Merle Haggard – Working Man’s Journey / 2007 Cracker Barrel / 12 Tracks / http://www.merlehaggard.com / Before I had a chance to read up on Merle Haggard, I had no clue that ey broke out of prison over 17 times before making a career for eirself as a country star. Haggard has came to complete a 180 in regards to working with and against the system. Where it was breaking…
Sally-Ann D’Amato is a native of Yonkers, NY, which is also home to one of her greatest musical inspirations, Ella Fitzgerald, a childhood friend of her grandmother’s. Sally grew up listening to her grandmother’s stories of Ella’s voice wafting in through the open windows on hot summer nights. It was this music that later inspired Sally at a young age to find her own voice.Up until the age of 12,…
Genetic Disorder #18 / $3 / :30 / 68M / http://www.geneticdisorder.net / Genetic Disorder was one of the few zines that I keep around after I review it. One of their earlier issues dealt with Satanism heavily, and brought to the table a great deal of primarly-source documents. For this issue, the size has changed (from a full to a half-sized zine) and the topic has changed (from Satanism to…
“…This compilation is the culmination of the very successful Members of the Trick 12” series. Compiled by TRICKSKI. Exclusive tracks include LEROY&DARNELL 4 Members Only, SCHMUTZIG DE MUTZIG Thank You Daniel and TRICKSKI tracks Paperbitch Move Me featuring HANS BLITZ (HEADMAN Livedrummer) on drums and YANNICK LABBÉ on the mic for the first time ever……..And listening to the compilation, one can only hope that it won’t be long until the…
The Ghosts of Ready Reference / :15 / 32 Pages / Fourth-Sized / Love Bunni Press, 2622 Princeton Road, Cleveland Heights, Ohio 44118 /Â Finally, a topic that I am familiar with and can vouch as being reasonably accurate. In The Ghosts of Ready Reference, Volume Two, a cast of characters has their lives in the library fleshed out through their interactions with a librarians. The typical cast of miscreants…
‘RED i CLAN’ is the brainchild of Sor (vox), a classically trained musician that studied classical guitar and composition in Europe. It grew from the need to make something new, yet still edgy. To accomplish this he enlisted the help of his friends, Drey (bass), Raul (guitar) and Alex (drums), all of whom are professional musicians.
Billy Vera – Hopeless Romantic / 2007 Shout Factory / 14 Tracks / http://www.shoutfactory.com / When I first received “Hopeless Romanticâ€, I really thought that Billy Vera was Billy Ocean. Imagine my surprise when I put the disc on and hear a very funky, soulful brand of rock instead of “Caribbean Queenâ€. For those individuals that do not know who Billy Vera is, ey has had a career in music…
Rolling Stone– Breaking Band “On their loud and raw EP Let’s Talk About It, which was written and recorded in a 1940s Spartan trailer, the band combines the Stooges’ raw power, Hendrix’s psychedelic flourishes and the White Stripes’ stripped-down blues rock.”
Johnny Bennett – Red Light Room / 2007 Self / 5 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/johnnybennett / The first track on “Red Light Room†is “Chance Meetingâ€, which starts out in an interesting way. This is due to the fact that Bennett’s vocals start out in a speaking role. It is only when the instrumentation kicks in that Bennett starts to craft eir own style of music. Bennett’s unique style links together…
CLARA HILL is one of the leading figures of Berlin-based label Sonar Kollektiv. With an impressive discography including the two critically acclaimed full-length albums Restless Times (SK074CD/LP) and All I Can Provide (SK099CD/LP) and many 12“s featuring the crème de la crème of Electronic and Jazz knob twidlers such as JAZZANOVA, ATJAZZ, VIKTER DUPLAIX, CHARLES WEBSTER, SLOPE, and KING BRITT. CLARA HILL belongs to those few artists that can look…
Genetic Disorder #17 / $3 / Half-Sized / 80 Pages / PO Box 15237, San Diego, CA 92175 / http://www.geneticdisorder.net / Genetic Disorder is probably one of the best zines that I’ve ever read, even if I have only had the pleasure to read one issue. This time, the format is different, the newsprint less newsprint-y, and the issue only goes by faster than before. Starting off with both of…
New York indie artist Ari Hest launched an ambitious new experimental music project titled “52,” a web-based subscription service designed to deliver a new song each week throughout 2008. In March, Hest will debut the new material in New York City before embarking on a West coast tour. In the first month, Hest has registered over hundreds of subscribers – mostly by word-of-mouth – and released four new original songs:…
The Jaguar Club – Ceci N’est Pas Le Club De Jaguar / 2007 Self / 6 Tracks / http://www.jaguarclubofnyc.net / Judging from the band’s web site title, there are more than one jaguar clubs in existence in the world. Anyways, this New York City band starts out “Ceci N’est†with a very angular type of rock. The disc’s first track, “Beat of My Heartâ€, takes a lot from the eighties…
Taking a page from the book of early 70’s super groups, One Tribe Nation is an eclectic mix of world-class musicians inspired by culture, diversity, and the concept of a single world community. Based in Los Angeles the group was brought together by the vision of guitarist Michael Sanders. His father, the late Will Sanders, was a pianist/singer who played and sang with The Inkspots,Cab Calloway, Mercer Ellington (The Embers),…
Wild Sweet Orange – The Whale EP / 2007 Self / 5 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/wildsweetorange / I guess Wild Sweet Orange is an act that has been making a name for themselves over the last few years. Through February and March they are going on a tour through the United States, so individuals have to be at least somewhat familiar with this indie-rock style. The disc’s first track is “Wrestle…
Torpedo Boyz – Cum On Feel The Boyz / 2007 Rooftop / 11 Tracks / http://www.torpedo-boyz.com / For the longest time that I had this disc in my possession, I could swear that the Torpedo Boyz were the Boomtang Boys, who (if all you can remember from 1999) had hits such as “Squeeze Toys†and “Picturesâ€. What the Torpedo Boyz come up with is similar in the sense that it…
The wait for the release date is nearly over! Bon Iver’s “For Emma, Forever Ago” is now available for pre-order at the SC Distribution site. Not only will the recipient get the best record they’ve heard in a coon’s age, they’ll also receive a beautiful off-set color poster that features a pastel-colored bear.Â
Monork To Die – Speed Of Light / 2007 Self / 3 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/monorktodie / “Saturday Night Shannon†is the first track on “Speed Of Lightâ€. Monork To Die is really trying to come forth with a track that could be accepted during the fifties, when all the boy-rock bands were present. Aside from a little too much in the way of distortion on the guitars, Monork To Die…
On April 1, 2008, Portland, Oregon space-rockers pacificUV will release their second LP, longplay 2, on WARM Recordings. At first listen, it might be tempting to lump Pacific UV into the pile of the umpteen bands that worship at the alter of Spacemen 3. But if you listen further and dig deeper, you’ll notice that there’s much more that’s going on under that pretty surface. Founded in 1998, pacificUV was…
Gather Children #4 / Half-Sized / 24 Pages / gstar@antisocial.com /Â I had talked to this individual for a decent period of time before actually seeing their zine. After talking to them for such a long period, the context of this zine begins to make sense. Utterly disjointed and manic in its nature, Gather Children is not an easy read. Starting off fairly linear with a very Jello Biafra-esque faux…