Weekly FeaturesNov 19-25Issue 2.27by Jeff Wilson • The White Album was probably the only serious candidate for an underground station—that or Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Although none of its songs were hits, Pepper’s generally had more of a pop sound than The White Album, and because at that point the wow factor associated with Pepper’s was still fresh, it got much more press. Of all the Beatles records, The White Album seemed the most…read more by Ben Westhoff • I went to a Lower East Side venue a few months ago to see my friend’s band play, but a singer named John McGrew that came on later upstaged them and everyone else on the bill that night. Brooklyn singer-songwriter McGrew’s fearless vocals and showmanship won me over immediately, as did his backing band the SitBacks’ spontaneous brand of indie-folk and pop-gospel.…read more by Steve Turner • Originally published in NME, 6 October 1973
Manager Mike Appel is talking in the dressing rooms of the Spectrum stadium in Philadelphia. "When I first came across Bruce it was by accident," he says, "but when I heard him play I heard this voice saying to me... Superstar. I couldn’t believe it. I’d never been that close to a superstar before."…read more Recently in Feature Stories Recently in Classic Vantage
by Greg Gaston • Produced by Dave Jordan and Shane himself, The Snake plunges us back into the Irish bard’s maelstrom of gutter vibes and lyrical tales. ...read moreby Max Mobley • There comes a time in many bands when the members have to sit down and figure out how the pie they bake every night will be legally divvied up. ...read moreby C! Team • Sometimes life calls for seeing some deep, introspective music, and sometimes it calls for some surreal English wit, and other times it just calls for the tank top-clad glory of Danzig. ...read moreby Sean Nelson • If you regard the period between 1971 and 1975, from Blue to Summer Lawns as a single narrative, then C&S is the unquestionable climax. ...read more
In March of 1967, when the Doors drove up to play two nights at the Matrix, Marty Balin’s new nightclub on San Francisco’s Broadway, they’d already released their first album, but it wasn't selling all that well. The single of "Light My Fire", the song that made them stars, wouldn't be released until July; still, they were expecting a club full of stoned hippies and some kind of a psychedelic orgy for their San Francisco debut. According to John Densmore, about eight people...read more by Jocelyn Hoppa"there's a duality at play... while the focus is often on the beast, the beauty is not exactly chaste either"...read more by Jessica Gentile"nearly every song will make you want to sip girly drinks while lying in a hammock, swaying by the beach"...read more by Steve Matteo"reminds us just how powerful the songs alone are without full studio embellishment"...read more by j. poet"ranges from the cosmic to the mundane, from giddy happiness to dark paranoid delusions"...read more by Angela Zimmerman"adoring sentiments are scattered throughout the record like love-strewn rose petals"...read more Gene Simmons
1979, Location unknown
Photography by Joe Sia It’s not a photograph of Gene Simmons unless he’s sticking out his enormous tongue, and that’s exactly what the Kiss bass player is doing in this stunning Joe Sia capture from 1979. The smoky red stage lights illuminating “The Demon” pair beautifully with the color of his cape (and, of course, his tongue, which was surely dripping fake blood later in the gig). Kiss was still riding a massive wave of success in 1979: the year before, the band simultaneously released four solo albums, and their follow-up, Dynasty, exceeded platinum sales levels. They stylistically stumbled a bit in the years after, but as this photo makes clear, Kiss’s glittery hard rock was a spectacle without parallel. View the Rock Art Rock Gallery See more Kiss photography |
Daily UpdatesNov 19Best Song Ever Wednesday .jpg) "Between the Bars" by the late Elliott Smith is more than just a drunken, sad sack song. An early cut on 1997's Either/Or, a title that's a direct reference to Kierkegaard's book of the same name featuring the philosophical exploration of the internal struggle between an aesthetic or ethical life, it's this song where the album's theme culminates. And while something massive hangs in the balance, it's Elliott's sweet, depressed voice (much like booze itself) that attempts at a little comfort. Chilling, for all the right reasons.
Words on longtime Minneapolis mainstay Prince and his new life in Los Angeles. (New Yorker) Get out your calendars, Record Store Day is confirmed for 2009. (CMJ) It's Harvard Law School professor vs. federal copyright law time. (APNews) Rock Band fans welcome the Dead Kennedys to your home system. (Daily Swarm) Michael Jackson may be too ill to travel to London in a court case brought against him by the son of the King of Bahrain. (Reuters) Rumors abound that it could be quitting time for LCD Soundsystem. (Daily Swarm) It was only a matter of time... Chinese Democracy has leaked. (Idolator) The Boss reveals new album details, which is set to hit the streets in January. (Pitchfork) The Clientele were recent musical guests on the insanely unique Yo Gabba Gabba kids show. (My Old Kentucky) Will they properly reunite? Jane's Addiction plan on another intimate gig in LA. (Daily Swarm) A "mythical" Beatles track may be released, hinted at by Sir Paul himself. (Reuters) The New York Dolls are set to team up with Todd Rundgren again for a new album. (Pitchfork) Watch Will Sheff of Okkervil River sing the answers to interview questions. (Stereogum) “Some people try to pick up girls
And get called assholes
This never happened to Pablo Picasso” - The Modern Lovers, “Pablo Picasso” November 19, 1994 At Sony Music Studios in New York, Nirvana recorded their legendary unplugged performance for MTV. November 19th: 1905: Tommy Dorsey
1938: Ray Collins (Frank Zappa)
1960: Matt Sorum (Cult/Guns N Roses)
1965: Jason Pierce (Spiritualized)
1971: Justin Chancellor (Tool) If you're not yet convinced that Minor Threat was the best band ever, maybe this live video of "In My Eyes" will change your mind.
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