Label: Daptone Records Released: October 2, 2007 Label: Concord Released: October 16, 2007 It would seem that the essential component of soul music (old school or new) would be the soul itself, yet that is often just what modern soul and R&B lack. Too often even a good R&B singer has a tough time overcoming assembly line songwriting and synthetic… Read more »
Label: MVD Entertainment Group Released: January 22, 2008 This is the story of the Smiths through the eyes of Mike Joyce and Andy Rourke. Who you ask? The guys who sued Morrissey and Johnny Marr a few years back. Oh yeah, they were also the rhythm section of the Smiths. Under the circumstances, I expected Inside the Smiths to a… Read more »
Label: Geffen Records Released: November 20, 2007 I have long felt that Nirvana is grossly overrated. Bleach was a good grunge album and Nevermind managed to both transcend the genre and be in the right place at the right time, exploding into the faltering world of commercial rock. Even so, it’s more commercially important than musically. In Utero, however, is… Read more »
Label: Universal Music Released: February 5, 2008 The fact that this DVD flat out rules is no surprise. Iron Maiden is one of metal’s most technical and most literate bands and, as if that’s not enough, they’re a blast live. Other than a few foggy Spinal Tap-esque moments during the epic “Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” Maiden never comes across… Read more »
Label: Yep Roc Records Released: January 8, 2008 I usually listen to music on the cheap stereo in my little Toyota. But as I’ve listened to Angels of Destruction! over the past few months, I’ve encountered a problem that I’ve never, ever had before. The sound is just too big. In my book, big sound is a good thing. I… Read more »
Label: MVD Entertainment Group Released: February 19, 2008 After a brief introductory piece, this live recording from the 1989 ABWH tour moves into solo medleys by Anderson, Howe and Wakeman. While these clearly demonstrate things we already know (Wakeman and Howe are top notch technicians and Anderson is likely the not-so-distant descendant of an elf), there is little of real… Read more »
Label: Released: January 29, 2008 It’s not often that I find a record that offers as much musically as it does lyrically (unless, of course, it’s bad at both). On Highway Prayer, it’s hard to decide which Twilight Hotel does better. The songs fill the whole spectrum from the fun, upbeat opener, “Viva La Vinyl,” a song about record collecting,… Read more »
Lately, I’ve really struggled with the numeric rating in my reviews. Because one album may be great based on technical prowess and another based on innovation and another based on soul, it’s hard to determine how to put all of these together into one rating. So, I’m going to try something new. I will now give ratings in four categories… Read more »
Label: Deep Elm Records Released: February 18, 2008 At this point, emo is pretty played out, so even the genre’s best bands struggle to be interesting. Desoto Jones is certainly among emo’s best, but the real question is, do they transcend its confines. Oddly enough, emo has become a genre more concerned with technical skill than emotional release and Aurora… Read more »
Label: WeirdBeard Records Released: November 2007 Before they had an album out, I wrote about the material Mongrels had up on their Myspace page. It was a raw, manic mix of garagey soul (or soulful garage). Either way, they tapped into the excitement of the late 60s Detroit that would profoundly influence much of 70s hard rock, even if few… Read more »