Townes Van Zandt has been nicknamed the “Texas troubadour” and this is an apt description of the tragic singer-songwriter. Similar to John Keats and Dylan Thomas, Townes Van Zandt experienced a creative explosion between the ages of 24 – 25. His lyrics are inspired by the extremes in the landscapes of his home state of …
The first sound you hear on Hot Buttered Soul is Bar-Kays drummer Willie Hall’s blunt, bodied strike of the snare, followed by two booming kicks. The duration of that sequence isn’t very long; it’s a mere second, maybe a little less, in length. Yet, in essence, those 3 hits of the drumset represent the calm before the …
This album was inspired by the 1971 American road movie ‘Vanishing Point’ directed by Richard C. Sarafian and is an attempt to write an alternative soundtrack to the film. Bobby Gillespie stated “The music in the film is hippy music, so we thought, ‘Why not record some music that really reflects the mood of the …
All we really have is the promise contained within the present moment… I want to hear something new That was how Russ Curry, President of Curious Music concluded our interview. It was a thoughtful, personal statement. And perhaps the greatest mission statement any independent record label can hope to have. Curious Music was founded in …
Nobody knew Leelou’s secret and she tried hard to give the impression of a normal human. Sure, people noticed that she was different. Nocturnal and insomniac, free spirited, empathic but awkward to those she couldn’t feel. Hard even, cruel. The only things she liked about humanity were the children, punk, and the sea. With the …
In 1991, Adrian Thaws, better known as the smoky-voiced Tricky, was at a crossroad in his musical career. His contributions on pioneering trip-hop group Massive Attack’s legendary debut Blue Lines had been an introduction into the potential of his talent and capabilities. However, he felt creatively ignored by his frequent collaborators at Massive Attack, frustrated …
On Universal Beings, Jazz drummer & producer Makaya McCraven has crafted together a series of gigs from around the globe: London, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, using a different grouping of musicians for each gig / city). The live recordings were then pulled into the studio for processing. The result is completely new and …
When the Talking Heads finished touring for their equally masterful 1979 album Fear Of Music, the band decided to take a small break to explore other creative ideas. In this creative intermission, two of the band’s members, married couple Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz, were having doubts about staying in Talking Heads, especially as frontman …
by Mark Lager
We are listening to the city at night, but we hear only the nothingness of silence. We are back inside the church as the humming of the organ and the tentative, two-note guitar strum return us to the revival.
What was this truth so deep and profound that it could not be spoken in words but only carried on the night wind through the streets in acts of silence?
It was revolution.
It was that which is called peaceful.
by Blake Thomas
Before Jane Birkin, Serge Gainsbourg’s muse was French pop princess Brigitte Bardot, and his work with her was a mutation of swirling chanson with slight psychedelic leanings. But when ol’ Serge turned his gnarled eye towards the Mod-era British model and actress, all bets were off. The two were like a perverse, twisted Sonny & Cher; but instead of warming hearts, they lit a dark fire, like some erotic demons possessed with sexual desire.
