In Germany circa 1969, the new generation was radically changing German music away from the bland pop Schlager songs of the past towards a psychedelic rock partially influenced by the American and British counterculture, especially Pink Floyd’s first two records Piper at the Gates of Dawn and Saucerful of Secrets. Conrad Schnitzler (a musique concrete …
Sleaford Mods spend the duration of Spare Ribs flashing their teeth but never doing much to actually bite down. Given the beef that they started with England contemporaries IDLES, Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn seem to view themselves as the old guard, even though they have just been around for about a decade and a …
VCR’s and vaseline, tv-fucked by plastic queensCash in hand and dick on screen, who said God was ever clean?Bible-belt ’round anglo-waste, putting sinners in their placeYeah, right, great if you’re so good explain the shit stains on your face Marilyn Manson, “Cake and Sodomy” (from: Portrait of an American Family, 1994) *** It just took …
Viagra Boys – Welfare Jazz (2020) Maturation is a very intricate, intimate concept. And it becomes even more intimate when it is put to music, especially to punk music. Some artists and bands try to pursue their bombastic qualities as long as they can write catchy riffs and bass grooves, others evolve their sound to …
SHAWN CIAVATTONE “Not listed by rank or importance expect that Rose City Band’s Summerlong is as close to perfect as we deserve.” (Summerlong is our album of the year. Read full review here) Rose City Band – Summerlong Ripley Johnson creating a cosmic country rock masterpiece. Sparse and beautiful songwriting that brings orange sunshine to …
When I first heard Elvis’ voice I just knew that I wasn’t going to work for anybody; and nobody was going to be my boss. Hearing him for the first time was like busting out of jail. Bob Dylan There is a disrespect towards Elvis that does not fit his achievements and heritage of being the …
One of the songs Elvis Presley liked to perform in the ’70s was Joe South’s “Walk a Mile in My Shoes,” its message clearly spelled out in the title. Sometimes he would preface it with the 1951 Hank Williams recitation “Men With Broken Hearts,” which may well have been South’s original inspiration. “You’ve never walked …
“Footsteps in the Snow” (Claude Debussy)Written by French composer Claude Debussy on December 27, 1909, this piano prelude is perhaps the quintessential piece of classical music concerning winter (alongside Franz Schubert’s Winterreise.) The slow, soft tones move from D minor to E minor to F minor–a melancholy, moody tune. “Heart of the North” (Basil Kirchin)Where …
The late John McGeoch once opined that, “everyone remembers where they were when they first heard Public Image”. Certainly, that was true for me. I was in my bedroom, where I spent all my time when not in record shops. I recall I was lying on the bed. I also remember where I was when …
Let’s be clear: electronic music didn’t begin in the 1980s. Innovations in electronic noise have been developing since the end of the 19th century. Both Italy and Russia had important Futurism or “Futurismo” movements that greatly advanced modern music. Each subsequent decade adding to the thinking, sounds and instruments musicians have at their disposal. Nevertheless, electronic music did …
