Oftentimes, singer-songwriter types are unfairly branded as wimps and wussies, especially when their music de-emphasizes edge in favor of emo. Fortunately, Pete Yorn has managed to find a happy medium. His third studio album, Nightcrawler, marks a quantum leap forward in terms of both urgency and impact, a creative advance…
The Rolling Stones may be the model for sustained survival skills within that fickle arena known as rock ‘n’ roll. But any mention in that exclusive domain must also include Cheap Trick, a band now celebrating its 30-year milestone as the prime movers of American power-pop. While early breakthrough hits…
One can’t help but chuckle at the Red Elvises’ appropriation of cheesy American culture — the colorful bow-tie tuxedos, the lopsided pompadours, singer Igor Yuzov’s lounge-lizard panache. The band’s flair for fusing Russian folk music with American surf, rockabilly, and even disco led to interesting concoctions like “I Wanna See…
Despite all the chatter about the death of Clematis Street, there’s still one nail that refuses to help close the coffin — the annual party known as Moonfest. And ironically, it’s the most morbid of them all. For more than a decade, Moonfest has been one Halloweenish party that’s not…
As lead singer and keyboard player of Southern rock greats the Allman Brothers, Gregg Allman is in fact the only band member left to bear the family name. After a 1971 motorcycle accident killed brother Duane (35 years ago this week), Gregg has been the group’s main man. And though…
If you’ve been racing down local dirt roads in your pickup, jamming to Toby Keith or Gretchen Wilson, then you should probably skip this week’s Hank III concert. Plastering a Confederate flag in your back window might buy you a redneck pass (and hopefully a good ass-whuppin’), but it doesn’t…
A lot of older punk-rock types tend to look down at Warped Tour bands, whining about how they’re “not real punk,” as if 1977’s going to repeat itself three decades later. But one band that does seem to please the geezers is Rise Against, whose thoughtful political punk is a…
Street beef: Method Man doesn’t seem happy with the way Jay-Z is running Def Jam, and he doesn’t seem to be alone. After all, his 4:21… the Day After was released on the same day as another huge Def Jam project, the Roots’ Game Theory, and neither seems to be…
Say Anything isn’t just the name of the vaguely punkish indie-rock band from Los Angeles; it’s also the band’s credo. Anyone who heard Say Anything’s …Is a Real Boy is familiar with vocalist Max Bemis’ impassioned rants against pop culture. But when Alternative Press magazine ran a missive by Make…
Falling on the person next to you is one way to get up close and personal at a roller rink, but it’s not recommended. At Saturday’s reggae-flavored “Up Close and Personal,” you don’t need wheels to get in on the action. Hosted by Hot 105’s Lady English and LynksFM.com’s Sir…
What hath goth wrought? More to the point, who wrought goth rock? Make no mistake: The genre sprang from both sides of the Atlantic. But on our own side, 45 Grave undertook the intermingling horror and punk of Berry, Bowie, and Bela Lugosi. Rewind to early 1980s, Los Angeles. Don…
Big Bill Morganfield has the right lineage. His dad is, after all, the late, great Muddy Waters. Of course, being the son of a legend can be as much of a burden as a benefit — living in constant comparison, always being referred to as junior (see: Sean Lennon, Ziggy…
The metal guitar riff ain’t what it used to be, and the bands on the Solid State Youngbloods II Tour are here to remind you of that fact. Oh, there’s plenty of low end and thrashy, palm-muted power chords to go around. But the sheer number of key changes and…
If funkmaster Isaac Hayes ever decided to join post-rocker Tortoise, they might sound a lot like the psychedelic dub of Sound Tribe Sector 9. Mixing metaphysical interests like Maya mysticism with jazz aesthetics and electronica, the Georgia five-piece is identified with a spacey jam-band rock that’s original, danceable, and completely…
Since its 1999 formation, Strike Anywhere has fought the good fight, hardcore style. The impassioned quartet from Richmond, Virginia, has never strayed from a steadfast DIY aesthetic and socially aware sing-along messages. The live shows spew a furious chunky sound as singer Thomas Barnett bangs his head and twirls his…
After beating up on the ’60s generation for its “Never trust anyone over 30” mantra, punk rock itself has entered its third decade as bands like the Vibrators celebrate their 30th b-days. So can we trust them? Well, yeah — much more so than the major-label-sucking pop-punk bands of today…
Have you heard the new John Mayer album, Continuum? Oh, so you’re not into “adult-contemporary” stuff, you say. Perhaps you’re still nauseated from Mayer’s 2001 hit, “Your Body is a Wonderland.” The thing is, that’s the old John Mayer, before he became a born-again bluesman. Mayer hasn’t totally abandoned his…
In the pathologically trend-obsessed milieu of indie rock, the desire to separate your band from whatever sound or scene invigorated you in the first place is the community’s brand of hubris. It hangs over everything the French Kicks do. It’s not exactly their fault. They had the misfortune to have…
San Jose’s Heavy Heavy Low Low plays a mixture of light, ambient synth-rock and space jazz. OK, so that’s obviously bullshit. The band’s called Heavy Heavy Low Low for a reason — there’s nothing New Age about it, just loads of sludgy, metallic riffage and agitated, screamo-style vocals. It’s all…
For a band that spends so much of its time on-stage — playing at least twice a week, sometimes twice a night — the Spoon Benders aren’t what you’d call a studio band. So it’s only fitting that the funky rock trio is recording its next album far outside studio…
It’s taken only two years for Revolution to become Broward’s most ambitious venue for live music. In that time, the club has played host to an astonishing mix of artists, from Fall Out Boy to the Black Crowes, Wu-Tang Clan to the Church, and Lagwagon to Liz Phair — more…
Despite the fact that Jennifer O’Connor has been likened to songwriters like Liz Phair and Elliot Smith, such comparisons don’t say anything about O’Connor’s melodic sensibilities or her ability to spin a phrase. Sure, O’Connor has a tendency to spew some venom on occasion. And true, she does anchor her…
