Guns N’ Roses
Chinese Democracy
Interscope
Frankly, after a decade and a half, I’m just happy that only some of this blows, instead of the whole thing – and as a bonus, several of the tracks that do blow are unintentionally funny. Not all of them, of course: “If the World” sounds so much like misbegotten jazz fusion that I kept expecting an alto-sax solo. But hearing Uncle Axl grumble the “Sorry” line “I don’t want to do it” like a pouty Homer Simpson cracks me up every ti
Over the next couple of weeks, Backbeat will feature some Top Ten lists from around the Village Voice Media chain. Click here for previous year-in-review coverage from Backbeat and VVM.
Hip-hop A-listers including Rick Ross, Akon and Plies were caught grossly exaggerating their gangster credentials this year. (Turns out they were painfully law-abiding. The horror!) But even if your favorite rapper wasn't caught in a lie, you can bet he or she put out a hilariously absurd record or two in 2008.
As we write this, two of Denver's most prominent DJs, Bedz and Quote, are holding things down in Phoenix at various high-profile galas. Bedz (pictured left), the Nuggets' official turntable maestro, is behind the decks at the Jam Session Center Court located in the convention center in downtown Phoenix. And for his part, DJ Quote is living up to his beatmaster handle at King magazine's assorted soirees, which are being hosted by Young Jeezy, Tyrese Gibson, Carmelo Anthony and Kat Williams at va
The Flaming Lips know all about putting on a hell of a show, and the Monolith Festival gig at Red Rocks in 2007 was one most phenomenal things to happen to that venue in the last few years. Lets hope for a repeat performance when the Lips return to Red Rocks Sunday, August 23 with Explosions in the Sky and Star Death & the White Dwarfs, which features Wayne Coyne's nephew Dennis. Tickets, which run from $36.75 to $46.50, go on sale Saturday, June 20 at 10 a.m. And as an added bonus, all tick
Time, aka Chris Steele, has been involved in the Denver hip-hop scene
for over a decade, and his current and future collaborators include Sole
of the Anticon collective, Talib Kweli, Drake, Kool Keith and C-Rayz
Walz. The snarkier hip-hop aficionados refer to the form Time writes
and performs as "alternative hip-hop" -- probably because it's as
musically daring and as experimental as its equivalent in the
underground rock scene. Time's lyrics are remarkable for their
literary quality, layers
Jay-Z, whose Blueprint 3 has been a strong seller since hitting the streets two months ago, just confirmed his 2010 North American tour that includes a stop at the Pepsi Center Monday, March 22. Grammy-nominated rapper Young Jeezy will open the show and tickets go on sale Friday, November 13 at LiveNation.com. Live Nation also just announced that film director/actor Kevin Smith had to cancel his show at the Fillmore Auditorium on Saturday, November 21 due to scheduling conflicts with his film
As reported last week, Jay-Z brings his BP3 tour to the Pepsi Center on Monday, March 22. Reserved tickets range from $39.50 to $99.50 and go on sale Saturday, November 14 at 10 a.m. On Monday, March 8, Bon Jovi also hits Pepsi Center as part of the band's Circle World Tour, which includes 135 shows in thirty countries over the next two years. Bon Jovi's latest effort, The Circle, hit the streets Tuesday, November 10. Reserved seats for that show range from $29.50 to $135 and go on sale Monda
