Best Local AlbumTorche, Meanderthal Hydra Head Recordsmyspace.com/torcheThe underground metal cognoscenti revered the 2005 self-titled debut album by heavy hometown heroes Torche for its melodic take on sludgy sounds. But it was last year’s followup, Meanderthal, that won the band a wider audience and even more critical praise. (And even though…
Best Club DJDanny Dazemyspace.com/djdannydaze Danny Daze has been doing the DJ/producer thing for a while now, but he has definitely been getting plenty of attention recently. He spends as much time on the decks at clubs around the nation as in Miami, and when he’s here, you can catch him…
To read past installments of South Florida According to Brooklyn, click here. What I want to talk about this week is how I miss Miami. For the past two months, I’ve been living back in Ft. Lauderdale again. I was really excited to move back at first because my true…
Official Listening Party for Soulflower’s Electric Mothership Saturday, May 30, 2009 The Tikki Beach Boat, Miami BeachBetter Than: Whatever was going on across the street at the Eden Roc.The Review:It’s officially summer, as Miami’s schizophrenic weather patterns will make the average person want to stay inside and watch re-runs of…
Tiempo LibreFriday, May 27, 2009La Casa de Tula Night Club, Calle Ocho, Miami Better Than: Any other salsa night anywhere in town. The Review:For those who really know their salsa steps there was only one place to be last Friday. And that spot, of course, was the Tiempo Libre record…
Ace HoodSaturday, May 30, 2009Club Premier, Fort LauderdaleBetter Than: Your standard birthday bash Just a few years into his young career, local rapper Ace Hood has garnered mixed early feedback. Despite being named as one of XXL’s “Freshmen of 09,” and collaborating with some formidable names in the industry, Hood has…
Moving Units is a new column on Crossfade tracking the best-selling music at South Florida independent record stores. Top Sellers for the Week of May 22-29:Sweat Records, Miami1. It’s Blitz, Yeah Yeah Yeahs2. Entertainment, Fischerspooner3. Born Like This, MF Doom4. Sounds of the Universe, Depeche Mode5. Two Suns, Bat For Lashes…
Julian MarleyAwake (Ghetto Youths International)It’s been six years since Julian Marley’s last full-length. Awake, his third major release, comes to us at the height of spiritual and political alertness. The first African American president is in power, and our ever-growing global village is becoming even more interconnected, one Twitter as…
To read past installments of South Florida According to Brooklyn, click here.I want to talk about the bike scene in South Florida again, because there have been some really good events lately. We just did open sprints two weeks ago at Keirin Cycles in Miami Beach. Then this past weekend…
Hailing from Baltimore, Maryland, Surf Nazis on Ecstasy are a thrash-punk trio who, despite their name, are neither beach bums nor fascists. And they definitely don’t do raves. By their own word: “We’re not artsy. We’re not Nazis. We only play all-ages shows.” It’s an operational ethic that regularly brings…
Trey Songz Sunday, May 24, 2009 Sobe Live, Miami Beach Better Than: Anything I could have expected, given the hectic nature of Memorial Day Weekend. The Review:On Memorial Day Weekend the streets of South Beach were full of culture, excitement, and overall craziness, and the same could be said for…
To view a slideshow of pictures from Best of the Best, click here. Best of the Best 2009 featuring Bounty Killa, Mavado, Beanie Man, Rick Ross, Young JeezySunday, May 24, 2009Bicentennial Park, Downtown Miami Better Than: Being stuck on Collins Avenue The Review:Memorial Day signals time for dancehall diehards to…
Here’s a guide to some of the hottest parties tonight that kick off the long weekend on South Beach.Welcome to MiamiInk Nightclub, 717 Washington Ave., Miami BeachDoors open at 10 p.m., Tickets cost $30, miaminiceweekend.comSouth Beach Jump OffHosted by Fat Joe and Trick Daddy;With DJs Khaled, Entice, and BulletproofMansion, 1235…
The highly-anticipated (read the comments, doubters) NKOTB cruise docked at the Port of Miami Monday morning and dumped a couple hundred disappointed fans onto our shores. Danny Wood, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, Jordan Knight, Jonathan Knight, and 2100 of their biggest fans boarded the Carnival cruise ship Imagination under the…
Dear Chris Martin: Thanks for the show on Friday night. It was excellent.But before I go all gushy with praise — which I will, I promise — I should tell you that I was dreading your concert. Ever since I first heard your band in the early Aughts, I thought…
What do you get when you take Greg Grunberg and Adrian Pasdar from Heroes, Teri Hatcher and James Denton from Desperate Housewives, mop-topped Bob Guiney from The Bachelor, and Jesse Spencer and Hugh Laurie from House? Yes, the cast listing for the 2015 season of VH1’s Surreal Life, but also…
To read past installments of South Florida According to Brooklyn, click here.A couple of months ago I wrote about the difference between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami. I recently moved back to Ft. Lauderdale, and I’ve realized the two places are two totally different worlds. Granted, the greatest friends I have…
Notes from the Soundboard is a new column appearing every Wednesday on Crossfade, focused on pop music’s history and ongoing evolution. Lee Zimmerman shares insights and observations on how music continues to connect with the weirdness of the world. 1969 was, looking back with the benefit of 40 years of hindsight,…
My article on Rick Ross this week has drawn a lot of comments, some of them echoing my contention that Ross’s past fibs — about serving as a corrections officer, for starters — make him an altogether unreliable narrator. One commenter, however, has laid out a lengthy case (nearly as…
Nine Inch Nails and Jane’s AddictionWith Street Sweeper Social ClubFriday, May 8, 2009Cruzan Amphitheatre, West Palm BeachBetter Than: Sex.The Review:Friday night in West Palm Beach marked the kick-off of one of the summer concert season’s biggest tickets: NINJA 2009, a double-headliner vehicle for Nine Inch Nails and Jane’s Addiction. The…
Jane’s AddictionA Cabinet of Curiositieswww.janesaddiction.comJane’s Addiction is of those bands that, although its members don’t especially like each other anymore, wields an influence simply too great to allow the band to stay broken up. The game-changing L.A. quartet that treated alternative rock like heavy metal (and vice versa) is now…
Former Christian singer Katy Perry’s mischievously cute ditty “I Kissed a Girl” made her a pop star even hipsters could appreciate — at least until the next Lily Allen album dropped. “I Kissed a Girl” is fun, catchy and has the killer line about “the taste of her cherry ChapStick.”…
