Until his “Callin’ Out” track was used on a Coca-Cola commercial, Bay Area MC Lyrics Born’s debut Later That Day was one of the most slept-on albums in recent years. Same Shit, Different Day, a remix disc meant to tide fans over until the next opus, isn’t as polished. But…
The legacy of New Order (and their prior incarnation, Joy Division) casts a long shadow over the rock world. The group hasn’t made a consistently entertaining album since 1989’s Technique, and, much like the once-mighty R.E.M., has been fading away via flaccid middle-age rockers devoid of innovation. But its new…
You know a trend has reached its nadir when it inspires progressively lamer bands to jump on the bandwagon. This was made clear when the Bravery, a Brooklyn act (with emphasis on the word act) whose mascara-and-leather fashion sense steers toward Good Charlotte, launched itself into the mediasphere with a…
Back in the Eighties and Nineties, everyone was a fan of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, thanks to singles such as “American Girl,” “Jammin’ Me,” and “Learning to Fly.” Though the group is years removed from its hit-making salad days, expect tickets to sell quickly well before the band lands…
You know punk is dead when New Found Glory hangs out in the VIP section at Gryphon, the ornately decorated nightclub hidden within the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino complex in Hollywood. The Los Angeles quintet was there for an afterparty celebration of its homecoming concert — the band…
Need to get your celebrity fix? Well, you can camp out on Collins Avenue and wait for one to stroll by, or you can get your money’s worth by seeing them perform at Y100.7s (WHYI-FM 100.7) Vera Cadillac Summer Splash. The all-hits roster includes radio favorites such as Ciara, Mario,…
In recent months Awesome New Republic, affectionately known by its many admirers as ANR, has been gigging all over the place, from Wynwood District warehouses and Churchill’s Pub to unnamed spots across the Southeast. What is it about this band, who combines your favorite sounds — crazy skronk-jazz, weird IDM…
The Bamboo Kids, the latest New York band to work its way down to these swamps, blows into town on a wave of good press from The Village Voice, NY Press, and just about every Big Apple punk-rock scribe there is. That doesn’t ensure that the Kids’ brand of old-school…
Well, it’s April already, and I’m still recovering from this year’s Winter Music Conference. Accordingly I haven’t been going out much and instead have focused on sifting through some of the stories that have flown across my desk. Some of them — including the scandal-ridden Ultra Music Festival, which has…
Tim Mosely, who goes by the performance name Timbaland, is one of the most innovative and influential record producers of the past decade, crafting major pop hits for artists such as Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliot, Jay-Z, Destiny’s Child, TLC, Eminem, Justin Timberlake, Alicia Keys, and Linkin Park. His remarkable success has…
Judas Priest, the British band who defined Eighties heavy metal with blood-soaked anthems such as Living After Midnight, has returned from the dead with a new album, Angel of Retribution, and, more important, a new world tour simply titled Retribution. This time they’re bringing Operation: Mindcrime auteurs Queensrÿche along, which…
When it comes to meaty rock, Razorlight stands up better than many of its dance-rock contemporaries. Owing as much to Oasis as to Blur, the London quartet deals in arena-rock anthems that are cool enough for the indie-rock crowd, thanks to Johnny Borrell’s wordy, literate lyrics and unusual choruses. Its…
Oh shit, here’s one of the guys who nearly turned turntablism, that ill-fated Nineties fad, into a full-fledged musical genre. Canadian DJ Eric “Kid Koala” San doesn’t so much cut-and-spin records as he scratches them into funny, whimsical, and melancholy compositions, whether it’s his interpolation of Charlie Brown’s “I got…
Edan’s first two albums, including the memorable 2002 disc Primitive Plus, found the Boston MC and producer romping through old-school styles like a goofy kid at a flea market. Beauty and the Beat, however, is a more mature release, a self-conscious throwback to the hip-hop psychedelia of the early Nineties…
Indie hip-hop, like most established music genres, has its own formalist traditions. The Perceptionists, a supergroup comprised of MCs Mr. Lif and Akrobatik and DJ/producer Fakts One, stick to those rules on Black Dialogue, reliably churning out a love song (“Love Letters”), the reg’lar-people/work-sucks track (“5 O’Clock”), and other stock…
Although not necessarily the first lady of modern R&B (an honor typically bestowed to Mary J. Blige), Faith Evans has carved out a decade-long career as a consistent and occasionally stellar performer. Her latest album is stocked with highlights, including the winsome first single, “Again,” where she sings, “If I…
Last year, Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire paired up for a memorable tour into the heart of Seventies soul, both blue-eyed and funk-tinged. Now the Windy City ensemble and the Detroit legend are returning for a belated encore, with their considerable legacies in tow. Expect plenty of singalongs to…
L.A. bands, whether they are rappers or kitschy electronic acts, are rarely taken seriously by music critics. And Seksu Roba is no exception. But its 2003 debut album, Pleasure Vibrations, is sunny and melodic, if somewhat goofy. (One of its best songs is called “LA Freeway.”) Granted, unlike Adult or…
Hot spring days are great for family outings: sitting in the sun, playing with the kids, and enjoying smooth and relaxing jazz and soul. This is what one can expect at the Riviera Beach Jazz and Blues Festival, a two-day event headlined by a handful of legendary performers such as…
On Lullabies to Paralyze, Queens of the Stone Age eschew the fuzzy guitar crush of their 2002 breakthrough album Songs for the Deaf, opting for a slick, modulated rock-and-roll carousel perfect for spinning in your sports car. This makes for some ace thrills — including the nifty rockers “Everybody Knows…
This past Saturday on a breezy yet warm night, the Nocturnal warehouse at 50 NE 11th Street in downtown Miami bubbled with flashing lights and pounding house music. On its rooftop lounge, club director Dade Sokoloff shuffled CDs into the mixer. He played Louie Vega’s achingly beautiful Elements of Life…
Damian lazarus Pawn Shop Lounge, March 25; Fairwinds Cafe, March 26 British DJ and producer Damian Lazarus purveys dance-floor futurism through his imprint Crosstown Rebels. The sound is at once familiar — think Rephlex-style Luke Vibert mixed with a bit of industrial techno — and eerie: the records he spins…
