Given all the ink that’s been devoted to grunge over the past few years, it’s a little surprising that more has not been written about the Riot Grrrl movement. In Girl Power, author Marisa Meltzer devotes plenty of space to riot grrrls, as well as a slew of other female-fronted music genres throughout the decade including “Angry Womyn†(Alanis Morissette and Tori Amos), girl groups (The Spice Girls and Shampoo)…
Former Husker Du co-founder, drummer Grant Hart has a bit of a reputation for being a tad bit erratic when it comes to releases, so the fact that he hasn’t put out a proper album in 10 years, should come as little surprise. Hot Wax, his fourth solo effort, is not a drastic departure from his previous solo works. Not nearly as aggressive or groundbreaking as the songs in Husker…
England’s X-Ray Spex may not have garnered as much respect or attention as The Sex Pistols or The Clash, but they had their hand in influencing a generation of future punk and indie rockers, from Concrete Blonde to Le Tigre. Recorded in 2008, the CD/DVD Live at the Roundhouse England beautifully captures the energy from this late 70’s pop-punk band, reunited after more than a decade a part. X-Ray Spex,…
You’d think with The Simpsons, three offerings from Seth McFarland and every other show on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim we’d have enough adult cartoons by now. But HBO’s The Life and Times of Tim shows we have room for at least one more.
The political Right may have Ann Rand, but the Left has always had Howard Zinn, author of the fantastically inspirational A People’s History of the United States – a Bible of sorts to anyone who has ever questioned the way American history has always been neatly wrapped and presented to us in a red, white and blue flag. This beautifully-crafted documentary features passages from Zinn’s best-selling history book, read by…
Regardless of how well you think you know him, Ozzy Osbourne has a remarkable sense of humor and pretty spot on view of how the world sees him. For more than 350 pages, the Prince of Darkness opens up about his childhood, his rocky relationships, his addictions, his arrests and friendships, and is still realistic enough to end the memoir with the following phrase: “Ozzy Osbourne, Born 1948. Died, whenever.…
The concept of Pawn Stars, the History Channel’s latest stab at reality TV, is admittedly yawn-inducing. Set in a family-run pawn shop off the strip in Las Vegas, the show works thanks to the personalities of the shop owners and employees and an interesting collection of items that come into shop. The store is run by the Harrison men, three generation including the cranky, “I’ve seen it all†Navy vet…
It is easy to forget just how much of a transformative figure Elvis Presley was to music. The erratic behavior, the bloated Vegas period and dying on the can have all contributed to “Elvis as the punch line†rather than “Elvis as Rock and Roll Godâ€. This four disc box set will help remind just how much of an inspiration Presley was to, well just about any rock band putting…
ER was on the air for a staggering 15 seasons, so you’d be forgiven – if like me -you were unaware of most of the characters that surfaced in the just released twelfth season DVD set.
Wisconsin art rockers Laarks is just the type of band the trendy indie critics at Pitchfork drool over: a warble-y voiced lead singer, prominent use of synthesizers, and a strong affinity for Death Cab for Cutie songs. I don’t write for Pitchfork, so I can be honest and tell you there’s very little to get excited about over the band’s debut An Exaltation of Laarks.
I didn’t buy into the hype when Chuck was first released. I saw it as little more than a quick clone of NBC’s Heroes – appeal to the geeks and get instant ratings.
There are very few records that could illicit the almost academic like study of its origins, but Bruce Springsteen’s career defining Born to Run is one that can. Recorded nearly 35 years ago, the record was delayed in part due to Springsteen’s extreme perfectionism and intense pressure from the band’s record label desperate for a big seller after their first two efforts garnered critical praise, but failed to find an…
For the bulk of his career, Jason Yates spent most of his time hidden behind a Hammond B3 organ. But as his self-titled sophomore record shows, he actually belongs in front of the mic. Lying somewhere between jam band rocker and Americana singer songwriter, Yates writes heartfelt rock without skimping on the funk.
There have been a slew of movies created this decade with the backdrop of the Iraq war, but most have failed miserably. It seems British director/writer Armando Iannucci may have finally found the right formula.
This doc on Sid Vicious is appropriately brief. Considering the second bassist for The Sex Pistols was barely in the band before the group imploded on their first U.S. tour, the fact that this documentary is 80 minutes long is actually pretty impressive.
Laidback folk rocker Jack Johnson has been accused of writing the same song over and over again. If nothing else, En Concert, the Hawaiian singer’s live record, goes to show just how diverse he can be. Recorded on his 2008 world tour En Concert is everything a live record should be: expansive (the songs cover all five of his albums) and creative (the arrangements are far from predictable).
Lyle Lovett is one of those rare musicians that has earned a critic’s pass of sorts. Thanks to decade’s worth of brilliant songs, he’s allowed to put out a weaker album every now and then. Natural Forces, his latest, is not bad, but again not among his best. Though Lovett has managed to cast a pretty big net beyond the traditional country music fan with past albums, the dozen songs…
AC/DC is one of those bands where there is very little fence sitting. You either love ‘em or hate ‘em and I just happen to fall into latter category. The argument that always gets trotted out in discussing AC/DC is that the band sounds the same on just about every song on every album. Well… you’re right. They found a formula very early on that works: big crunchy power chords…
Standing stage left to Bruce Springsteen for the past three decades, E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons has had the opportunity to take in life from a unique advantage as a member of perhaps the greatest American rock band. In his wildly entertaining memoir, written with the help of his best friend Don Reo (creator of “My Wife and Kids†and a number of other sitcoms), Clemons manages to share…
My Effortless Brilliance is a throwback to early/mid-90’s Indies like Daytrippers and Walking and Talking – engaging characters, simple plots where not much happens, but the dialogue is refreshingly honest.
