris "CJ" Jacobson take on grillmaster duties and a full set by indie rock darlings Islands (all for 25 bucks!). All in all, it was your not-so-average rock n' roll beer-b-q along the NYC [...]