December 2009
30 posts
5 tags
Let's talk about ska
Ska music. Is there a singe genre of music in all existence more subject to ridicule than ska?  Probably not, especially considering that when the broad majority of people think of ska they think of silly dancing, horrible dress sense and pandering douchebags like Reel Big Fish and the Aquabats. Not exactly what you’d call setting the bar very high. But anybody who has really taken the...
Dec 30th
1 note
4 tags
Dec 29th
11 notes
3 tags
ListenSufjan Stevens - Get Behind Me, Santa! Christmas...
Dec 23rd
Dec 23rd
12 tags
favorite shows of the year
every year, i go to a lot of shows. A LOT. maybe 20-30 or so, not including festivals, where i see another 10-15 bands or so. it’s the one thing i really spend a ton of money on. so here are my favorite shows from this year. in no particular order, because that would be just way too hard to do. anyway, enjoy. -black joe lewis & the honeybears - lollapalooza - chicago, il -black joe...
Dec 22nd
4 tags
some bands worth checking out
i love this time of the year. every major publication/blog out there releases their best of/top whatever lists of the year, from albums, to songs, to movies, to reunions, etc. the number of lists can be overwhelming. i do actively search out one particular list, and that’s the best new acts you never heard of, or best under the radar act, or most likely to break out in 2010, etc. some times...
Dec 22nd
3 tags
ListenDeath Cab For Cutie - Baby Please Come Home more...
Dec 21st
John Frusciante quits the Red Hot Chili...
Numerous reports have indicated that John Frusciante has once again quit the Red Hot Chili Peppers to further his solo career. Head over to www.rollingstone.com for his official statement regarding the circumstances behind his departure. Frusciante first joined the band at the ripe ol’ age of 19 following the death of oridinal guitarist Hilel Slovak in 1989. He recorded with the Peppers for...
Dec 21st
3 tags
Dec 21st
1 note
3 tags
Dec 21st
6 notes
4 tags
WatchWatch
Muse - Starlight - SNL thanks to the audioperv.
Dec 20th
2 notes
4 tags
WatchWatch
Muse - Uprising - SNL thanks to the audioperv.
Dec 20th
2 tags
Dec 20th
2 tags
Nickelback Band of the Decade? →
Well, according to Billboard they are. And two things are now official. Hell has frozen over. And Billboard has lost ALL of its remaining credibility in the world of music.
Dec 20th
3 tags
ListenJulian Casablancas - I Wish It Was Christmas...
Dec 19th
17 notes
Dec 19th
1 note
3 tags
Dec 18th
2 tags
muse north american tour 2010
muse is launching a full-out tour in support of it’s latest record “the resistance.” what makes this tour extremely intriguing is that it’s not a larger club tour (capacity circa 3200), it’s an arena tour. as a big muse fan, this idea, at least right now, doesn’t make much sense to me. why? well i’m glad you asked. i’ve written this before, and...
Dec 18th
4 tags
ListenCold War Kids - Audience one of my favorite bands...
Dec 18th
15 notes
4 tags
favorite songs of the year
i find it impossible to name a top song or a top album of the year. with so many different genres, how can music experts sit down and definitely say this is the best album of 2009, out of the 97 bazillion albums that were released this year. yes, it is a daunting task. so rather than try to convince you that INSERT ALBUM NAME HERE is the best album or INSERT SONG NAME HERE is the best song, i will...
Dec 17th
So the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame doesn't...
And the inductees are in. According to the Onion’s AV Club, this year’s inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will be ABBA, The Hollies, Jimmy Cliff, Genesis and The Stooges. This is great news considering it seems the Hall has sort of gotten off track the last few years. For shits and giggles, a quick breakdown on each of the soon to be enshrined acts: ABBA Their cred as a...
Dec 15th
1 tag
Dec 11th
Shit I Didn't Know Was on My IPod #2
Same drill as before. My IPod is clogged with all sorts of stuff, some of which I forgot I even had on there. Last night I hit shuffle and came across the following nugget of aweomeness: Song: “Messenger” by The Wipers It’s hard to understate the importance of foresight. Today when we think of grunge, we think of Seattle: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden....
Dec 9th
3 tags
she & him prep volume 2
she & him will be releasing the aptly named “volume two,” the follow-up to their 2008 release “volume one” on march 23, 2010. 13 tracks including an NRBQ cover as well as a Skeeter Davis cover. i’m pretty excited about this. when “volume one” came out, there was a whole, will they/won’t they release another album. while the title of “volume...
Dec 8th
3 tags
Dec 5th
Listen It’s late and I’m bored. Time to...
Dec 5th
The devolution of Weezer... in seven easy steps!
I hate being reactionary to other people’s posts, but Phil’s breakdown of last weekend’s Weezer show in Chicago I think stands as a great starting point for a much needed discussion about a formerly great band. More to the point, I want to talk about how they’ve almost completely devolved into some tweaked form of self parody. Let’s start with Phil’s general...
Dec 3rd
3 tags
Dec 2nd
29 notes
4 tags
weezer runs rampant through chicago
wow. that’s pretty much all i can about weezer playing the aragon ballroom. i saw weezer headline lollapalooza 2005. in many ways, it was a standard weezer, awesome songs, face melting solos, nothing insane, straight up rock for 90 minutes. last night was the total opposite of that show. rivers cuomo seems to have taken a totally new approach, an approach that involves him getting absolutely...
Dec 2nd
Rock jock
Probably of interest only if you’re from Beantown, but if you ever needed visual confirmation that Red Sox outfielder Rocco Baldelli is a Pixies fan, here’s proof. Dude also loooves the Amstel…
Dec 1st