The name “Warlocks” was rejected by two of rock’s most celebrated acts: Members of the Grateful Dead and the Velvet Underground both used it before settling on their famed appellations. By employing the handle, Warlocks leader Bobby Hecksher risks unflattering comparisons, particularly from Deadheads, who are likely to regard his…
After achieving art-pop perfection with 2002’s Out of the Fierce Parade — a shimmering, Chris Walla-produced masterwork that combined guitar-rock punch and OK Computer-era keening — the Velvet Teen shocked fans and critics by forsaking guitars altogether and getting all cryptic and political on its 2004 piano-driven opus, Elysium. Fortunately,…
Formed in October 2005 as a charitable response to the Katrina debacle, San Francisco’s Fully Loaded immediately generated a sizzling response from trendy Bay Area audiences with its fierce blend of soul jazz, funk, Afrobeat and rock. A mere six months later, the group has taken its show on the…
Whether they know it or not, every F-bombing hip-hop smut-mouth currently earning parental-advisory stickers owes a debt of filthitude to Clarence Reid’s ebullient alter ego, Blowfly. Reid performed and produced R&B under his own name during the ’60s and ’70s, but he found fame of a more lasting, and lustful,…
Of all the Wu-Tang Clan members, Ghostface has had the most consistent output as a solo artist. His sophomore record, 2000’s Supreme Clientele, is a certified classic, while his other three releases are just a notch below in terms of quality. Bringing an old-soul sensibility to his emotionally charged raps,…
In 1866, the United States adopted the use of the metric system as lawful and valid for all purposes. More than a century later, most Americans still measure things in feet and wait for water to boil at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. If the old French measuring system is ever to…
Last month, Henry Rollins was investigated by authorities after a fellow airline passenger glimpsed him reading Ahmed Rashid’s Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia. After all, what kind of sick terrorist sympathizer would want to educate himself about the world’s second-largest religion? Haram had better watch out:…
If you’re wondering what Mick Collins — founder of venerable Detroit rockers the Dirtbombs — thinks of trendy garage rock, check the liner notes of the most recent ‘Bombs compilation, If You Don’t Already Have a Look. Defending a brilliant Yoko Ono cover, Collins says, “Fuck you and your white…
Nick Sullivan gives the impression that he could master just about any style of music he puts his mind to. Of course, that’s not always a plus: The history of popular music is littered with the corpses of chameleon-like virtuosos who never learned how to pick one genre and pour…
From his humble beginnings as a teenager spinning at weddings and school dances to traveling the globe performing at the biggest clubs to doing remix work for everyone from Sinéad O’Connor to Kylie Minogue, Miami’s Robbie Rivera has been involved with dance music for most of his life. His big…
This Holiday Inn parking lot in the heart of Hollywood feels like the surface of the sun. It’s just after 10 a.m. on Wednesday, February 8, the beginning of the Fray’s first national headlining tour. But while the mercury will rise to a record-breaking ninety degrees before the end of…
I’m not clairvoyant, but I’ll bet I know what you’re thinking right now. The Fray? The Fray! Enough already! For crissakes, how much more ink are you going to spill on these guys? The answer’s simple: I’ll keep writing about the Fray until the band’s tale ceases to be compelling…
Rilo Kiley frontwoman Jenny Lewis should be thrilled. After all, the February edition of Spin features a multi-page profile of her by notable scribe Chuck Klosterman. Unfortunately, though, the spread shortchanges Rabbit Fur Coat — a new side-project CD (made with the Watson Twins) that qualifies as her finest platter…
It’s only early evening, but the smoke in Sputnik is already hanging low when Erin Roberts shows up clutching a beat-up, pre-Oprah’s Book Club copy of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden. In her other hand is the eponymous debut full-length by Porlolo, the semi-acoustic project that revolves around her and…
A voice in the background is telling Thurston Moore to turn left. The muffled command wafting through the static of the cell phone could be anyone, but my inner gab immediately fantasizes Kim Gordon in the passenger seat navigating Moore through New York traffic. That’s the thing about celebrity, even…
Back in the early days of Mogwai’s career, an album titled Mr. Beast would have matched the band’s Category 5 noise hurricanes perfectly. But as the Scotsmen refined their sound over the next decade, moments of levity and clarity — airy synths, strings, eerie silences — made their emotional maelstroms…
A candidate for best and longest new band name of the millennium, Austin’s I Love You but I’ve Chosen Darkness has finally released its much-anticipated full-length debut. During the nearly three years since issuing its 2003 Britt Daniels-produced EP, the quintet has focused on sharpening its sound and building a…
Mark Lanegan was once a major player on the rock scene, but that was a long time ago. Ask the average person about Screaming Trees, and he’ll probably assume you’re referring to the Ents in The Lord of the Rings, not Lanegan’s grunge-era group. That’s just as well, though, since…
Growing up, Blake Sennett was just another Corey Feldman, destined to milk the reality-television circuit as an adult. With roles such as Pinsky on Nickelodeon’s short-lived Salute Your Shorts and Joey the Rat on Boy Meets World, his acting career was about as promising as G-Dub’s chances for re-election in…
With her squelched sensuality, sandpaper howling and sweet whispers, April Parks wields a powerful and multi-faceted voice. Unfortunately, that voice is already taken. If a reality show is in the works for Rock Star: No Doubt, Parks is a shoe-in. Despite the uncomfortable shadow of Gwen Stefani, her rich warblings…
Stoned Emotion’s freshman release drips with echoes of My Morning Jacket, John Mayer, Warren Haynes and even ’80s alt-rockers the Feelies. Lushly produced, the disc moves from one pleasing track to the next. Vocalist, lead guitarist and principal songwriter Phil Dudden’s everyman voice proves flexible, whether biting into the Southern-rock…
Richard Cheese, The Sunny Side of the Moon: The Best of Richard Cheese (Surfdog). Yes, lounge versions of rock songs are an old joke (see New Morty Show, Pat Boone, etc.). But as long as the arrangements are as well done as these, the joke doesn’t get old. Cheese sends…
